Saint Philip Neri: Practical Advice

"The true way to advance in holy virtues, is to persevere in a holy cheerfulness."

~ St. Philip Neri ~

~ Previous post on St. Philip Neri and the Poor Souls in Purgatory ~

St. John Eudes: Renouncing Ourselves so Jesus Can Live and Reign in Us

"Our wish, our object, our chief preoccupation must be to form Jesus in ourselves, to make his spirit, his devotion, his affections, his desire, and his disposition live and reign there."

"Finally, you are one with Jesus as the body is one with the head. You must, then, have one breath with him, one soul, one life, one will, one mind, one heart. And he must be your breath, heart, love, life, your all."

~ Saint John Eudes ~

Saint Faustina: Is Hell Real? Do People Go To Hell?

"I, Sister Faustina, by the order of God, have visited the abysses of hell so that I might tell souls about it and testify to its existence. I cannot speak about it now; but I have received a command from God to leave it in writing. The devils were full of hatred for me, but they had to obey me at the command of God. What I have written is but a pale shadow of the things I saw. But I noticed one thing: that most of the souls there are those who disbelieved that there is a hell. When I came to, I could hardly recover from the fright. How terribly souls suffer there! Consequently, I pray even more fervently for the conversion of sinners. I incessantly plead God's mercy upon them. O my Jesus, I would rather be in agony until the end of the world, amidst the greatest sufferings, than offend You by the least sin."

~ Saint Faustina; excerpt 741 from The Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska ~

St. Teresa of Avila's Prayer to Redeem Lost Time

A Prayer to Redeem Lost Time

(by St. Teresa of Avila)

O my God! Source of all Mercy! 

I acknowledge Your sovereign power.

 
While recalling the wasted years that are past,

I believe that You, Lord, can in an instant turn this loss to gain. 

Miserable as I am, yet I firmly believe that You can do all things.

Please restore to me the time lost, giving me Your grace, both now and in the future,

 that I may appear before You in “wedding garments.” 

Amen.

Can the Souls in Purgatory Pray for Us?

“Oh! if it were but known how great is the power of the good souls in purgatory with the Heart of God,

and if we knew all the graces we can obtain through their intercession,

they would not be so much forgotten.

We must, therefore, pray much for them, that thev may pray much for us.”

~ St. Jean Vianney ~

Stations of the Cross for the Souls in Purgatory

We find an incident relating to this subject in the Life of Venerable Mary d Antigna.  For a long time she had the pious custom of making the Stations of the Cross each day for the relief of the souls departed; but later, for motives more apparent than solid, she did it but rarely, and finally omitted it altogether. Our Lord, who had great designs in regard to this pious virgin, and who desired to make her a victim of love for the consolation of the poor souls in Purgatory,vouchsafed to give her a lesson which serves as an instruction to us all.

A Religious of the same convent, who had died a short time previously, appeared to her, complaining sorrowfully, " My dear sister," she said, " why do you no longer make the Stations of the Cross for the souls in Purgatory? You were formerly accustomed to relieve us every day by that holy exercise ; why do you deprive us of that assistance ? "

Whilst the soul was still speaking our Lord Himself  appeared to His servant, and reproached her with her negligence. " Know, my daughter," He added, " that the Stations of the Cross are very profitable to the souls in Purgatory, and constitute a suffrage of the greatest value. This is why I have permitted this soul, for her own sake and for the sake of others, to implore this of you. Know also that it was on account of your exactitude in practising this devotion that you have been favoured by frequent communication with the dead. It is for this reason also that those grateful souls never cease to pray for you, and to plead your cause at the tribunal of my Justice. Make known this treasure to your sisters, and tell them to draw from it abundantly for themselves and for the dead."

~ Excerpt from Purgatory: Illustrated by the Lives and Legends of the Saints

by Fr. Francis Xavier Shouppe, S.J. ~

A plenary indulgence can be gained once a day for praying the Way of the Cross

 and the indulgence may be offered for the souls in Purgatory.

~ A related post on Indulgences ~

Bishop Thomas John Paprocki: Entrusting Suicide Victims to Divine Mercy

The church teaches that, “We are stewards, not owners, of the life God has entrusted to us. It is not ours to dispose of. … Suicide is contrary to love for the living God.”

However, the church also teaches that, “Grave psychological disturbances, anguish, or grave fear of hardship, suffering, or torture can diminish the responsibility of the one committing suicide. We should not despair of the eternal salvation of persons who have taken their own lives. By ways known to him alone, God can provide the opportunity for salutary repentance. The church prays for persons who have taken their own lives.” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2280-2283.)

From 1917 to 1983, the church’s canon law said that “those who killed themselves of a deliberate purpose” were to be deprived of ecclesiastical burial. This provision was dropped from the revised Code of Canon Law promulgated by Pope John Paul II in 1983, which is still the current norm. One of the main reasons for this change is a greater understanding of the “grave psychological disturbances” mentioned above that can diminish the responsibility of the one committing suicide.

~ Bishop Thomas John Paprocki; excerpt from here ~

~ From Divine Mercy for Lost Souls:
To join our team to pray for the souls in Purgatory who have committed suicide,
for the salvation of those who are in the midst of committing suicide (for their final repentance),
and/or those who are contemplating suicide
(that they come to know God's love and do not follow through with it) ~

Blessed John Paul II Quotes

"Do not abandon yourselves to despair.

We are the Easter people and hallelujah is our song."

~ Blessed John Paul II ~