Care for the Departed

All Souls Day 2024
We come to this Mass to help the Poor Souls.  Holy Mother Church does not neglect any of her children, even those detained in Purgatory, because God greatly desires that we care for the dead.  The origin of the maniple that the priest wears was originally a handkerchief to wipe the tears from his eyes, and in union with him we all weep for the Holy Souls today.  Everything is directed to the souls in Purgatory.  Even on this First Saturday, when the Blessed Mother is usually the focus, she defers to the suffering souls.  We pray for final perseverance, so that when we are attacked by the devil in our last moments, we will turn to God.  Heaven is only for the perfect, and in order to enter we must have no attachment to sin.  If we do not remove those attachments in this life, we must remove them in the next.
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Your Steps To Sanctity

All Saints Day 2024
This feast has a twofold purpose: firstly, to give honor to all the saints, especially those unknown saints in Heaven; and secondly, to remind us of our ultimate goal.  We are given great encouragement to follow their example in the pursuit of holiness, knowing that if they could achieve sanctity in this life, so can we.  Our Lord began His public teaching with His instruction on the beatitudes – the summit of Christian perfection.  Like a fruit that has not yet ripened, the practice of virtue in its early stages is hard, bitter, and distasteful, but with continual practice virtue ripens into the Fruits of the Holy Ghost, which make the service of God sweet, easy, and enjoyable.  If we steadfastly follow the example of the saints, this will be our feast as well someday.
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His Priestly Reign

Feast of Christ the King 2024
This feast was instituted in our times to combat secularism.  Those who claim that we need not proselytize, or that all religions are paths to God, are in direct contradiction of the words of our Redeemer.  The doctrine of the kingship of Christ comes from both His divinity and His humanity.  God owns us because He is our Creator and, by the union of His human and divine natures,  He became Head of the human race.  Christ is both priest and king and will continue His priestly reign until the end of time.  The Catholic youth should have one anthem echo in their hearts: “We have no King but Christ.”
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How We Save the World

20th Sunday after Pentecost 2024
Rosary Conference – There are many sacramentals used by the Church, but none seem to be as favored by Our Lady as the Dominican Rosary.  It is a prayer to Our Lord with the Virgin Mary, and after the Holy Mass and Divine Office, it is the most powerful prayer a Catholic can make.  There is no request that is beyond its power.  In this world of secularism, religious indifference, and apostasy, we have one thing left – the Holy Rosary.  It originated as a replacement for the psalms for certain illiterate monks in the monasteries and was later used to assist the preaching of St. Dominic.  This spiritual weapon has led to many military victories throughout Church history.  It supplies in some way for what the faithful of today are being deprived of in the liturgy.  The Rosary offers lessons in the practice of virtue, helps us forget our fears and troubles as we are plunged into the Divine Heart of Christ, and disposes us to receive the gift of passive, infused contemplation.
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St. Francis’ Knowledge and God’s ‘Little Ones’

1st Friday Conference, October 2024
St. Francis of Assisi is greatly misunderstood and mistakenly viewed as the saint of the ecologists.  He composed a poem, which he gave to the members of his order, and this “Song of the Sun” demonstrates St. Francis’ love of nature – not for its own sake but because of its Creator.  The gift of knowledge gives one a better appreciation of God’s attributes through the beauty of the natural world.  This makes us desire the happiness of Heaven and earnestly pray that we may possess it.

The hallmark of the life of St. Therese of Lisieux is the doctrine of spiritual childhood.  In the Gospels, Our Lord not only spoke of the necessity of spiritual childhood for salvation, but warned against giving scandal to the innocent “little ones.”  St. Therese made the appreciation of her helplessness and complete trust in God the foundation of her spiritual life.  She spent her life doing little things with great love, and if we do the same, we too will be safe.
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No Lover But Christ

16th Sunday after Pentecost 2024
Carmelite Perpetual Profession – The perpetual vows are received by the prioress of the convent, but the veil comes from the hands of the priest or bishop.  In taking the black veil the novice shows herself to be a true bride of Christ, so it is fitting that it be given by him who is acting in Persona Christi.  In the early days the veil sheltered the face of a married woman from the gaze of the world, her beauty and innocence being reserved for her spouse alone.  So too with the perpetual vows of a nun.  She is the spouse of Christ and she will accept no other lover.  The nun is called to be generous and giving especially in the service of Christ’s representatives – the priests.  The Carmelites in particular share in a special way in the interior life of the priest.  This life is the means of sanctification and union with God.  It requires great love and confidence in the unfailing assistance of Our Lord.
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For Those Who Have Lost Their Way

1st Friday Conference September 2024
St. Tarcisius lived during the days of great persecution.  He was ordained an acolyte or deacon as a young man, and was commissioned to care for the Christian prisoners.  While bringing Viaticum to these captives, St. Tarcisius was accosted by a group of pagans.  He gave his life rather than expose the Holy Eucharist to desecration.

Devotion to the Holy Infant of Prague is loved and honored by Our Lord Himself.  Our Lord is not a child now, but this is the humble state in which He first appeared in the world.  The statue depicts the Holy Infant as both God and Man, as well as King of all creation.  His welcoming gentleness seems to radiate out from the Infant Jesus of Prague.  He makes Himself a guide to all those who have lost their way.

Much is said about the accomplishments of St. Pius X, but not enough about his interior life.  His prayer had reached the heights of contemplation and was directed by the Holy Ghost.  He radiated goodness and wanted to comfort everybody, yet fought unwaveringly against the enemies of his spiritual children.
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His Will Be Done

14th Sunday after Pentecost 2024
Those souls who are advanced in the spiritual life begin to experience the sweetness and joy of virtue in the Fruits of the Holy Ghost.  It is difficult to live a life of virtue when one first begins his journey, but it becomes easier the more one progresses.  The Gospel for this Mass is meant to reassure the faithful that, in His divine providence, God will provide all we need for the future.  Our anxiety is dispelled when we remember that even the difficulties and trials of our life come from the hand of God for the sake of sanctifying our souls.
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A Fertile Ground for Prayer

Assumption Evening 2024
The Assumption is not an event recorded in Scripture, but we must remember faith does not come through reading but through hearing.  The Apostles learned everything by listening to the teachings of Our Lord.  Our bodies are destined to be with our souls in Heaven, not to remain in the world.  How could a person expect to be admitted into Heaven if he denies that Our Lord’s own Mother is there?  We must make up for that neglect shown to the Blessed Mother by our own fervor on this day. We must continue the fight for the Virgin Mary’s honor and our salvation.
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A Share In His Strength

11th Sunday after Pentecost 2024
Confirmation Sunday August 2024In Confirmation one receives a character, an increase of sanctifying grace, as well as special sacramental grace.  Through this sacrament we receive a greater share in Christ’s strength and victory on the cross.  Those confirmed are now adults in the Faith and are enabled to defend the Church publicly.  Confirmation is known as the Sacrament of the Holy Ghost because through it we are given a perfection of His seven gifts.  The Holy Ghost is the Person of Love and, if we pray for it, He will give us a share of the bond of union which exists among the Persons of the Trinity.
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