Feast of Blessed Francisco and Jacinta

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Prayer for the Canonization of Blessed Francisco and Jacinta can be found at the World Apostolate of Fatima's Children of the Eucharist site.

The Sixth Apparition of Our Lady of Fatima

Our Lady of Fatima, Adoration Chapel, Blue Army Shrine, Washington, NJ

October 13, 1917

"We left home quite early, expecting that we would be delayed along the way.  Masses of people thronged the roads.  The rain fell in torrents.  My mother, her heart torn with uncertainty as to what was going to happen, and fearing ti would be the last day of my life, wanted to accompany me.

On the way, the scenes of the previous month, still more numerous and moving, were repeated.  Not even the muddy roads could prevent these people from kneeling in the most humble and suppliant of attitudes.  We reached the holmoak in the Cova da Iria.  Once there, moved by an interior impulse, I asked the people to shut their umbrellas and say the Rosary. A little later, we saw the flash of light, and then Our Lady appeared on the holmoak.

'What do you want of me?'

"I want to tell you that a chapel is to be built here in my honor.  I am the Lady of the Rosary. Continue always to pray the Rosary every day.  The war is going to end, and the soldiers will soon return to their homes."

'I have many things to ask you: the cure of some sick persons, the conversion of sinners, and other things..."

'Some yes, but not others.  They must amend their lives and ask forgiveness for their sins.'

Looking very sad, Our Lady said:

'Do not offend the Lord our God any more, because He is already so much offended.'

Then opening her hands, she made them reflect on the sun, and as she ascended, the reflection of her own light continued to be projected on the sun itself...

After Our Lady had disappeared into the immense distance of the firmament, we beheld St. Joseph with the Child Jesus and Our Lady robed in white with a blue mantle, beside the sun.  St. Joseph and the Child Jesus appeared to bless the world, for they traced the Sign of the Cross with their hands,.  When, a little later, this apparition disappeared, I saw Our Lord and Our Lady; it seemed to me that it was Our Lady of Dolors.  Our Lord appeared to bless the world in the same manner as St. Joseph had done.  This apparition also vanished, and I saw Our Lady once more, this time resembling Our Lady of Carmel.

World Apostolate of Fatima:  Spiritual Guide for the Salvation of Souls and World Peace, WAF USA

Masses for God and Country

Important announcement from Father Andrew Apostoli, CFR the World Apostolate of Fatima

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On November 3, 2012 the first Saturday of the month, the World Apostolate of Fatima is asking for Masses to be offered.

Details can be found in the most recent issue of Soul magazine (PDF version here)

Day Nine - Last Day of the Novena to the Mother of God for Our Nation

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Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple; and there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail. A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. – Rev. 11:19–12:1

Prayer

We fly to your patronage,
O holy Mother of God;
Despise not our prayers in our necessities,
But ever deliver us from all dangers,
O glorious and blessed Virgin.

Reflection

In his homilies on Our Blessed Mother, St. Francis de Sales preached that Mary was perfectly one with Christ on Calvary in his worship of the Father. She offered him lovingly back to the Father and she offered her sufferings for her children. The Saint tells us that Mary would have died with Christ on Calvary had her Son not prevented her. Jesus willed that she stay for some time with the Church on earth after his ascension into heaven and share in his death of love later.

When the time willed by God arrived, Mary died a natural death – but a death that was consciously an act of worshipful love. The Mother of God longed with her whole being to be with Jesus in his Kingdom. When the moment of death came, she offered herself as Jesus had offered himself to the Father at the moment of his death. Entrusting herself into his embrace, Mary, on fire with the Holy Spirit, transformed her death into an act of love of the Father – a Eucharistic act of worship in, through and with Christ.

Preserved from the corruption of the grave, Mary was raised from the dead by Christ and taken, body and soul, into the glory of heaven. In 1950, Pope Pius XII solemnly defined that the Assumption of Mary is an integral part of the Christian Revelation: By the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and by our own authority, we pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma: that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.

Mary’s dormition, that is, her death, resurrection, and assumption into glory, are a source of hope for Christians who believe in the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council taught: As the Mother of Jesus, glorified in body and soul in heaven, is the image and beginning of the Church as it is to be perfected is the world to come, so too does she shine forth on earth, until the day of the Lord shall come, as a sign of sure hope and solace to the people of God during its sojourn on earth (Lumen Gentium 68). From her place in Heaven, Mary intercedes with and through Christ for all of the needs of her children on earth.

Prayer

Mary, Mother of God and our dear Mother, be with us at the hour of our death. Help us understand that, by dying for us, your Son transformed death into an act of worship of the Father – a sacred moment of passage from this life to the next; a moment determined by God alone. Fortified by the sacraments of the Church, help us to die as you did – in an act of love and self-offering for the salvation of others. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

(Adapted from Tessera of the Legion of Mary)

Day Nine of the Novena

First Saturday

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ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY

(with ecclesiastical permission)

O Mary, 

I consecrate myself to you,

Daughter of the Father,

Spouse of the Holy Spirit,

Mother of the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus.

I will wear your Scapular always as a sign of this consecration,

and I offer my daily Rosary and the 

fulfillment of the obligations of each day

in reparation for sins,

particularly those against your Immaculate Heart,

and against the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus.

I desire to be ever more deeply united to His Heart, 

in the intimacy of your own

Immaculate Heart, with each passing 

moment of my life unto the last.  Amen

World Apostolate of Fatima

Day Eight - Novena to the Mother of God for Our Nation

Our Lady of Victory

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For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. – 1 Cor. 15:3-7

Prayer

We fly to your patronage,
O holy Mother of God;
Despise not our prayers in our necessities,
But ever deliver us from all dangers,
O glorious and blessed Virgin.

Reflection

Saturday is Mary’s day. The origin of this custom seems to be the sense among Christians that Mary alone believed firmly in Christ’s resurrection from the dead once his body was laid in the tomb on Holy Saturday. All of the other disciples were, at best, distraught and confused by Jesus’ promise that he would rise from the dead. Mary alone did not falter in her faith. It is precisely this faith that the Church honors each Saturday of the year.

Blessed John Paul II explained in a General Audience Address that Mary was very likely the first disciple to see and embrace the risen Lord:

Indeed, it is legitimate to think that the Mother was probably the first person to whom the risen Jesus appeared. Could not Mary’s absence from the group of women who went to the tomb at dawn (cf. Mk 16:1; Mt 28:1) indicate that she had already met Jesus? This inference would also be confirmed by the fact that the first witnesses of the Resurrection, by Jesus’ will, were the women who had remained faithful at the foot of the Cross and therefore were more steadfast in faith. Indeed, the Risen One entrusts to one of them, Mary Magdalene, the message to be passed on to the Apostles (cf. Jn. 20:17-18). Perhaps this fact too allows us to think that Jesus showed himself first to his Mother, who had been the most faithful and had kept her faith intact when put to the test. Lastly, the unique and special character of the Blessed Virgin’s presence at Calvary and her perfect union with the Son in his suffering on the Cross seem to postulate a very particular sharing on her part in the mystery of the Resurrection. (21 May 1997)

The Scriptures tell us that after Christ ascended into heaven, Mary remained with the Apostles as they awaited the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:14). She was with the Twelve on Pentecost and, with them, received the Holy Spirit. The Twelve received the Spirit for their work of preaching the Gospel and baptizing people of every nation. Mary received the Holy Spirit for her mission as mother of Christ’s disciples. Until the end of the world Mary, Mother of the Church, will help her children live by faith, spread the faith, and work tirelessly for the conversion of all men and women to Christ.

St. Louis de Montfort in his masterpiece, True Devotion to Mary, explains that Mary, assumed into Heaven, shares her faith with her children on earth:

Mary will share her faith with you. Her faith on earth was stronger than that of all the patriarchs, prophets, apostles and saints. Now that she is reigning in heaven she no longer has this faith, since she sees everything clearly in God by the light of glory. However, with the consent of almighty God she did not lose it when entering heaven. She has preserved it for her faithful servants in the Church militant. Therefore the more you gain the friendship of this faithful Virgin the more you will be inspired by faith in your daily life (214).

Catholics today need to be strengthened by Mary to stand firm in the fight for the protection of human life from conception to natural death and the preservation of the religious freedom guaranteed to American citizens by the Constitution. May she who has been chosen by God to crush the head of the ancient serpent (Gen. 3:15), accomplish the renewal of faith and apostolic zeal in our land through the labor of Catholics dedicated to the Gospel.

Prayer

Confer, O Lord, on us, who serve beneath the standard of Mary, that fullness of faith in you, and trust in her, to which it is given to conquer the world. Grant us a lively faith, animated by charity, which will enable us to perform all our actions from the motive of pure love of you, and ever to see you and serve you in our neighbor; a faith, firm and immovable as a rock, through which we shall rest tranquil and steadfast amid the crosses, toils and disappointments of life; a courageous faith which will inspire us to undertake and carry out without hesitation great things for your glory and for the salvation of souls; a faith which will be our Pillar of Fire – to lead us forth united – to kindle everywhere the fires of divine love – to enlighten those who are in darkness and in the shadow of death – to inflame those who are lukewarm – to bring back life to those who are dead in sin; and which will guide our own feet in the way of peace; so that when the battle of life is over, all of Mary's children without the loss of any one, may be gathered together in the kingdom of Your love and glory. Amen.

(Adapted from Tessera of the Legion of Mary)

Day Eight of the Novena

Day Seven - Novena to the Mother of God for Our Nation

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Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother,"Woman, behold, your son!" Then he said to the disciple, "Behold, your mother!" And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home. – John 19:25-27

Prayer

We fly to your patronage,
O holy Mother of God;
Despise not our prayers in our necessities,
But ever deliver us from all dangers,
O glorious and blessed Virgin.

Reflection

As Mary stood close to her crucified son, she suffered everything he suffered in her heart. God asked a great deal of Mary on Calvary. He asked her to believe, even though there was not human reason to believe, what he had spoken to her through the Angel Gabriel thirty years earlier: He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there will be no end (Luke 1:32-33).

God asked the Blessed Mother to consent to the sacrifice of Christ by offering Jesus to the Father in an act of worship, and in joining her own sufferings to his for our salvation. The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council beautifully described Mary’s maternal work on Calvary: In a wholly singular way Mary cooperated by her obedience, faith, hope and burning charity in the work of the Savior restoring supernatural life to souls. Wherefore she is our mother in the order of grace (Lumen Gentium 61).

To reveal that Mary at the foot of the Cross was in labor, giving birth to the Church, Jesus said: Woman, Behold your son. And to the Beloved Disciple who represented each of us: Behold your mother. The ancient Christian writer Origen of Alexandria wrote: For if Mary, as those declare who with sound mind extol her, had no other son but Jesus, and yet Jesus says to His mother “Woman, behold your son” and not “Behold you have this son also,”  then He virtually said to her “Behold, this is Jesus, whom you bore.” Is it not the case that everyone who is perfect lives himself no longer, but Christ lives in him, if Christ lives in him, then it is said of him to Mary, “Behold your son Christ.” (Origen, On John, Bk. 1, ch. 6)

St. John then observes, from that hour the disciple took her to his home. Scripture scholars note that the text could be translated literally as from that hour the disciple took her into his own. Christ wants all his beloved disciples to enter into a son-mother, daughter-mother relationship with his mother, the first and most perfect of his disciples. The disciple takes her into his intimacy, asking her to teach him the ways of Christ. Blessed Jiohn Paul II based his understanding of consecration to Jesus through Mary on this one verse of Scripture: "The disciple took her into his own". St. Louis de Montfort and St. Maximilian Kolbe had taught him the importance of total consecration to Jesus through Mary. These three holy priests will also help us to give everything to Jesus through Mary.

It is so important in our perilous times to make an act of total Consecration of oneself to Jesus through the Blessed Virgin. Through this act of self-offering, the Christian gives Christ everything through Mary: body, soul, all material possessions and occupations, and every spiritual gift. Through consecration, the Christian freely becomes Mary’s servant and slave so as to belong totally to Jesus. Unlike the slavery to sin, this freely chosen slavery is the only bondage that brings true freedom and peace. By giving everything to Christ through Mary, the Christian is confident that the Holy Spirit will use him to crush the head of Satan (Gen. 3:15) and prepare for the Reign of Jesus Christ.

Prayer

Prayer of Consecration of St. Maximilian Kolbe

O Immaculate Mary, Queen of Heaven and earth, refuge of sinners and our most loving Mother, God has willed to entrust the entire order of mercy to you. I, (name), a repentant sinner, cast myself at your feet humbly imploring you to take me with all that I am and have, wholly to yourself as your possession and property. Please make of me, of all my powers of soul and body, of my whole life, death and eternity, whatever most pleases you.

If it pleases you, use all that I am and have without reserve, wholly to accomplish what was said of you: “She will crush your head,” and, “You alone have destroyed all heresies in the whole world.” Let me be a fit instrument in your immaculate and merciful hands for intro­ducing and increasing your glory to the maxi­mum in all the many strayed and indifferent souls, and thus help extend as far as possible the blessed kingdom of the most Sacred Heart of Jesus. For wherever you enter you obtain the grace of conversion and growth in holi­ness, since it is through your hands that all graces come to us from the most Sacred Heart of Jesus.

V. Allow me to praise you, O Sacred Virgin.

R. Give me strength against your enemies. Amen

Day Seven of the Novena