To be baptized into Jesus Christ is to share in the love, power and goodness of God and the community of his saints by loving God above all things and loving God appropriately within all things. The Blessed Virgin Mary is the greatest of all saints because she never sinned and was designated by God to be the Mother of his Divine Son, Jesus Christ. During this Season of Lent, we are called to increase our prayer, fasting and almsgiving, and we turn to the saints to help us grow in these acts of charity. It is inspiring to see many people coming to Mass 25 minutes early to pray the Rosary which is a fruitful way to praise God, receive his natural and supernatural blessings, and to honor the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of All Saints.
During this month of March, the Church celebrates St. Patrick, whose feast day is Friday, March 17. Join us for Stations of the Cross, 8:00PM, at St. Mary’s Church. And St. Joseph, whose Solemn Feast Day is March 19, but because that date falls on a Sun-day this year, the Solemnity has been transferred to Monday, March 20. We will celebrate two Solemn Masses on that day, 8:00AM (normal Mass time) and 8:30PM. The public intention for the 8:30PM Mass is: For the spiritual growth of all fathers and god-fathers of Holy Trinity Parish.
Prayer to St. Joseph
To you, O blessed Joseph, do we come in our afflictions, and having implored the help of your most holy Spouse, we confidently invoke your patronage also.
Through that charity which bound you to the Immaculate Virgin Mother of God and through the paternal love with which you em-braced the Child Jesus, we humbly beg you graciously to regard the inheritance which Jesus Christ has purchased by His Blood, and with your power and strength to aid us in our necessities.
O most watchful guardian of the Holy Family, defend the chosen children of Jesus Christ; O most loving father, ward off from us every contagion of error and corrupting influence; O our most mighty protector, be kind to us and from heaven assist us in our struggle with the power of darkness.
As once you rescued the Child Jesus from deadly peril, so now protect God’s Holy Church from the snares of the enemy and from all adversity; shield, too, each one of us by your constant protection, so that, supported by your example and your aid, we may be able to live piously, to die in holiness, and to obtain eternal happiness in heaven. Amen.
Litany for the Church in Our Time
Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy on us. Christ, Divine Founder of the Church, hear us. Christ, Who did warn of false prophets, graciously hear us.
God, the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us. God, the Son, Redeemer of the World, have mercy on us. God, the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us. Holy Trinity, One God, have mercy on us.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us.
St. Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church, pray for us. St. Michael, Defender in Battle, pray for us. St. Peter, the Rock upon which Christ built His Church, pray for us. St. Paul, Protector of the Faithful Remnant, pray for us. *St. Patrick, Liberator of those enslaved and defender of human dignity, pray for us.
*St. Brigid, Patroness of poetry, healing, livestock and dairy production, pray for us. St. Francis of Assisi, Re-builder of the Church, pray for us. St. Anthony, Hammer of Heretics, pray for us. St. Pius V, Restorer of the beauty of the Sacred Liturgy, pray for us. St. Pius X, Foe of Modernism, pray for us.
All ye Holy Angels and Archangels, pray that we may resist the snares of the Devil. St. Catherine of Siena, pray that Christ's Vicar may oppose the spirit of the world. St. John Fisher, pray that bishops may have the courage to combat heresy and irreverence. St, Francis Xavier, pray that zeal for souls may be re-enkindled in the clergy. St. Charles Borromeo, pray that seminaries may be protected from false teachings. St. Vincent de Paul, pray that seminarians may return to a life of prayer and meditation. St. Therese of the Child Jesus, pray that religious may rediscover their vocation of love and sacrifice. St. Thomas More, pray that the laity may not succumb to the Great Apostasy. St. Francis de Sales, pray that the Catholic press may again be-come a vehicle of Truth. St. John Bosco, pray that our children may be protected from immoral and heretical instruction. St. Pascal, pray that profound reverence for the Most Blessed Sacrament may be restored. St. Dominic, pray that we may ever treasure the Holy Rosary.
Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord. Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world, graciously hear us. Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us. Christ, hear us. Christ, graciously hear us.
Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let Us Pray.
Jesus, our God, in these dark hours when Thy Mystical Body is undergoing its own Crucifixion, and when it would almost seem to be abandoned by God the Father, have mercy, we beg of Thee, on Thy suffering Church. Send down upon us the Divine Consoler, to enlighten our minds and strengthen our wills.
Thou, O Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity, Who can neither deceive nor be deceived, have promised to be with Thy Church until the end of time. Give us a mighty Faith that we may not falter; help us to do Thy Holy Will always, especially during these hours of grief and uncertainty. May Thy Most Sacred Heart and the Immaculate and Sorrowful Heart of Thy Holy Mother be our sure refuge in time and in eternity. Amen.
(*Additional saints added by Fr. Thomas McCabe)
During this Season of Lent we unite ourselves to Jesus Christ who suffered the trials and temptations of the Devil in the desert for Forty Days. This time of purification helps prepare us for the triumph of Jesus over sin and death at Easter.
Peace in Christ,
Fr. Thomas McCabe