H/T Julia : Golgotha of Jasna Gora – Artist: Jerzy Duda Gracz
Category Archives: Lent
Wonderful St. Michael Prayer
Act of Consecration to St. Michael
Oh, most Noble Prince of the Angelic Hierarchies, valorous warrior of Almighty God, and zealous lover of His glory, terror of the rebellious Angels, and love and delight of all the just, my beloved Archangel Saint Michael, desiring to be numbered among thy devoted servants, today I offer and consecrate myself to thee, and place myself, my family and all I possess under thy most powerful protection.
I entreat thee not to look at how little I, as thy servant have to offer, being only a wretched sinner, but to gaze rather with favorable eye at the heartfelt affection with which this offering is made, and remember that if from this day onward I am under thy patronage, thou must during all my life assist me and procure for me the pardon of my many grievous offenses and sins, the grace to love with all my heart my God, my dear Saviour Jesus, and my Sweet Mother Mary, and obtain for me all the help necessary to arrive to my crown of glory.
Defend me always from my spiritual enemies, particularly in the last moments of my life.
Come then oh glorious Prince and succour me in my last struggle, and with thy powerful weapon cast far from me into the infernal abysses that prevaricator and proud Angel that one day thou didst prostrate in the celestial battle.
Accompany me then to the throne of God to sing with thee, Archangel Saint Michael and all the Angels, praise, honour and glory to the One Who reigns for all eternity. Amen.
When We Were Dead In Sin
From the book On the Holy Spirit by Saint Basil, bishop
By one death and resurrection the world was saved
When mankind was estranged from him by disobedience, God our Saviour made a plan for raising us from our fall and restoring us to friendship with himself. According to this plan Christ came in the flesh, he showed us the gospel way of life, he suffered, died on the cross, was buried and rose from the dead. He did this so that we could be saved by imitation of him, and recover our original status as sons of God by adoption. Continue reading
Tears For the Feet of Jesus
Drop, drop, slow tears, and bathe those beauteous feet,
which brought from heaven the news and Prince of Peace.Cease not, wet eyes, his mercies to entreat;
to cry for vengeance sin doth never cease.In your deep floods drown all my faults and fears;
nor let his eye see sin, but through my tears.Words: Phineas Fletcher (1582-1650)
Making a Palm Cross
I’ve watched a bunch of these videos and here are two that are pretty clear and easy to follow.
Mazel tov!
or
or for the ambitious, try it in glass!
Who Are You In The Passion of Christ?
Fr.Celsus repeatedly and passionately asked, “Who are you in the story?”
He said that if you are church and this is your story, you must be in it. Who are you? Are you Pilate, who knows the truth and yet rejects it out of fear to chose and serve the world? Are you the good thief on the cross, condemned for sins you really did commit? Are you John, the Beloved Disciple, standing with Mary, the Mother of Jesus? Who are you in the story?
From a homily by Saint Gregory Nazianzen,
We are soon going to share in the Passover
We are soon going to share in the Passover, and although we still do so only in a symbolic way, the symbolism already has more clarity than it possessed in former times because, under the law, the Passover was, if I may dare to say so, only a symbol of a symbol. Before long, however, when the Word drinks the new wine with us in the kingdom of his Father, we shall be keeping the Passover in a yet more perfect way, and with deeper understanding. He will then reveal to us and make clear what he has so far only partially disclosed. For this wine, so familiar to us now, is eternally new.
It is for us to learn what this drinking is, and for him to teach us. He has to communicate this knowledge to his disciples, because teaching is food, even for the teacher.
So let us take our part in the Passover prescribed by the law, not in a literal way, but according to the teaching of the Gospel; not in an imperfect way, but perfectly; not only for a time, but eternally. Let us regard as our home the heavenly Jerusalem, not the earthly one; the city glorified by angels, not the one laid waste by armies. We are not required to sacrifice young bulls or rams, beasts with horns and hoofs that are more dead than alive and devoid of feeling; but instead, let us join the choirs of angels in offering God upon his heavenly altar a sacrifice of praise. We must now pass through the first veil and approach the second, turning our eyes toward the Holy of Holies. I will say more: we must sacrifice ourselves to God, each day and in everything we do, accepting all that happens to us for the sake of the Word, imitating his passion by our sufferings, and honoring his blood by shedding our own. We must be ready to be crucified.
If you are a Simon of Cyrene, take up your cross and follow Christ. If you are crucified beside him like one of the thieves, now, like the good thief, acknowledge your God. For your sake, and because of your sin, Christ himself was regarded as a sinner; for his sake, therefore, you must cease to sin. Worship him who was hung on the cross because of you, even if you are hanging there yourself. Derive some benefit from the very shame; purchase salvation with your death. Enter paradise with Jesus, and discover how far you have fallen. Contemplate the glories there, and leave the other scoffing thief to die outside in his blasphemy.
If you are a Joseph of Arimathea, go to the one who ordered his crucifixion, and ask for Christs body. Make your own the expiation for the sins of the whole world. If you are a Nicodemus, like the man who worshipped God by night, bring spices and prepare Christs body for burial. If you are one of the Marys, or Salome, or Joanna, weep in the early morning. Be the first to see the stone rolled back, and even the angels perhaps, and Jesus himself.
Be Holy! 