COMING SOON: RE-CONSECRATION TO JESUS THROUGH MARY! by Joe Castorino

Do you want to find

a short and easy way

to make your annual re-consecration

to Jesus through Mary?

If so, then join us right here

for a five-day re-consecration,

which starts on December 8

and ends on December 12!

God bless you,

and may Our Lady,

the Queen of All Hearts,

sweetly shower God's graces upon you!

ST. BONAVENTURE'S PRAYER AFTER MASS by Joe Castorino

Most sweet Lord Jesus,

pierce my inmost heart

with the most dear

and most bracing

wound of your love.

Pierce it with true, sincere,

apostolic, and most holy charity,

that my soul may ever yearn

and melt with love for you

and the desire to possess you.

May my soul be drawn toward you,

and overwhelmed with the hope

of entering your courts.

May it long to be dissolved

and to be with you.

Grant that my soul

may hunger for you,

the Bread of Angels

and the food of holy souls,

our supersubstantial Bread,

having in itself every sweetness

and good taste,

having the delightfulness

of all that charms my heart.

May my heart always long for you,

and find its nourishment in you,

on whom the angels long to gaze,

and may my inmost heart be filled

with the sweetness of your savor.

May my heart thirst for you,

the fountain of life, and of wisdom

and of knowledge, and of eternal life,

the torrent of pleasure, and the richness

of the house of God.

May my heart always draw near to you,

seek you, catch sight of you,

be drawn to you, and arrive at your presence.

May my heart think of you, speak of you,

and do all that it does for the glory of your name,

with humility and care and affection and delight,

with eagerness and with deep feeling,

and with perseverance to the end.

Thus may you alone always be my hope,

all my confidence, my joy, my rest

and my tranquility, my peace,

all that charms me; my fragrance,

my sweetness, my food, my nourishment,

my refuge, my help, my wisdom,

my portion, my possession, my treasure.

In you may my mind and my heart

be fixed and secure and rooted

forever without any change.

Amen.

COMING SOON: RE-CONSECRATION TO JESUS THROUGH MARY! by Joe Castorino

Do you want to find

a short and easy way

to make your annual re-consecration

to Jesus through Mary?

If so, then join us right here

for a five-day re-consecration,

which starts on December 8

and ends on December 12!

God bless you,

and may Our Lady,

the Queen of All Hearts,

sweetly shower God's graces upon you!

LAGO DI COMO by Joe Castorino

June 2023

Thank you, Jesus,

For the gift of this day,

Surrounded by this

Magnificent beauty:

The amazing azure lake

Sparkles before us,

The sweet breeze caresses us,

Ever so tenderly and gently,

The lovely mountains are a

Diamond tiara encircling us;

But greater far than these

Is the love of your Spirit,

Which flows freely and

Peacefully between me

And my wonderful daughter:

Thank you for this precious gift!

RE-CONSECRATION TO JESUS THROUGH MARY by Joe Castorino

Do you want to find

a short and easy way

to make your annual re-consecration

to Jesus through Mary?

If so, then join us right here

for a five-day re-consecration,

which starts on December 8

and ends on December 12!

God bless you,

and may Our Lady,

the Queen of All Hearts,

sweetly shower God's graces upon you!

ST. FRANCIS OF ASSISI'S SPIRITUAL COMMUNION PRAYER by Joe Castorino

I believe you are present

In the Blessed Sacrament,

O Jesus,

I love you and desire you.

O never leave me.

I beseech you, O Lord Jesus,

May the burning

And most sweet power

Of your love

Absorb my mind,

That I may die

Through love

Of your love,

Who was graciously pleased

To die

Through love

Of my love.

Amen.

COMING SOON: RE-CONSECRATION TO JESUS THROUGH MARY! by Joe Castorino

Do you want to find

a short and easy way

to make your annual re-consecration

to Jesus through Mary?

If so, then join us right here

for a five-day re-consecration,

which starts on December 8

and ends on December 12!

God bless you,

and may Our Lady,

the Queen of All Hearts,

sweetly shower God's graces upon you!

ST. MOTHER TERESA'S MEDITATION ON LOVE by Joe Castorino

From the Writings of St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta

“Just begin

one at a time.

One, one, one.

If I had not picked up

that first person

dying on the street,

I would not

have picked up

the thousands

of others

later on.”

“What are these

drops of oil

in our lamps?

They are the little things

of everyday life:

fidelity, punctuality,

little words of kindness,

just a little thought

for others;

those little acts

of silence,

of look, and of thought,

of word, and of deed.

These are the very

drops of love

that make our life burn

with so much light.”

“God does not look

for big things --

he looks for

how much love

we put in the giving.”

COMING SOON: RE-CONSECRATION TO JESUS THROUGH MARY! by Joe Castorino

Do you want to find

a short and easy way

to make your annual re-consecration

to Jesus through Mary?

If so, then join us right here

for a five-day re-consecration,

which starts on December 8

and ends on December 12!

God bless you,

and may Our Lady,

the Queen of All Hearts,

sweetly shower God's graces upon you!

MEDITATION ON VOCATION by Joe Castorino

The Words of St. Francis de Sales

“The King of Glory

Does not reward his servants

According to the dignity

Of the offices they hold,

But according to

The love and humility

With which they fulfill

Their offices.”

COMING SOON: RE-CONSECRATION TO JESUS THROUGH MARY! by Joe Castorino

Do you want to find

a short and easy way

to make your annual re-consecration

to Jesus through Mary?

If so, then join us right here

for a five-day re-consecration,

which starts on December 8

and ends on December 12!

God bless you,

and may Our Lady,

the Queen of All Hearts,

sweetly shower God's graces upon you!

ST. FRANCIS DE SALES' PRAYER BEFORE MAKING AN EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE by Joe Castorino

Based on the writing of St. Francis de Sales

Dearest Jesus,

King of Divine Mercy,

I place myself in your holy presence,

And I beseech you to inspire in me

By the power of the Holy Spirit.

Give me your light,

And give me sight,

That I may gain

A perfect knowledge

Of myself.

With St. Augustine,

I cry out to you,

“Lord, let me know you,

And let me know myself!”

And with St. Francis,

I humbly ask you,

“Lord! Who are you,

And who am I?”

I protest that I do not wish

To learn of my progress

In order to rejoice in myself,

But solely to rejoice in you, dear God,

Because I do not wish to glorify myself,

But I only wish to glorify you, dear Lord,

And give you thanks.

I also protest that if I find,

As I fear I shall,

That I have made only a little progress,

Or none at all,

Or even that I have fallen backward,

I will not on that account

Be depressed or made cold

By discouragement or despondency

Of any sort.

On the contrary,

I protest that I wish to encourage

And animate myself all the more,

I wish to humble myself,

And I wish to correct my faults

By the assistance of your grace.

Amen.

COMING SOON: RE-CONSECRATION TO JESUS THROUGH MARY! by Joe Castorino

Do you want to find

a short and easy way

to make your annual re-consecration

to Jesus through Mary?

If so, then join us right here

for a five-day re-consecration,

which starts on December 8

and ends on December 12!

God bless you,

and may Our Lady,

the Queen of All Hearts,

sweetly shower God's graces upon you!

ST. FRANCIS DE SALES' EVENING PRAYER by Joe Castorino

Based on the writing of St. Francis de Sales

Dearest Heavenly Father,

Through the Holy Spirit

I humbly give you thanks for

The affections and resolutions

You have given me today

In my meditations,

As well as for your great

Goodness and divine mercy.

Eternal Father, I offer to you

The body and blood,

Soul and divinity,

Of your dearly beloved Son,

Our Lord Jesus Christ,

In atonement for our sins,

And those of the whole world.

I wholeheartedly implore you

To share with me the abundant

Graces and virtues

Of your most holy Son,

And to bless my affections and resolutions,

So that I may faithfully fulfill them.

I also thank you for

Having taken care of me today,

And now I will examine

How I have conducted myself

Throughout the course of this day…

For all the good I have done,

I sincerely and wholeheartedly

Thank you for it;

For anything I have done wrong

In thought, word, or deed,

I ask pardon of you,

The Divine Mercy,

And I resolve to confess it

At the first opportunity,

And to make careful

Amendment for it.

In your Divine Providence,

And through the intercession of

Our Lady, the angels,

And the saints,

Please take care of

My body, and my soul,

The Church, and my diocese,

My parish, and my pastor,

My relatives, and my friends,

And everyone else in the world,

That the windows of our souls

Will be closed

Against the shadows of hell.

Thus, with your blessing, dear God,

I go to take the rest

That you have decreed

As necessary for me.

Amen.

(Follow this with an Our Father and a Hail Mary)

SIN AND SINNER by Joe Castorino

All too often,

especially in the past,

we have hated the sin

and hated the sinner,

thus marginalizing

entire races of peoples,

and this is neither good,

nor true, nor beautiful.

Nowadays,

in our upside-down

politically correct world,

we love the sin

and love the sinner,

thus glorifying everything,

and standing up for nothing,

and this is neither good,

nor true, nor beautiful.

Sometimes our world

is even more diabolical,

and we love the sin

and hate the sinner,

thus leading to the persecution

and martyrdom

of many, many Christians,

and this is neither good,

nor true, nor beautiful.

But sometimes,

by the grace of God,

we get it right:

we hate the sin

and love the sinner;

this is very, very good,

this is very, very true,

this is very, very beautiful.

COMING SOON: RE-CONSECRATION TO JESUS THROUGH MARY! by Joe Castorino

Do you want to find

a short and easy way

to make your annual re-consecration

to Jesus through Mary?

If so, then join us right here

for a five-day re-consecration,

which starts on December 8

and ends on December 12!

God bless you,

and may Our Lady,

the Queen of All Hearts,

sweetly shower God's graces upon you!

ST. FRANCIS DE SALES' MORNING PRAYER by Joe Castorino

Based on the writing of St. Francis de Sales

Dearest God,

I adore you profoundly.

I thank you for the grace

Of preserving me

During this past night,

And I implore your pardon

If I have committed any sin

During the course of it.

I realize that the present day

Is given to me in order to gain

The future day of eternity,

And I plan on using this day well.

Looking ahead to what

Awaits me today,

I now make a firm resolution

To sincerely serve you and

Also advance in holy devotion;

Therefore, this is my spiritual plan:

______________________.

Lord, here is this wretched heart

Of mine, which through your

Goodness has conceived

Many good affections;

Alas, it is too weak and

Miserable to do the good

That it desires to do

Unless you impart your

Heavenly blessing.

For this reason

I humbly beg your blessing,

O Merciful Father,

Through the merits

Of the passion of your Son,

In whose honor I consecrate this day,

And all the remaining days of my life.

O Madonnina d’Amore, pray for me,

O Guardian Angel, pray for me,

All you saints and angels, pray for me,

That the windows of my soul

Will be opened

To the Sun of Justice.

Amen.

TRUST by Joe Castorino

Based on St. Paul’s fruit of the Spirit

When you are afraid,

Trust.

When you are sad,

Trust.

When you are agitated,

Trust.

When you are impatient,

Trust.

When you are angry,

Trust.

When you are selfish,

Trust.

When you are doubting,

Trust.

When you are demanding,

Trust.

When you are reckless,

Trust.

When you are foolish,

Trust.

Trust in Divine Mercy,

Trust always,

Trust.

THE BLACK DRAGON by Joe Castorino

Pride is a black dragon that tries

To kindle our sinful souls with

The flaming fires of falsehood,

Causing our egos to swell with

The helium of haughtiness;

But thanksgiving is a weapon,

A weapon of heavenly wonder,

Used by the Holy Family when

There was arrogance in the air;

So when we are praised for some

Fine worldly accomplishment,

Then we too should turn to the

Lord God, and, with a little smile,

We should frequently thank Him

For each of His gracious gifts,

And seeing our happy hearts filled

To the brim with gratitude, behold,

The black dragon flees in terror.

THE KING OF TIME by Joe Castorino

I arrogantly acted

as if I owned Time,

but I did not,

so the Thief

kidnapped Time

and took him away from me,

tempting me and taunting me

with interruptions,

and I got exasperated,

so I madly chased after Time,

like a wild-eyed maniac,

but the Thief just laughed at me,

as if I were a ridiculous fool,

a stupid ridiculous fool.

But when the Light

Showed me The Way,

I surrendered back to Him

His generous gift of time:

Tuus totus ego sum,

I am all yours,

And all the time I have is yours,

O Lord, through Our Lady,

The Queen of All Hearts —

I breathe in His peace,

Oh, so deeply,

And then exhale my impatience,

As I worship

The King of time,

The King of Divine Mercy.