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Hello everyone,

Today, Sunday February 20th 2005, we have 4156 people from all over the world and from many Christian and some non-Christian denominations joining together in prayer.

Thanks again for your patience since I last wrote. Our newest grandson managed to hang in there until just two weeks before due date and arrived fine and healthy, thanks be to God. Mom and 'little man' - Aidan David, are both well and happy, TG.

So, all being well, we are back on track again, hopefully. We're into the second week of Lent already and by the skin of my teeth I managed to get the Lenten Reflections up for Ash Wednesday. The focus throughout is on the Divine Mercy of God so I thought I'd share some of my thoughts on that topic here too.

Many of us have 'missions' that we become involved in and mine is the Holy Souls Crusade. I've often spoken to you about Purgatory and the need to pray for our brothers and sisters who are on the final leg of their journey home. You see, if you sit and think about it, Purgatory is a place of God's Mercy. We're not bad enough to go down below and not quite good enough to head upwards yet. After Jesus taught the crowd the Eight Beatitudes He went on to expand on the Law and outline sin against the Laws of God in all its forms. This interesting passage from Matthew's Gospel leaves us wondering if He was speaking about what we call Purgatory:

"Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny." Mt. 5:25-26

You see, we can only do the things we are supposed to do while we are here on earth. Once we die that chance is lost to us. But those of us left behind can do much for those who have gone and for those who are in need of God's Mercy through our prayers. The Mystical Body of Christ has three components - The Church Militant - us here on earth; the Church Triumphant - those who have 'made it home'; and the Church Suffering - those who are on their 'way home'. Why do they suffer, you might ask? They suffer because they do not see God yet yearn to do so. They suffer because they know they are not yet purified enough to be in the presence of Almighty God. They suffer because they know they blew their chances of sainthood while on earth.

Everyone of us is born to be a saint - no child is born bad - and that's God's plan for us all. It's the choices we make in life that muddy the waters. The numbers of folk who go straight to heaven are few and far between and I for one have my place well and truly booked in Purgatory. I'll be depending on my family and friends to pray me out!

So, back to the Holy Souls Crusade, a little organisation promoting the needs of the souls in Purgatory all year round, day in, day out. There's a huge link between praying for the Holy Souls and praying for God's Divine Mercy. You see, when we pray for the souls we pray them out of Purgatory and into Heaven. When we pray for God's Divine Mercy we pray for the conversion of hearts and pray folk into Purgatory! Then we can pray them out!

How does that work, you might well ask. Well, hardened sinners need the Grace of God to be able to turn themselves around. God will never impose His will on anyone but all He needs is the smallest inkling of remorse to open the floodgates of His Mercy. We can provide that tiny inkling through our prayers for conversion, even at the point of death.

Saint Paul speeks of the various gifts we have according to the grace given us:

"If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully." Rm. 12:6-8

Modern-day prophets abound and in the 1930s, Sr. Faustina and now a Saint, a little Polish nun, became a visionary. Jesus called her His 'little secretary'. He wanted her to tell the world about His Divine Mercy and gave her a series of prayers to intercede on behalf of others for their conversions. One is a short prayer called the Chaplet of Divine Mercy and the other is a nine-day novena, to commence on Good Friday and culminate on the Sunday after Easter. In many parts of the world the Church now celebrates this day as Divine Mercy Sunday.

Along with the Rosary, the Divine Mercy is my favourite prayer. Our Divine Lord promised that these prayers offered up for anyone on their death-bed who is in great need of God's Mercy will be saved. Imagine it, by just taking about 10 minutes a day to recite the Chaplet we can save souls from hell. 

He also gave her a lovely short prayer to be recited at three o'clock, as He said Himself - 'The time of My greatest Mercy' - His death upon the cross. So many of the prayer requests coming into the Circle of Prayer ask God for conversions - children, spouses and partners, friends, neighbours, work colleagues etc. 

But there is a larger group of people, too, who needs conversion - government leaders all over the world, decision-makers whose decisions affect the most vulnerable, the poor and the weakest citizens of the world, those in international organisations whose policies affect the poor, the weak and vulnerable, those in the world of finance whose economic policies leave devestation in its wake, those in corporate business whose sole purpose is to use people as production units forgetting their humanity, those in the world of armaments supplies who sell to both sides of conflicts, those in the commercial world whose only purpose is to increase profits at huge human cost - the list is endless.

So folks, we need to pray for our brothers and sisters in need of a change of heart by praying them away from the gates of hell and into that place of God's Mercy. Then we need to pray them from there into the heavenly kingdom. It all makes perfect sense, when you sit down to think about it - The Divine Mercy and the Holy Souls. The Divine Mercy story and prayers can be found on the website: http://www.circleofprayer.com/divine-mercy-history.html and the Holy Souls Crusade is at: http://www.holysoulscrusade.org/

Now here's that special prayer which can be said at three o'clock especially for those who are dying. Beg Jesus at this hour to have mercy on all the poor souls who are about to die and are on their way to eternal damnation. You can pray and offer no greater act of mercy:

"You expired, O Jesus, but the source of life gushed forth for souls and an ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world. O Fount of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy, envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us. O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fount of mercy for us, I trust in You. Amen"

God Bless till next time,

Mary in Galway

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Two little reminders again for this week - Eucharistic Adoration for Vocations, let's try and make it 1,000,000 hours of Adoration in 2004! You can log in your hours online at their own website below or do as we did here in our Perpetual Adoration Chapel, print off the poster and the forms and leave them in your own Chapel of Adoration, sending in the numbers every week via the website below.

http://www.circleofprayer.com/vocations-poster.html
http://www.circleofprayer.com/vocations-form.html

Here's the Vocations website:

And don't forget those prayers for the Holy Souls, there are some below. Please keep your deceased relatives, friends, neighbours and especially those who have no one to pray for them, in your prayers and at Masses you attend.

Here's the Holy Souls Crusade website.

And below is a great little morning prayer to start the day off and help us to keep focused on the Lord.

May God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit bless you and yours and may Mary keep you in Her heavenly mother's care.

Mary Mullins in Galway, Ireland

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Morning Offerings

Our Father Who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. Amen

Lord Jesus, I give You my hands to do Your work
I give You my feet to go Your way.
I give You my eyes to see as You do.
I give You my tongue to speak Your words.
I give You my mind that You may think in me.
I give You my spirit that You may pray in me.
Above all, I give You my heart that You may love in me, Your Father, and all mankind.
I give You my whole self that You may grow in me, so that it is You, Lord Jesus, who live and work and pray in me. Amen.

"Breathe in me O Holy Spirit that my thoughts may all be holy;
Act in me O Holy Spirit that my work, too, may be holy;
Strengthen me O Holy Spirit to defend all that is holy;
Guard me then O Holy Spirit that I may always be holy."

"O Holy Spirit, beloved of my soul, I adore You. Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me, tell me what I should do. Give me Your orders. I promise to submit myself to all that You desire of me and to accept all that You permit to happen to me. Let me only know Your will. Amen"

Chaplet of the Holy Souls

This Chaplet can be prayed on a set of Rosary Beads.

Begin with: The Creed, then 1 Our Father, 3 Hail Marys, 1 Glory Be for the Pope's intentions.

On Large Beads Pray: 

O holy souls draw the fire of God's Love into my soul to reveal Jesus crucified in me, here on earth, rather than hereafter in Purgatory.

On Small Beads Pray:

Crucified Lord Jesus have mercy on the souls in Purgatory

End with: Glory Be three times

Cardinal Newman's Prayer for the Holy Souls

O most gentle heart of Jesus, ever present in the Blessed Sacrament, ever consumed with burning love for the poor captive souls in Purgatory, have mercy on the souls of Your servants. Bring them from the shadows of exile to Your bright home in Heaven, where we trust You and Your Blessed Mother have woven for them a crown of unfolding bliss. Amen.

Prayer of St. Gertrude for the Holy Souls

Eternal Father, I offer you the Most Precious Blood of your Divine Son, Jesus, in union with all the masses said throughout the world today for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the Universal Church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen."

Prayer for Your Family

"O Dear Jesus, I humbly implore You to grant Your special graces to our family this day. In Your Divine Mercy make our home a shrine of peace, love and faith. I beg You, Dear Jesus, to protect and bless all of us and our families absent and present, living and dead. O Mary loving Mother of Jesus and our Mother, pray to Jesus the Divine Mercy for our family, and for all the families of the world. Ask Him to guard the tiny infant in the womb, the cradle of the newborn, the young in the schools and those about to start their vocations in life. Amen"

Prayer for Your Adult Children

"Heavenly Mother, keep us always in mind of Your Son's great mercy and understanding as we pray for our children. They are grown up now and have left us and are living their own lives according to their own ideals. We feel anxious and worried because they do not seem to feel the need for Christ, to understand the wisdom of His ways, or to be fully at ease with us or themselves. Intervene, dearest Mother, in their lives at the moment You know to be right and help them to understand the things that lead to their peace. Help them to see the need of Christ and to experience the greatness of His love, so that we may all proclaim as You did, that His mercy truly is from generation to generation. Amen"

Prayer to Saint Joseph, Patron Saint of Families

"Good Saint Joseph, Your life and love protected and nourished the Mother of God and Jesus Christ, her son. Your fatherly care led to maturity He through whom all creation began. Through your intercession, may God guide and protect all human life from conception to natural death, and lead our nation in the ways of truth and love. Pray for us, good Saint Joseph, that joined with Christ Jesus, we might give praise to God forever.  Amen"

ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS & THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY

Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and Immaculate Heart of Mary, I consecrate myself and my whole family to You. We consecrate to You our very being and all our life, all that we are, all that we have and all that we love. To you we give our bodies, our hearts and our souls. To You we dedicate our home and our country.

Mindful of this consecration we now promise you to live the Christian way by the practice of Christian virtues without regard for human respect. O most Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary accept our humble confidence and this act of consecration by which we entrust ourselves and our family to you. In you we put all our hope, we shall never be confounded. Most Sacred Heart of Jesus have mercy on us. Immaculate Heart of Mary pray for us.

Prayer for the World

"JESUS of NAZARETH has triumphed over Death. His Reign is Eternal. He is coming to conquer the world and the time.

"Mercy, my God on those who blaspheme You,
Forgive them, they know not what they do.

"Mercy, my God, for the scandal in the world,
Deliver them from the spirit of Satan.

"Mercy, my God, on those who run away from You
Give them an appreciation for the Holy Eucharist.

"Mercy, my God, on those who come to repent at the foot of the Glorious Cross. May they find Peace and Joy in God our Saviour.

"Mercy, my God, so that Your Kingdom may come, but save souls, there is still time; for the time is near, behold, I am coming. 
Amen

Come, Lord Jesus."

Recite one decade of the Rosary

"Lord, pour out on the whole world the treasures of Your Infinite Mercy."

"Through the Mystery of Your Holy Incarnation,
deliver us from all evil, Lord.

Through Your Nativity,
deliver us from all evil, Lord.

Through Your Baptism and Holy Fasting,
deliver us from all evil, Lord.

Through Your Cross and Passion,
deliver us from all evil, Lord.

Through Your Death and Burial,
deliver us from all evil, Lord.

Through Your Holy Resurrection,
deliver us from all evil, Lord.

Through Your Admirable Ascension,
deliver us from all evil, Lord.

Through the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete,
deliver us from all evil, Lord.

Through Him whose Name reigns eternal,
deliver us from all evil, Lord."

Prayer of Protection

Blessed Michael the Archangel, protect us in the hour of conflict. Be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God restrain him, we humbly pray, and do thou, Oh Prince of the Heavenly Hosts, by the Power of God, thrust satan down to hell and with him all the wicked spirits who wander through the world for the ruin of souls. Amen

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The Current Reflection and all of the Reflections to date are available to read in the Archives on the website for anyone who's interested.

The Prayer Intentions are available in the prayer book on the website but please say the two wee prayers below. The Loving Father knows the heart of each person requesting prayer.

"Father, bless all those who have requested prayers in whatever it is that You know they may be needing this day! Father, we ask You to heal the broken bodies, broken minds, broken spirits, broken hearts and broken marriages and may all their lives be full of Your peace, prosperity, and power as they seek to have a close relationship with You. Amen."

"Thank You Jesus for answering our prayers because we know You hear every prayer and never refuse to answer. You are providing answers and healings from the prayers of all these wonderful people. Praise God!"

May God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit bless and guide you and yours and may Mary keep you in Her heavenly mother's care.

Mary in Galway

'The fruit of silence is prayer; the fruit of prayer is faith; the fruit of faith is love; the fruit of love is service; the fruit of service is peace.' (Blessed Mother Theresa of Calcutta)