Whether we, personally, feel the need to pray or not (although we all need to prepare ourselves for, as the Fathers of Vatican II, spoke of, “…full, conscious and active participation…” in the Mass) charity surely demands that we consider those who do wish to speak with God, those who need this weekly oasis in which to rest in God's Embrace, the calm in the eye of the storm of life!
Our lovely new banners will, hopefully, remind us of Our Saviour in the Tabernacle, waiting lovingly and patiently like the Father of the Prodigal Son, calling us to his Divine Embrace. He is ours for the asking! "Help, Lord, the Souls that Thou hast made, the Souls to thee so dear! In prison for the debt unpaid of sins committed here".These words, throughout the year and particularly in November, recall us to our duty of performing the Spiritual Work of Mercy of Praying for the Souls of the Faithful Departed; these include family, friends, acquaintances and also those who we have never known. Almost daily, the news media remind us of many for whom death comes suddenly and unexpectedly. As we pray for these souls we must also pray for ourselves; may we be prepared in order that death does not take us by surprise. Prayer for the dead goes back to Old Testament times. It is, for us, a recognition that our Christian Family extends far beyond the confines of our Parish. As members of the Communion of Saints, we have Brothers and Sisters without number. Some are already enjoying the Eternal Bliss of Heaven while we are sustained by God's Grace, on Earth. However, for those who have died, as will most of us, with some sins not atoned for, the chances to respond lovingly to God have ceased; those who have died in the State of Grace are waiting in the state the Church calls Purgatory where, before they can 'feel at home' in God's Presence, they must be cleaned (purged) of all that, from this life, remains between them and God. God knows that, until all traces of sin are removed, a soul will be unable to enjoy His Presence. These souls are, of course, assured of Heaven but can no longer do anything to help themselves get there; as with any loving family fitter members care for the sick and helpless; Saints in Heaven pray; we on Earth assist Souls in Purgatory through our Masses, Prayers and other sacrifices.
To emphasise our hope of Heaven we will, on Tuesday, celebrate All Saints in Heaven. On Wednesday we will recall All Souls who look to us (maybe some have nobody specifically praying for them) to help them into Heaven. The imperfect state in which we die is further highlighted by the Priest's purple vestments (black may still be an option) when saying a Requiem Mass; the general exception, of course, is white, worn at a Mass for a baby or very young child who, of course, died before they were able to understand sin and, so, offend God. The sombre colours are an essential reminder that, however good our fellow human-beings may have seemed to us, they are, with their fallen nature, far from perfect and, therefore, in need of all the help they can get. We owe it, in love, to those who have died (and this is NOT judging them) to beg God's forgiveness as He sees they need it. One day we will be in that state! Please God this loving service will be performed for us! As we say the Rosary we can unite ourselves with our Brothers and Sisters around the world, both those who, like us, are free to publicly profess their Faith and those who, as the news constantly portrays, are being persecuted, sometimes martyred for their Faith, the tragedy being deepened by the fact that the persecutors appear to believe that they do these things in God's Name! The Rosary has, throughout history, been the undoing of many who have sought to wipe out the Church; a notable example of its Power was at the Battle of Lepanto; why not read of this and other more recent demonstrations of Our Lady's intercessory Power. Read the story of Our Lady of Fátima or download an audio version, very suitable for children, HERE.
Of course the Rosary, although highlighted during May and October, should never be confined to two months of the year! Again, as with so many of the treasures of our Faith, there are ample resources (probably even Apps!) on the Internet as well as numerous books to aid and deepen our meditations. The Rosary knows no bounds! Our Lady has presented it to everyone with the good will to pray it. Another bonus these days, through the communications media, is the facility to join in online via webcams (at Fátima and Lourdes for instance) and, possibly, satellite TV, with the prayers of the faithful children of Mary all round the world. There are probably Apps for smart-phones. Mary is calling her children to come and pray for her Intercession. Are we heeding that call? In October we find ourselves in the Month of the Most Holy Rosary. Hopefully, for many, this already forms part of their Daily Prayer but, throughout this month our Blessed Mother gives us a timely reminder of this great and powerful Prayer through which we may meditate upon the Lives of Her Son and Herself. The Rosary which, time and again, Mary has, in her many Appearances, called on her children to say, presents us with an overview of the History of Salvation as in the New Testament. Thanks to Saint John Paul II (Read his Rosarium Virginis Mariae) this treasury has been enriched by the Luminous Mysteries, which bring before our eyes the part of Our Lord's Public Ministry from His Baptism in the Jordan to His institution of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass at the Last Supper.
One of the beauties of the Rosary is that it can be said by anyone, educated / literate or not, at so many different 'levels'. Adults and children alike can gain great Graces from this Prayer. One way of presenting it is to compare it to a movie of the Lives of Christ and His Mother: the 'scenes' of the Mysteries in our mind's eye are accompanied by the 'background music' of the Our Fathers, Hail Marys and Glory Be's; like many a film it begins joyfully then skips a few years and launches into various episodes of the Hero's Life. Events then take what appears to be a down-turn but, of course there then comes the Happy and Triumphant ending, pointing towards even greater things to come! This Prayer can be said at any time and in any place; maybe as we are travelling to or from work or as we prepare for / give thanks after Mass. It can be said in its entirety or a Mystery at a time. There are probably even Apps for our Smart-phones! In school, children have responded very positively to a Decade at the end of a day. A great apostle of the Rosary was Father Patrick Peyton with his telling slogan that “The Family that Prays together, Stays Together”. The Family Rosary has been, and continues to be, a source of many Graces and Blessings for Parents and Children alike. Our Saviour opened His Arms on the Cross to embrace those He was going to Sacrifice His Life to save, namely fallen humanity which, in the fullness of time, included us. We are now, through our Baptism, responsible for embracing God and so working our way to Heaven, to rest eternally in His Loving Embrace.
The Church offers us, Her children, a treasury of helps to keep us faithful to God and, so, in the State of Grace. Mass and the Seven Sacraments form the core of this treasury. The Teachings of the Church, passed on to us through the Pope, Bishops and Priests, provide, as it were, a ‘road-map’ which will, if followed, together with the Grace of the Sacraments, keep us firmly on the way to Heaven. While a ‘minimum’ of Sunday and Holy Day of Obligation Masses and Confessions will ‘do’, there are additional aids to sanctity which, whether we recognise our need for them or not, are on offer. Every day, for example, we are invited to come and just spend some time in our Parish Church, adoring Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, just being there and talking with Him in the silence of our hearts, open to any inspirations He may put into our minds. Even if physically going to church is not possible (we may well have to be at work) we can still, wherever we may be, tell our Lord of our love for Him and ask for His help in our daily life. If, however parents find themselves at home with children, then why not, even once a week, bring them to adore Our Lord, maybe even staying for Mass afterwards. Just as delicate seedlings need watering, feeding and pruning so the growing faith of our children (and, indeed, our own Faith!) must be carefully cultivated. If our children see us giving Adoration and Mass the importance they deserve and are encouraged by us to do likewise, we are handing to them a priceless treasure which will be with them through the ‘storms’ of life, exceeding in value all the ‘treasures’ of ‘heaven on Earth’ set before us by the advertising media. “Lord, save us or we perish”, cried the terrified Apostles and Jesus, with a gentle rebuke, calmed the raging storm which had threatened to overturn the fragile boat and drown its occupants. This familiar story is, surely, in a way, a picture of everyday life, filled as it is with ups and downs which sometimes seem almost overwhelming.
We live in a very busy, sometimes overactive and often noisy world; the storms that threaten us may be the cares, challenges and troubles of life, whether they be living out our Marriage vows, paying bills or bringing up our children so that they will influence those around them for the better rather than being influenced by those who regard God and Religion as nothing. For many, Sunday, maybe their sole possible weekly visit to church for Mass, those few minutes before Mass starts provide a rare opportunity for a moment of quiet calm contemplation; perhaps it is their main respite from the hurly-burly of life. They may come early because they recognise that they have a real need to prepare themselves for the Holy Sacrifice, and to ask for God’s Grace to help them in the sacrifices they may be called to make during the week ahead. Whether we, personally, feel the need to pray or not (although we all need to prepare ourselves for, as the Fathers of Vatican II, spoke of, “…full, conscious and active participation…” in the Mass) charity surely demands that we consider those who do wish to speak with God, those who need this weekly oasis in which to rest in God's Embrace, the calm in the eye of the storm of life! Sorrowing Parents, Pupils and their Teachers were once attending the Requiem Mass of one of the students who had, sadly, died of Leukaemia. During the homily, a baby began to cry. Father brought this into his thoughts. “Although we are, today, mourning the death of a loved one, we have just been reminded by that cry that, though some lives must end, others will begin”. He reminded us all of the vital place that our children hold in the Church.
While we might, for example, object to our prayers and contemplation being disturbed by audible conversations among adults, we will, surely, take heart at the sound of a baby’s cry or the voice of a small child; these little ones are reminding us that, through God’s Gift of life and the generosity of Parents who conceive and nurture them, the Family of the Faithful will, as Jesus promised, live on. Christ said, when His Apostles would have sent children away, “Let the little ones come to me…” On another occasion we are told by Him that we must become child-like (not childish) ourselves, showing that unconditional love and trust to God that a child shows to his or her parents. Just as our children depend on us, their Parents, to bring them to birth, feed and clothe them, they depend on us, too, in a more profound and critical way; parents as the first teachers of their children are in the forefront of their education in and practice of, the Faith. Children need to become familiar with the church and the Mass from as early an age as possible. While part of their education in the Faith will, indeed, involve developing a reverent silence in church, however, Parents must not be self-conscious if the children express themselves as only little ones can! Every time we hear the cry of a cry of a baby or the voice of an infant, we must thank God and Parents for the continuing life of the Community of the Faithful. Our children are the sign of our Love, demonstrating that as Catholics, we do not go along with the often anti-life mentality of the world. They are the Adults – Parents, Priests and Religious – of the future. Some Catholics, sadly, seem to believe that the Fathers at the Second Vatican Council changed swathes of Church Teaching, even concerning central Teachings of the Church. Myths have grown up surrounding Vatican II. You may even have seen unsettling changes/modifications brought in and, having questioned them, been told that you must accept them as being in 'the spirit of Vatican II', whatever that may mean. The Council was Pastoral and not called to change the unchangeable (i.e. the Teaching that Christ commanded the Apostles to pass on in its entirety) but to remind us of the universal Vocation to Holiness; we are all, without exception, Pope, Bishops, Priests, Religious and Laity, called to 'do our bit'. Saint Josemaria Escrivá, Founder of Opus Dei, had already anticipated this call, clearly teaching that every Catholic, however 'insignificant' the world might consider them or their occupation, is called to live a holy life, whether in a 'high-profile' job such as a Cardinal, for instance or a somewhat less-regarded occupation such as a road-sweeper; the Grace of God, first sanctifying us in Baptism and ever there for the asking, enables us to attain this holiness.
Parents are crucial to this way of living. Through their love for God and, so, for one another, sustained by the Graces of the Sacrament of Matrimony, they form, through example, their children; they prepare, in this way, future Parents, Priests, Religious and Singles (just as much a Vocation) to be open to God's Call, to 'carry the torch' of Faith. There is really no excuse for pleading ignorance of our role in the grand scheme of things. We are all, thank God, educated and literate. The Council Documents themselves are still readily available as are later documents, such as Veritatis Splendor' (the Splendour of Truth), from Saint Pope John Paul II; he wrote this to the world's Bishops in 1993, concerned that,"....certain fundamental truths of Catholic doctrine....risk(ed) being distorted or denied...". These and other documents make excellent discussion material. Generally these are freely available to read on-line. Try dipping into this huge library. Some real eye-openers here - a kind of Catholic 'Highway Code'! The time has come when we must reflect upon the Sign of Peace. Prudence, respect for our fellow Mass-goers and our reverent love for the Holy Sacrifice, demand that we look objectively at this gesture; it can become too unrestrained and long drawn-out, diverting attention from our preparation for that sacred moment when our Lord Himself is enthroned within us.
The Church, in her concern that we worship God fittingly, and gain all the Graces this worship brings, has formulated certain rules which govern liturgical celebrations, actions and words, both for Priest and People; not so long ago, for example, we were presented with a more faithful translation of the Mass. The Fathers of Vatican II called for a more active participation by the Faithful in Holy Mass; it must be understood that this participation is not in the form of increased physical activity which, obviously, distracts attention, but rather, internally, deepened through a greater knowledge and understanding of this Central Act of our Faith. We need to consider that the Mass is Christ's once-for-all Sacrifice which has given ultimate meaning and purpose to our lives and that we are there to unite ourselves with this Sacrifice and receive the Victim in Holy Communion. The General Instruction of the Roman Missal (82) recently reiterated by Rome makes it abundantly clear that,"....It is, however, appropriate that each person offer the sign of peace only to those who are nearest and in a sober (i.e. dignified) manner...."; generally, that would be the person we are standing beside at Mass. The whole document is well worth reading and can be found HERE. It has clearly become necessary to restore to this highly significant act, the dignity it deserves, so that it does not, in fact, distract us and others from, or disrupt our preparation for the closest encounter with Christ until we join Him in Heaven forever. The very fact that we are together at Mass is, surely, also a sign of Peace existing among us. |
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A Registered Incorporated Charity - CIO No. 1173050
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