Pages

Search This Blog

Thursday, October 13, 2016

Day 8: Praying to console the hearts of those who mourn



Day 8: Praying to console the hearts of those who mourn
Today, on the 8th day of our webathon novena to Mary, Undoer of Knots, one of the themes of our prayer ties in directly to our Pauline mission: to nurture the gift of hope. 

One of my favorite parts of the webathon is how it affirms us in our Pauline mission. This year, we set the fundraising goal very high out of necessity; and we have just reached over the halfway mark! This is our biggest webathon so far!

Receiving your financial support reminds us sisters that we are not alone in seeking to transform the world with the Gospel. And the personal messages of gratitude for how our mission has touched your lives are deeply moving and encourage us to continue to put all our energies at the service of the Gospel and God’s people. 

We are so grateful for your prayers and your support. Together, let us continue to spread the Gospel of hope to the world through our prayers, witness, and acts of mercy. We continue to hold you in prayer.

God bless,
Sr. Marie Paul Curley, FSP


This touching masterpiece reminds me of when Mary and Joseph presented Jesus in the Temple and Simeon prophesied to Mary, “A sword will pierce your own soul.”
Mary’s sorrow is so profound that it not only pierces her to the core of her being, but it sets her off-balance. And yet as we know from the Gospel of John, Mary remains standing (cf. John 19:25). 

What enables her to stand there, while she suffers the most profound torment and sorrow possible for a mother? I see a clue in Mary’s outstretched hand: she is fully united in offering her own sufferings with those of her Son. 

Mary must have understood better than anyone else her Son’s mission. She knew he was the Messiah; knowing the Scriptures well, she also knew that the Messiah would be God’s suffering servant. She must also have had many conversations with Jesus about the purpose of his mission—to bring God’s saving love to the world. Perhaps Mary also understood Jesus’ prophecy that he would rise again in three days

While none of this lessened her tremendous grief at witnessing her Son’s death, it gave her the strength to stand in hope and know that everything happening to her Son had a purpose, that God would use even Jesus’ death as a way to bring salvation. Mary hoped in the power of God’s saving love, even at this darkest, most hopeless hour. 
 
Today, as we pray to Our Lady for those who grieve for the loss of a loved one, let us pray in a particular way for the gift of the same hope that Mary had. Let us pray that hope in God’s saving love may become the strength that sustains all those who mourn.

Mary, our Hope and Undoer of Knots, pray for us!

++++

If you are able, please help us to continue to share the message of hope in God’s saving love by contributing to our webathon! 
We are just over the halfway mark of our goal of $89,000!


One of the hidden challenges associated with not having a functioning generator is what happens to the publishing house when the electricity goes out. Not only can we not work here in Boston, but the power outage affects all our Book Centers across the country because the servers they rely one also go down. Without back-up power we don't have time to shut the equipment down in the server room correctly leading to damaged equipment (which is expensive to replace). Sr. Donald and those who work with her in IT are the ones who spring into action when the electricity goes out in order to minimize the damage as much as possible. You can imagine what problems are created when the power goes out during the night! She will certainly sleep better when the generator is restored!
We'd love for you to share this news!

No comments: