We offer prayer support and comfort to the brokenhearted who suffer the pains of infertility at any stage of life, difficult pregnancy, miscarriage, stillbirth, the loss of a child and the adoption process.
Have you endured the loss of miscarriage? Please consider naming your unborn child just as the angel Gabriel told St. Joseph what to name the unborn child so God will lead you as you call on St. Joseph for intercession as well as the baby’s own guardian angel.
“The angel then makes explicit Joseph’s role to give the child the personal name that indicates his identity: “you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Together with Mary at the circumcision, Joseph fulfills this command of the angel. In doing so he declares his legal fatherhood over Jesus, and proclaims the child’s mission as Savior. Without hesitation he accepts his responsibility as father, trusts in God’s love, and puts his faith in the salvation the child has come to bring.
St. Joseph was the one chosen by God to name His own Son, and since he was told the specific name to give while the child was still in the womb, he is a most fitting model and patron for this important, but difficult step. He may be prayerfully invoked for assistance in choosing and giving the name.”
Today’s first reading gives us an important insight to understand profoundly the mystery of the Lord’s Presentation in the Temple by Mary and Joseph, in accordance with the cannons of Mosaic Law. The text, taken from the Prophet Malachi says, ‘I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me; and suddenly there will come to the temple the Lord who you seek’ (Mal 3:1). From all the Gospels, we know that it is the Precursor, St John the Baptist who was born 6 months before Jesus, that God sent to prepare His way. Putting these evangelical facts together, we can comprehend the words of the Prophet Malachi. The Lord God promised that He would send a Precursor to prepare His way. Since there is only 6 months between the birth of St John the Baptist and Jesus it is clear that the prophecy meant that suddenly after the Precursor, the Lord Himself will come. So, soon after the Baptist’s birth, God entered His temple. Jesus’ presentation signifies God’s entrance to His temple. God made man entered His temple, presenting Himself to those who were really searching for Him.
Today’s Gospel introduces us to different people and events that in themselves provide numerous lessons and themes for further reflection. First of all, Mary and Joseph respect the Mosaic Law by offering the sacrifice prescribed for the poor: a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.
Simeon and Anna were two venerable elderly people dedicated to prayer and fasting and so their strong religious spirit rendered them able to recognize the Messiah. In this sense we can see in the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple an extension of the ‘Pro OrantibusDay’ (For those who pray) that is celebrated on the feast of the Presentation of Mary (21 November). On this day, the Church demonstrates its gratitude to all those in the community that dedicate themselves in a privileged way to prayer, to those who have a particular religious vocation to the contemplative life. In the figure of the venerable Simeon, Jesus’ presentation in the temple, also reminds us that prayer and contemplation are not just a waste of time or an obstacle to charity. On the contrary, time could not be better spent than in prayer as true Christian charity is a consequence of a solid interior life. Only those who pray and offer penance, like Simeon and Anna, are open to the breath of the Spirit. They know how to recognize the Lord in the circumstances in which He manifests Himself because they possess an ample interior vision, and they have learned how to love with the heart of the One whose very name is Charity.
At the end of the Gospel Simeon’s prophecy of Mary’s sufferings is emphasized. Pope John Paul II taught that, ‘Simeon’s words seem like a second Annunciation to Mary, for they tell her of the actual historical situation in which the Son is to accomplish his mission, namely, in misunderstanding and sorrow.’ (Redemptoris Mater, n16) The archangel’s announcement was a fount of incredible joy because it pertained to Jesus’ messianic royalty and the supernatural character of His virginal conception. The announcement of the elderly in the temple instead spoke of the Lord’s work of redemption that He would complete associating Himself through suffering to His Mother. Therefore, there is a strong Marian dimension to this feast and so in the Liturgical Calendar of the Extraordinary Form it is called the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This refers to the other aspect of the presentation that consists of the ritual purification of Jewish women after they had given birth. In Mary’s case this purification was not necessary, but it indicates the renewal of her total offering of herself to God for the accomplishment of His Divine Plan.
Simeon’s prophecy also announces that Christ will be ‘a sign of contradiction’. St Cyril of Alexandria, in one of his homilies, interpreted the words ‘sign of contradiction’ like a noble cross, as St Paul wrote to the Corinthians ‘a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles’ (1 Cor 1:23) […] It is a sign of contradiction in the sense that those who loose appear as foolish while in those who recognise its power [the cross] reveals salvation and life’ (c.f PG 77, 1044-1049).
Collect: Almighty ever-living God, we humbly implore your majesty that, just as your Only Begotten Son was presented on this day in the Temple in the substance of our flesh, so, by your grace, we may be presented to you with minds made pure. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
We wanted to pass on that yesterday was the feast of St. Rita, she is the patron saint of infertility and hopeless cases… “Ignatius Press” has a movie about Saint Rita’s life, that you may be interested in. EWTN has had the movie on this week, we hope some of you were able to watch her life. May your weekend be filled with the Lord’s Hope and Joy!
God Bless You,
H.T. Ministry
Saint Rita of Cascia, 1381-1457
Saint Rita of Cascia was born in 1381, in a small Italian village, to elderly parents who had long prayed for a child. At fifteen, Rita wanted to enter the convent but her parents decided that she should marry. They chose a man who turned out to be a mean, violent and unfaithful husband. After eighteen years, her prayers, gentleness and goodness finally won his heart, and he apologized for the way he had treated her and he returned to God. Shortly after his conversion, he was murdered. Although shocked and heart-broken, she forgave the murderers, and tried to make her two sons forgive them, too. Instead they were determined to avenge their father’s death. Rita prayed that they would die rather than commit murder. Both boys became seriously ill, and Rita nursed them lovingly. She was successful in persuading them to forgive, and to ask God’s forgiveness for themselves, before they died. Now that she was alone, Rita tried to enter the convent in Cascia, however, a woman who had been married was not allowed to join. Rita did not give up, and eventually, an exception was made for her. In the convent, Rita was obedient, charitable and devoted to the crucified Jesus. She asked him to let her share some of his pain, and a thorn from his crown of thorns pierced her forehead and made a sore that never healed. It was so bad and foul-smelling that St. Rita had to stay away from the others. She happily suffered to show her love for Jesus. Saint Rita died on May 22, 1457, at seventy-six years of age. She is the patron saint of infertility, and of hopeless, or desperate, cases.
Other PATRON SAINTS OF CHILDLESS COUPLES AND THOSE THAT ARE STERILE
Elisabeth & Maria Luisita are from the 20th century of faithful. We would
like to promote their causes for canonization, please help us with your devotions.
At the end of the Gospel Simeon’s prophecy of Mary’s sufferings is emphasized. Pope John Paul II taught that, ‘Simeon’s words seem like a second Annunciation to Mary, for they tell her of the actual historical situation in which the Son is to accomplish his mission, namely, in misunderstanding and sorrow.’ (Redemptoris Mater, n16) The archangel’s announcement was a fount of incredible joy because it pertained to Jesus’ messianic royalty and the supernatural character of His virginal conception. The announcement of the elderly in the temple instead spoke of the Lord’s work of redemption that He would complete associating Himself through suffering to His Mother. Therefore, there is a strong Marian dimension to this feast and so in the Liturgical Calendar of the Extraordinary Form it is called the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This refers to the other aspect of the presentation that consists of the ritual purification of Jewish women after they had given birth. In Mary’s case this purification was not necessary, but it indicates the renewal of her total offering of herself to God for the accomplishment of His Divine Plan.
The Apostolate of Hannah's Tears 