Message Jan/Feb 25, 2016

MESSAGE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

January 25, 2016

VILLAGE OF MEDJUGORJE, BOSNIA HERCEGOVINA

"Dear children! Also today I am calling all of you to prayer: You cannot live without prayer, because prayer is a chain which brings you closer to God. Therefore, little children, in humility of heart return to God and to His commandments so that with all of your heart, you are able to say: as it is in Heaven so may it be on earth. You, little children, are free to in freedom decide for God or against Him. See where Satan wants to pull you into sin and slavery. Therefore, little children, return to my heart so that I can lead you to my Son Jesus who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Thank you for having  responded to my call."

Nine Words Worth Remembering

By Rev. Roland Lacasse, s.m.

Some time ago I heard a sermon about Heaven, and can anyone be sure of going there. As Catholics, we know that the Blessed Mother went to Heaven; body and. soul. We call it her "Assumption." But what about anyone else? In the history of the human race, there was a man that Jesus, Himself, assured that he was going to Heaven, after the man asked Jesus, as he hung on the cross, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." And Jesus replied, "This day you will be with Me in Paradise!"

When the Blessed Mother appeared to St. Bernadette she, too, was promised Heaven when she was told, "I cannot promise you to be happy on earth, but only in Heaven." And St. Theresa of Lisieux once said, "I will spend eternity doing good on behalf of people on earth."

There is a popular song about Heaven, some of the lyrics being "Everybody wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die." But that's not quite true. In my ministry as a priest, I have visited many people who complained that God had forgotten to come and get them; that they had no reason to linger any longer here on earth. The mother of St. Augustine felt the same way after she had lived long enough to witness the conversion of both her son and her husband.

It's strange, but as a result of interviews of many people, the vast majority believed in Heaven, but not in Hell. It seems that they believed that God is too merciful to send people to Hell. On the other hand, God is too just to allow everyone to go to Heaven. I believe that when we die, the soul will automatically go where it deserves to go, at least until the "General Judgment."

Heaven has been described in many ways, but the essence of Heaven is to be with God, just as the essence of Hell is to be without the God for whom we were created. St. Augustine had it right when he said, "You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts can find no rest until they rest in thee." Pity the atheist who denies the existence of God and of the after-life. What would he want as an epitaph on his tombstone? Would it be uncharitable to suggest, "Here lies an atheist, with no place to go."

Most people have heard the saying about soldiers in wartime who find themselves in danger - "There is no such thing as an atheist in a foxhole." And those of us who lived through World War II recall that all the churches were crowded during the war, Someone once said that people turn to God in times of crisis. Not all people. Here are people who still go to church, not just because they "need God" but because it's the right thing to do. We not only are "The nine words that Jesus said to the "good thief" when both of them were dying on a cross deserve to be remembered by all of us, for we all hope that someday, He will say them to us. Lourdes Echoes P.O. Box 15575 Boston, MA 02215-2594

If any man serves me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be; if any man serve me, him will my Father honor."  Gospel according to St. John 12:26

January 02, 2016 "Dear children, as a mother I am joyful to be among you because I desire to speak anew about the words of my Son and of His love. I hope that you will accept me with the heart, because the words of my Son and His love are the only light and hope in the darkness of today. This is the only truth and you who will accept and live it will have pure and humble hearts. My Son loves those who are pure and humble. Pure and humble hearts bring to life the words of my Son, they live them, they spread them and they make it possible for everyone to hear them. The words of my Son will bring back life to those who listen to them. The words of my Son bring back love and hope. Therefore, my beloved apostles, my children, live the words of my Son. Love each other as He loved you. Love each other in His those who listen to the words of my Son; because of those who love; because of those who suffer and endure in silence and in the hope of final redemption. Therefore my beloved children, may the words of my Son and His love be the first and the last thought of your day. Thank you." 01/02/2016

'Little Children'

St. Jerome, who did the first official translation into Latin of all those stories and letters written for Jews and Christians which we call the Bible, also wrote letters of his own.

One of his reflects the persistence which we find the Bible as a characteristic of Moses as well as others we learn about:

"It is not enough for me that God has given me grace once, but he must give it. always. I ask, that I may receive; and when I have received, I ask again. I am covetous of receiving God's bounty. He is never slow in giving, nor am I ever weary of receiving."

When we are told to "become like little children" that's part of what we are meant to understand. God wants us to ask and he will always reply.

No need to be bashful in God's presence. Whatever you need, ask and it shall be given to you.

Sometimes we do not understand the gifts we get. In pain and suffering, we ask for relief and instead we are given understanding. We ask for miracles and instead we are given ways to go to reach our desire. We ask for help and are given a friend to help us help ourselves.

But that doesn't mean we should stop asking. At Lourdes last summer the Pope asked his fellow pilgrims to "join me in imploring the Virgin Mary to obtain for our world the longed-for gift of peace."

It is a gift he never ceases to ask for. And, we should join him every day in asking for it too. Don't rise from your bed in the morning or drop into it at night without a petition for "peace" on your lips.

Peace, health, friends, love, stability, strength to forgive and forget, willingness to carry the cross. These are some of the gifts we should ask for and expect God will give them to us. Not because we are worthy, but because He is so Good.  Have a holy and prayerful Lenten Season.

God's blessing on your daily life,

Fr. Robert, O.F.M.

Franciscan Friars! P.O. Box 5981 Mount Vernon, N.Y. 10551-0598/ PH: 914-664-5604

"Sparks of Light"

"Let us fix our eyes on the small figure of the Lady whom everyone would be happy to encounter. Though physically small and weak, she has a heart as big as humanity! May we pray to the Blessed Mother, remembering that her heart beats for the whole world."  Mother Elvira

Community Cenacolo Amer, inc. 1050 Talleyrand Ave. Jacksonville, Fl32206

Center for substance abuse- high success rate through devotion to The Holy Rosary and Eucharistic Adoration. Donations most welcome.

TRUST JESUS

The Angel said, " ... blessed is the fruit of your womb ... "

Jesus said, "Let the children come to me"

Jesus will take care of you and your child ... Trust Him.

February 02, 2016 "Dear children, I have called you and am calling you to come to know my Son, to come to know the truth. I am with you and am praying for you to succeed. My children, you must pray much in order to have all the more love and patience; to know how to endure sacrifice and to be poor in spirit. Through the Holy Spirit, my Son is always with you. His Church is born in every heart that comes to know Him. Pray that you can come to know my Son; pray that your soul may be one with Him. That is the prayer and the love which draws others and makes you my apostles. I am looking at you with love, a motherly love. I know you; I know your  pain and sorrows, because I also suffered in silence. My faith gave me love and hope. I repeat, the Resurrection of my Son and my Assumption into Heaven is hope and love for you. Therefore, my children, pray to come to know the truth; to have firm faith which will lead your heart and which will transform your pain and sufferings into love and hope. Thank you." 02/02/2016

Saint Bernadette's Personal Notes  

(Personal notes written by St. Bernadette during a retreat in September, 1874. From the archives of Saint Gildard's Convent in Nevers, France.)

Do not fear, always remain close to Our Lord in the Tabernacle. Bury yourself deeply there, and never leave it. Pray to Our Lady to keep you well hidden there. Consider this good Master; He suffers greatly in silence, He does not even move although He could reduce everything to nothing. Follow His example with courage and generously carry the cross hidden in your heart and this for the love of Jesus,

The principal grace to ask for the retreat: to live more and more hidden after the example of Jesus and Mary. Remind yourself often of the words uttered by the Blessed Virgin; Penance! Penance! You should be the first to put this into practice...

That is to say, do all our actions with a desire to please Our Lord, in a spirit of faith. The more we die on the cross, the more glorious our resurrection will be. What folly to turn in on oneself when our Lord asks for our hands to be nailed to the cross! From now on, the more I am crucified the more I shall rejoice.

The Priest is not His Own

We who have received the Sacrament of Orders call ourselves "priests". The author does not recall any priest ever having said, "I was ordained a 'victim''', nor did he ever say, "I am studying to be a victim." That seemed almost alien to being a priest. The seminary always told us to be "good" priests; never were we told to be willing victims.

And yet was not Christ, the Priest, a Victim? Did He not come to die? He did not offer a lamb, a bullock or doves; He never offered anything except Himself.

He gave Himself up on our behalf, a sacrifice breathing out fragrance as He offered it to God. Ephesians 5:2

Pagan priests, Old Testament priests, medicine men, all offered a sacrifice apart from themselves. But not Our Lord. He was Sacerdos-Vlaima.

This being so, just as we miss much in the life of Christ by not showing that the shadow of the Cross cast itself even over the crib and the carpenter shop as well as over His public life, so we have a mutilated concept of our priesthood if we envisage it apart from making ourselves victims in the prolongation of His Incarnation. There is nothing else in this book but that idea. And if the reader would like to hear that chord struck a hundred times, he may now proceed. BI. Bishop Fulton J. Sheen

February 25, 2016 "Dear Children! In this time of grace, I am calling all of you to conversion.  Little Children,  you love little and and pray even less. You are lost and do not know what your goal is. Take the cross, look at Jesus and follow Him. He gives Himself to you to the death on the cross, because He loves you. Little children, I am calling you: return to prayer with the heart so as to find hope and the meaning of your existence. in prayer. I am with you and am praying for you.  Thank you for having responded to my call." 2/25/2016 .

The Holy Eucharist:

"My great delight is to Unite Myself with souls. Know, My daughter; that when I come to a human heart in Holy Communion, My hands are full of all kinds of graces which I want to give to the soul..."  Jesus to St. Faustina

Our Blessed Mother often reminds us to pray for Our Shepherds, "Her favorite sons."

During Holy Mass when approaching the alter to receive Jesus in Holy Eucharist is a special time to remember in prayer the priests who consecrate our Hosts.

" ... is not the enrapture gaze of Mary as she contemplated the face of the newborn Christ and cradled him in her arms that unparalleled model of love which should inspire us every time we receive Eucharist in Communion?"

" ... Our lives can be constantly reborn through Holy Eucharist;" St. Pope John Paul Il

The Eucharistic Assembly

For the Pope, the "Eucharistic Assembly" lies at the very heart of the Sunday observance. He states: "At Sunday Mass Christians relive with particular intensity the experience of the Apostles on the evening of Easter when the Risen Lord appeared to them as they gathered together. In a sense, the People of God of all times were present in that small nucleus of disciples. Every generation of believers hear the greeting of Christ, rich with the messianic gift of peace, won by His blood and offered with His spirit: Peace be with you!'

Christ's return to His apostles a week later can be seen as a radical prefiguring of the Christian community's practice of coming together every seven days on the "Lord's Day", on Sunday.

The Pope reminds all Christians that the Risen Lord is encountered in the Sunday assembly at the two folded tables: The Table of the Word and The Table of The Bread of Life. "The Table of the Word," the Pope reminds all peoples, "offers the same understanding of the history of salvation which the Risen Christ gave His disciples: and at the Table of the Bread of Life, The Risen Lord becomes really, substantially, and enduringly present through the memorial of His passion and Resurrection."

The Table of the Bread of Life

With equal emphasis the Holy Father focuses on the Table of the Bread of Life. He sees the Mass as the great "thanksgiving" in which the Church turns to the Father and speaks the name of all humanity. The communal character of the Eucharistic emerges in a special way when it is seen as the Easter Banquet. In this banquet Christ becomes our nourishment.

Additionally, the Sunday Eucharistic Assembly is an experience of solidarity with our sisters and brothers. As the pope remarks, "Sharing in the Lord's Supper is always communion with Christ, who offers himself for us a sacrifice to the Father. This is why the Church recommends that the faithful receive Communion when they take part in the Eucharistic, provided they are properly disposed."

Sunday Without a Priest

"The diminishing numbers of clergy make it impossible to guarantee the presence of a priest in every parish community." The pope says. Sharing in a Eucharistic assembly, relaxing in a spirit of Christian joy and fraternity, celebrating the "marvels God has wrought" in the beauties of nature, giving thanks and praise to God, remembering of the Lord, making Sunday a supreme day of faith, performing works of "mercy, charity and apostolic outreach," taking part with fellow Christians in well-prepared liturgies, and making Sunday really the weekly Easter.  St. John Paul II

When you look at the Crucifix you know how much Jesus loved you, then when you look at Holy Eucharist you know how much He loves you now" B1. Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Shadows on The Cross 2041 Mt. Zion Rd., Weedville, PA 15868- Image created by Fall leaves, October 2016, to receive an email copy: email lavina67@verizon.net

An Awesome and Bloody Sacrifice

Making remembrance of his life-giving sufferings, his saving cross and death, his burial and resurrection on the third day from the dead, and his session at the right hand of You his God and Father, and his second glorious and fearful coming when he will judge the living and the dead .... we offer to You O Lord, this awesome and unbloody sacrifice, beseeching You to deal with us not according to our sins ...but according to Your great mercy and love.

ANAPHORA OF THE LITURGY OF SAINT JAMES

Quiet, peaceful, and prayerful setting on 140 acres. Daily mass, home-cooked meals, bookstore, outdoor Labyrinth, Stations of the Cross, marian Grotto, and walking paths. Retreats and personal non-directed retreats offered throughout the year. Visit website for retreat calendar. Website: bethanyretreatcenter.org. Email: bethanyretreatcenter@gamil.com P.O. Box I29 Frenchville. PA 16838 Ph# 814-263-4855  Program Director- Nicole Fedder  Bethany Retreat Center

Dear Children! You are responsible for the messages. The source of grace is here, but you dear children, are the vehicles transmitting the gifts. Therefore, dear children, I am calling you to work responsibly. Everyone will be responsible according to his own measure. Dear children, I am calling you to give the gifts to others with love and not to keep it for yourselves. Thank you for having responded to my call."  Our Lady to the Visionaries May 8, 1986

To hear Our Lady's Message, very early by phone, call 1-814-787-5683 (LOVE). Usually available the 26th of each month. Prayer requests at this number are given to the visionary, Vicka, so that she may offer them to Our Lady. Prayer petitions can also be hand written and sent in a sealed envelope to: The Holy Family, Inc., PO Box: 442, St. Marys, PA 15857-0442. They are forwarded to Vicka who presents them to Our Lady.

Can You Help?

A YOUNG WOMAN IN NEED OF A KIDNEY TRANSPLANT

Donation procedures have been greatly simplified in recent years. Please phone Susan at 814-592-9824 or email-swilliams7762@hotmail.com

Father Ralph A. DiOrio, Jr.

To offer oneself in total surrender to God is the vocation of each Christian - married, single, priest or religious - but to act in the very person of Christ, in Persona Christi, is the privilege and burden of his priest. Each Priest must offer himself as a sacrifice. Fr. Ralph A. DiOrio, JR. does this with great humility and love for Christ and his people. Fr. Ralph emphasizes that "The Hour of healing is here for us".  "The Healing of man occasions nothing more but an event which creates faith. The gospel produces love and concerns for everyone. To heal, not to injure... To help, not to hurt .... To strengthen and sustain .... With patience, compassion and trust:"

People of all Ages, Faiths, and Walks of Life Attend Father DiOrio's Services. Service Information:  508-832-7890

All Services start at 12 Noon, Malronis Park, Shrewsbury, MA: March 13 & 29, April 12, May 1 & 15, June 7 & 26

In answer to Our Lady's call for prayer every Tuesday at St. Michael the Archangel Church in DuBois, PA a rosary for Families will be prayed at 6 P. M. (A very peaceful 20 minutes)

St. Michael, the Archangel Church, DuBois

Exposed every Wednesday 9:30 A.M., Chaplet of Mercy 3 P.M. Holy Rosary - 6:30 P.M.

Blessed Sacrament reposed Thursday 8:45 A. M

MARY IS CALLING YOU

On June 24, 1981 in Medjugorje, Our Lady appeared to six children. She identified Herself as the Blessed Virgin, Queen of Peace, and has continued to appear daily. Her message is PEACE, peace with God and man. Her words to the visionaries, "I have corne to tell the world that God exists. He is the fullness of life, and to enjoy this fullness and obtain peace, you must return to God."

Today, all but three of the visionaries have daily apparitions of the Blessed Mother. During the apparitions, the visionaries do not react to light, don't hear any sound or react to being touched. They feel that they are outside of time and space. All the visionaries declare to see the Blessed Virgin as they see other people - in three dimension. They pray and speak with Her.

The Blessed Mother is confiding ten secrets to each visionary (some are chastisements for the world) and promises to leave a visible sign at the place of the apparitions in Medjugorje for all humanity.  This time, this period of grace, is for CONVERSION and a DEEPENING OF FATIH. After the visible sign, those still living will have little time for conversion.

Father Jozo Zovko, who was the pastor of St. James when the apparitions began, has spoken about what he calls "the weapons" or the "the five stones" of Our Lady. They are: prayer with the heart, especially the Rosary; Eucharist; Holy Bible; monthly Confession; and fasting.

The publisher recognizes and accepts that the final authority regarding the apparitions at Medjugorje rest with the Holy See in Rome.

You can receive more detailed info monthly thru The Spirit of Medjugorje PO Box 6614 Erie, PA 16512~ rate - free will offering.