Fasting for Peace: because Pope Francis said so

As many of you know, our Holy Father, Pope Francis, has declared tomorrow (September 7th) as a day of fasting and prayer, for peace in Syria. I am an advocate of peace through strength, however, this is not a war that we Americans should be involved in, but this isn't a political post, so I will leave it at that. 

Fasting is becoming a lost treasure in the Church, and it is Divine Providence that Pope Francis is shifting attention to it*. To fast is to deny the body of what it desires, such as eating for example, and through this we are are doing many things. Not only are we disciplining our bodily senses, but also detaching our soul from the bodily senses, so that it may be free to embrace a higher spirituality.

Is fasting fun? No. Is it easy? No. Should we complain during fasts? Even bigger no. To grumble and gripe while fasting is a sure-sign that the individual is still very attached to their bodily senses. To have such an attitude is to also lose sight of the bigger picture, because we should be focusing on the interior life, instead of the discomforts of the exterior senses. 

 So instead of fasting like this...

"And when you fast, be not as the hypocrites, sad. For they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Amen I say to you, they have received their reward. But thou, when thou fastest anoint thy head and wash thy face; that thou appear not to men to fast, but to thy Father Who is in secret: and thy Father who seeth in secret, will repay thee." Matt. 6:16-18 (DR)

   

                         We should be fasting something like this....

So, let us embrace tomorrows fast with a spirit of willingness to suffer, for the sake of peace and glory to God the Father.

 "Besides the ordinary effect of fasting in raising the mind, subduing the flesh, confirming goodness, and obtaining a heavenly reward, it is also a great matter to be able to control greediness, and to keep the sensual appetites and the whole body subject to the law of the Spirit; and although we may be able to do but little, the enemy nevertheless stands more in awe of those whom he knows can fast." -St. Francis de Sales

Happy fasting!

Our Lady, Queen of Peace, 
St. Gabriel Possenti,
Mater Dolorosa, ora pro nobis.

-Yvonne Gemma 

*This isn't to say that Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI didn't put an emphasis on fasting, which he did strongly during Lent of 2009. 

September: the Mater Dolorosa

September has begun, so you know what that means. It's the month dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows! Being a Mater Dolorosa devotee, this is a very significant and distinct month. We should take this whole month to especially remember and meditate on Our Lady's Sorrows, specifically the seven the Church has appointed, although the true number of her dolors are innumerable. Her Seven Dolors are:

1. The Prophecy of Simeon
2. The Flight into Egypt
3. The loss of the Child Jesus in the Temple
4. Mary meets Jesus carrying His Cross
5. Jesus dies on the Cross
6. Mary receives the dead body of Jesus in her arms
7. The burial of Jesus

Our Lady promised St. Bridget of Sweden, that those who remember her sorrows and daily pray seven Hail Mary's in honor of them, will be granted seven promises. 

1. "I will grant peace to their families."
2. "They will be enlightened about the divine mysteries."
3. "I will console them in their pains and accompany them in their work."
4. "I will give them as much as they ask for, as long as it does not oppose the adorable will of my divine Son and or the sanctification of their souls."
5. "I will defend them in their spiritual battles with the infernal enemy and I will protect them at every instant of their lives."
6. "I will visibly help them at the moment of their death, they will see the face of their mother."
7. "I have obtained this grace from my divine Son, that those who propagate this devotion to my tears and dolors will be taken directly from this earthly life to eternal happiness, since all their sins will be forgiven and my Son will be their eternal consolation and joy."

While Our Lord suffered greatly during His Passion, His mother suffered a lifelong, grievous martyrdom which began at the First Sorrow, the Prophecy of Simeon. 

"And Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His mother: Behold this child is set for the fall, and resurrection of many in Israel, and for a sign which shall be contradicted; and thy own soul a sword shall pierce, that out of many hearts, thoughts may be revealed." -Luke 2:34-35 (DR)

For this reason, Our Lady is the Queen of Martyrs, because no other martyr suffered like our dear Mother. In the images of Our Lady of Sorrows, her heart is usually depicted being pierced by either one, or seven swords. Each sword represents one of her sorrows, which traces back to Simeon's prophecy. One cannot fully fathom the intense pain Our Lady felt as each sword thrust deeper into her heart, as she anticipated her Son's dolorous Passion, until the moment of His burial. How desolate and afflicted Our Lady must have been. Yet, even through her acute sorrows, she never once despaired, but rather, she remained constant. The whole time, her hope was in her beloved Son. From her perfect resignation to the will of God, even in times of distress, Our Lady teaches us how to perfectly die to ourselves, for the sake of His Divine Providence.

Fr. Chad Ripperger gave a very contemplative and insightful talk on Our Lady of Sorrows. I spent two hours listening to this one hour talk, because I had to keep pausing to reflect on his words. In short, listen to this talk to further know and love Our Sorrowful Mother.

Mater Dolorosa, ora pro nobis,

St. Gabriel Possenti, ora pro nobis,

-Yvonne Gemma

Heaven's Jubilee: the Assumption

Happy feast of the Assumption! It is indeed a Holy Day of Obligation, so yes, you have to go to mass. It is also a very important Marian feast day. Applying papal infallibility, on November 1st, 1950, in the Encyclical Munificentissimus Deus, Pope Pius XII stated that the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a dogma of the Church. Within Holy Mother Church, there are doctrines and dogmas. While they sound alike, they actually differ. A doctrine would be an official Church teaching, such as transubstantiation or the Communion of Saints. On the other holy-hand, a dogma is an article of faith that has been revealed by God, which Holy Mother Church presents as obligatory to believe. There are four Marian dogmas; the Assumption is one the them, along with her Divine Motherhood, Perpetual Virginity and Immaculate Conception. Our Blessed Mother was blessed bearing the truths of these four dogmas, because as the dogma of the Immaculate Conception reveals, she was completely preserved from all stain of Original Sin. Therefore, Our Blessed Mother was perfectly pure and holy in every way. It is fitting that one so clean and undefiled would carry the Son of God, the Word made Flesh; Jesus Christ, in her sacred womb and also be graced to be taken, body and soul, to Heaven, where nothing unclean enters. (See Rev. 21:27)

"the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary,
having completed the course of her earthly life,
was assumed, body and soul, into heavenly glory."
-Munificentissimus Deus

This day should be a celebration of love for the Blessed Mother and awe at the mighty works of God Almighty. How good and loving is Our Lord to have protected Our Blessed Mother from the bodily corruption that naturally follows after death. One cannot fully fathom the joy of Mother and Son being reunited for all eternity, as their Hearts beat as one. Another subject to meditate on is the jubilee which followed Immaculate Mary's entrance into Heaven; my thought of it is all nine choirs of angels singing and flying everywhere, while the Son embraces His Mother. As she is now in Heaven with God the Father, Her Son, and her spouse the Holy Spirit, she became our powerful yet gentle Queen, Mother, Advocate and Intercessor. 24 hours is not long enough to give all of the praise and thanksgiving the Feast of the Assumption totally deserves. However, while the feast itself cannot be prolonged (August 15th doesn't last forever), it can still be kept alive in our hearts by daily honoring Our Blessed Mother and giving thanks and praise to Our mighty God. 

On a side note, I am at the beginning of my Marian consecration to Our Lady of Sorrows, which will end on the September 15th, her solemnity. I would greatly appreciate prayers for perseverance and a fruitful consecration!

I sincerely hope that you have a joyous feast day with an increase of love for Our Blessed Mother! Salve Regina!

                    


Mater Dolorosa, ora pro nobis,
-Yvonne Gemma

Another One about Chastity

Happy feast of St. Dominic! Founder of the Dominican Order and patron of astronomers, pray for us! Our Lady gifted us with the Holy Rosary through him, so a wonderful way to celebrate his feast day would be to faithfully and devoutly pray one rosary, or two, or three. There's a huge difference between saying the rosary, and actually praying it. I have found that much more graces come from praying it, instead of flying through the beads. Concerning the rosary and Dominicans, Pope Pius XI said, "The Rosary of Mary is the principle and foundation on which the very Order of St. Dominic rests for making perfect the life of its members and obtaining the salvation of others."

St. Dominic, ora pro nobis!

Today's topic is emotional chastity. While we apply chastity to the flesh and our actions, it can also be applied to our emotions. Remember that chastity is not repression, nor is it the absence of carnal desires. Like I've said in my previous post about chastity, it is also not about being physically unattractive or having a neurotic outlook on the opposite gender. One of my favorite organizations, Made In His Image, defines chastity as, "the ordered approach to love." As the ordered approach to love, it calls for what it best for the beloved. I may have said it before, but chastity frees love to be authentic. To be physically chaste is one thing, but to be emotionally chaste is another. We all have emotions, and emotions are meant to be felt. However, we should not be entirely dictated by our emotions, because they are fleeting and can easily change from one way to another. This is where chastity comes in. Chastity allows us to control our emotions and desires, instead of letting them control us. 

Just as we use chastity to guard our most intimate beings, mind and heart, it can also be used to guard our emotions, which comes back around to guarding our hearts. One way of being emotionally chaste is to not begin fantasizing or imagining things about a person, whether it is sexual or not, because the bottom line is that the said person is being reduced to an object to be used. In plainer words, it is objectifying them. While some imaginings may be innocent, such as a handsome man bringing a single girl flowers or in more extreme cases, imagining what their children would look like, it is nonetheless objectifying the man, because whether she knows it or not, the woman is seeing him as a means to fulfill her emotional needs, and no longer as a whole person. Men can also fall into this trap, but in a different way, because they were created to be very visual. One solution is to remember/realize that every single person walking this earth has a soul, heart and mind, and they were not meant or created to be objectified, as if they were an inanimate object. Going back to our definition of love, objectifying the person is not what is best for them because it is depriving them of their humanity, so it is not chastely loving them. 

Emotional chastity also has relevance to our relationships with others. In a sense, to be chaste is to preserve a special part of ourselves that is only meant for one; either for your spouse, or for Christ, depending on what vocation you are called to. When we are emotionally unchaste, while we are not physically giving away ourselves, we are doing this emotionally. This is not healthy and can lead to heartaches, if we are unwise with the use of our emotions. Yes, we can have (chaste) relationships with others, because man is not meant to be alone, but we should go at it in a way that recognizes the dignity of ourselves and of the person next to us, as children of God.

Physical chastity demands discipline and the virtue of fortitude. Its emotional counterpart also requires these, but rather in the mind and thoughts. By practicing emotional chastity not only are we guarding our hearts, but also our souls. Through both physical, mental and emotional chastity; the virtue of chastity as a whole, we are opening the door for pure and authentic love to waltz in, of course in our Heavenly Father's time. Think about it; if nobody has regretted being chaste, why would anyone regret being emotionally chaste?
The ability to love is one of the sweetest gifts God has given us. Chastity is what trains and prepares us to give and receive the authentic love I have been speaking of. While practicing chastity may be difficult today or tomorrow, I can promise you that in His time, when your vocation is all figured out, and you are where you are meant to be, the struggles and triumphs will be worth it. Even in the now of things, it also greatly improves your relationships with others, both male and female. It's an armor of the mind. A perfect model of this virtue is St. Joseph, Our Blessed Mother's most chaste spouse. Through his example, we can draw inspiration and strength to fight the good fight, and come out victorious in Christ. 

I understand the struggle of remaining chaste in this modern society, but be rest assured that my prayers are with you. More importantly, all of Heaven is cheering you on. Go, be chaste and if you fall, get back up and try again! Remember that there is no such thing as too much perseverance. 

St. Joseph, pray for us,
Mater Dolorosa, ora pro nobis,
-Yvonne Gemma

-End of actual post, other small tidbits here-

I'm preparing to begin school again very soon, (senior year, class of '14). Although I don't have senioritis, I'm looking forward to graduating high school. I'm hoping to keep busy without becoming stressed out this year, since idleness can be spiritually dangerous. Please pray for me!