Plenary indulgence announced for the Year of Faith. Make sure you take part often in this act of mercy from the Church!

Vatican City, Oct 5, 2012 (CNA/EWTN News) - The Holy See announced Oct. 5 that Pope Benedict XVI has granted a plenary indulgence for the Year of Faith, which will last from Oct. 11, 2012 to Nov. 24, 2013.

The decree announcing the indulgence was signed Sept. 14 by Cardinal Manuel de Castro, Major Penitentiary, and Bishop Kryzsztof Nykiel, Regent, of the Apostolic Penitentiary. The penitentiary is the part of the Roman Curia responsible for indulgences and governing the sacrament of confession.

One plenary indulgence per day may be gained by an individual, which they can use for themselves or apply to a soul in purgatory. The indulgence remits the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven.

During the Year of Faith, there are four means of gaining an indulgence.
Click for entire story
  

The Pope also requested the faithful for Prayer at the start of his pilgrimage to Loreto October 4th. The pope said he was following in the footsteps of Bl. John XXIII, who entrusted Vatican II to Our Lady at the Shrine of Loreto on October 4th, in 1962!

Benedict XVI's pilgrimage to Loreto marks the 50th anniversary of that journey and the opening of the Council. The Pope asked everyone in Wednesday's General Audience to join his prayers "entrusting to the Mother of God the main ecclesial events we are preparing to experience: the Year of Faith, and the Synod of Bishops on the New Evangelization."

Below are excerpts taken from his Homily given at the shrine....
Click for entire text of the Pope's Homily....

Blessed John XXIII's 

Act of entrustment of 
Vatican Council II

"On October 4, 1962, Blessed John XXIII also came as a pilgrim to this Shrine to entrust to the Virgin Mary the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, due to begin a week later. On that occasion, with deep filial devotion to the Mother of God, he addressed her in these words: “Again today, and in the name of the entire episcopate, "I ask you, sweetest Mother, as Help of Bishops, to intercede for me as Bishop of Rome and for all the bishops of the world, to obtain for us the grace to enter the Council Hall of Saint Peter’s Basilica, as the Apostles and the first disciples of Jesus entered the Upper Room: with one heart, one heartbeat of love for Christ and for souls, with one purpose only, to live and to sacrifice ourselves for the salvation of individuals and peoples. Thus, by your maternal intercession, in the years and the centuries to come, may it be said that the grace of God prepared, accompanied and crowned the twenty-first Ecumenical Council, filling all the children of the holy Church with a new fervor, a new impulse to generosity, and a renewed firmness of purpose” (AAS 54 [1962], 727).

Benedict XVI continues:

"Fifty years later, having been called by divine Providence to succeed that unforgettable Pope to the See of Peter, I too have come on pilgrimage to entrust to the Mother of God two important ecclesial initiatives: the Year of Faith, which will begin in a week, on 11 October, on the fiftieth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council, and the Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, which I have convened this October with the theme “The New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith”.

 "We must return to God, so that man 

may return to being man" Pope Benedict XVI

This Shrine of Loretto, built around Mary's earthly home, preserves the memory of the moment when an angel of Lord came to Mary with     the great announcement of the Incarnation, and she gave her reply. This home is a physical, tangible witness to the greatest event in our history, the Incarnation; the Word became flesh and Mary, the handmaid of the Lord, is the privileged channel through which God came to dwell among us!"

Here at Loreto fifty years ago, Blessed John XXIII issued an invitation to contemplate this mystery, to “reflect on that union of heaven and earth, which is the purpose of the Incarnation and Redemption”, and he went on to affirm that the aim of the Council itself was to spread ever wider the beneficent impact of the Incarnation and Redemption on all spheres of life (cf. AAS 54 [1962], 724). This invitation resounds today with particular urgency. In the present crisis affecting not only the economy but also many sectors of society, the Incarnation of the Son of God speaks to us of how important man is to God, and God to man. Without God, man ultimately chooses selfishness over solidarity and love, material things over values, having over being. We must return to God, so that man may return to being man.

With God, even in difficult times or moments of crisis, there is always a horizon of hope: the Incarnation tells us that we are never alone, that God has come to humanity and that he accompanies us!

Dear brothers and sisters, on this pilgrimage in the footsteps of Blessed John XXIII – and which comes, providentially, on the day in which the Church remembers Saint Francis of Assisi, a veritable “living Gospel” – I wish to entrust to the Most Holy Mother of God all the difficulties affecting our world as it seeks serenity and peace, the problems of the many families who look anxiously to the future, the aspirations of young people at the start of their lives, the suffering of those awaiting signs or decisions of solidarity and love. I also wish to place in the hands of the Mother of God this special time of grace for the Church, now opening up before us. Mother of the “yes”, you who heard Jesus, speak to us of him; tell us of your journey, that we may follow him on the path of faith; help us to proclaim him, that each person may welcome him and become the dwelling place of God. Amen! Click for entire text of the Pope's Homily....

               

Click for video of the Pope's Oct 4th, 2012 visit to Loretto!

Also see recent post:
The Fatima Message Embraces the Holy Father in Prayer & Sacrifice!

St. Pio & Fatima -Rare Film Footage of St. Pio!

St. Pio and the Message Fatima

The Pilgrim Virgin goes to San Giovanni Rotondo  

On July 27, 1959 Padre Pio announced the beginning of the novena "for the visit the Heavenly Mother wants to make" and he exhorted to prepare for it with Christian renewal. Every evening he reminded them of the joy, the good fortune, the "very special grace" of this visit and the obligation of a worthy welcome above all with the practice of some virtues During the morning of August 6, the Padre was able to go down to the church. He stopped in front of the statue of our Lady — but had to sit down because he was exhausted and he gave her a gold rosary. The statue was lowered before his face and he was able to kiss her. It was a most affectionate gesture. Between two and three in the afternoon of August 6 the helicopter carrying the statue of our Lady rose from the terrace of the Home for Relief of Suffering headed for Sicily. It did three turns over the crowd gathered on the square in front of the church and flew away. From a window Padre Pio watched the helicopter fly away with eyes filled with tears. To our Lady in flight Padre Pio lamented with a confidence that was all his own: "My Lady, my Mother, you came to Italy and I got sick, now you are going away and you leave me still ill." 

The helicopter that flew the Pilgrim Virgin to St. Padre Pio in 1959

There is an unknown story behind the story told by the priest in the helicopter Msgr. Giovanni Strazzacappa who had founded the Blue Army in Italy. He stated that the pilot had suddenly swirled the machine around. In surprise, he asked what was happening. The pilot, himself surprised, said he just felt "compelled" to turn around. Then to the amazement of both, they saw St. Padre Pio come to the window with the help of his friars and cry out to Our Lady.  As long as he lived St. Pio repeated. "In that very instant I felt a sort of shudder in my bones which cured me immediately." His Spiritual Father confirmed it saying: "In a moment the Padre felt a mysterious force in his body and said to his confreres: 'I am healed Our Lady of Fatima has healed me!'." He was healthy and strong as never before in his life.

Padre Pio later wrote,” Thank the Virgin of Fatima for me. On the very day She left here, I felt well again. “ Three days later, he was celebrating Mass.   When St. Pio was told about an article that appeared in Foggia, which asked why Our Lady of Fatima had gone to San Giovanni Rotondo and not the shrine of Saint Michael at Monte Sant'Angelo, Padre Pio explained with enchanting simplicity: "Our Lady came here because she wanted to cure Padre Pio."

     St. Pio Spiritual Father 
to Blue Army Members

Not many people realize that St.. Padre Pio had provided a way that those after his death could still become his spiritual children? They could do so in just one way: they could make the Blue Army pledge (the basic requests of Our Lady: Morning Offering, Scapular and Rosary).    He did this in gratitude for the great favor he recieved through the Pilgrim statue of Our Lady of Fatima,  St. Pio had accepted all who make and keep the Blue Army pledge as his spiritual children (for whom he will wait at the gates of Heaven "until all have entered").  Provided  of course, that they live the message of Our Lady and they remain good! St. Pio also sent a crucifix to the Bishop of Fatima (the Most Rev. John Venancio) who was the international spiritual head of the Blue Army at the time.  When asked one day whether it was a good thing to belong to the Blue Army, St. Pio answered: "Could you do anything better?"

Quotes of Padre Pio  on His Spiritual Children:

 'I love my Spiritual Children as much as my own soul and even more.'

 'Once I take a soul on, I also take on their entire family as my spiritual children.'

 'To my Spiritual Children, my prayers for you will never be lacking.'

 'If one of my spiritual children ever goes astray, I shall leave my flock and seek him out.' 

A Gruff but 

Dedicated Confessor

St. Pio's conformity to the Paschal Mystery of His Lord necessarily embraced a commitment to the ministry of reconciliation, its fruit. Toward that end he dedicated many hours of the day to hearing confessions, both in the mornings and the afternoon. Some days he spent up to fourteen hours in the confessional.  In accordance with the custom of the time he heard men's confessions and women's confessions separately - the men in the sacristy and the women in the confessional.

It was not possible to lie to him during a confession, for he saw what lay within people's  hearts. Often, when sinners lacked the courage to confess properly, St. Pio listed their sins during the confession. He also advised weekly confession. "Confession is the soul's bath. You must go at least once a week. I do not want souls to stay away from confession more than a week. Even a clean and unoccupied room gathers dust; return after a week and you will see that it needs dusting again!"

St. Pio  and Bl. Jacinta 
on Christian Modesty

Modesty in actions, words and dress was mentioned by  Bl. Jacinta of Fatima as well as St. Pio. While Jacinta was in the hospital during her last illness she was very saddened by the worldliness of the visitors, the women dressed in fashionable clothes, often with low-cut dresses.  "What is it all for?" she asked Mother Godinho (her guardian ).  

"If they only knew what eternity is." "the sins which bring most souls to hell are the sins of the flesh.  

 Certain fashions are going to be introduced which will offend Our Lord very much... the Church has no fashions; Our Lord is always the same..."  
Catholic Modesty.com-Bl. Jacinta

Padre Pio wouldn't tolerate low-necked dresses or short, tight skirts, and he forbade his spiritual daughters to wear transparent stockings. Each year his severity increased.  He stubbornly dismissed them from his confessional, even before they set foot inside, if he judged them to be improperly dressed.  On some mornings he drove away one after another, until he ended up hearing very few confessions.  His brothers observed these drastic purges with a certain uneasiness and decided to fasten a sign on the church door; "By Padre Pio's explicit wish, women must enter the confessional wearing skirts  AT LEAST 8 INCHES BELOW THE KNEE.  IT IS FORBIDDEN TO BORROW LONGER DRESSES IN CHURCH AND TO WEAR THEM TO CONFESSION."

Sometimes when Padre Pio refused to absolve his penitents and closed the small confessional door in their faces, the people would reproach him asking why he acted this way.  "Don't you know," he asked, "what pain it costs me to shut the door on anyone?  The Lord has forced me to do so.  I do not call anyone, nor do I refuse anyone either.  There is someone else who calls and refuses them.  I am His useless tool. 

The Canonization of Padre Pio gives us the opportunity to reflect on the severity of the Saint who put this poster on the door of his church: 

 "The Church is the house of God.  It is forbidden for men to enter with bare arms or in shorts.  It is forbidden for women to enter in trousers, without a veil on their head, in short clothing, low necklines, sleeveless or immodest dresses." Excerpts from:  Catholic Modesty.com St Pio

St. Pio and the Rosary

 Our Lady of Fatima asked especially for the prayer of the Rosary. And who could count the hours Padre Pio spent in prayer for the conversion and salvation of sinners? And who more than he held the rosary in his hand, night and day, filling all the free moments of the day with the most devout recital of the Rosary? And with how much loving insistence did he not recommend the Rosary to everyone as a means of salvation! 

 

"Love our Lady, make others love her. Always say your Rosary and say it well. Satan always tries to destroy  this prayer, but he will never succeed. It is the prayer of her who triumphs over everything and everyone."

One day one of his penitents said to him: "Padre, today they say the Rosary is out of date, that it is no longer in fashion. It is no longer said in many churches." He replied: "Let us do what our fathers did and all will be well with us." "But Satan rules the world."  St.  Pio replied: "Because they make him rule; can a spirit rule by itself if it is not united to the human will? We could not have been born in a more depraved world. The one who prays a lot saves himself. The one who prays little is in danger. The one who does not pray loses his soul."

"From these stories let us make a holy resolution to grow always in the devotion to the Immaculate Heart and with a generous reply to the message of Fatima, reciting fervently the Rosary every day, praying and offering our sufferings for the conversion of sinners, receiving Communion on the first Saturdays of the month in the hope that the consoling words will come true for us: "I promise salvation to all those who practice devotion to my Immaculate Heart. These souls will be most dear to God, and like flowers I will place them before his throne."  Like this we can even look to the future of the Church and humanity with serenity, trustful in the prophetic word of Mary who in her third apparition of 13 July 1917 announced: "In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph."   
from Padre Pio and the Immaculate Heart of Mary 
by Most Rev. Paola Carta, Bishop Emeritus of Foggia

Padre Pio - Rare Film Footage  

Uploaded by ZrinjskiPetar on Dec 27, 2010  

Filmed at Our Lady of Grace Capuchin Friary which is located in the Gargano Mountains at San Giovanni Rotondo. At times there is an atmosphere of playfulness redolent of the Fioretti of St Francis. At the end, they are obviously teasing him about the camera and he hits the cameraman with his cincture. We see him in the refectory and in the Church, and there are scenes of his brothers dealing with the massive postbag which he generated. Starting at 4'23" there is some footage of Padre Pio as celebrant at Tridentine Latin Mass.

  

A Prayer for Trust and Confidence 
in God's Mercy

 by St. Pio of Pietrelcina

 O Lord, we ask for a boundless confidence and trust in Your divine mercy, and the courage to accept the crosses and sufferings which bring immense goodness to our souls and that of Your Church. Help us to love You  with a pure and contrite heart, and to humble ourselves beneath Your cross, as we climb the mountain of holiness,  carrying our cross that leads to heavenly glory.

May we receive You with great faith and love in Holy Communion, and allow You to act in us as You desire for your greater glory. O Jesus, most adorable Heart  and eternal fountain of Divine Love, may our prayer find favor before the Divine Majesty of Your heavenly Father.

A Blessing Prayer 

 by Saint Pio of Pietrelcina

May Jesus comfort you
     in all your afflictions.
     May He sustain you in dangers,
     watch over you always with His grace,
     and indicate the safe path
     that leads to eternal salvation.
     And may He render you always
     dearer to His Divine Heart
     and always more worthy of Paradise.  

St Padre Pio remember us from your eternal glory as you promised!  Do not forget us your spiritual sons and daughters in our hours of trial. Defend us from the snares of the enemy seeking our ruin. Continue your prayers for us that after passing through the darkness and trials of this life, we may arrive safely at the heavenly gates and enter with you the joy of beholding our God face to face for all eternity. Amen 

Beloved St. Pio, Ora pro nobis!

Fatima Apparitions in August---"I say to you: unless you shall do penance, you shall all likewise perish." Luke 13:3

Fr. John DeMarchi

The most widely cited descriptions of the events reported at Fatima are taken from the writings of Fr. John John De Marchi, an Italian Catholic priest and researcher.  Fr. De Marchi spent seven years in Fátima, from 1943 to 1950, conducting original research and interviewing the principals at undisturbed length. He later helped build the Consolata Seminary in Fatima and his last years were devoted to meeting pilgrims that he met from all over the world during his years he spent in his mission work for Ethopia.

He wrote many books on Fatima most notable The True Story of Fatima.

 The Following details on the apparition of Our Lady at Vihinos on August 19th are taken from his writings and the Memoirs of Sr. Lucia; Fatima in Lucia's own Words

The Apparitions of Our Lady 

at Fatima in August

The 13th day of August had dawned and everyone  wanted to see and question the children, to recommend their petitions to them, so that we could transmit them to the most Holy Virgin… In the midst of all this commotion, an order came from the Administrator, telling them to go to their aunt's house, where the administrator  was waiting… When they arrived, he interrogated them there,wand made fresh attempts to force them to reveal the secret and to promise that we would not go back to the Cova da Iria… Finally in desperation he had the children arrested and taken to jail.  

Meanwhile, in the Cova at noon on the 13th the characteristic external signs of the Apparition appeared for the benefit of the crowd, the greatest crowd to that time. After they ceased the crowd dispersed, as yet unaware of the trickery of the government taking the children.

While in prison, Jacinta wept bitterly, for she was so homesick for her mother and all the family. Francisco tried to cheer her saying, "Even if we never see our mother again, let's be patient! We can offer it for the conversion of sinners. The worst thing would be if Our Lady never came back again! That is what hurts me most. But I offer this as well for sinners…" The children where once again heroic in their convictions not to betray the secrets that were given to them by the Lady.  The administrator tried bribes, threats of death and locking them in a cell with other "criminals" in order to get them to recant their story. It was to no avail. Despite their ages, their belief in the Lady and their courage was unshakeable.

© Original Drawing for Speramus-We Hope

Their cell mates visibly moved at the childrens plight offered to pray the rosary with them as the pinned a medal of Our Lady to the prison wall.

The children were returned to the doorsteps of the parish rectory on the 15th of August. On Sunday the 19th of August. They were with the sheep in a place called Valinhos. It  was located on the side of the same hillock opposite Aljustrel where the angel  had appeared twice to them in 1916.  Valinhos was  a little farther north and closer to thier home. Around 4pm they felt something supernatural approaching them in the breeze that enveloped them. Moments later, they saw Our Lady.

 August 19 
the Apparition at Valinhos

The Shrine built where Our Lady appeared August 19th.

"What do you want of me?" Lucia asked again

"I want you to continue going to the Cova da Iria on the 13th, and to continue praying the Rosary every day. In the last month, I will perform a miracle so that all may believe."

"What do you want done with the money that the people leave in the Cova da Iria?"

I want you to have two ardors [litters to carry statues] made, for the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. I want you and Jacinta to carry one of them with two other girls. You will both dress in white. And then I want Francisco, with three boys helping him, to carry the other one. The boys, too, will be dressed in white. What is left over will help towards the construction of a chapel that is to be built"

I would like to ask you to cure some sick persons," Lucia continued.

Some I will cure during the year." our Lady replied

Then, looking very sad, she  Lady said: "Pray, pray very much, and make sacrifices for sinners; for many souls go to Hell, because there are none to sacrifice themselves and to pray for them."

Having said that she departed as she had on the other occasions rising slowly towards the East.

  
 SACRIFICE YOURSELVES 
FOR SINNERS

YOU HAVE SEEN HELL 

WHERE THE SOULS OF POOR SINNERS GO  

"Sacrifice for sinners and repeat many times, especially when you make a sacrifice: O my Jesus, this is out of love for you, for the conversion of sinners and in reparation for the sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary!"  

© Original Drawing for Speramus-We Hope

The vision of hell in July by now had thoroughly absorbed the children with  Mary's plea for prayer and penance. They did everything they could to answer it. They prayed for hours while lying prostrate on the ground and went as long as they could without drinking, in the burning heat of the Portuguese summer. They also went without food, as a sacrifice for sinners, to save them from hell, the vision of which had so profoundly effected them. They even knotted some pieces of old rope around their waists as a form of mortification, not removing them day or night. 

In September Our Lady had to tell them that God did not want them to wear the rope at night.The rope was worn around the waist and It was one of the most painful mortifications the children offered for the conversion of sinners. Also, they did not eat snacks and abstained from drinking water. But the greatest sacrifices were the sacrifices the mission of Our Lady demanded: the humiliations, curiosity, annoyance of the people, unending visits, questions, persecutions, ridicule, and even prison. 

Photo taken after the July apparition the Children had seen a vision of Hell!

May these Blessed Children from Heaven intercede for us who have  sinned  much to obtain for us a part of their spirit of penance. Our eternity depends on it!  " I say to you: but unless you shall do penance, you shall all likewise perish."   Luke 13:3

Francisco the Contemplative

 

 The Apparition at Valinhos was a  joy for Francisco. He had been tormented by the fear that she would never return because they missed their appointed time with Our Lady on the 13th. Lucia said in her writings that Francisco told her: "Most likely, she, (Our Lady) didn't appear on the 13th, so as to avoid going to the Administrator's house, maybe because he is such a bad man."

                                                                                                              

Adeamus ad Thronum Gratciae-Our Lady Mother of Divine Grace

Mater Divinae Gratiae
Mother of Divine Grace  

This Carmelite Feast Day, on July 23, concludes the octave of the Solemnity of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel. We honor Mary as Our Lady, Mother of Divine Grace since she is the Mother of the Son of God, the Author of all Grace.

Holy Mary, Virgin

Mother of Divine Grace

***

 Adeamus ad Thronum Gratciae

    "Let us proceed to and approach the throne of grace" 

 (Hebrews 4)

'The Blessed Virgin Mary was eternally predestined, in the context of the Incarnation of the divine Word, to be the Mother of God. As decreed by divine Providence, she served on earth as the loving Mother of the divine Redeemer, His associate, uniquely generous, and the Lord's humble servant. She conceived, bore, and nourished Christ; presented Him to the Father in the Temple; and was united with Him in His suffering as He died on the cross. In a completely unparalleled way she cooperated, by her obedience, faith, hope and burning charity, with our Savior's work of restoring supernatural life to souls. For this reason she is Mother to us all in the order of grace'  (Lumen Gentium, the Constitution on the Church, 61).

Prayer to Our Lady Mother of Grace

by Rev. Lawrence G. Lovasik, S.V.D.

Mary, Mother of God, I believe that divine grace is absolutely necessary for the performing of any act that is meritorious for eternal life. I am grateful to your divine Son for this priceless gift of God, for by His Passion and death He not only reinstated us in the friendship of His heavenly Father, but also purchased for us all the graces we stand in need of to attain eternal life.   

I also believe that grace is a free gift of God, and I have no claim to it except as a member of His holy Church, which is the mystical body of Christ. Whoever abides in this Church will bring forth much salutary fruit; whereas they who willingly separate themselves from it must wither away spiritually. How strongly Jesus reminded me of this: "As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it remain on the vine, so neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches" (John 15, 4).

Help me to be deeply grateful for God's generosity toward me. I have been especially blessed as a Catholic, for God has given me graces which He has not given to everyone else. The Catholic Church the Gospels, the sacraments, the Mother of Divine Grace as my advocate—these are among the special blessings with which I am favored. I know that much will be required from those to whom much is given. Help me to make good use of the graces given me by God. May my faith influence my conduct. May the instructions I receive increase the love of God in me and strengthen my determination to serve Him with greater zeal. May I derive all the beneficial results the holy sacraments are to produce in my soul.

Mary, My Mother, I realize that I have not always corresponded faithfully with these graces. I will not be discouraged, but rather go with confidence to you, the throne of grace. Even though my past sinfulness may have made me unworthy to appear before God, I trust that you will appeal to God in my behalf as the Mother of Divine Grace. Through your prayers you will obtain forgiveness for my past negligence. You will obtain for me grace to be faithful to God during the rest of my life.

Above all, I beg of you to secure for me in the our of death the grace of final perseverance: that triumphant grace which crowns the measure of God's rifts here below and which is followed by the possession of God in heaven.....For  Prayer

The Fatima Message Embraces the Holy Father in Prayer and Sacrifice!

Zenit: "Many of Pope Benedict's words show he is not afraid to speak uncomfortable truths to our troubled world. But now his actions also are showing his profound courage. Despite the worries of some of his Vatican advisers,  Pope Benedict, has decided to carry out his long-planned September 14-16 visit to Lebanon in order to preach a message of peace  and Hope in a region torn by war. 

"The pope said in his greeting that he is also looking beyond Lebanon to the rest of the Middle East and comes to them as “a pilgrim of peace, as a friend of God and as a friend of all the inhabitants of all the countries of the region, whatever their origins and beliefs.”

The pope, also said that while he understood that tensions in the region may sometimes make it seem as if it were to "to snap like a bow which is overstretched," that such instances are when great wisdom is tested. Reason, he said, "must overcome one-sided passion in order to promote the greater good of all."

'I cannot forget the sad and painful events which have affected your beautiful country along the years. The successful way the Lebanese all live together surely demonstrates to the whole Middle East and to the rest of the world that, within a nation, there can exist cooperation between the various churches, all members of the one Catholic Church in a fraternal spirit of communion with other Christians, and at the same time coexistence and respectful dialogue between Christians and their brethren of other religions,' he said!"  Read More

The  Fatima Message and the Pope

Did you know that the last Pope who bore the name Benedict was the reigning Pontiff when Our Blessed Mother visited Fatima for the first time in 1917?   During World War I, when Pope Benedict XV saw that all human efforts had failed to end the war he adjured Our Lady to show him the way to peace. Eight days later, Our Blessed Mother came to Fatima with Her Message of peace for mankind! We can Hope that our present holy father Pope Benedict XVI will be the pope to help usher in the final triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary!

At the balcony, Benedict XVI first words to the crowd were given in Italian before he gave the traditional Urbi et Orbi blessing in Latin, were: “ Dear brothers and sisters, after the great Pope John Paul II, the Cardinals have elected me, a simple, humble laborer in the vineyard of the Lord. The fact that the Lord knows how to work and to act even with insufficient instruments comforts me, and above all I entrust myself to your prayers. In the joy of the Risen Lord, confident of his unfailing help, let us move forward. The Lord will help us, and Mary, His Most Holy Mother, will be on our side. Thank you. The crowd responded by chanting “Benedict! Benedict!

Benedict XVI explained his choice of name during his first General Audience in St. Peter's Square, on April 27, 2005: “ Filled with sentiments of awe and thanksgiving, I wish to speak of why I chose the name Benedict. Firstly, I remember Pope Benedict XV, that courageous prophet of peace, who guided the Church through turbulent times of war. In his footsteps I place my ministry in the service of reconciliation and harmony between peoples. Additionally, I recall Saint Benedict of Norsia, co-patron of Europe, whose life evokes the Christian roots of Europe. I ask him to help us all to hold firm to the centrality of Christ in our Christian life: May Christ always take first place in our thoughts and actions!

    Do not be Afraid! 

Open Wide the Doors for Christ!

After referring to John Paul II's well-known words, "Do not be afraid! Open wide the doors for Christ!", Benedict XVI said: “Are we not perhaps all afraid in some way? If we let Christ enter fully into our lives, if we open ourselves totally to Him, are we not afraid that He might take something away from us?...And once again the Pope said: No! If we let Christ into our lives, we lose nothing, nothing, absolutely nothing of what makes life free, beautiful and great. No! Only in this friendship do we experience beauty and liberation....When we give ourselves to Him, we receive a hundredfold in return. Yes, open, open wide the doors to Christ – and you will find true life. 

Friendship with Jesus Christ" is a frequent theme of his preaching stressing that on this intimate friendship, "everything depends." He has also said: "We are all called to open ourselves to this friendship with God... speaking to him as to a friend, the only One who can make the world both good and happy... That is all we have to do put ourselves at his disposal...is an extremely important message. It is a message that helps to overcome what can be considered the great temptation of our time: the claim, that after the Big Bang, God withdrew from history." Thus, in his book Jesus of Nazareth, his main purpose was "to help foster the growth of a living relationship" with Jesus Christ.

He also took up this theme in his first encyclical Deus Caritas Est. In his explanation and summary of the encyclical, he stated: "If friendship with God becomes for us something ever more important and decisive, then we will begin to love those whom God loves and who are in need of us. God wants us to be friends of his friends and we can be so, if we are interior close to them."

The World is Redeemed 
by the Patience of God!

It is destroyed by 
the Impatience of Man

                                         I will take the cup of salvation and call upon the name of the Lord Psalm 116:13

                                                                                             

Towards the end of the papal Homily during the Inauguration Mass the following text seems to dimly foreshadow the present crisis that has spewed over the papacy and the church during his pontificate. 

                     

"We Suffer on Account

  of  God's Patience!"

The symbol of the lamb also has a deeper meaning. In the Ancient Near East, it was customary for kings to style themselves shepherds of their people. This was an image of their power, a cynical image: to them their subjects were like sheep, which the shepherd could dispose of as he wished. When the shepherd of all humanity, the living God, himself became a lamb, he stood on the side of the lambs, with those who are downtrodden and killed. This is how he reveals himself to be the true shepherd: "I am the Good Shepherd... I lay down my life for the sheep", Jesus says of himself (Jn 10:14ff.) It is not power, but love that redeems us! This is God's sign: he himself is love.

"How often We wish that God

Would Show Himself Stronger,

that He Would Strike Decisively,

Defeating Evil and Creating

A better World!"

"All ideologies of power justify themselves in exactly this way: they justify the destruction of whatever would stand in the way of progress and the liberation of humanity. We suffer on account of God's patience. And yet, we need his patience. God, who became a lamb, tells us that the world is saved by the Crucified One, not by those who crucified him. The world is redeemed by the patience of God; it is destroyed by the impatience of man.."

"Feeding means Loving

 and Loving also means

Being Ready to Suffer!"

"One of the basic characteristics of a shepherd must be to love the people entrusted to him, even as he loves Christ whom he serves. "Feed my sheep", says Christ to Peter, and now, at this moment, he says it to me as well. Feeding means loving, and loving also means being ready to suffer. Loving means giving the sheep what is truly good, the nourishment of God's truth, of God's Word, the nourishment of his presence, which he gives us in the Blessed Sacrament."

"My dear friends, at this moment I can only say: pray for me, that I may learn to love the Lord more and more. Pray for me that I may learn to love more and more his flock: you, the holy Church, each one of you and all of you together. Pray for me, that I may not flee for fear of the wolves. Let us pray for one another, that the Lord will carry us and that we will learn to carry one another."

We can hope that Pope Benedict XVI will be the Pope who will have the grace and strength from the Holy Spirit to reveal the wolves clothed as sheep hiding within the church itself. And help pave the way for the church to usher in the Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Our Lady's Heart will triumph, she said it would!  But the enemy of God has planted itself within the church before we receive such a grace a purification awaits us as God cleans his temple once more.

Unmasking the wolves 
in Sheep's Clothing

 A Blessing to Pave the Way 
for the Triumph of 
The Immaculate Heart of Mary

In a sense this current scandal although deeply humiliating is a blessing for the church because it exposed some of the wolves within. My hope is for the church to enact new legislative laws to prevent such scandals from ever happening again as well as laws governing the discipline of the individuals involved and those who covered up. Care must also be taken to secure justice and protection to the accused from false accusations.

  

"It is time to Reaffirm the importance of Prayer in the Face of the activism and the growing secularism of many Christians engaged in Charitable Work."  

Pope Benedict XVI   

We need to pray more!

The Message Fatima revolves around and is concerned for the welfare of the papacy. Those who follow Our Lady of Fatima join with the shepherd children Bls. Jacinta and Francisco and Sr. Lucia in praying and sacrificing for the the Holy Father. The eruption of the scandals in the priesthood and the scourge it has released upon the church and the papacy is undoubtedly a source of grief to the Holy Father. 

The final triumph of Our Lady will come 

if we continue to pray for one another 

and fulfill the requests made at Fatima.

  

Fulfilling the Fatima message the means given by God for the Final Triumph of Good over Evil! It is a spiritual war and it is beyond the capability of men to rectify on our own. A Divine intervention is needed! We need to do all we can help the Pope at this time with our prayers and sacrifices to keep the wolves at bay till God intervenes! In order to do this the pope himself has said more than once prayer is "urgently needed...It is time to reaffirm the importance of prayer in the face of the activism and the growing secularism of many Christians engaged in charitable work."

Is Benedict XVI the pope in the Vision of Bl. Jacinta at the well in the summer! The Holy Father was was alone suffering insults. He was persecuted and was weeping! Is it this pope?  Jacinta cried out to Lucia Did you see the Holy Father. Lucia replied No and  Jacinta said: "I saw the Holy Father! He was in a very big house, kneeling by a table, with his head buried in his hands, and he was weeping. Outside the house, there were many people. Some of them were throwing stones, others were cursing him and using bad language. Poor Holy Father, we must pray very much for him."

It is God's Church and he will help her if we humbly admit our need for his help as Benedict XV did in 1917. He prayed and God sent his mother to Fatima. Let us do what we can to beg pardon for the wrongs we have done and do penance. All of us have contributed by our own personal sins and our omissions for the state of the church and the world today! Pray very much for the Pope and the church uniting your prayers with the prayers of the shepherds of Fatima. With God there is no time and all prayers past, present and future are before him in eternity. The consequences for humanity if we do nothing are depicted in the Miracle of the Sun! I can’t wait until the Triumph of Our Lady comes!

Pray for me!

"He who is not with the Pope

Is not with God!

He that wants to be with God,

must be with Pope." Sr.Lucia of Fatima