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 MEMORIAL
OF THE MARTYRDOM OF ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST
The
Church honors the memorial of the martyrdom of St John the
Baptist on August 29. This event relates to the circumstances
of his execution. St John the Baptist had the courage to blame
Herod to his face for the scandal of his illegal union with
his sister-in-law Herodias, whose husband was still alive.
Herodias contrived to make Herod imprison him and took advantage
of an unexpected opportunity to obtain through her daughter
Salome the beheading of the saint.
Being the forerunner of Christ, St John the Baptist suffered
imprisonment and chains as a witness to our Redeemer and gave
his life for him. His persecutor had demanded not that he
should deny Christ, but only that he should keep silent about
the truth. Nevertheless, he died for Christ. Does Christ not
say: "I am the truth"? Therefore, because John shed
his blood for the truth, he surely died for Christ.
Through his birth, preaching and baptizing, he bore witness
to the coming birth, preaching and baptism of Christ, and
by his own suffering he showed that Christ also would suffer.
Such was the quality and strength of the man who accepted
the end of this present life by shedding his blood after the
long imprisonment. He preached the freedom of heavenly peace,
yet was thrown into irons by ungodly men. He was locked away
in the darkness of prison, though he came bearing witness
to the Light of life and deserved to be called a bright and
shining lamp by that Light itself, which is Christ.
To endure temporal agonies for the sake of the truth was not
a heavy burden for such men as John; rather it was easily
borne and even desirable, for he knew eternal joy would be
his reward.
For more information on St John the Baptist, please click
on the following links:
•
Prayer to St John the Baptist
•
Beheading of St John the Baptist
•
Litany of St John the Baptist.
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| SPECIALS |
 Assumption
of the Blessed Virgin Mary
“‘Mary assumed into heaven
shows us the ultimate end of our earthly pilgrimage.
She reminds us that the whole of our being -- spirit,
soul and body -- is destined to the fullness of life;
that he who lives and dies in the love of God and of
his neighbor will be transfigured in the image of the
glorious body of the Risen Christ; that the Lord humbles
the proud and raises the humble (cf. Luke 1:51-52).
Our Lady proclaims this in eternity with the mystery
of her Assumption. May you always be praised, O Virgin
Mary!’
Pope Benedict XVI uttered these words before reciting
the midday Angelus with to the several thousand people
gathered in the courtyard of the papal summer residence
at Castel Gandolfo, Italy on August 15, 2008 in commemoration
of the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin
Mary.
Below is a copy of the Pope’s message translated
by Zenit:
* * *
Dear Brothers and Sisters!
In the heart of what the Latins called "feriae
Augusti," August holiday, from which stems the
Italian word "ferragosto" -- the Church celebrates
today the Assumption of the Virgin into heaven in soul
and body. In the Bible, the last reference to her earthly
life is found at the beginning of the book of the Acts
of the Apostles, which presents the Virgin Mary gathered
in prayer with the disciples in the Cenacle in anticipation
of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:14).
Subsequently, a twofold tradition -- in Jerusalem
and Ephesus -- attests to her "dormition,"
as the East says, that is, her "falling asleep"
in God. That was the event that preceded her passage
from earth to heaven, confessed by the uninterrupted
faith of the Church. In the eighth century, for example,
John Damascene, great doctor of the Eastern Church,
established a direct relation between Mary's "dormition"
and Jesus' death, affirming explicitly the truth of
her corporal assumption. In a famous homily he wrote:
"It was necessary that she who bore the Creator
in her womb when he was a baby, should live with him
in the tabernacles of heaven" (Second Homily on
the Dormition, 14, PG 96, 741 B). As mentioned, this
firm conviction of the Church found its crowning in
the dogmatic definition of the Assumption, pronounced
by my venerated predecessor Pius XII in the year 1950.
As the Second Vatican Council teaches, Mary Most Holy
is always situated in the mystery of Christ and of the
Church. In this perspective, "the Mother of Jesus,
being in heaven, now glorified in body and soul, is
the image and first fruits of the Church which will
have its fulfillment in the age to come, now shines
on the earth as a sign of sure hope and consolation
for the people of God, pilgrims until the day when the
Lord will return (cf. 2 Peter 3:10)" (Constitution
"Lumen Gentium," 68). From paradise Our Lady
always continues to watch over her children -- whom
Jesus entrusted to her before dying on the cross --
especially in the difficult hours of trial. How many
testimonies of her maternal solicitude one sees when
visiting shrines dedicated to her! I am thinking especially
at this moment of the singular world fortress of life
and hope that is Lourdes, where, God willing, I will
go in a month to celebrate the 150th anniversary of
the Marian apparitions that took place there.
Mary assumed into heaven shows us the ultimate end of
our earthly pilgrimage. She reminds us that the whole
of our being -- spirit, soul and body -- is destined
to the fullness of life; that he who lives and dies
in the love of God and of his neighbor will be transfigured
in the image of the glorious body of the Risen Christ;
that the Lord humbles the proud and raises the humble
(cf. Luke 1:51-52). Our Lady proclaims this in eternity
with the mystery of her Assumption. May you always be
praised, O Virgin Mary!
[After the Angelus, the Pope said in English:]
I am happy to greet all the English-speaking pilgrims
and visitors present for this Angelus prayer. As we
celebrate the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed
Virgin, we are invited to raise our eyes to heaven and
contemplate Mary, the Mother of Jesus and our Mother.
She who on earth believed in God's word is now glorified
in body and soul. May Mary's prayers and example guide
you always and renew your hearts in faith and hope.
May God grant you and your families abundant blessings
of peace and joy!
© Copyright 2008 -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana
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| TEACHING
CATHOLIC FAITH |
 Month
of the Immaculate Heart
The month of August is traditionally dedicated to the
Immaculate Heart of Mary. The physical heart of Mary
is venerated because it is united to her person and
is the seat of her love, virtue, and inner life. Such
devotion is an incentive to a similar love and virtue.
The devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary has received
new emphasis in this century from the visions given
to Lucy Dos Santos, oldest of the visionaries of Fatima,
in her convent in Tuy, in Spain, in 1925 and 1926. In
the visions Our Lady asked for the practice of the Five
First Saturdays to help make amends for the offenses
committed against her heart by the blasphemies and ingratitude
of men. The practice parallels the devotion of the Nine
First Fridays in honor of the Sacred Heart.
On October 31, 1942, Pope Pius XII made a solemn Act
of Consecration of the Church and the whole world to
the Immaculate Heart. Let us remember this devotion
year-round, but particularly through the month of August.
Pope Paul VI, on the floor of the Vatican Council at
the close of the third session, renewed publicly the
consecration of the Church and the world to Mary's Immaculate
Heart.
Before making a consecration it is most desirable to
make a careful preparation extending over some period
of time. One good way to make that preparation is described
in the last part of St. Louis de Montfort's True Devotion
book. The most essential thing is not making an act
of consecration, with or without some solemnity, though
that is important. The essential thing is to live that
consecration.
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| SCRIPTURES |
 "Whoever
loses his life for my sake will find it " Matthew
16:21-27
From
that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he
must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the
elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed,
and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him and
began to rebuke him, saying, "God forbid, Lord!
This shall never happen to you." But he turned
and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are
a hindrance to me; for you are not on the side of God,
but of men." Then Jesus told his disciples, "If
any man would come after me, let him deny himself and
take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save
his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for
my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man,
if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life? Or
what shall a man give in return for his life? For the
Son of man is to come with his angels in the glory of
his Father, and then he will repay every man for what
he has done.
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PowerPoint
Inspiration |
Download and Play this Powerpoint |
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THE
MYSTERIOUS STAIRCASE |
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| LIVES
OF THE SAINTS |
August
25
ST.
LOUIS OF FRANCE
St. Louis was born on April 25, 1214. His father was King
Louis VIII of France and his mother was Queen Blanche. The
story is told that when Prince Louis was small, his mother
hugged him tightly.
August 26
ST.
ELIZABETH BICHIER
St. Elizabeth was born in 1773. As a little girl, her favorite
game was building castles in the sand. Many years later, this
holy French woman had to take charge of building convents
for the order of nuns she founded.
August
27
ST.
MONICA
St. Monica, the famous mother of St. Augustine, was born in
332 in Tagaste, northern Africa. She was brought up as a good
Christian. Her strong training was a great help to her when
she married the pagan Patricius.
August
28
ST.
AUGUSTINE
St. Augustine was born in Tagaste in modern Algeria on November
13, 354. This famous son of St. Monica spent many years in
wicked living and in false beliefs. He was one of the most
intelligent persons who ever lived.
August
29
BEHEADING
OF ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST
St. John the Baptist was a cousin of Jesus. His mother was
St. Elizabeth and his father was Zechariah. The first chapter
of Luke's Gospel tells of the wonderful event of John's birth.
Mark's Gospel, chapter 6:14-29, records the cruel details
of John the Baptist's death. What harsh consequences John
accepted for teaching the truth.
August
30
ST.
PAMMACHIUS
St. Pammachius was a distinguished Christian layman who lived
in the fourth century. As a young student, he had become friends
with St. Jerome. They remained friends all their lives and
kept an ongoing correspondence.
August
31
ST.
AIDAN
St. Aidan was a seventh-century Irish monk. He lived at the
great monastery of Iona, which St. Columban had founded. St.
Oswald became king of North England in 634.
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PRIEST
OF THE MONTH |
 Father
Benny Susetyo
Assaults
to priests all over the globe have been very rampant. The
latest attack happened on August 12 to Father Benny Susetyo.
He is the executive secretary of the Catholic bishops' Commission
for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs in Indonesia, an
active member of the Alliance for Nation and Religious Freedom,
one of the founders of Setara- an NGO that deals with civil
rights and democracy, and an active in religious dialogue.
The 40-year old priest was on his way to a store near his
home in Bintaro, South Jakarta, Indonesia around 8 pm on Monday,
August 11 when he was grabbed by a group of unidentified people.
The attackers forcibly removed him from his home, took away
his cell phone, and severely beat him near the Mbok Berek
chicken restaurant in Pondok Indah.
A passing nun who witnessed the three men brutally hitting
and kicking the priest took Father Susetyo to the nearby Pondok
Indah hospital in Jakarta where he is now recovering. Visitors
are restricted to his family and close friends. One of his
visitor was Solahudin Wahid who was also another human rights
activists and promoter of interreligious dialogue and the
younger brother of former president Abdurrahman Wahid. Meanwhile,
Ahmad Suaedy, executive director of the Wahid Institute, stated
that Father Susetyo was already conscious during his visit
but could not communicate well yet.
Kebayoran Lama Police chief Comr. Siswono said that the Father
Susetyo’s case is the first incident on priest kidnapping
and severe assaulting for a long time.
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| QUOTE
OF THE MONTH |
ON
THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY
Before you, Mother of Christ, before
your Immaculate Heart, I today, together with the whole
Church, unite myself with our Redeemer in this his consecration
for the world and for people, which only in his divine Heart
has the power to obtain pardon and to secure reparation.
The power of this consecration lasts for all time and embraces
all individuals, peoples and nations. It overcomes every
evil that the spirit of darkness is able to awaken, and
has in fact awakened in our times, in the heart of man and
in his history.
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| PHOTO
OF THE MONTH |
Tour
of the Relics of the Passion
(International Center
for Holy Relics)
www.HolyRelics.org |
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INSPIRATIONAL
STORY OF THE MONTH |
 THE
MYSTERIOUS STAIRCASE
City
of Santa Fé, in New Mexico, USA.
A mystery of over 130 years and attracting around 250 thousand
visitors every year. Point of attention : Loretto Chapel
What makes this chapel different from all others is that the
subject of the supposed miracle that took place in it is a
Staircase....
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| REFLECTIONS |
 “What
can you Offer to God?"
What is the most important
investment you can make with your life? Jesus poses some probing
questions to challenge our assumptions about what is most
profitable and worthwhile. In every decision of life we are
making ourselves a certain kind of person. The kind of person
we are, our character, determines to a large extent the kind
of future we will face and live.
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