Youth Ministry @ Our Lady of Victory

Praying for Family Faith October 2, 2008

The post is being written much later than I originally wanted, but it is very important nonetheless (at least I think it is).  On Saturday, August 23rd, about 10 members of the youth group came together with a few adults from the parish to pray for increased faith in our families and an increase in awareness of the roles we each play in our own families.  Below is the text we prayed that night for all to enjoy and pray together with your families at home! 

Prayer Pilgrimage

Tonight we will be praying a rosary for families,  who are the first teachers of our faith. It is in the family that we first hear of and experience the love of God and it is from the family that we inherit a faith that we ourselves must put into practice. We will not be praying the normal mysteries of the rosary, instead we will be reflecting on each member of the family and the roles they play. As we walk to the first station let us begin our rosary by praying for increased awareness of the importance of the family and for the strengthening of the bonds between the members of our own families.

Stations

1.       At this first station we reflect on Mothers and Wives

a.       Reflection: “The most important person on earth is a mother. She cannot claim the honor of having built Notre Dame Cathedral. She need not. She has built something more magnificent than any cathedral – a dwelling for an immortal soul, the tiny perfection of her baby’s body. The angesl have not been blessed with such a grace. They cannot share in God’s creative miracle to bring new saints to Heaven. Only a human mother can. Mothers are closer to God the Creator than any other creatures. God joins forces with mothers in performin this act of creation… What on God’s good earth is more glorious than this: to be a mother?” –Joseph Cardinal Mindszenty

b.      Saints:

                                                              i.      Saint Ann: In the words of Saint John Damascene, “How blessed and spotless you are with your husband Joachim! You will be known by the fruit you have born…the conduct of your life pleased God and was worthy of your daughter…while safeguarding the chastity prescribed by the law of nature, you achieved with God’s help, something that transcends naturein giving the world the Virgin Mother of God as your daughter. While leading a devout and holy life in your human nature, you gave birth to a daughter nobler than the angels, whose queen she now is.” Saint Ann is the patron saint of mothers.

                                                            ii.      Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton: As a young woman, Elizabeth Ann Seton had everything a girl could want: she had money; she had popularity; she had stature; she even married into a fine family. In a short amount of time she and her husband became the parents of five children and were very happy until she lost her father, father in law and husband a few years later. She now found herself poor and alone, left to raise her five children on her own with nothing but her faith to help her.  Through prayer and trust in God, Elizabeth was able to teach her children, care for them and raise them in the faith. She loved children – all children and eventually founded a school and the Sisters of Charity, all through her tireless generosity, patience, and love. Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton is the patron saint of teachers.

                                                          iii.      Saint Monica: A true catholic mother and devoted wife, “Saint Monica was cut to the heart at the news that her son, Augustine, who was leading a wicked life… she never ceased her efforts on his behalf. She stormed heaven by her prayers and tears: she fasted: she watched: she [asked] the clergy to argue with him.” Eventually, through her unceasing prayer, Monica’s son converted to the faith and later became a Doctor of the Church. At the end of her life Monica said to Augustine, “Son, nothing in this world now affords me delight. I do not know what there is now left for me to do or why I am still here, all my hopes in this world now being fulfilled. All I wished to live for was that I might see you Catholic and a child of heaven. God has granted me more than this in making you despise earthly [pleasures] and consecrate yourself to His service.” Saint Monica is the patron saint of married women and mothers.

c.       Saint Ann, pray for us. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, pray for us. St. Monica, pray for us. For this decade of the rosary let us ask Mary, our Blessed Mother, to aid us in attaining the gifts of patience and love.

2.       At this station we reflect on the role of Fathers and Husbands

a.       Reflection: A Father is the most important influence on the life of his son.  He teaches his son to be a man of integrity, who is honest with himself and honest with others. “Above all…, the father teaches the son that manliness and prayerfulness go together. Being a man means being a man of prayer. Being a true man means being in conversation with the God whom Jesus calls ‘Father.’” If we are to be good fathers, we must turn to God the Father. All fatherhood begins with Him and in the end “everything else will turn out to be unimportant and inessential except for this: father, child, love.” The world needs this fatherhood. By bringing the world the strength and compassion of fatherhood, we bring the world a little closer to God – to the Father who is, as John Paul II wrote, “at the bottom of everything that is.” –George Weigel

b.      Saints:

                                                              i.      St. Joseph: “He was the protector of our Lady’s good name and in that character of necessity, the confidant of heaven’s secrets, and he was the foster father of Jesus, charged with the guidance and support of the holy family, and responsible in some sense for the education of him who, though devine, loved to call himself , “the son of man.” It was Joseph’s trade that Jesus learned, it was his manner of speech that the boy will have imitated.” Upon hearing the troubling news that his future wife was with child, Joseph put his trust in God and God rewarded him by bestowing on him the gifts necessary to raise the Son of God and to be a perfect example for all faithful husbands. Though Joseph himself felt unworthy, he carried out his vocation with complete fidelity.

                                                            ii.      St. Thomas More: Saint Thomas More was a man with high stature, power, money and a loving family. He was also a man of great faith and of high moral principles. When given the choice to live a lie and stay safe in his job or tell the truth and possibly lose everything, Thomas chose to hold fast to his faith and told the truth. He would not allow Henry VIII to divorce his wife and start his own church and because of that he was jailed and lost everything, including his life. This decision to tell the truth in the face of adversity becomes an example to all fathers and husbands in the importance of staying true to the faith and passing on that faith to your family.

                                                          iii.      St. Ambrose: Tonight we honor an outstanding teacher of the faith who had the courage of an apostle. Tonight we honor Saint Ambrose who every day offered the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for his people and devoted himself entirely to the service of his flock. Like any loving father, Saint Ambrose made himself available to any person who wished to see him or speak with him. He devoted his life to teaching and preaching the truths of the Faith to his adopted sons and daughters. Saint Ambrose is the patron saint of learning.

c.       Saint Joseph, pray for us. St. Thomas More, pray for us.  St. Ambrose, pray for us. For this decade of the rosary let us ask Mary, our Blessed Mother, to aid us in attaining the gifts of guidance and integrity.

3.       At this station we reflect on the role of Daughters

a.       Reflection: A Daughter is a bride of Christ and a bride of the Church. She is kind, compassionate and yet strong and secure in her faith.  A true Catholic daughter is one who knows from the example of her parents that she is loved as a child of God.  She is an example to all who meet her of deep personal faith and of purity which can only be given by God. She protects that purity and takes pride in it, knowing that by living as God desires she is a light of hope to a world that is falling quickly into darkness.  It is with this wisdom that she leads her fellow peers down the right path that God has chosen and which leads to a life of true happiness and joy.

b.      Saints:

                                                              i.      St. Maria Goretti: In the words of Pope Pius XII, Maria Goretti’s story is well known “how this young girl had to face a bitter struggle with no way to defend herself… With splendid courage she surrendered herself to God and His grace and so gave her life to protect her virginity…From Maria’s story carefree children and young people with their zest for life can learn not to be led astray by attractive pleasures which are not only ephemeral and empty but also sinful. Instead they can fix their sights on achieving Christian moral perfection, however difficult and hazardous that course may prove. With determination and God’s help all of us can attain that goal by persistent effort and prayer.” St. Maria Goretti is the patron saint of daughters.

                                                            ii.      St. Agnes:  In the words of Saint Ambrose “Tonight we honor a virgin; let us imitate her purity. Tonight we honor a martyr; let us offer ourselves in sacrifice. Tonight we honor Saint Agnes, who is said to have suffered martyrdom at the age of twelve. The cruelty that did not spare her youth shows all the more clearly the power of faith in finding one so young to bear it witness. St. Agnes is a special patroness of bodily purity.

                                                          iii.      St. Catherine of Alexandria: At the young age of 18 Catherine, too, accepted boldly a martyr’s crown. After spending many hours in studies and learning the Christian faith, Catherine rebuked her emperor for failing to believe in Christianity.  When the emperor could not answer her arguments, he called on 50 of the greatest philosophers of the region to rebuke her arguments.  They were all converted followed by more than 200 others.  By learning her faith, staying true to her faith and proclaiming her faith, Catherine spread the kingdom of God before her untimely death.  St. Catherine of Alexandria became the patroness of philosophers.

c.       Saint Maria Goretti, pray for us. St. Agnes, pray for us. St. Catherine of Alexandria, pray for us. For this decade of the rosary let us ask Mary, our Blessed Mother, to aid us in attaining the gifts of Purity and Wisdom.

4.       At this station we reflect on the role of Sons

a.       Reflection: Where would this world be without young men? Humble men who allow themselves to be lead by their fathers and by their Heavenly Father.  To be a son means to be open to instruction, to be willing to learn and yet to be willing to make mistakes in a world that expects perfection.  Sons of today must be real men, not men of chauvinism or selfishness, but men of honor, who know their identities as Children of God and who want nothing more than to be at the foot of their Heavenly Father, learning that to be one with Him means to live as His only son, Our Lord, Jesus Christ, who took up his cross, sacrificed his entire self and saved the ones he loved.  Today’s son must be a man of prayer and of faith, a faith that enables the young man to be lead down the path that God has chosen.  In this he must be courageous. By giving away control of his life and sacrificing all that he desires, the young man makes a choice to live not according to this world, but according to the next. It is this choice which leads the young man, and all those who are willing to accept his way of life, to a life that is completely satisfying.

b.      Saints:

                                                              i.      St. Francis of Assisi: A rich young man in a small town who spent much of his young adult life wanting to be noticed, St. Francis of Assisi was well known for his wanton waste of money and his lack of interest in his father’s business or in formal learning.  However, soon he was to be known only as a beggar.  Stripped of all pride and lacking any familial claim on earth, St. Francis lived his life in complete recognition that he was a son of God alone and that his Heavenly Father would provide him with all he needed to survive.  With great faith and trust in the Lord, St. Francis allowed himself to be lead in any direction that God saw fit though never allowing himself to be proud of what he accomplished. He was a great preacher and speaker, he healed the sick and suffering, he attracted followers, he even had power of the animals of the earth and yet, he struggled with earthly and physical temptations. What an example to us of the strength that one positive response to the will of God can have in our lives! St. Francis was an imperfect human to the end of his life and yet, because of his great faith, his great courage, and his great humility, he was willing to do all that was humanly possible to follow God and to do His will at all times.

                                                            ii.      St. George: In the words of Saint Peter Damian, “Saint George was a man who abandoned one army for another: he gave up the rank of tribune to enlist as a soldier for Christ. Eager to encounter the enemy, he first stripped away his worldly wealth by giving all he had to the poor. Then, free and unencumbered, bearing the shield of faith, he plunged into the thick of the battle, an ardent soldier for Christ.” At a young age, as a wealthy Roman soldier, Saint George denied all his worldly possessions and stood firm in his new-found Christian faith against the persecutions of his emperor.  In so doing, Saint George became an example to all that we must “strive for the reward of heavenly glory…so that we will not be swayed from our path, though the world seduce us with its smiles or try to terrify us with naked threats of its trials and tribulations.” Saint George is the patron saint of boy scouts and soldiers.

                                                          iii.      St. Timothy: The great pupil and one of the travel companions of St. Paul’s, Saint Timothy was filled with the zeal of the faith at a young age and willingly dropped everything to go on a journey which had no certain destination.  For Saint Timothy was charged with taking on the challenges of St. Paul to “let no one have contempt for your youth, but set an example for those who believe, in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity….Attend to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in both tasks, for by doing so you will save both yourself and those who listen to you.” Saint Timothy is an example to all of us in living boldly the faith which is handed down to us.  He did not shy away when times became difficult and he courageously took leadership of a community in which he was one of the youngest members.  In the end he received the martyr’s crown though he was a Bishop at the time of his death.

c.       Saint Francis of Assisi, pray for us. St. George, pray for us. St. Timothy, pray for us. For this decade of the rosary let us ask Mary, our Blessed Mother, to aid us in attaining the gifts of courage and faith.

5.       For this last station, we do not have any reflections on the saints, instead, we will begin with a time for silent prayer and reflection.  Take this opportunity to think about ways in which you can help your family to become closer and to be more like the Holy Family.  How can you do more to show your love to your family?  How can you do more to show your trust and patience with your family?  How can you do more to increase the faith of the people in your family?  Think about all the lives of the saints that we have reflected on tonight and the lessons they provide us in how to be true Catholic children of God.  When you are ready, please take a piece of paper and write down a prayer or an intention for your family that you can take home and share with your family or that you can pray daily for your family.