The souls of the Just do not leave us; if we desire it they still remain with us, affording us and indescribable but very effective solace. Let us recall them frequently by our prayers, by our aspirations, and by our good works which will help them and will help us to gain Heaven.
Is not the memory of the dead sweet to the heart, and is it not truly consoling to gather about us in thought the family dispersed by death?
Coming off of the month of the Holy Angels, Mother Church closes our mediation on the deathless angelic spirits by turning our minds to our own mortal nature. November is particularly devoted to the Holy Souls in Purgatory. The beautiful chants and prayers traditionally associated with the Mass for the Dead remind us forcefully of the reality of purgatory, and through them plead with the Father that the Holy Souls may soon see His Face. In the far-famed Dies Irae, we give the Church our voice in the liturgy to beg Our Lord’s mercy upon the Holy Souls in Purgatory; but perhaps even more so upon us, who are not assured of our salvation as they are.
First Day During this month are foremost thought is to recall to mind our beloved dead. We shall think of you, pray with you, labor with you, and shall give to the poor for the repose of your soul, that portion of the fruits of our daily labors which was formally yours.
My oldest friend, mine from the hour
When first I drew my breath; My faithful friend, that shall be mine, Unfailing, till my death; Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place my trust in Thee! "It is altogether impossible to enumerate the heavenly gifts which devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus has poured out on the souls of the faithful, purifying them, offering them heavenly strength, rousing them to the attainment of all virtues. Therefore, recalling those wise words of the Apostle St. James, "Every best gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of Lights,"(2) We are perfectly justified in seeing in this same devotion, which flourishes with increasing fervor throughout the world, a gift without price which our divine Savior the Incarnate Word, as the one Mediator of grace and truth between the heavenly Father and the human race imparted to the Church, His mystical Spouse, in recent centuries when she had to endure such trials and surmount so many difficulties.
“…Is Mary the rose then? Mary the tree? But the blossom, the blossom there, who can it be? Who can her rose be? It could be but one: Christ Jesus our Lord, her God and her son. In the gardens of God, in the daylight divine Shew me thy son, mother, mother of mine….” -Excerpt from “Rosa Mystica” by Gerard Manley Hopkins Perhaps it is Our Lady’s title of Rosa Mystica, under which we invoke her in the Litany of Loretto, that flora such powerful connection to devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary—particularly during her month of May, when flowers are abundant (especially here in Santa Rosa!). Devotions such as May Crowning, wherein Our Mother is decorated with a corona of blossoms, are endearing displays of devotion—but they are also much more when one takes into account the symbolism behind such an action:
In the beautiful litany of St. Joseph, we call upon our spiritual Father under many varied titles:
Guardian of Virgins… Head of the Holy Family… Mirror of Patience…. Each invocation is striking in its individuality and yet seamlessly part of the whole in painting for us, by the strokes of these titles, the figure of the greatest and last of the patriarchs. Any of these is worthy to be the subject of our meditation, but one that brings itself to the forefront on this occasion is: “Christi Defensor Sedule”, Zealous Defender of Christ. St. Joseph, Spouse of the Mother of God and Foster Father of Jesus, is our father in a special way. To him we confide our temporal wants, to him we confide our vocations, to him do we go when in need spiritually or temporally. Each year, we pray a novena leading up to his feastday, thanking him for his care of our Community and entrusting to him our petitions.
“The dignity and glory of St. Joseph is such
that the Eternal Father conferred upon him with greatest liberality, a likeness to His own supremacy over his incarnate Son.” - St. Bernadine of Siena |
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