Prayer for a Busy Life

Prayer for a Busy Life by St. Teresa of Avila

How is it God, that you have given me this hectic busy life when I have so little time to enjoy your presence? Throughout the day people are waiting to speak with me, and even at meals I have to continue talking to people about their needs and problems. During sleep itself I am still thinking and dreaming about the multitude of concerns that surround me. I do all this not for my own sake, but for yours.

To me my present pattern of life is a torment; I only hope that for you it is truly a sacrifice of love. I know that you are constantly beside me, yet I am usually so busy that I ignore you. If you want me to remain so busy, please force me to think about and love you even in the midst of such hectic activity. If you do not want me so busy, please release me from it, showing others how they can take over my responsibilities.

Marking the First Week of Lent

How  We  Lent

We've tried a lot of Lenten devotional practices with the children over the years, some simple, some elaborate. We've done simple Lenten countdowns.  (You can find several ideas for those here.) Those are nice and predictable; the kids always like them, but they serve chiefly to mark time, with little if any instructive value.  We've also done the braided bread devotional, with the toothpick thorns.    Though it lacks the always-popular calendar marking aspect, it has a lesson and incentive which we appreciate. Part of that devotional is explaining to the children how our sins offend Jesus, using the toothpick thorns as examples.  Then, through the forty days, the kids get a hands-on lesson in "making up for offenses" by removing toothpick thorns when they performed good deeds. Really good stuff!  

But  none of those ideas were working for us this year. We're in the midst of another possible job change for my husband and a move across the country for all of us.  I'm just not mentally or physically "in the zone" right now for an elaborate "to do" this Lent.  But I really wanted to do something.

 Something simple.  Something that reinforces the understanding among the children that, though it's good and profitable to offer up our Lenten sacrifices, like sweets and TV (and coffee for me!), the whole thing is meaningless if it isn't done out of love for God.  And the best way to show love for God in the daily life of a kid is by showing love (a.k.a: being nice) to the people they live with.  Little Johnny Anklebiter may be kicking butt at offering up candy, in other words, but if he's pinching his brother and swiping crayons from his sister, too, he's missing the point of Lent.  I wanted something in a fresh new easy devotional for the season to drive this idea home (literally). We're supposed to be joining our hearts with Christ's during Lent.

Aha moment!  Joining hearts...  That was the ticket!

This is what we came up with:

 

Throughout Lent, every time I "catch" the children in a good work -- anything from doing their chores without complaining to sharing without being told -- they get to draw a heart of their own within Jesus' Sacred Heart.  We're planning on having His whole big Heart filled with our little hearts before Easter.  And we have a pretty good start, just one week in!

Cathy (13)

William (8)

This is a particularly easy devotional to make.  We used a whiteboard, but a piece of poster board would work as well.  With wet erase markers, we drew a big heart and fashion the crown of thorns across the middle, with the fire of Jesus' love at the top -- all signifying the Sacred Heart. We wrote one of the St. Bridget prayers on one side for the children (and us!) to keep in mind the great love Jesus had for us through His sufferings.  Truly; what is there that He could not have done for us that He didn't do?  And on the right hand side, we added the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi for some practical advice on charity and selflessness. But, I'm sure there are many prayers that would work very nicely.  Or the whole thing would work just fine without the prayers, too.

We used a wet erase marker for the prayers and the Sacred Heart Image just as a practical means of keeping it put until Easter, but we've been using  a dry erase marker for the little red hearts that the children fill in.  This way, if someone commits an error against charity that Momma catches, the perpetrator can go erase a heart. The children have been working for the happy chance to draw their little hearts in, puzzle-like -- and are in dread terror of having to erase one.  (None erased yet!) So, mission accomplished!  I'm getting just the effect I'd hoped for.  With no outlay of money and no complicated preparation. It's a good last-minute, no-hassle option if you haven't come up with anything yet.  :)  

I missed the deadline to join up with the "Keeping Love in Lent" carnival (that I just stumbled across!), but anyone who stumbles across this post, might want to trip over there, too.  Lots of really great ideas for families for Lent in the links!  Click here for the home page.

Spring Ember Days!

The Ember days are here again already!  Like hands on a clock or turning pages on the calendar, they remind us of the passing of time, particularly by way of the passing of seasons.    There are four Ember weeks during the year: one in Advent, the winter Ember Days, which we observe after the Feast of St. Lucy (Dec 8th); in spring, during Lent, falling on the first full week after Ash Wednesday; in summer, the week after Pentecost Sunday; and in autumn, following the Feast of the Holy Cross (Sept. 14th). On the Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday of Ember Weeks, all those above the age of reason observe a day of partial abstinence on Wednesday and Saturday, and full abstinence (as usual) on Friday.  All three days are days of fasting for everyone between the ages of 21 and 59.  More about the particulars can be found .here.   And here.

These are the days that we praise God and thank Him for the beauty and bounty of the beautiful earth He's provided for us.  It's during the Ember Days that farmers, particularly, petition Heaven for good harvests, and the health of their livestock.  These days it might be a really good idea for all of us to beg for good weather, in general!  Maybe a little early spring for those suffering such a hard winter this year?  A relief from the droughts many parts of the country and world have been experiencing would be a blessing!  A year free of dangerous flooding, hurricanes and tornadoes might be a good petition, too!

Br. Philip, a couple Christmases ago...

But, aside for gratitude and petitions regarding our natural world, the Ember Days have traditionally been the time for ordinations, good reminders to us four times a year to pray for our priests and seminarians.  God bless all our wonderful priests!  And, most especially, prayers going up for all our seminarians -- some very dear to us shortly to be ordained in Omaha -- and our own son, Br. Philip (pictured on the right), who continues on his journey toward the priesthood with his compatriots at Mater Dei.  Our prayers and thoughts are with them always, but especially during Ember Week!


Sharing some good prayers for our seminarians and priests:

Daily Prayer for a SeminarianUntil his Ordination to the PriesthoodO Jesus, Eternal High Priest,
I offer You through Your Immaculate Mother Mary,
Your own Precious Blood, in all the Masses throughout the world, as petition for graces for all seminarians, Your future priests, especially for............

Give them humility, meekness, prudence, and a burning zeal for soul. Fill their hearts with the gifts of the Holy Spirit.Teach them to know and love the church, that they may always and everywhere speak, act, and think with her, the glorious spouse of Christ.

Teach them generosity and detachment from worldly goods; but above all, teach them to know You and to love the One and Only Eternal Priest. good Shepherd of Souls, hear this my prayer for saintly priests.
Amen

Prayer of St. Therese of Lisieux for Priests
1. 0 Holy Father, may the torrents of love flowing from the sacred wounds of your divine Son bring forth priests like unto the beloved disciple John who stood at the foot of the cross; priests, who as a pledge of your own most tender love will lovingly give your divine Son to the souls of men.

May your priests be faithful guardians of your Church, as John was of Mary, whom he received into his house. Taught by this loving Mother who suffered so much on Calvary, may they display a mother's care and thoughtfulness towards your children. May they teach souls to enter into close union with you through Mary who, as the Gate of Heaven, is specially the guardian of the treasures of your divine Heart.

Give us priests who are on fire, and who are true children of Mary, priests who will give Jesus to souls with the same tenderness and care with which Mary carried the Little Child of Bethlehem.

Mother of sorrows and of love, out of compassion for your beloved Son, open in our hearts deep wells of love, so that we may console Him and give Him a generation of priests formed in your school and having all the tender thoughtfulness of your own spotless love.'


2.
O Jesus,
I pray for your faithful and fervent priests;
for your unfaithful and tepid priests;

for your priests laboring at home or abroad in distant mission fields.
for your tempted priests;
for your lonely and desolate priests;
For your young priests;
for your dying priests;
for the souls of your priests in Purgatory.
But above all, I recommend to you the priests dearest to me:
the priest who baptized me;
the priests who absolved me from my sins;
the priests at whose Masses I assisted and who gave me Your Body and Blood in Holy Communion;
the priests who taught and instructed me;
all the priests to whom I am indebted in any other way
(especially …).
O Jesus, keep them all close to your heart,
and bless them abundantly in time and in eternity.

3.
O Jesus, eternal Priest,
keep your priests within the shelter of Your Sacred Heart,

where none may touch them.
Keep unstained their anointed hands,
which daily touch Your Sacred Body.
Keep unsullied their lips,
daily purpled with your Precious Blood.
Keep pure and unearthly their hearts, 
sealed with the sublime mark of the priesthood.
Let Your holy love surround them and
shield them from the world’s contagion.
Bless their labors with abundant fruit and
may the souls to whom they minister be their joy and consolation
here and in heaven their beautiful and everlasting crown. Amen.

Today is the day to start a novena to St. Joseph!

Many people begin novenas to end on the day before a special feast, but they may also be timed to fall on the feast day, itself.  That's how we like to do it, but there's no right and wrong way!  In fact, though it's pretty neat to end a novena on a saint's particular feast, you certainly don't need to do that, either!  We're usually not on the ball enough around here to get the timing right, anyway! But that shouldn't stop us from using this efficacious means of prayer. Heaven knows, we all have needs that spring up out of the blue -- and some that are just on-going. No need to wait! We can start a novena any time we like.  

Likewise, though there are many beautiful prayers prescribed for novenas, any prayer can be used for the purpose. Just repeat it with your petition nine days in a row. That's the sticking point; you can't miss a day! It seems God is pleased with us when we stick to a thing with commitment and devotion enough to remember it nine days in a row.  (I know I'm always impressed with myself when I make it all the way through, too!)

But, St. Joseph.   How can you say too much in praise of our St. Joseph?  He's the patron of the Universal Church, the patron of the dying, patron of families, patron of workers...  He is always interested in us and in our problems, and always practical in his help.  His Divine Son -- who loves him very much, indeed -- gives St. Joseph what he asks.  He is sure help in our need!  

Listed below are a good handful of prayers that are novenas, or can be used as such  Begin today and you can finish  (like we hope to) on March 19th!

Words of St.Teresa of Avila 

“I took for my patron and lord the glorious St. Joseph, and recommended myself earnestly to him. I saw clearly that both out of this my present trouble, and out of others of greater importance, relating to my honor and the loss of my soul, this my father and lord delivered me, and rendered me greater services than I knew how to ask for. I cannot call to mind that I have ever asked him at any time for anything which he has not granted; and I am filled with amazement when I consider the great favors which God has given me through this blessed Saint; the dangers from which he has delivered me, both of body and of soul.” —Autobiography, VI, 9

 Prayer to St. Joseph for Our Children

Oh glorious St. Joseph, to you God committed the care of His only begotten Son amid the many dangers of this world. We come to you and ask you to take under your special protection the children God has given us. Through holy baptism they became children of God and members of His holy Church. We consecrate them to you today, that through this consecration they may become your foster children. Guard them, guide their steps in life, and form their hearts after the hearts of Jesus and Mary.

St. Joseph, who felt the tribulation and worry of a parent when the child Jesus was lost, protect our dear children for time and eternity. May you be their father and counselor. Let them, like Jesus, grow in age as well as in wisdom and grace before God and men. Preserve them from the corruption of his world, and give us the grace one day to be united with them in Heaven forever.

Amen.

Prayer in a Difficult Problem

Oh Glorious St. Joseph, thou who hast power to render possible even things which are considered impossible, come to our aid in our present trouble and distress. Take this important and difficult affair under thy particular protection, that it may end happily. (Name your request.) 

O dear St. Joseph, all our confidence is in thee. let it not be said that we would invoke thee in vain; and since thou art so powerful with Jesus and Mary. show that thy goodness equals thy power. Amen, St. Joseph, friend of the Sacred Heart, pray for us.

“Would that I could persuade all men to be devoted to this glorious Saint [St. Joseph], for I know by long experience what blessings he can obtain for us from God. I have never known anyone who was truly devoted to him and honored him by particular services who did not advance greatly in virtue: for he helps in a special way those souls who commend themselves to him. It is now very many years since I began asking him for something on his feast, and I have always received it. If the petition was in any way amiss, he rectified it for my greater good . . . I ask for the love of God that he who does not believe me will make the trial for himself—then he will find out by experience the great good that results from commending oneself to this glorious Patriarch and in being devoted to him . . .” —Teresa of Avila, Autobiography, VI, 11-12

Prayer to St. Joseph

We come to you, O blessed Joseph, in our distress. Having sought the aid of your most blessed spouse, we now confidently implore your assistance also. We humbly beg that, mindful of the affection which bound you to the Immaculate Virgin Mother of God, and of the fatherly love with which you cherished the child Jesus, you will lovingly watch over the heritage which Jesus Christ purchased with His blood, and by your powerful intercession help us in our urgent need. Prudent guardian of the Holy Family, protect chosen people of Jesus Christ; drive far from us, most loving father, all error and corrupting sin. From your place in heaven, most powerful protector, graciously come to our aid in this conflict with the powers of darkness, and as of old you delivered the Child Jesus from danger of death, so now defend the holy Church from the snares of the enemy and from all adversity. Extend to each one of us your continual protection, that, led on by your example, and borne up by your strength, we may be able to live and die in holiness and obtain everlasting happiness in heaven. Amen.

A Boy Sweetheart's Daily Prayer

O St. Joseph, Model of justice, and therefore of husbands, I beseech Thee to direct me in my choice of a future wife. Grant me especially wisdom and deliberation in this choice. Make both my friendship and courtship especially chaste, unselfish, prudent, thrifty, and cheerful. Be my companion in single as well as in wedded life.

A Girl Sweetheart's Daily Prayer

O Mary, Model of pure love, and therefore of sweethearts, I beseech Thee to direct me in my choice of a future husband. Grant me especially wisdom and deliberation in this choice. Make both my friendship and courtship chaste, unselfish, prudent, thrifty, and cheerful. Be my companion in single as well as in wedded life. 

“To other Saints Our Lord seems to have given power to succor us in some special necessity—but to this glorious Saint, I know by experience, He has given the power to help us in all. Our Lord would have us understand that as He was subject to St. Joseph on earth—for St. Joseph, bearing the title of father and being His guardian, could command Him—so now in Heaven Our Lord grants all his petitions. I have asked others to recommend themselves to St. Joseph, and they, too, know the same thing by experience . . .” —St. Teresa of Avila, Autobiography, VI, 9

Indulgenced Prayer to St. Joseph

Patron of the Universal Church 

(TO BE SAID ESPECIALLY AFTER THE ROSARY)
 

To thee, O blessed Joseph, we have recourse in our affliction,
and having implored the help of thy thrice holy Spouse, we
now, with hearts filled with confidence, earnestly beg thee
also to take us under thy protection. By that charity, wherewith
thou were united to the Immaculate Virgin, Mother of God,
and by that fatherly love, with which thou didst cherish the
Child Jesus, we beseech thee and we humbly pray that thou
wilt look down with gracious eyes upon that inheritance
which Jesus Christ purchased by His Blood, and wilt succor
us in our need by thy power and strength.
Defend, O most watchful guardian of the Holy family, the
chosen offspring of Jesus Christ. Keep from us, O most
loving Father, all blight of error and corruption. Aid us from on
high, most valiant defender, in this conflict with the powers
of darkness, and even as of old, thou didst rescue the Child
Jesus from the peril of His life, so no defend God's Holy
Church from the snares of the enemy and from all adversity.
Shield us ever under thy patronage, that, imitating thy example
and strengthened by thy help, we may live a holy life, die a
happy death, and attain everlasting bliss in Heaven. Amen.

An Ancient Prayer to St. Joseph

Oh St. Joseph, whose protection is so great, so strong, so prompt before the throne of God, I place in thee all my interests and desires. O St. Joseph, assist me by thy powerful intercession and obtain for me all spiritual blessings through thy foster Son, Jesus Christ Our Lord, so that, having engaged here below thy heavenly power, I may offer thee my thanksgiving and homage.

O St. Joseph, I never weary contemplating thee and Jesus asleep in thine arms.  i dare not approach while He reposes near Thy heart.  Press Him in my name and kiss his fine head for me, and ask Him to return the kiss when I draw my dying breath.

St. Joseph, Patron of departing souls, pray for me.

“Those persons who give themselves to prayer should in a special manner always have great devotion to St. Joseph, for I know not how anyone can think of the Queen of Angels during the time that she suffered so much with the Infant Jesus without giving thanks to St. Joseph for the assistance he rendered to them then. He who cannot find anyone to teach him how to pray, let him take this glorious Saint for his guide, and he will not lose his way.” 
—St. Teresa of Avila, Autobiography, VI, 12

Prayer to St. Joseph the Workman 

Composed by Pope St. Pius X 

(State your petitions) 

O glorious St. Joseph, model of all those who are devoted to labor, 

Obtain for me the grace


 To work conscientiously, putting the call of duty above my natural inclinations, 

To work with gratitude and joy, in a spirit of penance for the remission of my sins, 
considering it an honor to employ and develop by means of labor the gifts received from God, 

To work with order, peace, moderation and patience, without ever shrinking from weariness and difficulties, 

To work above all with purity of intention and detachment from self, 
having always death before my eyes and the account that I must render of time lost, 
of talents wasted, of good omitted, of vain complacency in success, so fatal to the work of God. 

All for Jesus, all through Mary, all after thine example, O Patriarch, St. Joseph. 
Such shall be my watchword in life and in death.
 Amen

Prayer to St. Joseph for Employment

Dear St. Joseph, you were yourself once faced with the responsibility of providing the necessities of life for Jesus and Mary. Look down with fatherly compassion upon me in my anxiety over my present inability to support my family. Please help me to find gainful employment very soon, so that this heavy burden of concern will be lifted from my heart and that I am soon able to provide for those whom God has entrusted to my care. Help us to guard against bitterness and discouragement, so that we may emerge from this trial spiritually enriched and with even greater blessings from God. Amen.

Ite ad Joseph!

Do not hesitate:

Go to Joseph!

“Some Saints are privileged to extend to us their patronage with particular efficacy in certain needs, but not in others; but our holy patron St. Joseph has the power to assist us in all cases, in every necessity, in every undertaking.”  ~ St. Thomas Aquinas

The Feast of St. Dominic Savio

Prayer to Saint Dominic Savio

Dear Saint Dominic, you spent your short life totally for love of Jesus and His Mother. Help youth today to realize the importance of God in their lives. You who became a saint through fervent participation in the sacraments, enlighten parents and children to the importance of frequent confession and Holy Communion. At a young age you meditated on the sorrowful Passion of Our Lord. Obtain for us the grace of a fervent desire to suffer for love of Him.

We desperately need your intercession to protect today's children from the snares of the world. Watch over them and lead them on the narrow road to Heaven. Ask God to give us the grace to sanctify our daily duties by performing them perfectly out of love for Him. Remind us of the necessity of practicing virtue especially in times of trial.

Saint Dominic Savio, you who preserved your Baptismal innocence of heart, pray for us.

St. Dominic Savio's Prayer to Our Lady

O Mary, I give you my heart. Grant me to be always yours. Jesus and Mary, be ever my friends; and, for love of you, grant me to die a thousand deaths rather than to have the misfortune of committing a single mortal sin.

A short biography of St. Dominic Savio can be found here.

Catching Up on the Important News...

Meet our first Grandaughter!

Evelyn Elizabeth Davis

born on the feast of St. Casimir,

in the wee hours of March 4th

7 lbs, 6oz, 19" long

And she is so beautiful!!

"Evie" is the second child of our oldest son, Paul and his wife, beautiful Nicole -- and she is big boy Gavin's little sister. :) .

Gavin's pretty pleased to have his sister on the outside!

Our love and Hugs and Kisses to Paul, Nicole and Family!

We are feeling very very blessed!

(Can't wait to get out to see you all!)

Good Fences Make Good Neighbors

My Mom and Dad,  out in front of  Dad's parents'
row house, some Easter before I was born (maybe c. 1963)

My mother grew up in the country, where folks, from time immemorial, have marked their borders with fencing. You can wander out deep in the North Carolina woods and still see remnants of property lines long since abandoned and absorbed by the forest.  A post here, a couple strands of wire fencing there -- out in the middle of nowhere. I remember hearing stories about how the century-old country home that had passed down in my Mom's family was once crisscrossed by picket fences, some of them wild with climbing roses. Unfortunately, all the wooden fencing was gone by the time I arrived on the scene, and the whole property made easily accessible by my grandfather's riding mower, but there were still the remnants of the original barbed wire property lines out in the woods. 

 My Dad grew up in Baltimore, Maryland.  His parent's home of many years was a row house in the middle of the city (pictured above), and though the front stoops and broad front porches were accessible to one another for an afternoon chat with the neighbors, the back yards were all pointedly blocked off from one another and carefully separated
from the alleyway behind. If you ran down the alley behind the long, long blocks of row houses, you passed yard after yard after yard of narrow little oases, protected on all sides by fences, most with neat little patches of lawns, barbecue grills and lattice strap lawn chairs.

Big brother, Steve, and me, c.1967

 When we were little kids (make that the late '60s and '70s or so), my brothers and sisters and I were bound in by fences.  We were military, so moved around a bit -- but most of our homes had fencing of some kind  around the yard -- and the bases we lived on were bordered all around by fencing and gates.  We were double fenced!  

As Dan and I have raised our family, country or city, we've always felt secure with the safety of fences around us.  If the property didn't have any, we dug deep into our pockets and came up with the money somehow to build them.  Animals needed corralling -- and so did children.  It was also just a good practice to know where our neighbor's land ended and ours began.  A carefully sighted fence, properly placed along the property line has always truly made for good relations with our neighbors. Everyone's happier knowing their boundaries.

Our first five children, at the "farm" in
Eastern Colorado in the '90s.

So it is with life, in general, too  We have very basic boundaries, well known in the Western world, regarding morality, very clearly delineated in the ten Commandments. Even a non Christian has to talk pretty slippery to justify stepping over these boundaries; they're hard-wired into our consciences by God. Rock walls.  Not that folks don't scale them, and even knock them down in this crazy world...  but we all know they're still there.  Whether some folks like it or not.

But there are other  boundaries around our behavior, besides those obvious ten.  Maybe not rock walls...  Perhaps more like shrubbery borders, or t-posts and barbed wire. They arise from those first ten rules usually, somehow or another, or they come from just plain ole common sense. They can change with the time and the place sometimes, and often that's a good thing!  But, there are some rules that should be universal and eternal. Some rules -- you might call them "conventions" -- of human behavior  should always be respected as "property lines."   They protect us from danger, keep us from wandering where we don't belong, and allow for a sense of security, respect, and charity among us.  

Here are a few of the unwritten rules my husband and I thought of :

* Never touch the belly of a pregnant woman unless invited to do so.  If this isn't trespassing, I don't know what is!

*  Follow the traffic rules and regulations of the city, state, country in which you're traveling. This is a matter of actual civic law, but a lot of people think the speed limit, for instance, is just a suggestion. Never assume you know more about the safety of a road than the people who designed the rules for it -- even if it's right around the corner from your house.  People die because of this kind of carelessness and arrogance.

* If you're stuck in traffic and the shoulder is open, just sit tight and be patient.  In the opinion of some, the lower rungs of Hades are reserved for those who cut in line in traffic.

*  Just because you're a "hugger"  doesn't mean everyone is.  If you don't know someone well, don't presume to hug them.

*  In the same way, don't assume that just because someone is your neighbor, s/he wants to be your best friend.  Be kind and respectful toward one another from day one, then if a friendship develops, great.  If not, don't push it.

*  Show deference for those less capable than you. If you're young (say, under 60) and healthy, always give up your seat on a crowded bus, public event, or in church to somebody who isn't. (Men, women, boys, girls -- doesn't matter)

* Men, hold doors open for ladies.  And ladies, thank the men who open doors for you -- it's a sign of respect for you that a gentleman remembers this kindness.  Courtesy is part safety gate, part bridge.

*  Men, always put the toilet seat down, even in a public restroom. In a house full of boys and girls, this really is a safety issue...  (The girls here will hunt down boys who don't put the seat down.  Be warned if you come visit us.)

*  Always assume the best about your fellow man, regardless of where s/he may have fallen in life.  Treat panhandlers with respect and compassion and, if you can, a tangible handout like a bottled water or fruit on a hot day or a McDonald's gift certificate.  (Best not to give money, though, that only exacerbates the overall panhandling problem.)

*  Learn to hold your tongue and defer judgment on people -- generally and specifically. If you're upset with somebody you know, take time to reflect on that person's temperament, history and personal context and try to understand the problem from their point of view.  Then, unless you're opinion is requested, keep it to yourself. Pray for them.  That's usually the best thing you can do, anyway.

* Never get involved in a land war in Asia. (Had to throw that one in there.)

*  If something on your property affects someone else's property, consult with your neighbor about dealing with it.  We had a neighbor many years ago with a meticulous lawn who hated, loathed, despised our beautiful crab apple trees.  We half expected to wake up to the sound of a chainsaw in the dead of night, and dear old Mr. H. giggling maniacally as he hacked them down.  But, we made a solemn promise to him, to keep those darned crab apples off his lawn -- which we did, and he was appeased. He watched very closely (practically looked for them in the roots of the lawn with a magnifying glass), but he was appeased. He didn't cut down the trees, anyway.


We know there are lots more!  This is just the tip of the iceberg.  What can you think of that we missed?

Sepia Saturday, March 8, 2014

To join in on the Sepia Saturday fun, click on the link under the picture!  Lots of wonderful vintage images and fascinating snippets of history to enjoy!
  

Friday Funny?

Ha! My first reaction was to chuckle at this.  (That's my first reaction to a lot of things, appropriately or not, I'm afraid.)  But there's an irony -- or an unexpectedness -- in this meme, that catches you by surprise, isn't there?  You can't help but smile -- and then the meaning dawns on you.  Yeahhhh....  Hmmm...

There's something deeper here than you first think there is.

The children and I just started going through the Commandments one by one in My Catholic Faith, and have just gotten to the 3rd Commandment: Keep thou holy the Sabbath day.  Since we've been learning about the specific laws of the Church guarding the sanctity of Holy Mass, this Pintrest pin caught our attention right away.  And punctuated the necessity of the Church laws we're learning! Rules dictating proper behavior have got to be set down extremely clearly --  if one of the twelve Apostles who lived daily in Christ's presence could be so rude to Him... (which is the understatement of the century) how much easier for us to be forgetful of Who it is we're leaving when we check out of Mass early. We have to always remember Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.  We don't in any way want to imitate Judas!

I love it when I come across things that coincide exactly with what we've been studying about.  They're like little gifts from heaven!  In a nutshell, here's what we're learning about the third Commandment and how it's been pertinent to us:
                                                                                                                              
1) The obligation of Mass is binding on all persons who have attained the use of reason:  that is, including children seven years old. Those who find it impossible or very difficult, to hear Mass, are excused.

So that very clearly excuses the elderly or ill, who through weakness or just actual physical inability, cannot attend.  We have family members who just cannot always make it on Sundays because of their health, and it's good for the children to understand how good and practical the Church is in making allowances for these things!  Mothers of infants who have no way of trading off Masses in order to have the baby (and/or toddlers) cared for while they attend, would also be excused if the needs of the children make it impossible for her to attend. But, the children, being under the age of reason have no obligation to attend Mass at all. Dan and I "traded off Masses" for years so that we could attend without the little kids.  But there were many years when we couldn't trade off and I spent pretty much every Mass out in the vestibule or the car with toddlers and infants.  This was a valid reason for missing -- which is a wonderful thing to not have to worry about! (But if a person is unsure at all about it, they should always consult their pastor or Confessor!)

2)  Not to hear Sunday Mass (without a valid reason), or to miss a notable part of Sunday Mass, is a mortal sin.  To come a little late and not make up for it in another Mass, is a venial sin.

This is the one that gave us pause!  Not so much the first part.  We know that purposely missing Mass is a mortal sin that must be confessed ASAP.  Black and white.  What we somehow have missed (having read this very same chapter in our homeschooling many times over the years, even!) has been the part about making up for what we missed!  How did we not know that?   We are now instructed!  That's very good incentive to make sure we get to Mass -- not just on time, but plenty early!

3)  The precept is to hear an entire Mass from beginning to end: that is, from the Priest's entrance into the sanctuary until his departure into the sacristy.  One is considered to have missed Mass if one is too late to be present during the Offertory (when the Priest uncovers the chalice), or leaves before Communion is finished.  The principal parts -- that is the Offertory, the Consecration, and the Communion -- must be heard in one and the same Mass.

It's good to have this spelled out for us in black and white.  Unless we have a very good reason, we've just plain and simple missed Mass if we arrive after the offertory or exit the chapel before Communion is finished.  If we do either, we are required to assist at the next (or a later) Mass or go confess a mortal sin.  This is clear cut and easy to understand.

Still, we teach our children that it's extremely rude to arrive late at all (we should be there early enough to prepare for Mass!) and very rude to leave the chapel before Father has completely finished the Holy Sacrifice and gone back to the sacristy.  And then, it's only polite to God, the Creator of all things and the Source of all goodness, to stay for a moment or two to thank Him for the graces we've just been given (not to mention the fact that we're alive and well enough to be there!).  Leaving before the completion of Mass is like being an honored guest invited to a grand dinner -- and  leaving in the middle of it.  Without even saying "thank-you!"  Like Judas!  Whose motive for leaving was most definitely the worst in the history of the Faith.  But, bad habits are a slippery slope to a sloppy conscience, and discourtesy is a symptom of an insensitive conscience, at best.  We're well-warned.  Don't copy Judas in anything!