An initiative of the Mary of Nazareth Association December 15 – Mary Mediatrix Lo and behold, 250 Christians were waiting for the kidnapped priest! Father Jacques Mourad, a priest from the Syriac Catholic Diocese of Homs in Syria, who was kidnapped on May 21st in his convent of Qaryatayn by a group from the "Islamic state" regained his freedom on Saturday, October 10, 2015. During the four months of his captivity, he was imprisoned in Raqqa (central Syria). His jailers tried to pressure him and his deacon Boutros to convert to Islam by threatening them with decapitation. They never yielded. To withstand this suffering, Father Jacques prayed daily to the Virgin Mary, especially under her title of Our Lady of Lourdes. Through prayer, he found inner peace—he felt the prayers of the outside world said on his behalf, but didn’t believe that he would be released, and thought everyday about the possibility of being killed. On the 83th day of his captivity, a fighter asked for Jacques Mourad. The priest stood up. The man told him: Every single day people have been telling us to give them back Father Jacques... The fighter took the priest and Boutros to Palmyra, had them enter a house, removed their blindfolds and pushed the door open. "Lo and behold, there were 250 Christians from Qaryatayn" in the room waiting… www.oeuvre-orient.fr www.mariedenazareth.com Let’s pray together Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of death. Amen.

Spiritual Gems-The Foundation of Daily Intimacy With God is Mental Prayer-December 12, 2015

The Foundation of Daily Intimacy With God is Mental Prayer "The whole edifice of (mental) prayer is founded upon humility"...on being absolutely convicted that of ourselves we can do nothing. And it is God alone who can produce good in our souls.  Our stubborn and subtle pride makes this idea distasteful to is, but in fact it is enormously liberating.  God who loves us beyond our comprehension will carry us infinitely closer to Himself when we completely and fully submit each day to mental prayer.  Without mental prayer, one can not become holy.  Mental prayer is not a technique to be practiced, but a Grace to be received through constant desire and entreaties to God.  However, one will not receive the Gift if one does not demonstrate sincere desire by persevering in daily mental prayer. Adapted from "Time for God" by Fr. Jacques Philippe (one of the great, short books on mental prayer) A Free Flame of Love book in English or Spanish can be ordered in the US at www.flameoflove.us.     You can now order our Consecration boo​ks and our Leaders Packages in the US on our website at www.myconsecration.org.  You can order “33 Days to Morning Glory” for a donation plus shipping at https://www.myconsecration.org/33-days-morning-glory-english/.  If you want more information, contact raymooney@myconsecration.org.​ Please do forward these Spiritual Gems to your Catholic friends.  You can subscribe to future Gems at www.myconsecration.org/about. God Bless you and your work,       Tony           Anthony Mullen     MyConsecration.org     8 St. Albans Avenue     Newtown Square, PA 19073     visit us at: www.myconsecration.org

An initiative of the Mary of Nazareth Association December 10 – Transfer of the Holy House of Loreto (1294) In a forest, there appeared a strange looking house The Holy House of Loreto is the house where, according to Christian tradition, Jesus Christ was conceived of the Holy Spirit in the Virgin Mary and where Saint Joseph worked with the Divine Child Jesus. Sometimes called the Shrine of the Holy House of Nazareth, it is revered in the city of Loreto, in the Italian province of Ancona. When the terrible news of the loss of the Holy Land to non-Christians spread abroad, a deep sadness captured all minds and hearts. At the same time, better news came that uplifted Christian spirits: On May 10, 1291, the Holy House of Nazareth, where the Word made flesh was conceived, was transported by angels to Dalmatia (the coastal region of Croatia and Montenegro). But after three years and seven months, in 1294, the Holy House rose again in the air and left the region, leaving a big void in the hearts of the local population. The next day, on December 10th, the residents of Recanati, Italy, saw a strange looking house that was set down in a forest owned by a certain lady of Loreto. They soon discovered that it was the same Holy House of Nazareth that the population of Dalmatia had seen suddenly disappear around the same time. notredamedesneiges.over-blog.com The Holy House in the Basilica (Wikipedia) www.mariedenazareth.com Let’s pray together Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of death. Amen.

Fathers John, James, Richard, Jerry, Lewis and Ed need help

Opus Bono Sacerdotii Work for the Good of the Priesthood   We are approaching Christmas and the end of the calendar year, and for many individuals, married couples and companies, this is also a very appropriate time for charitable giving.   In your goodness and kindness, would you please consider a tax­-deductible contribution to Opus Bono Sacerdotii to assist our Catholic priests who are in desperate need and hurting so much at this time. Your heart­felt donation in any amount would help these priests who are barely surviving:   + Father John requests your generous financial assistance. He needs $565.32 for his utilities bills and late fees in order to keep his electricity and gas furnace on. + Father James has extensive dental problems. Without your help now, all his bottom teeth are prone to loss. He needs $1,500 for immediate dental surgery. + Father Richard’s car can’t make it through this winter without a new set of tires. He will not be able to work without your help. The cost is $450. + Father Jerry is severely disabled and needs your help to cover the cost of food deliveries and cab fare for trips to the doctor’s office and to kidney dialysis. He has asked if you could find it in your heart to donate $150 to help him. + Father Lewis is three months behind on his rent. He desperately needs $1,950 for past­due rent and an additional $650 for January’s rent. He will be back to work in February after recovering from a back injury. + Father Ed’s monthly retirement doesn’t cover all his basic living expenses and he has asked for $75 to help him during Christmas.     The list of needs is far more extensive. Many elderly and ill Catholic priests have been forgotten and abandoned, and their poverty is especially painful during the Holy Days of Christmas. Remembering the Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph’s struggles during this Advent time, would you consider making a donation right now in honor of the Holy Family and to honor the birth of Jesus Christ the High Priest?   Without your help, without your charity and generosity, Opus Bono cannot provide for the many poor priests in severe need who have contacted us seeking help this Christmas.   Please, PLEASE . . . this Advent would you prepare a place for the Light of the World to be born in the darkness of the lives of these often lonely and impoverished priests by offering your most generous contribution to Opus Bono. In their names, I thank you sincerely.   To donate now, please click here: http://www.opusbono.org/donate.html   Donations to Opus Bono are tax­deductible in the USA. For your tax­-deduction in the USA, the Identification Number of Opus Bono Sacerdotii is: 030448257   We truly need your help to raise $25,000 before the end of the year to cover all the requests for the month of December, and to conclude 2015 providing assistance to every priest we know in dire need.   Opus Bono exists only thanks to the generosity of our Partners in Mission.   In gratitude and with prayers for God’s generous blessing on you this Advent and Christmas,   Pete     Pete Ferrara Treasurer   - To send a donation online by credit card click here: http://www.opusbono.org/donate.html   ­­ - To send a donation by check: You can write a check to Opus Bono Sacerdotii and send it to: Opus Bono Sacerdotii PO Box 663, Oxford, MI 48371 Please include your first and last name so we can send you an acknowledgement as soon as we receive your check as well as the tax­deductible donation receipt at the beginning of the New Year.   ­­ To send a donation by wire transfer or to transfer stock: Please call me at (313) 937­-6305.   Thank you!       Opus Bono Sacerdotii P.O. Box 663, Oxford, MI 48371-0663   P 313.937.6305

These Stone Walls: A Parable for the Year of Mercy

On the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, Pope Francis opened the Holy Door to the Year of Mercy. One Missionary of Mercy already travels the road to Jericho. Please, read and share: "On the Road to Jericho: A Parable for the Year of Mercy."

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Sent on behalf of 

These Stone Walls

www.TheseStoneWalls.com

An initiative of the Mary of Nazareth Association December 9 – First apparition at Guadalupe (Mexico, 1531) Are you not happily within my fold? Image from http://guadalupe.com/our-lady-of-guadalupe-gallery-of-images/ Twelve years after the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in 1531 in Mexico, the Virgin Mary appeared to Juan Diego, a 57-year-old Aztec, and said, among other things: “…I am the ever virgin Holy Mary, Mother of the True God for whom we live, of the Creator of all things, Lord of heaven and the earth.” “I wish that a temple be erected here quickly, so I may therein exhibit and give all my love, compassion, help, and protection, because I am your merciful mother, to you, and to all the inhabitants on this land and all the rest who love me, invoke and confide in me; listen there to their lamentations, and remedy all their miseries, afflictions and sorrows.” “And to accomplish what my clemency pretends, go to the palace of the bishop of Mexico, and you will say to him that I manifest my great desire, that here on this plain a temple be built to me; you will accurately relate all you have seen and admired, and what you have heard. Be assured that I will be most grateful and will reward you, because I will make you happy and worthy of recompense for the effort and fatigue in what you will obtain of what I have entrusted. Behold, you have heard my mandate, my humble son; go and put forth all your effort.” “Am I not here, who is your Mother? Are you not under my protection? Am I not your health? Are you not happily within my fold? What else do you wish? Do not grieve nor be disturbed by anything.” Source: The Nican Mopohua, first published in 1649 by Luis Lasso de la Vega, www.sancta.org Adapted from Jean Mathiot, Chrétiens Magazine #282, October 2015 www.mariedenazareth.com Let’s pray together Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of death. Amen.