St. Thomas Aquinas
artist unknown
The Church has ever proved indestructible. Her
persecutors have failed to destroy her; in fact, it
was during times of persecution that the Church grew
more and more; while the persecutors themselves, and
those whom the Church would destroy, are the very
ones who came to nothing. . . Again, errors have
assailed herm but in fact, the greater the number of
errors that have arisen, the more has the truth been
made manifest. . . . Nor has the Church failed
before the assaults of demons: for she is like
a tower of refuge to all who fight against the
Devil.
-- St. Thomas Aquinas
The Catholic
Church is the work of divine Providence,
achieved through the prophecies of the prophets,
through the Incarnation and the teaching of Christ,
through the journeys of the apostles, through the
suffering, the crosses, the blood and death of the
martyrs, through the admirable lives of the saints.
. . . When we see, then, so much help on God's part,
so much progress and so much fruit, shall we
hesitate to bury ourselves in the bosom of that
Church? For beginning with the apostolic
chair, down through the succession of bishops, even
to the open confession of all mankind, it has
possessed the crown of teaching authority.
--St. Augustine
Saint Michael
Battling Satan
by Guido Reni
1575-1642
"Repent and believe the Good News!"
Penance means conversion. The Confraternity of
Penitents is a world wide private Catholic
association of the faithful, completely loyal to our
Pope and the Magisterium.
Our Rule of Life has been reviewed by our bishop and
recognized in these words: "this Rule does not
contain anything contrary to our faith; therefore it
may be safely practiced privately by you or by
anyone inclined to do so. . . . His Excellency
is appreciative of your efforts to live and promote
Franciscan spirituality and especially promote the
neglected practice of penance and he wishes you
success" (January 30, 1998).
Members of the Confraternity of Penitents live this
Rule in their own homes, devoted to prayer, penance,
fasting, conversion, and works of mercy modeled on
Jesus Christ and inspired by the lives and teachings
of
St. Francis,
St. Dominic,
St. Therese,
St. Benedict,
St. Augustine,
St. Ignatius,
and all the saints, most especially Mary, the Mother
of God, who lived a life of true penance
(conversion) in perfect union with our Lord.
May Our Lady and all the saints intercede for all
who wish to embrace a life of penance, anywhere in
the world, so that the grace of God will assist them
to obtain every virtue necessary for a life of
holiness and surrender to the Will of God! Amen.
PRAYER OF PENITENTS
"Most High, Glorious God, enlighten the darkness
of my mind, give me right faith, a firm hope and
perfect charity, so that I may always and in all
things act according to Your Holy Will. Amen."
(Saint Francis's prayer before the San Damiano
Crucifix)
MISSION OF PENITENTS
"Go and repair My House
which, as you can see, is falling into ruin." (The
message given to St. Francis in a voice from the San
Damiano Crucifix.)
ACTION OF PENITENTS
To pray for God's
specific direction in one's life so that, through
humbly living our Rule of Life, each penitent may
help to rebuild the house of God by bringing love of
God and neighbor to his or her own corner of the
world.
|
"GO AND REPAIR MY
HOUSE, WHICH, AS YOU CAN SEE, IS FALLING INTO
RUIN."
AUGUST 2008
THOUGHTS FOR AUGUST
The Spirit of God enlightening our hearts, and
teaching us all that Jesus had said to us, is
ever mindful of our weakness and the need for
human exemplars to teach us the way. So, the
month of August inspires each one of us
according to our needs and our capacity through
the lives of the saints who fill the liturgical
calendar with the perfume of their holiness.
August is predominantly a month when we honor
the greatest of God’s holy ones after Jesus in
His humanity, and of course that is Mary, the
Mother of the Son of God. She who was the first
tabernacle to hold the Word made flesh – her
womb. She learned to be the Mother of God, and
in that ineffable training ground she learned
also to mother you and me. Her spiritual love,
that does mother us into a maturity of faith,
hope and love, comes from her own lived life’s
journey. The feasts that honor the Blessed
Virgin this month, the dedication of the
Basilica of St. Mary Major, The Assumption, and
The Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary are
times when we are reminded of the place Mary has
in the Church and the hearts of her people, but
above all what great love and honor Mary enjoys
in the Heart of the Trinity.
St. Clare tells us “Our labor here is brief but
the reward is eternal.” Mary’s life was brief in
human eyes, but her motherly love and mentoring
last forever.
Clare, herself is one of the saints honored this
month in a special way. Her life lived from
1193-1253 was lived, like the life of St.
Francis, as a movement from riches to the most
abject poverty. The charism she drew from the
Gospels in the footsteps of Francis was based on
“The privilege of poverty”. She lived it,
promoted it and finally was given permission
from the Pope to adopt this way of life for her
and her Sisters.
We have several other women saints this month
that I wish to mention. They are from different
times in history, but carried the cross of the
kingdom as a sign to the world of their day.
Among them we have Saint Monica, (331-387). Her
life as a mother was dedicated to prayer for the
conversion of her son, and she did not cease
until, through God’s grace, Augustine received
his life transformation. What a lesson to all of
us in perseverance in prayer!
St. Rose of Lima (1586-1617) lived a
Gospel-centered life in Lima, Peru, in her home
where as a Dominican Tertiary her example
changed the world of her time. Prayer, penance,
and good works were the center of her day. It is
the Gospel that is the foundation of all
charisms, and Rose lived fully the lessons of
the cross in daily life.
Once again across the world, we find St. Jane
Francis de Chantal who died in 1641. After being
inspired by the life and works of St. Francis de
Sales she founded the order of The Visitation
after her husband’s death. As a wife, widow and
mother of seven children she lived through many
seasons of her life, always devoted to prayer
and good works.
St. Teresa Benedicta, Edith Stein, (1891-1942),
born a Jew, became a strong intellectual light
as a philosopher. After her conversion to
Catholicism she entered the Discalced Carmelite
Order in 1933, and in 1942 was arrested and
executed in the gas chambers of Auschwitz. This
great mind found ways to help fellow prisoners
during the days of her imprisonment.
All of these women, with Mary, from different
backgrounds and lifestyles, as well as differing
times and cultures, all journeyed the Way of
salvation that leads to everlasting life.
Prayer, penance, and good works are the daily
routine of the follower of the life of Christ as
seen in Mary and in the “stars” that surround
her in eternity, that is the holy men and women
who teach us how to live and how to die. May
August be a time when we will become more aware
of the lives of the saints and emulate the good
in their lives so we can all meet in eternity.
In this way we can rebuild God’s house as He
wishes us to do.
Sister Eugenia Brady, S.J.C.
Spiritual Advisor to the Confraternity of
Penitents
 Confraternity of Penitents 520 Oliphant Lane Middletown RI USA 02842-4600 401/849-5421 bspenance@hotmail.com copenitents@yahoo.com |