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

We honor Our Lady of the Holy Rosary this month, whose feast we celebrate on the 7th.  The Church also reminds us to remember the unborn and all those lives in danger from anti-life agendas.  It is good to re-evaluate how we are fighting this fight within our own states of life.  Everyone can do something, even if it is “only” to pray.  The babies must never be forgotten.  October also concludes the “Marian Triad of the Months,” a Nomen Christi Apostolate initiative, when we contemplate 3 aspects of Our Lady, her Immaculate Heart, her sorrows and her title of Our Lady of the Rosary.  How do these 3 attributes inter-relate?  One can easily use this as a Rosary meditation with the Mysteries. 

From the beautiful words of the Tridentine Mass for Our Lady of the Rosary (the Collect will be familiar to you)… 

Let us all rejoice in the Lord,

celebrating a feast in honor of the

Blessed Virgin Mary: on whose

solemnity the angels rejoice and join

in praising the Son of God. 

God, Whose only-begotten Son, by

His life, death, and resurrection hath

purchased for us the rewards of

eternal life: grant, we beseech Thee,

that, meditating on the mysteries of

the most holy Rosary of the Blessed

Virgin Mary, we may imitate what they

contain and obtain what they promise.

Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy

Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth

with Thee in the unity of the Holy

Spirit, God, forever and ever. 

The Lord possessed me in the

beginning of His ways, before He

made anything, from the beginning. I

was set up from eternity, and of old,

before the earth was made. 

The depths were not as yet, and I was already conceived.  

Hear, O daughter, and see, and incline thine

ear, for the King hath desired thy beauty.

Alleluia, alleluia!

The solemnity of the glorious Virgin Mary,

of the seed of Abraham, sprung from

the tribe of Juda, of the noble line of David.

Alleluia! 

In me is all grace of the way and of the

truth, in me is all hope of life and of

virtue. Like a rose planted on the

rivers I have borne fruit. 

This month, we also have the Maternity of the Blessed Virgin Mary on the 11th, which refers to Mary as the Mother of God. 

We celebrate Saint Therese of Lisieux on the 1st & 3rd and Saint Teresa of Avila on the 15th.  Both with a name that refers to “harvest.”  And 2 of the 4 women Doctors of the Church. 

On the 2nd, we honor all of our Guardian Angels and on the 24th, Saint Raphael the Archangel. 

The feast of Saint Francis of Assisi is abrogated due to its falling on Respect Life Sunday, the 4th, though still appropriate to honor him with prayer.  Also great visionaries, Saint Faustina on the 5th and Saint Margaret Mary on the 16th & 17th.  The Divine Mercy cannot be separated from the Sacred Heart.  How indebted we are to both of these saints!  Like Faustina, another 20th Century saint, Pope John Paul II, is honored on the 22nd. 

The 18th is the feast of Saint Luke and the 28th honors both Apostles Simon and Jude. 

The USA has much to be proud of in our saints, such as Saint Isaac Jogues and Companions, martyred in what is now the State of New York, who we celebrate on the 19th.  The location is Our Lady of Martyrs Shrine.  In 1656, shortly after this martyrdom, Saint Kateri Tekakwitha was born there.  How God graced this blood-stained land with the Lily of the Mohawks!   

The 25th, in the trad calendar, is the feast of Christ the King, on a Sunday.  From the Holy Mass… 

The Lamb that was slain is worthy to

receive power and divinity and wisdom

and strength and honor: to Him be

glory and empire for ever and ever! 

Finally, All Hallows Eve on the 31st, begins the joyful Triduum of Death, when we remember all the saints who have received their glorious reward and bring the Holy souls in Purgatory closer, or even into Heaven, with the Holy Mass and our prayers throughout the Universal Church.  And don’t forget the Plenary Indulgence privilege from November 1st to 8th.  It is important to prepare for this, which cemeteries you will visit and which souls you will obtain the Plenary for. 

****** Prepper Challenge for October ****** 

Investigate Alternative Media 

This is Point #12 on our 15 Points Preparedness Worksheet…

Do I question the status quo? How can I access information with an alternative point of view? How can I exercise good judgement in evaluating these sources?  Where can I get the truth of what is going on in the world?  Hint:  Pray to the Holy Ghost.

This coming month, I will be providing recommended resources on the blog, in a more concise way.  Please stay tuned! 

Noah was the Original Prepper ~ Build Your Ark!

Note:  We do not necessarily agree with all content on sites that we link to.

October...

pray the rosary for life!

Today is the feast of Saint Therese of Lisieux. Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, pray for us!

“In the heart of the Church, my Mother, I will be love.”

Saint Therese, the “Little Flower”

Stay tuned for more on Catholic October!

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.)

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

The month of October is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Rosary, given by Our Lady to Saint Dominic in the year 1214.  More recently, October has also been dedicated to the sanctity of human life, particularly the most vulnerable who have lost their rights in this post-Christendom society.  May the Lord have mercy upon us. 

As Catholics, the obvious practice for this month, would be the recitation of the Rosary for the intentions of the unborn and all others in danger (and the list is growing).  It is wonderful to take this opportunity as a family, perhaps praying it daily this month, to educate your children on life issues and show them from a young age, how precious every life is.  The feast of Our Lady of the Rosary is celebrated on the 7th and her Divine Maternity is celebrated on the 11th!  Here we can see a juxtaposition with these 2 dedications.  Of course, we also have the 40 Days for Life Fall 2021 Campaign, which began September 22nd and runs until the end of the month.  A common aspect of this international bi-annual campaign, is prayer at the abortion clinics.  Please consider taking part.

October begins by honoring Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, the “Little Flower.”  She is the sole Doctor of the Church this month, an extraordinary achievement for one who passed from this life at the tender age of 24.  We also honor two 20th century popes.

This October ends with the traditional Feast of Christ the King, as the Triduum of Death begins on All Hallows Eve.  He is the great Victor over death!  Here are some of the notable feasts of this month…

10/1-First Friday / St. Therese of Lisieux, Doctor of the Church, author Story of A Soul

10/2-First Saturday / Holy Guardian Angels

10/3-St. Therese of Lisieux (trad) / Respect Life Sunday

10/4-St. Francis of Assisi, Founder Franciscans

10/5-St. Faustina Kowalska, Seer of the Divine Mercy

10/7-OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY

10/11-DIVINE MATERNITY OF OUR LADY / Pope St. John XXIII, 20th Century Saint

10/16-St. Margaret Mary, Seer of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

10/17-St. Margaret Mary (trad)

10/18-St. Luke, Evangelist

10/22-Pope St. John Paul II, 20th Century Saint

10/24-St. Raphael the Archangel

10/28-Sts. Simon & Jude, Apostles

10/31-FEAST OF CHRIST THE KING / All Hallows Eve

A personal note:  The day after my dear father-in-law passed last week, we were getting together his suit for the funeral home.  Someone found a beautiful pair of wooden Rosary beads to place in his hands, and put them on a desk.  I was worried they would be forgotten, so I took them and placed them around the hanger of his suit jacket.  At that point, I just broke up…the wake was this past Sunday…it was wonderful to see the beads in his hands and a peaceful look on his face, after so much suffering.  Above him, attached to the inner top of the casket, was a large Rosary made out of tiny red roses, the crucifix hanging above his head.  It was very dignified and very Catholic, just like him.  My mother-in-law and I prayed the Glorious Mysteries in the front row, before his body.  It was deeply consoling to meditate upon the Resurrection and the rest of the Mysteries.  It was also an intimate and precious moment with my mother-in-law, that I will always hold in my heart.  Such are the riches of the Most Holy Rosary, that Holy Church reminds us of this month.  It may seem a chore at times to pray it, but like confession, you come out of it feeling bright and much better for it.  I can say with certainty, that no one will ever regret praying the Holy Rosary!

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