BIG C CATHOLICS

November 21, 2017 Today, let us continue pray that God will reign in our minds and hearts, and that we will love Him above all things. Lord we ask for the grace to place you above the powers of this world in all things, to obey you before any civic authority and to fervently bring about your Kingdom in my family, community and the world. Christ the King Novena Prayer - Day 5 Christ, our Savior and our King, renew in me allegiance to Your Kingship. I pray that You will reign in my heart. O Prince of Peace, may Your reign be complete in my life and in the life of the world. Christ, my King, please answer these petitions if they be in accordance with Your Holy Will… [Mention your intentions here] As I reflect on Your second, glorious coming and the judgment of all mankind, I beg You to show me mercy and give me the grace to become a great saint. I pray that not only will I spend eternity with You but that You may use me – a sinner – to bring others into Your Kingdo

November 20, 2017 "No one can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon" (Matthew 6:24). Today let us pray that God alone will reign in our minds, and that we will accept the Church's teachings with total obedience and firm belief. Christ the King Novena Prayer - Day 4 Christ, our Savior and our King, renew in me allegiance to Your Kingship. I pray that You will reign in my mind. O Prince of Peace, may Your reign be complete in my life and in the life of the world. Christ, my King, please answer these petitions if they be in accordance with Your Holy Will… [Mention your intentions here] As I reflect on Your second, glorious coming and the judgment of all mankind, I beg You to show me mercy and give me the grace to become a great saint. I pray that not only will I spend eternity with You but that You may use me – a sinner – to bring others into Yo

November 19, 2017 "Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand." Both John the Baptist and Jesus Christ declared the arrival of God’s kingdom (Matthew 3:2; 4:17; Mark 1:15). It is our calling as Christians to make the kingdom of Christ a reality here on earth. Today, we pray for the grace to carry out this mission in imitation of Our Lord. Christ the King Novena Prayer - Day 3 Christ, our Savior and our King, renew in me allegiance to Your Kingship. I pray for the grace to fervently bring about Your Kingdom in my family and community. O Prince of Peace, may Your reign be complete in my life and in the life of the world. Christ, my King, please answer these petitions if they be in accordance with Your Holy Will… [Mention your intentions here] As I reflect on Your second, glorious coming and the judgment of all mankind, I beg You to show me mercy and give me the grace to become a great saint. I pray that not only will I spend eternity with You but that Yo

November 18, 2017 The feast of Christ the King was created by Pope Pius XI in order to help the faithful remember that allegiance to Jesus Christ is above any other allegiance whether to the government, a cause or an ideology. Today, let us pray that we may always be loyal to, and a devoted disciple of, Our Lord, the King of kings. Christ the King Novena Prayer - Day 2 Christ, our Savior and our King, renew in me allegiance to Your Kingship. I pray for the grace to obey You before any civic authority. O Prince of Peace, may Your reign be complete in my life and in the life of the world. Christ, my King, please answer these petitions if they be in accordance with Your Holy Will… [Mention your intentions here] As I reflect on Your second, glorious coming and the judgment of all mankind, I beg You to show me mercy and give me the grace to become a great saint. I pray that not only will I spend eternity with You but that You may use me – a sinner – to bring others int

On the occasion of Father Solanus Casey's beatification, November 18, 2017, the following prayer for the canonization of this extraordinary Capuchin Franciscan priest and miracle worker may be recited for the cause of Blessed Casey and for one's own personal intentions. Blessed Father Solanus Casey, intercede for us. Jesus, you made Fr. Solanus Casey an example of humility, charity and selflessness. He taught us that every human life has value and dignity. May we follow him in serving the poor. the sick, the dying, the despondent and the desperate. Grant us, by his intercession, and according to Your will, the graces we implore..., knowing that he will soon be numbered among Your saints. We ask this in Your name,  through the intercession of Mary,  Your Mother, Queen of heaven and earth. Amen. Bl. Solanus Casey, you overcame adversity with humility in answering God’s call to the priesthood. May we, inspired by your example, persevere with

November 17, 2017 This novena is focused on letting God reign supreme, among all nations, among all people, and most especially within us. To start, we would like to pray for your personal intentions. If there is any one particular area of your life that you have given over to sin return it to God during this novena. Christ our King, pray for us. Christ the King Novena Prayer - Day 1 Christ, our Savior and our King, renew in me allegiance to Your Kingship. I pray for the grace to place You above the powers of this world in all things. O Prince of Peace, may Your reign be complete in my life and in the life of the world. Christ, my King, please answer these petitions if they be in accordance with Your Holy Will… [Mention your intentions here] As I reflect on Your second, glorious coming and the judgment of all mankind, I beg You to show me mercy and give me the grace to become a great saint. I pray that not only will I spend eternity with You but that You may use me

This feast day was instituted by Pope Pius XI on December 11th, in 1925, within the encyclical letter Quas Primas . The Holy Father was responding to the fact that the world was becoming increasingly nationalistic and secular. Governments were claiming more and more allegiance from citizens and attempting to replace God. While nations insult the beloved name of our Redeemer by suppressing all mention of it in their conferences and parliaments, we must all the more loudly proclaim his kingly dignity and power, all the more universally affirm his rights. – Quas Primas, 25 Pope Pius XI, therefore, created the feast of Christ the King to help the faithful to remember that our allegiance to Christ is above any allegiance to the government of a nation. Often, as society has grown increasingly secular, one pledges fidelity to ideas, ideologies or movements, in the hopes of fitting-in or winning favor: "The faithful...by meditating upon these truths, will gain much strength and co

November 16th is the optional memorial of Saint Gertrude the Great. A 12th century Benedictine nun of the monastery of Helfta, in Saxony, she is regarded as one of the great mystics of the Middle Ages. Our Savior favored her with visions. Her book Revelations is her marvelous account of them. St. Gertrude introduced the devotion to the Sacred Heart which, four centuries later, Saint Margaret Mary spread throughout the Church. She died at the beginning of the 13th century. One of the most lovable German saints from medieval times, Gertrude, through her writings, will remain for all ages a guide to the interior life. She was born in 1256 at Eisleben and at the age of five taken to the convent at Rossdorf, where Gertrude of Hackeborn was abbess. Similarity in name has caused confusion between the two Gertrudes. St. Gertrude the Great never functioned as superior. In spite of much ill-health, Gertrude used her exceptional natural talents well, such as her fluency in Latin. In 1281,

"Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception. From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person —  among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life. 'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you' (Jer 1:5; cf Job 10:8-12; Ps 22:10-11). 'My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately wrought in the depths of the earth' (Ps. 139:15). Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable." (CCC, 2270-2271) St. John Paul II explains this further: "The child then must be understood as the maximum expression of the communion between man and woman, the reciprocal acceptance and donation that is realized and transcended in a 'third,' who is that child. The child is God's

Veterans Day is dedicated to American veterans of all wars. In 1918, on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, an armistice was declared between the Allied nations and Germany ending World War I. Observed in many countries as Armistice Day the following year, November 11th became a federal holiday in the United States in 1938. In the aftermath of World War II and the Korean War, Armistice Day became known as Veterans Day by an act of Congress in 1954. Veterans Day pays tribute to all American veterans, living or dead, but especially gives thanks to living veterans who served their country during war or peacetime. Lord God, Almighty Father, Creator of mankind and Author of peace. We are ever mindful of the cost paid for the liberty we possess. We ask You to bless the members of our armed forces, both past and present. Give them courage, hope and strength. May they experience Your firm support, gentle love and compassionate healing. Look kindly upon your departed

Padre Pio was a man of immense spiritual gifts and insight. As a Capuchin priest, his ministry was marked by prayer and piety. His suffering was constant. He bore the stigmata of Our Lord’s Crucifixion with their attending agony, and was beset by demonic manifestations. He was graced with the ability to read souls and see his guardian angel. He was also visited by souls seeking release from Purgatory. We must empty Purgatory with our prayers. — St. Pio of Pietrelcina ____________________________________ Prayer for the Souls in Purgatory Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the Universal Church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen. [Poor souls, upon attaining heaven, pray that I may also experience holy beatitude at the close of my earthly life.] Prayer for St. Padre Pio’s Interc

The brilliant theologian Saint Thomas Aquinas thought deeply about the ends of Christian life, including and especially on the "Last Things". His comment on the souls' longing for God in Purgatory reminds us that to live virtuously is our duty. The more one longs for a thing, the more painful does deprivation of it become. And because after this life, the desire for God, the Supreme Good, is intense in the souls of the just (because this impetus toward him is not hampered by the weight of the body, and that time of enjoyment of the Perfect Good would have come) had there been no obstacle; the soul suffers enormously from the delay. — St. Thomas Aquinas ________________________________ Prayer for St. Thomas Aquinas' Intercession Almighty ever-loving God, who made Saint Thomas Aquinas outstanding in his zeal for holiness and his study of sacred doctrine, grant us, we pray, that we may understand what he taught and imitate what he accomplished by his witn

St. Charles Borromeo was a 16th century, cardinal, bishop of Milan, and Counter Reformation reformer, who was instrumental in the formation and implementation of the Council of Trent’s doctrine. Known for his personal holiness and devotion to God, Borromeo ministered tirelesly to the many plague-stricken citizens of Italy. Such is the nature of faith that the greater are the obstacles it encounters, the more ardent it becomes. — St. Charles Borromeo ________________________________ Prayer of Saint Charles Borromeo  Almighty God, you have generously made known to human beings the mysteries of your life through Jesus Christ your Son in the Holy Spirit. Enlighten my mind to know these mysteries which your Church treasures and teaches. Move my heart to love them and my will to live in accord with them. Give me the ability to teach this Faith to others without pride, without ostentation, and without personal gain. Let me realize that I am simply your instrument for bringing o

Saint Leo the Great, also called Pope Saint Leo I, the 5th century pontiff and Doctor of the Church, is admired as one of the best administrative popes of the ancient Church. He was a tireless defender of doctrinal orthodoxy who fought against numerous heresies including Arianism, Pelagianism, and Manichaeism. Novena Prayer to St. Leo the Great Eternal Shepherd, look favorably upon Thy flock, which we beseech Thee to guard and keep for evermore through the blessed Leo, Supreme Pontiff, who Thou didst choose to be chief shepherd of the whole Church. And by his mighty merits, glorious intercession, and solicitude care for the flock we beg of Thee to: (Mention your intentions) And govern Thy Church in Thy clemency, we beseech Thee, O Lord, so that under the guidance of Thy mighty rule, she may enjoy greater freedom and abiding integrity of religion. Through Christ Our Lord. In the Name of the Father... Amen. O God, who never allow the gates of hell to prevail against you

"The souls of the just are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them. They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead; and their passing away was thought an affliction and their going forth from us, utter destruction. But they are in peace." — Wisdom 3:1-3 "On this day [November 2nd] is observed the commemoration of the faithful departed, in which our common and pious Mother the Church, immediately after having endeavored to celebrate by worthy praise all her children who already rejoice in heaven, strives to aid by her powerful intercession with Christ, her Lord and Spouse, all those who still groan in purgatory, so that they may join as soon as possible the inhabitants of the heavenly city." ( Roman Martyrology ) Monsignor Bernard Bourgeois explains this commemoration: "Eternity with God is the life to which each disciple of Christ aspires. The Second Eucharistic Prayer at Mass asks the Lord to 'welcome them [the faithful departed] i

Most holy Apostle, Saint Jude, faithful servant and friend of Jesus, the Church honors and invokes you universally as the patron of difficult cases, of things despaired of and desperate situations. Pray for me, I am so helpless and alone. Intercede with God for me that He bring visible and speedy help where all hope is almost despaired of. Please come to my assistance in this great need that I may receive the consolation and help of heaven in all my necessities, tribulations, and sufferings, particularly (state your request...) that I may praise God with you and all the saints forever. I promise, Blessed St. Jude, to be ever mindful of this great favor granted me by God and to always honor you as my special patron, and to gratefully extol devotion to you. Amen. Prayer May the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus be loved and adored in all the tabernacles until the end of time. Amen. May the most Sacred Heart of Jesus be praised and glorified now and forever. Amen St. Jude pray fo

Many miracles were worked following the martyrdoms of Saints Cosmas and Damian. The Orthodox Church recounts several intercessions owed to them, including this one: There lived in Thereman, near the church of Cosmas and Damian, a man named Malchus. One day, he departed on an extended journey, leaving his wife behind. Before doing so, he prayed to Sts. Cosmas and Damian, entrusting her to their heavenly protection. A demon assumed the appearance of one of Malchus’ friends in an attempt to kill her. The demon called on the woman, saying that Malchus had sent him to bring her to him. Believing him, she went along. The demon brought her to a solitary place with the intention of ending her life. Sensing mortal danger was imminent, the woman prayed to God for help. Suddenly, two fearsome men appeared. The devil let go of the woman, fleeing in such haste, he fell off a cliff. The men accompanied the woman home where she thanked them effusively saying “My deliverers, to whom I shall be gr

September 25th is historically, and in many Benedictine houses, the feast day of Blessed Herman the Cripple, also known as Hermannus Contractus , (Latin meaning contracted one) or Herman of Reichenau, (1013-1054) a monk, 11th century scholar, composer, musical theorist, mathematician, and astronomer. He composed the Marian prayers Alma Redemptoris Mater , and the Salve Regina ("Hail Holy Queen") which is recited each time the most Holy Rosary is prayed. Despite significant physical limitations and immense suffering, the bright and contemplative mind of Blessed Herman advanced not only our understanding of the physical world, but furthered our devotion to Our Blessed Mother, Mary. His contributions to both science and faith remind us that regardless of appearance or apparent physical abilities, we each possess God-given gifts and talents. Due to Bl. Herman's prodigious achievements, he was called "The Wonder of His Age." He wrote extensively on mathematic

These prayers to St. Joseph of Cupertino, the patron of students and those who study, are most beneficial for those taking all manner of examinations. They have to be said before taking an exam. Both prayers are equally efficacious in power. First Prayer O Great St. Joseph of Cupertino who while on earth did obtain from God the grace to be asked at your examination only the questions you knew, obtain for me a like favour in the examinations for which I am now preparing. In return I promise to make you known and cause you to be invoked. Through Christ our Lord. St. Joseph of Cupertino, Pray for us. Amen. Second Prayer O St. Joseph of Cupertino who by your prayer obtained from God to be asked at your examination, the only preposition you knew. Grant that I may like you succeed in the (here mention the name of Examination eg. History paper I ) examination. In return I promise to make you known and cause you to be invoked. O St. Joseph of Cupertino pray for me O Holy Gh

Look to the star of the sea, call upon Mary … in danger, in distress, in doubt, think of Mary, call upon Mary. May her name never be far from your lips, or far from your heart … If you follow her, you will not stray; if you pray to her, you will not despair; if you turn your thoughts to her, you will not err. If she holds you, you will not fall; if she protects you, you need not fear; if she is your guide, you will not tire; if she is gracious to you, you will surely reach your destination. — St. Bernard ______________________________________ Prayer for the Holy Name of the Blessed Virgin Mary Lord our God, when your Son was dying on the altar of the cross, he gave us as our mother the one he had chosen to be his own mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary; grant that we who call upon the holy name of Mary, our mother, with confidence in her protection may know solace and comfort in our needs. Amen.