CHRISTMAS – PRAYER BEFORE THE CRIB

I adore thee, O Word Incarnate, true Son of God from all eternity, and true Son of Mary ever Virgin in the fulness of time.

When I adore thy Divine Person, and the Humanity united to thy Divinity, I venerate the poor manger which welcomed thee when an Infant, and which was truly the throne of thy love.

I prostrate myself before it with the simplicity of the shepherds, with the faith of Joseph, with the love of Mary; I bow down in reverence before this precious memorial of our salvation with the same spirit of mortification, poverty and humility with which thou, the Lord of heaven and earth, didst choose a manger wherein to lay thy tender Infant limbs, and thou, O Lord, Who in thine Infancy didst deign to lay thyself in this manger: vouchsafe also to pour into my heart a drop of that joy to which the sight of thy lovely Childhood and the miracles which accompanied thy Birth, gave rise. By that holy Birth, I now implore thee to grant to all the world peace and good-will, and in the name of the whole human race I render thanks and honour to God the Father and to God the Holy Spirit, Who with thee liveth and reigneth, one God, world without end.

[Indulgence of 100 days. Pius IX, October 1st, 1861]

– St Anthony’s Treasury, 1916

 

COLLECT, CHRISTMAS MASS DURING THE DAY

O God, who wonderfully created the dignity of human nature
and still more wonderfully restored it,
grant, we pray,
that we may share in the divinity of Christ,
who humbled himself to share in our humanity.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.

 

CHRISTMAS: PRAYER TO BEGIN A NEW LIFE

O Lord,

we desire to live the birth of Your Son

in all its truth and riches.

We want to welcome the God who comes

to pitch His tent among us.

We wish to give thanks for so great a gift

and to begin a new life –

the life that You bestow on us

for our true happiness.

Help us to throw off all fear,

all laziness,

and all infidelity.

Everything is possible for us now,

since Jesus is born with and for us.

Amen.

-St Joseph Prayer Book

 

CHRISTMAS IS THE DAY OF THE YEAR WHEN MOST SOULS ARE DELIVERED FROM PURGATORY

There are more souls released from purgatory during consecration of the Mass than at any time. Christmas is the day of the year when most souls are delivered: then the feast days of Our Lord, Our Lady and great saints. Souls receive much grace from prayers offered for them on their birthdays, day of baptism, anniversary of death.

The more we work for Poor Souls on earth, the more others will pray for us, and more merciful will Christ be with us when we are in purgatory.
Our Lady asked that we pray very much for the Poor Souls.

 

THE “O” ANTIPHONS

17th of December
O Wisdom of our God Most High,
guiding creation with power and love:
come to teach us the path of knowledge!

18th of December
O Leader of the House of Israel,
giver of the Law to Moses on Sinai:
come to rescue us with your mighty power!

19th of December
O Root of Jesse’s stem,
sign of God’s love for all his people:
come to save us without delay!

20th of December
O Key of David,
opening the gates of God’s eternal Kingdom:
come and free the prisoners of darkness!

21st of December
O Radiant Dawn,
splendor of eternal light, sun of justice:
come and shine on those who dwell in darkness and in the
shadow of death.

22nd of December
O King of all nations and keystone of the Church:
come and save man, whom you formed from the dust!

23rd of December
O Emmanuel, our King and Giver of Law:
come to save us, Lord our God!

 

ST ANDREW CHRISTMAS NOVENA

The prayer below is recited for the duration of Advent, ending on Christmas Eve. It is used as preparation for the Lord’s birth and the joyous Christmas Season. For a particular special intention through the intercession of St Andrew, the prayer is said fifteen times a day on special beads or plain Rosary beads
(1 1/2 decade Rosary beads).

THE PRAYER:

Hail, and blessed be the hour and moment at which the Son of God was born of a most pure Virgin at a stable at midnight in Bethlehem in the piercing cold. At that hour vouchsafe, I beseech thee, to hear my prayers and grant my desires (mention your request here).
Through Jesus Christ and His most Blessed Mother. Amen.

 

THE HOLY SEASON OF ADVENT

In the Catechism of the Catholic Church there are two specific mentions of Advent…

The first of these is in section 524:
‘When the Church celebrates the liturgy of Advent each year, she makes present the ancient expectancy of the Messiah, for by sharing in the long preparation for the Saviour’s first coming, the faithful renew their ardent desire for his second coming. By celebrating the precursor’s (John the Baptist) birth and martyrdom, the Church unites herself to his desire: “He (Jesus) must increase, but I must decrease.”

Section 524 reminds us that the season of Advent has a twofold character. It is a time of preparation for Christmas when Christ’s first coming is remembered; and it is a time to direct mind and heart to await His second coming. Advent is, therefore, a time of devout and joyful expectation. – Fr Chris

 

THE WORDS FOR CONFESSION

IF YOU HAVEN’T BEEN TO CONFESSION FOR A WHILE, OR ENGLISH IS NOT YOUR FIRST LANGUAGE – HERE ARE THE WORDS TO USE:

To help those of you who have not been to confession for a long time, or those of you who do not have English as your first language, here is a form of words to use when going to confession.

PRIEST AND PARISHIONER: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

PARISHIONER: Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. My last confession was (?time) ago and these are my sins…. For these and all the sins I cannot now remember I am truly sorry.

The PRIEST will now say a few words of encouragement to help you in the Christian life. The PRIEST will also give you a simple PENANCE for you to do afterwards, which may be one of our well known prayers.

The PRIEST will say the words of ABSOLUTION and you will be invited to say your Act of Contrition (prayer of sorrow) as follows:

PARISHIONER: O my God, because You are so good, I am very sorry that I have sinned against You, and by the help of Your grace I will not sin again.

The PRIEST will say a few words to end the ceremony and then you respond:

PARISHIONER: Thank you, Father.

The PARISHIONER leaves and does the PENANCE.

(From a St Saviour’s newsletter)

 

O LORD, GIVE US A NEW EPIPHANY

O Lord,
give us a new Epiphany
when You will be manifested to the world:
to those who do not know You,
to those who do not want You,
to those who vilify Your Name,
to those who oppress Your Mystical Body,
to those who deny You,
and to all those who unconsciously long for You.

Bring the day closer
when all people will know and love You
together with the Father
and the Holy Spirit –
and the Kingdom of God will have arrived.
Amen.

(St Joseph’s Prayer Book)

 

CHRISTMAS – PRAYER BEFORE THE CRIB

I adore thee, O Word Incarnate, true Son of God from all eternity, and true Son of Mary ever Virgin in the fulness of time.

When I adore thy Divine Person, and the Humanity united to thy Divinity, I venerate the poor manger which welcomed thee when an Infant, and which was truly the throne of thy love.

I prostrate myself before it with the simplicity of the shepherds, with the faith of Joseph, with the love of Mary; I bow down in reverence before this precious memorial of our salvation with the same spirit of mortification, poverty and humility with which thou, the Lord of heaven and earth, didst choose a manger wherein to lay thy tender Infant limbs, and thou, O Lord, Who in thine Infancy didst deign to lay thyself in this manger: vouchsafe also to pour into my heart a drop of that joy to which the sight of thy lovely Childhood and the miracles which accompanied thy Birth, gave rise. By that holy Birth, I now implore thee to grant to all the world peace and good-will, and in the name of the whole human race I render thanks and honour to God the Father and to God the Holy Spirit, Who with thee liveth and reigneth, one God, world without end.

[Indulgence of 100 days. Pius IX, October 1st, 1861]

– St Anthony’s Treasury, 1916