Holy Angels celebrates its parish feast day on October 2: The Feast of the Guardian Angels.
The Lord, Himself, gives us some understanding about holy angels. He tells us of the love which causes the angels to rejoice over our salvation and to watch over us on all our paths (Matthew 18:10; Luke 15:10).
God’s love caused Him to give existence to reasoning beings, capable of knowing and loving Him, and participating in his blessedness. The first creation of this love was the bodiless, immaterial spirits who served Him and fellowshipped with Him.
The holy angels, those faithful to God, were strengthened with divine grace and became completely blessed. They are reflections of glory and the radiance of the Holy of Holies encompasses them. Delighting in the ecstasy of the contemplation of eternal beauty, they are possessed of immeasurable love and drink freely from the wellspring of blessedness. They are above all human limitations, limited only by the fact that they are created beings and servants.
The host of heavenly angels is beyond number. Despite their huge number, a perfect and harmonious order exists among the blessed heavenly powers. This order is the very beauty of perfection, wisdom, truth, and love. Traditionally, the bodiless beings are established into nine orders: Angels, Archangels, Powers, Dominions, Principalities, Virtues, Thrones, Cherubim, and Seraphim. These beings are subject to one another in perfect love and humility.
"This child [Jesus] is destined to be the downfall and the rise of many in Israel, a sign that will be opposed and you yourself shall be pierced with a sword so that the thoughts of many hearts may be laid bare" (Luke 2:34-35).These seven sorrows of our Blessed Mother included the flight of the Holy Family into Egypt; the loss and finding of the child Jesus in the Temple; Mary's meeting of Jesus on His way to Calvary; Mary's standing at the foot of the cross when our Lord was crucified; her holding of Jesus when He was taken down from the cross; and then our Lord's burial. In all, the prophecy of Simeon that a sword would pierce our Blessed Mother's heart was fulfilled in these events. For this reason, Mary is sometimes depicted with her heart exposed and with seven swords piercing it. More importantly, each new suffering was received with the courage, love, and trust that echoed her fiat, let it be done unto me according to Thy word, first uttered at the Annunciation. (Catholic Education) >>Read more
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St. Joseph is my name
my end is God's glory
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Sandusky, Ohio
“One day is assigned for the celebration of the martyrdom of the two apostles. But those two were one. Although their martyrdom occurred on different days, they were one" (Sermon 295, St. Augustine of Hippo).
Paul was the Apostle of the Gentiles. His letters are included in the writings of the New Testament, and through them, we learn much about his life and the faith of the early Church. Before receiving the name Paul, he was Saul, a Jewish Pharisee who zealously persecuted Christians in Jerusalem. Scripture records that Saul was present at the martyrdom of St. Stephen.
Saul's conversion took place as he was on his way to Damascus to persecute the Christian community there. As he was traveling along the road, he was suddenly surrounded by a great light from heaven. He was blinded and fell off his horse. He then heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” He answered: “Who are you, Lord?” Christ said: “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.” Saul continued to Damascus, where he was baptized and his sight was restored. He took the name Paul and spent the remainder of his life preaching the Gospel tirelessly to the Gentiles of the Mediterranean world. (Catholic News Agency)
O holy Apostles, Peter and Paul, I choose you this day and forever to be my special patrons and advocates; thee, Saint Peter, Prince of the Apostles, because thou art the Rock, upon which Almighty God hath built His Church; thee, Saint Paul, because thou wast fore-chosen by God as the Vessel of election and the Preacher of truth in the whole world.
Obtain for me, I pray you, lively faith, firm hope, and burning love; complete detachment from myself, contempt of the world, patience in adversity, humility in prosperity, attention in prayer, purity of heart, a right intention in all my works, diligence in fulfilling the duties of my state of life, constancy in my resolutions, resignation to the will of God and perseverance in the grace of God even unto death; that so, by means of your intercession and your glorious merits, I may be able to overcome the temptations of the world, the flesh and the devil, and may be made worthy to appear before the chief and eternal Shepherd of souls, Jesus Christ, Who with the Father and the Holy Ghost liveth and reigneth for endless ages, to enjoy His presence and love Him forever. Amen.
Source: Excerpted from “Novena Petition to St. Peter and St. Paul,” CatholicHarborofFaithandMorals.com. For the complete novena, visit the website.
O Holy Apostle, you are the Rock upon which Almighty God has built His Church. Obtain for me I pray you: lively faith, firm hope, and burning love, complete detachment from myself, contempt of the world, patience in adversity, humility in prosperity, recollection in prayer, purity of heart, a right intention in all my works, diligence in fulfilling the duties of my state of life, constancy in my resolutions, resignation to the will of God and perseverance in the grace of God even unto death; that so, by means of your intercession and your glorious merits, I may be made worthy to appear before the Chief and Eternal Shepherd of Souls, Jesus Christ, Who with the Father and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns forever. Amen.
O Glorious Saint Paul, after persecuting the Church you became by God’s grace its most zealous Apostle. To carry the knowledge of Jesus, our Divine Savior, to the uttermost parts of the earth, you joyfully endured prison, scourging, stoning, and shipwreck, as well as all manner of persecutions culminating in the shedding of the last drop of your blood for our Lord Jesus Christ. Obtain for us the grace to labor strenuously to bring the faith to others and to accept any trials and tribulations that may come our way. Help us to be inspired by your Epistles and to partake of your indomitable love for Jesus, so that after we have finished our course we may join you in praising Him in Heaven for all eternity. Amen.
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