The Kingship of Our Lord Jesus Christ

“Indeed,” says St. Augustine, “Jesus is not a King who levies tribute, marshals mighty armies, or puts his enemies to the sword; He is a King who reigns in the hearts, who promises eternal goods, who will lead into the Kingdom of heaven all those who believe, who hope, who love.”

The royalty of Christ rests upon a twofold basis. He is our King by right of birth and by right of conquest. The first refers us to the personality of the Son of God, whereby, in His divine nature as God and by virtue of the hypostatic union, He is the sovereign Lord and Master. The second places before us the God-Man coming down on earth to rescue fallen man from the slavery of Satan, and by the labors and sufferings of His life, and passion, and death, to win a glorious victory for us over sin and hell.

-As taken from the 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal-

Here's the link to what I wrote last year, on Christ the King :) And here's a link to a sermon by Archbishop Lefebvre on the 28th October, 1979 at Ecône, on the Feast of Christ the King.

And now for today, let me introduce to you, in my own little and insignificant way, my King, my Love and my All! :), my Jesus:

Everything I post here, was taken from a variety of sources, all put together. None of it was writtten wholly by me. I'm just trying to stitch together, as i said, in a very insignificant way, who my Jesus is. :)

The above pictures give you the hymn for today's vespers, which describes very beautifully, Holy Mother Church's sentiments on this beautiful feast day.

But my Jesus, is more than just a King, He is the King of Hearts, in a very very special way ...

From this post, Le Sacré-Coeur de Jésus,

"Behold the Heart which has so loved men! I can no longer contain the love which I am consumed for them. I have come ot ask them love for Love, life for Life, heart for Heart. I am sad, they forget Me, they outrage Me! I desire to be consoled. I ask that reparation be give Me by the establishment of a universal feast in honour of My Divine Heart. I claim for It a triumphal homage, for it is by My Heart that I will reign.

Come, keep Me company in reparatory adoration. Come, convert the world by the Holy Hour. Come, above all, to communicate fervently. Come! I thirst to be adored and loved in the Holy Sacrament of the altar.

Win souls for Me, many souls. Introduce Me into their homes. Bring Me near to hearts that suffer, near to the death bed of hardened sinners, and then you will see the glory and the wonders of My love.

Take and receive My divine Heart. I give It to you in the Holy Eucharist. It belongs to you. Let It be yours entirely. Love this divine Heart. O love It and permit It to reign by love."

My King gave me His Heart

Jesus gives Himself to me and also to you - entirely. He's whole self, He's whole body, He's whole soul, He's whole divinity, the fullness of Himself, His Most Precious Blood, shed for me and also for you. He's whole heart, He's whole being - All Divine! given to us, preciously in the Most Holy Eucharist. That one simple piece of bread, by Faith alone, is Jesus, Jesus's body and blood, soul and divinity, a supreme act of love, as St. Thomas Aquinas so beautifully describes, Amor amorum, the love of all loves.

Jesus stays in the tabernacle, so devoid of all majesty and earthly beauty, not because of anything, but because of only one thing - the great love He has, for you and for me. Nothing, stop short of His love, entices Him to stay there. Just for me, Just for you.

And from this post, after much reflection, thinking and meditation, after a struggle inside of me, after much "growing up" I must admit, after not being able to attend daily mass as often as I want too, after an absence , after so many things, Deo volente, that I realised how true this cliched phrase is, Absence does make the Heart grow fonder.

Jesus didn't want to be absent from us. He's 33 years on earth was not enough, not sufficient to quench His thirst, His love for souls. He had to be with us, as He said in the Gospels, till the very end, till the last hour, the last minute, the last second, till the end of time. Thus, as Saint Pio beautifully describes, "It is easier for the earth to exist without the sun than without the holy Sacrifice of the Mass.”

And that's the beauty of the Most Holy Eucharist, the beauty of the Mass, and the beauty of His Passion and also the beauty of the Compassion of it All. His Heart, burning with the fire of divine love, His Mother, dearest Mother Mary, full of Sorrow, yet so Immaculate and so Compassionate.

What must Jesus have felt, from the depths of His dearest, most amiable, most beautiful wounded heart, not withstanding all the sorrow He had to go through His passion etc., when He went through the Passion, the Crucifixion and all that He went through throughout His entire life? The love that must have been burning in His Heart for souls, so pure, so chaste, so beautiful, must be the driving force for every single action, every single thought, every single word of our dearest Jesus, our Redeemer, for though it was through one man, Adam that caused the downfall of men, it was through this new Adam, my Jesus :) and your Jesus too :), that the Redemption of mankind was secured.

My King gave me His Life

I write here something, read from a most beautiful book, The Passion and Death of Jesus Christ by St. Alphonsus Ligouri, no one has done so beautifully for his/her loved one. Amor meus crucifixus est. My Love is crucified, my love is crucified. Yes, my dearest Jesus is crucified. He was crucified some 2007 years ago, 33 A.D. And His Passion, His Crucifixion, is repeated daily, yes daily, at the august Sacrifice of the Most Holy Mass.

The beautiful Mass, so sublime, so subtle! Every action, every rubric, every turn, every step, every bell, every word, every part of the Mass - all washed with the blood of the Lamb. Most priceless. Most beautiful. Saint Pio, dear Padre, whose picture you now see, the berühmt (famous) stigmatist of our times lived the Mass, for almost 50 years of his life.

Every part of the rite of the Tridentine Mass, beautifully stitched together, every time you open the Missal, every time a Mass is said, it is the Passion and Crucifixion of my Jesus. And as you flip through a Missal, as you read and as you say the prayers of the Mass, as you follow the Mass with your heart and your mind, you see a book, covered with blood, a book covered with the sweat, the blood, the tears, the labour of all the Saints, all the Martyrs, you see the sorrow, the Passion, the Compassion, you might feel, in your very dear heart, that supreme love, that supreme act of justice, that your redeemer went through for you. For it is there, at Mass, that the priest takes the place of Jesus and offers up the victim (who is none other than Jesus Himself) for us, for souls, for all the intentions.

My King gave me His All

And when it comes to the consecration, we see Jesus arriving at Calvary, after His long patience with all the scourgings, the crowing with thorns, the carrying of the cross, ready and about to be sacrificed. The priest says the Hanc igitur softly, spreading his hands over the oblation, the offering of the Victim, and gives the Victim to God.

My Jesus, pardon and mercy, by the merits of Thy Holy Wounds!

Then the priest says the words of the Consecration and the Elevation takes place. The 12th station of the cross: the Cross is raised.

"Father, forgive them!", "Behold thy Mother!", "I thirst!" ...

The Most beautiful words, uttered in a silent whisper, again, only by the priest, over the hosts that are to be consecrated, Hoc est enim Corpus Meum. The Bread becomes the Body and Blood of Jesus. Boom! The "magic", the love, the faith of it all. Jesus is really present in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar!

The priest genuflects, this represents the nailing of His most precious hands to the ignominous wood of the Cross.

The 2nd consecration, the cross is raised (as in the chalice is raised). And the Blood flows. Jesus is on the Cross for 3 hours and He utters 7 words. 7 most precious words. The priest again says the words of the consecration. For this is the Chalice of My Blood, of the new and eternal testament. The mystery of faith: which shall be shed for you and for many unto the remission of sins.

Be mindful O Lord, of thy creature whom Thou hast redeemed by Thy most Precious Blood,

O Blood of Jesus, Most Precious Blood shed for me, Thou art all my hope! In Thee I seek refuge.

The Body and the Blood of Jesus. All there, All for me, All for you, each time we kneel at the communion rail, after the striking of our breasts, saying or remembering the words of the centurion of Capharnum (with profound humility and unshaken confidence), Domine, non sum dignus, ut intres sub tectum meum, sed tantum dic verbo, et sanabitur anima mea. Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldst enter under my roof, but only say the word, and my soul shall be healed.

Jesus appears to His Mother on Easter morning.

O dearest Mother, when He lifts His Face, to thy sweet embrace, O speak to Him, O Mother of me. Tell Him how much I want to love Him, teach me dearest Mother, how much I should treasure Him, teach me mother, how I should carry Him, so tenderly, in my heart. Teach me Mother, Help me, dearest Mother.

We kneel down at the communion rail, the moment arrives, My Jesus gives Himself entirely to me, I give myself entirely to Him.

And He is all Mine. My King is all Mine, yes, my dearest King is all Mine, and I am all His.

And that is the beauty of the Mass and the Holy Eucharist, that is the beauty of my King, Our Lord, Jesus Christ. :)

My Jesus, help me only to do Thy Most Holy Will.

Cor Jesu sacratissimum, Miserere nobis. (ter)

Deus propitius esto mihi peccatori.

Jesus, Mary, I love Thee; Save Souls!

Jesu mitis et humilis corde, Fac cor nostrum secundum Cor tuum. (ter)

Christ Conquers! Christ Reigns! Christ Commands!

Beautiful Martyrs

Today's the Feast day of St. Anthony Mary Claret, tomorrow's the Feast day of one (of the 3) of the 7 archangels whose names we know: St. Raphael, who appeared to Tobias. Raphael means Medicine of God in the hebrew.

And I was reading this just the other day, its so beautiful, the way the martyrs lived and died. Here is the link to the District of Asia's most recent newsletter with a huge dossier on Japanese Catholicism, including a letter by St. Francis Xavier himself. Here's a beautiful excerpt from an article from the newsletter: A Pilgrim's Diary of a very Memorable Japanese Pilgrimage.

"Then, after an intense walk in a light rain, while reciting the Rosary for Asian and especially Japanese vocations, we arrived on the bank of the Kamo river which crosses Kyoto, and were shown, inserted in the hedge on the side of the road, a simple stone-monument, with some Japanese inscription on it. This monument which was put up in spite of much opposition only a few ten years ago, recalls the martyrdom of 55 Catholics, on October 6, 1619. That day is called “The Great Kyoto Martyrdom”.

(When I came home I found the following details on that event:)

There were more than 300,000 Catholics in Japan at that time. That is why the Shogun (highest military commander), fearing his authority was seriously in danger, decided, under the influence of his Buddhists advisers, to eliminate the Christians.
In The Christian century in Japan (1951), one can read of an Englishman who was there, on that very day of October 6, 1619, and who describes how he saw ‘fifty-five persons of all ages and both sexes burnt alive on the dry bed of the Kamo River, and among them little children of five or six years old in their mothers’ arms, crying out, ‘Jesus, receive their souls!’ ” Here is the description of one of these executions:

“The ordeal was witnessed by 150,000, according to some writers, or 30,000 according to other and in all probability more reliable chroniclers. When the fagots were kindled, the martyrs said sayonara (farewell) to the onlookers who then began to entone the Magnificat, followed by the psalms Laudate pueri Dominum and Laudate Dominum omnes gentes, while the Japanese judges sat on one side ‘in affected majesty and gravity, as in their favorite posture’. Since it had rained heavily the night before, the faggots were wet and the wood burnt slowly; but as long as the martyrdom lasted, the spectators continued to sing hymns and canticles. When death put an end to the victims’ suffering, the crowd intoned the Te Deum.” (C.R. Boxer, The Christian Century in Japan, University of California Press, 1951, pp.342,343, 349)

These 55 Martyrs are among the 188 Martyrs that were declared Venerable last June 1, 2007, and should be beatified in the very near future. And among them is this heroic family of John Hashimoto Tahyôe, his wife Thecla and their five children, Catharina 13, Thomas 12, Franciscus 8, Petrus 6 and Ludovica 3. During the execution, the fire actually freed Catharina who was tied to a separate cross at a short distance from the cross where her mother and the 3 youngest children were tied together. She ran to her mother saying, ‘Mother, I can’t see!’ Her mother replied, ‘pray to Jesus and Mary’. The last thing bystanders saw of the mother was that she was drying tears from her 3 year old baby who was in her arms. After the flames and the smoke abided, the mother was still seen holding her youngest, tight in her arms, both dead.

The image of them offering their lives along with those of their children became a symbol of the martyrdom of the Japanese Church. (cf. The Great Kyoto Martyrdom: October 6, 1619, Yūki Ryōgo, 1987)"

Certainly very beautiful and most admirable! Deo gratias et Mariae. I am reminded of something I read in the Epistle that St. Paul wrote to the Hebrews, Chapter 13.

Divers admonitions and exhortations.

1 Let the charity of the brotherhood abide in you. 2 And hospitality do not forget; for by this some, being not aware of it, have entertained angels. 3 Remember them that are in bands, as if you were bound with them; and them that labour, as being yourselves also in the body. 4 Marriage honourable in all, and the bed undefiled. For fornicators and adulterers God will judge. 5 Let your manners be without covetousness, contented with such things as you have; for he hath said: I will not leave thee, neither will I forsake thee.

4 "Marriage honourable in all"... Let marriage be honourable in all-- That is, in all things belonging to the marriage state. This is a warning to married people, not to abuse the sanctity of their state, by any liberties or irregularities contrary thereunto. Now it does not follow from this text that all persons are obliged to marry, even if the word omnibus were rendered, in all persons, instead of in all things: for if it was a precept, St. Paul himself would have transgressed it, as he never married. Moreover, those who have already made a vow to God to lead a single life, should they attempt to marry, they would incur their own damnation. 1 Tim. 5. 12.

6 So that we may confidently say: The Lord is my helper: I will not fear what man shall do to me. 7 Remember your prelates who have spoken the word of God to you; whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation, 8 Jesus Christ, yesterday, and today; and the same for ever. 9 Be not led away with various and strange doctrines. For it is best that the heart be established with grace, not with meats; which have not profited those that walk in them. 10 We have an altar, whereof they have no power to eat who serve the tabernacle.

11 For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the holies by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp. 12 Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people by his own blood, suffered without the gate. 13 Let us go forth therefore to him without the camp, bearing his reproach. 14 For we have not here a lasting city, but we seek one that is to come. 15 By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise always to God, that is to say, the fruit of lips confessing to his name.

13 "Bearing his reproach"... That is, bearing his cross. It is an exhortation to them to be willing to suffer with Christ, reproaches, persecutions, and even death, if they desire to partake of the benefit of his suffering for man's redemption.

16 And do not forget to do good, and to impart; for by such sacrifices God's favour is obtained. 17 Obey your prelates, and be subject to them. For they watch as being to render an account of your souls; that they may do this with joy, and not with grief. For this is not expedient for you. 18 Pray for us. For we trust we have a good conscience, being willing to behave ourselves well in all things. 19 And I beseech you the more to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner. 20 And may the God of peace, who brought again from the dead the great pastor of the sheep, our Lord Jesus Christ, in the blood of the everlasting testament,

21 Fit you in all goodness, that you may do his will; doing in you that which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom is glory for ever and ever. Amen. 22 And I beseech you, brethren, that you suffer this word of consolation. For I have written to you in a few words. 23 Know ye that our brother Timothy is set at liberty: with whom (if he come shortly) I will see you. 24 Salute all your prelates, and all the saints. The brethren from Italy salute you. 25 Grace be with you all. Amen.

Deus propitius esto mihi peccatori

Jesus, Mary, I love Thee; Save Souls!

Jesu mitis et humilis corde, Fac cor nostrum secundum Cor tuum. (ter)

What is Faith?

God, Church and Soul

I stole this video from The Sleepless Eye's blog. Do watch it. It's so beautiful and plus its way cool. Way way cool. =) God Bless the person who did this ;)

And from Joyce's blog, I got the link to H.E. Bishop Williamson's blog. Here's the link. It's Dinoscopus for you.

And from the Sacred Heart Choir blog, there's some beautiful news, coming from the Vatican...

Pope Ratzinger seems to be stepping up the tempo. The curia will have a new office with authority in the field of sacred music. And the choir of the Sistine Chapel is getting a new director...

by Sandro Magister

ROMA, October 18, 2007 – In the span of just a few days, a series of events have unfolded at the Vatican which, taken all together, foretell new provisions – at the pope's behest – to foster the rebirth of great sacred music. ... (Click here to read more)

Absolutely beautiful. Deo gratias et Mariae.

And now, my dear blog readers, What is Faith?

As St. Thérèse my dearest patron said:

And, here's what St. Paul writes, so beautifully, in his epistle to the Hebrews, Chapter 11, on Faith:

What faith is. Its wonderful fruits and efficacy demonstrated in the fathers.

1 Now faith is the substance of things to be hoped for, the evidence of things that appear not. 2 For by this the ancients obtained a testimony. 3 By faith we understand that the world was framed by the word of God; that from invisible things visible things might be made. 4 By faith Abel offered to God a sacrifice exceeding that of Cain, by which he obtained a testimony that he was just, God giving testimony to his gifts; and by it he being dead yet speaketh. 5 By faith Henoch was translated, that he should not see death; and he was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had testimony that he pleased God.

6 But without faith it is impossible to please God. For he that cometh to God, must believe that he is, and is a rewarder to them that seek him. 7 By faith Noe, having received an answer concerning those things which as yet were not seen, moved with fear, framed the ark for the saving of his house, by the which he condemned the world; and was instituted heir of the justice which is by faith. 8 By faith he that is called Abraham, obeyed to go out into a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. 9 By faith he abode in the land, dwelling in cottages, with Isaac and Jacob, the co-heirs of the same promise. 10 For he looked for a city that hath foundations; whose builder and maker is God.

8 "He that is called Abraham"... or, Abraham being called.

11 By faith also Sara herself, being barren, received strength to conceive seed, even past the time of age; because she believed that he was faithful who had promised, 12 For which cause there sprung even from one (and him as good as dead) as the stars of heaven in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable. 13 All these died according to faith, not having received the promises, but beholding them afar off, and saluting them, and confessing that they are pilgrims and strangers on the earth. 14 For they that say these things, do signify that they seek a country. 15 And truly if they had been mindful of that from whence they came out, they had doubtless time to return.

16 But now they desire a better, that is to say, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for he hath prepared for them a city. 17 By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered Isaac: and he that had received the promises, offered up his only begotten son; 18 (To whom it was said: In Isaac shall thy seed be called.) 19 Accounting that God is able to raise up even from the dead. Whereupon also he received him for a parable. 20 By faith also of things to come, Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau.

19 "For a parable"... That is, as a figure of Christ, slain and coming to life again.

21 By faith Jacob dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and adored the top of his rod. 22 By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the going out of the children of Israel; and gave commandment concerning his bones. 23 By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months by his parents; because they saw he was a comely babe, and they feared not the king's edict. 24 By faith Moses, when he was grown up, denied himself to be the son of Pharao's daughter; 25 Rather choosing to be afflicted with the people of God, than to have the pleasure of sin for a time,

21 "Adored the top of his rod"... The apostle here follows the ancient Greek Bible of the seventy interpreters, (which translates in this manner, Gen. 47. 31.,) and alleges this fact of Jacob, in paying a relative honour and veneration to the top of the rod or sceptre of Joseph, as to a figure of Christ's sceptre and kingdom, as an instance and argument of his faith. But some translators, who are no friends to this relative honour, have corrupted the text, by translating it, he worshipped, leaning upon the top of his staff; as if this circumstance of leaning upon his staff were any argument of Jacob's faith, or worthy the being thus particularly taken notice of by the Holy Ghost.

26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasure of the Egyptians. For he looked unto the reward. 27 By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the fierceness of the king: for he endured as seeing him that is invisible. 28 By faith he celebrated the pasch, and the shedding of the blood; that he, who destroyed the firstborn, might not touch them. 29 By faith they passed through the Red Sea, as by dry land: which the Egyptians attempting, were swallowed up. 30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, by the going round them seven days.

31 By faith Rahab the harlot perished not with the unbelievers, receiving the spies with peace. 32 And what shall I yet say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, Barac, Samson, Jephthe, David, Samuel, and the prophets: 33 Who by faith conquered kingdoms, wrought justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, 34 Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, recovered strength from weakness, became valiant in battle, put to flight the armies of foreigners: 35 Women received their dead raised to life again. But others were racked, not accepting deliverance, that they might find a better resurrection.

36 And others had trial of mockeries and stripes, moreover also of bands and prisons. 37 They were stoned, they were cut asunder, they were tempted, they were put to death by the sword, they wandered about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being in want, distressed, afflicted: 38 Of whom the world was not worthy; wandering in deserts, in mountains, and in dens, and in caved of the earth. 39 And all these being approved by the testimony of faith, received not the promise; 40 God providing some better thing for us, that they should not be perfected without us.

Deus propitius esto mihi peccatori.

Jesus, Mary, I love Thee; Save Souls!

Jesu mitis et humilis corde, Fac cor nostrum secundum Cor tuum. (ter)

My beautiful Jesus

Today's the Feast day of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque. :) Jesus appeared to her in the 1600s at Paray-le-monial as the Sacred Heart. Click on the link to read more about the essentials of what the dearest Sacred Heart of Jesus has to say.

Very beautiful. A Heart, so beautiful, a love so tender and so beautiful. How much love there is in the Passion, the Cross, the Sorrow and the Compassion. How much love there must have been and still is, just between the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Most Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary. How must the greatest Mother in the world have felt, looking at her Son on the Cross. How must dearest Mother Mary have felt from the foot of the Cross. The intensity of the love must have been so great - especially for Jesus and Mother Mary. The Son and the Mother.

Ah! I can't write more, I've got to go back to doing work, but this is so beautiful. :)

Ejaculatory prayer: My Jesus, help me only to do what Thou wilt, I am all Thine own, Thou alone art sufficient for me.

A Short Visit to the Blessed Virgin Mary:

St. Bernard calls Mary "the royal road of the Saviour;" the safe road by which to find the Saviour and salvation. Since, then, it is true, O Queen, that thou art, as the same saint says, "the chariot in which our souls go to God," - the one who guides us to him,-ah, Lady, thou must not suppose that I shall advance towards God, if thou dost not carry me in thine arms! Carry me, carry me; and if I resist, carry me by main force; do al lthe violence that thou canst by the sweet attractions of thy charity to my soul and to my rebellious will, that they may leave creatures, to seek for God alone and his divine will. Show the court of heaven the greatness of thy power. After so many wonders of thy mercy, show this one more: make a poor creature who is far from God wholly his.

Ejaculatory prayer: O Mary, thou canst make me a saint; I hope for this grace from thee!, O my Mother, my dear Mother, save me.

Deus propitius esto mihi peccatori.

Jesus, Mary, I love Thee; Save Souls!

Jesu mitis et humilis corde, Fac cor nostrum secundum Cor tuum. (ter)

The 20th Sunday After Pentecost

Today's the 20th Sunday after Pentecost. And the above is taken from the Alleluia of today's Holy Mass. Paratum cor meum, Deus. I love Thee, my Jesus. :)

90 years ago, yesterday, the 13th of October 1917, was the Miracle of the Sun at Fatima! The beauty of history, in my humble opinion and also the beauty of dearest Mother Mary - tota pulchra est! The dearest Immaculate Heart, Mother Dearest, Mother Fairest. My mother, my dearest dearest Mother. :)

Here's an excerpt from an article from the Fatima network (http://www.fatima.org/):

Circumstances and Dialogue of the 1917 Apparitions
Click on this link for the whole article.

October 13, 1917

There were about 70,000 people present at the Cova da Iria for the October 13 apparition and Miracle of the Sun. Beginning the night before and persisting throughout the morning of the 13th, a cold rain fell on the crowd. The ground was muddy and the rain soaked everything. At the time when Our Lady was due to arrive, Lucy begged the people to close their umbrellas, which they did at once.

‘What does Your Grace want of me?’ [Lucy asked.]

‘I want to tell you that a chapel is to be built here in My honor. I am the Lady of the Rosary. May you continue always to pray the Rosary every day. The war is going to end and the soldiers will soon return to their homes.’

‘I had many things to ask You: to cure some sick people, to convert some sinners, etc.’

‘Some yes, others no. They must amend their lives and ask pardon for their sins.’

Then taking on a more sorrowful air, Our Lady said:

‘Do not offend the Lord Our God any more, for He is already too much offended!’

‘You want nothing more from me?’ [Lucy asked.]

‘No, I want nothing more from you.’

"Then I do not ask anything more of You either."

As Our Lady ascended into Heaven, Lucy shouted: "She is going! She is going! Look at the sun!"

The miracle announced by Our Lady then took place: the sky abruptly cleared and the sun "danced". The people were able to look at the bright sun directly, without it bothering their eyes at all. A physician, Dr. Almeida Garrett, testified:

Suddenly I heard the uproar of thousands of voices, and I saw the whole multitude spread out in that vast space at my feet … turn their backs to that spot where, until then, all their expectations focused, and look at the sun on the other side … I turned around, too, toward the point commanding their gazes, and I could see the sun, like a very clear disc, with its sharp edge, which gleamed without hurting the sight … It could not be confused with the sun seen through a fog (there was no fog at that moment), for it was neither veiled, nor dim. At Fatima, it kept its light and heat, and stood out clearly in the sky, with a sharp edge, like a large gaming table. The most astonishing thing was to be able to stare at the solar disc for a long time, brilliant with light and heat, without hurting the eyes, or damaging the retina.1

The testimony of Avelino de Almeida, editor-in-chief of O Seculo, Lisbon’s anticlerical and Masonic daily newspaper, is similar:
And then we witnessed a unique spectacle, an incredible spectacle, unbelievable if you did not witness it. From above the road … We see the immense crowd turn towards the sun, which appeared at its zenith, clear of the clouds. It looked like a plate of dull silver, and it was possible to stare at it without the least discomfort. It did not burn the eyes. It did not blind. One might say that an eclipse had occurred.2

Others also testified:

"It shook and trembled; it seemed like a wheel of fire." (Maria da Capelinha)3

"The sun turned like a fire wheel, taking on all the colors of the rainbow." (Maria do Carmo)4

"The sun took on all the colors of the rainbow. Everything assumed those same colors: our faces, our clothes, the earth itself." (Maria do Carmo)5

The most terrifying aspect of the Miracle of the Sun then took place:

"We suddenly heard a clamor, like a cry of anguish of that entire crowd. The sun, in fact, keeping its rapid movement of rotation, seemed to free itself from the firmament and, blood-red, to plunge towards the earth, threatening to crush us with its fiery mass. Those were some terrifying seconds." (Dr. Almeida Garrett)6

"The sun began to dance and, at a certain moment, it appeared to detach itself from the firmament and to rush forward on us, like a fire wheel." (Alfredo da Silva Santos)7

"Finally, the sun stopped and everybody breathed a sigh of relief …" (Maria da Capelinha)8

"From those thousands of mouths I heard shouts of joy and love to the Most Holy Virgin. And then I believed. I had the certainty of not having been the victim of a suggestion. I had seen the sun as I would never see it again." (Mario Godinho, an engineer)9

Yet another astonishing aspect of the Miracle was that all of the thousands of people, most of whom were soaked to the bone and dirty from the mud, suddenly found that their clothes were dry and clean.

"The moment one would least expect it, our clothes were totally dry." (Maria do Carmo)10

"My suit dried in an instant." (John Carreira)11

The academician Marques da Cruz testified:

This enormous multitude was drenched, for it had rained unceasingly since dawn. But – though this may appear incredible – after the great miracle everyone felt comfortable, and found his garments quite dry, a subject of general wonder … The truth of this fact has been guaranteed with the greatest sincerity by dozens and dozens of persons of absolute trustworthiness, whom I have known intimately from childhood, and who are still alive (1937), as well as by persons from various districts of the country who were present.12

In one aspect, this is the most astonishing effect of the miracle and an indisputable proof of its authenticity: The amount of energy needed to accomplish this process of drying in a natural way and in such a short a time, would have incinerated everyone present at the Cova at that time. As this aspect of the miracle contradicts the laws of nature radically, no demon could ever have achieved it.

Finally, many miracles of conversion, the greatest miracle God can bestow, also occurred. Here are two examples:

The captain of the regiment of soldiers on the mountain that day – with orders to prevent the gathering of the crowd – was converted instantly. Apparently so were hundreds of other unbelievers, as their testimony will show.13

"There was an unbeliever there who had spent the morning mocking the ‘simpletons’ who had gone off to Fatima just to see an ordinary girl. He now seemed paralyzed, his eyes fixed on the sun. He began to tremble from head to foot, and lifting up his arms, fell on his knees in the mud, crying out to God." (Father Lourenço)14

A number of other cases of cures and conversions are documented in, among other places, the following books: Documentação Crítica de Fátima and Fatima from the Beginning.15

The great Miracle of the Sun lasted for ten minutes. Many more accounts of the miracle have been taken and recorded from the masses of people present, which verify this incredible manifestation of the authenticity of the entire Fatima Message. (For more accounts, see Chapter 1 of The Devil’s Final Battle.)

During the Miracle of the Sun, the three children were witnessing something else: the beautiful spectacle promised by Our Lady. Lucy writes:

Our Lady having disappeared in the immensity of the firmament, we saw, beside the sun, Saint Joseph with the Child Jesus and Our Lady clothed in white with a blue mantle. Saint Joseph and the Child Jesus seemed to bless the world with gestures which they made with their hands in the form of a cross.

Soon after, that apparition having ceased, I saw Our Lord and Our Lady, Who gave me the impression of being Our Lady of Sorrows. Our Lord seemed to bless the world in the same manner as Saint Joseph.

That apparition disappeared and it seemed to me that I saw Our Lady again, this time as Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

These three successive visions are connected to one of the dominant messages of Fatima: the Rosary. In each of Her six apparitions, Our Lady asked that the Rosary be prayed and here, in these visions granted to the three children, the mysteries of the Holy Rosary were represented. With the vision of the Holy Family we find the Joyful mysteries; the Sorrowful mysteries are represented by the vision of Our Lord and Our Lady of Sorrows; and the Glorious mysteries are represented in the vision of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel.

When the visions had disappeared and the sun was again normal, Lucy was placed on the shoulder of a man in the crowd and carried safely through the masses to the road. As she was moving past the people, she cried out to them, pleading one of the important themes in the Fatima Message: to convert, return to God and to flee sin.

Her exact words were: "Do penance! Do penance! Our Lady wants you to do penance!" but Frère Michel states that in Portuguese this does not mean "performing mortifications", but rather "being converted, returning to God, fleeing sin."

Through this plea Lucy was reiterating the sorrowful request Our Lady had made of humanity in Her final apparition: "Do not offend the Lord our God any more, because He is already too much offended."

Thus the Miracle of the Sun, witnessed by 70,000 people, concluded the cycle of the apparitions at Fatima. Yet the Message of Fatima, with its great depth and scope, was to continue to be unfolded to the eldest of the three seers, Lucy. In the years to come Heaven’s Messenger would be visited and, as promised by Our Lady in the July 13 apparition, would be instructed to reveal Heaven’s plan for peace for a turbulent world: the Reparatory devotion of the Five First Saturdays and the Consecration of Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Related Articles:
Chapter 1 of The Devil’s Final Battle

Notes:
Frère François de Marie des Anges, Fatima: Intimate Joy World Event, Book One: The Astonishing Truth, (English edition, Immaculate Heart Publications, Buffalo, New York, 1993) pp. 172-173.
O Seculo, article of October 15, 1917.
Frère Michel de la Sainte Trinité, The Whole Truth About Fatima, Volume I: Science and the Facts, (Immaculate Heart Publications, Buffalo, New York, U.S.A., 1989) p. 337.
Frère François de Marie des Anges, Fatima: The Astonishing Truth, p. 178.
Ibid.
Ibid.
Ibid, pp. 178-179.
Frère Michel de la Sainte Trinité, The Whole Truth About Fatima, Volume I, p. 340.
Frère François de Marie des Anges, Fatima: The Astonishing Truth, p, 179.
Ibid.
Ibid.
Frère Michel de la Sainte Trinité, The Whole Truth About Fatima, Volume I, p. 340. See also Father John de Marchi, I.M.C., Fatima From the Beginning, (Missoes Consolata, Fatima, Portugal, 1981, third edition, first published in 1950) p. 141; and Joseph A Pelletier, A.A., The Sun Dances at Fatima, (Doubleday, New York, 1983) pp. 129-130.
John M. Haffert, Meet the Witnesses, (AMI International Press, Fatima, Portugal, 1961) p. 62.
Ibid., p. 65.
Documentaçáo Crítica de Fátima, Volume II, (Santuário de Fátima, 1999) 17 cases documented on pp. 277-372; and Father John de Marchi, I.M.C., Fatima From the Beginning.

Deus propitius esto mihi peccatori.

Jesus, Mary, I love Thee; Save Souls!

Jesu mitis et humilis corde, Fac cor nostrum secundum Cor tuum. (ter)

The Divine Maternity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Dearest Mother Dear! My mother! =D
I am all yours! A loving slave only of Jesus and Mary. :)

Today's the Most Blessed Feast Day (II Class), celebrating the Divine Maternity of Mother Dearest, Mother Fairest!

It's most beautiful, blessed and lovely to have our Dearest Lady as our Mother. I feel most secure, most loved in her presence, under her never failing mantle, even in the most dreadful situation. She's like the light at the end of a black tunnel, the lighthouse to sailors in distress in this world. Her legions of angels she sends out to all her loved ones on this earth. Her unfailing arm she lends to poor sinners, like me, always helping, rebuking only mildly. Mother Dearest, Mother Fairest! My dear dearest Mother! :)

By her one word, Jesus melts =) for He loves her so very much. Their hearts are so intertwined, their love for each other, as Son to Mother and Mother to Son, so beautiful, and there's so much love in that one union.

St. Anselm has a beautiful prayer:

O Good Son, by the love, by which Thou lovest Thy mother, give me, I pray Thee, to love her truly, as truly Thou lovest her and will to love her.

O Good Mother, by the love by which thou lovest thy Son and want Him to be loved, obtain for me, I pray thee, to love Him truly as thou lovest Him and willest Him to be loved

Mother Mary's Fiat which was unconditional, submitting herself to the will of God, the most Holy Will of God, that we repeat each time we say the Angelus, "Behold the handmaid of the Lord, Be it done unto me according to Thy Word." Mother Mary contributed so much to our salvation. By her one word, she "allowed" the birth of Jesus, she made the first committed step. God asked her, through His angel Gabriel, and she agreed. That is most sublime, most beautiful, this mystery of the incarnation of the Word.

Here's more you can read, on what I posted on the Feast of the Annunciation. Verbum caro factum est. Infinitely beautiful. :) And here's something I wrote on decision making, also from some thoughts after I said the Angelus one day last year after before a CA.

"So great was this huge decision that was made, that this changed the entire course of events for the whole world. It was because of this decision that dearest Mother Mary, through the grace of the Most High, made, that allowed for the Saviour of the world to come into this darkness.

It was this decision, that thereby, the fate of all souls since the beginning of time to the end of time was changed. She was the one that said yes to God and thus, to a certain extent, helped accomplish for us, our salvation. In a sense, she made the first committed step, and there was no turning back after she said yes to God. This is one of the reasons why the dearest Blessed Virgin has been given the title, the Co-Redemptrix of mankind, our salvation, because, by virtue of this huge decision she made, she helped save mankind. That is why, we Catholics love her as our dearest Mother." For she accepted to be the Mother of Our Lord, at the Annunciation, when she gave her Fiat so unconditionally, and she became our dearest Mother, at the most solemn moment, at the foot of the cross. Stabat juxta crucem Mater eius. :)

Today's feast day, as taken from the 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal:

To commemorate in the liturgy the fifteenth centenary of the Council of Ephesus (held in 431), which vindicated the title of Theotokos or "Mother of God" for our Lady, Pope Pius XI in the year 1931 instituted this feast to be observed by the whole Church as a double of the second class.

Remember, Mother Mary dearest also spent time (i think 2 years, but I must check it) with the Church in Ephesus with St. John after the Crucifixion. Here's the link to the most beautiful book, The Mystical City of God by Ven. Mary of Agreda, on the Divine History and Life of the Most Blessed Virgin.

Beautiful.

From the Chapter of today's Vespers: Ecclus. 24:12-13

He that made me, rested in my tabernacle, and said unto me: Let thy dwelling be in Jacob, and take root among Mine elect.

From the Antiphon at the Magnificat, also of today's Vespers:

Thy Motherhood, O Virgin Mother of God, heralded joy to the whole world: for out of thee has arisen the sun of justice, Christ our God.

Ave Maris Stella! Here's the link to the midi file.

Ave maris stella, Dei mater alma,Atque semper virgo, Felix caeli porta.

Sumens illud Ave Gabriélis ore,Funda nos in pace Mutans Hevæ nomen.

Solve vincla reis, Profer lumen cæcis,Mala nostra pelle, Bona cuncta posce.

Monstra te esse matrem,Sumat per te precesQui pro nobis natus Tulit esse tuus.

Virgo singuláris,Inter omnes mitis, Nos culpis solútosMites fac et castos.

Vitam præsta puram,Iter para tuum,Ut vidéntes Jesum Semper collætémur.

Sit laus Deo Patri,Summo Christo decus,Spirítui Sancto Tribus honor unus.

Amen.

Since I'm learning Deutsch now, as you might know from the previous post, here's the beautiful Ave Maria in Deutsch:

Gegrüßet seist du, Maria, voll der Gnade, der Herr ist mit dir. Du bist gebenedeit unter den Frauen, und gebenedeit ist die Frucht deines Leibes, Jesus. Heilige Maria, Mutter Gottes, bitte für uns Sünder jetzt und in der Stunde unseres Todes. Amen.

Deus propitius esto mihi peccatori.

Jesus, Mary, I love Thee; Save Souls!

Jesu mitis et humilis corde, Fac cor nostrum secundum Cor tuum. (ter)

Our Lady of the Holy Rosary

This is the month of October, the month of the Most Holy Rosary and also the Holy Angels :)

Today's the Feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary! =) Beautiful Feast I must say, here's what the Feast is all about, from the 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal:

In its present form, the Rosary (according to accepted Tradition) is due to St. Dominic, the founder of the Order of Friars Preachers, his objective being to stem the flood of the Albigensian heresy, then spreading far and wide throughout Europe. He propagated this form of prayer in obedience to a revelation received from the Blessed Virgin, to whom he had recourse for this purpose, about the year 1206, and to him we owe the spread of a devotion, which for many centuries has produced the most marvelous results in the Christian world. The decisive defeat of the Turks at the famous battle of Lepanto (1571) and at Belgrade (1716) gave occasion to the institution of this feast and to its extension to the Universal Church.

Here's the beautiful Hymn at Vespers for today's feast, it says so much, so beautifully:

1. Thee, who in joy didst bear thy Child,
Thee, pierced with grief and sorrowing,
Thee, in abiding glory placed,
Thee, Virgin Mother, do we sing.

2. Hail, in thy joyful mysteries,
Conception, Visitation, Birth,
The Offering, Finding, of thy Son,
O Mother, blessed in thy mirth.

3. Hail, bearing in thy heart with grief
Thy Son’s great Agony, the blows,
The thorny crown,
The Cross itself:
Queen of all Martyrs in thy woes.

4. Hail, in the triumphs of thy Son,
In fiery tongues of Pentecost,
In light and exaltation made
The Queen of glory, heaven’s boast.

5. O come, ye nations, gather now
And let these mysteries roses prove;
Sweet garlands weave for Heav’n’s Queen.
The glorious Mother of fair love.

6. O Jesus, Virgin-born, to Thee,
Eternal glory be and praise.
To Father and to Paraclete
Our songs of glory too we raise. Amen.

V. Queen of the most holy Rosary, pray for us.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

And here, the Antiphon at the Magnificat also from today's Vespers:

O Blessed Mother and unspotted Virgin, glorious Queen of the world, may all who celebrate thy solemnity of the most holy Rosary experience thy help.

-------

For my recent German homework, we had to write a short introduction about ourselves, Ich über mich. (Me about myself). Here's an excerpt of my corrected hausaufgaben (homework):

...Ich bin römisch katholisch, genau wie meine Familie. Mein Glaube ist mir sehr wichtig. Einer meiner Lieblings heiligen ist der heilige Thomas Aquinas. Er studierte an der Universität von Köln. Ich möchte eines Tages nach Köln reisen... ...Meine Lieblingsfarbe ist Blau. Meine Hobbys sind Lesen und Klavier spielen und klassische Musik hören. Mein Lieblings komponist ist Beethoven. Er kommt auch aus Deutschland. Meine Lieblingsblume ist die Rose. Mein Lieblings gebet ist der Rosenkranz.

I think you might be able to understand it :) The bolded phrase translates: My favourite prayer is the Rosary. =) yes it is!

The Rosary. It's origin, from Dearest Mother herself to her beautiful Saint, Dominic in the 1200s. Modelled after the 150 psalms as the ancients used to recite daily, the 15 decades of the Most Holy Rosary make up to 150 Ave Marias.

Rosary - means Garden of Roses or Crown of Roses. :) It is said that each time you recite one Ave Maria lovingly while saying the Rosary, you actually offer a Rose to dearest Mother Mary in heaven. Please see verse 5 of the hymn at Vespers, Sweet garlands weave for Heaven's Queen! :) everytime people say the Rosary devoutly they place a crown of 150 - 3 red roses and 16 white roses upon the heads of Jesus and Mary. Being heavenly flowers, these roses will never fade or lose their exquisite beauty.

From the book, the Secret of the Rosary by St. Louis de Montfort, as in the picture you see at the side of this text, here's the origin of the Rosary in its present form:

I will tell you the story of how he received it, which is found in the very well-known book "De Dignitate Psalterii" by Blessed Alan de la Roche. Saint Dominic seeing that the gravity of the people's sins was hindering the conversion of the Albigensians withdrew into a forest near Toulouse where he prayed unceasingly for three days and three nights. During this time he did nothing but weep and do harsh penances in order to appease the anger of Almighty God. He used his discipline so much that his body was lacerated, and finally he fell into a coma.

At this point Our Lady appeared to him, accompanied by three angels and she said:

"Dear Dominic, do you know which weapon the Blessed Trinity wants to use to reform the world?"

"Oh my Lady" answered Saint Dominic, "you know far better than I do because next to your Son Jesus Christ you have always been the chief instrument of our salvation."

Then Our Lady replied:

"I want you to know that, in this kind of warfare, the battering ram has always been the Angelic Psalter which is the foundation stone of the New Testament. Therefore if you want to reach these hardened souls and win them over to God, preach my Psalter."

So he arose comforted, and burning with zeal for the conversion of the people in that district he made straight for the Cathedral. At once, unseen angels rang the bells to gather the people together and Saint Dominic began to preach.

At the very beginning of his sermon, an appalling storm broke out the earth shook the sun was darkened and there was so much thunder and lightning that all were very much afraid. Even greater was their fear when looking at a picture of Our Lady exposed in a prominent place they saw her raise her arms to heaven three times to call down God's vengeance upon them if they failed to be converted, to amend their lives, and seek the protection of the Holy Mother of God.

God wished, by means of these supernatural phenomena, to spread the new devotion of the Holy Rosary and to make it more widely known.

At last, at the prayer of St. Dominic, the storm came to an end, and he went on preaching. So fervently and compelling did he explain the importance and value of the Holy Rosary that almost all the people of Toulouse embraced it and renounced their false beliefs. In a very short time a great improvement was seen in the town; people began leading Christian lives and gave up their former bad habits."

How beautiful it is. :)

At Fatima, Mother Mary implored again and again, for people to say the Rosary. [More on Fatima.org]

May 13th 1917: "Say the Rosary every day, in order to obtain peace for the world and the end of the war" (the Great War). June 13th 1917: (To Sr. Lucia) "Jesus wishes to make use of you to serve as His instrument to make me known and loved. He wants to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart. To whoever who embraces this devotion, I promise salvation; these souls shall be dear to God, as flowers placed by me to adorn His throne ... My dauther ... I shall never abandon you! My Immaculate Heart will be your refuge and the way which will lead you to God. July 13th 1917: "I want you ... to continue praying the Rosary everyday in honour of Our Lady of the Rosary, in order to obtain peace for the world ... because only she can help you! Sacrifice yourselves for poor sinners often saying, especially when you make some sacrifice: "O Jesus, it is for the love of Thee, for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for the sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary." (The same day, following the vision of hell): "You have seen hell where the souls of poor sinners go. To save them, God wishes to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart. If people do what I request, many souls will be saved and there will be peace ..." Our Lady warned however that if men refused and did not cease offending God, Divine Justice would manifest itself in new and greater chastisements. However she declared: "IN THE END, MY IMMACULATE HEART WILL TRIUMPH." Then she added: "When you say the beads, say after each mystery: "O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and lead all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of Thy mercy!" August 19th 1917: "Pray, pray very much, and make sacrifices for poor sinners; for many souls go to hell because there are none to make sacrifices and pray for them." October 13th 1917: "I want a Chapel to be built here in my honour. I am Our Lady of the Rosary. Continue to say the Rosary every day... People must amend their lives and ask pardon for their sins ... They must not offend Our Lord any more for He is already too much offended."

Say the Rosary! =D It's an order from the Dearest Queen of Heaven, our Mother. :)Who knows and loves us the best after Jesus!

Mother Dear, O pray for me and never cease thy care, till in heaven eternally, thy love and bliss I share.

Here's a picture of my own handmade Rosary :) I thank my parents and my sister for their love :) I thank my god-parents for teaching me how to make this Rosary from stratch. I thank God and Mother Mary for everything. Deo gratias et Mariae.

Deus propitius esto mihi peccatori.

Jesus, Mary, I love Thee; Save Souls!

Jesu mitis et humilis corde, Fac cor nostrum secundum Cor tuum. (ter)

St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus and Holy Face

Today's the most beautiful Feast day of my dearest dearest patron, Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus and Holy Face! :) Yesterday and today were beautiful days for me. :) There was time (yay!) to go for morning Mass (yay!) and everything was beautiful even amidst all the tests and work that has to be done. I wonder how it must be in heaven. I can't wait. Haha. Pray for me, my dear blog readers, patience really is a necessary virtue.

Now, I'd like to write a little more about St. Thérèse. Here's a link to all I have written about her on my blog. I am sure many of you know a lot about her, after all, she's really really famous =D, "the greatest saint of modern times!" as Pope Saint Pius X said, almost prophetically, way before even St. Thérèse became Saint Thérèse. :) (I mean way before St. Thérèse was canonized.) Thus, I will write more about her prayers and her writings that really characterize and "show-off" what a beautiful most pretty and dear dearest soul St. Thérèse is. Most dear to Jesus and Mary! :)

[All excerpts and phrases etc, taken from various sources, including, The Story of the Soul, St Thérèse of Lisieux By Those Who Knew Her, the 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal, Douay-Rheims Holy Bible etc. etc.]

Her ideal throughout her entire life was simple, direct and heroic: "I want to be a saint." and that was all. Her whole life centred on this one ideal. "I want to spend my heaven doing good on earth." Her beautiful autobiography, The Story of a Soul, changed my life in a way I didn't know possible. Deo gratias et Mariae.

As Saint Paul in his second epistle to Timothy wrote: "For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of prudence." (2 Tim. 1:7) St. Thérèse brought this truth to light for us especially in this modern (or rather now, post modern) world in which we live in. Her holiness, a holiness founded on unshakeable confidence in God and absolute love for Him. Her doctrine of sanctity is enshrined for the ages in her own phrase, "the little way of spiritual childhood." This teaching was not original with St. Thérèse. It was Jesus Himself who taught it. Jesus Himself who urged His followers to become "as little children", as we read in today's Gospel. And today's Epistle is also very very beautiful. This epistle, taken from the old testament (the prophet Isaias) was something special to St, Thérèse during her short but extremely beautiful life. Here it is:

"Thus saith the Lord: Behold I will bring upon her as it were a river of peace, and as an overflowing torrent the glory of the Gentiles which you shall suck; you shall be carried at the breasts, and at the knees they shall caress you. As one whom his mother caresseth, so will I comfort you: and you shall be comforted in Jerusalem. You shall see and your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb, and the hand of the Lord shall be known to his servants." (Is.66:12-14)

And also, the Gradual of the Mass today is also very very beautiful:

"I confess to Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent and hast revealed them to little ones. My hope, O Lord, from my youth." (Mt. 11:25; Ps. 70:5)

What is love?

St. Thérèse explains in her own good way:

Here's an excerpt from a testimony by Sister Marie-Joseph of the Cross, O.S.B. who was the maid and governess under the service of M. Guerin, St Thérèse's uncle, before she joined the Benedictine nuns of the Blessed Sacrament at Bayeaux. She was the 8th witness and she testified this on 12-15 December 1910:

"Shortly after her first communion, when she was about twelve, she used to talk to me about God: how good he was to those who loved him, the love he bore each of us individually. As I did not feel all that much love for him, and said as much to her, she explained that love was not a matter of what you felt but of practising virtue, and that we should always try to please God in the least of our actions, without any attempt to draw attention to ourselves."

When the witness, Marcelline, before she became a nun, told St Thérèse that she intended to become a nun, St Thérèse told her this:

"we must always Love God a great deal, and to prove that love we must make all the sacrifices he asks of us. Don't worry, I'll be praying for you. Love God so that you won't be too afraid of him; he is so kind, really! Remember too to pray for those who do not love him, so that we can convert many souls."

As such, love of God equates love of sacrifice. The true definition of love is:

Love = Sacrifice

Love and Sacrifice are 2 things so interconnected, they cannot be separated. If you say you love someone, you say that you are willing to give your life for that someone. And, how beautiful that love is, so gentle, so warm, so tender, so infinite, that He would give up his life, hanging on something most disgusting, in order to bear the burden of our sins, our iniquities?

God chose St. Thérèse to dramatize this truth, to love and be like "little children", anew, reminding us always that great love, not great deeds, is the essence of sanctity.

What is perfection?

Perfection consists in doing His will, in being that which He wants us to be.

As St. Thérèse wrote in her autobiography.

"Jesus saw fit to enlighten me about this mystery. He set the book of nature before me and I saw that all the flowers He has created are lovely. The splendour of the rose and the whiteness of the lily do not rob the little violet of its scent nor the daisy of its simple charm. I realised that if every tiny flower wanted to be a rose, spring would lose its loveliness and there would be no wild flowers to make the meadows gay.

It is just the same in the world of souls - which is the garden of Jesus. He has created the great saints who are like the lilies and the roses, but He has also created much lesser saints and they must be content to be the daisies or the violets which rejoice His eyes whenever He glances down. Perfection consists in doing His will, in being that which He wants us to be.

I also understood that God's love shows itself just as well in the simplest soul which puts up no resistance to His grace as it does in the loftiest soul. Indeed, as it is love's nature to humble itself, if all souls were like those of the holy doctors who have illumined the Church with the light of their doctrine, it seems that God would not have stooped low enough by entering their hearts. But God has created the baby who knows nothing and can utter only feeble cries. He has created the poor savage with no guide but natural law, and it is to their hearts that He deigns to stoop. They are His wild flowers whose homeliness delights Him. By stooping down to them, He manifests His infinite grandeur. The sun shines equally both on cedars and on every tiny flower. In just the same way God looks after every soul as if it had no equal. All is planned for the good of every soul, exactly as the seasons are so arranged that the humblest daisy blossoms at the appointed time."

Beautiful. Dearest Jesus, help me only to do what Thou wilt want me to do. Thy Holy Will is most perfect.

Saint Thérèse's name in religion was Thérèse of the Child Jesus and Holy Face.

She composed a beautiful prayer in honour of His Most Holy Face:

"Jesus, Who in Thy bitter Passion didst become "the reproach of men and the Man of Sorrows", I venerate Thy Holy Face on which shone the beauty and gentleness of Divinity. In those disfigured features I recognize Thine infinite love, and I long to love Thee and to make Thee loved ...

May I behold Thy Glorious Face in Heaven!"

And here's a beautiful prayer I'd like to add here in this post to dearest St. Thérèse, my patron:

St. Thérèse, the little flower, please pick me a rose from the heavenly garden and send it to me with a message of love. Ask God to grant me the favour I thee implore and tell Him I will love Him each day more and more.

And here's an excerpt from Alone with God by Fr. Heyrmann S.J.:

October 3

St. Thérèse of the Child Jésus and Holy Face

1. In the Mass we read a passage of the Gospel hat is most appropriate to this Saint. It sounds as if Jesus was introducing “Little Thérèse” to the modern world: “Amen I say to you, unless you be converted and become as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Mt. 18:3). Thérèse of Lisieux never had any need of being converted: she was a child to the very marrow of the bones; never was she anything else; never did she wish to be anything else. She said, “Even if I were to live many more years, I would take care to remain a little child.”

2. Petition: The grace to grasp the Lord’s doctrine about becoming like little children: may we tread courageously the “Little Way” of St. Thérèse, which she paved and followed so heroically.

I. Little in Appearance

At first sight, and on a superficial estimate, St Thérèse does by no means appear a “grand Saint”. She made no foundations, worked no striking miracles, had no ecstasies, did nothing extraordinary, taught no wonderful doctrine. Her “teaching”, however original and personal it may have been, was exceedingly simple: “My little doctrine,” as she used to say. Nothing in her life, before or after her entrance into religion, could be described as extraordinary. When at the age of 24 she died, a fellow religious is recorded to have observed, “I wonder what one can say about her in her obituary notice.” Of that, God Himself had taken care. At the command of her Superior, she herself had written an account of her life. She did know that God had something to say to the world through her.

Yet, in her own eyes, she was and remained little. God was her Father and she was His child; and of this relation of child to Father she was fully convinced; this fact pervaded her whole life and her spirituality. Her style of writing and her figures of speech are childlike – perhaps they border on the childish; she is a ball with which Jesus plays as He pleases; if she meets an obstacle, she does not dash against it; being small, “she creeps beneath”.

“I am too little to be damned,” she once said humorously, yet very profoundly; her style bristles with diminutives.

If in all sincerity the great St. Paul could think and say that in him “God hath chosen the foolish things of the world, and the things that are contemptible, and the things that are not, that he might bring to nought things that are” (1 Cor. 1:27, 28), then we can readily understand what a poor opinion little Thérèse entertained of herself. But because of this poor opinion God chose to do great things through her.

II. Great in Truth

In this “little soul”, there is nothing that is petty, or childish. She loves to draw her figures of speech from the world of children, but in her spiritual life she is an adult, perfectly mature, and brave, who, like St. Paul, “had put away the things of a child”. Sensible devotion and consolation in prayer, anxiety to calculate what progress one is making or to gather merits she had gone beyond all these trappings of the spiritual life, that she might cling firmly to God’s holy will. “I have only one joy: to suffer for Jesus; and this joy, though not a matter of feeling, still surpasses every other joy … I have found the secret how to suffer in peace and joy: we need only will what God wills.” She was courageous: “True courage,” she wrote, “consists in this: to desire the cross, even with dread in your heart, and with internal repugnance, as Jesus in the garden.” Her “Little Way” of total surrender to God in self-forgetting love, comes indeed very close to the “yet a more excellent way”, of which St Paul wrote to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 12:31).

Her zeal for the Missions throughout the world, and the letters she wrote to missionaries, proved the largeness of her heart: from the narrow window of her cell her eyes surveyed the whole world. Pope Pius XI appointed her Patroness of the Missions, together with St. Francis Xavier, the great Apostle of modern times.

III. God’s Work in Her

Little Thérèse was aware that she was a privileged child of God, and that God wanted to give through her a message to the Church. “Mother,” she once said to her Prioress, “you thought you were not imprudent when you told me that God had enlightened my soul, and had given me the experience of mature years. I am too small to grow vain on that account; too small to look for appropriate words to express how humble I am; I prefer to say the simple truth: He that is mighty hath done great things to me.” Throughout life her love of truth and of absolute sincerity was very great. She abhorred whatever savoured of sham, or pretence, or insincerity. To the world, and more still to all who in religion strive after perfection, she has announced the glad tidings that the greatest perfection can be achieved in the humblest surroundings, and in the most complete separation from the world.

Prayer: O Lord, who hast said, Unless you become as little children you shall not enter into the Kingdom of heaven; we ask of Thee the grace so to follow, by humility and simplicity of heart, in the footsteps of the virgin Saint Thérèse, that we may win eternal rewards. Who livest and reignest world without end (Collect of the Mass of today).

(as with St. Thérèse:) O Mon Dieu, comment je T'aime!

Deus propitius esto mihi peccatori

Jesus, Mary, I love Thee; Save Souls!

Jesu mitis et humilis corde, Fac cor nostrum secundum Cor tuum. (ter)