Recently I was reading about Our Lady of Good Success and Mother Mariana de Jesus and I felt inspired to make a novena. One of the things that especially drew me to this story is the presence of the Archangels, including St. Raphael, my patron saint. Our Lady of Good Success and Venerable Mother Mariana are very little known so I've included some links below for further reading.
By way of a quick summary, devotion to the Blessed Mother under the title of Our Lady of Good Success officially originated in Spain in the 1600's ... it has also long been approved by the bishops of Equador and supported by the Vatican, though it is now not popularly known. Mother Mariana, a Conceptionist Nun, helped to found a convent in Equador in the late 1500's. In apparitions that were later approved, Our Lady of Good Success appeared to her several times. A large part of these apparitions included visions of the late 19th and 20th century when terrible calamaties and scandals would rock the Church and the world. Mother Mariana has been declared Venerable in the first step towards her canonization, her case was presented to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in the late 1980's under the direction of the Archbishop of Quito, Equador.
The novena to Our Lady of Good Success officially starts on January 24th (next Tues.) and ends February 2nd (Thur.), Feb. 2nd being the feast day of Our Lady of Good Success (which also happens to be the feast of Our Lord's Presentation and the feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary).
links for further reading:
the story of Our Lady of Good Success
the admirable life of Mother Mariana and prophecies
the relation between the feast days of good success and purification
the link between St. Mariana and Mother Mariana (at first I had them confused)
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Excerpts from Horvat's book:
Our Lady speaking to Mother Mariana: "Woe to the world should it lack monasteries and convents! Men do not comprehend their importance, for, if they understood, they would do all in their power to multiply them, because in them can be found the remedy for all physical and moral evils... No one on the face of the earth is aware whence comes the salvation of souls, the conversion of great sinners, the end of great scourges, the fertility of the land, the end of pestilence and wars, and the harmony between nations. All this is due to the prayers that rise up from monasteries and convents." ...
The Lord assured Mother Mariana that He was greatly pleased by those souls who take upon themselves the sublime task of suffering for the sanctification of the Clergy by means of their prayers, sacrifices and penances, and promised such souls a special glory in Heaven.
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Friday, January 20, 2006
Sunday, January 01, 2006
Question & Answer
"Who can tell me what is most pleasing to God so that I may do it?" ~Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha (1656-1680)
"A soul can do nothing that is more pleasing to God than to receive Communion in the state of grace." ~St. Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)
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"A soul can do nothing that is more pleasing to God than to receive Communion in the state of grace." ~St. Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)
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Monthly devotions
Special devotions for months:
January -- Month of the Holy Name
February -- Month of the Passion of Our Lord
March -- Month of St. Joseph
April -- Month of the Holy Eucharist
May -- Month of Our Lady
June -- Month of the Sacred Heart
July -- Month of the Most Precious Blood
August -- Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
September -- Month of Our Lady of Sorrows
October -- Month of the Most Holy Rosary
November -- Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory
December -- Month of the Divine Infancy
[copied from TAN Book's 2006 Calendar]
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January -- Month of the Holy Name
February -- Month of the Passion of Our Lord
March -- Month of St. Joseph
April -- Month of the Holy Eucharist
May -- Month of Our Lady
June -- Month of the Sacred Heart
July -- Month of the Most Precious Blood
August -- Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
September -- Month of Our Lady of Sorrows
October -- Month of the Most Holy Rosary
November -- Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory
December -- Month of the Divine Infancy
[copied from TAN Book's 2006 Calendar]
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Tuesday, December 27, 2005
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
The Problem with Gibson's Passion
[This article sums up what was wrong, theologically (or more specifically, soteriologically*), with Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ. For the full article click here.]
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DEFINITION
soteriology : theology dealing with salvation especially as effected by Jesus Christ.
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The Journal of Religion and Film
"An Orthodox Perspective on Gibson’s The Passion of Christ"
By Rev. Oliver Herbel
...
The soteriology expressed in Gibson’s movie is, from an Orthodox Christian perspective, questionable at best. What is that soteriology? Well, let me lay it out as best I can. The question at hand is whether Jesus can live a sinless life all the way until the very end. The viewer is introduced to this during the scene in the Garden of Gethsemene, where Satan tempts Jesus by saying the burden is too much and that no one can live sinlessly. To be fair, Satan is speaking of two burdens—that of living and dying sinlessly and that of bearing the sins of everyone. From here, we are led through Jesus’ beatings and torture all the way to the cross. Satan and Mary watch this play out before their very eyes. Finally, and it takes nearly the entire movie to get to this point, Jesus dies. Once he breathes his last, we are shown Satan screaming.
This is where the errant soteriology expresses itself most fully. Satan is not screaming because Jesus is the Christ harrowing hell. Had that been the case, then the earthquake that occurred at his death would have included the opening of the tombs of those who had fallen asleep. Rather, Satan is screaming because Jesus endured what he endured without sinning. Once he breathes his last, it is over. The Son of God need not take on death, really. There is no reason. Jesus has done what he needed to do—he has lived the sinless life (and, if we remember Satan’s words in the garden, somehow bore the sins of the world).
According to this soteriology, the only thing one can reflect upon, when contemplating one’s salvation, is the beating Jesus takes. Therefore, it should not surprise us that Gibson elevates the level of those beatings well beyond what we can find in the Gospel accounts.8 Yes, the Gospels speak of Jesus the Christ as the Lamb who is slaughtered, but Gibson’s movie seems pressed to express a Gospel where Jesus is able to suffer more than anyone else. Somehow, by suffering more than anyone else, without sinning, he becomes the savior.
In such a scheme, the resurrection becomes an unnecessary afterthought—sort of a flip cinematic expression of “you can’t keep a good God down.” In fact, I would be surprised if the resurrection received more than 20 seconds of movie time. It certainly did not include an earthquake scene paralleling the one at the cross.9 Gibson’s error, therefore, is separating the cross and the resurrection as though they are two separate events in the temporal biography of the Christ.
Biblically speaking, this cannot be done. The cross means nothing without the light of the resurrection and the resurrection means nothing if it is not shining through a man with eternal scarring on his hands, feet, and side. Matthew’s Gospel does not divide them. Immediately following Matthew 27.53, cited above, Matthew says, “and after his resurrection, they came out of the tombs, went into the holy city and were manifested to many.”
Orthodox soteriology proclaims that Jesus’ suffering and death have meaning because he took on our fallenness and transformed and healed our humanity. He took on our sin and death and through them both defeated Satan, resulting in a victory over sin, death, and the devil. The cross and the resurrection are one overarching salvific event and are not to be divided. Perhaps that is the great irony. If one seeks to separate the significance of the cross from the resurrection, the death of Christ loses its salvific significance.
...
-----
DEFINITION
soteriology : theology dealing with salvation especially as effected by Jesus Christ.
-----
The Journal of Religion and Film
"An Orthodox Perspective on Gibson’s The Passion of Christ"
By Rev. Oliver Herbel
...
The soteriology expressed in Gibson’s movie is, from an Orthodox Christian perspective, questionable at best. What is that soteriology? Well, let me lay it out as best I can. The question at hand is whether Jesus can live a sinless life all the way until the very end. The viewer is introduced to this during the scene in the Garden of Gethsemene, where Satan tempts Jesus by saying the burden is too much and that no one can live sinlessly. To be fair, Satan is speaking of two burdens—that of living and dying sinlessly and that of bearing the sins of everyone. From here, we are led through Jesus’ beatings and torture all the way to the cross. Satan and Mary watch this play out before their very eyes. Finally, and it takes nearly the entire movie to get to this point, Jesus dies. Once he breathes his last, we are shown Satan screaming.
This is where the errant soteriology expresses itself most fully. Satan is not screaming because Jesus is the Christ harrowing hell. Had that been the case, then the earthquake that occurred at his death would have included the opening of the tombs of those who had fallen asleep. Rather, Satan is screaming because Jesus endured what he endured without sinning. Once he breathes his last, it is over. The Son of God need not take on death, really. There is no reason. Jesus has done what he needed to do—he has lived the sinless life (and, if we remember Satan’s words in the garden, somehow bore the sins of the world).
According to this soteriology, the only thing one can reflect upon, when contemplating one’s salvation, is the beating Jesus takes. Therefore, it should not surprise us that Gibson elevates the level of those beatings well beyond what we can find in the Gospel accounts.8 Yes, the Gospels speak of Jesus the Christ as the Lamb who is slaughtered, but Gibson’s movie seems pressed to express a Gospel where Jesus is able to suffer more than anyone else. Somehow, by suffering more than anyone else, without sinning, he becomes the savior.
In such a scheme, the resurrection becomes an unnecessary afterthought—sort of a flip cinematic expression of “you can’t keep a good God down.” In fact, I would be surprised if the resurrection received more than 20 seconds of movie time. It certainly did not include an earthquake scene paralleling the one at the cross.9 Gibson’s error, therefore, is separating the cross and the resurrection as though they are two separate events in the temporal biography of the Christ.
Biblically speaking, this cannot be done. The cross means nothing without the light of the resurrection and the resurrection means nothing if it is not shining through a man with eternal scarring on his hands, feet, and side. Matthew’s Gospel does not divide them. Immediately following Matthew 27.53, cited above, Matthew says, “and after his resurrection, they came out of the tombs, went into the holy city and were manifested to many.”
Orthodox soteriology proclaims that Jesus’ suffering and death have meaning because he took on our fallenness and transformed and healed our humanity. He took on our sin and death and through them both defeated Satan, resulting in a victory over sin, death, and the devil. The cross and the resurrection are one overarching salvific event and are not to be divided. Perhaps that is the great irony. If one seeks to separate the significance of the cross from the resurrection, the death of Christ loses its salvific significance.
...
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