"My soul magnifies the Lord,.."

The familiar beginning of the Magnificat. "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior"
Mary our Mother spoke this wonderful song of praise on a visit to her cousin, Elizabeth. 2000 some odd years later the church still sings this song given to us by our Mother. We use it in the Divine office (it's in the vespers, which is the evening prayer) the prayer which religious and lay people alike say throughout the worlds each day.

In this sublime canticle of praise, our Mother prophesies that "For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed; for He who is mighty has done great things for me, and Holy is His name"
How true this statement has been throughout the history of the Church. All generations have called her Blessed, and will continue to forever, because God did do great things for her. She was the vessel through which God gave us His son, our salvation. Through her Jesus came into the world, Because she said "Yes" to God. We Honor her because God did.

 God chose her to be the Mother of our Lord, and you can't get much more of an honor than that. She was there with Jesus through His whole life, quietly supporting Him and helping where needed. And after His death and resurrection, God took her whole being, Spirit and Body, right up into Heaven.

 "Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices; my body also dwells secure. For you do not give me up to Sheol, or let your godly one see the Pit." Psalm 16:9-10

I wonder what other people might have thought of this statement of Love, Faith and Hope in God. I wonder what the rulers of the tie might have thought of the lowly Mary saying "he has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of low degree" or "He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty"? I imagine this would have caused contempt and anger. But how true it is!

Throughout all of the Bible we see countless stories of God lifting up lowly people. Noah is chosen to build the ark an save creation because he and hi family are the only goo people left. Jacob (Israel) becomes higher that his first born brother, Esau. His son, Joseph is lifted above all his brothers and becomes second in power only to Pharaoh in Egypt! David, a shepherd boy becomes one of the most famous king in history. These are only a few of the countless times throughout the Bible when God Lifts up His chosen ones, however lowly they may be.

Mary knows that she is blessed, yet, this song of praise is so humble. She acknowledges how great God is, and yet He regards "The low estate of His handmaiden." She recalled how God has continually helped Israel, and how He spoke to their fathers, and how He always shows mercy upon those who fear Him.

She proclaims God's mercy and Love for His people throughout all of time. How powerful and Mighty He is, yet tender and loving towards those who fear Him. How He scatters the proud, puts down the mighty, and sends the rich away empty, yet exalts Humble,fills the hungry and shows mercy to all who fear Him

Today is the Feast of the Annunciation of the Lord, the day when God sent the Angel Gabriel to Mary, to proclaim that she was chosen. Mary could have said no, she had free will. But she said Yes. And that Yes changed the worlds forever.

The Virtue of Religion

Have you ever wondered why we call someone who is very devoted to God "Religious"? I'm not specifically talking about Nuns or Monks, but also ordinary people who live a virtuous life, who you might see and think "That person is very Religious."
When we think of Religion we normally think of a church, or a denomination of religion. One might say "What Religion are you?"
But why don't we say something like "What religion do you belong to?" or "That person has a religion that they are very devoted to." (which would still be valid sayings, and basically mean the same thing as above, but they aren't as common.)

Let's say a person works on a farm and is very motivated in their job, We wouldn't say "That person is very Farmous." or if they worked at a diner we wouldn't say "That person is very dinerous" or it wouldn't make sense!

The reason is because Religion is a virtue, just like Charity or Patience. It's not just a name that we put on ourselves and go to a church with that same name.

The word "Religion" comes from the Latin word "Religare" which means "to bind." So, when a person is a very Religious person, they have bound themselves to God, either in the sense that they have taken vow of Poverty, Chastity and Obedience, or in the broader sense (which I am mostly getting at here) when  a person subjects themselves to God and gives Him the Homage and Worship that is due to Him. That's what Religion  as a virtue is,
 "A quality of mind and heart which inclines us to pay to God the worship due to Him."-"Catholic Mortality" by Fr. John Laux

According to the above quoted book (which I am deriving most of this information from, you should read it.)
There are three "elements" to the virtue of Religion.
The first is the "Object" which is God. Secondary objects are the Virgin Mary and the Saints, but we do not Worship them. We Honor them because of their nearness to and relationship to God. They are not God, but they are very close to Him in Heaven, so we can ask them to Pray for us to God just like we would ask any other person to pray for us. That's a whole different article though LOL anyway. . .

The second is "Motive". Our motive is our indebtedness to God, Our love for Him and our dependence on Him.

The third is "Act". The Act of Religion is Worship.

You can probably break any virtue into three elements like this. For instance, Love could be broken into "Object- God or one of His creatures because of Him. Motive- God's Love for us, desire to please Him, indebtedness to Him. Act- Prayer, service etc."


So what does "Worship" really mean? If, by religion we are bound to Worship God, how do we do so?
"That is, the manner in which we acknowledge our indebtedness to God, our dependence on Him, and our Love for Him"-"Catholic Morality" by Fr. John Laux

So how do we do that? Well, think about it.  There are two kinds of worship. Internal and external.
 Internal worship. Internal worship is this acknowledgement inside of us, which we owe to God because we are bound to Him through Religion, and we are His creations, his servants.
Some examples of internal Worship would be meditation and mental prayer.

External Worship is this acknowledgment outside of us, through word or deed.  We owe this kind of Worship to God because He not only created our minds and souls (in which the expression of this acknowledgement would be internal) but He also created our bodies, which we should use for His glory because our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit. Some examples of external Worship would be vocal prayer and good works offered to God.

So then there are two categories within these. There is Direct Worship, and there is Indirect Worship.
Where our Worship is categorized depends on the Object. Our "Object" or worship is always God. Worshiping God directly is Direct Worship. Honoring His Mother and Saints ("Secondary Objects") is Indirect Worship of God. Once again I want to stress the fact that the "Object" of Worship is always GOD. Catholics do not worship Mary or the Saints. We Honor them because in a way, God did. God "Honored"Mary by choosing her to be the Mother of His Son, can you say that this was not an Honor? God "Honored" the Saints by giving us Miracles through them. In order for a Saint to be canonized, Three miracles have to be worked in their name I believe (I think they have to be after their death too, but I'm not sure about that so look it up.) We know that God is the one who preforms these miracles, but in this case, He did them because they asked Him to. He knows that this is required for canonization. So why would he preform Miracles in the Saint's names unless He wanted us to acknowledge them and honor them. Honor is different from worship. Anyway, I've gotten on a whole different topic now.

For instance, If we take 15 minutes to meditate on the Passion of Jesus, we are preforming a Direct internal act of religion. If we put up a statue of Mary in our front yard, we are preforming an external indirect act of religion. If we go to Church on Sunday like we should, We are preforming a Direct external at of Religion. If we say a prayer to St. Joseph honoring him for listening to God and doing his will, and asking him to prey for us to God so that we an do the same, we are preforming an indirect internal act of Religion.

Speaking of St. Joseph, today is his Feast day! Happy feast of St. Joseph!

What's Your Vocation?

Have you ever thought about what your Vocation is? Do you know what a Vocation is in the first place?

A vocation is a Call from God to do something with your life. A vocation is not just a call to religious life or Priesthood. It could be the married life, the chaste single life, or becoming a deacon. God has a plan for each of our lives, so everyone has a vocation. 

So what is yours? Have you ever thought of what God might be calling you too? You should be, no matter what your age. 

Having you ever considered that God may be calling you to the religious life? Lot of people are called to marriage, some to other vocations, but some are also called to religious life. Not everyone who is not called to marriage is called to religious life, but how will you know if you never explore the option? You should always be open to whatever God wants you to do. 

So, what are some things you should be thinking about if you are thinking of the religious life? 

What are yours intentions, or motives? Are you wanting to please God in whatever way he chooses for you, and so please Him in the best way you can? Do you Love God and want to dedicate your entire life to Him? 

How about your ability? Are you pretty physically and mentally healthy? You don't need to have special talents or exceptional gifts or a super High education, but you should be physically and emotionally pretty sound and able to carry out the duties of a religious life, which may differ a little from order to order.

Do you wish to live a virtuous life in every way possible, to "Be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect"?

If you think you might have a religious vocation, there are lots of things you should do. It's probably a good idea to talk to your confessor about it. There are also people who specialize in vocation discernment, called "Vocation Directors" who will give you guidance in this matter. Lots of religious order have discernment dinners that you could attend. Some may have discernment retreats, which would be very good.

   Whether you think you have one or not, you should always pray about what God wants you to do. You should take time to not only ask questions, but also to listen for Him. You don't always get a vision telling you to become a religious you know, in fact that's rather uncommon. Remember that God often speaks to us in soft little ways, sometimes even in our everyday experiences, so subtly that we don't even know it's Him.  God's plan for you is so great, who ever you may be. He loves you, and He knows what is best for you. Listen to Him. Sure, its not an easy plan. The road to Heaven isn't easy. But it will be a more than ninety nine gazillionbilliontrillionbajillion, forty five million, eight hundred sixty nine thousand, seven hundred and seventy seven times worth it. 

How do you receive Him?

I am going to share a few little snippets from some revelations of our Lord to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque.
(You can find some more here, and here where I am getting the quotes from)

"Behold the Heart which has so loved men that it has spared nothing, even to exhausting and consuming Itself, in order to testify Its love; and in return, I receive from the greater part only ingratitude, by their irreverence and sacrilege, and by the coldness and contempt they have for Me in this Sacrament of Love. But what I feel most keenly is that it is hearts which are consecrated to Me, that treat Me thus."

 "I thirst with such terrible thirst to be loved by men in the Blessed Sacrament that the thirst consumes me. Yet I find no one trying to quench it according to my desire by some return of my love. Do me the kindness then - you at least - of making up for their ingratitude, as far as you can."

How do you receive Communion? 
Do you receive Him with ingratitude, not even paying attention to who it is that you are about to receive? Or do you thank Him and try to express the gratitude that He deserves, even though it is not possible to thank Him enough? 

Are you ever irreverent? When you are supposed to bow or genuflect, do you do it reverently?

Do you express your Love for Him?

Do you even believe that Jesus is truly present in the Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist?

Do you dress in a respectful way when you come to Mass, or do you just wear whatever you feel like wearing, be it jeans with holes or an old t-shirt?


I get the privilege of being able to serve at Mass, so I get to witness first hand how some people approach and receive our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. Oh my goodness, even in my own parish I see this irreverence and disrespect. Sometimes I have to wonder if people rally do believe that Jesus is truly present.

I see people who come up and instead of bowing or genuflecting, they do some quick little head bob, or even nothing at all.
Sometime people come up and instead of presenting their hands in the proper way, and slowly and reverently pick up the Eucharist and consume it, they don't. I've seen people receive Him in all kinds of odd ways. I wish that people still received on the tongue, because then this particular kind of irreverence would not be possible.
Lots of people don't say Amen, or do the sign of the cross after they receive Him.

I am not telling you this to degrade these people or spread rumors, but to make you aware that disrespect and irreverence are everywhere. EVERYWHERE. We really need to put a stop to this people! If you truly believe that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist, Show It!

He Loves you so much, and He has humbled Himself time and time again to come to you, even under the appearance of bread and wine. Do you realize that? The one whom made Heaven and Earth Loves YOU and humbles Himself for YOU and appears as bread and wine to come to YOU in this Sacrament. It's not bread and wine anymore people, It really is JESUS!

Do you come to Him with reverence and Love?

This Lent, let's take a look at how we come to Jesus to receive Him. Let's try to quench that thirst that Jesus talks about, to be Loved by men in this Sacrament. Can we ever quench it? I don't know. But that should not stop us from trying.

Maggie Monday!

Hewoooo! Dis is maggie, and i bet you probably thinks dat you nos wat i is going to say next. You prbably thinks dat i is going to say "I bet you can't guess wat day it is today!" well, guess wat, you is not rite! HA! i is not going to say dat. I is going to say, IT IS MAGGIE MONDAY! yay!

De weber is reely nice owt today. Me and master went fur a walk dis morning, and it was bery nice. But, master is sik, so we didnt get to go fur a long walk. i wish we coud dough.

i bet dat master didnt tuck in her nos. she probably furgetted to tuck in her nos wen she went to sleep, and den i nos wat happened. wile maste was sleeping, i bet dows reely tiny bugs dat hoomans call "sheerms" saw her nos. and den, dey beeeeeery quietly, and beeeery sneekyly sneeked into her nos, becuz it wasnt tucked in. and den, dey attacked! AH! and now dey is making masters nos be all stuffed up, becuz dere is too many in dere. and dey mak her coff because dey tikles her frowt.

 and dey maks her nos run, but i don't no wat dat meens. becuz masters nos is not running away. it is still dere on her face. i think. let me check. . . . .. . .

yep. her nos is still dere. it did not run away.

well, i think dat is all i is going to say fur today. I has to mak sure dat masters nos doesnt run away, so dat she can still smell da wondurful smell of squirrels owtsid. i wuv dat smell!

- Maggie :0)

Maggie Monday

Hewoo! Guess wat day it is today…. I give you a hint. It starts wif M, and means I gets to say something on dis blog…… it's MAGGIE MONDAY!! YAAAAYYY i wuv Maggie Monday. 

Wel, nothing really exiyting has reely happened laytly. A bunch of ice and a small bit of snow fell from da sky yesterday and last nite, so me and master didn't get to take a walk, or eben roller steak, for yesterday and today! :0( 

So, i is going to show you a comfy spot. 

Heer i is. In my "Maggie bed". Dis is da little bed in masters bed, just for me! It has a blanket and a pillow. And master has a heet blanket in her bed too, so dat maks it reely nice and warm.  I gets to sleep in my little Maggie bed web master is sitting in her bed. Wen she is sleeping, i gets in my crate, were i has a reely fluffy bed day is berry snuggly.

I wuv to sleep in comfy spots. Anober comfy spot it da bak of da couch. I liks to lay on da back of da couch lik a cat, hehehehehehehe. And it is hi enouf day i can see out da window wen i is not sleeping, so i can watch for introoders. Lik does odd guys who run up wif boxes. Who nos wat coold be in Der! Wat is Der is a rouge hotdog, or a rabid squirrel, or a crazy bird, or a poysinus bug, or a dangerous ebil thing in Der. So i always maks sure dat i tell eveybody in da house dat DDR is a suspisios guy wif a dangerous box, running to da door. Dat way i skairs him away, and somebody can go and get da dangerous box, and get dat dangerous who-knows-wat out of Der rite away! 

Well, dat is all fur now. 

-MAGGIE :O)