Our Lady of La Salette (Reconciliatrix of Sinners)

Today in the Traditional Missal under Mass "In Some Places and Congregations" is the important feast of Our Lady of La Salette.  These are incredibly important words spoken by the Blessed Virgin Mary in her apparition to Melanie and Maximin and we need to hear these words in our current age of apostasy.

Collect:

LORD JESUS CHRIST, Who by Thy precious blood hast reconciled the world to God the Father, and hast deigned to make Thy Mother the Reconciliatrix of sinners, grant, we beseech Thee, that by the pious intercession of the same most blessed Virgin Mary we might attain forgiveness for our sins, Thou Who livest and reignest as God with the same God the Father in union with the Holy Ghost. Amen.

History of the Apparition of Mary in La Sallete, France taken from MaryPages.com and Tridentine-Mass:

On the 19th of September 1846, the feast day of Our Lady of Sorrows, the Virgin Mary appeared again; this time in a small village called La Salette. Near Corps, 1.800 meters above sea level and about 35 kilometers from Grenoble in France. She appeared in La Salette to two small children who were looking after the cattle. They were Melanie Calvat and Maximin Giraud aged 15 and 11 years who had only known each other for two days. The two children clomb the slopes of the Mont sous-les-Baisses, each urging four cows up the mountain. Melanie tells us: “I had seen from a hill that ours cows were lying down placidly chewing the cud. I went down and Maximin started to climb upwards. Suddenly I saw a beautiful light, much brighter than the sun and felt full of tremendous loving wonder and respect. In that light, I saw a very beautiful woman with her head resting in her hands. The lady stood up and said; come nearer children, do not be afraid “I am here to tell you great news.”

The children were amazed to see that The Lady looked very sad and had tears streaming down her cheeks. She folded her arms over her breast. At first she spoke to the children in French but quickly started to speak to them in their own local dialect. Our Blessed Lady spoke over people swearing, not keeping the Sunday has a day of rest and disobeying Gods laws. Her words were very important and impressive: “If My people do not obey God, I shall be forced to let go of My Sons Hand”. This statement points to the last days of the world. Our Blessed Lady's sad expression, her tears, and words show us Her very real care for and sympathy with all people. “……. you’ll never be able to repay Me for what I have done for you.  Our Lady asked us to pray a lot to save the world. She asked us all to confess our sins, turn away from our evil ways, do penance and pray. In La Salette Mary pointed out the great blessings and mercy of the holy rosary and begged us: “be reconciled with God”. During the period of time when she was appearing to both of the children, they were each individually given a secret. Maximin received his secret first and then Our Lady told a secret to Melanie. Whilst Our Blessed Lady was talking to Maximin, Melanie saw her lips moving, but could not understand what She was saying.

Melanie says that both secrets were written down and were handed to Pope Pius 1X in 1851. Maximin never published the secret given to him, as he died before so doing. Cardinal Antonelli did give a copy of this secret to the Countess of Clermont-Tonnerre. A. Peladin in the “Annales du Surnaturel” published it in 1888.

Below you can read some of this secret:

• three-quarters of the population of France shall lose their Faith
• a Protestant nation in the North will repent and proclaim their Faith. Because of this other nations shall return to God in faith.
• the Church shall grow and bloom once more:
• after this peace will be greatly disturbed by the ‘monster’! The (great) monster shall come at the end of the 19th century or at the latest at the beginning of the 20th century. 

What about the secrets given to Melanie in La Salette? The Blessed Virgin had said to her, “Melanie, what I am going to tell you now does not have to remain a secret. You may tell it in 1858” (this is the year that Our Lady appeared in Lourdes). These secrets told to Melanie have caused a lot of unrest and disagreement. Among other things, Our Lady told of the coming attempt to murder the Pope, which would not shorten his life.

The prophetic language used by Our Blessed Mother, the painful truths She told and her announcement of Godly righteousness pending. People took these things very much to heart. Mary warned that faith would be lost on a large scale, leaving room for materialism, false teaching (Karl Marx published his communist manifest in 1848), spiritualism and many other sins. She continues: “all those who persecute the Church of Jesus Christ and all those people who have surrendered themselves to sin, will die and the earth will be like a desert. Then there shall be Peace, the reconciliation between God and man” (thus there will be people alive).

Whilst these apparitions of Our Lady took place 153 years ago, these words are extremely relevant today. The given secrets are important to the entire development of the Church and the world until the end of the period of time. She asked the children to pray morning and night and if time was a problem, to at least say an Our Father and a Hail Mary. Finally, Our Lady said; "you’ll tell this to all my people”. This She repeated again.

When Our Blessed Lady talks of Her people, She means everybody in the entire world who believes in Jesus Christ, Her Son. She spoke has The Queen of the World/ Queen of all Nations. Maximin tells us that the Lady was beautiful, great, a wonderful shining brilliant light, she wore a white cloak, a bright yellow apron, and her white shoes were decorated with roses of many colors. Roses were also clearly visible on Her crown. Around Her neck, She wore a chain on which was hanging a large cross with a hammer and pliers on the crossbar.

Maximin also describes how they saw The Lady disappear. First, she was elevated to about one and a half meter high and then She faded and vanished before our eyes. Melanie said: “She must be a great Saint if we had known that we would have asked her to take us with her”. The children were horribly victimized, with threats, teasing, bribes and very mean tricks. But despite all this, their stories remained exactly the same time and again. Finally, after a long and stringent examination of the facts, the Bishops formally recognized that Our Blessed Mother did appear to the children in La Salette. This was in 1851.

Maximin died on the first of March 1875 at just 40 years of age. Melanie lived for many years in various convents in France, England, and Italy. She died 15 December 1904 and was put to rest in Altamura (Italy).

The Real Meaning of the Messages of La Salette: Having told us the reasons for God’s anger, all our sins, disobedience, impurities, materialism, and pride. (St Maria Goretti is an example of purity), Our Lady implores us to change our ways and turn from sin to GOD.

"This apparition in La Salette is fully approved by the Holy See: November 16th, 1851"

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Newly Revised Reparation and Apology Program: Make a Holy Hour in Reparation for Sin

Originally published in 1974 by the Apostolate for Christian Action, Phillip Bellini of the Archdiocese of New Orleans has updated this excellent program for today's Crisis in the Church. The original programs from 1974 are no longer in existence.  The program was done by Fr. Francis Larkin who was famous for promoting the Enthronement of the Sacred Heart in the Home.

Mr. Bellini has retyped it in Word on an 11x15 margin because it was the only way for it to fit on one card, back and front, so as to be used at Church if need be. Please print this out and use it. Please also disseminate this far and wide.  Let as many people know of this program and make a holy hour in reparation for sins.

Reparation and Apology Program - A Catholic Holy Hour by A Catholic Life Blog on Scribd

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Who was St. Cloud?

Saint Clodoald cut his hair as a sign of renouncing his rights to the throne to devote himself to the monastic life. (At that time, long hair was the privilege of the Merovingian princes.)

Those who lived in Minnesota will be familiar with the city of St. Cloud, MN.  But do many of them know who St. Cloud was?  St. Cloud is an often unknown saint to most people - even to Minnesotans. St. Cloud's feast day is September 7th. 

The following is taken from Butler's Lives of the Saints:

Saint Cloud is the most illustrious Saint among the princes of the royal family of the first French dynasty, the Merovingians (499-752). Born in 522, he was the son of Chlodomir, King of Orleans and eldest son of Clovis and Saint Clotilda. He was not yet three years old when his father was killed during a war. His grandmother, Saint Clotilda, brought him and his two brothers to Paris to be educated and loved them dearly.

Their ambitious uncles, however, desiring to divide the kingdom of Orleans between themselves, slew with their own hands the two young brothers of Cloud. He, by a special dispensation of Providence, was saved from the massacre. Later, renouncing the world, he privately consecrated himself to the service of God. After distributing to the poor what he could salvage of his heritage, he retired to a hermitage to be under the discipline of a holy recluse named Severinus, who dwelt near the gates of Paris and who clothed him with the monastic habit. His uncles left him alone, seeing his inalterable decision to live as a religious, and conceded certain heritages to him. When he became famous through an act of charity rewarded by a miracle, he withdrew secretly to Provence. There again, his hermitage was sought out by petitioners. He decided to return to Paris, where he was received with the greatest joy.

At the earnest request of the people, he was ordained a priest in 551 by Eusebius, Bishop of Paris, and served the Church of that city for some time in the functions of the sacred ministry. Again he found himself in great honor; he, therefore, retired to Nogent, a place now known as Saint Cloud, two leagues south of Paris, where he built a monastery. There he was joined by many pious men, who fled from the world for fear of losing their souls in its midst. Saint Cloud was chosen by them to be their Superior, and he animated them to virtue both by word and example. He was also indefatigable in instructing and exhorting the faithful of the neighboring regions. He died at Nogent in 560, and the major part of his relics remain still in the parochial church of the village.

Reflection: Let us remember, as Saint Cloud did, that he who ruleth over men must be just (II Kings 23:3), and that it is by faith that the just man lives. (Cf. Galatians 3:11).

Source: Les Petits Bollandistes: Vies des Saints, by Msgr. Paul Guérin (Bloud et Barral: Paris, 1882), Vol. 10; Little Pictorial Lives of the Saints, a compilation based on Butler's Lives of the Saints and other sources by John Gilmary Shea (Benziger Brothers: New York, 1894)

Collect:

O God, Who, by the gift of the priesthood and the splendor of his virtues, didst glorify blessed Cloud humbling himself for Thy sake upon earth: grant us by his example to minister worthily unto Thee, and by his intercession ever to advance in merit and grace. Through our Lord.

Source: 1945 Father Lasance New Roman Missal (Supplement for Masses in some parts of the United States)

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Monthly Tridentine Mass at St. Catherine of Siena in Burlingame

Yesterday I had the privilege, for the 14th Sunday after Pentecost, to attend the 5:30 PM Latin Mass that is held monthly on the 4th Sunday (not last but 4th) of the month.  It was a wonderful experience and I only wish the Mass was better publicized.  Only around 20 people were present and yet Father gave an excellent sermon and the Mass was even a Missa Cantata with a schola that consisted of five members.

The Mass itself was a little on the long side at around 1 hour and 20 minutes but that was due to a reverent and prayerful experience.  Granted the Mass only takes place once a month so the ceremonies did lack the polish we come to expect in a Latin Mass.  For example, the servers walked too far ahead at the opening procession and had to go both after noticing Father wasn't fully vested yet, some servers were unsure where to stand, and the handouts were printed for the propers for the incorrect Sunday in the liturgical year. The music also had too many breaks - different from the soft musical interludes from the organ I have come to expect during the High Mass.

But the Mass was reverent and solemn.  The Mass was preceded by a recitation of the Rosary in Latin at 5 PM!  It's rare to see the Rosary said before Mass and I've never seen it said in Latin, even before an SSPX Mass.  So that was unique and nice to see its connection with Catholic Tradition. And it's quite rare to find an evening Latin Mass on Sunday in the Bay Area so this is nice for Catholics who travel into the Bay area and arrive late or who sleep in on Sunday morning. This Mass location is in addition to those highlighted in my article: 6 Traditional Latin Mass Locations for Bay Area Catholics Reviewed

I very much wish that the Latin Mass Society of San Francisco, St. Catherine's parish, and others in the community would make this Mass more widely known!  I'd go weekly if they had it offered. 

There is a simple website regarding this monthly Mass so if you have questions, please reach out to the Mid-Peninsula Latin Mass.

Photos from the Mass (you are free to share these as long as you attribute them to this blog article):

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Vigil of St. Bartholomew

While today is the feastday of St. Philip Benizi, there is a commemoration of the Vigil of St. Bartholomew in today's liturgy as well. We could continue to observe these Vigils throughout the year even though the mainstream calendar no longer keeps them.

Taken from the Catholic Encyclopedia:

The feasts of the Apostles are spread throughout the liturgical Cycle as if to show that the Apostles are the foundation on which the whole Church rests. St. Bartholomew is the sixth in the list of twelve, as given by the Evangelists. Like the other Apostles he learned the secrets of the divine law and made them known to the world, confirming them by his martyrdom (Gospel). On this day the liturgy prepares us for his feast of to-morrow (Collect).

The term “vigil” is used in several ways.  It may refer to an entire day before a major feast day (e.g., the Vigil of Christmas is all day on Dec 24th). This kind of vigil is a feast day in itself. Before the changes to the Roman Calendar in 1955, nearly all feasts of the apostles were preceded by a special Vigil Day. And the Church put those days in place to help us prepare for the importance of a feast of an apostle. Sadly, the observance of fasting on the vigils of the apostles in many places disappeared back in the 1700s.

Collect:

Grant, we beseech Thee, almighty God, that the solemn feast of Thine apostle Bartholemew, which we anticipate, may both increase our devotion and advance our salvation.

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Mission Santa Clara and Servant of God Magín Catalá

A few weeks ago I visited Mission Santa Clara in Santa Clara, CA. Inside the mission of Santa Clara is the tomb and the story of a remarkably holy man: Father Magín Catalá.  In particular, the beautiful Crucifix shown above is the miraculous Crucifix in front of which Father would pray and was seen levitating from the ground by witnesses who have sworn under oath to this miracle's authenticity.  Father Catalá lived a heroic life of sanctity.  As stated in the below pamphlet from the Mission: "[He] fasted ever day of the year, tasting nothing until noon and then allowing himself but a little milk and corn bread.  He never ate flesh, meat, eggs, or fish."

Let us pray for the canonization of Fr. Catalá:

O God, you sent your holy servant, Father Magín Catalá, to preach your gospel to Native Americans, and you inspired him to glorify your holy name among them by the example of his eminent virtues. We humbly ask you to honor Father Catalá on earth with the testimony of miracles performed through his intercession. Grant us by his merits all manner of blessings. Fill our minds with the light of your truth that, walking always in the way of your commandments, we may come to eternal union with you. We ask this through Christ, our Lord

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Hyacinth of Poland

Double (1954 Calendar): August 17

St. Hyacinth of Poland was born in 1185 in what was then Upper Silesia (today modern Poland).  He was a relative and possibly the brother of Blessed Ceslas Odrowaz.

St. Hyacinth was educated in both law and Sacred Studies and studied in the illustrious cities of Krakow, Prague, Paris, and Bologna.  Despite his education, he was first and foremost a holy priest.  After his ordination to the Sacred Priesthood of Jesus Christ, he worked to reform convents in his native country.

While on a trip to Rome with Bishop Ivo Konski, his uncle, he witnessed the glorious Patriarch St. Dominic perform a miracle that changed his life.  He became a personal friend of St. Dominic and then one of the first Dominicans. In fact, he was the first Polish Dominican and he brought the Order to Poland.  He was prolific in his work, evangelizing throughout Poland, Pomerania, Lithuania, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Scotland, Russia, Turkey, and Greece.

During an attack on a monastery, Hyacinth managed to save a crucifix and statue of Mary, though the statue weighed far more than he could normally have lifted; the saint is usually shown holding these two items. Hyacinth never served as provincial nor even a prior, but toiled as a simple friar, focusing on the internal and external missions facing the Polish Dominicans: to deepen their own faith, and to spread it through Poland.

Traditional Matins Reading:

Hyacinth was a Pole and born of noble and Christian parents in the town of Camien of the diocese of Breslau. In his childhood he received a liberal education, and later he studied law and Divinity. Having become a canon of the church of Cracow, he surpassed all his fellow-priests by his remarkable piety and learning. He was received at Rome into the Order of Preachers by the founder St. Dominic, and till the end of his life he observed in a most holy manner the mode of life he learnt from him. He remained always a virgin, and had a great love for modesty, patience, humility, abstinence and other virtues, which are the true inheritance of the religious life.

In his burning love for God he would spend whole nights in prayer and chastising his body. He would allow himself no rest except by leaning against a stone, or lying on the bare ground. He was sent back to his own country; but first of all on the way there, he founded a large house of his Order at Friesach, and then another at Cracow. Then in different provinces of Poland he built four other monasteries, and it seems incredible what an amount of good he did in all these places by preaching the Word of God and by the innocence of his life. Not a day passed but he gave some striking proof of his faith, his piety, and his innocence.

God honoured the holy man’s zeal for the good of his neighbour by very great miracles. The following is one of the most striking: he crossed without a boat the river Vistula, which had overflowed, near Wisgrade, and drew his companions also across on his cloak which he spread out over the water. After having persevered in his admirable manner of life for forty years after his profession, he foretold to his brethren the day of his death. On the feast of our Lady’s Assumption in the year 1257, having finished the Canonical Hours, and received the sacraments of the Church with great devotion, saying these words: 'Into Thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit,’ he gave up his soul to God. He was illustrious for miracles in death as in life, and Pope Clement VIII numbered him among the saints.

Prayer:

O God, Who sendest us joy year by year on the feast of blessed Hyacinth, Thy Confessor, which we are now keeping: mercifully grant on this day of his heavenly birth that we may grow like him in deed. Through our Lord.

Prayer Source: 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal

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First Friday of August

Today is the First Friday of August. Because today is the first Friday of the Month, many Catholic parishes will have special Masses today for the First Friday Devotion.  Find one near you!

Beginning on December 27, 1673, through 1675, Our Lord appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque asking her to receive Him in Holy Communion on the first Friday of every month and to meditate on His passion from 11:00 PM to 12:00 midnight each Thursday. He also revealed to her twelve promises for all who are devoted to His Sacred Heart; he asked for a Feast of the Sacred Heart to be instituted in the liturgical calendar of the Church. Our Lord appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque with twelve promises for those devoted to His Most Sacred Heart.

Promises for those devoted to the Sacred Heart:

1. "I will give them all the graces necessary in their state of life."
2. "I will establish peace in their homes."
3. "I will comfort them in their afflictions."
4. "I will be their secure refuge during life, and above all in death."
5. "I will bestow a large blessing upon all their undertakings."
6. "Sinners shall find in My Heart the source and the infinite ocean of mercy."
7. "Tepid souls shall grow fervent."
8. "Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection."
9. "I will bless every place where a picture of My Heart shall be set up and honored."
10. "I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts."
11. "Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart, never to be blotted out."
12. "I promise thee in the excessive mercy of My Heart that My all-powerful love will grant to all those who communicate on the First Friday in nine consecutive months, the grace of final penitence; they shall not die in My disgrace nor without receiving the Sacraments; My Divine heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment."

Prayer of Reparation:


O Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore thee profoundly. I offer thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifferences by which He is offended. By the infinite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg of thee the conversion of poor sinners. Amen.

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Catholic Youth Conference in Buffalo, NY – September 14-16

Update: My talk is now available online to all who couldn't attend

Original Post: I'm honored to be a speaker on Saturday morning at this Conference in Niagara Falls.  Please join us and listen to these excellent talks.

WHY A YOUTH CONFERENCE?

“Thou hast made us for Thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in Thee.”  – St. Augustine

In the madness of the modern world, those who want to live the truths of the Catholic Faith often turn to the past. But if the Church is to survive, we must also look to the future.

YOU, THE YOUNGER GENERATION,

WILL DETERMINE THE FUTURE

OF THE CHURCH AND THE WORLD!

Like St. Augustine in his time, many Catholic young people today are restless. They believe in Jesus but are not sure what relevance He has for the challenges they face. How can they learn about and grow in the True Faith, while dealing with the pressures brought on by school, work, family, friends, society, the culture and the pleasures and temptations that surround them? Many young Catholics don’t know what the Church teaches on issues that are important to them. Many others  have never even heard of Fatima. This must change!

Our Lady came to Fatima to three young children. She told them what we must do NOW to make the future a time of peace in which the love of God will guide our hearts and minds. It is by acting NOW – in the present – that we can shape the world we live in and the world future generations will inherit.

Decide now to come away from your restless life for a weekend. Meet Our Lord at Mass and in
Confession.  Learn about the truths taught by Our Lord, His Church and Our Lady of Fatima, all of which will answer the deepest yearnings of your heart. Listen to talks from amazing speakers on vital issues and get to know other Catholic young people like yourself from all over North America.

After the conference, you will return to your life refreshed, with a new purpose, and on fire with love for Our Lord, Our Lady, and your glorious Catholic faith. By changing your life, you will change the lives of those around you and, together with them, will change the world.

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The Catholic Church in Latin America Under Fierce Assault by Evangelicals; Church Seen as Uncaring to the Poor

Just yesterday I heard from a close friend of mine who is in Latin America doing research work for one of the largest companies in the world.  While there, he interviewed a number of people in Sao Paulo who all expressed concern with the Catholic Church being out of touch and losing ground to the Evangelicals.  While they stated that Brazil was founded by the Portuguese and greatly enriched by the monks and friars who settled there, the Church today is seeing a massive exodus of souls who are leaving her ranks and joining the Evangelicals.  This is deeply troubling as these souls are leaving the only barque of salvation and joining the ranks of Evangelical, Pentecostal, and other heretical sects. 

And this trend is well documented in various studies consistently over the past decades.  I read one such report this morning by Vanessa Chesnut.  Some quotable points of Ms. Chesnut's May 2018 article for NBC entitled, "As Catholicism declines in Latin America and U.S., parishes still count on Latino growth" include:

While 70 percent of adult Latinos identified as Catholic in 2006, that figure fell to 57 percent by 2015, according to The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), a nonprofit research center... 

A Chilean polling firm, Latinobarómetro, reported in a January 2018 survey that the number of Latin Americans who identified as Catholic has fallen from 80 percent in 1995 to 59 percent now. But there is great variation among countries — while only 37 percent of Hondurans and 39 percent of Salvadorans identify as Catholic, that figure rises to 80 percent among Mexicans... 

Even Pope Francis has been unable to reverse the five-decade decline despite his high approval rating among Latin Americans. The Chilean poll shows that from Francis' election in 2013 to 2017, Latin America saw a 4-percentage-point drop in people identifying as Catholic.

Why are they doing this?  My friend, an experienced researcher, stated that his subjects all expressed resentment that the Church is not doing enough to help the poor.  It is the Evangelicals who are actively going to the poor regions and ministering.  And the poor are being won over, just as they were in centuries past when Catholic missionaries dedicated their lives to such works. 

Where have all the Catholic missionaries gone when they are so badly needed? 

They are in their rectories relaxing.  Or they have forsaken their vocations or failed to pick up the Lord's call to serve as missionaries.  These trends are the result of liberal Catholicism having taken hold now for the past 50 years since Vatican II in Latin America.  This is far from a "new springtime."  This is complete desolation and souls are leaving the Church founded by Jesus Christ for counterfeit religions because the Lord's ministers are failing.  It is not watered down teachings, modernized liturgy, or LGBT rights that will save the Church in Latin America.

We need to earnestly pray for great missionaries to rise up and serve the poor, enforce the love and charity of God expressed in the Traditional Liturgy, and who care about saving souls.  Souls cannot be saved in false religions.  We as Catholics profess without a doubt the dogma that there is no salvation outside of the Church. 

Please join me in praying for more vocations to the SSPX's missions in South America and for their House in Brazil, for the FSSP's South American missions, and for the Institute of the Good Shepherd.  I also pray for the modern dioceses to follow them in their work for the poor, for good Liturgy, for sound catechesis, and for doing all things for the salvation of souls!

Prayer for Lapsed Catholics:

Almighty Father, You desire not the death of the sinner, but that he may be converted and live. Pour out upon us Your mercy and hear the prayers of Your servants. Soften the hearts of Your children who have strayed from the true path which You established for their salvation.  They are now forgetful of their duties as Catholics and pursue the pleasures of the world.  Grant that they may quickly return to the practice of every Christian virtue, so that their lives may shine with the integrity of faith, the fervor of piety, and the ardor of charity.  Restore them all to Your sacraments and the life of Your grace, through the merits of the most precious blood of Your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ.

Amen

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