Devotion to Our Lady |
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READ THE "UNPUBLISHED MANUSCRIPT ON PURGATORY"
CLICK HERE OR ON THE BOOK COVER TO GO TO THE APPROPRIATE PAGE At the expressed desire of the Directors of the Bulletin Notre Dame de la Bonne Mort (Our Lady of the Good Death), this pamphlet is published with all the reservations ordered by the Church in the decree of Pope Urban VIII, and as a purely historical document. It was sent to that periodical by a zealous and devout missionary and is a pious document based on alleged conversations between a nun and a soul in Purgatory. This manuscript contains very interesting statements about the life beyond the grave, particularly about Purgatory. The details are intermingled with much spiritual direction. Its authenticity is beyond doubt. A nun, identified for us merely as Sister M. de L. C., of a convent at V., without warning began to hear prolonged sighs beside her. This was in November 1873. She cried out, “Oh, who are you, you frighten me. Whatever you do, don’t show yourself. Tell me, who are your?” No answer was forthcoming. The sighs continued and even came nearer. In vain did the poor Sister multiply her prayers, communions, ways of the cross, and rosaries. The sighs did not cease and remained unexplained until February 15, 1874, when a voice she recognized was heard saying: “Do not be afraid, you will not see me in my sufferings. I am Sister M. G.” Sister M. G. was a nun who had died at V., a victim to devotion and duty, February 22nd, 1871, at the age of 36.
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PRAY MORE, PLAY LESS
Poster available in THREE sizes 1. PDF 8.5 inches by 11 inches 2. PDF 11 inches by 17 inches 3. PDF 13 inches by 19 inches (click here) to go to downloads page |
THE HOLY SOUL-UTION TO YOUR PROBLEMS!
Poster available in THREE sizes 1. Adobe PDF 8.5 inches by 11 inches 2. Adobe PDF 11 inches by 17 inches 3. Adobe PDF 13 inches by 19 inches (click here) to go to downloads page |
SHAME ON YOU!
Poster available in THREE sizes 1. PDF 8.5 inches by 11 inches 2. PDF 11 inches by 17 inches 3. PDF 13 inches by 19 inches (click here) to go to downloads page |
OUR LADY OF MONTSERRAT (SPAIN)
In Spain, Mount Montserrat has been dedicated to the veneration of Mary, Our Lady of Montserrat. It is a mountain standing alone, ten leagues from Barcelona, which was, according to the celebrated naturalist Humboldt, the great Atlas of the ancients, at the foot of which the fine kingdom of Valencia displayed the golden apples of the garden of the Hesperides. This mountain, which owed its name of Monte Serrats (sawed mountain) to its extraordinary form, seems as if composed of inlaid work, which makes it look as if divided and covered with spiral cones, or pine cones; so that it appears, from afar, to have been the work of men. At a distance, Montserrat is a pile of grottoes and Gothic pyramids; when near, each cone appears a mountain by itself; and all the cones, terminated by needles, or points, which make a great noise when the wind blows, form an enormous mass of about five leagues in circumference. It was probably this singular conformation that led to the invention of the fable of the giants, who had heaped mountain upon mountain to scale the heavens. It is on a platform of his celebrated mountain that the superb convent has been built, dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, which is one of the most celebrated pilgrimages of Christendom. An inscription, of the year 1239, preserved in the convent above a large picture of the same period, thus records the foundation of this fine monastery: “In the year 808, under the government of the Count of Barcelona, Geoffry le Velu, three young shepherds having one night seen a great light descend from the sky, and heard melodious music in the air, informed their relations of it. The bailiff and the Bishop of Mauresa having repaired, with all these people, to the spot which they pointed out, saw likewise the light from heaven, and after some search, they discovered the image of the Blessed Virgin, which they wanted to remove to Mauresa; but, being come to the place where the monastery now stands, they could not advance any farther. This prodigy induced the Count of Barcelona to build a convent of women there, from which he took the nuns of the royal abbey of Las Puellas of Barcelon; the first abbess of Our Lady of Montserrat was his daughter Richilda, who took possession of it about the year 895. This community of nuns subsisted until about the year 976, when the Count of Barcelona, Borrell, with the consent of the pope, placed Benedictine monks at Montserrat.” The convent of Montserrat is a grand and noble edifice, situated on a platform very confined, and projecting from the mountain, which bears the name of Saint Mary’s platform; enormous rocks project above it, which seem every moment ready to fall; it is defended by the steep points of the mountain, as by natural fortifications, and on the accessible side by six strong towers. Besides the church of Our Lady, the fortified enclosure contains a house of entertainment for travelers, a hospital, and an infirmary. The church of Our Lady of Montserrat his only a nave, but is nevertheless very spacious; the stalls of the choir are of very remarkable workmanship. The image of the Blessed Virgin, Our Lady of Montserrat, has a face almost black, like those of Toledo and Guadeloupe, and many others which are visited in Spain; it is painted all over, and represented in an advanced age; though very brown, the face is graceful: she is seated on a seat made in the form of a throne, and holds in her right had a globe, from which springs a fleur de lis, while she supports with the other hand the Infant Jesus, seated on her lap, giving a blessing with his right hand, and holding in the other a globe, surmounted by a cross. The inhabitants of the mountain, divided into four classes, namely, monks, hermits, choristers, and lay brothers, succeed each other uninterruptedly in their prayers. The arrangement of the places is such, that from several of the hermitages the chanting of the monastery is heard, and the sound of the bells of the different hermits, repeated by the echoes, is united in the turnings and anfractuousness of the mountains. From the summit of Montserrat, the kingdoms of Valentia and Murcia are seen, and even as far as the Belaric Isles, which forms the finest prospect in the world. Princes and kings of Spain often climbed on foot the steep path which leads to the altar of Our Lady of Montserrat, and innumerable captives came there to hang up the chains which they had worn among the Moors. Saint Ignatius of Loyola, before he devoted his life to religion, came thither to watch his arms, according to the usages and customs of that old chivalry, of which his head was then full. After passing the night in prayer, and solemnly dedicating himself to Our Lady of Montserrat as her knight, according to the warlike ideas which he still had in his mind, and under which he conceived the things of God, says F. Bouhours, his historian, he hung up his sword on a pillar near the altar, in token of his renunciation of secular warfare; then, after communicating early in the morning, he left Montserrat. |
OUR LADY OF THE ROCK OF
FIESOLA (TUSCANY, ITALY)
The Abbot Orsini wrote: “Our Lady of the Rock, in the territory of Fiezoli, in Tuscany. This image is placed in a rock, where two shepherds retired to pray; Our Lady ordered them to build a church in this place.” The town of Fiezoli was originally Etruscan before the Roman Sulla settled it as a reward for his veterans. In the year 539 the Byzantine general Justinus captured the town and had it razed to the very foundations. The town came back over time, however, as by the Middle Ages it was actually more prosperous and influential than neighboring Florence, until it was sacked by the Florentines in 1025 and its nobles induced to change their residence to Florence. According to local legend, the Gospel was first preached at Fiesola (in the province of Tuscany, Italy) by Saint Romulus, a disciple of Saint Peter during the days of the Christian persecutions. Proof of that is the fact that the ancient cathedral stands outside the city walls. The cathedral of Saint Romulus was built in 1028 by Bishop James Bavaro with materials taken from several other edifices – hence, the shrine took the name Our Lady of the Rock. The little church, now known as the Cathedral or Duomo of Saint Romolo, is in the cathedral square – called the shrine of the Primerana – is the one dedicated to Our Lady. It was then enlarged in 1260, and again the following century. The bell tower dates from the year 1213. The cathedral contains sculptures by Mino da Fiesole, and the old cathedral was once a Benedictine abbey and had a large library, though that has long since been dispersed to other locations. The abbey closed in 1778. Among other apparitions, too numerous to mention, is the one in which Mary warned Saint Andrew Corsini of his approaching death. During his lifetime, our Blessed Mother obtained from her Divine Son for Andrew the gifts of prophecy, miracles of healing, the conquest of hardened souls and many other conversions. The cathedral of Fiesola is the resting place of a long list of saints and illustrious churchmen, all of whom were devout clients of Our Lady. |
ST. RAPHAEL ARCHANGEL POSTER
(feast day today: October 24th) Click on the St. Raphael poster alongside to go to the DOWNLOADS page. Scroll down and look under "ANGEL POSTERS" Available in THREE sizes (1) Letter Size ( 8.5 inches x 11 inches) (2) Tabloid Size (11 inches x 17 inches) (3) Super Photo Size (13 inches x 19 inches) |
Poster for October 13th FATIMA MIRACLE OF THE SUN Poster available in TWO sizes only 1. Adobe PDF 11 inches by 17 inches 2. Adobe PDF 13 inches by 19 inches (click here) to go to downloads page |
WHICH GROUP DO YOU BELONG TO?
Poster available in LETTER size only (click here) to go to downloads page (1) A PDF poster measuring 11 x 8.5 inches (Letter Size) Our thorn-crowned Savior stands alone
His "faithful" followers have all away flown The banner of the Cross is unfurled Yet they prefer the banner of the world No prayer, or penance, or sacrifice is found As the worldlings prefer to flock around The allurements that the world presents Making Hell rejoice, while Heaven laments Blindly they follow the broad wide road Seeking fun, rejecting the Cross and its load For pleasure and wealth is before their eyes Blinding them to their ultimate demise |
HOW MANY ROSARY ROUNDS FIRED?
Poster available in THREE sizes (1) A PDF poster measuring 11 x 8.5 inches (Letter Size) (2) A PDF poster measuring 17 x 11 inches (Tabloid Size) (3) A PDF poster measuring 19 x 13 inches (Super Photo Size) Praying like a machine-gun may be fun,
But with fast prayers battles are seldom won! Yet victory needs bullets to fly through the air. Likewise the Church's triumph needs lots of prayer. In war a soldier fights more than just ten minutes a day Soldiers of Christ must force themselves much more to pray. |
ANGEL COP SPEEDING TICKET
Poster available in THREE sizes (1) A PDF poster measuring 11 x 8.5 inches (Letter Size) (2) A PDF poster measuring 17 x 11 inches (Tabloid Size) (3) A PDF poster measuring 19 x 13 inches (Super Photo Size) Do you have a license to pray?
Or do you wing it every day? The Rules of Prayer do you heed? Or do you disregard them as you speed? Prayer can be a matter of life and death So don't blurt out prayers in one single breath! He who prays well, also lives well But he who prays badly may end up in ....! |
CHAINED TO THE WORLD
Poster available in THREE sizes (1) A PDF poster measuring 11 x 8.5 inches (Letter Size) (2) A PDF poster measuring 17 x 11 inches (Tabloid Size) (3) A PDF poster measuring 19 x 13 inches (Super Photo Size) Our Lord came the world to save
Yet we make ourselves of the world a slave! The Kingdom of God we first should seek, Yet most seek the world all through the week! We gorge on the world with appetite unrestrained, Until the prince of the world has us entangled and chained! |
A saint who is sad, is indeed a sad saint!
Yet if your god is your belly, a saint you ain't! A bit of humor with a little truth, Can help us change, as we grow long in the sweet tooth! Many a true word can be said in jest, If their goal is to bring out of us our best! Faith grows dim when we God no longer seek; And that, in turn, makes our love of God weak! For we were made to love God with all our heart! Yet today God is forsaken and many from Him depart! When man turns from God to material things, Inevitably chastisement this brings! |
Crosswords can be a fun way of reminding ourselves of what we already know and also learning new facts that we did not know. We hope to regularly post crosswords that deal with a variety of aspects concerning Our Lady: her life, her apparitions, her messages and devotion to her in general. We hope you find time over your favorite snack or drink to tackle these not-too-difficult crosswords.
You can download each crossword in an Adobe PDF format (which will include the blank crossword, the clues and a filled-in crossword showing the correct answers; or you can print the crossword from what you see online, that is on your computer screen (which will include the blank crossword and the clues, BUT NO ANSWERS, as the answers will be posted a day or two later. Enjoy! Ave Maria! (CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE CROSSWORD PUZZLE PAGE) |