August is the Month of the Immaculate Heart / Marian Triad of the Months

[Edited since posting.]

August begins Nomen Christi Apostolate’s “Marian Triad of the Months.”  Catholic tradition has given us 3 months in a row to show our love for our Heavenly Queen and contemplate her wondrous gifts.  This month we turn toward her Immaculate Heart.  In September, we reflect on her Sorrows.  In October, we lift her up as Our Lady of the Rosary and renew our dedication to this devotion, along with prayer for pro-life issues.  How do these 3 aspects of Our Lady inter-relate?  How is she watching over the world right now in love and sorrow? These are things to pray on within the next 90 days, as the world may be crossing a threshold, due to what is becoming a global war.  If she ushers us over, surely we have every consolation.  (Have a look at the artwork of Mary we created just today, on the Home page.  Scroll down and you will see her holding her heart in one hand and the Rosary in the other, looking up to Heaven with tears.  This may help you in your contemplations.)

This month, we are using Fr. John Hardon’s Modern Catholic Dictionary to shed light upon the Immaculate Heart of Mary.  I met Fr. Hardon once and I describe this meeting and the amazing effect it had on my life, in my bio (button to the right>>>).  This catalogue of Catholic terminology was published in 1980 and is well-regarded.  There is now a cause for Fr. Hardon’s canonization (see link above).  What does this saintly Jesuit have to say on this topic?  His words are simple and he includes the beautiful Fatima Act of Consecration…

Immaculate Heart:  The physical heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary as a sign and symbol of her compassion and sinlessness, and the object of devotion by the faithful. Devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary gained international prominence through the Fátima apparitions in 1917, and their subsequent approval by the Holy See. A widely used prayer capsulizing this devotion reads:

“Virgin of Fátima, Mother of Mercy, Queen of Heaven and Earth, refuge of sinners, we consecrate ourselves to your Immaculate Heart. To you we consecrate our hearts, our souls, our families, and all we have. And in order that this consecration may be truly effective and lasting, we renew today the promises of our Baptism and Confirmation, and we undertake to live as good Christians -- faithful to God, the Church and the Holy Father. We desire to pray the Rosary, partake in the Holy Eucharist, attach special importance to the first Saturday of the month and work for the conversion of sinners. Furthermore we promise, O most holy Virgin, that we will zealously spread devotion to you, so that through our consecration to your Immaculate Heart and through your own intercession the coming of the Kingdom of Christ in the world may be hastened. Amen.”

Following what Fr. John Hardon encouraged, let us recite this prayer during the month of August, becoming closer and more devoted to this great treasure of our Faith:  The Mother of God’s most loving Heart! And here is our Fatima Prayers PDF, which includes another consecration to the Immaculate Heart, written by Pope Pius XII (I keep this printout on my desk to remind me each day to pray the Morning Offering)…

  Fatima Prayers PDF Printable

We celebrated a feast of the Immaculate Heart in June and do so again August 22nd, in the trad calendar.  On the same day, in the post-conciliar, we have the Queenship of Mary.  Of course we honor the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary on the 15th , with a vigil.

On the 5th, we have Our Lady of the Snows (referring to a miracle in Italy), also known as Dedication of the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major, which may be described as Our Lady’s premier church.  Believe it or not, the manger of Our Blessed Lord is there, below the altar in a small alcove, with kneelers before it.  It is encased in glass with a sculpture of the Christ Child atop.  It is made of wood, held together with metal and somewhat damaged.  I visited this glorious church last year with my family and cried.  I had no idea the manger was there.  Of course, this is only a pious traditional belief, but I choose to believe it. Santa Maria Maggiore is one of the 4 Papal Basilicas in Rome. The others are Saint Peter’s Basilica (housing Saint Peter’s bones), Saint John Lateran (one great relic is the Holy Staircase ascended by Our Lord, which is part of the complex, located across the street) and Saint Paul Outside the Walls (housing Saint Paul’s bones).

Carrying on with Marian-related feasts:  We honored Saint Anne last month on a Sunday, this month we honor Saint Joachim, also on a Sunday, the 16th.  Fr. Saint Dominic’s (seer of the Holy Rosary) feastdays are the 4th and the 8th.

Let us not forget the Transfiguration of Our Lord, on the 6th.

Further notable saints we celebrate this month (note Saint Monica and Saint Augustine have adjacent feasts):

1st-Saint Peter in Chains, Apostle / Saint Alphonsus de Liguori, Bishop & Doctor of the Church

4th-Saint John Vianney, priest, “Cure d‘Ars”

8th-Saint John Vianney (trad)

11th-Saint Chiara (Clare or Clara), Founder of the Poor Clares, Companion of Saint Francis…We went to her Basilica too, in Assisi and saw her body, along with the San Damiano Cross, which was also a surprise! As it was the feast of Saint Francis, we were unable to get into his Basilica due to the crowds:( Don’t forget about the Franciscan Jubilee Year with plenary indulgences, anyone can do!

12th-Saint Chiara (trad)

14th-Saint Maximilian Kolbe, priest, martyr under the Nazi Regime (would not die of starvation and was finally given a lethal injection on the Vigil of the Assumption, he very much loved Our Lady, as she appeared to him as a child)

21st-Pope Saint Pius X, 20th Century saint

24th-Saint Bartholomew, Apostle

27th-Saint Monica, Mother of Saint Augustine

28th-Saint Augustine of Hippo, Bishop & Doctor of the Church

29th-Passion of Saint John the Baptist

****** Prepper Challenge for Summer ******

What is My Contribution?  What is My Special Gift?

Your community and the Church are going to need you in the coming days.  What will you specialize in that will be a significant contribution?  Every prepper tends to develop a skill or two that is specialized.  What interests you?  What is a “sustainable” skill that will have value even in a grid-down (no electricity) situation?  Do you already have a skill?  Can you improve it?  Can you learn a new one?  Think and pray about it!

Noah was the Original Prepper ~ Build Your Ark!

September is the Month of Our Lady of Sorrows

The World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation is celebrated September 1st.  In keeping with this theme, we also celebrate Saint Hildegard of Bingen and the Stigmata of Saint Francis on the same day:  Sept 17th.  Both saints are invoked for nature, as they contributed greatly to theology referencing God’s creation.  We also have the Ember Days of Autumn on the 24th, 26th and 27th, in which we perform prayer and penance for the upcoming season.  Reading the Mass missal for the Ember Days is a wonderful way to celebrate them.  In addition, traditionally, meat was eaten at only one meal on Ember Wednesday and Saturday.  If you missed praying for the earth on the 1st, these feasts would be a great time to do so. 

There are countless devotions to Our Lady of Sorrows, the Seven Sorrows and the Sorrowful Heart of Our Lady.  We honor our Sorrowful Mother on the 15th, which gives us our theme of this month (there are 4 more Marian feasts, see below in bold).  Let us show our love and empathy for her by choosing one of these devotions to perform.  We at Nomen Christi Apostolate also contemplate the Marian Triad of the Months during these 3 months in honor of the Mother of God.  Next month is Our Lady of the Rosary, when we also honor the sanctity of life.  For this month, we may meditate on how the Immaculate Heart we celebrated last month, intertwines with the Sorrowful Heart.  They are often invoked together. 

Other notable feasts of September in both the trad and post-con calendars… 

6th-First Saturday of the Immaculate Heart

8th-Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

12th-Holy Name of Mary

14th-EXALTATION OF THE HOLY CROSS

21st-Saint Matthew, Apostle & Evangelist

24th-Our Lady of Ransom

26th-North American Martyrs

27th-Saint Vincent de Paul

29th-Saints Michael, Gabriel & Raphael, Archangels/Dedication of Saint Michael 

Homeschool Activities for September 

1)       List the 7 Sorrows of Our Lady.  Can you find where they are in Holy Scripture?

2)      Make an Autumn craft for the Ember Days, incorporating a spiritual theme.

3)      Draw a picture of the 3 archangels.

October is the Month of Our Lady of the Rosary & Respect for Life

October joyfully celebrates Our Lady of the Rosary, whose feast is on the 7th and encourages devotion to this great gift, given through Saint Dominic.  It is especially consoling to pray the Holy Rosary during difficult times.  It may be a chore to pick up those beads and get it started, but you will never regret it.  Spiritual effort always comes back to you in blessings 100-fold!  October also, sorrowfully remembers the unborn and all those in our society whose lives are considered of less value, such as the handicapped and elderly.  Death will not remain in confinement.  It will continue to take more and more human territory until no one is safe.  This obvious fact mysteriously eludes so many.  We all must fight this fight.  The innocent and vulnerable need us.  Judgement is now upon us and has been a long time coming. 

+++   Lord have mercy.  Christ have mercy.  Lord have mercy.   +++

The feast of the Annunciation is exactly 9 months before Christmas Day, March 25th.  On October 11th, we commemorate the Divine Maternity, as the Mother of God enters the final stages of carrying Our Lord in her womb.  How appropriate it is to remember pro-life intentions this month.

We continue to meditate here, upon the “Marian Triad of the Months.”  We have contemplated her most loving heart, her great sorrows and now her glory as Our Lady of the Rosary, which streams from her Immaculate Heart and is the antidote to our own sorrows.  Let us consider this Mariology and pray on it during the coming month, as many polycrises are heating up in the world and the future is quite uncertain.  Let us flee to Mary for consolation and guidance in examining our consciences well, so we may obtain mercy and not wrath, for ourselves, Holy Mother Church and the world.

On the last Sunday of October, we honor the King of Kings, Christ the King, in the traditional calendar.  We then enter into the “Triduum of Death,” to contemplate our mortality, roughly 4 weeks before a new Church year and our meditation upon the Incarnation!

Notable feasts of October:

1st-Saint Therese of Lisieux (new)

2nd-Holy Guardian Angels

3rd-Saint Therese of Lisieux (trad)

4th-First Friday of the Sacred Heart/Saint Francis of Assisi

5th-First Saturday of the Immaculate Heart/Saint Faustina

7th-OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY

11th-DIVINE MATERNITY OF OUR LADY/Saint John XXIII

16th-Saint Margaret Mary (new)

17th-Saint Margaret Mary (trad)

18th-Saint Luke, Evangelist

19th-Saint Isaac Jogues & Companions, Martyrs of New York territory under the Native Americans

22nd-Saint John Paul II

24th-Saint Raphael the Archangel

27th-CHRIST THE KING

28th-Saints Simon & Jude

31st-Triduum of Death (till Nov 2nd)/All Hallows Eve

November 1st to 8th-Be Ready for the Plenary Indulgences!  Get 8 Loved Ones into Heaven!  (Get your instructions right here in the coming month.)

September is the Month of Our Lady of Sorrows

Concluding prayers from the 3 litanies of Our Lady of Sorrows:

We beseech Thee, O Lord Jesus Christ, let Thy Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, whose holy soul was pierced by a sword of sorrow at the hour of Thy Passion, implore Thy mercy for us, both now and at the hour of our death, Who livest and reignest, world without end.

Imprint, O Lady, thy wounds upon my heart, that I may read therein sorrow and love, sorrow to endure every sorrow for thee, love to despise every love for thee.

O Lord Jesus Christ, God and Man, grant, we beseech Thee, that Thy dear Mother Mary, whose soul the sword pierced in the hour of Thy Passion, may intercede for us, now, and in the hour of our death, through Thine own merits, O Saviour of the world, Who with the Father and the Holy Spirit livest and reignest, God, world without end.

Amen.

This is the second month of Nomen Christi Apostolate’s “Marian Triad of the Months,” when we are contemplating the Mariology of her Immaculate Heart, her 7 Sorrows and the Holy Rosary.  How can we honor her sorrows this month?  We can pray the litanies mentioned above, the 7 Sorrows Chaplet and also celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows on the 15th.  This feast is in both the trad and new calendars.  In terms of meditation, we may ask ourselves the following questions:  “How do our Heavenly Mother’s sorrows relate to our own times?”  “How can we appeal to her during these times?”  “Why did God allow her to suffer?”  “How can we derive consolation from her own Passion, inextricably linked to Our Lord’s?” 

We also honor the Mother of God’s nativity on the 8th, her holy name on the 12th  and Our Lady of Ransom the 24th.  The feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross is on the 14th.  The Ember Days of Autumn always proceed the following week on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday (Wed and Sat meat at one meal and of course, the usual Friday penance).  See “Ember Days” topic to the right>>>  Other notable feasts this month:

Saint Gregory the Great/Saint Pius X-3rd

Saint Teresa of Calcutta-5th

Saint Matthew, Apostle-21st

Saint Pio-23rd

Saint Vincent de Paul-27th

The Three Archangels, Michael, Gabriel & Raphael-29th

Our Lady of Sorrows Prayers from the Tridentine Mass with PDF

August is the Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

“And after six days Jesus taketh unto him Peter and James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into a high mountain apart: And he was transfigured before them. And his face did shine as the sun: and his garments became white as snow. And behold there appeared to them Moses and Elias talking with him. And Peter answering, said to Jesus: Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles, one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. And as he was yet speaking, behold a bright cloud overshadowed them. And lo, a voice out of the cloud, saying:

This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased: hear ye him.

And the disciples hearing, fell upon their face, and were very much afraid. And Jesus came and touched them: and said to them, Arise, and fear not. And they lifting up their eyes saw no one but only Jesus. And as they came down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying: Tell the vision to no man, till the Son of man be risen from the dead.”

Matthew 17:1-9

We commemorate the glorious Transfiguration of Our Lord on the 6th of this month, in the trad and the new calendars.  Though not a Holy Day of Obligation, it is still a wonderful day to attend Mass, recite a devotion such as a litany, or pray the Luminous Mysteries, which contain the Transfiguration.

Holy Church devotes the next 3 months to our Blessed Mother.  August celebrates her Immaculate Heart, September her 7 Sorrows, and October the Holy Rosary (along with sanctity of life issues).  At Nomen Christi Apostolate, we call this the “Marian Triad of the Months,” and we encourage meditation upon these aspects of Mariology, along with devotions.  If we can see how Our Lady’s heart ties into her sorrows and the Rosary, this would be a path for us to understand and love her more.  We are so indebted to her, this is least we can do.

We celebrate the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary on the 15th, a Holy Day of Obligation and one of the Glorious Mysteries.  This feast also has a vigil.  Other Marian feasts of August:  Our Lady of the Snows (which refers to a miracle in Italy combined with the dedication of Saint Mary Major Basilica) on the 5th, Our Lady of Knock on the 17th and the Queenship of the BVM & the Immaculate Heart on the 22nd (double feast, yay!).  Marian-related feasts are:  Saint Dominic, seer of the Rosary on the 4th & 8th and Saint Joachim, father of the BVM the day after the Assumption, the 16th.

What better way to honor the Immaculate Heart of Mary, than to begin the Fatima Devotion of the First Saturdays “Communion of Reparation” (this month, that is the 3rd)?  This is for the purpose of offering reparation to her much-offended heart of incomprehensible love, and for general atonement.  In this time of increasing tensions between nations, we would do well to consider the words of Sr. Lucia:

“Whether the world has war or peace depends on the practice of this devotion, along with the consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. This is why I desire its propagation so ardently, especially because this is also the will of our dear Mother in Heaven.”

Sister Lucia, Fatima Seer, 1939

If your parish does not offer the First Saturdays, why not think about meeting with your pastor and getting it started?  Pray on it!

Here are some other notable feasts coming up, note St. Monica and St. Augustine, mother and son, are 1 day apart:

Saint Alphonsus Liguori-1st & 2nd

Saint John Vianney-4th & 8th

Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein)-9th

Saint Clare (Chiara) of Assisi-11th & 12th

Saint Maximilian Kolbe-14th

Saint Bernard of Clairvaux-20th

Saint Rose of Lima-23rd & 30th

Saint Bartholomew, Apostle-24th

Saint Monica-27th

Saint Augustine-28th

Passion of Saint John the Baptist-29th

Saint Fiacre of Brie (non-standard)-30th

Saints Rose & Fiacre, patrons of gardeners, pray for us!

What is the purpose of paying attention to feastdays?  It is part of our Catholic Faith that is sadly being lost.  If we are attentive to these days, it can have the following benefits:

1)      Encourage us to attend Mass more frequently.

2)      Renew our interest in the saints.  Provide a chance to teach our children about them.

3)      Increase our prayer and devotional life.

4)      Provide opportunity for reading Holy Scripture.

5)      Give us a greater love for and knowledge of the Catholic Faith.

6)      Help us to think creatively about practicing the Faith.

7)      Provide grace and bring us closer to the Kingdom of Heaven!

We provide both trad and new feasts.

October is the Month of the Holy Rosary & Respect for Life

The first week of October is jam-packed with amazing feasts.  October 1st is the new feast of Saint Therese and the 3rd is her trad feast.  The 2nd is devoted to the Holy Guardian Angels, the 4th is Saint Francis of Assisi, the 5th is Saint Faustina Kowalska (stay tuned for a post on our recent visit to the Divine Mercy Shrine) and the 7th, Our Lady of the Rosary.  On the 11th, we have the Divine Maternity of Our Lady & Saint John XXIII, 20th Century Pope.  The month goes on:  13th-Anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun at Fatima (not a feast), 16th  & 17th (new/trad)-Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, 18th-Saint Luke, 22nd-Saint John Paul II, another 20th Century Pope, 24th-Saint Raphael the Archangel, 28th-Saints Simon & Jude, 29th-the traditional CHRIST THE KING and the 31st-All Hallows’ Eve, beginning the Triduum of Death. 

Don’t forget the wonderful November plenaries the first week of November.  Your departed loved ones will be eternally grateful!

In the last of the Marian Triad of the Months, we honor Mary under the title Our Lady of the Rosary…so important is this great devotion!  Through Our Lady of Fatima, we know the Holy Rosary is the antidote to these unprecedented times of evil.  One of the worst of these evils is the sin of abortion and all of the offenses against human life which are becoming more prevalent in a post-Christendom world.  One of Our Lady’s requests at Fatima was the recitation of the Rosary daily.  She saw what was coming upon the world and this great meditative prayer was given to us to obtain mercy and mitigate these evils.  Let us pray the Holy Rosary for the sanctity of life this month and encourage others to do so as well. 

Our Lady of the Rosary, pray for us!

O Lord have mercy upon the world for its crimes against Thee and humanity!

Most Holy Trinity, deliver us!

August, Month of the Immaculate Heart & Marian Triad of the Months

This month, we celebrate the Mother of God’s Immaculate and most loving Heart.  In June, we prayed for our hearts to be conformed to the Heart of Jesus, now we pray for the same grace regarding Our Lady.  Think about how you will honor her most pure heart during the month of August. 

August also brings us the first month of what might be called the “Marian Triad of the Months.”  These are 3 months in a row, which Holy Church dedicates to Our Lady.  September honors Our Lady of Sorrows and October, the Holy Rosary.  It is an interesting theological pondering, to see how these 3 dedications might interrelate.  During this Triad would be a wonderful time to engage in Marian reading and devotions, to deepen your relationship with the Queen of Heaven.

As for some notable feasts this month, we have:  Saint Dominic, seer of the Holy Rosary, on the 4th and 8th (we look at both old and new feasts)…Our Lady of the Snows on the 5th…the Transfiguration of Our Lord, one of the Luminous Mysteries, on the 6th…Santa Chiara (Clare) on the 11th and 12th…the Vigil of the Assumption on the 14th and the Assumption, Holy Day of Obligation on the 15th…Saint Joachim, father of Mary, the very next day, the 16th…on the 22nd, a double Marian feast, the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin and the traditional celebration of the Immaculate Heart…we honor 2 patron saints of gardening on the same day, Saint Rose of Lima and Saint Fiacre, on the 30th…the Passion of Saint John the Baptist on the 29th.

Here is the Roman Catholic traditional calendar for the month of August:  Calefactory

~   Immaculate Heart of Mary, Pray for Us!   ~

Image from Catholic News Agency

Marian Triad of the Months / Triduum of Death

The last 3 months of the Church’s dedications have been reserved for Our Lady. We can see this as a type of “triad,” a group of 3. From August to October, we honor the Immaculate Heart, Our Lady of Sorrows and Our Lady of the Rosary. This triad is interesting to note and study. I have never heard it mentioned before, and have decided to give it the title of “Marian Triad of the Months.”

How are these associations with the Mother of God linked? First, we contemplate her most pure heart, immaculate because it was conceived without Original Sin. Our Lady’s love, emanating from this heart, has existed since her creation, in perfect love for God and humanity. We are called into this abyss of perfection, a privilege we are unworthy of, yet Christ gave us His Mother from the Holy Cross. Next, we are called to reflect on a particular aspect of this heart, her many sorrows. Like Lent, this can be a difficult undertaking, but many graces and joys result. Finally, the Holy Rosary, a devotion uniting all the Body of Christ, is a meditation upon the many aspects of her Immaculate Heart…her joys, her pride in her Son, her sorrows and glories. We become immersed in the Gospels, the events in the life of Our Lord. Next time your Protestant friend argues with you about the Rosary, say that 90% of it comes directly from the Gospels. It is a Bible study!

The Immaculate Heart is a consolation, a privilege, a joy, in the midst of life’s difficulties. Holy Church in her love and wisdom, guided by the Holy Ghost, gives us this heart towards the end of the Liturgical Year, ushering us into another group of 3, the 3 days of the Triduum of Death….

All Hallows Eve

All Saints Day

All Souls Day

“Triduum of Death” is a term we don’t hear too much anymore, perhaps because people think it sounds negative. However, we must realize that this triple feast is one of great joy! All Hallows Eve anticipates the feast of All Saints, when we honor those who have succeeded in winning the Heavenly reward, just as we hope to. The Holy Souls have also won it, though they remain in Purgatory, in need of our prayers. Surely, on All Souls Day, due to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, in addition to prayers all over the world, many souls pass through that glorious Gate to behold the Triune God! What a truly wonderful day! What a wonderful Triduum we now celebrate!