St. Malachy's Deceased Sister Appears to Him Asking for Masses

In his beautiful Life of St. Malachy St. Bernard highly praises that prelate for his devotion towards the souls in Purgatory. When he was as yet deacon, he loved to assist at the funerals of the poor, and at the Mass which was celebrated for them ; he even accompanied their remains to the cemetery with as much zeal as he ordinarily saw those unfortunate creatures neglected after their death. But he had a sister, who, filled with the spirit of the world, thought that her brother degraded himself and his whole family by thus associating with the poor. She reproached him, showing by her language that she understood neither Christian Charity nor the excellence of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Malachy, notwithstanding, continued the exercise of his humble Charity, contenting himself with replying to his sister that she had forgotten the teaching of Jesus Christ, and that she would one day repent of her thoughtless words.

In the meantime the imprudent rashness of this woman was not to remain unpunished ; she died whilst still young, and went to render an account to the Sovereign Judge of the worldly life she had led.

Malachy had reason to complain of her conduct, but when she was dead he forgot all the wrongs she had done him, and thinking only of the needs of her soul, he offered the Holy Sacrifice and prayed much for her. In the course of time, however, having many others to pray for, he neglected his poor sister. " We may believe," says Father Rossignoli, "that God permitted that she should be forgotten, in punishment for the want of compassion which she showed towards the dead."

However this may be, she appeared to her holy brother during his sleep. Malachy saw her standing in the middle of the area before the church, sad, clad in mourning, and entreating his compassion, complaining that for the last thirty days he had neglected her. He thereupon awoke suddenly, and remembered that in reality it was thirty days since he had celebrated Mass for his sister. On the following day he began anew to offer the Holy Sacrifice for her. Then the deceased appeared to him at the door of the church, kneeling upon the threshold, and lamenting that she was not allowed to enter. He continued his suffrages. Some days later he saw her enter the church and advance as far as the middle of the aisle, without being able, not withstanding all her efforts, to approach the altar. He saw, therefore, it was necessary to persevere, so he continued to offer the Holy Sacrifice for the repose of her soul. Finally, after a few days he saw her near the altar, clad in magnificent attire, radiant with joy, and free from suffering.

" By this we see." adds St. Bernard, " how great is the efficacy of the Holy Sacrifice to remit sins, to combat the powers of darkness, and to open the gates of Heaven to those souls which have quitted this earth."

~ Excerpt from Purgatory Illustrated by the Lives and Legends of the Saints by Fr. F.X. Shouppe, S.J. ~

St. Alphonsus Liguori: Offering Holy Mass for Souls in Purgatory

"St. Augustine says that God will cause those who in this life have most succored those holy souls, when they come to purgatory themselves, to be most succored by others. l may here observe that, in practice, one of the best suffrages is to hear Mass for them, and during the Holy Sacrifice to recommend them to God by the merits and passion of Jesus Christ. The following form may be used:

'Eternal Father, I offer you this Sacrifice of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ,

with all the pains which He suffered in His life and death;

and by His passion I recommend to you the souls in purgatory,

and especially that of...' etc.

And it is a very charitable act to recommend, at the same time, the souls of all those who are at the point of death."

~ St. Alphonsus Liguori ~

St. Jean Vianney: Value of Offering Jesus and His Merits to the Eternal Father

My children, you remember the story I have told you already of that holy priest who was praying for his friend; God had, it appears, made known to him that he was in Purgatory; it came into his mind that he could do nothing better than to offer the holy Sacrifice of the Mass for his soul. When he came to the moment of Consecration, he took the Host in his hands and said, "O Holy and Eternal Father, let us make an exchange. You have the soul of my friend who is in Purgatory, and I have the Body of Your Son, Who is in my hands; well, deliver my friend, and I will offer You Your Son, with all the merits of His Death and Passion." In fact, at the moment of the elevation, he saw the soul of his friend rising to Heaven, all radiant with glory. Well, my children, when we want to obtain anything from the good God, let us do the same; after Holy Communion, let us offer Him His well-beloved Son, with all the merits of His death and His Passion. He will not be able to refuse us anything.

~ St. Jean Vianney ~

Sacrilege, Indifference and Ingratitude Toward the Sacred Heart of Jesus

franciscanfriars June 19, 2009
Jesus allowed His Sacred Heart to be pierced so that we can be saved. But so often this greatest of gifts is met with Sacrilege, Indifference and Ingratitude. Listen as Father explains how great a tragedy this is and why we should love Our Lord ever more. Ave Maria!
To Download Audio go to http://airmaria.com/?p=5356

St. Monica: "Remember Me at the Altar of the Lord"

"Bury my body wherever you will; let not care of it cause you any concern.

One thing only I ask you,

that you remember me at the altar of the Lord wherever you may be."

~ St. Monica ~

The day was now approaching when my mother Monica would depart from this life; you know that day, Lord, though we did not. She and I happened to be standing by ourselves at a window that overlooked the garden in the courtyard of the house. At the time we were in Ostia on the Tiber. And so the two of us, all alone, were enjoying a very pleasant conversation, "forgetting the past and pushing on to what is ahead.." We were asking one another in the presence of the Truth - for you are the Truth - what it would be like to share the eternal life enjoyed by the saints, which "eye has not seen, nor ear heard, which has not even entered into the heart of man." We desired with all our hearts to drink from the streams of your heavenly fountain, the fountain of life.

That was the substance of our talk, though not the exact words. But you know, O Lord, that in the course of our conversation that day, the world and its pleasures lost all their attraction for us. My mother said, "Son, as far as I am concerned, nothing in this life now gives me any pleasure. I do not know why I am still here, since I have no further hopes in this world. I did have one reason for wanting to live a little longer: to see you become a Catholic Christian before I died. God has lavished his gifts on me in that respect, for I know that you have even renounced earthly happiness to be his servant. So what am I doing here?"

I do not really remember how I answered her. Shortly, within five days or thereabouts, she fell sick with a fever. Then one day during the course of her illness she became unconscious and for a while she was unaware of her surroundings. My brother and I rushed to her side, but she regained consciousness quickly. She looked at us as we stood there and asked in a puzzled voice: "Where was I?"

We were overwhelmed with grief, but she held her gaze steadily upon us, and spoke further: "Here you shall bury your mother." I remained silent as I held back my tears. However, my brother haltingly expressed his hope that she might not die in a strange country but in her own land, since her end would be happier there. When she heard this, her face was filled with anxiety, and she reproached him with a glance because he had entertained such earthly thoughts. Then she looked at me and spoke: "Look what he is saying." Thereupon she said to both of us, "Bury my body wherever you will; let not care of it cause you any concern. One thing only I ask you, that you remember me at the altar of the Lord wherever you may be." Once our mother had expressed this desire as best she could, she fell silent as the pain of her illness increased.

~ Excerpt from the Confessions of Saint Augustine of Hippo ~

Pope Leo XIII: Apostolic Tradition of Offering Masses for Souls in Purgatory

"...For the Communion of Saints, as everyone knows, is nothing but the mutual communication of help, expiation, prayers, blessings, among all the faithful, who, whether they have already attained to the heavenly country, or are detained in the purgatorial fire, or are yet exiles here on earth, all enjoy the common franchise of that city whereof Christ is the head, and the constitution is charity. For faith teaches us, that although the venerable Sacrifice may be lawfully offered to God alone, yet it may be celebrated in honour of the saints reigning in heaven with God Who has crowned them, in order that we may gain for ourselves their patronage. And it may also be offered - in accordance with an apostolic tradition - for the purpose of expiating the sins of those of the brethren who, having died in the Lord, have not yet fully paid the penalty of their transgressions."

~ Pope Leo XIII, from Mirae Caritatis ~

The Blood of Jesus for Souls in Purgatory

In the life of Bl. Henry of Suso, we read that as a young man he made this agreement with a brother of his religious order: "Whichever one of us outlives the other, let him hasten the glory of the one who has passed into eternity with the celebration of one Holy Mass every week." The companion of Bl. Henry died first in a mission territory. Blessed Henry remembered his promise for a little while. Later, because he had been obliged to celebrate Masses for others, instead of the weekly Mass which he had promised his friend, he substituted prayers and penances. But his friend appeared to him in a vision, much distressed, and reproved him, "Your prayers and your penances are not sufficient for me. I need the Blood of Jesus." Indeed it is with the Blood of Jesus that we pay the debts of our sins (Col. 1:14).

~ From Jesus Our Eucharistic Love by Fr. Stefano Manelli, O.F.M. ~

Masses: The Greatest Help For Souls in Purgatory

When St. John of Avila was on his deathbed,

his confreres asked him what he desired most after his death.

The Saint promptly answered,

"Masses. . . Masses. . . nothing else but Masses!"

~ Fr Stefano Manelli, from Jesus Our Eucharistic Love ~

St. Padre Pio: Before God Every Debt Must Be Paid

Many apparitions have been reported about souls in Purgatory who came to ask the offering of Padre Pio’s Holy Mass for their deliverance from Purgatory. One day he celebrated Holy Mass for the father of one of his fellow friars. At the end of the Holy Sacrifice, Padre Pio said to the friar, "This morning the soul of your father entered Heaven." The friar was very happy, but said, "Padre, my good father died thirty-two years ago." "My son," Padre Pio replied, "before God every debt must be paid!" And it is Holy Mass which obtains for us a treasure of infinite value: the Body and Blood of Jesus, the "unspotted Lamb" (Rev. 5:12).

~ From Jesus Our Eucharistic Love by Fr. Stephano Manelli, FI ~