To Jesus through Mary! Good afternoon and thank you for joining us for another edition of The Cause of Our Joy, where we strive to live and learn our Faith under the mantle of Our Lady — the cause of our joy!
We have so much to praise God for these days — the beautiful Fall weather, the Extraordinary Form Mass that was celebrated here at the Center last Saturday, and all the wonderful feast days in October.
And today is also a very special day for us. It was 50 years ago today that our foundress, Barbara Jean (Waskevich) Smith married Bob Smith. Her life continues to inspire us.
In this week’s email, we have some great resources for Our Lady of Fatima and St. Teresa of Avila (one of our favorites!), as well as some great reads about The Sacred Heart and St. Margaret Mary Alacoque.
So, without further ado, let’s get into this!
Why the Rosary?
With the feast of Our Lady of Fatima coming up later this week, we were reminded of The Blessed Mother’s repeated request to pray the rosary. Some may ask, “But why the rosary?” Mass is the most important thing we can do, so why all this emphasis on the rosary? This piece from Catholic Exchange with the words of Sr. Lucia of Fatima have the answer! So, as we approach the upcoming feast on the 13th, let us renew our fervor and commitment to praying the daily rosary.
Fatima’s Lessons for Today
If you asked folks, some would say that the year 2020 has been a dumpster fire. We don’t necessarily agree with that sort of pessimism, but we do agree that it has been a tough one. Many people are lost, lonely, and scared. Blessedly, the lessons of Fatima are just as pertinent today as they were over 100 years ago. Check out Our Lady of Fatima’s 5 Lessons for 2020. It’s a short piece and it makes a lot of interesting parallels to 1917 and now.
Mystical Wisdom
This coming Thursday is the feast of St. Teresa of Jesus (or St. Teresa of Avila), a Carmelite mystic and doctor of the Church. It’s hard to summarize her life in this little paragraph as she wrote and did much in her life. Her common sense practicality coupled with her mystical wisdom, makes her writings very interesting and not overly challenging to read. If you’re interested in learning more about her, read Ten Lessons from St. Teresa of Avila.
Marian Minute
On Mt. Calvary Jesus gave us His mother to be our own and from that time until now, He intends us to pray and ponder with her. Their intentions are the same, so When We Pray with Mary, We Pray with Christ. We should never be afraid to pray with her because her heart is completely inline with His. During this month of the rosary, we can rest in the fact that our prayer for her immaculate intercession goes straight to His Sacred Heart.
Nifty News
We have talked about Venerable Carlo Acutis before, and as you may recall, he is the young man from Italy who used the internet to research and catalogue Eucharistic Miracles and Apparitions of Our Lady. He was a holy young man whose faith has inspired so many in the 15 short years of life. This morning in Assisi, he was beatified!! Part of the process of becoming beatified involves exhuming the body of the individual and when Carlo’s body was exhumed, he was found to be incorrupt. We found this article, 17 Things Every Catholic Should Know About Carlo Acutis, which gives a great summary of this incredible young man. Blessed Carlo Acutis, pray for us!
Saint Spotlight
St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, the “Beloved Disciple of the Sacred Heart”, has a feast day this coming week. In her 43 years, she experienced much joy but also had her fair share of illness, suffering, and rejection. We read this article that really summarized her life and the visions of Jesus well. If you read to the end, you’ll find an interesting connection between her and St. Teresa of Avila who also has a feast this week!
Liturgical Living
Here are some links to celebrate some important feast days this week.
—Our Lady of Fatima, October 13
—St. Teresa of Avila, October 15 & all of October
—St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, October 16 & all of October
Marian Center Update
It’s easy to practice social distancing while attending our exhibit on Marian Apparitions! And you can shop at the Marian Center Gift Shop.
We are now on our Fall schedule. Come visit us from Tuesday-Saturday, 10 to 3. And don’t forget about Mass at 11 am on Saturday, October 3. Hope to see you soon!
To Christ Through Mary,
Katie Moe and Lori Mercer
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