Mary, Mother of God

Madonna with St. Zacharias by Parmigianino

Prayer to Our Lady of America, Patron of our Land:

Oh Immaculate Mother, Queen of our country, open our hearts, our homes, and our land to the coming of Jesus, your Divine Son. With Him, reign over us, O heavenly Lady, so pure and so bright with the radiance of Gods light shining in and about you. Be our leader against the powers of evil set upon wresting the world of souls, redeemed at such a great cost by the sufferings of your Son and of yourself, in union with Him, from that same Savior, Who loves us with infinite charity.

We gather about you, O chaste and holy Mother, Virgin Immaculate, Patroness of our beloved Land, determined to fight under your banner of holy purity against the wickedness that would make all the world an abyss of evil, without God and without your loving maternal care.

We consecrate our hearts, our homes, our land to your Most Pure Heart, O great Queen, that the kingdom of your Son, our Redeemer and our God, may be firmly established in us.

We ask no special sign of you, sweet Mother, for we believe in your great love for us, and we place in you our entire confidence. We promise to honor you by faith, love, and the purity of our lives according to your desire.

Reign over us, then, O Virgin Immaculate, with your Son Jesus Christ. May His Divine Heart and your most chaste Heart be ever enthroned and glorified among us. Use us, your children of America, as your instruments of peace among men and nations. Work your miracle of grace in us, so that we may be a glory to the Blessed Trinity, Who created, redeemed, and sanctifies us.

May your valiant spouse, St. Joseph, with the holy Angels and Saints, assist you and us in “renewing the face of the earth.” Then when our work is over, come, Holy Immaculate Mother, and as our Victorious Queen, lead us to the eternal kingdom, where your Son reigns forever as King.

September 29, 2007 Feast Day of the Archangels, Michael, Gabriel and Raphael

The occupation of angels

Angels, contrary to popular notion, are not merely occupied with strumming harps and floating on clouds. Indeed, they are busy beings who are working at definite assignments. In relation to God, angels praise and glorify God. At the birth of Jesus, we see them performing this work before a watching group of shepherds, and singing “Glory to God in the highest” (Luke 2:13-14). Angels reveal and transmit God’s message to man. Gabriel, whose name means “hero of God”, brought messages to Daniel (Daniel 8:16; 9:21); to Zacharias (Luke 1:19); and to Mary (Luke 1:26). An angel brought an answer to Daniel’s prayer. These supernatural beings worship God (Hebrews 1:6; Revelation 5:8-13); they rejoice in his works (Job 38:6-7); they serve him (Psalm 103:20), and are instruments of his judgment (Revelation 7:1; 8:2).
Michael is named in the Scriptures as being the archangel, or highest ranking angel. In the Old Testament he is revealed to be the guardian angel of Israel (Daniel 10:21; 12:1), while in the New Testament his voice will be heard at the rapture of the church, and is revealed as the leader of God’s armies in opposition to Satan (Revelation 12:7). Apparently, Michael was involved in the burial of Moses (Jude 9).
Supernatural beings participated closely in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. Angels heralded his conception and birth (Luke 1:26-28), directed his family while he was a boy (Matthew 2:13-21), ministered to him at the beginning (Matthew 4:11) and the end of his ministry (Luke 22:43); rolled away the stone from the empty tomb (Matthew 28:1-2); and witnessed his ascension into Heaven (Acts 1:10-11).
Humans and angels interact, though we are seldom aware of just how much interaction is occurring. Angels help believers (Hebrews 1:14); bring messages from the Lord (Daniel 7:15-27; Revelation 1:1); bring answers to prayer (Acts 12:5-10) and encouragement (Acts 27:23-24); guard believers; transport believers into the presence of Jesus at death (Luke 16:22); and observe believers. Angels are present in our worship services (1 Corinthians 11:10), and they observe the whole plan of salvation with amazement (1 Peter 1:12). From: http://www.brfwitness.org/Articles/1997v32n6.htm

St. Raphael is one of seven Archangels who stand before the throne of the Lord. He was sent by God to help Tobit, Tobiah and Sarah. At the time, Tobit was blind and Tobiah’s betrothed, Sarah, had had seven bridegrooms perish on the night of their weddings. Raphael accompanied Tobiah into Media disguised as a man named Azariah. Raphael helped him through his difficulties and taught him how to safely enter marriage with Sarah. Tobiah said that Raphael caused him to have his wife and that he gave joy to Sarah’s parents for driving out the evil spirit in her. He also gave Raphael credit for his father’s seeing the light of heaven and for receiving all good things through his intercession. Besides Raphael, Michael and Gabriel are the only Archangels mentioned by name in the bible. Raphael’s name means “God heals.” This identity came about because of the biblical story which claims that he “healed” the earth when it was defiled by the sins of the fallen angels in the apocryphal book of Enoch. Raphael is also identified as the angel who moved the waters of the healing sheep pool. He is also the patron of Catholic singles, of happy meetings, of nurses, of physicians, the blind, and of travelers. His feast day is September 29th From:http://www.straphael.net/saint-raphael-catholic-singles-patron.php

The name Gabriel means “man of God,” or “God has shown himself mighty.” It appears first in the prophesies of Daniel in the Old Testament. The angel announced to Daniel the prophecy of the seventy weeks. His name also occurs in the apocryphal book of Henoch. He was the angel who appeared to Zachariah to announce the birth of St. John the Baptizer. Finally, he announced to Mary that she would bear a Son Who would be conceived of the Holy Spirit, Son of the Most High, and Saviour of the world. The feast day is September 29th. St. Gabriel is the patron of communications workers.

St. Michael, the Archangel

St. Michael, the Archangel - Feast day - September 29th The name Michael signifies “Who is like to God?” and was the war cry of the good angels in the battle fought in heaven against Satan and his followers. Holy Scripture describes St. Michael as “one of the chief princes,” and leader of the forces of heaven in their triumph over the powers of hell. He has been especially honored and invoked as patron and protector by the Church from the time of the Apostles. Although he is always called “the Archangel,” the Greek Fathers and many others place him over all the angels - as Prince of the Seraphim. St. Michael is the patron of grocers, mariners, paratroopers, police and sickness.
From: www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=308om:

Autumn begins September 23, 2007 this year.

THE CHEMISTRY OF AUTUMN COLORS

Every autumn across the Northern Hemisphere, diminishing daylight hours and falling temperatures induce trees to prepare for winter. In these preparations, they shed billions of tons of leaves. In certain regions, such as our own, the shedding of leaves is preceded by a spectacular color show. Formerly green leaves turn to brilliant shades of yellow, orange, and red. These color changes are the result of transformations in leaf pigments.

Red Maple

During summer, the leaves of trees are factories producing sugar from carbon dioxide and water by the action of light on chlorophyll. Chlorophyll causes the leaves to appear green. (The leaves of some trees, such as birches and cottonwoods, also contain carotene; these leaves appear brighter green, because carotene absorbs blue-green light.) Water and nutrients flow from the roots, through the branches, and into the leaves. The sugars produced by photosynthesis flow from the leaves to other parts of the tree, where some of the chemical energy is used for growth and some is stored. The shortening days and cool nights of autumn trigger changes in the tree. One of these changes is the growth of a corky membrane between the branch and the leaf stem. This membrane interferes with the flow of nutrients into the leaf. Because the nutrient flow is interrupted, the production of chlorophyll in the leaf declines, and the green color of the leaf fades. If the leaf contains carotene, as do the leaves of birch and hickory, it will change from green to bright yellow as the chlorophyll disappears. In some trees, as the concentration of sugar in the leaf increases, the sugar reacts to form anthocyanins. These pigments cause the yellowing leaves to turn red. Red maples, red oaks, and sumac produce anthocyanins in abundance and display the brightest reds and purples in the autumn landscape.

The range and intensity of autumn colors is greatly influenced by the weather. Low temperatures destroy chlorophyll, and if they stay above freezing, promote the formation of anthocyanins. Bright sunshine also destroys chlorophyll and enhances anthocyanin production. Dry weather, by increasing sugar concentration in sap, also increases the amount of anthocyanin. So the brightest autumn colors are produced when dry, sunny days are followed by cool, dry nights.
From: http://scifun.chem.wisc.edu/chemweek/fallcolr/fallcolr.html