The Tremendous Value of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass

At the hour of death the Holy, Masses you have heard devoutly,
will be your greatest consolation. Every Mass will go with you
to Judgment and will plead for pardon for you.
By every Mass you can diminish the temporal punishment due to your sins,
more or less, according to your fervor.

By devoutly assisting at Holy Mass you render the greatest homage
possible to the Sacred Humanity of Our Lord. Through the Holy Sacrifice,
Our Lord Jesus Christ supplies for many of our negligences and omissions.

He forgives you all the venial sins which you are
determined to avoid. He forgives you all your unknown sins
which you never confessed.
The power of Satan over you is diminished.

By piously hearing Holy Mass you afford the souls in
purgatory the greatest possible relief; One Holy Mass heard during your life
will be of more benefit to you than many heard for you after your death.

Through the Holy Mass you are preserved from many dangers
and misfortunes which would otherwise have befallen you.
You shorten your purgatory by every Mass.

During the Holy Mass you kneel amid a multitude of holy
angels, who are present at the Adorable Sacrifice with reverential awe.
Through the Holy Mass you are blessed in your temporal goods and affairs.

When you hear Holy Mass devoutly offering it to Almighty God
in honor of a particular saint or an angel thanking God for the favors
bestowed; you afford that saint or that angel a new degree of honor,
joy and happiness, and draw his special love and protection upon yourself.

Every time you assist at the Holy Sacrifice of the
Mass, besides other intentions, you should offer it
in honor of the saint of the day.

When the Priest offers the Host
I place upon the paten my heart:
the hearts of all those near and dear to me,
especially the hearts of my relatives:
the hearts of all those for whom
I have promised to pray:
the hearts of all those who have injured me:
the hearts of all those whom I may have injured:
the hearts of all the agonizing.

O Lord Jesus Christ, when Thou changest the bread and wine
into Thy Precious Body and Blood, change our hearts
into hearts pleasing to Thee.

When the Priest offers the Chalice.
I place within the chalice the souls of all my relatives
for whom I should pray: the souls of those for whom
I may have forgotten to pray,
the souls most devout to the Sacred Heart and the Blessed Virgin Mary,
the souls of the most abandoned.

O Lord Jesus Christ, when Thou changest
the wine into Thy Precious Blood change these poor souls
from their place of suffering unto eternal happiness.

Eternal Rest grant unto them O Lord
and let the perpetual light shine upon them.

Prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary
O most beautiful flower of Mount Carmel! Fruitful vine!
Splendor of Heaven! Blessed Mother of the Son of God!
Immaculate Virgin, assist me in this my necessity!
O Star of the Sea, help me, and show me herein thou art my Mother!
O Holy Mary Mother of God, Queen of Heaven and Earth,
I humbly beseech thee from the bottom of my heart,
to succor me in this necessity there are none
that can withstand thy power.

O show me herein thou art my Mother!
O Mary conceived without sin,
pray for us who have recourse to thee. (3 times)
Sweet Mother I place this cause in thy hands. (3 times)

A moment of grace: A universal affirmation of faith.

Responding to a rather complicated, multi-point,
on-line question about my Catholic faith,
a rather simple, all encompassing answer came to mind.
I share it with you, here:

God answers my prayers. God provides for all my needs.
God speaks to me when I need to hear from him.
God blesses me beyond measure.
God gives me hope.
For my part, I do my best to know, love and serve God,
every way I can, and to give him the thanks,
praise and worship that he is due.

The Tremendous Value of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass

At the hour of death the Holy, Masses you have heard devoutly,
will be your greatest consolation. Every Mass will go with you
to Judgment and will plead for pardon for you.
By every Mass you can diminish the temporal punishment due to your sins,
more or less, according to your fervor.

By devoutly assisting at Holy Mass you render the greatest homage
possible to the Sacred Humanity of Our Lord. Through the Holy Sacrifice,
Our Lord Jesus Christ supplies for many of our negligences and omissions.

He forgives you all the venial sins which you are
determined to avoid. He forgives you all your unknown sins
which you never confessed.
The power of Satan over you is diminished.

By piously hearing Holy Mass you afford the souls in
purgatory the greatest possible relief; One Holy Mass heard during your life
will be of more benefit to you than many heard for you after your death.

Through the Holy Mass you are preserved from many dangers
and misfortunes which would otherwise have befallen you.
You shorten your purgatory by every Mass.

During the Holy Mass you kneel amid a multitude of holy
angels, who are present at the Adorable Sacrifice with reverential awe.
Through the Holy Mass you are blessed in your temporal goods and affairs.

When you hear Holy Mass devoutly offering it to Almighty God
in honor of a particular saint or an angel thanking God for the favors
bestowed; you afford that saint or that angel a new degree of honor,
joy and happiness, and draw his special love and protection upon yourself.

Every time you assist at the Holy Sacrifice of the
Mass, besides other intentions, you should offer it
in honor of the saint of the day.

When the Priest offers the Host
I place upon the paten my heart:
the hearts of all those near and dear to me,
especially the hearts of my relatives:
the hearts of all those for whom
I have promised to pray:
the hearts of all those who have injured me:
the hearts of all those whom I may have injured:
the hearts of all the agonizing.

O Lord Jesus Christ, when Thou changest the bread and wine
into Thy Precious Body and Blood, change our hearts
into hearts pleasing to Thee.

When the Priest offers the Chalice.
I place within the chalice the souls of all my relatives
for whom I should pray: the souls of those for whom
I may have forgotten to pray,
the souls most devout to the Sacred Heart and the Blessed Virgin Mary,
the souls of the most abandoned.

O Lord Jesus Christ, when Thou changest
the wine into Thy Precious Blood change these poor souls
from their place of suffering unto eternal happiness.

Eternal Rest grant unto them O Lord
and let the perpetual light shine upon them.

Prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary
O most beautiful flower of Mount Carmel! Fruitful vine!
Splendor of Heaven! Blessed Mother of the Son of God!
Immaculate Virgin, assist me in this my necessity!
O Star of the Sea, help me, and show me herein thou art my Mother!
O Holy Mary Mother of God, Queen of Heaven and Earth,
I humbly beseech thee from the bottom of my heart,
to succor me in this necessity there are none
that can withstand thy power.

O show me herein thou art my Mother!
O Mary conceived without sin,
pray for us who have recourse to thee. (3 times)
Sweet Mother I place this cause in thy hands. (3 times)

Link (PDF)

What you lose when you pass up Holy Communion

Father Z: On the matter of lay ministers giving blessings

In The Catholic Herald of the Diocese of Madison, where the great Bishop Robert Morlino exercises oversight, there is a great article on an issue we have addressed here many times: Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion giving blessings to non-communicants as if they were priests.

Read the article

Why we should nominate James Ridenour, Mayor of the City of Modesto, California, for President.

Proclamation issued by Modesto Mayor James Ridenour

WHEREAS, throughout our national history, elected leaders, including Presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, Congress and Governors, have called for a day of fasting and prayer to humbly ask God for His forgiveness, blessings and guidance during times of difficulty; and

WHEREAS, the State of California declares in its Preamble, “We, the people of the State of California, grateful to Almighty God for our freedom, in order to perpetuate its blessings…”; and

WHEREAS, California and the city of Modesto are facing new and prolonged challenges to our city that threaten the livelihood of our citizens and diminish the quality of life for all; and

WHEREAS, during this week of prayer we ask for Almighty God’s favor, blessings, wisdom and guidance upon our citizens, and leaders of our city government, faith community, and businesses; and

WHEREAS, we resolve to implore Almighty God to aid, enrich and empower the citizens, families, schools and businesses in our city and in our nation; and

THEREFORE, we implore Almighty God, through His grace and mercy, to renew the vitality of our city’s economy, revitalize the quality of our schools, restore safety to our neighborhoods and reverse the moral decline in our communities, and

NOW, THEREFORE, I, James Ridenour, Mayor of the City of Modesto, California, do hereby proclaim March 27-April 1, 2011, to be WEEK of PRAYER FOR MODESTO in this community and encourage our citizens to pray for God’s blessings in this time of need.

Thanks to California Catholic Daily

Editor’s note: Let’s support this effort with our prayers, too. Anyone that eloquent deserves God’s help.

The story of St. Raymond, for whom the Cathedral in Joliet, Illinois is named

St. Raymond Nonnatus

(In Spanish SAN RAMON).

Born 1200 or 1204 at Portello in the Diocese of Urgel in Catalonia; died at Cardona, 31 August, 1240. His feast is celebrated on 31 August. He is pictured in the habit of his order surrounded by ransomed slaves, with a padlock on his lips.

He was taken from the womb of his mother after her death, hence the name (nonnatus*).

Of noble but poor family, he showed early traits of piety and great talent. His father ordered him to tend a farm, but later gave him permission to take the habit with the Mercedarians at Barcelona, at the hands of the founder, St. Peter Nolasco.

Raymond made such progress in the religious life that he was soon considered worthy to succeed his master in the office of ransomer. He was sent to Algiers and liberated many captives. When money failed he gave himself as a hostage.

He was zealous in teaching the Christian religion and made many converts, which embittered the Mohammedan authorities. Raymond was subjected to all kinds of indignities and cruelty, was made to run the gauntlet, and was at last sentenced to impalement. The hope of a greater sum of money as ransom caused the governor to commute the sentence into imprisonment. To prevent him from preaching for Christ, his lips were pierced with a red-hot iron and closed with a padlock.

After his arrival in Spain, in 1239, he was made a cardinal by Gregory IX. In the next year he was called to Rome by the pope, but came only as far as Cardona, about six miles from Barcelona, where he died. His body was brought to the chapel of St. Nicholas near his old farm. In 1657 his name was placed in the Roman martyrology by Alexander VII.

He is invoked by women in labour and by persons falsely accused. The appendix to the Roman ritual gives a formula for the blessing of water, in his honour, to be used by the sick, and another of candles.

Courtesy of NewAdvent.com

*St. Raymond is universally known as Nonnatus or not born, due to his atypical birth.