Pat invited me along for a load so that we can catch up on our day. Sharing our large family with all that goes along with it keeps us prayerful and occupied in their lives. Words from Pope Benedict XVI today in his meditation on this Feast of the Archangels really spoke to me! "Precisely in catastrophic situations he can suddenly break in, if I am awake and if someone helps me decipher the message."
Pat and I certainly experience over and over the Lord entering a catastrophic situation over the years.... John's cancer, Patrick's traumatic birth, numerous losses during our childbearing years, and other times...
Family Soul Story - Choose Life!: Our marriage stories - "The world needs LIGHTS!"
Family Soul Story - Choose Life!: John's cancer stories
Family Soul Story - Choose Life!: The story of little Lamb - grandson Patrick
I look at John's battle against brain cancer, and recall how helpless we were - We had no choice but to give the control over to Jesus through Mary and Trust! Bishop LeVoir wrote us on our caringbridge site to remind us to "Repeat these words in times of distress, 'Jesus, we trust in you.' " Since this has become our constant prayer for all that comes our way!
There is so much evil all around us! The normalization of taking innocent human life if we are inconvenienced to welcome a life into this world up to birth. The evil that is just a mouse click away on our phones or computers. It can become very depressing and sad to know that we are looked down upon if we are moral people that hate the sin, but love the sinner. Yes, sin involves living out a same sex lifestyle! It is sinful to live out a homosexual lifestyle -no matter how much we are fed the lie that this is according to God's plan for same sex physical love it is not! It is just as sinful, however, to cohabitate with a person before marriage, and to have sex outside of marriage . Cohabitation is not a natural progression step to take to see if two people are compatible for marriage. How Satan laughs at our taking the world's lies as truth!
With this heaviness in my heart at the evil that Satan is calling right, and good, and truth... how wonderful to have this special feast day today devoted to St Michael, St Raphael , and St Gabriel - the Archangels, who are there to take on the work and war against Evil!!!!
The stirring Revelations story of St Michael fighting Satan and winning!!
War broke out in heaven;
Michael and his angels battled against the dragon.
The dragon and its angels fought back,
but they did not prevail
and there was no longer any place for them in heaven.
The huge dragon, the ancient serpent,
who is called the Devil and Satan,
who deceived the whole world,
was thrown down to earth,
and its angels were thrown down with it.
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
“Now have salvation and power come,
and the Kingdom of our God
and the authority of his Anointed.
For the accuser of our brothers is cast out,
who accuses them before our God day and night.
They conquered him by the Blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
love for life did not deter them from death.
Therefore, rejoice, you heavens,
and you who dwell in them.” Revelations 27
I am lifted up and given HOPE by the knowledge of St Michael there for us to fight our battles against evil! This prayer is on our hearts, minds and souls as we fight the good fight!
Family Soul Story - Choose Life!: The amazing story of the 13 becoming Catholic!
From the Office of Readings today - iBreviary
From the book of Revelation
12:1-17a
Michael’s battle with the dragon
A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. Because she was with child, she wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth. Then another sign appeared in the sky: it was a huge dragon, flaming red, with seven heads and ten horns; on his heads were seven diadems. His tail swept a third of the stars from the sky and hurled them down to the earth.
Then the dragon stood before the woman about to give birth, ready to devour her child when it should be born. She gave birth to a son—a boy destined to shepherd all the nations with an iron rod. Her child was caught up to God and to his throne. The woman herself fled into the desert, where a special place had been prepared for her by God; there she was taken care of for twelve hundred and sixty days.
Then war broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels battled against the dragon. Although the dragon and his angels fought back, they were overpowered and lost their place in heaven. The huge dragon, the ancient serpent known as the devil or Satan, the seducer of the whole world, was driven out; he was hurled down to earth and his minions with him.
Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
“Now have salvation and power come,
the reign of our God and the authority of his Anointed One.
For the accuser of our brothers is cast out,
who night and day accused them before our God.
They defeated him by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
love for life did not deter them from death.
So rejoice, you heavens,
and you that dwell therein!
But woe to you, earth and sea,
for the devil has come down upon you!
His fury knows no limits,
for he knows his time is short.”
When the dragon saw that he had been cast down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the boy. But the woman was given the wings of a gigantic eagle so that she could fly off to her place in the desert, where, far from the serpent, she could be taken care of for a year and for two and a half years more. The serpent, however, spewed a torrent of water out of his mouth to search out the woman and sweep her away. The earth then came to the woman’s rescue by opening its mouth and swallowing the flood which the dragon spewed out of his mouth.
Enraged at her escape, the dragon went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep God’s commandments and give witness to Jesus.
RESPONSORY
See Revelation 12:7, 10; 19:1
There was silence in heaven when the dragon fought with Michael the archangel.
– Then I heard a loud voice crying out:
Salvation, glory and power belong to the almighty God.
Now salvation and power have come;
the reign of our God and the authority of Christ are at hand.
– Then I heard a loud voice crying out:
Salvation, glory and power belong to the almighty God.
SECOND READING
From a homily on the Gospels by Saint Gregory the Great, pope
(Hom. 34, 8-9: PL 76, 1250-1251)
The word “angel” denotes a function rather than a nature
You should be aware that the word “angel” denotes a function rather than a nature. Those holy spirits of heaven have indeed always been spirits. They can only be called angels when they deliver some message. Moreover, those who deliver messages of lesser importance are called angels; and those who proclaim messages of supreme importance are called archangels.
And so it was that not merely an angel but the archangel Gabriel was sent to the Virgin Mary. It was only fitting that the highest angel should come to announce the greatest of all messages.
Some angels are given proper names to denote the service they are empowered to perform. In that holy city, where perfect knowledge flows from the vision of almighty God, those who have no names may easily be known. But personal names are assigned to some, not because they could not be known without them, but rather to denote their ministry when they came among us. Thus, Michael means “Who is like God”; Gabriel is “The Strength of God”; and Raphael is “God’s Remedy.”
Whenever some act of wondrous power must be performed, Michael is sent, so that his action and his name may make it clear that no one can do what God does by his superior power. So also our ancient foe desired in his pride to be like God, saying: I will ascend into heaven; I will exalt my throne above the stars of heaven; I will be like the Most High. He will be allowed to remain in power until the end of the world when he will be destroyed in the final punishment. Then, he will fight with the archangel Michael, as we are told by John: A battle was fought with Michael the archangel.
So too Gabriel, who is called God’s strength, was sent to Mary. He came to announce the One who appeared as a humble man to quell the cosmic powers. Thus God’s strength announced the coming of the Lord of the heavenly powers, mighty in battle.
Raphael means, as I have said, God’s remedy, for when he touched Tobit’s eyes in order to cure him, he banished the darkness of his blindness. Thus, since he is to heal, he is rightly called God’s remedy.
RESPONSORY
See Revelation 8:3, 4; Daniel 7:10
An angel stood by the altar, holding a golden censer;
a large quantity of incense was given to him,
– and clouds of incense rose from the hand of the angel in the presence of the Lord.
Thousands upon thousands waited on him,
and myriads upon myriads stood before him.
– And clouds of incense rose from the hand of the angel in the presence of the Lord.
Feast of Archangels
who guard our tabernacles, wherein lies
the adorable treasure of the Holy Eucharist,
and preserve it for our love."
The Three Archangels and Tobias, Francesco Botticini, 1470
Danielle RosePeter Mayer - Holy now
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