“The way to destroy bad habits is by watchfulness and by doing often those things that are opposites to one’s besetting sins.” -St. John VianneyHow do we grow in virtue?
St. John Vianney, whose feast we celebrate today, offers us the sage advice of "doing often those things that are opposites to one's besetting sins."
by Theresa CavicchioOn August 2nd each year, Franciscans world-wide celebrate a very special feast day, the Feast of Our Lady of the Angels of Portiuncula.
1 How long have you been on the Women of Grace team and how did you begin? "Since 2010. I began by attending a one-day program given by Johnnette at a church in Vineland, New Jersey with my friend Nancy Elhajj."
2 What do you love best about Women of Grace's apostolate? "What I love best is stated in the vision statement -'encourage and affirm women in their dignity as daughters of God and in their gift of authentic femininity.' The sacred sisterhood that develops is particularly precious. I am so grateful to be part of a program that helps women grow closer to Jesus through the foundational study and other Women of Grace opportunities. I have grown so much on this faith journey over these 11 years and with God's grace have been able to overcome the difficulties that life presents."
3 What is your favorite devotion? "The Rosary and Divine Mercy chaplet."
4 Who is your favorite saint? "The Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph."
5 If you could have lunch with Jesus today, what would you want to talk about? "Conversion of hearts."
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“Now as they went on their way, he entered a village; and a woman named Martha received him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving; and she went to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things; 42 one thing is needful.[a] Mary has chosen the good portion, which shall not be taken away from her.” - Luke 10:38-42Are you a Martha, a Mary, or a Lazarus?
Today is the Memorial of Sts. Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. In the scripture passage above, we see that Mary “sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching.” While Martha, “was distracted with much serving.” She even complained that Mary wasn’t doing her part and the Lord, rebuked her saying that Mary had chosen the better part and He would not take it away from her.
May the peace and love of Our Risen Lord Jesus Christ be yours today and always!
Here we are closing in on the end of July and Fall is fast approaching! We are excited about what is on the horizon for these coming three months, and I am confident much will be attained for the glory of God with your continued partnership. In addition to a virtual online retreat we are planning for October, our first IN PERSON retreat since the Pandemic is happening in September, and I’m delighted to give you the inside scoop! This will be an event planned, sponsored, and executed by Women of Grace for YOU!
1 How long have you been on the Women of Grace team and how did you begin? "I began working here on January 2, 2008. Johnnette and I knew each other when I worked as a reporter for the Catholic Standard and Times of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. I used to interview her from time to time about New Age subjects. During one interview, I asked her if she knew anyone who was looking for a Catholic writer who does not compromise the faith. She said, 'I am!' The rest is history."
2 What do you love best about Women of Grace's apostolate? "My favorite thing about the Women of Grace apostolate is how it empowers women and cuts through all the confusion of our time. Our culture has a very disingenuous approach to women. It professes to be standing up for their rights, but at the same time, it promotes practices that are very destructive of women’s self-esteem such as promiscuity, abortion, birth control. These are presented as hip and liberating, even though women’s lived experience proves that the flip side of these practices – the broken relationships, the lifelong regret, sexual abuse (#MeToo) – is closer to reality. While pretending to stand up for women, our culture is actually doing the exact opposite, which is especially true for women on the ideological right who are treated like backward bimbos whose voices are deliberately stifled and/or misrepresented. All of these conflicting messages are a source of great confusion to women, which is why Women of Grace’s message - that our dignity comes from being a daughter of God, not from what this or that political group determines- is so encouraging for women. It lifts them above the politics and reminds them of who they really are, regardless of how the world wants to define them."
3 What is your favorite devotion? "My favorite devotion(s) is Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary and also Divine Mercy"
4 Who is your favorite saint? "My favorite saint is St. Therese of Lisieux."
5 If you could have lunch with Jesus today, what would you want to talk about? "If I could have lunch with Jesus, I would talk His ear off because He’s my BFF and I’d ask Him about all the things we’re working on together – my vocation as a Carmelite and a writer, my interior life, my prayer life. Everything!"
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“On that day, as evening drew on, he said to them, 'Let us cross to the other side.' Leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat just as he was. And other boats were with him. A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat, so that it was already filling up. Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a cushion. They woke him and said to him, 'Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?' He woke up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, 'Quiet! Be still!' The wind ceased and there was great calm. Then he asked them, 'Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?'" -Mark 4:35-40Do recent events in the world or in the Church have you terrified?
We see in the above scripture passage that even the apostles, those who were closest and spent the most time with Jesus, experienced fear, doubt, and terror. When it seemed that Jesus was asleep in the boat as it was being battered by the storm, He assured them that He was with them, and instantly calmed the storm.
“I am no longer my own. I have given myself entirely to Jesus Christ.” Saint Kateri TekakwithaToday is a special day here at Women of Grace. We celebrate the feast day of one of our patron saints, St. Kateri Tekakwitha, aka “Lily of the Mohawks,” who is the first Native American saint. She is the patroness of our Young Women of Grace study program.
“Say to the Israelites, ‘You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the Lord, who makes you holy." -Exodus 31:13
Do you have a daily ritual?
The Lord gives us many examples of rituals in sacred scripture: God instituted the sacrificial covenant ritual with Abram (Gen. 15:8-21); He gave us the ritual of observing the Sabbath (Ex. 8:20); He asked the people of Israel participate in the Passover each year (Ex. 12:27: 1-14); Jesus taught the apostles to pray the Our Father (Mt 6: 9-13); and He instituted the Holy Eucharist (Lk 22: 14 - 20)
We are bombarded by distractions and growing "to-do" lists. God knew that we needed routine in our lives to keep us focused on Him. Rituals help to reserve our mental and spiritual energy for what is most important.
Recently, I took a two-week vacation. My husband and I went on a road trip from Florida to New York and back again. I must admit that being on vacation, I really slacked on my daily routine and I felt a noticeable increase in frustration, agitation, impatience, and lack of peace.
Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed my vacation but now that I'm back home, I'm working really hard to dust myself off and pick back up on my spiritual routine. Here is a list of a few things that I do my best to practice daily. The nice thing about having rituals/routines is that when you get off track, you can always return to them.
Do you have a set of rituals that keep you focused on the Lord? We'd love for you to share them with us in the comments.
Please join us for our Women of Grace Rosary Crusade, when we will take part in one of the most beautiful and powerful spiritual practices that our Catholic Church has given us.
Click the image below to join and if you've already registered, you should receive a reminder link directly from Zoom. Please be sure to share the information below with your friends and family!
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