Oh How We Need Them! me to see so many. Am I Not Your Mother? by Jean Gervais 1-2. Oh How We Need Them! by Sandy R. Major 1-2-4

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1 L O V E O N E A N O T H E R A S I H A V E L O V E D Y O U Two Hearts One Love Volume 2, Issue 5 Sunday, May. 13, 2012 From the Desk of Jean Gervais AM I NOT YOUR MOTHER? Am I not here, who is your Mother? Are you not under my protection? Am I not your health? Are you not happily within my fold? What else do you wish? Do not grieve nor be disturbed by anything. Our Lady of Guadalupe uttered the above words to Juan Diego during her first apparition to him which occurred on December 9, Juan Diego, was a poor Aztec Indian, who was on his way to Tepayac to get a priest for his uncle who had become mortally ill. She reassured him of Her Motherly protection and reaffirmed her presence into his life. What a beautiful conversation they had on that cold December morning! Every time I read thisquote, it gives me solace. Life can be very challenging at time to anyone growing up without their natural mother. What most of you probably didn t know, I lost my mother when I was a year old. The memories that I have of her are almost nonexistent. All I have is just a mere picture that I keep in my family album. At time I would look at her picture in order to depict her true inner and outer beauty. I must say that I carry all of her features. Nonetheless, I never felt her touch, never saw her smile and never get her goodnight kiss. If she were to be alive today, I wonder what my life would have been. She was gone too soon! Her absence in my life has made me become aware of how fragile one s life can be and not to take mothers for granted. I have witnessed how some people treat their own mothers. It s very despicable! Sometimes I wish they can experience what I have experienced. The Bible declares in Ephesians 6:1-3: Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother (this is the first commandment with a promise), that it may go Oh How We Need Them! I m a middle school teacher, and I leave my home each morning, kids in tow, by 6:45 A.M. I am usually home by about 4:30 in the evening. Because of my schedule, I cannot attend Daily Mass. It troubles me to see so many people who could attend but choose not to. That s another topic all by itself. Anyway, I have managed, by the Grace of God, to find a neighboring church that offers Mass at 6:30 P.M. on Tuesdays. I also have the great blessing of a pastor who understands that there are others who wish to attend Daily Mass but cannot manage during the normal business day. He is generous enough to offer an hour of Eucharistic Adoration while he hears confessions Inside this issue: Am I Not Your Mother? by Jean Gervais 1-2 Special points of interest: Briefly highlight your point of interest here. Oh How We Need Them! by Sandy R. Major Virgin Mother and Biological Mother..! by Adeline Jean 3 Briefly highlight your point of interest here. Briefly highlight your point of interest here. Briefly highlight your point of interest here. Month of May, Month of Mary! by Liz Houston 4 Be An Instrument of God! by Fr. Sammy 5 Friendship & Work! by Sandy Major 6 Reconcile Any Differences? By D. McGhee 6-7

2 Am I Not Your Mother! - Cont d Well with you and that you may live long in the land. During my adolescent years my grandmother cared for me. She taught me how to pray and above all how to accept the fact that my earthly mother was not present. She urged me to take The Blessed Mother Mary as my own Mother. Although it was very painful for me at first to accept this loss, but after much thoughts I finally conceded. My grandmother s deep devotion to Mother Mary had convinced me to embrace Mary as my dearest and fairest Mother. She showered me with lots of love and helped me realize the importance of prayer in my daily life. She was passionate about the Charismatic movement and was one of the faithful members of the church. She even suggested that I join her group. At that time, I felt I was too young and was not ready to commit myself to this endeavor. Who would ever think that I would be where I am today? Mother Mary has a lot to do with it. I thank God every day of my life for this great gift that He gave us. The Gift of a Mother whose love for Her children is immeasurable. Let s not forget that Mother s Day honors the greatest Mother of all, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and all mothers should look to her for guidance and strength. Thus, I have always associated Mother s Day and Our Blessed Mother because of my grandmother s deepest devotion to Mother Mary. "The more we trust in Jesus, the more graces we will receive. As a sign of love, affection and gratitude to Mother Mary, we have dedicated a 2000 Hail Marys to Her as a prelude of the celebration of the feast of Our Lady of Fatima and Mother s Day. She is Our Rock, Our Hope and Our Salvation. In a special way, I command all mothers in the world for the work that they do, the great role that they play in their household and the care that they provide to their children. I leave you this quote by Washington Irving: A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials, heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine, desert us when troubles thicken around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts. A blessing prayer for all mothers in the world from the Canadian Bishop s Book of Blessings Holy God, you compare your own love for your people to the love of a mother for her children. Look with kindness on these mothers, give them comfort in moments of sorrow, and joy in their work for their families. Listen to their prayers. And bless + them in all they do for you. Let them share with Jesus your Son and Mary our mother in the everlasting happiness of heaven. Father, we ask this grace through Christ our Lord. Amen. Happy Mother s Day! - Jean Gervais Oh How we Need Them - Cont d each Wednesday evening followed by Mass. He also offers Mass at 6:30 A.M. on Fridays. Between the two parishes I am able to attend Mass five times per week, or at least that used to be the case. For the past three Tuesdays, I ve gone to the neighboring parish, which is about a twenty-minute drive, only to discover that Mass has been cancelled. You see, we are very short-handed for priests in my area, and I am beginning to see the very real affects that our shortage of priests is Page 2 having. I find that I not angry, but terribly disappointed. It feels like such a long time between Sunday and Tuesday, especially when Monday and Tuesday are packed with one hundred ten middle school kids! Absence indeed makes the heart grow fonder, and it makes me a little bit cranky and a LOT less patient. It also makes me acutely aware of just how much we need our priests. If you happen to be reading this essay right now, please stop what you are doing and pray that our youth will listen and heed the call to the priesthood and consecrated religious life. There really is no shortage of vocations. What we lack is the ability to hear and the courage to obey the Lord s call. Our Lord tells us, in the parable about the wedding banquet, Many are called, but few are chosen. (Matthew 22:14) T W O HEA RTS ONE LOV E

3 Virgin Mother and Biological Mother..One Mirrors the Other This is a special month, May.. Is it a coincidence that the secular world sets aside one day of the year to honor mothers, Mother s Day, in the same month that the Church has set aside for all Catholics to honor Mary, the mother of all humanity? In life there are no coincidences. God has His hand in everything, secular and Christian, and He works all things together for the good. In the Bible we learn that Jesus promised to leave His disciples the Holy Spirit because He had to leave them when His time on earth was up. He said in John 14:16, And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always. He did not want to leave us without someone to be there with us to help us in our everyday lives. However, He did not stop there, because, at the Cross, He also left us His mother. In John 19:26-27 we learn, When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, Woman, behold, your son. Then he said to the disciple, Behold, your mother. And from that hour the disciple took her into his home. This act was actual as well as symbolic. It was actual because He actually gave His mother to John, so John could care for her after He died, and He gave His mother to John so that she could also care for John as his mother. This act is also symbolic because in giving Mary to John and John to Mary, Jesus was saying, in essence, I am leaving my mother to be the mother to all my brothers and sisters in the world, so I expect them to accept her, love her, and honor her as any child would love his or Virgin Mother and Biological Mother. Cont d her biological mother. The quote above ends by saying that John took Mary into his home. We have a secular saying that home is where the heart is. It is thus easy to infer that, symbolically, Jesus wants us to take Mary into our hearts in the same way as John as John took her into his home. There is another famous quote in the secular world that says, God could not be everywhere and therefore he made mothers. This is not far from wrong when we contemplate Jesus symbolic act of leaving us His mother. A famous quote from a wellknown man of God, who loved, honored, and taught the world how to love and honor the Virgin Mary, makes this connection between Mary, the Mother of God, and the relationship Virgin Mother and Biological Mother... - Cont d with our earthly mother clear; he writes: "All true children of God have God for their father and Mary for their mother; anyone who does not have Mary for his mother, does not have God for his father.indeed if they had her for their mother they would love and honor her as good and true children naturally love and honor the mother who gave them life." (St. Louis Marie de Montfort) Adeline Jean V OLU ME 2, ISSU E 5 Page 3

4 Month of May, Month of Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ! January 1 is the first Marian feast of the Roman Catholic liturgy. The Feast of Mary, the Mother of God. Since January 1 st, 1968, we celebrate worldwide the International Day of Peace. Numbers 6:26: May God give you peace. It is a messianic gift par excellence, the first fruit of love that Jesus gave us. On September 15, we celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows. This feast is intended to remind us of the terrible martyrdom the Virgin Mary endured as coredemptrix of mankind. The Church honors this day Her incomparable pain, especially those She felt at the foot of the Cross upon the consummation of the mystery of our Redemption. After focusing on the terrible anguish of the soul of Mary on the day of the Passion of Her Son, this day Her sufferings reached their maximum intensity, the piety of the faithful spread to other pains that the divine Mother felt on different occasions of Her holy life. To illustrate the sorrows of the Virgin Mother, painters represent Her heart pierced by 7 swords, a symbol of the seven main sorrows of the Mother of God, who was crowned Queen of Martyrs. One can meditate and pray the rosary of the Seven Sorrows the Blessed Mother suffered through love and compassion during the life, trials and agonizing death of her Son, Jesus Christ. Let us pray this Rosary with an open and repentant heart. Liturgical texts for this feast of Our Lady of Sorrows: Hebrews 5: 7-9; Psalm 31, 2; John 19 and Luke 2, The Mysteries of the Seven Sorrows: 1. The Prophecy of Simeon; 2. The Flight into Egypt; 3. The Loss of Jesus in the Temple; 4. Mary Meets Jesus on the Way to Calvary; 5. Mary Stands at the Foot of The Cross; 6. Mary Receives the Dead Body of Jesus; 7. Jesus is Placed in the Tomb. Say an Act of Contrition (1x); Hail Mary (3x); announce the Mystery (above); Recite Most merciful Mother, remind us always about the Sorrows of your Son, Jesus. (1x before each Mystery) followed by Our Father (1x) and Hail Mary (7x) and so on. Pray often Pray from the Heart! What follows is a quote from Fr. Leszek Czelusniak MIC - Kibeho-Rwanda: This Rosary of the Seven Sorrows gives us the possibility to live the Cross of Jesus in our life and enter on the path of Faith, Hope and Love in the life of sufferings. God sent Mother Mary to the heart of Africa, Kibeho in Rwanda with this message of Love and Peace. The Visionary Marie Claire Mukangano claims to have received revelations regarding this rosary. This rosary pleases the Mother of God. It was once well known, but it has now been forgotten. The Mother of God of Kibeho desires for it to be renewed and spread in the Church. However, this prayer does not replace the Holy Rosary. I invite you to take this Rosary into your hands, to pray with faith and many of your petitions will be heard. Enter in this school of life where the teacher is the glorious Cross. This is one of the strong paths of conversion and healing in your life. For more information go to: May our Blessed Mother accompany us; may she obtain for us and the whole world the gift of Peace. May we contemplate in the arms of Mary, the God-man crucified for our sins and sympathize with the excessive pains of our heavenly Mother. Let us join our tears to Hers and hate our sins which caused the death of Her divine Son, our sins which equally were the cause of Her personal martyrdom. May our Blessed Mother obtain for us the graces necessary to follow her example and imitate her virtues in our moments of humiliation, sorrows and His Cross. Happy Mother s Day Blessed Mother! -Liz Houston Oh How We Need Them! Cont d Unfortunately, very little has changed in the past two thousand years. The next time you are given the grace and privilege of receiving Jesus in the Holy Eucharist, remember to thank Him for His gift of the priesthood, and His gift of Himself. Just as our human existence is dependent on adequate food and water, so too is our spiritual existence dependent on adequate nourishment. Pray for our priests and religious. We need them. Oh, how we need them! And they need our prayers. -Sandy Major Page 4 T W O HEA RTS ONE LOV E

5 Be an Instrument of God! St. Francis s prayer, Lord, make me a channel of your Peace is one of the most inspirational prayers that emphasize the importance of Peace. It was Christ s mission and achieved through His incarnation and selfless sacrifice. Though we call ourselves the followers of Jesus Christ but in reality we are so focused on our personal needs that we forget others who are more in need of our concern and love. This prayer of St. Francis encourages us to be an instrument of God s grace, love, pardon, faith, hope, light and joy to others. The gospel reading in Mark about the healing of paralytic person (Mk 2:1-12) gives an important message about concern for others. Those four people who brought the paralytic person to Jesus by stripping the roof over the place expressed their genuine love for the paralytic person. The crowd was so anxious about their own personal interests and wishes granted or illness healed that some forgot and some ignored about the paralytic person who was more in need of Jesus healing. However those four were For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. 2Timothy 1:7 genuinely concerned about their neighbor and practically applied the commandments of Jesus. They became instruments of God bringing Joy and Healing to the paralytic person. They received peace within them while bringing Joy and Healing to the paralytic person. Jesus said, Give and it shall be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you" (LK 6:8). When we express our love and concern to our neighbors we give hope to many who are in need of God s healing in their darkened lives and in turn God will give back immensely His love and Grace. Be an instrument of God! Cont d Rev. Fr. Robert Lauder in his book LOVE & HOPE mentioned an anonymous writer s quote, I sought my soul but my soul eluded me; I sought my God but my God I could not see; I sought my brother and I found all three Those four people, who expressed their concern, love and reached out to the paralytic person saw God in Jesus in that moment when others could not recognize that Jesus was God. May God bless you all! Fr Arputham Arulsamy A Tribute to Mother - My P31 "Strength and honor are her clothing; She shall rejoice in time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, And on her tongue is the law of kindness. She watches over the ways of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed; Her husband also, and he praises her: "Many daughters have done well, But you excel them all." Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, But a woman who fears the Lord, She shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands, And let her own works praise her in the gates. Proverbs 31:25~31 V OLU ME 2, ISSU E 5 Page 5

6 Friendship and Work! I often thank God for my friends, and I wonder how many of us really understand the graces we are given through our friends. I ve heard it said that being a friend is work. I suppose it all depends on how you define the word work. In his Rule, St. Benedict refers to The Divine Office, also known as The Liturgy of the Hours, as The Work of God. When I think of work, I think of the things I d rather not be doing. Yet, St. Benedict says in Chapter 43:3 of his Rule, Indeed, nothing is to be preferred to the Work of God. In Cistercian monasteries, a monk s or a nun s work is their prayer. For a long time I understood their work to be a mere extension of their life of prayer. That is not the case. A monastic s work really is prayer. So, for those of us who use the excuse that we don t have time for prayer in our daily lives because of our work schedule, St. Benedict s Rule quite literally has dispelled that myth for us. The work ethic of a monastic is much like the rest of their life simple. Please remember that the meaning of simple and the meaning Caption describing picture or graphic. of easy are miles apart! Monks and nuns usually perform manual labor to sustain themselves. No matter the task, they submit themselves totally to job before them. There are valuable lessons to be learned from their humble approach to work. It s not about stepping on others while climbing the corporate ladder of success, and it s not about getting more bang for your buck by hiring cheap labor to do the work that no one else wants to do. It is about service and living by the labor of their hands. While participating in The Work of God, St. Benedict reminds us that we are to be totally present to the God whom we are praising. In the midst of that work, we are loving God. While working to sustain themselves, monks and nuns surrender their entire being to God in the tasks that He places in their care. They are loving one another through service in the midst of their work. Being a friend means that we do or say what is best for the other, even when it is difficult. In the midst of that work, we are loving the other as God loves. William Shakespeare once said, A friend is one that knows you as you are, understands where you have been, accepts what you have become, and still, gently allows you to grow. So, depending on your definition, I suppose friendship really could rightly be dubbed as work. Can you even imagine what the world would look like if we all used the same dictionary? Sandra R. Major Reconcile Any Differences! It s a wonderful day to be a child of God. Have you ever experienced disagreements with family or friends? Your opinion about a matter was rejected or considered crazy. Have you ever walked away from a friendship that took years to establish? Because of constructive criticism, you decided their friend- ship was no longer in your best interest. Are you currently in limbo with a certain person in your life? For whatever reason, you find yourself at odds with this person. Have you ever purposely ignored someone because you were bitter about an old matter? You felt avoiding them was the best remedy to the problem. So often in our lives, we experience times when our friendships are challenged. Challenged by trials, dilemmas, situations and tragedy. There comes a time when two do not agree (Amos 3:3). Have you been there? Are you there now? Page 6 T W O HEA RTS ONE LOV E

7 Reconcile Any Differences! - Cont d Today, I have been commissioned to come and minister to you. The first thing you must understand about life is no one is perfect. We all have flaws in our character. We all stand in need of God s grace and mercy. After all you have been through in life, you would not allow a disagreement to destroy your progress would you? My friend, Reconcile Any Differences. Bring closure to any open wounds. The Bible declares in Matthew 5: Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; 24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. Many times we cover up a wound that was caused by a friend or family member. We never doctor the wound, but we do cover it up. As time goes What kind of love is this? on, the same wound becomes infected by jealousy, rage or even misunderstandings. The infection occurred because the open wound was covered but never doctored first. Reconcile Any Differences. My brother, my sister, are you at odds with anyone today? Do you have peace in your life? Have you become a victim to pain? Today I challenge you to Reconcile Any Differences. Where God desires to take you can be hindered by past situations that were left unresolved. The Bible declares in Leviticus 19:17 - Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: Reconcile Any Differences! - Cont d : thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him. Beloved, has your past resurrected itself? Has an old situation remained unresolved in your life? Do you feel trapped? Do you desire to be totally free? Reconcile Any Differences. You must fix what is broke. Dear friend, what- ever or whomever has wounded you, in your life, needs to be exposed, confronted and then reconciled. Think of the days and nights you have wasted. The times you cried because of pain. The confusion the enemy has sown into your mind. The Bible declares in Hebrews 12:1 - let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us Today, experience freedom. Prayer for Today: Father, help me reconcile any differences in my life that have left me wounded. In Jesus name Amen! - D. McGhee A Mother s Love! There are times when only a mother's love Can understand our tears, Can soothe our disappoints And calm all of our fears. There are times when only a mother's love Can share the joy we feel When something we've dreamed about Quite suddenly is real. There are times when only a mother's faith Can help us on life's way And inspire in us the confidence We need from day to day. For a mother's heart and a mother's faith And a mother's steadfast love Were fashioned by the angels And sent from God above. --Author Unknown V OLU ME 2, ISSU E 5 Page 7

8 Organization T WO HEART S - ONE LOV E Primary Business Address Lark Song Loop Riverview, FL Phone: fiat@2hearts1love.org "Jesus I trust In You" Prayer of St. Faustina to Our Lady O Mary, my Mother and my Lady, I offer you my soul, my body, my life and my death and all that will come after it. I place everything in your hands, O my Mother, cover my soul with your virginal mantle and grant me the grace of purity of heart, soul and body. Defend me with your power against all enemies and especially against those who hide their malice behind the mask of virtue. Fortify my soul that pain may not break it. Mother of grace, teach me to live by God s power. O Mary, a terrible sword has pierced you holy soul. Except for God, no one knows of your suffering. Your soul does not break, it is brave, because it is with Jesus. Sweet Mother, unite my soul to Jesus, because it is only then that I will be able to endure all trials and tribulations and only in union with Jesus will my little sacrifices be pleasing to God. Sweetest Mother, continue to teach me about the interior life. May the sword of suffering never break me. O pure Virgin, pour courage into my heart and guard it. Amen. "Working together to extend the healing hands of Christ through prayers, healing masses and retreats." We re on the web! HAPPY MOTHER S DAY! TWO HEARTS ONE LOVE FAMILY