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Ave Maria Meditations

How Friar Leo saw a terrible vision in a dream

ONCE, in a dream, Friar Leo beheld a vision of the making ready of the Divine judgment. He beheld the Angels making music with trumpets and divers instruments, and calling together a marvellous great crowd in a meadow. And on one side of the meadow was set a ladder all rosy red, which reached from earth even unto heaven, and on the other side of the meadow was set another ladder all white, which descended from heaven to earth. On the top of the red ladder, Christ appeared a Lord offended and exceeding wrath. And St. Francis was nigh unto Christ but a few steps lower down; and he came farther down the ladder, and with a loud voice and great fervour called and said: “Come ye, my friars, come confidently, fear not, come, draw nigh unto the Lord, for He calleth you”. At the voice of St. Francis and at his bidding, the friars went and climbed up the red ladder with great confidence. And, when they were all thereon, some fell off the third step, and some off the fourth step, others off the fifth and the sixth; and at the last all fell, so that there remained not one upon the ladder. And so great ruin of his friars, St. Francis, as a pitiful father, was moved to compassion, and besought the Judge for his sons, that He would receive them to His mercy. And Christ showed His wounds all bloody, and said unto St. Francis: “This have thy friars done unto Me”.

And St. Francis delayed not, but, even as he interceded, came down certain steps, and cried unto the friars that were fallen from the red ladder and said: “Come ye, rise up, my sons and friars, be of good courage and despair not, but run to the white ladder and climb up it, for by it ye shall be received into the Kingdom of Heaven; run, friars, through paternal admonishment, to the white ladder”. And on the top of the ladder appeared the glorious Virgin Mary, the Mother of Jesus Christ, all pitiful and kind, and welcomed those friars; and without any difficulty they entered into the eternal kingdom. To the praise of Christ. Amen.

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Ave Maria Meditations

The Graces of Saint Joseph 

There is a general rule concerning all special graces granted to any human being. Whenever the divine favor chooses someone to receive a special grace, or to accept a lofty vocation, God adorns the person with all the gifts of the Spirit needed to fulfill the task at hand. This general rote is especially verified in the case of Saint Joseph, the foster-father of Our Lord and the husband of the Queen of our world, enthroned above the angels.

He was chosen by the eternal Father as the trustworthy guardian and protector of his greatest treasures, namely, his divine Son and Mary, Joseph’s wife. He carried out this vocation with complete fidelity until at last God called him, saying: Good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Lord.

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Ave Maria Meditations

 “The Heart of My Mother has a right to be called Sorrowful and I wish this title to be placed before that of Immaculate because she has won it herself. The Church has defined in the case of My Mother what I Myself had ordained—her Immaculate Conception. This right which My Mother has to a title of justice is now, according to My express wish, to be known and universally accepted. She has earned it by her identification with My sorrows, by her sufferings, by her sacrifices and by her immolation on Calvary, endured in perfect correspondence with My grace for the salvation of mankind.

In her co-redemption lies the nobility of My Mother and for this reason I ask for the invocation which I have demanded be approved and spread throughout the whole Church. It has already obtained many graces; it will obtain yet more when the Church will be exalted and the world renewed through its consecration to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of My Mother.”

 ‘Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us.’

Words given on Sept. 8, 1910 recorded in the book “The Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, Messages of Berthe Petit, Franciscan Tertiary (1870-1943)”                   Nihil Obstat Daniel Duivesteijn, S.T.D.; Imprimatur Bernard Cardinal Griffin, Archiepus Westmonasterii.

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Ave Maria Meditations

On Living for ‘something greater”: But if you wish to know how these things come about, ask for grace not instruction; desire not understanding; the groaning of prayer, not diligent reading; the Spouse not the teacher; God not man; darkness not clarity; not light but the fire that totally inflames and carries us into God by ecstatic unctions and burning affections.

This fire is God, and his furnace is in Jerusalem and Christ enkindles it in the heat of his burning passion, which only he truly perceives who says: My soul chooses hanging and my bones death. Whoever loves this death can see God because it is true beyond doubt that man will not see Him and live.  (more…)

Fi News #124 – The community at Mt St Francis with Fr. Gabriele ( 02min) >>> Play

Ave Maria!

On December 15th, Feast of Our Lady Queen of the Seraphic Order, six young men were clothed (or “invested”) in the habit of St. Francis at our friary in New York. The rough, cruciform tunic is an outward expression of the form of life they desire to follow: that of Jesus Christ, poor, humble and crucified. The color grey (unbeknownst to many) is the original color worn by the sons of St. Francis. The blue tint of the fabric expresses their desire to live as the possession and property of Our Lady, battling for the salvation of souls beneath her Blue Mantle.
The investiture in the “habit of probation” marks one of the first steps in their vocational journey. God willing, this journey will take them to novitiate, then to their first profession of vows, and finally to perpetual profession.
Please remember these young men in your prayers, that Our Lord and Lady may bring to completion the good work begun in their souls.

Ave Maria!

Fr. Gabriele’s homily from the Mass immediately preceding this video is available here.

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Ave Maria Meditations

Saint Francis’ Greetings to the Blessed Virgin:

Hail, Lady and Queen,  holy Mary, Mother of God,
Virgin who became the Church,
chosen by the Father in heaven,
consecrated by His beloved Son
and His Spirit, the Comforter:
in you was and remains,
the whole fullness of grace
and everything that is good. 

Hail, His palace,
Hail, His tabernacle,
Hail, His dwelling,
Hail, His robe,
Hail, His handmaid,
Hail, His mother! (more…)

Ave Maria Meditations

 JOY!  Here is a meditation for this joy filled season of Advent:

The pleasure, satisfaction, contentment, rest and happiness experienced as a result of the possession of basic human good. Christ is seen as the cause of all authentic Christian joy because He fulfills the Old Testament promises, brings forgiveness, grace, truth and divine love. Joy for the Christian is result of chari­table actions, forgiveness for sin and life under the promise of redemption and salvation. (more…)

Ave Maria Meditations

Litany of St. Elizabeth of Hungary
Protector, Third Order Franciscan

Lord, have mercy upon us. Christ, have mercy upon us. Lord, have mercy upon us.
O Christ, hear us. O Christ, graciously hear us.

O God the Father, of heaven: have mercy upon us.
O God the Son, Redeemer of the world: O God, the Holy Ghost: O Holy Trinity, one God: have mercy upon us.

Holy Mary: Pray for us. Immaculate Virgin: Mother and Mistress of our Order: Pray for us.

St. Elizabeth, Princess of Hungary: Pray for us. St. Elizabeth, Duchess of Thuringia: Pray for us.
St. Elizabeth, queen in the Kingdom of God: Pray for us.
St. Elizabeth, consoler of sinners: Pray for us. (more…)

Ave Maria Meditations

Heavenly Father, You filled John Duns Scotus with wisdom, and through his life and teaching gave us a witness of Your Incarnate love. May we come to understand more deeply what he taught so that we may live in ever growing charity.  

Prayer for the Canonization of Blessed John Duns Scotus:

O Most High, Almightily and gracious Lord, Who exalts the humble and confounds the proud of heart, grant us the great joy of seeing Blessed John Duns Scotus canonized. He honored Your Son with the most sublime praises; he was the first to successfully defend the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary; he lived in heroic obedience to the Holy Father, to the Church and to the Seraphic Order. O most holy Father, God of infinite love, hear, we beseech You, our humble prayer, thorough the merits of Your Only-Begotten Son and His Mother, the Gate of Heaven and Spouse of the Holy Spirit.

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“Blessed be the penances which earned me such glory!” These were the words of St. Peter of Alcântara when, after his death, he appeared to St. Teresa of Avila telling her what had been reserved for him in Heaven.

Of the Fruit to be Derived from Prayer and Meditation:  Since this short treatise speaks of prayer and meditation, it will be well to state in a few words what is the fruit which may be derived from this holy exercise, so that men may give themselves to it with more willing heart.   It is a well known fact (more…)

Ave Maria Meditations

O Most Holy Our Father: Creator,  Redeemer, Consoler and Our Savior. 

Who art in Heaven:  in the Angels and in the Saints; enlightening them unto knowledge, because Thou, Lord, art Light, inflaming them unto love, because Thou, Lord, art Love; indwelling and filling them unto blessedness, because Thou, Lord, art the Highest Good, the Eternal One, from whom is every good, without whom nothing is good.

Hallowed be Thy Name: may the knowledge of Thee in us be made bright, so that we may know what is the breadth of Thy benefactions, the length of Thy promises, the sublimity of Thy Majesty and the depth of Thy judgments. 

Thy Kingdom come: so that Thou may reign in us by grace and make us come unto Thy Kingdom, where vision of Thee is made manifest, love of Thee made perfect, company with Thee blessed, enjoyment of Thee everlasting. (more…)

Ave Maria Meditations

St. Padre Pio’s prayer after Holy Communion:

 Stay with me, Lord, for it is necessary to have You present so that I do not forget You. You know how easily I abandon You.

Stay with me, Lord, because I am weak and I need Your strength, that I may not fall so often.

Stay with me, Lord, for You are my life, and without You, I am without fervor.

Stay with me, Lord, for You are my light, and without You, I am in darkness.

Stay with me, Lord, to show me Your will.

Stay with me, Lord, so that I hear Your voice and follow You.

Stay with me, Lord, for I desire to love You very much, and always be in Your company.

Stay with me, Lord, if You wish me to be faithful to You.

Stay with me, Lord, for as poor as my soul is, I wish it to be a place of consolation for You, a nest of Love.

Stay with me, Jesus, for it is getting late and the day is coming to a close, and life passes, death, judgement, eternity approaches. It is necessary to renew my strength, so that I will not stop along the way and for that, I need You. It is getting late and death approaches. I fear the darkness, the temptations, the dryness, the cross, the sorrows. O how I need You, my Jesus, in this night of exile!  Stay with me tonight, Jesus, in life with all its dangers, I need You.

Let me recognize You as Your disciples did at the breaking of bread, so that the Eucharistic Communion be the light which disperses the darkness, the force which sustains me, the unique joy of my heart.

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Ave Maria Meditations

Lord, I ask you for two graces before I die:  to experience in myself, as much as possible, the sufferings of your cruel Passion, and to feel for you the same love that drove you to sacrifice yourself for us.

My Lord Jesus Christ, I beg thee to grant me two graces before my death:  first, that for the rest of my life I may experience in my soul and in my body, as much as possible, the same pain that you suffered,  O sweet Jesus, during the time of thy most cruel Passion; and second, that I may feel in my heart, as much as possible, the same love which inflamed thee, the Son of God, and led thee to suffer thy passion gladly for us sinners.

+ St. Francis of Assisi

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On Holiness and Suffering for Christ:

In other parts of the world our brothers in Christ are suffering for their faith.   And here we are at ease, just undergoing a slight test and dividing our loyalty between Christ and the world.  We must realize in minds and hearts that this is a new age, that we will have to be a creative minority, and that the only argument that is left to convince others is holiness. The world has heard every other argument, and it is ready to reject them all, all except one: holiness

+ Servant of God, Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

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Ave Maria Meditations

Today is the Feast of the Patron of the Third Order of St. Francis, St. Louis the King.  He lived his faith with conviction and publicly.  Here is a meditation on this topic  from a modern Franciscan who is presently the Archbishop of Denver and soon to be the Archbishop of Philadelphia:

“Speak in the light”

Cardinal Henri de Lubac: once wrote that “It is not true … that man cannot organize the world without God. What is true is that, without God, [man] can ultimately only organize it against man. Exclusive humanism is inhuman humanism … ”

Living within the truth means (more…)

Ave Maria Meditations

St. Clare of Assisi: Feast Day is August 11th