The Garden of Gethsemane

For nearly sixteen hundred years this Garden of Gethsemane, in the Valley of Kedron, has been fixed by the devout as the place of the prayer of our Savior at the time of his “agony” just before his death. John says: “Jesus went forth with his disciples over the brook Kedron, where was a garden into which He entered with his disciples.” Mark says: “And they came to the place which was named Gethsemane, and He said to his disciples, Sit ye here while I shall pray.” Since the days of the visit of the Empress Helena to Jerusalem, in the fourth century, this garden has been identified by tradition. The Valley of Kedron (Jehoshaphat) is here deep and narrow, and Gethsemane occupies about an acre of ground, to the north of which are rugged and barren heights in which the kings of Jerusalem are buried. To the west are the massive walls of Jerusalem. To the east, and rising directly above it about three hundred feet, is the Mount of Olives. The Valley of the Kedron falls into a deep ravine to the south. We have above a view of the garden within, taken by our artist on the 27th of April, 1894. It is a beautiful spot; the trees are very venerable, although they can not have been the identical trees which overshadowed the Son of Man in that hour of his distress. Those who are familiar with Eastern life will easily understand that Christ would often find rest and sleep and opportunity for devotion on the hillside and under the open canopy of heaven. “Nearly all the inhabitants of Palestine sleep, during the greater part of the year, in the open air.”

From the Hours of the Passion:

Fifth Hour From 9 to 10 PM – First Hour of Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane

Sixth Hour From 10 to 11 PM – Second Hour of Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane

Seventh Hour From 11 PM to Midnight – Third Hour of Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane

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Reflections on THE ROUNDS from the Volumes

Reflections On Effects of Praying the Complete Round Each Day

Most High, all powerful, good Lord,
Yours are the praises, the glory, the honor,
and all blessing.

To You alone, Most High, do they belong,
and no man is worthy to mention Your name.

Be praised, my Lord, through all your creatures,
especially through my lord Brother Sun,
who brings the day; and you give light through him.
And he is beautiful and radiant in all his splendor!
Of you, Most High, he bears the likeness.

Praise be You, my Lord, through Sister Moon
and the stars, in heaven you formed them
clear and precious and beautiful.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Brother Wind,
and through the air, cloudy and serene,
and every kind of weather through which
You give sustenance to Your creatures.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Water,
which is very useful and humble and precious and chaste.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Brother Fire,
through whom you light the night and he is beautiful
and playful and robust and strong.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Mother Earth,
who sustains us and governs us and who produces
varied fruits with colored flowers and herbs.

Praised be You, my Lord,
through those who give pardon for Your love,
and bear infirmity and tribulation.

Blessed are those who endure in peace
for by You, Most High, they shall be crowned.

Praised be You, my Lord,
through our Sister Bodily Death,
from whom no living man can escape.

Woe to those who die in mortal sin.
Blessed are those whom death will
find in Your most holy willl,
for the second death shall do them no harm.

Praise and bless my Lord,
and give Him thanks
and serve Him with great humility.

AMEN

Thérèse of Lisieux: Our Lord’s Living Garden

NewsLetter on the official website

Novena to Our Lady Undoer of Knots
Unfailing Novena To The Virgin Mary Untier of Knots

How this devotion started?
To show us the mission granted to the Virgin Mary by Her Son, an artist Johann Melchior Georg Schmittdner painted Mary Undoer of Knots with great grace. Since 1700, His painting has been venerated in the Church of St. Peter in Perlack, Augsburg, Germany. It was originally inspired by a meditation of Saint Irenaeus (Bishop of Lyon and martyred in 202) based on the parallel made by Saint Paul between Adam and Christ. Saint Irenaeus, in turn, made a comparison between Eve and Mary, saying:“Eve, by her disobedience, tied the knot of disgrace for the human race; whereas Mary, by her obedience, undid it”.
But what are these knots?
There are the problems and struggles we face for which we do not see any solution … knots of discord in your family, lack of understanding between parents and children, disrespect, violence, the knots of deep hurts between husband and wife, the absence of peace and joy at home. There are also the knots of anguish and despair of separated couples, the dissolution of the family, the knots of a drug addict son or daughter, sick or separated from home or God, knots of alcoholism, the practice of abortion, depression, unemployment, fear, solitude…Ah, the knots of our life! How they suffocate the soul, beat us down and betray the heart’s joy and separate us from God.
Day after day, more and more Christians kneel to pray to Her as soon as they meet the Mother of the Fair Love. Many families have become reconciled! Many diseases have been healed! Many spouses have returned to the Church! Many jobs have been given! Many conversions have taken place! Many Catholics have been on their knees praying and giving thanks for graces received from our sweet Mother. For that reason, Mary Who undoes the knots, Who was chosen by God to crush the evil with Her feet, comes to us to reveal Herself. She comes to provide jobs, good health, to reconcile families, because She wants to undo the knots of our sins which dominate our lives, so that – as sons of the King – we can receive the promises reserved for us from eternity. She comes with promises of victory, peace, blessings and reconciliation.
Then, free from our knots – filled with happiness, we can be a testimony of the Divine Power in this world, like pieces of God’s heart or small bottles of perfume exhaling mercy and love to our neighbor. Like ambassador of Jesus Christ and the Virgin of the fair love, we can rescue those who cry without any consolation, those who are lonely, tied with knots, who have no God, no Father nor Mother.
Mother of the Rising Sun, Immaculate, our Advocate, Helper in moments of affliction, Mother of God and made by Him our Mother, this is how Mary, Undoer of Knots is presented. Above all, She comes as the Queen of Mercy, the one who knows all about us, who has compassion for us and hurries to rescue us, praying for each one of us to Her beloved Jesus.
(source: http://www.maryundoerofknots.com/history.htm)

The Novena has the Cardinal ecclesiastical approval, receiving the “NIHIL OBSTAT and IMPRIMATUR
Imprimatur Paris Archdiocese

Newsletter from the official WebSite.

“My Will is light, and has transformed that soul into light”

In memory of don John Olin Brown. after a month from his death
9/20/2016

Monday, September 19 at 19.30 in the Mother Church of Corato the Archbishop of Trani Mons. Giovan Battista Pichierri, presided over the Requiem Mass for don John Olin Brown on the thirtieth day after his death.
Present were Msgr. Savino Giannotti, Vicar general, the Vicar of Corato. don Giuseppe Lobascio, don Sergio Pellegrini, ecclesiastical assistant of the Association “Luisa Piccarreta Little Children of the Divine Will” and some priests of the clergy of Corato.
In his homily, the Archbishop, commenting on the liturgy of the Word of the Mass, highlighted that Don John’s priestly ministry, born and matured in the Diocese of Trani, was an expression of the light of God’s love among men. He was a priest at the service of God’s people and always lived with generosity and love, also when he returned to the United States where he became a spiritual guide for many people who had embarked on the path of living in the Divine Will.
Msgr. Pichierri then continued, retracing the story of the last years of Father John’s life, that is, when he expressed his desire to return to Corato, especially after the Fourth International Conference, held in April 2015, that Father John followed in the United State. The theme of the Conference (“Church in the Divine Will”) meant to highlight the importance of being Church, community on the way to the Divine Will, and this aroused in don John the desire to return to the land of Luisa to set forth on the path and work for the knowledge and dissemination of the Divine Will.
Just when all this was taking place here is don John’s sickness and death.
Don Sergio Pellegrini, at the end of the Mass, through a passage taken from Luisa’s Diary, wanted to answer to a question that more or less all of us wondered. It was June 1, 1927, the day of the death of Father Annibale Maria di Francia, who had been close to Luisa, and was preparing the publication of the first volumes of her diary. Saint Annibale was important for Luisa, She entrusted herself to him because he had very much comprehended all the value of what Jesus had told her about the Divine Will.. Luisa too, wondered why Jesus, after allowing that he would take all the writings with himself in order to publish them, right then, Jesus took him to Heaven..
And then Jesus answered her by saying that everything that Father Hannibal did, all the knowledge he learned about the Divine Will had caused him to enclose as much light within his soul, and then he had to put them into practice.
So, as long as he remained on earth, his body, more than wall, walled up that light; but as soon as his soul went out of his body, he found himself invested with the light he possessed. And he began to feel the beginning of the life of true beatitudes and diving into the Eternal Light of his Creator, he found himself in the Celestial Fatherland, in which he will continue his mission about the Divine Will,
It would be good to think of don John in this way. The Lord always surprises us. Perhaps the “good giant” thought he got ready to live the last part of his ministry in the land of Luisa, and instead, the Lord had planned something great and wonderful: to live the Divine Will in Heaven with Him and Luisa.

“My Will is light, and has transformed that soul into light;
It is beautiful, and has given him all the tints of perfect beauty;
It possesses all sciences, and his soul has been invested
by Divine science. There is nothing that My Will has not
given to him. O! if all understood what Divine Will means,
they would put everything aside, they would care about
doing nothing else, and their whole commitment would
 be to do My Will alone.”

(Jesus to Luisa)

Affectionate Salutations to Mary

I greet thee, Mary,
Daughter of God the Father.
I greet thee, Mary,
Mother of the Son of God.
I greet thee, Mary,
Spouse of the Holy Spirit.

I greet thee, Mary,
Temple of the Blessed Trinity.
I greet thee, Mary,
White Lily of the resplendent Trinity.
I greet thee, Mary,
Fragrant Rose of the heavenly court.
I greet thee, Mary,
Virgin full of meekness and humility, of whom the
King of Heaven willed to be born and nourished by thy milk.
I greet thee, Mary,
Virgin of virgins.
I greet thee, Mary,
Queen of Martyrs, whose soul was pierced by the sword of sorrows.
I greet thee, Mary,
Lady and Mistress, to whom all power has been given in Heaven and on earth.
I greet thee, Mary,
Queen of my heart, my sweetness, my life and all my hope.
I greet thee, Mary,
Mother most amiable.
I greet thee, Mary,
Mother most admirable.
I greet thee, Mary ,
Mother of beautiful love.
I greet thee, Mary ,
Conceived without sin.
I greet thee, Mary ,
Full of grace, the Lord is with thee,
blessed art thou among women,
and blessed be the Fruit of thy womb.

Blessed be thy spouse,
Saint Joseph.
Blessed be thy father,
Saint Joachim.
Blessed be thy mother,
Saint Anne.
Blessed be thy Angel,
Saint Gabriel.
Blessed be the Eternal Father,
Who has chosen thee.
Blessed be thy Son,
Who has loved thee.
Blessed be the Holy Ghost,
Who has espoused thee.
May all those who love thee bless thee.

O Blessed Virgin, bless us all in the
name of thy dear Son. Amen.

The “Affectionate Salutations to Mary” were promoted in this version by the Servant of God, Father Paul of Moll [1824.1896]. The venerable Father Paul assured one of his friends that those who devoutly venerate Mary with these affectionate salutations may rely on her powerful protection and blessing. Once while giving a copy of these Salutations to a girl, Father Paul said to her, “These Salutations are so beautiful! Say them every morning. From on high, in Heaven, the Blessed Virgin will then give you her blessing. Yes, yes, would to God that you could see her! The Blessed Virgin blesses you then; I know it quite well.” He said further that it is impossible not to be heard favorably when we recite these Salutations to Mary for the conversion of sinners.