SACRED ART: "The Marriage Feast at Cana" by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo
(Left-click once or twice on the painting to get a closer view)
PRAYER: Litany of the Holy Name ***OPTIONAL***
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy. Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
God our Father in Heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us.
Jesus, Son of the living God, have mercy on us.
Jesus, splendor of the Father, have mercy on us.
Jesus, brightness of everlasting light, have mercy on us.
Jesus, king of glory, have mercy on us.
Jesus, dawn of justice, have mercy on us.
Jesus, Son of the Virgin Mary, have mercy on us.
Jesus, worthy of our love, have mercy on us.
Jesus, worthy of our wonder, have mercy on us.
Jesus, mighty God, have mercy on us.
Jesus, father of the world to come, have mercy on us.
Jesus, prince of peace, have mercy on us.
Jesus, all-powerful, have mercy on us.
Jesus, pattern of patience, have mercy on us.
Jesus, model of obedience, have mercy on us.
Jesus, gentle and humble of heart, have mercy on us.
Jesus, lover of chastity, have mercy on us.
Jesus, lover of us all, have mercy on us.
Jesus, God of peace, have mercy on us.
Jesus, author of life, have mercy on us.
Jesus, model of goodness, have mercy on us.
Jesus, seeker of souls, have mercy on us.
Jesus, our God, have mercy on us.
Jesus, our refuge, have mercy on us.
Jesus, father of the poor, have mercy on us.
Jesus, treasure of the faithful, have mercy on us.
Jesus, Good Shepherd, have mercy on us.
Jesus, the true light, have mercy on us.
Jesus, eternal wisdom, have mercy on us.
Jesus, infinite goodness, have mercy on us.
Jesus, our way and our life, have mercy on us.
Jesus, joy of angels, have mercy on us.
Jesus, king of patriarchs, have mercy on us.
Jesus, teacher of apostles, have mercy on us.
Jesus, master of evangelists, have mercy on us.
Jesus, courage of martyrs, have mercy on us.
Jesus, light of confessors, have mercy on us.
Jesus, purity of virgins, have mercy on us.
Jesus, crown of all saints, have mercy on us.
Lord, be merciful, Jesus save your people.
From all evil, Jesus save your people.
From every sin, Jesus save your people.
From the snares of the devil, Jesus save your people.
From your anger, Jesus save your people.
From the spirit of infidelity, Jesus save your people.
From everlasting death, Jesus save your people.
From neglect of your Holy Spirit, Jesus save your people.
By the mystery of your incarnation, Jesus save your people.
By your birth, Jesus save your people.
By your childhood, Jesus save your people.
By your hidden life, Jesus save your people.
By your public ministry, Jesus save your people.
By your agony and crucifixion, Jesus save your people.
By your abandonment, Jesus save your people.
By your grief and sorrow, Jesus save your people.
By your death and burial, Jesus save your people.
By your rising to new life, Jesus save your people.
By your return in glory to the Father, Jesus save your people.
By your gift of the Holy Eucharist, Jesus save your people.
By your joy and glory, Jesus save your people.
Christ, hear us. Christ, hear us.
Lord Jesus, hear our prayer. Lord Jesus, hear our prayer.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
Lord, may we who honor the holy name of Jesus
Enjoy his friendship in this life
And be filled with eternal joy in the kingdom
Where he lives and reigns forever and ever.
Amen.
SACRED ART: "Pentecost" by Jean Restout
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_II_Restout#/media/File:Jean_II_Restout_-_Pentecôte.jpg
PRAYER: Invocation of the Holy Spirit ***REQUIRED***
Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful,
And enkindle in them the fire of your love.
Lord, send forth your Spirit,
And you will renew the face of the earth.
O God,
Who instructs the hearts of your faithful
With the light of your Holy Spirit,
Make us responsive to his inspirations
So that we may be truly wise and
Ever rejoice in his consolations,
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
SACRED ART: "Consolator" by Carl Heinrich Bloch
https://www.wikiart.org/en/carl-bloch/consolator
(Left-click once on the picture to get a closer view)
SCRIPTURE: Luke 14: 16-24 ***REQUIRED***
He replied to him, “A man gave a great dinner to which he invited many. When the time for the dinner came, he dispatched his servant to say to those invited, ‘Come, everything is now ready.’ But one by one, they all began to excuse themselves. The first said to him, ‘I have purchased a field and must go to examine it; I ask you, consider me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have purchased five yoke of oxen and am on my way to evaluate them; I ask you, consider me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have just married a woman, and therefore I cannot come.’ The servant went and reported this to his master. Then the master of the house in a rage commanded his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in here the poor and the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ The servant reported, ‘Sir, your orders have been carried out and still there is room.’ The master then ordered the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedgerows and make people come in that my home may be filled. For, I tell you, none of those men who were invited will taste my dinner.’”
SACRED ART: "Founder Statue of St. Louis de Montfort" by Giacomo Parsini
(Left-click once or twice on the picture to get a closer view)
REFLECTION BY ST. LOUIS DE MONTFORT: The Love of Eternal Wisdom (#76) ***REQUIRED***
In the opinion of the world, a wise man is one with a keen eye to business; who knows how to turn everything to his personal profit without appearing to do so. He excels in the art of duplicity and well-concealed fraud without arousing suspicion. He thinks one thing and says another. Nothing concerning the graces and manners of the world is unknown to him. He accommodates himself to everyone to suit his end, completely ignoring the honor and interests of God. He manages to make a secret but fatal reconciliation of truth and falsehood, of the gospel and the world, of Christ and Belial. He wishes to be considered an honest man but not a devout man, and most readily scorns, distorts and condemns devotions he does not personally approve of. In short, a man is worldly-wise who, following solely the lead of his senses and human reasoning, poses as a good Christian and a man of integrity, but makes little effort to please God or atone by penance for the sins he has committed against him.
QUESTION ***REQUIRED***
The temptation to make excuses for not responding to the will and the call of God is very common and very subtle. What are the excuses that you make most frequently?
SACRED ART: "The Visitation" by Raphael and Giulio Romano or Giovanni Francesco Penni
(Either leave the picture as it is, or you may left-click on the minus sign once or twice in order to get a farther view)
PRAYER: Jesus Living in Mary ***REQUIRED***
O Jesus living in Mary,
Come and live in your servant,
In the Spirit of your holiness,
In the fullness of your gifts,
In the perfection of your ways,
In the truth of your virtues,
In the communion of your mysteries.
Subdue within me
The power of flesh and demon
By your Holy Spirit,
For the glory of God the father.
Amen.
SACRED ART: "Madonna of the Magnificat" by Sandro Botticelli
https://www.wikiart.org/en/sandro-botticelli/madonna-of-the-magnificat-1481
(Left-click twice on the picture to get a closer view)
PRAYER: Sub Tuum ***REQUIRED***
We fly to your patronage,
O holy Mother of God,
Despise not our petitions in our necessities,
But deliver us always from all dangers,
O glorious and blessed Virgin.
Amen.