A Mama’s Patron Saint

August 9, 2016 by Lena {JOYfilledfamily} Filed Under: 08 August Saints, Edith Stein, Patron Saint, St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross 1 Comment

Ordinary Time: August 9th

Optional Memorial of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, virgin and martyr

This year St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross chose me, she is my patron saint of 2016. There hasn’t been a day that has gone by without me seeking her intercession. Below is an image and free printable of an excerpt from a prayer of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. I’ve also included links/resources to learn more about this holy martyr & philosopher of truth.

St. Teresa Benedicta Printabe Prayer

Prayers of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein)

O Prince of Peace, to all who receive You, You bright light and peace. Help me to live in daily contact with You, listening to the words You have spoken and obeying them. O Divine Child, I place my hands in Yours; I shall follow You. Oh, let Your divine life flow into me.

I will go unto the altar of God. It is not myself and my tiny little affairs that matter here, but the great sacrifice of atonement. I surrender myself entirely to Your divine will, O Lord. Make my heart grow greater and wider, out of itself into the Divine Life.

O my God, fill my soul with holy joy, courage and strength to serve You. Enkindle Your love in me and then walk with me along the next stretch of road before me. I do not see very far ahead, but when I have arrived where the horizon now closes down, a new prospect will open before me and I shall met with peace.

How wondrous are the marvels of your love, We are amazed, we stammer and grow dumb, for word and spirit fail us.

RESOURCES:

St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross Biography ~ Vatican
Edith Stein Biography ~ EWTN
Edith Stein Timeline ~ Melkite Greek Catholic Church
St. Teresa of Benedicta of the Cross ~ Carmelite Sisters, Kilmacud
Pope Benedict XVI quotes Saint Teresa Benedicta ~ Vultus Christi (A Benedictine Monk of Perpetual Adoration)
5 Reasons Why Jewish Prof. Edith Stein Became a Catholic Nun ~ Canterbury Tales (Dr. Taylor Marshall)
Edith Stein’s Writings ~ ICS Publications
The Vocation of the Soul of Enternal Life by Edith Stein ~ Catholic Culture
Verses for a Pentecost Novena by Edith Stein ~ Catholic Culture
Prayer to St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross ~ Catholic Culture
Pope Benedict XVI’s Catechesis about St. Edith Stein and St. Maximilian Mary Kolbe ~ Catholic Culture
The Life of Edith Stein ~ Amazon Kindle Version $0.99

RESOURCES FOR CHILDREN:

E is for Edith Stein ~ Coloring Page Saints to Color
St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross Wisdom ~ Shower of Roses
St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross Liturgical Ornament ~ Catholic Inspired
St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross: Jewish Catholic Martyr and Saint DIGITAL download paper doll DIY ~ MagneticCatholic Etsy Shop

Saint Edith Stein, holy martyr, philosopher of truth, defender of the human person against the evils of this age + enlighten our minds, illumine our hearts, fill our lives with the passion of your love for the Cross. Amen.

Homeschooling ~ Remain in the Cave

July 23, 2016 by Lena {JOYfilledfamily} Filed Under: Homeschool Meditations, Homeschooling 1 Comment

Homeschooling is a catacomb…Homeschooling is among the new deserts for many saintly souls.

Dad and I continue to prepare our hearts and home for a new season of family life and another homeschool year. We turn towards the resources that have been made available from solid shepherds whom are willing to lead and correct.

Our most recent mediation comes by way of Regina Prophetarum, now Sensum Fidelium.

Sloth: The Vice of Homeschoolers – Regina Prophetarum

~~~

Below is an abbreviated dictation of the audio.

WHAT TO DO {to remain in the cave—to homeschool}:

St. Paul, in his letter to the Thessalonians

Make an effort to be quite. All that is of this world will be burned—it will come to an end.
Pursue your own affairs.We must not, out of curiosity, wish to inquire into or learn the deeds of others or that of world. God will let us know what He wants us to know, when the time comes. Form a rule/schedule for your homeschool.
Work with your own hands.Be not idle. Do what we’re supposed to be doing, when we’re supposed to be doing it.
Walk honorably for the sake of outsiders.We should recognize that we are on display for the whole world. What we say and do, is important. How we dress is significant. Our homeschools ought to be, first and foremost, schools of virtue and good character. Walk honorably for the sake of outsiders. You represent something special. Don’t try to be like the world!
Desire nothing from anyone. Be not alarmed that you do not have all the gadgets {books, extracurriculars, technology, etc…} that other people have. Do not long for the luxuries of the world. Do with less and be willing to be behind the Jones and the public schools. Having all those things doesn’t make for a devout life or a close knit family. Many have noted how helpful it is to do with less. To need something and, yet, not be able to get it, that’s not so bad. This keeps us humble and always looking up and always working together to keep us going. Stop the desiring of the ABC’s and work with what you’ve got and God will help you and you will be happy with less and you will produce more!

REMAIN IN THE CAVE!

May we follow His call, detached from government intervention and other temptations of the evil one.

May we keep to our place and build the ark.

Let us consecrate our family and homeschool to Our Lady.

Reposted from 9.8.13

Homeschool Prep ~ Novena

July 22, 2016 by Lena {JOYfilledfamily} Filed Under: 07 July, 07 July Saints, Homeschool Meditations, Homeschooling, Homeschooling Novena, Novena, St. Ignatius of Loyola 1 Comment

Homeschool planning is in full force in our home. We start our homeschooling year with a novena, thanks to the wise counsel of a holy Priest and the prompting of a veteran homeschooling friend.

The novena starts July 22 and ends on July 30, the eve of the feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola. It can also begin on July 23 and end on his feastday, July 31.

YOU’RE INVITED TO JOIN US!

Let us form a communion of prayer to discern God’s will, Glorify God, and raise one another up.

It seems that no matter, how many years one has been at this, the balancing of interests and needs of our families, while ever-changing never gets any clearer or even any easier. Each year we are faced with decisions about our children’s education, what grade, what subjects, what books along with trying to fit into a 24 hour day all the other things we do that are necessary to keeping our homes, like laundry, dishes, etc. We wonder how many outside activities we can reasonably take on, what to make sure we include and what we may have to omit. In the end each of us desires to do the Will of God, for ourselves and for our families, each and every member. The desire to do His Will does not necessarily always translate though into a clear understanding at all times what exactly His Will may be and so we try very hard to balance all the decisions that our multi-faceted vocation entails and discern what He is really asking us to do. ~G.M.

Novena to St. Ignatius of Loyola

V. In the Name (✠) of the Father…

R. Amen.

Suscipe (Prayer by St. Ignatius)

V. Take, O Lord, and receive all my liberty,

R. My memory, my understanding * and my entire will * All I have and call my own. * Thou hast given all to me, * To Thee, O Lord, I return it. * Everything belongs to Thee; * do with it as Thou wilt. * Give me only Thy love and Thy grace, * That is enough for me. Amen.

Anima Christi (Prayer by St. Ignatius)

V. Soul of Christ, R. Sanctify me.

V. Body of Christ, R. Save me.

V. Blood of Christ, R. Inebriate me.

V. Water from the side of Christ, R. Wash me.

V. Passion of Christ, R. Strengthen me.

V. O Good Jesus (☨), R. Hear me.

V. Within Thy wounds, R. Shelter me.

V. Separated from Thee, R. Let me never be.

V. From the evil one, R. Protect me.

V. At the hour of my death, R. Call me.

V. Into Thy presence, R. Lead me.

V. That I may praise Thee, R. With all Thy angels and saints, forever and ever. Amen.

Prayer for Generosity (by St. Ignatius)

V. Lord, do Thou teach me to be generous.

R. Teach me to serve Thee as Thou deserves: * To give and not to count the cost, * To fight and not to heed the wounds, * to toil and not to seek for rest, * to labor and not to ask for reward, * save that of knowing * that I do Thy divine and holy Will. Amen. *

Novena Prayer

V. O glorious Patriarch, St. Ignatius of Loyola,

R. We humbly beseech thee to obtain for us from Almighty God, * above all things else, * deliverance from sin, * which is the greatest of evils, * and next, from those scourges * wherewith the Lord chastises the sins of His people.

V. And by thy glorious merits we beseech thy benevolent intercession before the throne of Almighty God, that He may grant us:

(Pause and state your intentions)

V. May thine example, O Loyal Knight of Our Lady, enkindle in our hearts an effectual desire,

R. To employ ourselves continually in laboring for the greater glory of God * and the good of our fellowmen; * obtain for us, likewise, from the loving Heart of Jesus (☨) Our Lord, * that grace which is the crown of all graces, * that is to say, the grace of final perseverance and everlasting happiness. * Amen.

V. Laudetur Jesus (☨) Christus! (Praise be Jesus Christ)

R. Nunc et in æternum. Amen. (Now and forever)

V. In the Name (✠) of the Father…

R. Amen.

Printable Novena to St. Ignatius of Loyola

St. Ignatius, ora pro nobis

Family Pilgrimage ~ Day 1

June 11, 2016 by Lena {JOYfilledfamily} Filed Under: Our Lady of Bethlehem, Pilgrimage, Pilgrimage to OLOB 2016, Pilgrimage to Our Lady of Bethlehem Leave a Comment

This is the recap of the start of our journey — Our Lady of Bethlehem Pilgrimage 2016.

Thursday 19th of May 2016

The entire family ventured out for our Annual Our Lady of Bethlehem Pilgrimage.

We went up a day early to ease the strain on the littles. All would have been good had there not been winds of 45mph. You know that means trouble for a large van. The winds and hills led to some queasy stomachs. One stop and a custom essential oil blend is all that was needed.

The journey continued and we arrived at our first destination around 10:30 pm. We met up with two other families at a camp site close to the Mission and slept in our cars. It was the start of reparation. I failed to get a decent peek into our “camper,” just imagine something similar to this…

Friday 20th of May 2016

The Holy Spirit , Spirit of Holiness under the patronage of St Catherine of Sienna

The crew had an early rise, 5:30 am to be exact. I don’t recall ever falling asleep. We prepared for 7:30 am Mass and the first leg of our walk.

Our fellow pilgrims met at Mission San Juan Bautista.

Our personal intentions and all intentions shared with us were collected by Fr. A, carried by him on the pilgrimage, and placed on the Altar for every Mass, Benediction, and Compline.

It is a great blessing to have a Chaplain accompany us for the entire pilgrimage, one that we have not always had.

My girls were committed to walking the entire 45 miles.

I have good reason to believe that this is the last pilgrimage we will take as a complete family of 9 living under the same roof and I wanted to cherish each moment of our journey to the fullest – a new season awaits.

Dad could not walk since he is still recovering from his surgery for a ruptured achilies tendon but that didn’t stop him from serving. He took on the primary support role for our family, taking care of the littles, preparing meals, transporting, organizing our cargo, and photography.

The journey on foot followed the blessing of pilgrims by Fr. A.