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My Prayer Box
for the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother
of God
from My
Catholic Tradition
“You cannot strengthen the
weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot help the
wage earner by pulling down the wage payer.
You
cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
You
cannot help men permanently by doing for them what
they could and should do for themselves.” -
Abraham Lincoln
To subscribe to the newsletter, please follow this
link. |
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Hail
Mary!
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Bartolome Esteban
Murillo, The Immaculate Conception |
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Agostino Masucci,
The Annunciation |
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Piero di Cosimo,
The Visitation |
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Giovanni Girolamo
Savoldo, The Adoration of the Shepherds |
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Domenico Corvi,
Virgin and Child |
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Bagomater
Vladimirskaya, Mother of God |
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Miguel Cabrera,
The Madonna of the Rosary |
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William Adolphe
Bouguereau, Pieta |
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Nicolas Poussin,
The Assumption of the Virgin |
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Jacopo Tintoretto,
The Madonna of the Stars |
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A
great sign appeared in the sky,
a woman clothed with the sun,
with the moon under her feet,
and on her head a crown of twelve stars.
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Finding the true joy in Christmas
Our Redeemer is born to deliver us from sin
and restore us to eternal life
by Archbishop of Denver Charles J.
Chaput, O.F.M. Cap.
as published
the
Denver Catholic
Register, December 17, 2008 |
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The
Most Rev. Charles Chaput
is the Archbishop of the
Catholic Archdiocese of Denver Colorado, USA. |
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Each year
in December, the noise, anxiety and party going
of the season tend to obscure the reality we
celebrate. But this year, in the midst of our
country’s troubling economic problems and the
uncertainty they breed, some of us may have a
hard time finding any joy in Christmas.
It’s worth remembering that the world we know
today is not so different from the world of the
first Christmas.
For Mary, the Jewish teenager, there was nothing
sentimental about being pregnant and unmarried
in the Galilean hill country. She had her faith
in God. She also had the protection of her
betrothed. But whether she had the understanding
of her local relatives and friends is another
matter. Women of her day could be, and sometimes
were, stoned for perceived adultery. The warmth
from her cousin Elizabeth may not have been
widely shared.
Nor could Mary’s story have been easy for
Joseph. No matter how great his faith, no matter
how vivid the angel’s message, no matter how
good his heart, he still likely struggled with
very human temptations to doubt and confusion.
In fact, the Eastern Church captures his
humanity beautifully in her traditional
iconography of the Nativity. The icons often
portray Joseph apart from the manger scene,
turned slightly away from the mother and child,
deep in thought.
The road to Bethlehem would have been dangerous
and physically demanding. Bandits and brigands
were common. The Roman occupiers could be
brutal. The inability to find shelter at an inn
would have been more than inconvenient; it would
have been life-threatening. And few of us today
can really imagine the squalor of giving birth
in a stable or a cave.
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To read
the entire article,
please click here. |
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The
Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin
Mary, the Mother of God
January 1, 2009
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First Reading
from the
Book of Numbers |
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Nm 6:22-27 |
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The LORD said to
Moses:
“Speak to Aaron and his sons and tell
them:
This is how you shall bless the
Israelites.
Say to them:
The LORD bless you and keep you!
The LORD let his face shine upon
you, and be gracious to you!
The LORD look upon you kindly and give you
peace!
So shall they invoke my name upon the
Israelites, and I will bless them.” |
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Responsorial From the Book of Psalms |
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Ps 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8 |
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R. May God bless us in
his mercy.
May God have pity on us and bless us;
may he let his face shine upon us.
So may your way be known upon earth;
among all nations, your salvation.
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
May the nations be glad and exult
because you rule the peoples in equity;
the nations on the earth you guide.
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
May the peoples praise you, O God;
may all the peoples praise you!
May God bless us,
and may all the ends of the earth fear him!
R. May God bless us in his mercy. |
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First Reading
from the Letter to the Galatians |
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Gal 4:4-7 |
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Brothers and sisters:
When the fullness of time had come, God sent
his Son, born of a woman, born under the
law, to ransom those under the law, so that
we might receive adoption as sons.
As proof that you are
sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into
our hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!”
So you are no
longer a slave but a son, and if a son then
also an heir, through God. |
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Reading From the
Gospel of Luke |
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Lk 2:16-21 |
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The shepherds went in
haste to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph,
and the infant lying in the manger.
When they saw this, they
made known the message that had been told them
about this child.
All who heard it were
amazed by what had been told them by the
shepherds.
And Mary kept all these
things, reflecting on them in her heart. |
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Then the shepherds
returned, glorifying and praising God for
all they had heard and seen, just as it had
been told to them.
When eight days were completed for his
circumcision, he was named Jesus, the name
given him by the angel before he was
conceived in the womb. |
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Suggested Readings |
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intersection of
morality, reason, and politics. This isn’t
just a book for Catholics, but for anyone who
cares about the state of America’s soul —and
how that concern might shape the 2008
elections.”
—John
L. Allen Jr., NCR and CNN senior Vatican
correspondent, Amazon |
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Happiness Is a Serious
Problem: A Human Nature Repair Manual
by Dennis Prager.
In this unique blend of self-help and moral
philosophy, talk-radio host Dennis Prager
asserts that we're actually obligated to be
happy, because it makes us better people.
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Praying With Frederic Ozanam
(Companions for the Journey Series)
-
Paperback, by Ronald Cm Ramson (Author) |
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Praying With Louise De
Marillac (Companions for the Journey Series)
by Audrey Gibson (Author), Kieran Kneaves
(Author) |
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Praying with Vincent de
Paul (Companions for the Journey)
2004, by Thomas McKenna
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The Rise of Christianity:
How the Obscure, Marginal, Jesus Movement Became
the Dominant Religious Force ....
(Paperback) by Rodney Stark
(Author)
From the Publisher
"... this account of Christianity's remarkable
growth within the Roman Empire is already the
subject of much fanfare. |
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"Anyone who has puzzled
over Christianity's rise to dominance... must
read it,"
...
Read the first page. |
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Living Liturgy:
Spirituality, Celebration, and Catechesis for
Sundays and Solemnities, Year A,
2008 (Paperback) by C.PP.S. Joyce Ann Zimmerman
(Author), Thomas A. Greisen (Author), S.N.D. de
N. Kathleen Harmon (Author), M.S. Thomas L.
Leclerc (Author) |
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"Perfect for home use or to prepare for weekly
liturgy . . . It includes help for the
celebration, ideas for catechesis on the
particular event, and ways to understand the
readings more deeply. Finally, it includes
sample questions from which priests, deacons,
lay groups, ministers and others can jump off
into deeper discussion." |
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Straight Answers, Answers
to 100 Questions about the Catholic Faith
by Ph.D Rev. William P.
Saunders (Author)
Review by: Reverend William G. Curlin Bishop of
Charlotte
Straight Answers offers Catholics a simple and
direct response to the many questions concerning
the Catholic Church. It spells out profound
truths in very |
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simple language for all who seek a better
understanding of their Faith. I highly recommend
it for Catholics, both young and old. |
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The Power of Intention:
Learning to Co-create Your World Your Way
From Amazon:
After years of spiritual study and reflection,
inspirational speaker and |
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bestselling
author Wayne Dyer has emerged a highly esteemed
teacher. His current message about tapping into
the power of intention may sound like good old
positive thinking: just stay focused on what you
want, rather than focusing on the lack of having
what you want. But the teaching here goes deeper
than just controlling thoughts (although he does
acknowledge that thought control is a
surprisingly challenging and significant
endeavor).
This book might
help readers land a better job, but it's more
relevant for those who are ready to detach from
an ego-driven life filled with quick fixes of
happiness and step into a more authentic,
joyful, and spiritually fulfilling life. His
core teachings speak to tapping into a universal
source of energy that can also be called the
"power of intention." |
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The Chariot of Israel:
Exploits of the Prophet of Elijah
THE CHARIOT OF ISRAEL: When Elijah was caught up
to heaven, his disciple Elisha cried out, "the
chariot of Israel, and its horsemen." Elisha was
referring not to the chariot but to the prophet.
This study of Elijah’s life will captivate you
as it walks you through a pivotal period in
Israel’s history, and illustrative maps will
give you a better picture of the physical
geography of this ancient land. |
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Read
more about the Liturgical Year |
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The Origins of the
Liturgical Year (Pueblo Books)
by Thomas J. Talley (Author) The Rev. Dr.
Thomas J. Talley, Professor of Liturgics
at the General Theological Seminary in New
York, is one of the leading liturgists in
the country. He gives us a fresh
examination of the complex history of the
Liturgical Year. |
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The Cultural World
of Jesus: Sunday by Sunday, Cycle C.
(Bestseller! the Cultural World of Jesus:
Sunday by Sunday)
by John J. Pilch (Author)
Reader
Review: The book by Pilch provides those
who not only fill the pulpits across this
country but also all interested in the
cultural world in which Jesus lived with a
lot of pertinent information that sheds
light on a lot of areas that have been
"muddled" in the past. Yes, I highly
recommend this book. - James Mauldin |
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Learn
more and read the Old Testament. |
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Preaching from the
Old Testament
by Elizabeth Achtemeier (Author) Reader
Review: The author of these thirty-two
short chapters begins and ends with the
assumption that problems we experience
with the Old Testament are our problem,
not the Bible's. This subordinating of the
Bible reader to the well-weathered book he
holds in his hand opens doors, not to
forced |
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harmonisations of problematic
passages, but to fresh reappraisal of
difficult texts on their own terms. -
David A. Baer |
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The Navarre Bible:
Pentateuch (The Navarre Bible: Old
Testament)
This volume helps
you make the first five books of the Old
Testament a vital part of your spiritual
reading and practical growth in the
Christian life. It contains the full
English and Latin texts of these books,
along with extensive and
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faithfully Catholic
commentaries. Like other volumes in the
world-renowned Navarre Bible series, these
commentaries draw on Church documents, the
exegesis of Fathers and Doctors of the Church, and the works of
contemporary spiritual writers — particularly
St. Josemaría Escrivá, who initiated the
Navarre Bible project. |
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Comments and Suggestions are Most Welcome.
If you have any comments or contributions,
please
use the form in this link.
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