2015
Novena to Our Lady of #Guadelupe - #Miracle #Prayer and #chaplet - SHARE
Miraculous Prayer to the Virgin of Guadalupe
Beautiful Virgin of Guadalupe, I ask you on behalf of all my brothers and sisters of the world that you bless us and protect us. Give us proof of your love and kindness. Oh pure Virgin of Guadalupe, give me through your Son, forgiveness for my sins, blessings for my job, cure for my diseases and needs, and all that you deem necessary I ask for my family. Oh Mother of God, do not disdain the pleas we present to you in our needs. Amen.
Prayer to the Virgin of Guadalupe by Pope John Paul II
O Immaculate Virgin, Mother of the true God and Mother of the Church! You, who from this place reveal your clemency and your piety to all those who ask for your protection; hear the prayer that we address to you with filial trust, and present it to your Son Jesus, our sole Redeemer.
Mother of mercy, teacher of hidden and silent sacrifice, to you, who come to meet us sinners, we dedicate on this day all our being and all our love.
We also dedicate to you our life, our work, our joys, our infirmities, and our sorrows.
Grant peace, justice, and prosperity to our peoples; for we entrust to your care all that we have and all that we are, our Lady and Mother.
We wish to be entirely yours and to walk with you along the way of complete faithfulness to Jesus Christ in His Church: Hold us always with your loving hand.
Virgin of Guadalupe, Mother of the Americas, we pray to you for all the bishops, that they may lead the faithful along paths of intense Christian life, of love and humble service of God and souls.
Contemplate this immense harvest, and interced with the Lord that He may instill a hunger for holiness in the whole People of God, and grant abundant vocations of priests and religious, strong in the faith and zealous dispensers of God's mysteries.
Grant to our homes the grace of loving and respecting life in its beginnings, with the same love with which you conceived in your womb the life of the Son of God.
Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Fair Love, protect our families, so that they may always be united, and bless the upbringing of our children.
Our hope, lookk upon us with compassion, teach us to go continually to Jesus and, if we fall, help us to rise again, to return to Him, by means of the confession of our faults and sins in the sacrament of Penance, which gives peace to the soul.
We beg you to grant us a great love for all the holy sacraments, which are, as it were, the signs that your Son left us on earth.
Thus, most holy Mother, with the peace of God in our conscience, with our hearts free from evil and hatred, we will be able to bring to all true joy and true peace, which comes to us from your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, Who with God the Father and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.
Novena to Our Lady of Guadalupe
First DayDearest Lady of Guadalupe, fruitful Mother of holiness, teach me your ways of gentleness
and strength. Hear my humble prayer offered with heartfelt confidence to beg this favor....
(name your intention)Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
and strength. Hear my humble prayer offered with heartfelt confidence to beg this favor....
(name your intention)Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
Second DayO Mary, conceived without sin, I come to your throne of grace to share the fervent
devotion of your faithful Mexican children who call to you under the glorious Aztec title
of Guadalupe. Obtain for me a lively faith to do your Son's holy will always: May His
will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
devotion of your faithful Mexican children who call to you under the glorious Aztec title
of Guadalupe. Obtain for me a lively faith to do your Son's holy will always: May His
will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
Third DayO Mary, whose Immaculate Heart was pierced by seven swords of grief, help me to walk
valiantly amid the sharp thorns strewn across my pathway. Obtain for me the strength to
be a true imitator of you. This I ask you, my dear Mother.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
valiantly amid the sharp thorns strewn across my pathway. Obtain for me the strength to
be a true imitator of you. This I ask you, my dear Mother.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
Fourth DayDearest Mother of Guadalupe, I beg you for a fortified will to imitate your divine Son's
charity--to always seek the good of others in need. Grant me this, I humbly ask of you.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
charity--to always seek the good of others in need. Grant me this, I humbly ask of you.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
Fifth DayO most holy Mother, I beg you to obtain for me pardon of all my sins, abundant graces to
serve your Son more faithfully from now on, and lastly, the grace to praise Him with you
forever in heaven.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
serve your Son more faithfully from now on, and lastly, the grace to praise Him with you
forever in heaven.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
Sixth DayMary, Mother of vocations, multiply priestly vocations and fill the earth with religious
houses which will be light and warmth for the world, safety in stormy nights. Beg your
Son to send us many priests and religious. This we ask of you, O Mother.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
houses which will be light and warmth for the world, safety in stormy nights. Beg your
Son to send us many priests and religious. This we ask of you, O Mother.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
Seventh DayO Lady of Guadalupe, we beg you that parents live a holy life and educate their children
in a Christian manner; that children obey and follow the directions of their parents; that
all members of the family pray and worship togeter. This we ask of you, O Mother.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
in a Christian manner; that children obey and follow the directions of their parents; that
all members of the family pray and worship togeter. This we ask of you, O Mother.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
Eighth DayWith my heart full of the most sincere veneration, I prostrate myself before you,
O Mother, to ask you to obtain for me the grace to fulfill the duties of my state in life
with faithfulness and constancy.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
O Mother, to ask you to obtain for me the grace to fulfill the duties of my state in life
with faithfulness and constancy.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
Ninth DayO God, You have been please to bestow upon us unceasing favors by having placed us
under the special protection of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary. Grant us, Your humble
servants, who rejoice in honoring her today upon earth, the happiness of seeing her face
to face in heaven.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
under the special protection of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary. Grant us, Your humble
servants, who rejoice in honoring her today upon earth, the happiness of seeing her face
to face in heaven.
Pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 1 Glory be
Dearest Lady of Guadalupe, fruitful Mother of Holiness, teach me your ways of gentleness and strength. Hear my prayer, offered with deep-felt confidence to beg this favor...(mention your intentions here).
O Mary, conceived without sin, I come to your throne of grace to share the fervent devotion of your faithful Mexican children who call to thee under the glorious Aztec title of "Guadalupe"--the Virgin who crushed the serpent.
Queen of Martyrs, whose Immaculate Heart was pierced by seven swords of grief, help me to walk valiantly amid the sharp thorns strewn across my pathway. Invoke the Holy Spirit of Wisdom to fortify my will to frequent the Sacraments so that, thus enlightened and strengthened, I may prefer God to all creatures and shun every occasion of sin.
Help me, as a living branch of the Vine that is Jesus Christ, to exemplify His divine charity always seeking the good of others. Queen of Apostles, aid me to win souls for the Sacred Heart of my Saviour. Keep my apostolate fearless, dynamic, and articulate, to proclaim the loving solicitude of Our Father in heaven so that the wayward may heed His pleading and obtain pardon, through the merits of your merciful Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Chaplet of Our Lady of Guadalupe
On the Crucifix:Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mystical Rose, make intercession for our Holy Church, protect the sovereign Pontiff, help all those who invoke you in their necessities, and since you are the ever Virgin Mary and Mother of the true God, obtain for us from your most Holy Son the grace of keeping our faith, of sweet hope in the midst of the bitterness of life, of burning charity, and the precious gift of final perseverance. Amen.
1 Our Father, 4 Hail Mary's, 1 Glory Be
First Apparition: Our Lady of Guadalupe appears to Juan Diego the first time. Our Lady requests a temple in her honor.
1 Our Father, then Meditation: Our Lady of Guadalupe, my Queen and my Mother, I thank you for your first apparition to Juan Diego when you revealed that you are the Most Pure Virgin, Mary. Mother of the true God and Mother of all mankind, I thank you for your requesting a temple to be built where you stood, to bear witness to your love, your compassion, your aid, and your protection for all who would love you, trust you, and invoke your help.
3 Hail Mary's, 1 Glory Be
1 Our Father, then Meditation: Our Lady of Guadalupe, my Queen and my Mother, I thank you for your first apparition to Juan Diego when you revealed that you are the Most Pure Virgin, Mary. Mother of the true God and Mother of all mankind, I thank you for your requesting a temple to be built where you stood, to bear witness to your love, your compassion, your aid, and your protection for all who would love you, trust you, and invoke your help.
3 Hail Mary's, 1 Glory Be
Second Apparition: Our Lady of Guadalupe appears to Juan Diego a second time.
1 Our Father, then Meditation: Our Lady of Guadalupe, my Queen and my Mother, I thank you for your second apparition to Juan Diego when, upon his return from the Bishop's house, he knelt in humiliation and defeat before you since he was unable to accomplish your mission. I thank you for the courage and encouragement you gave to Juan Diego to make a second appeal to the Bishop.
3 Hail Mary's, 1 Glory Be
1 Our Father, then Meditation: Our Lady of Guadalupe, my Queen and my Mother, I thank you for your second apparition to Juan Diego when, upon his return from the Bishop's house, he knelt in humiliation and defeat before you since he was unable to accomplish your mission. I thank you for the courage and encouragement you gave to Juan Diego to make a second appeal to the Bishop.
3 Hail Mary's, 1 Glory Be
Third Apparition: Our Lady of Guadalupe promises a sign to Juan Diego for the Bishop.
1 Our Father, then Meditation: Our Lady of Guadalupe, my Queen and my Mother, I thank you for your third apparition to Juan Diego when after this unsuccessful attempt to have a temple built, you said to him, "So be it, son. Return tomorrow in order that you may secure for the Bishop the sign for which he has asked. When this is in your possession, he will believe you; he will no longer doubt your word and suspect your good faith. Be assured that I shall reward you for all that you have undergone."
3 Hail Mary's, 1 Glory Be
1 Our Father, then Meditation: Our Lady of Guadalupe, my Queen and my Mother, I thank you for your third apparition to Juan Diego when after this unsuccessful attempt to have a temple built, you said to him, "So be it, son. Return tomorrow in order that you may secure for the Bishop the sign for which he has asked. When this is in your possession, he will believe you; he will no longer doubt your word and suspect your good faith. Be assured that I shall reward you for all that you have undergone."
3 Hail Mary's, 1 Glory Be
Fourth Apparition: Our Lady of Guadalupe fulfills her promise by showing herself on the tilma of Juan Diego.
1 Our Father, then Meditation: Our Lady of Guadalupe, my Queen and my Mother, I thank you for your fourth apparition to Juan Diego when you ordered him to pick the roses he would find on the summit of the hill and bring them to you. I thank you for arranging them in his tilma when you said, "this cluster of roses is the sign you shall take to the Bishop. You are to tell him in my name that in this he will recognize my will and that he must fulfill it. You are my ambassador, wholly worthy of confidence. Only in the presence of the Bishop shall you unfold your mantle and disclose that which you carry." I thank you for your image printed on the tilma which appeared when the roses were released.
3 Hail Mary's, 1 Glory Be
1 Our Father, then Meditation: Our Lady of Guadalupe, my Queen and my Mother, I thank you for your fourth apparition to Juan Diego when you ordered him to pick the roses he would find on the summit of the hill and bring them to you. I thank you for arranging them in his tilma when you said, "this cluster of roses is the sign you shall take to the Bishop. You are to tell him in my name that in this he will recognize my will and that he must fulfill it. You are my ambassador, wholly worthy of confidence. Only in the presence of the Bishop shall you unfold your mantle and disclose that which you carry." I thank you for your image printed on the tilma which appeared when the roses were released.
3 Hail Mary's, 1 Glory Be
Closing Prayer: Remember O Most Gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known, that anyone who fled to your protection, implored your help, or sought your intercession was left unaided. Inspired with this confidence, I fly to you, O Virgin of Virgins, my Mother, to you I come, before you I kneel, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in your mercy, hear and answer me. Amen.
#PopeFrancis "May Mary, Mother of Mercy, help us to understand how much God loves us." Homily of Our Lady Guadelupe - Mass Video
Pope Francis celebrated Mass on the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on Saturday evening and confirmed he will visit Mexico from 12-18 February 2016.
Here is an unofficial Vatican Radio translation of the Pope’s homily
“The LORD, your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior; he will rejoice over you with gladness, and renew you in his love, he will sing joyfully because of you, as one sings at festivals.” (Zep 3:17-18). These words of the prophet Zephaniah, addressed to Israel, may also be referred to Mary, the Church, and every person, all of whom are loved by God’s merciful love. Yes, God loves us so much that he even rejoices and takes pleasure in us. He loves us with gratuitous love, love without limits, and without expecting anything in return. This merciful love is the most striking attribute of God, the synthesis of which is condensed the Gospel message, the faith of the Church.
The word “mercy” – misericordia - is composed of two words: misery and heart. The heart indicates the capacity to love; mercy is that love, which embraces the misery of the human person. It is a love that "feels" our poverty as its own, with a view to freeing us of it. “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (1 Jn 4:9-10). “The Word became flesh,” with the intention of sharing all our frailties – with the intention of experiencing our human condition, even unto taking upon himself the Cross, with all the pain of human existence. Such is the abyss of compassion and mercy: a fusion, in order to make himself company, and to place himself in the service of a wounded humanity. No sin can cancel his merciful closeness or prevent him from unleashing the grace of conversion, provided we invoke it.
Indeed, sin itself makes more radiant the love of God who, to ransom a slave, sacrificed his Son. That mercy of God comes to us with the gift of the Holy Spirit in Baptism, enables, generates and nourishes the new life of his disciples. For, howsoever great and grave the sins of the world, the Spirit, who renews the face of the earth, makes possible the miracle of a life that is more human, more full of joy and hope. Let us, too, shout with jubilation: “The Lord is my God and Savior!”
“The Lord is near,” says the apostle Paul, and nothing should make us anguished. The greatest mercy lies in his being in our midst, in our being in his presence and company. He walks with us, he shows us the path of love, lifts us up in our falls, holds us to our labors, accompanies us in all circumstances of our existence. He opens our eyes to see themselves and the world miseries, but also fills us with hope. “The peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” (Phil 4:4-7). This is the source of our life made peaceful and happy; nothing can steal this peace and joy, despite the sufferings and trials of life. Let us cultivate this experience of mercy, peace and hope during Advent, through which we are making our way in light of the Jubilee year. Announcing the Good News to the poor, as John the Baptist, performing works of mercy, is a good way to look for the coming of Jesus at Christmas.
In Mary, God rejoices and is especially pleased. In one of the prayers most cherished by Christians, the Salve Regina, we call Mary “mother of mercy.” She has experienced the divine mercy, and has hosted the very source of this mercy in her womb: Jesus Christ. She, who has always lived intimately united with her Son, knows better than anyone what he wants: that all men be saved, and that God’s tenderness and consolation will not fail anyone. May Mary, Mother of Mercy, help us to understand how much God loves us.
To Blessed Mary we entrust the sufferings and joys of people throughout the Americas, who love her as a mother and recognize her as Patroness under the beloved title of Our Lady of Guadalupe. That “the sweetness of her gaze be with us in this Holy Year, so that we might rediscover the joy of the tenderness of God” (Cf. Bull Misericordiae vultus, 24). We ask her that this jubilee year will be a planting of merciful love in the hearts of individuals, families and nations. Let us convert and become merciful people, and may all Christian communities be oases and sources of mercy, witnesses to a charity that does not allow exclusions. Let us implore her to guide the footsteps of the American people, a pilgrim people looking for the Mother of mercy and asks her to show them her Son Jesus.
Today's Mass Readings and Video : Sat. December 12, 2015
Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Lectionary: 690A
Reading 1ZEC 2:14-17
Sing and rejoice, O daughter Zion!
See, I am coming to dwell among you, says the LORD.
Many nations shall join themselves to the LORD on that day,
and they shall be his people,
and he will dwell among you,
and you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you.
The LORD will possess Judah as his portion in the holy land,
and he will again choose Jerusalem.
Silence, all mankind, in the presence of the LORD!
For he stirs forth from his holy dwelling.
See, I am coming to dwell among you, says the LORD.
Many nations shall join themselves to the LORD on that day,
and they shall be his people,
and he will dwell among you,
and you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you.
The LORD will possess Judah as his portion in the holy land,
and he will again choose Jerusalem.
Silence, all mankind, in the presence of the LORD!
For he stirs forth from his holy dwelling.
OrRV 11:19A; 12:1-6A, 10AB
God’s temple in heaven was opened,
and the ark of his covenant could be seen in the temple.
A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun,
with the moon under her feet,
and on her head a crown of twelve stars.
She was with child and wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth.
Then another sign appeared in the sky;
it was a huge red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns,
and on its heads were seven diadems.
Its tail swept away a third of the stars in the sky
and hurled them down to the earth.
Then the dragon stood before the woman about to give birth,
to devour her child when she gave birth.
She gave birth to a son, a male child,
destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod.
Her child was caught up to God and his throne.
The woman herself fled into the desert
where she had a place prepared by God.
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
“Now have salvation and power come,
and the Kingdom of our God
and the authority of his Anointed.”
Blessed are you, daughter, by the Most High God,
above all the women on earth;
and blessed be the LORD God,
the creator of heaven and earth.
R. You are the highest honor of our race.
Your deed of hope will never be forgotten
by those who tell of the might of God.
R. You are the highest honor of our race.
Blessed are you, holy Virgin Mary, deserving of all praise;
from you rose the sun of justice, Christ our God.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
and the ark of his covenant could be seen in the temple.
A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun,
with the moon under her feet,
and on her head a crown of twelve stars.
She was with child and wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth.
Then another sign appeared in the sky;
it was a huge red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns,
and on its heads were seven diadems.
Its tail swept away a third of the stars in the sky
and hurled them down to the earth.
Then the dragon stood before the woman about to give birth,
to devour her child when she gave birth.
She gave birth to a son, a male child,
destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod.
Her child was caught up to God and his throne.
The woman herself fled into the desert
where she had a place prepared by God.
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
“Now have salvation and power come,
and the Kingdom of our God
and the authority of his Anointed.”
Responsorial PsalmJUDITH 13:18BCDE, 19
R. (15:9d) You are the highest honor of our race.Blessed are you, daughter, by the Most High God,
above all the women on earth;
and blessed be the LORD God,
the creator of heaven and earth.
R. You are the highest honor of our race.
Your deed of hope will never be forgotten
by those who tell of the might of God.
R. You are the highest honor of our race.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.Blessed are you, holy Virgin Mary, deserving of all praise;
from you rose the sun of justice, Christ our God.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelLK 1:26-38
The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin’s name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”
But Mary said to the angel,
“How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?”
And the angel said to her in reply,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”
Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.”
Then the angel departed from her.
and traveled to the hill country in haste
to a town of Judah,
where she entered the house of Zechariah
and greeted Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting,
the infant leaped in her womb,
and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit,
cried out in a loud voice and said,
“Most blessed are you among women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
And how does this happen to me,
that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears,
the infant in my womb leaped for joy.
Blessed are you who believed
that what was spoken to you by the Lord
would be fulfilled.”
And Mary said:
“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my savior.”
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin’s name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”
But Mary said to the angel,
“How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?”
And the angel said to her in reply,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”
Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.”
Then the angel departed from her.
OrLK 1:39-47
Mary set outand traveled to the hill country in haste
to a town of Judah,
where she entered the house of Zechariah
and greeted Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting,
the infant leaped in her womb,
and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit,
cried out in a loud voice and said,
“Most blessed are you among women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
And how does this happen to me,
that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears,
the infant in my womb leaped for joy.
Blessed are you who believed
that what was spoken to you by the Lord
would be fulfilled.”
And Mary said:
“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my savior.”
Saint December 12 : Our Lady of Guadelupe : Miracle Image
Our Lady of Guadalupe
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Feast: December 12
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#Christmas #Story by Children told from #Heaven - an Unexpected Christmas - SHARE - Viral Video
#Amazing Lights show for #Christmas on #Cathedral in #Sydney Australia - SHARE
St Mary's Cathedral Lights Up for Christmas
Catholic Communications, Sydney Archdiocese,
11 Dec 2015
11 Dec 2015
The spectacular Lights of Christmas presented by PAYCE was launched on Thursday night by the Archbishop of Sydney, the Most Rev Anthony Fisher OP on the steps of St Mary's Cathedral.
Families and visitors to Sydney gathered in the Cathedral forecourt for the live entertainment which included Paulini before Archbishop Fisher called for the light show and animation for 2016 to be "switched on". The sandstone facade of the Cathedral became the backdrop to an amazing animated light show highlighting this year's theme of Light.
Naomi Price, who had recorded a special cover version of the traditional carol The Holly and the Ivy, performed the carol live with the George Ellis Orchestra.
The Lights of Christmas presented by PAYCE has become a tradition for thousands across Sydney, bringing a festive, communal and friendly feel to the heart of the city.
The projection will run every night from 8.30pm up to and including Christmas Day.
From 7.30pm every night there will also be entertainment including a range of choirs. Australian musical virtuoso George Ellis has composed and recorded the traditional Christmas carol The Holly and the Ivy with the stirring vocals of Naomi Price and the backing of the George Ellis Orchestra.
The lyrics of the carol are reflected in the light projections, layered with meaning and lending itself to the imagination of children.
Since its creation by AGB in 2010, the light display has illuminated the massive 75-metre façade of St Mary's with a free display of sound and light, storytelling the themes of Christmas using Vivid-style 3D projections. A different theme has featured each year, this year being the universal theme of light. The projections will also feature a series of beautiful images of Mary and the Baby Jesus.
The word "Mercy" also features in the light display, marking the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy, announced by Pope Francis which began on 8 December 2015 and features a Holy Door of Mercy at St Mary's Cathedral.
The Lights of Christmas has become a gathering point for Sydneysiders and visitors to share in the spirit of the season and also to experience the true meaning of Christmas. The Cathedral is open each night to invite those who have come to see the laser light show to experience the beauty and serenity of this iconic shrine from the inside as well. Groups from across the Church in Sydney will be present inside the Cathedral to welcome visitors, play music and create an atmosphere of prayer. Those who enter are invited to "Light a Candle for Christmas".
But the opening night of the Lights is always very special and a great surprise with everyone wondering what amazing animation will be presented on the Cathedral facade for another Christmas.
Brian Boyd and Dominic Sullivan of PAYCE hosted a group of community and political leaders, friends and clients in the PAYCE marquee in the forecourt with the company also raising tens of thousands of dollars for charitable organisations, specifically the Matthew Talbot Hostel and the Brown Nurses.
Apart from PAYCE, the presenting partner, the Australian Catholic University is a foundation sponsor and Education sponsor, along with the Archdiocese of Sydney and Catholic Cemeteries and Crematoria.
All are welcome to come and enjoy the Lights of Christmas presented by PAYCE every night up to and including Christmas Day. Shared from Archdiocese of Sydney
Today's Mass Readings and Video : Fri. December 11, 2015
Friday of the Second Week of Advent
Lectionary: 185
Reading 1IS 48:17-19
Thus says the LORD, your redeemer,
the Holy One of Israel:
I, the LORD, your God,
teach you what is for your good,
and lead you on the way you should go.
If you would hearken to my commandments,
your prosperity would be like a river,
and your vindication like the waves of the sea;
Your descendants would be like the sand,
and those born of your stock like its grains,
Their name never cut off
or blotted out from my presence.
the Holy One of Israel:
I, the LORD, your God,
teach you what is for your good,
and lead you on the way you should go.
If you would hearken to my commandments,
your prosperity would be like a river,
and your vindication like the waves of the sea;
Your descendants would be like the sand,
and those born of your stock like its grains,
Their name never cut off
or blotted out from my presence.
Responsorial PsalmPS 1:1-2, 3, 4 AND 6
R. (see John 8:12) Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.
Blessed the man who follows not
the counsel of the wicked
Nor walks in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the company of the insolent,
But delights in the law of the LORD
and meditates on his law day and night.
R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.
He is like a tree
planted near running water,
That yields its fruit in due season,
and whose leaves never fade.
Whatever he does, prospers.
R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.
Not so the wicked, not so;
they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
For the LORD watches over the way of the just,
but the way of the wicked vanishes.
R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.
The Lord will come; go out to meet him!
He is the prince of peace.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed the man who follows not
the counsel of the wicked
Nor walks in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the company of the insolent,
But delights in the law of the LORD
and meditates on his law day and night.
R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.
He is like a tree
planted near running water,
That yields its fruit in due season,
and whose leaves never fade.
Whatever he does, prospers.
R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.
Not so the wicked, not so;
they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
For the LORD watches over the way of the just,
but the way of the wicked vanishes.
R. Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light of life.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.The Lord will come; go out to meet him!
He is the prince of peace.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelMT 11:16-19
Jesus said to the crowds:
“To what shall I compare this generation?
It is like children who sit in marketplaces and call to one another,
‘We played the flute for you, but you did not dance,
we sang a dirge but you did not mourn.’
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they said,
‘He is possessed by a demon.’
The Son of Man came eating and drinking and they said,
‘Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard,
a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’
But wisdom is vindicated by her works.”
“To what shall I compare this generation?
It is like children who sit in marketplaces and call to one another,
‘We played the flute for you, but you did not dance,
we sang a dirge but you did not mourn.’
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they said,
‘He is possessed by a demon.’
The Son of Man came eating and drinking and they said,
‘Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard,
a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’
But wisdom is vindicated by her works.”
Saint December 11 : St. Damasus I : #Pope : Patron of #Acheologists
St. Damasus I
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POPE
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Feast: December 11
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Born about 304; died 11 December, 384. His father, Antonius, was probably a Spaniards; the name of his mother, Laurentia, was not known until quite recently. Damasus seems to have been born at Rome; it is certain that he grew up there in the service of the church of the martyr St. Laurence. He was elected pope in October, 366, by a large majority, but a number of over-zealous adherents of the deceased Liberius rejected him, chose the deacon Ursinus (or Ursicinus), had the latter irregularly consecrated, and resorted to much violence and bloodshed in order to seat him in the Chair of Peter. Many details of this scandalous conflict are related in the highly prejudiced "Libellus Precum" (P.L., XIII, 83-107), a petition to the civil authority on the part of Faustinus and Marcellinus, two anti-Damasan presbyters (cf. also Ammianus Marcellinus, Rer. Gest., XXVII, c. iii). Valentinian recognized Damasus and banished (367) Ursinus to Cologne, whence he was later allowed to return to Milan, but was forbidden to come to Rome or its vicinity. The party of the antipope (later at Milan an adherent of the Arians and to the end a contentious pretender) did not cease to persecute Damasus. An accusation of adultery was laid against him (378) in the imperial court, but he was exonerated by Emperor Gratian himself (Mansi, Coll. Conc., III, 628) and soon after by a Roman synod of forty-four bishops (Liber Pontificalis, ed. Duchesne, s.v.; Mansi, op. cit., III, 419) which also excommunicated his accusers.
Damasus defended with vigour the Catholic Faith in a time of dire and varied perils. In two Roman synods (368 and 369) he condemned Apollinarianism and Macedonianism; he also sent his legates to the Council of Constantinople (381), convoked against the aforesaid heresies. In the Roman synod of 369 (or 370) Auxentius, the Arian Bishop of Milan, was excommunicated; he held the see, however, until his death, in 374, made way for St. Ambrose. The heretic Priscillian, condemned by the Council of Saragossa (380) appealed to Damasus, but in vain. It was Damasus who induced Saint Jerome to undertake his famous revision of the earlier Latin versions of the Bible (see VULGATE). St. Jerome was also his confidential secretary for some time (Ep. cxxiii, n. 10). An important canon of the New Testament was proclaimed by him in the Roman synod of 374. The Eastern Church, in the person of St. Basil of Cæsarea, besought earnestly the aid and encouragement of Damasus against triumphant Arianism; the pope, however, cherished some degree of suspicion against the great Cappadocian Doctor. In the matter of the Meletian Schism at Antioch, Damasus, with Athanasius and Peter of Alexandria, sympathized with the party of Paulinus as more sincerely representative of Nicene orthodoxy; on the death of Meletius he sought to secure the succession for Paulinus and to exclude Flavian (Socrates, Church History V.15). He sustained the appeal of the Christian senators to Emperor Gratian for the removal of the altar of Victory from the Senate House (Ambrose, Ep. xvii, n. 10), and lived to welcome the famous edict of Theodosius I, "De fide Catholica" (27 Feb., 380), which proclaimed as the religion of the Roman State that doctrine which St. Peter had preached to the Romans and of which Damasus was supreme head (Cod. Theod., XVI, 1, 2).
When, in 379, Illyricum was detached from the Western Empire, Damasus hastened to safeguard the authority of the Roman Church by the appointment of a vicar Apostolic in the person of Ascholius, Bishop of Thessalonica; this was the origin of the important papal vicariate long attached to that see. The primacy of the Apostolic See, variously favoured in the time of Damasus by imperial acts and edicts, was strenuously maintained by this pope; among his notable utterances on this subject is the assertion (Mansi, Coll. Conc., VIII, 158) that the ecclesiastical supremacy of the Roman Church was based, not on the decrees of councils, but on the very words of Jesus Christ (Matthew 16:18). The increased prestige of the early papal decretals, habitually attributed to the reign of Siricius (384-99), not improbably belongs to the reign of Damasus ("Canones Romanorum ad Gallos"; Babut, "La plus ancienne décrétale", Paris, 1904). This development of the papal office, especially in the West, brought with it a great increase of external grandeur. This secular splendour, however, affected disadvantageously many members of the Roman clergy, whose worldly aims and life, bitterly reproved by St. Jerome, provoked (29 July, 370) and edict of Emperor Valentinian addressed to the pope, forbidding ecclesiastics and monks (later also bishops and nuns) to pursue widows and orphans in the hope of obtaining from them gifts and legacies. The pope caused the law to be observed strictly.
Damasus restored his own church (now San Lorenzo in Damaso) and provided for the proper housing of the archives of the Roman Church (see VATICAN ARCHIVES). He built in the basilica of St. Sebastian on the Appian Way the (yet visible) marble monument known as the "Platonia" (Platona, marble pavement) in honour of the temporary transfer to that place (258) of the bodies of Sts. Peter and Paul, and decorated it with an important historical inscription (see Northcote and Brownlow, Roma Sotterranea). He also built on the Via Ardeatina, between the cemeteries of Callistus and Domitilla, a basilicula, or small church, the ruins of which were discovered in 1902 and 1903, and in which, according to the "Liber Pontificalis", the pope was buried with his mother and sister. On this occasion the discoverer, Monsignor Wilpert, found also the epitaph of the pope's mother, from which it was learned not only that her name was Laurentia, but also that she had lived the sixty years of her widowhood in the special service of God, and died in her eighty-ninth year, having seen the fourth generation of her descendants. Damasus built at the Vatican a baptistery in honour of St. Peter and set up therein one of his artistic inscriptions (Carmen xxxvi), still preserved in the Vatican crypts. This subterranean region he drained in order that the bodies buried there (juxta sepulcrum beati Petri) might not be affected by stagnant or overflowing water. His extraordinary devotion to the Roman martyrs is now well known, owing particularly to the labours of Giovanni Battista De Rossi. For a good account of his architectural restoration of the catacombs and the unique artistic characters (Damasan Letters) in which his friend Furius Dionysius Filocalus executed the epitaphs composed by Damasus, see Northcote and Brownlow, "Roma Sotterranea" (2nd ed., London, 1878-79). The dogmatic content of the Damasan epitaphs (tituli) is important (Northcote, Epitaphs of the Catacombs, London, 1878). He composed also a number of brief epigrammata on various martyrs and saints and some hymns, or Carmina, likewise brief. St. Jerome says (Ep. xxii, 22) that Damasus wrote on virginity, both in prose and in verse, but no such work has been preserved. For the few letters of Damasus (some of them spurious) that have survived, see P.L., XIII, 347-76, and Jaffé, "Reg. Rom. Pontif." (Leipzig, 1885), nn. 232-254.
Text from the Catholic Encyclopedia - Image source Google Images
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