At our weekly meeting, Father started the session with the Consecration prayers for this week and then he went right into a review of the previous week's readings.
He told us not to be scared. This session really focused on seeing ourselves as the sinners we are. The goal was increased sorrow for past sins and greater focus on avoiding sin and for having true contrition. This past week was good catechesis on sin.
In reviewing the past week he referred to the following:
p. 107 referred to the increased sorrow which is our goal and the value of that true sorrow.
"Do not spend all of your time just examining your conscience, but also try to spend a considerable amount of time with view to increasing your sorrow for the sins you have committed. the remainder of the week could be thus used, until you make your confession. Remember that the degree of contrition can also, if intense, not only take away the guilt of in, but also remit all temporal punishment due to those sins."
p 109 Father referred to God's love of the sinner and hate of sin. God hates sin for what it does to us. Our soul needs to be nourished at least once a week at Mass.... Church in its wisdom mades Mass a requirement.
" God loves the sinner, but hates the sin." "For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
p.111 Feelings have nothing to do with sorrow. God rewards us with consolations but we shouldn't need them as we grow. Spiritual life is a journey. In Confession make a commitment not to sin again.
Father read the first paragraph on this page.
p. 113 "The "penance" that the priest imposes on us, in confession, has a very special efficacy for making satisfaction for our sins." ...... "if you feel you could do more penance than that which the priest gives you, then tell him so and ask for additional penance."
Father reinforced that we can ask for harder penance if we are ready for it and it is very beneficial to do so with the right intention....that being to make reparation for our sins. He also stressed that obedience is important so if the priest says "no" to more penance it is important to be obedient.
p. 117 Father said that next to the first paragraph he wrote "YICKS!" . That first paragraph is like "shock treatment". We must remember that Mercy is who God is... Mercy is loves second name.
Father encouraged us to be courageous and to stick with this. The fruits are that it is bringing us closer to Jesus through Mary.
p. 125 quoted " Nor does progress in the spiritual life consist in the grace of consolation, but rather in the humility, self-abnegation and patience with which you endure its withdrawal ..... willingly continue in those holy things despite the dryness and anguish of mind which you feel once the grace of devotion has been withdrawn." ... Don't function on feelings. Consolations are gifts that can spoil us so that we are prideful and can only operate when in consolation. The withdraw of consolations can test our real love.
p. 132 Great advantage .... Consolation and Desolation both important
"I know your hidden thoughts, and that it is of great advantage for your salvation that, at times, you should be left without consolation, in case you become puffed-up by much success, and so take vain pleasure in yourself, thinking yourself to be that which you are not. That which I have given, I can also justly take away and once again restore, when it shall please me."
We should always be seeking to please God. Don't dread purgatory because of pain and punishment but dread purgatory because of the pain our sin causes God.
"It is when you think I am far from you that I am often nearest" is a quote from a saint referring to God.
Fr. Parker than proceeded to tell us he is going to try to give us the example, at each meeting, of a saint with true devotion to Mary. This month he talked on St. Francis Xavier Seelos. When Fr. Seelos was in seminary Mary appeared to him and told him to become a missionary to the US. He came from a very Catholic family, a family with great devotion to God and who loved Mary. He wrote a letter to his mother thanking her for the great devotion she gave him to Mary. Each year he visited one shrine dedicated to Mary. Would enter a church and sing before statue of Mary. Total love of Jesus and trusted totally in Mary's intercession. (My next post will be about St. Seelos.) Father blessed us with a first class relic of St. Seelos.
Week #3 Knowing Mary .... Overview of week follows. (Always have Mary edit our prayers to Jesus making them what they should be. She, as mother, knows our needs and what we should be praying for.)
We went through some of the upcoming readings and Father highlighted the following which we underlined in our books.
p. 142 "grace to know Mary better" earnestly beg for this
p. 143 Father read the first 7 lines of the paragraph under the heading "Devotion Takes Time to Grow"
p. 144 "Where Mary is, there also is God!"
p. 151 middle of last paragraph "to believe sincerely without spiritual pleasures; to suffer joyfully without human consolation; to die continually to myself without respite; and to work zealously and unselfishly for thee until death as the humblest of they servants."
p. 154 Come to Jesus through Mary ..... read end of 3rd paragraph "The world was unworthy, says St. Augustine, to receive the Son of God directly from the Father's hands. He gave Him to Mary in order that the world might receive Him through her. The Son of God became man for our salvation; but it was in Mary and by Mary. God the Holy Ghost formed Jesus Christ in Mary; but it was only after having asked her consent ..."
p. 159 first paragraph, first line "God the Son wishes to form Himself and, so to speak, to incarnate Himself in His members, every day, by His dear Mother." Mary bore and formed Christ in her womb... She bears and helps shape us if we allow her.
p. 167 Mary knows what is best. She is our "broker". Trust her to bring prayers she knows are good to Jesus Father pointed out the following from top of p.167 "If, after having thus consecrated ourselves to Our Lady, we wish to help a soul in purgatory, rescue a sinner, or assist a friend by a prayer, an alms, an act of self-denial or an act of self-sacrifice, we must humbly request it of Our Lady, abiding always by her decision, which, of course, remains unknown to us."
p. 170 Mary enhances our prayers ......First half of first paragraph ..... emphasizing the "oratory for the soul"
p. 175 Father emphasized entire first paragraph and third paragraph on this page.
p. 183 read the 7 kinds of false devotees and false devotions
p. 189 5 characteristics of true devotion
p. 190 Mary's virtues
p. 191 Exterior Practices of the True Devotion
p. 198 read top paragraph
p. 201 read bottom paragraph
NOTE: 205-270 This is alot of extra reading. Read when convenient over the course of this consecration.......... shows value of the rosary and scapular.
Note: Purchase a "Brown Scapulars" for each person doing this and have a priest enroll you and any other family member who will wear one. Print the scapular enrollment prayer out so that your priest can enroll you properly. He might not have this available otherwise. Our pastor is going to enroll us next Monday in both the Brown Scapular and Miraculous Medal. (Ruth's note: If you are asking your pastor to enroll you bring the scapulars, metals and enrollment prayers with you. He may or may not use the prayers you bring but at least you will have tried to save him time.)
Scapular Enrollment prayers: here are two formats in case you have trouble printing the prayers.
Below are TINA's Notes from this same meeting: Week Three: Getting to Know Mary
Page 142: 2nd full paragraph: “For He alone knows Mary…church names after her.” Earnestly beg for the grace of knowing Mary.
Pg 143: Devotion takes time to grow – several stages. We are going to be the fruit of Mary’s work – consider that Jesus was the fruit of Mary’s womb.
We desire not consolations, but (on Pg 151 in the first full paragraph): I wish for no other than that which was thine:…humblest of thy servants.”
Pg 154: 2nd last parag: “The world was unworthy…in Mary and by Mary.”
Pg 159: 1st parag: 1st sentence and more: more or less a summary statement of True Devotion and Mary continues to bring Christ into the world through us.
Pg 167: very first full sentence: “If, after having thus consecrated ourselves…remains unknown to us.” This means that everything we do, we do though Mary. She is “our broker” per Fr. Corapi and spruces up our offerings and makes them better. We don’t have to continually say all the time< “Mary through you”, but have it in the background and back of our thoughts that, “Mary – you know and do what is best”.
3rd full parag: “Consecrating ourselves in this way, to Jesus…the stars lack brightness.”
Page 170, 1st parag: “We must always act…” Mary makes everything we do richer and better.
Page 175 has encouraging remarks for us who live in this time of the end of time. Top of the e[age: “Mary has produced together with the Holy Ghost…singular and extraordinary things.”
2nd full parag: (us) “These great souls….build with the other.
“With the one hand they shall fight…much glory for God alone.”
“This is what God revealed to St. Vincent…
Page 183: 7 kinds of false devotees
Page 189: Characteristics of True Devotion
Page 191: Exterior practices – Scapular and Miraculous medal. Next week Father Parker will have Scapulars and blessed Miraculous Medals for us. Have you been enrolled in the Scapular? Probably when you were little and in the early grade school years? If not attending these session it is good to be enrolled at this point of the consecration.
Page 198: Top of the page: The most terrible of all the enemies which God has set up against the devil is Holy Mary. Satan hates and suffers more from being beaten by Mary because he is defeated by her littleness and humility.
Page 201: Last parag: more encouraging words for us, “But the power of Mary…”
Read these when time permits:
Page 205 – 270 – Two parts. First part is on the Rosary Pages 205 – 243. (Promises on page 206 is good encouragement for when desolations come…)
Father Parker said we don’t have to read all of this at once, but read it as we can, if we can get it all done this week that is great. We can read it section by section, by divisions, by part, however we wish to read it, but again – if we don’t have time we don’t have to feel obligated to get it done in this 3rd week….
Page 243 – 270 is on the Brown Scapular.
