And thank Thee for the angels

O Lord, permit us here to raise our voice;
And waft before Thy throne our feeble praise,
And thank Thee for those angels whom Thy choice
Hath lent our weakness to direct its ways,
And free us from the envious foes that lurk
To spoil the beauty of Thy cherished work.

Ant. O holy Angels, our guardians, defend us in the combat, that we perish
not in the dreadful judgement.

V. In sight of Thy angels I will sing to Thee, my God.
R. I will adore at Thy holy temple, and confess to Thy name.

Prayer:

O God, Who, with unspeakable providence, hast vouchsafed to appoint Thy
holy angels to be our guardians, grant to Thy humble suppliants to be
always defended by their protection, and to enjoy their everlasting
society, through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

<<>><<>><<>>
September 18th - St. John de Massias, Monk, Visionary

He was born in Ribera, Spain, to a noble family and was orphaned at a
young age. John went to Peru to work on a cattle ranch before entering
the Dominicans at Lima as a lay brother, assigned to serve as a
doorkeeper, or porter. He was known for his austerities, miracles, and
visions. John cared for all the poor of Lima, dying there on September
16. Pope Paul VI canonized him in 1975 .

The lessons of his office state that the parents of Bl. John Massias
(or Masias) were representatives of noble and ancient families, who
“had been deprived of rank and wealth by the various misfortunes of an unreliable world”. He was born at Ribera in Estramadura in 1585 and
was left an orphan whilst still young, being looked after by an uncle,
who made the boy earn his living as a shepherd. During the long hours
when there was nothing particular to do except keep his eyes open John
would say his rosary and meditate on the Christian mysteries, and it
sometimes appeared that the holy ones were there, visible and talking
to him, especially our Lady and St. John the Evangelist. He attributed
to an instruction of the last named his sudden decision to go to the
Americas, as so many others of his countrymen were then doing. He
landed in Peru and got work on a cattle-ranch, where he stopped for
over two years and saved a little money with which he made his way to
Lima. Here he decided to become a religious and, having given away
what was left of his savings, he was accepted as a lay-brother by the Dominicans of St. Mary Magdalen’s.

  Brother John’s austerities exceeded the bounds of prudence, and his
prior had to insist on moderation: for he would content himself with
one hour of sleep, and that on his knees with his head on the bed, and
brought on himself a disease which required a painful and dangerous
operation. He was made porter and his lodge soon became the
meeting-place for the poor, the sick and the wretched of the city;
following the example of his friend Bl. Martin de Porres, he begged
alms with which to feed and attend to their mental needs, and
accompanied his ministrations with good advice and exhortations to
good life and the love of God. Those who were too shy to beg he sought
out in their homes, and to save time in begging from door to door he
trained the priory donkey to go round by itself and receive in its
panniers food and clothing for his beloved poor. Many and remarkable
were the miracles attributed to Bl. John Massias, and his death at the
age of sixty was mourned by the whole city. He was beatified in 1837.

On the occasion of the beatification an Italian life, the Dominicans
in Rome published Vita del Beato Giovanni Massias. See also Procter,
Lives of Dominican Saints, pp. 263-274. There is a fuller bibliography
in Taurisano, Catalogus Historicus OP.


Saint Quote:
Avoid evil practices; indeed, preach against them. Hear your bishop,
that God may hear you. Work together in harmony,: struggle together,
run together, suffer together, rest together, rise together, as
stewards, advisors and servants of God. So be patient and gentle with
one another, as God is with you.
--St. Ignatius of Antioch

Bible Quote:
For which cause I admonish thee that thou stir up the grace of God
which is in thee by the imposition of my hands.  For God hath not
given us the spirit of fear: but of power and of love and of sobriety.
Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me
his prisoner: but labour with the gospel, according to the power of
God.  (2 Tim 1:6-8) DRB


<><><><>
On Humility in Conversation [IX]

Our Lord tells us that by our words we shall be justified and by our
words we shall be condemned, and from our words can be clearly seen
whether we are humble or proud. The proud man always wants to take the
lead in the conversation, and to lay down the law for the benefit of
the rest. The humble man is content to be in the background. The proud
man is vexed if he is not listened to; the humble man is ready to
accept such disregard with peaceful resignation, as a humiliation from
the hand of God. Do I on these points exhibit marks of pride or of
humility?

There is in the conversation of the proud an under-current of
self-praise. They talk chiefly about themselves and what they have
said and done, and in a tone of boastfulness more or less thinly
veiled. The humble seem to forget themselves; they consider what is
interesting to those to whom they talk, for God's sake they seek to
please others rather than themselves. Try and cultivate this humility
in conversation. It will make you loved by God and by men.

We perceive the contrast between humility and pride most clearly when
some rebuff is given. See the meekness of the one and the indignation
of the other; the patience of the one, and the eagerness of the other
to assert himself and prove himself in the right. In this respect we
shall do well to contemplate the perfect humility of the Holy Mother
of God at the marriage-feast at Cana. In answer to the apparent rebuke
that she received from her Son, she uttered not a word of
self-justification, but an instruction to the servants to be exact in
their obedience to Jesus.

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