Guard my tongue this day.
May I only ever speak with love.
Give me wisdom and discretion.
(I need the last two, but especially the last, so much!)
Friday, 27 October 2017
Tuesday, 24 October 2017
Prayers 7 for our loved ones by name and for the special needs of individuals and for the world
May all the angels and saints of heaven pray with me to you,
Blessed Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Thank you for all our loved ones
and I pray for our relationship with you, ourselves, each other and others
and in all our needs.
Please bless our day in every way
and may everything we do be an act of love for you.
At this point, I name them all and remember any special reasons for prayer at that time.
The list includes our children and their families, our relatives and friends.
I try to keep a list of people who have asked for special prayers (remembering is a problem, but not for God, of course, thank goodness!).
Then, I pray for families, parents, the sick and their carers, for conversion and peace for the world, for our parish, the Church in England and Wales and for the Church throughout the world, for schools, staff and children, for the elderly and infirm, the dying and the bereaved, for the spreading of the knowledge and love of God, (for a church organisation with which we were involved for a long time, (the SVP)), for our own four countries and all the countries of the world, especially where there is present trouble.
This is why the first cuppa of the day, delivered to me (yes, in bed!!) by H, helps me to run through all these.
If it sounds a madly long list, well, it probably is, but there again, I know that God knows my systematic brain and takes it as God takes all our offerings.
Individual people will have their own ways of praying and that's as it should be.
H's "Help me to get through this day!" is certainly much more accessible, even to me, and probably a relief to God after my lot.
Blessed Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Thank you for all our loved ones
and I pray for our relationship with you, ourselves, each other and others
and in all our needs.
Please bless our day in every way
and may everything we do be an act of love for you.
At this point, I name them all and remember any special reasons for prayer at that time.
The list includes our children and their families, our relatives and friends.
I try to keep a list of people who have asked for special prayers (remembering is a problem, but not for God, of course, thank goodness!).
Then, I pray for families, parents, the sick and their carers, for conversion and peace for the world, for our parish, the Church in England and Wales and for the Church throughout the world, for schools, staff and children, for the elderly and infirm, the dying and the bereaved, for the spreading of the knowledge and love of God, (for a church organisation with which we were involved for a long time, (the SVP)), for our own four countries and all the countries of the world, especially where there is present trouble.
This is why the first cuppa of the day, delivered to me (yes, in bed!!) by H, helps me to run through all these.
If it sounds a madly long list, well, it probably is, but there again, I know that God knows my systematic brain and takes it as God takes all our offerings.
Individual people will have their own ways of praying and that's as it should be.
H's "Help me to get through this day!" is certainly much more accessible, even to me, and probably a relief to God after my lot.
Sunday, 22 October 2017
Prayers 6 Prayers to all the angels and saints of heaven
The prayers I have posted so far are, as is our Catholic tradition, followed by intercessions to Our Lady, as we name Mary, the mother of Jesus, to the Holy Family, to St Joseph (these last two being special favourites of mine) and to all our Patron Saints and Guardian Angels.
I offer them here to anyone who may be interested.
Beloved Mother, Holy Family, St Joseph and all the angels and saints of heaven,
thank you for loving and praying for us always.
May we love and pray to you as we should.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you.
You are the most blest of all women
and blessed is your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
thank you for praying for us your children, (*see below)
now and at the hour of our death. Amen
Jesus, Mary and Joseph, I give you my heart and my soul.
Beloved Holy Family, thank you for being with ours and all families,
now and always, in times of need and the hour of our death. Amen
Beloved St Joseph, husband of Mary and foster-father of Jesus,
thank you that your love surrounds and protects ours and all families,
as it did the Holy family, now and always,
in times of need and the hour of our death. Amen
Beloved Mother, Holy Family, St Joseph,
Sts (and here, I name husband's and my Patron Saints individually),
all the patron saints of our loved ones and all we know or know of, living or dead,
thank you for praying for us all but especially for those in any kind of need.
Thank you, Guardian Angels, for guiding and guarding us throughout this day,
especially those who are travelling, away from home or in any kind of danger. Amen
* I feel sure that Our blessed Lady would want us to come to her as her children, totally confident in her motherly love, despite our failings and failures, and not as sinners. I know I would with my children even though I am so far beneath her, in my capacity to love.
I offer them here to anyone who may be interested.
Beloved Mother, Holy Family, St Joseph and all the angels and saints of heaven,
thank you for loving and praying for us always.
May we love and pray to you as we should.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you.
You are the most blest of all women
and blessed is your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
thank you for praying for us your children, (*see below)
now and at the hour of our death. Amen
Jesus, Mary and Joseph, I give you my heart and my soul.
Beloved Holy Family, thank you for being with ours and all families,
now and always, in times of need and the hour of our death. Amen
Beloved St Joseph, husband of Mary and foster-father of Jesus,
thank you that your love surrounds and protects ours and all families,
as it did the Holy family, now and always,
in times of need and the hour of our death. Amen
Beloved Mother, Holy Family, St Joseph,
Sts (and here, I name husband's and my Patron Saints individually),
all the patron saints of our loved ones and all we know or know of, living or dead,
thank you for praying for us all but especially for those in any kind of need.
Thank you, Guardian Angels, for guiding and guarding us throughout this day,
especially those who are travelling, away from home or in any kind of danger. Amen
* I feel sure that Our blessed Lady would want us to come to her as her children, totally confident in her motherly love, despite our failings and failures, and not as sinners. I know I would with my children even though I am so far beneath her, in my capacity to love.
About liking our creature comforts and two little snippets about Nietsche
Joseph Pearce on John Bradburne: 'The Vagabond of God'
"For most of us, addicted to our creature comforts, seeing someone choosing discomfort reminds us that we are spiritual couch potatoes who need to be shaken out of comfort zones. This puts us on edge, even if it only shifts us to the edge of the couch."
I just really liked that last little phrase!
Michael Duggan on Patrick West on Nietzsche
(Nietzsche) was enraged by "you gifted young men who consider it your duty to pass comment on everything that happens".
And, apparently, "he really, really had it in for Christianity".
I know virtually nothing about Nietzsche, apart from his name (and, now, how difficult it is to spell!) and that he might be a bit controversial, from my point of view anyway, so I was interested to read this article.
These two snippets made me laugh. I know people (not just young men, I might add and, in fact, I may very well be one of them!!) who certainly fit the first bill; and I liked the naturalness of the second comment. It made him seem real to me.
( The above quotes come from the Catholic Herald of a few weeks ago. I've just deleted the date accidentally whilst trying to copy and paste - a procedure which I just can't seem to master!)
"For most of us, addicted to our creature comforts, seeing someone choosing discomfort reminds us that we are spiritual couch potatoes who need to be shaken out of comfort zones. This puts us on edge, even if it only shifts us to the edge of the couch."
I just really liked that last little phrase!
Michael Duggan on Patrick West on Nietzsche
(Nietzsche) was enraged by "you gifted young men who consider it your duty to pass comment on everything that happens".
And, apparently, "he really, really had it in for Christianity".
I know virtually nothing about Nietzsche, apart from his name (and, now, how difficult it is to spell!) and that he might be a bit controversial, from my point of view anyway, so I was interested to read this article.
These two snippets made me laugh. I know people (not just young men, I might add and, in fact, I may very well be one of them!!) who certainly fit the first bill; and I liked the naturalness of the second comment. It made him seem real to me.
( The above quotes come from the Catholic Herald of a few weeks ago. I've just deleted the date accidentally whilst trying to copy and paste - a procedure which I just can't seem to master!)
Saturday, 7 October 2017
Another quick prayer about the wisdom and timing of our words
Oh God,
give me the wisdom to know what to say,
and to whom - (oops, an afterthought)
and when.
Within two hours of having this very clear thought come into my head in bed this morning, I'd already made a mistake (ie saying the right thing (well, an ok thing anyway) at the wrong moment!!) hence the afterthought!
give me the wisdom to know what to say,
and to whom - (oops, an afterthought)
and when.
Within two hours of having this very clear thought come into my head in bed this morning, I'd already made a mistake (ie saying the right thing (well, an ok thing anyway) at the wrong moment!!) hence the afterthought!
Sunday, 1 October 2017
Saturday, 30 September 2017
Going to Mass on holiday
There's something really great about going to Mass in a completely different church, especially when you're on holiday. We walked into the beautifully named 'Mater Amabilis' (loving mother, when we googled it) at 9 20 am on that particular Sunday morning in late July.
Two men (in their 50s or 60s, I'd say) welcomed us all and introduced the visiting priest who was covering for the parish priest, away on his holidays. They, together with a lady singer, accompanied the lovely and well-known hymns with their guitars and everyone joined in with gusto.
As we began 'Morning has broken', I felt really moved and uplifted to be a part of such a wonderful family of people, probably numbering over 200, none of whom we knew, but with whom we shared this great gift of faith.
The priest had a pronounced limp, was very bowed and elderly, (over 80, as he told us in his homily) and very funny. Before Mass began, he placed a glass of water on the altar and turned away to go to the sacristy, muttering some aside which I didn't catch. Everyone's laughter caused me to ask the lady next to me what he'd said, which turned out to be, "You think it's water; it's gin!"
The Mass was beautiful and amazing. Father spoke about the readings in such a real, honest and merciful way, that he throughly endeared himself to us. He was overwhelmed by there being so many young families present, many of whom would have been on holiday, like us, having sought out the nearest church. (Another aside was to the effect of his usual parish being in 'geriatrica', causing another laugh!)
At the end of the Mass, he forsook the usual prayers and came off the altar to speak to a family of mum, dad and three sons, late teens, I'd say. He addressed the parents and said, "You've got a HELL of a job on in these times of ...... (mentioning many of the current dificulties of our times)."
He then spoke to the young men directly and, amongst other things which I can't remember now (this having taken me so long to get round to finishing), said, "Just look around you and see this lot (casting his arm in the direction of us older folk). They've borne the heat and the toil of the day and they're still here, hanging on (or words to that effect). Learn from them."
It was so moving. I had tears in my eyes right through the last hymn. (And so did H!") At the cuppa afterwards, I told him off for making me cry! He talked about having been pensioned off and I said perhaps it was because of his limp to which he retorted that it was from rugby. I laughed and said, "Well, you've only got yourself to blame then, Father." And we both laughed.
H = husband
Two men (in their 50s or 60s, I'd say) welcomed us all and introduced the visiting priest who was covering for the parish priest, away on his holidays. They, together with a lady singer, accompanied the lovely and well-known hymns with their guitars and everyone joined in with gusto.
As we began 'Morning has broken', I felt really moved and uplifted to be a part of such a wonderful family of people, probably numbering over 200, none of whom we knew, but with whom we shared this great gift of faith.
The priest had a pronounced limp, was very bowed and elderly, (over 80, as he told us in his homily) and very funny. Before Mass began, he placed a glass of water on the altar and turned away to go to the sacristy, muttering some aside which I didn't catch. Everyone's laughter caused me to ask the lady next to me what he'd said, which turned out to be, "You think it's water; it's gin!"
The Mass was beautiful and amazing. Father spoke about the readings in such a real, honest and merciful way, that he throughly endeared himself to us. He was overwhelmed by there being so many young families present, many of whom would have been on holiday, like us, having sought out the nearest church. (Another aside was to the effect of his usual parish being in 'geriatrica', causing another laugh!)
At the end of the Mass, he forsook the usual prayers and came off the altar to speak to a family of mum, dad and three sons, late teens, I'd say. He addressed the parents and said, "You've got a HELL of a job on in these times of ...... (mentioning many of the current dificulties of our times)."
He then spoke to the young men directly and, amongst other things which I can't remember now (this having taken me so long to get round to finishing), said, "Just look around you and see this lot (casting his arm in the direction of us older folk). They've borne the heat and the toil of the day and they're still here, hanging on (or words to that effect). Learn from them."
It was so moving. I had tears in my eyes right through the last hymn. (And so did H!") At the cuppa afterwards, I told him off for making me cry! He talked about having been pensioned off and I said perhaps it was because of his limp to which he retorted that it was from rugby. I laughed and said, "Well, you've only got yourself to blame then, Father." And we both laughed.
H = husband
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