The Angel Returns

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  The Story of Our Lady of Fatima

Chanticleer Booklets - 1949

Chapter Four

The Angel Returns

Several months had passed since they had seen the angel in human form. But the mystery of it still weighed upon them, and the message he had given them had not been forgotten. Then one day during the quiet of the siesta, they were talking together in their favorite retreat in the garden behind the well, when the angel appeared at their side.

"What are you about?", he asked. His manner was grave. Pray, pray a lot! Jesus and Mary have designs of mercy upon you in their holy hearts―Keep on offering to the Lord prayers and sacrifices to make up for so many sins against him, and to obtain the conversion of sinners. Offer them to obtain peace for your country.―I am its guardian angel, the Angel of Portugal. Above all, accept humbly whatever sufferings Our Lord will send you . . .  

As the angel's words fell upon their ears, their minds were mysteriously illumined, so that they saw how God loved them, and how He wished to be loved by them in return. They saw also how great is the value of sacrifice and how powerful it is to obtain the conversion of sinners.

A deeper effect was wrought in the lives of the children. They became intent on sacrificing all the little comforts and delights they could. Their lives had been simple and frugal as they were, for peasant children have not many things to deprive themselves of, but they were ingenious in inventing ways and means of doing penance. The principal one they preferred was to remain for hours, their heads bowed to the ground, repeating the prayer which the Angel had taught them when he first appeared.

All summer long, the young shepherds tended their sheep and seemed outwardly just like the other children of the village. Secretly they were engaged in the special mission they had received from Heaven. Their days of penance and prayer went up as an agreeable incense to their Heavenly Father.

Autumn brought a third and momentous visit of the angel. The little trio had finished their meal at noon, and had come to the place where the angel had first appeared to them while they were sheltering from the storm. They had finished their rosary and had been reciting the Angel's prayer for a while when suddenly they found themselves surrounded by a brilliant light. Lifting their heads, their eyes grew round with wonder at what they saw. The angel was there, and this time he held in his hand a chalice. Above it was suspended a host from the whiteness of which drops of blood were issuing and falling into the chalice.

The angel came and knelt beside them, the chalice and the host remaining where they were in the air. He made them recite three times this prayer:

Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore profoundly, I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world, in re- paration for the outrages by which He Himself is offended.

By the infinite merits of His Sacred Heart and by the intercession of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg of Thee the conver-sion of poor sinners.

Then the angel rose, placed the host on Lucy's tongue, and gave Jacinta and Francis drink from the chalice, saying at the same time: 

Receive the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, horribly outraged by thankless men. Make up for their sins, and console your God.

At the end he knelt again, repeated the prayer another three times, and vanished from their sight.

The children remained a long time on their knees, murmuring the angelic prayer to the Holy Trinity, their souls in a profound and luminous peace, their hearts throbbing with the effects of the mysterious communion which they had made. They felt the bliss of it immensely. Francis was the fist to come to himself and to think of getting back to the village. It was late. The children got the sheep together and started homewards in great joy. But they went slowly, for their small bodies were weary.

*

*       *       * 

It was a Sunday in the spring of the following year. May 13, 1917. The children had come home from Mass, and were taking the sheep out to pasture in a sort of dale, or basin-shaped depression not far from the village, where the Santos owned a field. The place was called Cova da Iria, which in English would be St. Irene's Cove, in honor of a saint who lived in the region in the 7th century. At noon, after eating lunch, the children knelt in the shade of an olive tree to say the rosary. They prayed with a fervor and piety nourished by months of compliance with the angel's wishes. Next they became absorbed in one of their favorite games, that of building a house. The girls brought the stones, and Francis made an enclosure of them, the floor of which was strewn with pine needles.

Suddenly, there was a brilliant flash of lightning. Startled, the three looked up, but not a cloud was to be seen anywhere in the sky! Still, thought Lucy, perhaps a storm was brewing behind the hills, and she voted to taking in the sheep. The other two, nervously agreed, and quickly bringing the flock together, they moved off across the cove towards the village. Just in the middle of the cove, they were brought to a sudden stop by another dazzling flash. They glanced at one another fearfully, then again moved on. They were just passing near a young oak tree when this time they were fairly blinded by a brilliant light which enveloped them. Opening their eyes, their gaze was drawn to the tree from which light was radiating. And the source of the wonderful light was a beautiful young woman, clothed in the purest white, light poised on a branch of the oak.

A veil, bordered at the edge with a delicate gleaming gold thread a little more brilliant than the radiant whiteness of her apparel, covered head and shoulders and fell to her feet. The children could scarcely bear the vision of beauty, and wanted to flee. But a sweet maternal gesture and a gentle voice restrained them. Lucy reassured, had courage enough to ask a question:

~"Where are you from, Madam?"

~"I am from Heaven."

~"Why are you here?"

~"I come to ask you to be here on the 13th of each month at this time, every month for six months. In October, I shall tell you who I am, and what I wish from you."

~"You come from Heaven! . . . Shall I go to Heaven?"

~"Yes, you shall go there."

~"Jacinta also?"

~"Yes."

~"And Francis?"

~"He too. But before he must recite many rosaries."

In saying this, the Lady, whose every movement sparked with light, turned a regard full of goodness and compassion on the young boy.

She turned again to Lucy:

~Are you willing to offer sacrifices to God and to accept all the sufferings that He will send you in reparation for the nuberless sins which offend His Divine Majesty? Are you willing to suffer to obtain the conversion of sinners, to make reparation for the blasphemies as well as for all the offense done to the Immaculate Heart of Mary?"

~"Yes, yes, we are willing," the child replied.

The unhesitating generosity of the children was rewarded by a smile of tenderness, and the Lady said: "You will have much to suffer then, but the grace of God will help and sustain you always."

Up to that moment, the Lady had held her hands joined at her breast. Now she parted them in an exquisitely gracious and maternal gesture, and the movement caused a flood of mysterious light, sweet and intense, to pour into the depths of their souls and to make them see themselves as they were in God. They fell to their knees exclaiming:

~"O most Holy Trinity, I adore Thee! . . . My God, my God, I love Thee! . . . "

The lovely regard of the Lady rested silently on them for a while. One more request she made of them ~ that they recite the rosary devoutly every day for the peace of the world and for the conversion of sinners ~ and then the children saw that she was moving away, and their eyes followed her until she disappeared in the light of the sun.

The Full  😇😇 Movie

Chanticleer Booklets
The National Rosary Shrine

Cap de la Madeleine

Canada, 1949

(Chapter Five Tomorrow 😇😇)

Saints Lucia, Jacinta and Francisco - Pray for us!

1,660,173

Messenger From Heaven

  The Story of Our Lady of Fatima

Chanticleer Booklets - 1949

Chapter Three

The rain poured heavily down, and the children took refuge from the storm in a rocky hollow in the side of the hill, without losing sight of the sheep. They ate their lunch, recited the rosary and were about to begin a game when suddenly a great rushing blast of wind, a burst of light . . . and then, astonishing sight!

A comely young man shining like crystal in the sun, advancing through the air toward them!

Fear mounted in their hearts, but the stranger spoke in gentle tones:

No, no! Do not be afraid. I am the angel of Peace. Pray with me.

Upon that the mysterious visitor bowed his forehead to the ground and repeated three times:

My God, I believe, I adore, I hope in Thee and I love Thee! I beg pardon from Thee for those who do not believe, who do not hope, who do not adore, and who do not love Thee!

He rose and gazing at them kindly, said: Pray like that, my little ones. The most holy hearts of Jesus and Mary will be moved by your prayer.

The Angel disappeared. The children remained rooted to the spot. They neither stirred nor spoke. They were filled with a sweet awareness of the presence of God.

At last they looked at one another, and read in each other's eyes the glowing aftermath of the vision. Their wonder gave rise to resolve as they thought of the message. They must pray! And down they went, bowing their heads to the ground and repeating again and again the angel's prayer. They kept it up until their bodies ached.

As they reluctantly stopped to rest, they began to wonder about it all, questioning each other what the angel could want of them. They relapsed into a puzzled silence. The only conclusion grew upon them: the only certain thing that they could cling to was that they must do what he had asked!

And so, down went the little heads to the ground again, and tremulously the tender voices chanted: My God, I believe, I adore, I hope in Thee and I love Thee. I beg pardon for . . .

Another halt, and another return to the enormous question that now filled their lives, hitherto untroubled. What did it all mean? What did the angel want of them? They were old enough to know that even in the Christian country of Portugal, there were many men who had scant love for their Creator and their Heavenly Father. They had forgotten Him and no longer confided in Him. Still God is good! How is it that men think no more of Him . . .

And upon this thought, the children resumed their adoration and petitioning, this activity which all of a sudden had become the burning need of their souls.

Chanticleer Booklets

The National Rosary Shrine

Cap de la Madeleine

Canada, 1949

(Chapter Four Tomorrow 😇😇)

Saints Lucia, Jacinta and Francisco - Pray for us!

1,649,858

Shepherds Three

The Story of Our Lady of Fatima

Chanticleer Booklets - 1949

Chapter Two

The time came for Lucy to take charge of her family's small flock of sheep. This meant that she must pasture them out in the hills all day long. Francis and Jacinta were quite melancholy about it - no more pleasant days with her. They waited wistfully for her return in the evening, and they cried with delight when the sheep with their pretty shepherdess came trotting into view. The Marto family also had some sheep. And the two youngsters pleaded with their mother to have charge of them. Signora Marto could not long resist the entreaty of their upturned faces. The morning after, the three friends joined their flocks together and off they went, tripping gaily after the thirty odd sheep. What joy! They had recited the usual little prayers to God, to Our Lady and to their Guardian Angels before setting out, and now they were on their way to the beckoning hills.

Sheep and children went leisurely along for an hour or so until they came to a suitable place. There they stopped for the day. As the sheep began to graze contentedly, their young guardians sought a shady spot to rest. The morning went peacefully by and at noon, the eager hands plunged into the lunch basket.

No sooner was their hunger quieted than they quickly knelt down, for they had been taught to recite the rosary after dinner. But their dark eyes were dancing with anticipated fun, and once refreshed they were eager for games and the blackberries in the bushes nearby. Jacinta especially longed with her impetuous little heart to run about. So, the Our Fathers and the Hail Marys were sadly garbled, and the instant the last bead was finished, off they scattered, shrilling in this or that jolly pursuit. In this way the afternoons were joyously passed until the time would come to return home.

After supper the grown-ups relaxed from the toil of the day and listened fondly to the children's tales of their adventures. Sometimes their own tongues would loosen, old tales go round, songs strike up, with now and then a whirl of dancing. When dust fell, the children said their prayers and were soon abed, deep in slumber and in the dreams of childhood. But little did they dream of the great and merciful designs that God had upon their lives; little did they dream of the things that they would be called upon to suffer for the love of Our Lord, and of the Virgin, His Queen-Mother; little did they dream of Portugal and of the peoples of the earth to be saved from ruin through their innocence and sacrifices! They were to see, not fleeting fantasies in sleep, but eternal realities in broad daylight, realities of that world compared to which our earth, for all its hardness and self-confidence, is but a shadow. They were to receive the visit of the Queen of that eternal land, of which this universe of time and space is only the vestibule. They were to hear from her things potent enough to cause a revolution in Portugal, and in every nation disposed to listen.

And the revolution that was to take seed in the hearts of three little shepherds was to be one not springing from desperation and hatred, but a revolution unleashing the forces of faith, hope and love. For that reason, it was a revolution that must ultimately succeed.

Chanticleer Booklets

The National Rosary Shrine

Cap de la Madeleine

Canada, 1949

(Chapter three Tomorrow 😇😇)

Saints Lucia, Jacinta and Francisco - Pray for us!

1,632,495

The Story of Our Lady of Fatima

The Story of Our Lady of Fatima

Chanticleer Booklets - 1949

Chapter One

They were Lucy, ten years old, youngest child of the Santo family, and her cousins, Francis and Jacinta Marto.

Lucy was a level-headed youngster, upright and truthful. She had the strong character of her mother, a woman of deep and sturdy faith with a passionate hatred of falsehood.

Jacinta was a tender, vivacious child, who charmed every one with her pretty ways. She was quick and intelligent. Francis was two years older than his sister. He had a good deal of affection for her, and listened solemnly to her gay chatter. Sometimes when she pouted, it pleased him to unbend from the dignity of his extra two years and give in to her.

The two Marto children often came to Lucy's house. The folk songs and legends of the country were to be heard aplenty within its hospitable walls. And Lucy's mother had not her equal for relating how Our Lord laid down his life because He loved men so, and how, during all the ages since, men and women have loved and died for love of Him.

So it is that Lucy, Francis and Jacinta became inseparable friends. They passed their days together. They ran and played and danced. And when they were breathless, they rested in their favorite nook behind the well in the Santos' garden. Lucy was usually called upon for a story, for she had something of Her mother's gift for telling about Jesus, His Mother and His Saints. Jacinta pleaded often to hear the account of why and how Christ suffered and died. She listened with tearful eyes, and said: "Poor Lord! I won't sin any more. I don't want Jesus to suffer." Francis became a still and pensive little man, a far-away look in his eyes.

Lucy was the only one of the trio to have made her First Communion. This experience made her wonderful to her friends. They were eager to be like her - entitled to receive the bread of angels, and to talk to Jesus brought into their young hearts.

Chanticleer Booklets

The National Rosary Shrine

Cap de la Madeleine

Canada, 1949

(Chapter two Tomorrow 😇😇)

1,610,421

The Song of Bernadette

In 1858 Bernadette, an adolescent peasant girl, has a vision of "a beautiful lady" in the Grotto of Massabielle. She never claims it to be anything other than this, but the townspeople all assume it to be the Virgin Mary. The pompous government officials think she is insane, and do their best to suppress the girl and her followers, and the Church wants nothing to do with the whole matter. But as Bernadette attracts wider and wider attention, the phenomenon overtakes everyone in the the town, and transforms their lives. 

New York Times - 1943

There is fine appreciation of the character of Bernadette in this film, largely because of the simplicity and beauty of Miss Jones in the role.  Her large, sad eyes and soft face, her wistful mouth and luminous smile are a thoroughlyappealing exterior for the innocence which shines from within.  And her manner, bot dignified and humble, modest yet confident, is a wonderful contrast to the shadings of lay and clerical personalities which confront her on all sides.

CLICK ON MOVIE BELOW TO VIEW NOW

Our Lady of Lourdes Book - Absolutely Free
Just Click on the Book 😇😇
 

1,593,726

Leaving Bethlehem

We have devoutly admired and loved thee, O Mary! during these days which have shown us all the glory of thy divine Maternity, which gave joy to all heaven and earth. Thy ineffable happiness, O Mother of God! has been a long feast to us. Thou hast affectionately welcomed us at the Crib of thy Divine Son; thou has received us as brethren of thy Jesus. Accept once more the tribute of our humble thanks. We are no longer to see our Emmanuel resting in thine arms, or sleeping on thy bosom. The decrees of his heavenly Father call him to the great work of our Redemption, and later on, to the sacrifice of his life for our sake. O Blessed Mother! the sword is already in thy heart; thou fore-knowest the future of the blessed Fruit of thy womb. May our fidelity in following him through the coming mysteries of his public life bring some alleviation to the sorrows of thy maternal Heart!  Amen.

The Liturgical Year - Epiphany, Bk 3

by Dom Prosper  Granger O.S.B.

 London, 1867

ANDREA BOCELLI (HQ) AVE MARIA (SCHUBERT)

1,564,369

Pie Jesu - Merciful Jesus

Pie Jesu or Merciful Jesus

Grant me Thy grace most merciful Jesus, that it may be with me and work with me and persevere with me even to the end.

       Grant that I may always desire and will that which is to Thee most acceptable and most dear.

       Let Thy will be mine, and let my will ever follow Thine and agree perfectly with it.

       Let my willing and not-willing be all one with Thine, and let me not be able to will or not will anything else but what Thou willest or willest not.  Amen. 

(Imitation of Christ, bk. 3, ch. 15, v. 3).

Sissel Kyrkjebø - Pie Jesu (merciful Jesus)

"Pie Jesu" Latin Lyrics

Pie Jesu, pie Jesu, pie Jesu, pie Jesu

Qui tollis peccata mundi

Dona eis requiem, dona eis requiem

Pie Jesu, pie Jesu, pie Jesu, pie Jesu

Qui tollis peccata mundi

Dona eis requiem, dona eis requiem

Agnus Dei, Agnus Dei, Agnus Dei, Agnus Dei

Qui tollis peccata mundi

Dona eis Requiem, dona eis requiem

Sempiternal

Sempiternal

Requiem 

"Pie Jesu" English Translation

Merciful Jesus, merciful Jesus, merciful Jesus,

merciful Jesus

Father, who takes away the sins of the world 

Grant them rest, grant them rest

Merciful Jesus, merciful Jesus, merciful Jesus,

Merciful Jesus

Father, who takes away the sins of the world

Grant them rest, grant them rest

Lamb of God, Lamb of God, Lamb of God, Lamb of God

Father, who takes away the sins of the world 

Grant them rest, grant them rest 

everlasting

everlasting
Rest

Thou Star of The Sea

We salute thee, too, O Mary, thou Star of the Sea that shines on the waters of this life, giving calm and protection to thy tempest-tossed children who invoke thee! Thou didst pray for the Magi as they traversed the desert; guide also our steps, and bring us to Him who is thy Child and thy Light eternal.

Sissel Kyrkjebø - Ave Maris Stella

The Menæa of the Greek Church furnish us with these beautiful stanzas in honor of the holy Mother of God.

O most august Queen! thou wast the untilled land that gavest us our Wheat, Jesus, the Lord and feeder of the universe; by eating this bread we are restored to life.
Seeing our Lord made incarnate from thee, chaste Virgin! we confess thee to be in very deed the Mother of God, that didst thus become, we hesitate not to proclaim it, the cause of the regeneration of all things. 
He, the Being above all being, who was a pure spirit, took flesh to himself from thy pure blood, O Spotless Maid! and remaining God as before, he was made flesh, and lived among men. 
Nature's Laws were truly suspended in thee, most pure Virgin! for thou remainest a Virgin after thy delivery, as thou wast before it, for thou didst give birth to him who is the giver of all laws, Christ.

Spotless Mother of God! heal the passions of my wretched soul appease my mind, tossed by the attacks of my enemy as with tempests, and bring, O Virgin, peace unto my heart. Amen.

The Liturgical Year - Epiphany, Bk 3

by Dom Prosper  Granger O.S.B.

London, 1867

It's Time to Say Goodbye

End of Christmas

The Solemnity of the Epiphany of The Lord

We have devoutly admired and loved thee, O Mary! during these days which have shown us all the glory of thy divine Maternity, which gave joy to all heaven and earth. Thy ineffable happiness, O Mother of God! has been a long feast to us. Thou hast affectionately welcomed us at the Crib of thy Divine Son; thou has received us a brethren of thy Jesus.  Accept once more the tribute of our humble thanks. We are no longer to see our Emmanuel resting in thine arms, or sleeping on thy bosom. The decrees of his heavenly Father call him to the great work of our Redemption, and later on, to the sacrifice of his life for our sake. O Blessed Mother! the sword is already in thy heart; thou foreknowest the future of the blessed /fruit of thy womb. May our fidelity in following him through the coming mysteries of his public life bring some alleviation to the sorrows of thy maternal Heart!

Jackie Evaiko at the Piano

Before I lay me down to rest
I ask the Lord one small request
I know I have all I could need
But this prayer is not for me

Too many people on this day
Don't have a peaceful place to stay
Let all fighting cease that your children may see peace
Wipe their tears of sorrow away

To believe in a day
When hunger and war will pass away
To have the hope amidst despair
That every sparrow's counted
That you hear each cry and listen to each prayer

Let me try always to believe
That we can hear the hearts that grieve
Please help us not ignore
The anguished cries of the poor
Or their pain will never leave

To believe in a day
When hunger and war will pass away
To have the hope amidst despair
That every sparrow's counted
That you hear their cries and listen to each prayer

Father, as you see, I'm just a child
And there's so much to understand
But if Your Grace should surround me
Then I'll do the best I can
I promise, I'll do the very best I can

To believe in a day
When hunger and war will pass away
To have the hope amidst despair
That every sparrow's counted
That you hear each cry and listen to each
Prayer 
{Hear each cry and listen to each prayer}

Help us do Your will Your Father
In the name of all that's true
And we'll see in one another
The loving image of You

Divine Mercy - First Friday

During the month of May, in the year 1688, St. Margaret Mary wrote to her superior in Dijon: "During Holy Communion on a certain Friday the Lord spoke to me, His unworthy servant, the following words: 'I promise thee in the excessive mercy of My heart that My all-powerful love will grant to all those who communicate on the First Friday in nine consecutive months the grace of final penitence; they shall not die in My disgrace nor without having received the sacraments; My Divine Heart shall be their safe refuge at that last moment.'"

TO PRAY THE DIVINE MERCY CHAPLET

Click Below

Dedicated To Father LeRoy

My Priest & Friend

Mary in Two Minutes

Ever wonder what the big deal is with Catholics and the Virgin Mary? Do they worship her or just pray to her? What’s the Annunciation? What’s the Immaculate Conception? What’s the Assumption? All these questions and more answered in this short two (okay, three) minute video.

Further Thoughts:

There was a moment when the salvation of the world depended on the consent of Mary. Man could not be redeemed, satisfaction could not be made for sin, and grace obtained, without the Incarnation, and the Incarnation could not take place without the free, voluntary consent of this humble Jewish maiden. We cannot help feeling deep gratitude to Mary for the consent she gave. We call her blessed for the great things He that is mighty has done to her, and we bless her also for her own consent to the work of redemption. She gave to that work all she had: she gave her will; she gave her flesh; she gave her own Son to one long Passion of thirty-three years, to the agony in the garden, and to the death on the cross. It is true that God had selected her from all eternity to be his mother, and had filled her with grace; but neither the election nor the grace took away her free will, or diminished the merit of her voluntary consent. She could have refused; and does she deserve no love and gratitude from us, who have hope only through her flesh assumed by the Son of God, that she did not refuse? Can we say, in view of this fact, that she has no peculiar relation to our redemption, no share in the work of our salvation? To say so would be simply to deny that we are redeemed and saved by God in the flesh; that the flesh, of human nature, of our Lord performs any office in the work of redemption and salvation. Wherefore, to refuse to honor Mary as connected with and sharing in that work is to deny that it is in his human nature that God redeems and saves us; which is either to deny redemption and salvation altogether, or to contend that God redeems and saves us in his divinity, that is to contend that the divine nature suffered and died!

Mary is really the mother of our Lord, for our Lord did in reality, not in appearance merely, come in the flesh. He is true God, and true man of the flesh of the Virgin. 

Saint Worship

page 108

Orestes A. Brownson

St. Anthony Guild Press, 1963

Hail Full of Grace

We offer Our Lady the fragrant Roses of the Ave Maria by incessant repetition. By the words of this prayer, we remind ourselves that in her soul, God's grace for which we have just petitioned, has done its work perfectly. We address her as "Full of grace." 

Hail Mary,
Full of Grace,
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women,
and Blessed is the fruit
of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, 
Mother of God,
pray for us sinners now,
and at the hour of death.
Amen.

Ave Maria by Luciano Pavarotti, 1999
Rest in Peace 

Our Father

The Our Father

Thomas Verner Moore, S. J.

Prayer, The Newman Bookshop - 1930

     The "Our Father" should become particularly dear to us as the prayer of Christ. In it our Lord teaches us to lift up our minds to our Heavenly Father and realize that He is most truly such, and so when we say, Our Father who art in Heaven, let not the words be hurriedly and mechanically said, but let them carry our soul into the presence of God, the Almighty and Eternal, and let us realize that while we kneel before Him who is Infinite and Eternal, He is most truly our Father and loves us with a father's love. In this realization our vocal prayer already flashes with the sparks of contemplation. Sometimes, perhaps, we may be able to go no farther, and the soul by a few words taught by Christ will be led at once to the heights of contemplation.

     

Our Father by Jackie Evanko

Our Father which art in Heaven, hallowed by Thy name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. 

Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. 

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil for thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory forever. Amen.

1,464,706

Panis Angelicas

Are You Listening

Father Albert Powers S. J.

Irish Messenger - 1925

     Do you see? why your soul is of value? Jesus Christ had need of you. You were created for Him, to be His friend; to know Him, to appreciate Him, to love Him. 

     This, then, is a wonderful secret which the Catholic Church has to communicate―namely, God's hunger for your soul. 

     But there is a secret more startling still which Holy Mother Church whispers as you nestle confidingly in her arms―namely, that the love-story must be told you personally and individually by the Divine Lover Himself. 

     You, too, must pause to catch His words; they will rivet your attention also as they have riveted the attention of so many others: of Mary the sinner, as she stood enraptured by the spell of His presence in the streets of Magdala; of Saul of Tarsus, when riding to Damascus he heard the whispered reproach, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me?"; of Augustine of Hippo as he sat in the garden of Alypius at Milan and read a few verses of St. Paul's Epistle; of Ignatius Loyola as he lay dreaming on a bed of sickness; of Thérèse of Lisieux as she knelt in humble adoration before Our Lady of Victories at Paris. All these and a million others stopped spellbound as they caught the accents of the divine whisper and realized, what you, too, will realize―that the whisper was a confession of Love from the God who made them. 

     I repeat, this story of God's love for your souls must be told you by the Divine Lover Himself, else the tale will fall on cold, incredulous ears. Hence interviews are necessary. And see how He has arranged to make them possible! How He has thought out a scheme whereby, if you accept it, you may come into daily contact with Him and learn from Himself the Divine secrets of which His Soul is a treasure house.  

     And what is the trysting place He has assigned? You know its name―we call it the Eucharist. And the Eucharist is the very heart and essence of the Catholic Faith; it means Jesus living sacramentally in our midst. 

Panis Angelcus by Jackie Evanko

Panis Angelicas fit panis hominum

(The Angel's bread becomes the bread of men)

Dat panis coelicus figuris terminum

(The heavenly bread ends all symbols)

O res mirabilis! Manducat Dominum

(O, miraculous thing! The body of the Lord will nourish)

Pauper, pauper, servus et humilis

(The poor, poor, and humble servant)

Pauper, pauper, servus et humilis

(The poor, poor, and humble servant)

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Little Drummer Boy - Part 2

The words and music to the Little Drummer Boy were composed by Katherine Davis, Henry Onorati and Harry Simeone in 1958.

The lyrics of Little Drummer Boy consist of no less than 21 rum pum pum pums' - a major part of the song and therefore presenting an apparently easy task for the lyricist! However, Little Drummer Boy has been a huge hit for several artists.

The most recent rendition of the Little Drummer Boy featured Jackie Evanko and Il Volo on NBC's Today's Show just two weeks ago.

Little Drummer Boy: Lyrics

Come they told me, pa rum pum pum pum

A new born King to see, pa rum pum pum pum

Our finest gifts we bring, pa rum pum pum pum

To lay before the King, pa rum pum pum pum

rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum

So to honor Him, pa rum pum pum pum
When we come.

Little Baby, pa rum pum pum pum
I am a poor boy too, pa rum pum pum pum
I have no gift to bring, pa rum pum pum pum
That's fit to give the King, pa rum pum pum pum
rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum

Shall I play for you, pa rum pum pum pum
On my drum?

Mary nodded, pa rum pum pum pum
The ox and lamb kept time, pa rum pum pum pum
I played my drum for Him, pa rum pum pum pum
I played my best for Him, pa rum pum pum pum
rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum

Then He smiled at me, pa rum pum pum pum
Me and my drum.

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Little Drummer Boy

The words and music to the Little Drummer Boy were composed by Katherine Davis, Henry Onorati and Harry Simeone in 1958.

The lyrics of Little Drummer Boy consist of no less than 21 rum pum pum pums' - a major part of the song and therefore presenting an apparently easy task for the lyricist! However, Little Drummer Boy has been a huge hit for several artists.

The most notable rendition was created by the most unlikely combination of Bing Crosby and David Bowie. This version of Little Drummer Boy was a massive hit for the artists and was in fact Bing Crosby's most successful recording since the legendary White Christmas.

Little Drummer Boy: Lyrics

Come they told me, pa rum pum pum pum

A new born King to see, pa rum pum pum pum

Our finest gifts we bring, pa rum pum pum pum

To lay before the King, pa rum pum pum pum

rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum

So to honor Him, pa rum pum pum pum
When we come.

Little Baby, pa rum pum pum pum
I am a poor boy too, pa rum pum pum pum
I have no gift to bring, pa rum pum pum pum
That's fit to give the King, pa rum pum pum pum
rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum

Shall I play for you, pa rum pum pum pum
On my drum?

Mary nodded, pa rum pum pum pum
The ox and lamb kept time, pa rum pum pum pum
I played my drum for Him, pa rum pum pum pum
I played my best for Him, pa rum pum pum pum
rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum

Then He smiled at me, pa rum pum pum pum
Me and my drum

Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God

Dedication of Oneself to Mary

OH Most Holy Virgin Mother of God, Mary, I, Your Name., although most unworthy of being thy servant, yet moved by thy wonderful mercy and by the desire to serve thee, choose thee to-day, January 1st, 2017, in presence of my guardian angel, and of the whole celestial court, for my especial Lady, Advocate, and Mother, and make the firm resolution that I always will love and serve thee for the future, and do whatever I can to induce also others to love and serve thee. I pray thee, Mother, of God, and my most kind and amiable mother, by the blood of thy divine Son which was shed for me, that thou wilt receive me into the number of thy servants for thy child and servant forever; assist me in all my thoughts, words, and actions, at every moment of my life, that every step and breath may be directed to the greater glory of my God, and through thy most powerful intercession obtain for me that I may never more offend my beloved Jesus, that I may glorify and love him in this life, and that I may also love thee, my most beloved and dear mother, that I may love thee and enjoy thee through eternity in holy paradise. Amen.

My Mother Mary, I recommend to thee my soul, especially at the hour of my death.
  

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