* February 4 – Our Lady of the Fire (Italy, 1428) - Saint Joan of France, foundress of the Order of the Annunciades (d. 1505)  * Mary teaches us the wonder of small daily joys  --- An initiative of the Mary of Nazareth Association February 4 – Our Lady of the Fire (Italy, 1428) - Saint Joan of France, foundress of the Order of the Annunciades (d. 1505)  Mary teaches us the wonder of small daily joys  Image from http://www.josemariaescriva.info/ Saint Josemaria Escriva commented on the passage about the woman in the crowd who praised the mother of Jesus, and the Jesus’ enlightening response: "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it!" (Lk 11: 27-28) He wrote that this last statement "was the praise of his Mother and her fiat, manifested not by blind actions, but by daily, silent and hidden sacrifice." He added: "Here, we can understand the logic of God a little better. It is not the accomplishment of great actions that make up the supernatural value of our life, but the faithful acceptance of God's will and generosity in the sacrifice of each day…" In a society like our own, dominated by consumerism and the search for pleasure, people lose the ability to appreciate small joys. Fewer and fewer people experience what Saint Augustine described: "When there is love, either the sacrifice does not cost us anything, or we like the sacrifice that it costs us." Mary teaches us the pleasure of small everyday joys—those that are within the reach of all but that our hectic life make invisible... These are treasures that the frenetic pace of modern life wants to rob us of, and that we must recover. fr.aleteia.org 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.

* February 3 – The Little Madonna (Italy, 1696)   * The Virgin of Good Success warned us --- An initiative of the Mary of Nazareth Association February 3 – The Little Madonna (Italy, 1696)   The Virgin of Good Success warned us Quito, the capital of Ecuador, has several Marian shrines, among which is the chapel of "Maria Santisima del Buen Suceso" (Our Lady of Good Success), in the convent of the Immaculate Conception. The origin of this shrine dates back to the astonishing revelations received by Mother Mariana de Jesus Torres (1553-1635), who was abbess and one of the foundresses of the Monastery of the Immaculate Conception of Quito. Between 1588 and 1634, Mother Mariana of Jesus Torres was favored with several apparitions of the Virgin Mary. During the apparition of February 2, 1610, the Virgin Mary condemned Freemasonry and announced to Mother Mariana the severe persecution that the Masonic sect would inflict on the Church in the 20th century. The visionary offered her life in atonement for impiety in the 20th century. Devotion to Our Lady of Good Success was officially approved by all the bishops of Quito since February 2, 1611. The cause of beatification of Mother Mariana de Jesus Torres was opened on August 8, 1986, by the Archbishop of Quito. In 1991, the chapel of the Immaculate Conception convent was declared a Marian shrine of the Archdiocese of Quito. The Mary of Nazareth Team [Images from http://coracaopaternaldesaojose.blogspot.com/] 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.

Are You Going To Have Your Throat Blessed Today? [Video]

No Hands on Earth (2/3/16) No Hands on Earth (2/3/16) apostleshipofprayer Reflection for 2/3/16 www.apostleshipofpra­yer.org

ASIA/INDIA - Catholic priest and three lay people beaten

Church of South India in Gingee, Tamil Nadu (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Biosphere Reserves Location Map TamilNadu South India. From other version cropped and labeled using Adobe Photoshop (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

New Delhi (Agenzia Fides) - Conviction for the serious gesture, solidarity with the victims, need for an immediate investigation: is what Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, President of the Bishops' Conference of India asks for, after what happened to a Catholic priest, Fr. Jose Kannumkuzhy, and three lay people near Coinbatore, a city in the state of Tamil Nadu in South India. As reported in a note sent to Fides, on January 28 a crowd of young people, probably close to Hindu extremist groups, attacked the priest and three lay Catholics in the diocese of Ramanathapuram, hitting them with violence. The priest, 49, pastor of the church of San Sebastian in Arapparaora, is in shock and is in hospital in a state of semi-consciousness, given the many traumas and wounds due to the beating. Fr. Jose Kannumkuzhy, and the lay Liji, Joseph and Kannumkuzhy, all members of the Diocesan Pastoral Council, had gone to the local health center for AIDS patients, called "Assisi Snehalaya", created and run by the Friars Minor Conventual, where the death of a child with HIV occurred. The priest and the lay Catholics were on their way to the police to report the incident, but on the way, they were attacked by a mob of 30 persons that forced them to follow them and were accused of the child's death. The police, though warned, did not acted promptly to stop the aggression. The Bishops' Conference has appealed to the authorities to act promptly and called for more protection for Catholic people. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 02/02/2016)

* February 2 – The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple  * Mary is at the heart of the battle  --- An initiative of the Mary of Nazareth Association February 2 – The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple  Mary is at the heart of the battle "A sword will pierce your very soul," is what the aged Simeon predicted to Mary on the day of the presentation of Jesus in the Temple... Mary is at the heart of the battle waged for or against her Son. The sword announced by Christ passes also through her, inviting us all to total abandonment. The more Mary lost her Son in a physical sense, the more she received him in faith. The next important episode after the presentation—the disappearance of Jesus, found in the Temple—illustrates this concept. The more Mary becomes "the one who hears the word of God and puts it into practice," the more she is revealed as the Mother of God. The divine motherhood is not only a physical reality, it is above all a matter of faith. And when, before the crucified Christ, she physically lost her Son, she found him again, whole, as her glorious Son, present in the Church. The law of the sword of Christ is the law by which we must lose in order to find. It is the law of total poverty in order to possess everything, to surrender ourselves in faith in order to be fully satisfied, comforted, and saved. Mary becomes, once again, the model of the perfect disciple, of the one who is faithful, and redeemed.  Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi President of the Pontifical Council for Culture Excerpt from his homily for the feast of the Presentation, given on January 2, 2013 (Zenit.org) Presentation at the Temple by Ambrogio Lorenzetti, 1342 (Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence). [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.

* February 1st – Our Lady of Copacabana (Bolivia) * “Have no fear, I am here. Take up your weapon and use it!” --- An initiative of the Mary of Nazareth Association February 1st – Our Lady of Copacabana (Bolivia) “Have no fear, I am here. Take up your weapon and use it!” The terrorist threat is great, but we also see that violence of all kinds occurs on a daily basis in today's society—pornography and all sorts of horrific images are easily accessible on the Internet. Our intent is not to demonize the media but to remain free and faithful while facing what Saint John Paul II called a "culture of death"... Given all this, it is more than urgent to remember some of Jesus’ last words to Saint John: "Behold your Mother" (Jn 19:27). These words invite us to nestle up close to the heart of our Mother. We can do this by continually praying the Rosary—in the street, in the bus, in the subway or in public places. In doing so, we are holding tightly onto Mary’s hand and building—inside and around us—a spiritual space of safety and peace for all. This is the hidden yet very real power of personal and community Marian prayer that repels evil in all its forms! In a dream where he was in danger of death, Saint Padre Pio reported a word he heard from the Virgin Mary that left a deep impression on him: Have no fear, I am here. Take up your weapon and use it! By this of course she did not meant a handgun but the humble Rosary. It is truly "the weapon of the meek" and invites us into spiritual battle which, according to Saint Paul, makes us "strong in the Lord ... against the powers of darkness." Father Marie Michel France Catholique magazine, issue #3468, November 20, 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.