Virgo Potens

2 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 26th Twenty-sixth Day (continued from above) Father Alvarez having been accused in a provincial assembly of a fault of which he was not guilty, and publicly reprimanded in the most severe manner, he said not a word in his defence, neither at that time nor ever afterwards. Our Lord recompensed his heroic silence by extraordinary favors. Prayer My God, I take the resolution never to excuse myself, never to justify myself. Grant me grace to be faithful to this resolution which Thou hast inspired me to make, as a proof of my love for Thee. ~ Abbé Lasausse, Short Meditations For Every Day (1889)

2 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 26th Twenty-sixth Day (continued from above) Father Alvarez having been accused in a provincial assembly of a fault of which he was not guilty, and publicly reprimanded in the most severe manner, he said not a word in his defence, neither at that time nor ever after­wards. Our Lord recompensed his heroic silence by ex­traordinary favors. Prayer My God, I take the resolution never to excuse myself, never to justify myself. Grant me grace to be faithful to this resolution which Thou hast inspired me to make, as a proof of my love for Thee. ~ Abbé Lasausse, Short Meditations For Every Day (1889)

2 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 26th Twenty-sixth Day (continued from above) Father Alvarez having been accused in a provincial assembly of a fault of which he was not guilty, and publicly reprimanded in the most severe manner, he said not a word in his defence, neither at that time nor ever after­ wards. Our Lord recompensed his heroic silence by ex­traordinary favors. Prayer My God, I take the resolution never to excuse myself, never to justify myself. Grant me grace to be faithful to this resolution which Thou hast inspired me to make, as a proof of my love for Thee. ~ Abbé Lasausse, Short Meditations For Every Day (1889)

1 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 26th Twenty-sixth Day To be reprimanded for one’s faults and not excuse one's self is more helpful to perfection than to have heard ten sermons with the best dispositions. It is a sign that one is not ambitious for the esteem of creatures, and in accustoming one’s self not to seek excuses in such circumstances one listens as if it were of a stranger they were speaking.—St. Teresa (continued below)

February 25th ~ FEAST of ST. MATTHIAS, APOSTLE (In Leap Year) Prayer O Almighty God, who into the place of Judas didst choose thy faithful servant Saint Matthias to be of the number of the Twelve: Grant that thy Church, being delivered from false apostles, may always be ordered and guided by faithful and true pastors; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. St. Matthias, pray for us.

February 25th ~ FEAST of ST. MATTHIAS, APOSTLE (In Leap Year) St. Matthias was the Apostle chosen to take the place of Judas Iscariot after he betrayed Our Lord and committed suicide. Matthias was one of the seventy disciples of Jesus, and had been with Him from His baptism by John to the Ascension (Acts 1:21-22). He was chosen after Our Lord had ascended into heaven, but before the descent of theHoly Ghost at Pentecost. He is mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles. All further information concerning the life and death of Matthias is vague and contradictory. He is honored as a martyr by the Church, and is mentioned in the prayer preceding the Pater Noster in the Traditional Latin Mass, between the Proto-martyr and the Apostle Barnabas. His relics are said to be kept in the Basilica of St. Mary Major. St. Matthias, pray for us.

2 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 25th Twenty-fifth Day (continued from above) St. Vincent de Paul was often calumniated, but he was never heard to complain, nor to say anything to show that he was not guilty. “I shall justify myself only by my works,” he said to the Fathers of his Congregation. One day the Queen told him he had been accused of something she could not think him guilty of. "Madam,” he replied simply, “ I am a great sinner.” When the Queen urged that it was his duty to prove his innocence, he answered: “Our Lord was accused of worse things, and He never justified Himself.” Prayer Would I not be covered with confusion if men knew my thoughts, my affections, my works ? O my God, dost Thou not know all ? Should I not die of confusion when I think that Thou hast seen all ? ~ Abbé Lasausse, Short Meditations For Every Day (1889)

1 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 25th Twenty-fifth Day He who would be a true saint ought not to defend himself, except in a few particular cases, when he is accused unjustly. Jesus Christ has given us the example; for, hearing Himself accused of something He was not guilty of, He did not utter a word to vindicate himself.—St. Philip Neri (continued below)

Hail, O Cross, our only hope. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ O Crux, ave, spes única. An indulgence of 500 days. A plenary indulgence once a month under the usual conditions for the daily recitation of the ejaculation. (S. P. Ap., March 20, 1934). (The Raccolta, 1943)

2 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 24th Twenty-fourth Day (continued from above) From the great knowledge St. Vincent de Paul had of the perfections of God came the lowly opinion he had of himself, and his ardent desire for humiliations. “If each of us,” said he to his missionaries, “applied himself to know what he is in the eyes of God, he would certainly ac­knowledge that it is just and right for him to humble him­self. God is so holy, we are so incapable of anything that is good, we have so natural an inclination to evil, so continual a one, we have sinned so often, so grievously. What motives have we not for confusion!” Prayer Who art Thou, O my God, and who am I? Thou art the Lord of lords, and I am nothing. Thou art the Holy of holies, and I am a wretched sinner. I deserve to be with the demons in hell. Lord, have Thou pity on me. ~ Abbé Lasausse, Short Meditations For Every Day (1889)

2 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 24th Twenty-fourth Day (continued from above) From the great knowledge St. Vincent de Paul had of the perfections of God came the lowly opinion he had of himself, and his ardent desire for humiliations. “If each of us,” said he to his missionaries, “applied himself to know what he is in the eyes of God, he would certainly ac­knowledge that it is just and right for him to humble him­self. God is so holy, we are so incapable of anything that is good, we have so natural an inclination to evil, so continual a one, we have sinned so often, so grievously. What motives have we not for confusion!” Prayer Who art Thou, O my God,and who am I? Thou art the Lord of lords, and I am nothing. Thou art the Holy of holies, and I am a wretched sinner. I deserve to be with the demons in hell. Lord, have Thou pity on me. ~ Abbé Lasausse, Short Meditations For Every Day (1889)

2 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 24th Twenty-fourth Day (continued from above) From the great knowledge St. Vincent de Paul had of the perfections of God came the lowly opinion he had of himself, and his ardent desire for humiliations. “If each of us,” said he to his missionaries, “applied himself to know what he is in the eyes of God, he would certainly ac­knowledge that it is just and right for him to humble him­self. God is so holy, we are so incapable of anything that is good, we have so natural an inclination to evil, so continual a one, we have sinned so often, so grievously. What motives have we not for confusion!” Prayer Who art Thou, O myGod,and who am I? Thou art the Lord of lords, and I am nothing. Thou art the Holy of holies, and I am a wretched sinner. I deserve to be with the demons in hell. Lord, have Thou pity on me. ~ Abbé Lasausse, Short Meditations For Every Day (1889)

1 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 24th Twenty-fourth Day In my opinion, we shall never acquire true humility unless we raise our eyes towards Our Lord. The soul which considers the greatness of God sees best its own baseness; in considering His holi­ness it sees better its own unworthiness; when it contemplates His patience it sees how far removed it is from Him; in a word, on fix­ing her eyes on His divine perfections she discovers in herself so many and so great imperfections that she is penetrated with con­fusion, and begs Our Lord to deliver her from them.—St. Teresa (continued below)

1 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 24th Twenty-fourth Day In my opinion, we shall never acquire true humility unless we raise our eyes towards Our Lord. The soul which considers the greatness of God sees best its own baseness; in considering His holi­ness it sees better its own unworthiness; when it contemplates His patience it sees how far removed it is from Him; in a word, on fix­ing her eyes on His divine perfections she discovers in herself so many and so great imperfections that she is penetrated with con­fusion, and begs Our Lord to deliver her from them.—St. Teresa (continued below)

2 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 23rd Twenty-third Day (continued from above) St. Teresa relates that Our Lord having enlightened her with a heavenly light, she immediately saw herself full of abominable faults; she appeared to herself like a demon. “How much more would I have seen,” said she, “ if Our Lord had still further enlightened me!” Confounded at the sight of her miseries, she humbled herself continually. If it happened that she received some mark of disrespect, far from being troubled or complaining, she only said: “They are right; they do well to speak thus, to treat me in such a manner.” Prayer O my God, in Thy eyes I was a demon when sin reigned in my heart. Ought I not fear that I am still one, since I know not but that sin still reigns in me ? Grant that this thought may lessen my pride and keep me humble before Thee. ~ Abbé Lasausse, Short Meditations For Every Day (1889)

1 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 23rd Twenty-third Day If we consider well all there is in us that is human and im­perfect, what would we not find to humble us before God, before men, even before our inferiors!—St. Vincent de Paul (continued below)

February 22nd ~ FEAST of THE CHAIR of ST. PETER at ANTIOCH This Feast commemorates the seven years residence of St. Peter at Antioch, as First Bishop of that city. Later he went to a Rome, the center of Catholic unity, where he fixed his Chair as Chief Bishop. ~ St. Joseph Daily Missal, 1956 St. Peter, pray for us.

2 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 22nd Twenty-second Day (continued from above) A holy religions often asked of her Superior the permission to confess her faults publicly, and also begged her to impose humiliating penances upon her that she might be despised by all. St Catharine of Genoa said: “When I do wrong, it is I alone who do it; I can attribute it neither to the demon nor to any creature, but solely to my evil inclinations, my pride, my sensuality. If Our Lord did not assist me con­tinually with His grace, what would I not become! I am worse than the demon in doing evil.” When some little fault was committed through weakness, she would say, “This is a plant of my garden,” and humbled herself still more. Prayer My God, I am incapable of any good of myself, I am capable only of doing evil. How can I be proud ? Con­vinced of this truth, ought I not to have a sovereign con­tempt for myself ? ~ Abbé Lasausse, Short Meditations For Every Day (1889)

1 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 22nd Twenty-second Day He who is truly humble desires to be despised, turned into derision, persecuted and calumniated. If we would imitate Jesus Christ, it is in this we can most closely follow Him. Would it not be wise in us to rejoice in contempt, to desire that we be looked upon as the last of men, since He Who is Wisdom itself was so regarded?—St. Teresa (continued below)

2 of 2 Month of the Holy Family ~ February 21st Twenty-first Day (continued from above) It is related of St. Amonius that he had arrived at so high a degree of perfection that he had become as insensible to contempt as though he were a stone. No matter what the insult, he never felt that he had received an injury. "To suffer injuries without complaining is the door by which our fathers have entered heaven,” said an abbot to his monks; this exercise makes easy, even agreeable, that which at first appeared so difficult. Prayer My God, I am well worthy to be despised, since I have despised Thy commandments, since I have outraged Thy perfections. I deserve to be under the feet of all, since I have consented to be the slave of the demon. Grant that this thought may render me eager for humiliations. ~ Abbé Lasausse, Short Meditations For Every Day (1889)