Private Vows in The Laity/Spirituality

[Guest]

Chaplet in praise of the Virgin Mary

http://www.catholicdoors.com/prayers/chaplets/chap30.htm

The Chaplet in praise of the Virgin Mary is prayed on the regular Marian Rosary of 59 beads.
At the beginning of the Rosary, the "Creed" and "Our Father" is replaced with:

"Mary, my Immaculate Mother,
I desire to offer thee reparation for the offenses
which thy Immaculate Heart
receives from the horrible blasphemies
which are uttered against thee.
I offer thee these praises
to console thee for so many ungrateful children
who do not love thee,
and to console the Heart of thy Divine Son
Who is so deeply offended by the insults offered to thee.
Receive, my Purest Mother,
this little act of homage.
Make me love thee more each day
and look with pity on those blasphemers
that they may not delay to cast themselves
into thy maternal arms.

Amen."

On the large bead prior to each set of 10 beads, say:

"Grant that I may praise thee, O Holy Virgin!
Give me strength against thy enemies!"

On the 10 small beads is prayed once each of the 10 following praises:

"1. Blessed be the Great Mother of God, Mary Most Holy!
2. Blessed be her Holy and Immaculate Conception!
3. Blessed be her Glorious Assumption!
4. Blessed be the Name of Mary, Virgin and Mother!
5. Blessed be her Immaculate Heart!
6. Blessed be her Virginal Purity!
7. Blessed be her Divine Maternity!
8. Blessed be her Universal Mediation!
9. Blessed be her Sorrows and her Tears!
10. Blessed be the graces with which the Lord crowned her Queen of Heaven and Earth!"

At the end of each set of 10 beads, say the following prayer:

"Glory be to Mary, Daughter of the Father!
Glory be to Mary, Mother of the Son!
Glory be to Mary, Spouse of the Holy Spirit!"

Concluding Prayer:

"My Mother,
I love thee for those who do not love thee;
I praise thee for those who blaspheme thee;
I surrender myself to thee
for those who will not recognize thee as their Mother."

(Repeat the above concluding prayer 5 times)

[Guest]

Daily Reflection - St Vincent de Paul Society

 

 

Quote

 

Mar 19, 2017

 

“When we are satisfied that we have done everything in our power for the happy issue of any affair, we should preserve our tranquility and peace, whatever may be the result.”
– St. Vincent de Paul

 

 

[Debra Little]

I applaud u for your courage and am gladdened by your desire to serve our Lord in this way. I too am Bipolar with OCD and Epilepsy. I had many very sick years. For quite awhile now I have been healthy and stable with the use of medication. So often we hear about the sacrament of marriage. This is good and well since society is based on the family unit. It would be very nice to hear talk and receive helps for single lay people who desire to give their lives to God alone. I had to leave the Carmel due to poor health and it took a long time to get over the heartbreak. I still consider myself a child of our holy mother St. Teresa and the bride of Christ. God bless u immensely as u give ur life to Him!

Ty for your example!

[Guest]

5 hours ago, Debra Little said:

I applaud u for your courage and am gladdened by your desire to serve our Lord in this way. I too am Bipolar with OCD and Epilepsy. I had many very sick years. For quite awhile now I have been healthy and stable with the use of medication. So often we hear about the sacrament of marriage. This is good and well since society is based on the family unit. It would be very nice to hear talk and receive helps for single lay people who desire to give their lives to God alone. I had to leave the Carmel due to poor health and it took a long time to get over the heartbreak. I still consider myself a child of our holy mother St. Teresa and the bride of Christ. God bless u immensely as u give ur life to Him!

Ty for your example!

Thank you very much for your post, Debra, and for your generous and kind words of affirmation.  I too was gladdened by your own embrace of Divine Providence in your life - as difficult as it must have been.

The Church does speak officially about those who do make private vows and choose to live the single life or in celibacy in the laity.  Unfortunately I think such words of affirmation are sort of 'buried' in various Vatican Documents.  I too left monastic life, although not primarily for health reasons, while I realised that I was under much stress and that the community would have no idea how to deal with things should I have an episode of bipolar (my episodes are in the main induced by stress).  Leadership of the community reasoned that if I did have a vocation, then there would be no episode.  I didn't think it was as simple as that.  I also did believe that everyone had a vocation and vocation was not confined to religious and consecrated life, nor to the priesthood.  The prime reason I had in leaving my community was that I certainly could not fit into 'the mould' nor adopt their attitudes.

I had made private vows prior to entering the monastic community and back then I had no idea that private vows were covered by Canon Law nor that The Church spoke affirming of the call.  That realisation was to come slowly over a long period of time.  Before that realisation dawned, I did know beyond doubt that I was called to private vows in the Laity and no matter the opinions of others.

Prior to all that my SD at the commencement of my journey had been a priest religious and theologian lecturing and living in our seminary.  He affirmed for me that private vows to the evangelical counsels was a distinct possibility in the lay state of life and how to go about it.  I had never heard of this before and it was a real awakening.

Research, once I had a computer, revealed to me that the Lay state of life was an actual office in The Church.  We, as Laity, have a particular mission and vocation and there are two Vatican Documents that do cover the apostolate, mission and vocation of The Laity.  We are a particular office in The Church.  I did research Third Orders and Secular Institutes here in South Australia but they are very few and I had no attraction whatsoever.  I was and am, however, heavily drawn to the St Vincent de Paul Society and their focus on service to the poor.  SVP is not only Catholic Action in operation, it is a process of formation.  I served initially in Head Office 2half years and now over 3 years in my Parish.  I have now been given the duty in our parish SVP Conference of spiritual formation texts for discussion at Meetings.  I also do secretarial work including the Minutes of Meetings, as well as visiting those who need our help.

Once I had a computer too I realised through Catholic discussion sites that a vocation to lay celibacy (with or without vows) was not regarded as a vocation.  I then decided to come right out the closet and speak about my own vocation (prior, I had not spoken generally of it).

I also became very much aware once I had a computer that many did struggle in the Laity feeling that they had no vocation at all.  Probably in the majority were those who had health problems which presented to religious communities impediments to their way of life.  This revealed to me a complete misunderstanding of Baptism.  It also revealed to me misunerstandings that Divine Providence sometimes acts in a very positive manner through negative circumstances permitted including health problems presenting impediments most everywhere.

I very much rejoice today to read posts where those who do have health problems are not precluded from all religious communities, with certain conditions and that most commonly seems to be that medication keeps the applicant stable - and that medication costs will not be excessive to a community.

As for the description "bride of Christ", we read the following in the Catholic Catechism (quoted in part):

Quote

796 The unity of Christ and the Church, head and members of one Body, also implies the distinction of the two within a personal relationship. This aspect is often expressed by the image of bridegroom and bride. The theme of Christ as Bridegroom of the Church was prepared for by the prophets and announced by John the Baptist. The Lord referred to himself as the "bridegroom." The Apostle speaks of the whole Church and of each of the faithful, members of his Body, as a bride "betrothed" to Christ the Lord so as to become but one spirit with him.

Unity with Christ (the essence of the terms "spouse" or "bride") is a potential in any vocation at all and a state into which we are baptised.

Probably, even today, it is important especially for those who feel they are called to Lay celibacy (with or without vows) to be very confident of their call and vocation and not swayed in this and that direction by the opinions of others.  The essence of such confidence, I think, comes from researching what The Church has to state.

All in a nutshell!

Thanks heaps again for your words of affirmation.  Affirmation is a virtual hug - and hugs sure help   

I can't reward you, but I do know of One who will.  

[Guest]

 

 

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Daily Reflection - St Vincent de Paul Society

 

 

Quote

 

Mar 21, 2017

 

“Duplicity is not pleasing to God and to be truly simple

we should propose to ourselves no other end but to please God alone.”
– St. Vincent de Paul

 

 

 

[Guest]

Daily Reflection - St Vincent de Paul Society

 

Quote

 

Mar 22, 2017

 

Writing to his students, Bl. Frederic wrote:

“Gentlemen, have faith in the era in which you are living. If you see that the old walls of Christian civilization fall down destroyed,

trust that new, solid parapets will be raised for your protection and defense.

For this civilization, which has cost a great deal for the Martyrs, Saints, and Popes to build

will never perish. With these words of hope, I bid you goodbye.”
– Bl. Frederic Ozanam

 

 

[Debra Little]

Barbara Therese, I truly relate to u about the friendship and support from others. Once people found out that I have bipolar disorder they have avoided me or ignored me. Even the pastor at an old parish complained to me and said he liked me only when I was on heavy meds that made me into a zombie. I eventually left.  I have found that the most understanding people are those with disabilities and the elderly. No matter it is their loss and neither do I want or invite the negativity. I stopped feeling rejected years ago. 

We have an aawesome God and offer all to Jesus through the sorrowful and immaculate heart of Mary. She is not only a queen but my mamma and my friend. She leads me closer to Jesus.

Like St. Therese said, "everything is a grace, a gift of love from our heavenly Father. 

Edited March 22, 2017 by Debra Little

[Guest]

THROUGH THE EYES OF THE LORD

Creighton University Daily Gospel Meditation for 23rd March 2017 (Excerpt)    "I have come to the personal realization that the more I watch, listen and read about our political malaise, the more I am not letting the voice of the Lord be the touchstone upon which I rely.

Maybe the solution to this growing problem is to remember that more important than the opinions and comments of those who align themselves with red states or blue states, Democrat or Republican, are the teachings of Christ and how we should first and foremost view the vexing political problems that are dividing our country through the lens of our faith. Maybe if we spent as much time praying and serving those in need as we do watching cable news or Twitter feeds, we would be in a much better state of mind.

I assume these challenges and the solution is generally the same in each country, accounting for the differences which our various cultures and politics involve.

As we move into the last days of Lent and continue our daily examination of conscience, let’s focus on what Christ says we should do for others and not the rancor of political commentators. Maybe we need to reread the Beatitudes in Matthew 25:31-46 in light of today’s issues and think about how we can be part of the solution instead of a nay-saying part of the problem. Remember, if we feel compelled to pick a side in these seemingly endless controversies, the smart move would be to pick Christ’s side. " http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/032317.html

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Invitatory Psalm - Morning Prayer : Psalm 95 (Excerpt)

"O that today you would listen to his voice!
“Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as on that day at Massah in the desert
when your fathers put me to the test;
when they tried me , though they saw my work.

For forty years I was wearied of these people and I said:
‘Their hearts are astray, these people do not know my ways.’
Then I took an oath in my anger:
‘Never shall they enter my rest.’ "
(vv. 1-11).

 

 

[Guest]

23 hours ago, Debra Little said:

Barbara Therese, I truly relate to u about the friendship and support from others. Once people found out that I have bipolar disorder they have avoided me or ignored me. Even the pastor at an old parish complained to me and said he liked me only when I was on heavy meds that made me into a zombie. I eventually left.  I have found that the most understanding people are those with disabilities and the elderly. No matter it is their loss and neither do I want or invite the negativity. I stopped feeling rejected years ago. 

We have an aawesome God and offer all to Jesus through the sorrowful and immaculate heart of Mary. She is not only a queen but my mamma and my friend. She leads me closer to Jesus.

Like St. Therese said, "everything is a grace, a gift of love from our heavenly Father. 

Hi Debra again.......

What you have endured saddens me.

And I can relate to your rejection by others although largely in the past now.  It was a passage of rejection by family and friends and The Church on both parish and diocesan level and because I suffered bipolar.  I did come to the conclusion that since my behaviour at times was marked by the somewhat bizarre and probably impossible for others to understand who did not suffer a mental illness, that their rejection was understandable.  That was a reason but no excuse.

I no longer feel any rejection either.  If I am rejected because of bipolar, I do feel nowadays that it really is their problem and not mine and I refuse to take their problem on-board as my problem too.  The community, all communities, need to understand that just as they do not expect a person with a broken leg to walk in the normal fashion, so all communities need to arrive at the understanding that they cannot expect those who suffer a mental illness (and IT IS an illness like any other i.e. cancer, heart disease etc.) to behave in a normal type of fashion.  After all, all communities are going to have people with broken limbs and mental illness in their midst and neither group very often has done anything to DESERVE what they suffer.  And even if they have done something to deserve it, the Catholic consciousness, most especially of all, has to arrive at forgiveness and understanding, compassion, if they are to walk in the footsteps of Jesus, to which we are called and vocated by our baptism.

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We have an aawesome God and offer all to Jesus through the sorrowful and immaculate heart of Mary. She is not only a queen but my mamma and my friend. She leads me closer to Jesus.

Amen and what a wonderful gift to you. 

The Church is the Mystical Body of Jesus on earth in this instance - and The Church on earth functions on two levels, the human and the supernatural.  Very sadly at times, the human aspect is contradicting the supernatural aspect and bringing about further suffering to neighbour through stigma in this instance.  Stigma not only brings about cruel suffering to neighbour, it is contrary to the commandment of both the Old and New Law and therefore God.

I think that we as suffering a disability (mental illness) need to have a big dose of forgiveness and understanding, compassion, too for those who do stigmatise "Father, forgive them for the know not what they do".  It is not easy and in fact one of the most difficult things a sufferer of mental illness is going to have to do, if not THE most difficult thing, is to learn to let stigma be the problem of the one or ones who stigmatise - to not take it on-board as one's own problem too.  "Father, forgiven them, for they know not what they do".  This is an extremely difficult thing to do because most often along with stigma comes rejection and closed doors.........isolation and loneliness even.  Perhaps nothing is as depressing and alarming as to find one's dreams crashing around one - and very often the experience of sufferers of mental illness.

Because: "I tell you, whatever you do to one of these though it is the least of my brethren you have done it to Me" (Matthew Ch25)

Quote

Like St. Therese said, "everything is a grace, a gift of love from our heavenly Father.

Amen to the above as well.  Once we can grasp that all is indeed Grace and Gift of The Father everything falls into place.

Thank you for posting, Debra - and keep walking with Jesus and His mother as I know you will - it is a sure and safe path.  Amen.

[Guest]

Morning Prayer - 24.3.17

Short Reading	Isaiah 53:11-12 ©

By his sufferings shall my servant justify many, taking their faults on himself. Hence I will grant whole hordes for his tribute, he shall divide the spoil with the mighty, for surrendering himself to death and letting himself be taken for a sinner, while he was bearing the faults of many and praying all the time for sinners.

 

"Take up your cross and come follow Me"

[Pax17]

Debra and BT, thank you for your posts.

[Guest]

How does Jesus now reign?

As the Lord of the cosmos and of history, the Head of his Church, the glorified Christ mysteriously remains on earth where his kingdom is already present in seed and in its beginning in the Church. One day he will return in glory but we do not know the time.

Because of this we live in watchful anticipation, praying "Come, Lord" (Revelation 22:20).

(Taken from "Catechism in a Year)

 

 

 

7 hours ago, Pax17 said:

Debra and BT, thank you for your posts.

You are very welcome, Pax.  Do feel quite free to post yourself.......posts by all members are also always most welcome indeed.

Edited March 24, 2017 by BarbaraTherese

[Guest]

ON THE SUBJECT OF MENTAL ILLNESS AGAIN

I have found that people in the general community are accepting and understanding of a sufferer of mental illness and the problems that such a person has - and of the great difficulty these problems can present.

Very sadly to me, I have found the general community more accepting and embracing than I have found various parish communities including leadership.  What did happen for me, Deo Gratius indeed, is that as I journeyed along I came across nuns and priests, though not many at all, fully understanding and embracing, compassionate, of my plight back then.  What I had to do, needed to do, and eventually did do was to cease expecting acceptance etc. from my parish community then and to embrace and be thankful for those nuns and priests who did embrace me and my plight in every way.  They became my parish community, my family and my friends even though they were dispersed over a few parishes and some quite distant from me.

It seemed to me and still seems to me that The Church has all the right words to state re sufferers of mental illness and they are absolutely profound and enlightening words in every way, but my experience on the ground is that these thoughts are not put into action at parish level.  That is too much of a sweeping generalization because I know that there are parishes where those thoughts are put into action.  It is just that I have never experienced it in my journey, and I know I am not alone.

I had tremendous problems over my journey with Faith - faith in The Church as the human institution as applied in my particular parish.  What kept me Catholic was The Blessed Eucharist.  I could not and would not abandon Jesus and that led to my musings of Jesus as His Mystical Body The Church...........and that in turn led to my understanding that The Church on earth functions on two levels, on the human or natural level and on the supernatural level.  Those ponderings, in their own turn, led me to accept the human institution of The Church as faulted and weak, as all we humans are.  We are all broken creatures somewhere or other.  My journey into theology as applied theology to my journey all began because I could not and would not leave Jesus in The Blessed Eucharist - apart from that knowledge, I think I would have abandoned Catholicism long ago.

Just as I desire and expect even to be accepted and loved with all my failings and weaknesses, foibles.........so I in turn owe that to others including The Church in Her quite human functioning.

Until I shifted to my now parish a little over seven years ago, I never hid the fact that I suffered a mental illness; however in my parish now, I have gone back into the closet and kept it hidden largely.  Rather often the negative things that happen to us will mean that there is a lesson inherent in those circumstances we need to learn for our journey ahead.  And it is often very true that the lessons of history unlearnt are bound to be repeated.

Perhaps I will come out of the mental illness closet at some stage here in my current parish...........if and when I feel the time might seem to be right.

Deo Gratius

Laudate Dominum

..........the journey............

 

Pope says contact with Scripture

will bring you two qualities you might need today

HERE

 

[Guest]

THEOLOGY & THE SUFFERER OF MENTAL ILLNESS

Back in 2006 here in Adelaide, Cardinal Javier Lozano Barragán, president of the Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers, gave an address for The World Day of The Sick on sufferers of mental illness.  Much of that address was quite technical, or so it struck me, but the excerpt in the quote box below were more a combination of the sufferer of mental illness and our Catholic Theology.

It was an address that can convey to those who do suffer mental illness a sense of dignity and worth - and equally importantly completely sort out moral difficulties for them.  The problem probably is that the actual address and more importantly, the meaning of the Cardinal's address, did not reach the understanding of many sufferers at all.   Just as importantly, it is up to our communities in The Church to grasp the meaning of what the Cardinal is stating, take it to heart, and commit to overcoming the stigma of mental illness in The Church.

I appeal to the core principle of The Church's social thought, i.e. "subsidiarity" :- "The social teaching of the Church is based on the human person as the principle, subject and object of every social organization. Subsidiarity is one of the core principles of this teaching. This principle holds that human affairs are best handled at the lowest possible level, closest to the affected pesons." http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/what_you_need_to_know/?id=84

Cardinal Barragán's address was titled:

"The Mentally Ill Patient:

A Faithful Image

of God"

 

Quote

https://zenit.org/articles/the-mentally-ill-patient-a-faithful-image-of-god-2/

Excerpt only:

1. Mental Disorder in Christian Thought

In Christian thought it is said that these severe mental illnesses reduce man to sad conditions, like a deformed image of God, which is compared to the suffering servant of Isaiah (Isaiah 53:1-7). Yet, apart from that deformation, or rather due to it, the mentally ill person resembles our Lord on the cross; and since the cross is the only way to the resurrection, the mentally ill person, has so to say a superior level, is worthier and reaches such a level of excellence because of the magnitude of his love and the suffering he endures.

2. Is He a Deformed Image of God?

If the above holds true, I would like to move a step further and venture a statement that might shed light on the issue, from the point of view of moral theology. The statement is that: the mentally ill person is not a deformed image of God but, rather, a faithful image of God, our Lord.

Such a statement intuitively finds confirmation in the thought of our Lord when he says: “The Kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:21) and “what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles man” (Matthew 15:18). “For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, fornication, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a man” (Mark 7:20).

The Kingdom of God, the existence of the Holy Trinity in each one of us, may be found in our heart, the heart seen as the ultimate source of decisions that give form to our whole existence; not only that which was previously defined as the fundamental option, but also the whole meaning of this option, with all the actions we perform to realize it. In other words, the heart represents all our dynamism at the service of the mission that God has entrusted to us.

The Kingdom of God enters into the loving knowledge and in the decision made in the deepest intimacy of our person, which are then realized by the power of the Holy Spirit, who leads us by the hand like Children of God, and by the total collaboration that give form to our existence, according to the Law of God. If we want to separate from the Kingdom of God, we can do so only with an evil heart, to which Christ our Lord refers, and from which all the sins come.

3. Faithful Image of God

Therefore, once the mental illness has caused such a disorder as to take away from the mentally ill patient any responsibility for his actions — qualifying them as separation from the divine will, as a sin — the mental patient cannot separate from God.

In other words, the image of God in him cannot be distorted. In this case his knowledge or his volitive option is no longer sufficient to motivate any human action that separates him from God. His bodily and psychic conditions do not allow him to commit a grave sin, given that in his state of disequilibrium he does not have that full knowledge and ability of assent required to sin.

If we approach the argument from this point of view, whereby the mentally ill patient does not have the knowledge or the faculty of full consent required to commit a mortal sin, his is not a deformed image of God, since that image can only be deformed by sin. Certainly, it is the suffering image of God, but not a deformed image. He is a reflection of the mystery of the victorious Cross of the Lord. Inspired by the image of the Suffering Servant of Yahweh (Isaiah 53:1-7) we are drawn to a conscious act of faith in the suffering Christ.

It is not by chance that in the old popular Mexican language, a mad person was called “bandito,” that is, “blessed”; […] without the full use of reasoning, he was unable to commit sin and was, therefore, destined to eternal life.

It is true that the objective disorder of sin and its consequences are manifest in the mentally ill patient; however, at the same time, there is in him the historical equilibrium of the only possible order, the order and equilibrium of the Redemption.

This is not comprehensible to a secularized mentality; it is only understood within the context of Christian optimism, which stems from a reasoned faith that tells us how in such circumstances our obligations towards a mentally ill person, on one hand, satisfy our duty to see the suffering Christ in the poor and less protected; and on the other hand the idea of seeing in the patient the love of God who has indicated him as his chosen one, in the sense that he shall not be separated from Him.

He is therefore a proof of the crucified love of God. Hence, the best thing we can do is to give them a treatment of love. Since the mentally ill patient is also the image of the resurrected Christ, we have the obligation of being the “Good Samaritan,” that is, providing all that is necessary for his care.

We need to think about a series of treatments that should be devised to pull these patients out of the prostration that is all the more painful the deeper the psychic suffering is. In fact these patients often lose the sense of human relations and feel persecuted by a hostile surrounding environment; or the subjectivity of the environment disappears and for them people become many objects, or are indifferent or even real threats to their security.

Edited March 24, 2017 by BarbaraTherese

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