Blessed Alessandrina Da Costa (1904-1955)

This story is from the booklet, Adoration, Reparation, Spiritual Motherhood for Priests. An inspiring story of spiritual motherhood in the vocation of the single life:

A story from the life of Alexandrina da Costa, beatified on 25 April 2004, reveals the transforming power and visible effects of the sacrifice made by a sick and forgotten girl.

In 1941, Alexandrina wrote to her spiritual director, Fr. Mariano Pinho, telling him that Jesus told her,

"My daughter, a priest living in Lisbon is close to being lost forever; he offends me terribly. Call your spiritual director and ask his permission that I may have you suffer in a special way for this soul."

Blessed Alessandrina's spiritual director, Fr Mariano Pinho SJ

Once Alexandrina had received permission from her spiritual director, she suffered greatly. She felt the severity of the priest's errors, how he wanted to know nothing about God and was close to self-damnation. She even heard the priest's full name. Poor Alexandrina experienced the hellish state of this priest's soul and prayed urgently,

"Not to hell, no! I offer myself as a sacrifice for him, as long as you want."

Alexandrina in her sick bed

Fr Pinho inquired of the Cardinal of Lisbon whether one of the priests of his diocese was of particular concern. The Cardinal openly confirmed that he was, in fact, very worried about one of his priests, and when he mentioned the name of the priest, it was the same one that Jesus had spoken to Alexandrina.

Some months later, a friend of Fr. Pinho, Fr. David Novais, recounted to him an unusual incident. Fr. David had just held a retreat in Fatima where attended a modest gentleman whose exemplary behaviour made him pleasantly attractive to all the participants.

On the last night of the retreat, this man suddenly had a heart attack. He asked to see a priest, to whom he confessed and received Holy Communion. Shortly thereafter he died, fully reconciled with God. It turned out that this man was actually a priest - the very priest for whom Alexandrina had suffered so greatly.

To read more about the life of Blessed Alexandrina, there is a Tan publication written by Francis Johnston:

Alexandrina: The Agony and the Glory

The Wife, Mother and Mystic of Mexico: Venerable Conchita Cabrera de Armida

The wife, mother and mystic of Mexico.

To celebrate the end of this awesome Year of the Priest, I wanted to share with you the amazing life story of Venerable Conchita Cabrera de Armida. She was one of the most amazing mystics of our time; seeming simple and tangible because of her normal life as a daughter, wife, mother, widow, grandmother, friend and companion. Yet in the spiritual reality of her life she lived in a juxtaposition of earthly normality and in an enigmatic union with God. Her children were to say of their mother that they were unaware of anything supernatural in thier her life except that she was the "best mother in the world".
What Blessed Anna-Maria Taigi was for Italy in the 18th/19th century Venerable Conchita was for Mexico in the 19th/20th century both as wives, mothers, and mystic. She wrote more than any other mystics of the Church. In all she did for Christ Crucified, she did in hiddenness during her period of being a wife, homemaker, serving her husband and family. I will try to paint, and all, but incomplete picture of her here; please discover this remarkable inspiration spiritual mother for yourself, she is a model to us all.
Concepcion Cabrera was born in San Luis Potosi the seventh of twelve children. Her mother was very ill after her birth, so Conchita was taken from her mother to a farm a distance away to be feed by a wet nurse. (Notice this compares to another great spiritual mother patron, St Therese, at the beginning of her life).
She was brought up in a family where her father, the head of the home, led the family spiritually with the rosary being said daily. She loved piano and horse riding and was given many responsibilities in the home from a young age. She was attracted to prayer from an early age and after reading about the lives of the saints commenced doing mortifications and sacrifices imagining how she could imitate the holy people who inspired her.

A young lovely Conchita

She grew up quickly and was often mistaken as being older than she was. This brought many young men visiting in the hope of courtship. She met her future husband Pancho at a dance, which she attended under obedience, she was very young, only thirteen. Her parents recognized she was much too young for any marital commitment so after a year they agreed to become engaged. It was a long and very pure engagement lasting nine years. During this period Pancho was a sheer gentleman, they shared prayers and religious poems together. She continued to socialize but only to be close to Pancho - she never forgot about God, for she belonged to Him first.

Panco and Conchita's wedding day.

Conchita said to Our Lord, "Lord, I feel so unable to love You, so I want to get married. Give me many children so they will love You better than I." They married on November 8th 1884. She only asked Pancho for two things: to allow her to go to Holy Communion everyday and to never be jealous. Pancho kept both these promises and support his wife in all her religious devotions and commitments.

I quote now from: CONCHITA - A Mother's Spiritual Diary:

For understanding Conchita.... A brief statement in her Diary reveals to us her state of soul as a young married woman: "Upon seeing, despite my husband's great goodness, marriage did not correspond to what I regarded as life's fullness, instinctively my heart drew closer and closer to God, seeking in Him what was wanting in it. The inner life of my soul had grown in spite of all the joys of the earth". In the very bosom of the greatest joys of love, she feels the limitations and the ephemeral nature of all human love.

Their first child was Francisco born on September 28, 1885.

Francisco (1885-1982)

Then came Carlos who was born on March 28, 1887. He died of typhoid fever at the age of six. Conchita tells us, “His death was heartbreaking for me, and I felt such pain as I had never felt before.”

Manuel her third child, was born in January 23, 1889. He became a Jesuit priest, while living in Spain he wrote to his mother about his decision to become a priest. She wrote back to him, she gave him this advice

“Give yourself to the Lord with all your heart, and do not hold anything back! Forget about creatures and forget especially about yourself! I cannot imagine someone consecrated to God who is not a saint. One cannot give only half of oneself to God. Be generous with him!”

Manuel (1889-1955) -
Ordained a Priest in the Society of Jesus on July 31, 1922 in

Barcelona.

Maria de la Concepción, (Concha) born on September 29, 1890, was their first daughter. At six months she got seriously ill and they young couple prepared for the worst, she recovered. She got terrible ill once again in the year of her first Holy Communion contracting typhoid fever. For 40 days and nights she clung to life but God had other plans as he wanted this beautiful pure flower for Himself . He dictated to Conchita;
"Concha was an angel, extremely pure, filled with hidden qualities and virtues. Modesty was her dominant note. How many virtues I saw her practice in the bosom of the family and in the intimacy of the home! She was a jewel, a pearl, a precious 'shell' a lily... At fifteen she made a vow of virginity, and at seventeen and a half she entered religion... A pure jewel not made for this world... The Lord chose her for Himself “She entered the convent of the Sisters of the Cross of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on October 23, 1916.

Maria de la Concepción (1890-1925)

Conchita and Pancho had five other children: Ignacio, Pablo, Salvador, Pedro, and Guadalupe.
While she was sewing one day she suddenly heard a voice that said to her, “Pedrito is in the pool in the garden.” She ran to him but it was too late. Had drowned in the garden pool; he was only six.

Ignacio1893 - 1979

Pablo 1895 - 1913

Salvador 1896 - 1975

Guadalupe (Lupe) 1898 - 1980

Conchita loved her husband and family but she had a burning desire of love toward Our Lord. She asked permission to mark herself with a monogram of Christ and had the initials J.H.S cut into her chest (Jesus Salvator Hominun – Jesus, Saviour of Men). After this she had a supernatural force which threw her to the ground and from within she burned with the flames of love for Christ. Vehemently and zealously I asked the Lord for the salvation of souls! Jesus Saviour of souls, save them, save them!
She was transformed and the Spirituality of the Cross was born. Subsequently she began to understand more deeply the imitation of Christ and the joy of suffering. In a vision she saw the Holy Spirit as a cross with a dove, a flaming heart encircled by thorns with tiny crosses fastened to it. This image became the symbol of her spiritual works which she founded, the “Works of the Cross” . She now had a mission outside of her family life yet never neglecting her duties to the state of her life as wife and mother. She considered these duties sacred and carried them out perfectly.

The image Jesus revealed to her for the “Works of the Cross”

The Apostolate of the Cross is an organization whose members unite their sufferings with the sufferings of Christ in order to save souls. The Lord revealed to her an order of contemplative nuns dedicated to this life and a congregation of men that would share this message of the cross for the salvation of souls, to the whole world. This is also shared with the lay man and woman in the Love Crucified Communities who seek to live the spirituality of Venerable Conchita as victim souls to do Gods will for the glory of the Father.

The Lord revealed Himself to her as Victim, Priest and Host. Her entire spiritual doctrine was marked be a priestly character. Our Lord sorrowfully revealed to her the lack of fervour of some priests. He told her," You are destined for the salvation of souls, most especially souls of priests. I want you to be My Host and have the intention of offering yourself with Me on all the patens on earth. I want you transformed in me by suffering, and by the practice of all the virtues, to raise heavenward this cry of your soul in union with me; ‘This is My Body, This is my blood." This was the essence of her Works of the Cross.

"This Cross will chase away the devil, spread warmth and life, cure souls and bodies, and make many miracles" - The Promise of Jesus to Ven. Concepción Cabrera de Armida.

Panco with some of the children

She knew on the night of her husband death that the Lord was asking her to sacrifice her husband, she accepted this within her soul but her present earthly being rejected and refused it. It was like a sword piercing her soul without consolation. Her beloved Pancho died a holy death on September 1901, she was by his side with her four older children, at the time her eldest was only 16. Our Lady was her source of strength, asking her to help in the upbringing of her young family. She suffered terribly the loss of her husband. She meet a priest soon afterward Pancho's death who gave her spiritual consolation and would help her develop and found the "Works of the Cross" – Fr Felix Rougier de Jesus. They would give counsel and advice to one another until the end of their lives.

Fr Felix de Jesus Rougier.

At 44 Conchita was inspired by God to rise up a group of spiritual elite to be consecrated to God in the service of the Church, called the “Chain of Love". This was the central grace of her life.

The Mexican Bishops learned of the Apostolate of the Cross and the desire for a foundation of priests; “The Priest of the Cross.” In 1913 Conchita was requested by the Congregation for Religious to send her writings to Rome which contained the secrets of her soul and her spiritual life. She had a private interview with Pope St Pius X and he gave his blessing and approval to the new congregation of priests with the new name of the Missionaries of the Holy Spirit.

Pope St Pius X

In the 1920’s Mexico was undergoing a political crisis and the Church was being heavily persecuted. Conchita prayed fervently for her country’s Church. She prayed without ceasing for priests and bishops and bravely hid them in her home. On March 3rd 1937 she died a quiet and holy death from bronchial pneumonia and other illnesses.

References:

Modern Saints Their Lives and Faces, Book Two by Ann Ball.
Conchita A Mother’s Spiritual Diary. Edited by Marie-Michel Philipon

***

“MOTHER, TEACH ME HOW TO BE A PRIEST!”

 This is a beautiful article adapted from the booklet - Adoration, Reparation, Spiritual Motherhood for Priests. It has a different perspective from the top posting; it illustrates Conchita as a mother, a spiritual mother to her son Manuel:

Father Manuel

Jesus prepared her to live a life of spiritual motherhood for priests. In the future, she will be of great importance for the universal Church.

Jesus once explained to Conchita,

“There are souls, who through ordination receive a priestly anointing. However, there are ... also priestly souls who do not have the dignity or the ordination of a priest, yet have a priestly mission. They offer themselves united to me… these souls help the Church in a very powerful spiritual way. … You will be the mother of a great number of spiritual children, yet they will cost your heart the death of a thousand martyrs.

“Bring yourself as an offering for the priests. Unite your offering with my offering, to obtain graces for them.” … “I want to come again into this world. … in my priests. I want to renew the world by revealing myself through the priests. I want to give my Church a powerful impulse in which I will pour out the Holy Spirit over my priests like a new Pentecost.

“The Church and the world need a new Pentecost, a priestly Pentecost, an interior Pentecost.”

As a young girl, Conchita once prayed before the Blessed Sacrament, “Lord, I feel so incapable of loving you; therefore, I want to marry. Give me many children so that they can love you more than I.”

Conchita as a very beautiful young lady.

She had a very happy marriage, and gave birth to nine children—two girls and seven boys, each of whom she consecrated to Our Lady, “I give them entirely to you as your children. You know that I am not capable of raising them. I understand too little of what it means to be a mother. But you...you know it.” She endured the death of four of her children, each dying a holy death.

Naturally, Conchita’s spiritual motherhood was very apparent in one of her sons who became a priest. She wrote about him, “Manuel was born in the same hour that Fr. José Camacho died. Upon hearing the news, I prayed to God that my son could replace him at the altar. … When little Manuel began to talk, we prayed together for the great grace of a vocation to the priesthood. … On the day of his First Holy Communion and on all the major solemnities, he renewed this prayer. … At the age of 17, he joined the Society of Jesus.”

In 1914, she met Manuel in Spain for the last time, because he never returned to Mexico. He wrote in a letter to her, “My dear little mother, you have shown me the way. Fortunately, I have heard from your lips since my earliest years the challenging and saving teaching of the Cross. Now I want to put it into practice.” His mother felt the pain of separation, “I took your letter to the tabernacle and told the Lord that I accept this sacrifice with my whole soul. The next day I was carrying your letter close to my heart when I received Holy Communion and, in this way, renewed my total offering to the Lord.”

“MOTHER, TEACH ME HOW TO BE A PRIEST!”

On 23 July 1922, one week before his ordination to the priesthood, the 33-year-old Manuel asked Conchita in a letter,
“Mother, teach me how to be a priest! Tell me about the immeasurable joy of being able to celebrate Holy Mass. I put everything back into your hands, just as when you held me to your chest as a very small child, teaching me the beautiful names of Jesus and Mary and introducing me to this mystery. I really feel like an infant asking for your light, your prayer and your sacrifice. ... As soon as I am a priest, I will send you my blessing, and then I will receive yours on my knees.”

On 31 July 1922, as Manuel was being ordained to the priesthood in Barcelona, Conchita woke up in the middle of the night so that she could participate spiritually in his ordination. She was overcome by the awareness, “I am the mother of a priest! … I can only cry and give thanks! I invite all of heaven to give thanks in my place because I am incapable of doing it, I who am so wretched.” Ten years later, she wrote to her son, “I cannot imagine a priest who is not Jesus, even less so in the Society of Jesus. I pray that your transformation into Christ, through celebrating Holy Mass, may help you to become Jesus day and night.” (17 May 1932) “What would we do without the Cross? Life would be unbearable without pain; it unites, sanctifies, purifies and attains grace.” (10 June 1932)Fr. Manuel died a holy death in 1955 at the age of 66.

The Lord enlightened Conchita regarding her apostolate, “I will entrust to you a different martyrdom: you will suffer what the priests undertake against me. You will experience and offer up their infidelity and wretchedness.” This spiritual motherhood for the sanctification of priests and the Church consumed her completely at the age of 74.

Prayer That a Child May Be a Priest or Religious

Blessed mother, Mary, the greatest joy and honour of a parent is to train their child, by word and example, to dedicate their entire life to loving your Son, Jesus. All of us are called to this love by whatever vocation we have. In the providence of God, I have been called to love God as a parent, and with your help and intercession, my child has grown to know and love God. I now pray that my child might have a vocation to serve God in a special way by entering into His holy service.

Freely do I give my child (mention name here) to God, for God freely gave my child to me. And in His all-pervading love for us both, we will be reunited in heaven. Let my child see the true values of living in holy and constant communion with your Divine Son. Encourage in the heart of my child a willingness to bear with any burden in order to love God more faithfully, and to love everyone in the world for God's sake.

Please make my child worthy of a call from God to a special and total dedication to God's family here on earth. I ask this of you, holy mother, only because of my deep love for your Son. Help me always to be a good example in my home, so that my child can learn how God's love has been ever with us.

Amen

LITANY FOR PRIESTS:

written by Venerable Concepción Cabrera de Armida, (spiritual mother of priests), September 18, 1921.

For our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, R. Lord, give him your Heart of the Good Shepherd.

For the successors of the Apostles, R. Lord, give them fatherly concern for their priests.

For your Bishops chosen by the Holy Spirit, R. Lord, keep them close to your sheep.

For your Pastors, R. Lord, teach them to serve rather than to seek to be served.

For confessors and spiritual directors, R. Lord, make them docile instruments of your Spirit.

For those who announce Your Word, R. Lord, let them communicate your Spirit and Life.

For those who help the lay apostolate, R. Lord, encourage them to give witness.

For those who work with the youth, R. Lord, may they commit the youth to you.

For those who work among the poor, R. Lord, make them see and serve you in them.

For those who care for the sick, R. May they teach them the value of suffering, Lord.

For poor priests, R. Help them, Lord.

For sick priests, R. Heal them, Lord.

For elderly priests, R. Give them joyful hope, Lord.

For the sad and afflicted, R. Console them, Lord.

For anxious and troubled priests, R. Give them your peace, Lord.

For the ridiculed and persecuted, R. Defend their cause, Lord.

For lukewarm priests, R. Inflame them, Lord.

For the discouraged, R. Give them courage, Lord.

For those who aspire to the priesthood, R. Give them perseverance, Lord.

To all priests, R. Give them fidelity to you and your Church, Lord.

To all priests, R. Give them obedience and love for the Holy Father, Lord.

To all priests, R. Let them live in communion with their Bishop, Lord.

That all priests, R. Be one as you, Lord, and the Father are One.

That all priests, R. May promote the justice with which you, Lord, are just.

That all priests, R. Collaborate in the unity of the Presbyterate, Lord.

That all priests, filled with your presence, R. Live joyfully in celibacy, Lord.

To all priests, R. Grant them the fullness of your Spirit, Lord, and transform them into yourself.

In a special way, I pray for those priests through whom I have received your graces. I pray for the priest who baptized me and for those who have absolved me of my sins, reconciling me with you and with your Church. I pray for those priests in whose Masses I have participated and who have given me your Body as nourishment. I pray for those priests who have shared your Word with me, and for those who have helped me and led me to you.

Amen.

Hedwig Kronsteiner, bringing forth 8 religious vocations

Photo from: Married Saints and Blesseds: Throughout the Centuries.

You may remember our posting a while back on the life of Eliza Vaughan - her story is in the compilation of stories from the Adoration, Reparation and Spiritual Motherhood booklet. She was an inspiring example of a mother of a large family who prayed daily for vocations and God rewarded her with six of her eight boys becoming priests and four of her five girls taking the veil.

I wanted to share a similar story of a family that was being raised with great sanctity a hundred years ago - the Kronsteiner family. Once again it is a story of a mother of a very large family and yet like Eliza Vaughan, Mother Kronsteiner made the time for an hour's prayer and Mass every day. From this Austrian family there were eight religious vocations from eleven children. To me, I see the direct fruits of daily Mass/adoration/mental prayer of a mother, planting within their own children the grace of a vocation to the religious life.

The Kronsteiner story comes from the book, Married Saints and Blesseds: Through the Centuries. (I highly recommend this book.) Hedwig and Ernst Kronsteiner were both holy parents but I want to focus on Hedwig and her spiritual life. One of their priest sons went on to write a book “Eine Metture und elf Kinder” (A Mother and her 11 children) it is in it’s fifth edition but unfortunately it is not in English.

Both Hedwig and Ernst came from anti-clerical, liberal families but despite this they both came to a deep realization of God and His goodness before they entered marriage. Hedwig impresses me deeply, she lived for God and her family, it never altered, she lived this until her last day on earth. Mental prayer was a fundamental part of her life and the fruits born from this all through her life are very evident. I will quote from the book:

“During the years of marriage that they spent together, the mother took the lead in religious matters, deliberately bringing her husband and children along with her into her world of faith and prayer. She led a life of prayer that was extraordinarily deep. Her prayer life followed a fixed order of an almost monastic sort; she not only said her daily prayers, as was her duty, but, despite her many chores, she recited her Rosary, spent an hour in meditation, and attended Holy Mass each and every day. Moreover, Mother Kronstiner knew very well how to turn the entire day, with its toils and worries, its work and its cares on behalf of a large family, into a prayer through a “good intention”, which she formulated as follows: “You have to do everything for the love of God; anything else is worth nothing!”

I think her words above reflect her generous time in mental prayer each day, understanding mental prayer to be conversing with God in love. The grace from her "conversation with God" flowed over to the rest of her 23hours in the day – “everything for the love of God, anything else is worth nothing!” The lifetime fruit of this mental prayer was eleven children, eight who were called to the religious life. Isn’t that astounding?

I’ll continue to quote again: “This mother raised her children with astonishing wisdom and generous freedom, in keeping, nonetheless, with the twofold principle: “The children don’t belong to me, they belong to God!”, and “Anything rather than a moral sin!”

Here are her eleven children:

Anna – Sister Cecilia of the Sisters of Saint Elizabeth, organist & choir director
Agnes – Sister Theresita of the Carmelite Monastery in Linz, cantor & organist
Hedwig – Sister Lucillia in the Missionary Congregation of the Holy Ghost Sisters.
Ernst – master clockmaker and director of a church choir.
Franz – Lay Brother in the Congregation of the Steyler Missionaries (working in Chile & Argentina)
Berthold – married, first a clockmaker then a policeman
Joseph – A priest in the diocese of Linz, a choirmaster and highly esteemed composer
Otto – married, a clockmaster as well as mayor for 15years of Losenstein.
Aloisia – Sister Elfriede of the Holy Ghost Sisters in Stockerau, organist
Hermann – priest of the diocese of Linz, professor of a music academy and composer.
Rudolf – he had entered the Benedictine Abbey in Seckau to become a monk but WW2 prevented him pursuing this vocation, missing in war.

And how did this faithful mother die? Her last words once again are a testimony to her faithfulness to mental prayer, as I quote for the last time:

“Hedwig Knonsteiner, got up early, at 4:00am, on April 19, 1940, as usual, and had her “conversation with God” in her customary one-hour morning meditation. At 7:00 am she took her missal to attend Mass, as usual, in the parish church in Losenstein and received Holy Communion, unaware that it was her Viaticum. (food for the journey) She spent the day as “Grandmother” in the company of her son Otto and his wife, Justina, and watching her little grandson Otto.

Around 8:00 pm she went with her husband – as she did every evening – into her bedroom to the family photo to bless her children and to pray for each of them. Then the husband and wife, as was their custom, each made the sign of the cross on the other’s forehead and prayed the prayer of consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. After this, Frau Kronsteiner went again to the kitchen to make some final preparations. While there she had a fainting spell. After a time, her husband found her unconscious. They brought her to bed, called the doctor and the priest; the latter administered the Anointing of the Sick. At midnight, the courageous woman died in the peace of Christ, after managing to write down a sentence as a sort of testament: “Grant (O God) that I may love Thee always, and do with me what Thou wilt!”

Hedwig Kronsteiner, please pray for spiritual mothers, pray for vocations!

Eliza Vaughan

It is a fact that vocations to the priesthood must be prayed for; Jesus speaks about it himself in the Gospel:

“The harvest is abundant, but the labourers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out labourers for his harvest” (Mt. 9:37-38).

Eliza Vaughan, an English family mother, is a particularly encouraging example of a woman with a priestly spirit who prayed very much for vocations.

The Courtfield "Our Lady of Vocations" Chapel

The mother of six priests and four religious sisters, her prayer was bountifully heard. Mother Vaughan died in 1853 and was buried in the grounds of her beloved family property, Courtfield.

Today, Courtfield is a retreat center for different groups in the Welsh diocese of Cardiff. In consideration of Eliza’s holy life, the family chapel was consecrated as the shrine of “Our Lady of Vocations” by the bishop in 1954 and confirmed as such in the year 2000.

Let us give our children to God

Eliza came from a strong Protestant family, that of Rolls-Royce. Yet even during her childhood education in France, she was deeply impressed by the exemplary efforts the Catholic Church made for the poor. After she married Colonel John Francis Vaughan in the summer of 1830, Eliza converted to the Catholic Faith, despite the objection of her relatives. During the time of the Catholic persecution in England under Queen Elisabeth I (1558-1603), the Vaughan’s ancestors preferred imprisonment and expropriation to being unfaithful to their beliefs.

An old drawing of Courtfield.

Courtfield as it stands today.

Courtfield, the ancestral family home, became a place of refuge for priests during the decades of terror in England, a place where the Holy Mass was often celebrated secretly. Nearly three centuries had now passed, but the Catholic beliefs of the family had not changed. Eliza was someone who converted with all her heart, so much so, that in her religious enthusiasm, she even proposed to her husband that they offer all their children back to God.

The bell tower of Our Lady of Vocations Chapel.

This remarkable woman made a habit of praying for an hour each day before the Blessed Sacrament in the house chapel at Courtfield. She prayed to God for a large family and for many religious vocations among her children. And her prayers were heard! She gave life to 14 children and died shortly after the birth of the last child, John, in 1853.

Fr Bernard Vaughan ~ a Jesuit priest who travelled the world extensively, preaching. Here is his biography.

Of the 13 children that lived, six of her eight boys became priests: two priests in religious orders, one diocesan priest, a bishop, an archbishop and a cardinal. From the five daughters, four became nuns in religious orders.

Cardinal Herbert Alfred Vaughan, see below for more about this holy man.

What a blessing for the family and what an impact on all of England! The Vaughan children enjoyed a pleasant childhood because their virtuous mother knew how to educate them in a very natural way by uniting spiritual and religious obligationds with amusement and cheerfulness.

Herbert Alfred Vaughan ~ Cardinal and Archbishop of Westminster. Here is his biography.

Cardinal Vaughan's tomb.

Thanks to their mother, prayer and daily Mass in the house chapel were just as much a part of everyday life as music, athletics, amateur theatre, horse riding and playing.

It was never boring for the children when their mother told them stories from the lives of the saints, who little by little became their dearest friends. Mother Vaughan happily let her children accompany her on visits to the sick and needy of the area.

On such occasions, they learned how to be generous, to make sacrifices and to give away their savings or their toys. Shortly after the birth of her 14th child, Eliza died.

Roger William Bede Vaughan ~ This saintly Archbishop left a strong and holy legacy in our country of Australia, as the Archbishop of Sydney and responsible for the construction of St Mary's Cathedral. Here is his biography.

Two months after her death, Colonel Vaughan wrote in a letter that he was convinced divine providence brought Eliza to him.

“I thanked the Lord in adoration today that I could give back to him my dearly beloved wife. I poured out my heart to him, full of thankfulness that, as an example and a guide, he gave me Eliza with whom I am still now bound by an inseparable, spiritual bond. What wonderful consolation and grace she brought me! I still see her as I always saw her before the Blessed Sacrament: her inner purity and extraordinary human kindness which her beautiful face reflected during prayer.”

MY PRIESTHOOD AND A STRANGER

This is one of the most inspiring stories from the booklet, Adoration, Reparation, Spiritual Motherhood for Priests. A miraculous story of spiritual motherhood:

We all have the prayers and sacrifices of others to thank for what we are and for our vocations. In the case of the famous Bishop Ketteler, one of the leading figures of the German episcopate in the 19th century and one of the prominent founders of Catholic sociology, he owed his gratitude to a simple nun, the lowest and poorest lay sister in the convent.

The year was 1869 and a German diocesan bishop was sitting together with his guest, Bishop Ketteler from Mainz. In the course of their conversation, the diocesan bishop came to the topic of his guest’s extremely blessed apostolate. Yet, Bishop Ketteler explained to his host,

"I owe thanks for everything that I have accomplished with God’s help, to the prayer and sacrifice of someone I do not even know. I can only say that I know somebody has offered his or her whole life to our loving God for me, and I have this sacrifice to thank that I even became a priest."

He continued, "Originally, I wasn’t planning on becoming a priest. I had already finished my law degree and thought only about finding an important place in the world to begin acquiring honour, prestige and wealth. An extraordinary experience held me back and directed my life down a different path.

"One evening I was alone in my room, considering my future plans of fame and fortune, when something happened which I cannot explain. Was I awake or asleep? Did I really see it or was it just a dream?

One thing I do know, it brought about a change in my life. I saw Jesus very clearly and distinctly standing over me in a radiant cloud, showing me his Sacred Heart. A nun was kneeling before him, her hands raised up in prayer. From his mouth, I heard the words, ‘She prays unremittingly for you!’

"I distinctly saw the appearance of the sister, and her traits made such an impressionon me that she has remained in my memory to this day. She seemed to be quite an ordinary lay sister. Her clothing was very poor and rough. Her hands were red and calloused from hard work.

Whatever it was, a dream or not, it was extraordinary. It shook me to the depths of my being so that from that moment on, I decided to consecrate myself to God in the service of the priesthood.

"I withdrew to a monastery for a retreat, and I talked about everything with my confessor. Then, at the age of 30, I began studying theology. You know the rest of the story. So, if you think that I have done something admirable, now you know who really deserves the credit—a religious sister who prayed for me, maybe without even knowing who I was.

I am convinced, I was prayed for and I will continue to be prayed for in secret and that without these prayers, I could never have reached the goal that God has destined for me."

"Do you have any idea of the whereabouts or the identity of who has prayed for you?" asked the diocesan bishop.

"No, I can only ask God each day that, while she is still on earth, he bless and repay her a thousand-fold for what she has done for me."

THE SISTER IN THE BARN

The next day, Bishop Ketteler visited a convent of sisters in a nearby city, and he celebrated Holy Mass in their chapel. He was distributing Holy Communion to the last row of sisters when one of them suddenly caught his eye. His face grew pale. He stood there, motionless… finally regaining his composure, he gave Holy Communion to the sister kneeling there in recollection, unaware of the bishop’s hesitation. He then proceeded to finish the liturgy.

The bishop who had invited him the previous day came and joined him at the convent for breakfast. When they had finished, Bishop Ketteler asked the Mother Superior to present to him all the sisters in the house. Before long, she had gathered all the sisters together and both bishops went to meet them. Bishop Ketteler greeted them all but it was apparent that he did not find what he was looking for.

He quietly asked the Mother Superior, "Are all the sisters really here?" She looked over the group of sisters and then said, "Your Excellency, I called them all, but, in fact, one of them is not here."

"Why didn’t she come?"

"She works in the stall," answered the superior, "and in such a commendable way that, in her enthusiasm, she sometimes forgets other things."

"I would like to see that sister," requested the Bishop.

A little while later, the sister who had been summoned stepped into the room. Again Bishop Ketteler turned pale, and after a few words to all the sisters, he asked if he could be alone with the sister who had just come in.

"Do you know me?" he asked her.

"I have never seen Your Excellency before."

"Have you ever prayed for me or offered up a good deed for me?" he wanted to know.

"I do not recall that I have ever heard of Your Excellency."

The bishop was silent for a few moments and then he asked, "Do you have a particular devotion that you like?"

"The devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus," was the response.

"You have, it seems, the most difficult task in the convent," he continued.

"Oh no, Your Excellency" the sister countered,"but I cannot lie, it is unpleasant for me."

"And what do you do when you have such temptations against your work?"

"For things that cost me greatly, I grew accustomed to facing them with joy and enthusiasm out of love for God, and then I offer them up for one soul on earth. To whom God chooses to be gracious as a result, I have left completely up to him and I do not want to know. I also offer up my time of Eucharistic adoration every evening from 8 to 9 for this intention."

"Where did you get the idea to offer upall your merits for someone totally unknown to you?"

"I learned it while I was still out in the world," she replied. "At school our teacher, the parish priest, taught us how we can pray and offer our merits for our relatives.

Besides that, he said that we should pray much for those who are in danger of being lost. Since only God knows who really needs prayer, it is best to put your merits at the disposition of the Sacred Heart of Jesus trusting in his wisdom and omnipotence. That is what I have done,"

She concluded, "and I always believed that God would find the right soul."

DAY OF BIRTH AND DAY OF CONVERSION

"How old are you?" Ketteler asked.

"Thirty-three, Your Excellency," she answered.

The bishop paused a moment. Then he asked her, "When were you born?"

The sister stated her day of birth. The bishop gasped; her birthday was the day of his conversion! Back then he saw her exactly as she was before him now.

"And have you any idea whether your prayers and sacrifices have been successful?" he asked her further.

"No, Your Excellency."

"Don’t you want to know?"

"Our dear God knows when something good happens, and that is enough," was the simple answer.

The bishop was shaken. "So continue this work in the name of the Lord," he said. The sister knelt down immediately at his feet and asked for his blessing. The bishop solemnly raised his hands and said with great emotion, "With the power entrusted to me as a bishop, I bless your soul, I bless your hands and their work, I bless your prayers and sacrifices, your self-renunciation and your obedience. I bless especially your final hour and ask God to assist you with all his consolation."

"Amen," the sister answered calmly, then stood up and left.

A TEACHING FOR LIFE

The bishop, profoundly moved, stepped over to the window in order to recompose himself. Some time later, he said good-bye to the Mother Superior and returned to the apartment of his bishop friend.

He confided to him, "Now I found the one I have to thank for my vocation. It is the lowest and poorest lay sister of that convent. I cannot thank God enough for his mercy because this sister has prayed for me for almost 20 years. On the day she first saw the light of the world, God worked my conversion accepting in advance her future prayers and works.

"What a lesson and a reminder for me! Should I become tempted to vanity by a certain amount of success or by my good works, then I can affirm in truth: You have the prayer and sacrifice of a poor maid in a convent stall to thank. And when a small and lowly task appears of little value to me, then I will also remember the fact: what this maid does in humble obedience to God, making a sacrifice by overcoming herself, is so valuable before the Lord Our God that her merits have given rise to a bishop for the Church."

Quotes from Venerable 'Mama Margaret' Bosco

Venerable Mama Margaret is the beloved and holy mother of St John Bosco. The sanctity and holiness of St John Bosco was first nutured by a mother's prayer, a mother's example. In our Spritual Motherhood header we quote St Pope Pius X:

"Every vocation to the priesthood comes from the heart of God, but it goes through the heart of a mother!

Here below are some profound quotes from Mama Margaret to her son:

"John , you are now a priest; you will be saying Mass; so from henceforth you will be closer to Jesus. Remember that to begin to celebrate Mass means also to begin to suffer. You will not realise this immediately, but little by little you will see that what your mother has told you is the truth."

"When you came into the world I consecrated you to the Blessed Virgin Mary. When you began your studies, I inculcated this devotion in you. Now I want you to belong totally to her. Make your companions those who are devoted to Mary; and if you reach ordination, never cease to inculcate and spread this devotion."

"I have nothing to say regarding your vocation, except that you should do what God inspires you to do. Do not be concerned on my behalf. You owe me nothing. Never forget that I was born in poor circumstances, have lived in poverty all my life; and I am happy to die poor; and I say this seriously to you: if you every become wealthy, I shall never set foot on your doorstep."

"Dear John, you have taken the priestly habit and I am as happy as any mother could be. But never forget that it is not the habit that matters, but the effort to progress in virtue. If you ever come to have doubts about your vocation, be sure you never dishonour that priestly garb. Put it aside immediately. I would rather a poor peasant son than a priest who neglected his sacred calling".

We hope to share more of this beautiful example of spiritual motherhood in the year to come.

Zelie and Louis Martin, parents of St Therese

In the meantime here is a prayer that you may want to pop in your prayer book, for Mama Margaret's beatification ~ like St Therese's parents, Louis and Zelie Martin, it is wonderful to see now the efforts for canonization of parents who raised up tremendous saints in the Church. As Fr Pascal Chavez Villanueva said a few years back, "Let us give Don Bosco this present: making Mama Margaret known."

PRAYER FOR VENERABLE MAMA MARGARET'S CANONIZATION

God our Father,we thank you for making Mamma Margareta strong and wise woman, a heroic mother and a wise educator. Give us the joy of seeing her raised to the honour of the altar so that all may imitate her way of holiness, lived as daily and humble service of her neighbor. Through her intercession grant us the grace we request with a trusting heart. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

First Sunday Mass for Vocations from Our Own Families.

We would like to encourage all women who are praying for priests through the Spiritual Motherhood for Priests devotion to offer their Holy Communion and Mass on the First Sunday’s of the Month in honour of vocations to the priesthood from our own families.

Today’s technology offers us a unique opportunity to unite our prayers together in a tangible way for vocations. Through the convenience of the internet we can take action through prayer asking Our Lord to listen to this straightforward and simple prayer. One that he heard over one hundred years ago from the faithful mother’s who lived in the remote Italian village of Lu.

Prayer of the Mothers of Lu:

"O God, grant that one of my sons may become a priest! I myself want to live as a good Christian and want to guide my children always to do what is right, so that I may receive the grace, o God, to be allowed to give you a holy priest! Amen."

These women were a particular inspiration to us to start this blog, they offered:

*one visit a month to the Blessed Sacrament

*they united this prayer intention for vocations at Mass on the first Sunday of the month for vocations from their own families.

Their humble simplicity and fidelity to this prayer paid off in a very substantial and fruitful way. Their prayers rose up 323 priests and religious, including one blessed of the Church and an Archbishop.

* For those ladies who do not have any children, praying specifically for young relatives or for vocations from your parish or diocese would be very fitting.

Through the trusting prayer of these mothers and the openness of the other parents, "an atmosphere of deep joy and Christian piety developed in the families, making it much easier for the children to recognize their vocations."

They were not just physical mothers to there children, they were spiritual mothers to there children. They took their stewardship one step further by offering their children back to God not once but over and over, with confidence that He would do something beautiful with them for Himself.

The most generous act we can offer Our Lord is to offer our children back to Him. To be His and His alone. They are the most precious things to us and also the most precious things to Him as
Blessed Philip Rinaldi a son from the village of Lu says, "a faith that made our fathers and our mothers say; The Lord gave us our children, and so if He calls them, we can’t say no.’"

Here we can be a virtual village of Lu and pick up where these holy woman left off, praying that we may do great things as they did from this small village not so long ago.

We look forward to praying with you all."

The Story of a Love - A Beautiful Spiritual Friendship between St Therese and a young struggling Seminarian Maurice Belliere.

St Therese of Liseuix, beautiful flower of Carmel

To celebrate the feast day of St Therese one of our patrons on Spiritual Motherhood for Priests we thought we would share a beautiful relationship of Spiritual Motherhood between St Therese and a seminarian Maurice Belliere. This post is a reflection of the book The Inspiring Letters Between Therese of Lisieux And A Struggling Young Priest. Maurice & Therese – The Story of a Love by Patrick Ahern.

"Maurice & Therese: The Story of a Love"

Their spiritual relationship started about one year prior to Therese entering into eternity. Maurice a second year seminarian from Sommervieu of the dioceses of Bayeux took a leap of faith and wrote to the Carmel asking for someone to pray for him. He was inspired to do this after reading of a man who’d been brought back to God by his mother prayers.

He hoped if a devoted nun could pray and devote herself particularly to the salvation of his soul and help him to be faithful to the vocation God had given him as priest and hopefully a missionary, he would be able to overcome his weaknesses and struggles toward the world.

Fr Maurice Belliere

He had heard of the four sisters at Carmel but had no idea that the first person to receive his letter would be the eldest sister Mother Agnes (Pauline) who chose Therese to become a spiritual sister. She was overjoyed and saw this as fulfilments of her family’s desire to one day have a missionary priest as a son; Maurice filled this void for Therese.

Although she calls herself his spiritual sister, the wisdom in which she advised Maurice was clearly motherly advice with a motherly sense of responsibility for Maurice’s spiritual failures. Some of the struggles he suffered were his lack of suitability to be a missionary, expensive habits of easy living and his attachment to comforts and friends.

Among the failures that Maurice recalls, there was one spiritual blunder he called his biggest blunder of all which was never really exposed. It may have been a personal issue during his one year stint in the military. He thought he would save souls but as he was a weak soul it is speculated that he may have been lead astray or possibly he was afraid of losing his vocation.

St Therese, spiritual mother for priests

Her response was beautiful indeed “I am doing the very best I can to get you the graces you need. These graces will certainly be given you because Our Lord never asks us for sacrifices that are beyond our strength…your lot is truly beautiful since Our Lord chose it for Himself and first put His own lips to the cup which He now holds up to yours. The greatest honour that God can pay to anyone is not to give him much but to ask much from him!”

“Let us work together for the salvation of souls. We have only the one day of this life to save them and thus to give Our Lord some proof of our love. The tomorrow of this day will be eternity, when Jesus will reward you with the hundredfold of those sweet and lawful joys which you are giving up for him”.

He was certain that he was called to be a missionary with the Missionary Society of Paris which was a fast growing band of secular priests who went to mission in third world countries. Here Maurice and Therese shared a desired spiritual direction and apostolate. He eventually joined the White Fathers and went to Africa.

Maurice although corresponding with Therese also communicated with Mother Agnes and Mother Gonzague yet it was Mother Gonzague that really nurtured the relationship between Maurice and Therese.

Mother Agnes ~ Therese's sister, Pauline

Therese understood that her prayers and sufferings she offered were much more useful to him than her letters. Her conviction as a Carmelite was to devote her life to the salvation of souls, through prayer and sacrifice, but especially for priests.

Maurice revived by her reply became “better each time a bit of the holiness lived at Carmel came his way”. Mother Gonzague sent him Therese’s poem “Vivre d’Amour - To Live by Love” his response was ‘One breathes in from it a divine inspiration which makes one pure and strong”. He said he was going to learn it by heart and placed it in his New Testament, a book that never left his side, and this canticle would “accompany him to the end of the world”. He admired her ability to write poetry and tell Jesus her inspired feelings.

Therese didn’t hesitate to take the initiative in their friendship, and her correspondence with Maurice accounted for sixty percent of all the letters she wrote during the last four months of her life.

Through her counsels, sacrifice, prayers and love Maurice developed from an insecure seminarian to a confident young man who had become “joyful like Paul in the midst of trails because he was convinced he was doing God’s will”. A very different Maurice was immerging now than from his first letter. Therese was confident that “there souls were made to understand each other”. As her correspondence to Maurice continued Therese’s darkness of faith increased but her words and soul soared to lofty heights.

Maurice desired still to missionary work and longed for martyrdom. This was a shared desire and attraction for them both and one they shared many a discourse over. Therese realized that “The Lord seems to want to give me only the martyrdom of love, I hope He will allow me through you to gain the other palm which we both desire”

She was able under Mother Gonzague’s direction to send Maurice some of her sixty-two poems - almost all of written were written on request or to celebrate the feast day of one of the sisters in the convent. She writes to Maurice that she was “happy if the good God makes use of my poor verses to do you a little good.” It was clear that her prayers were not only doing Maurice good but deepening in him the same confidence and Love that Therese had.

Maurice and Therese became very close, like sister and brother. Under permission of Mother Gonzague, she started to call him “My dear little brother”. She compared their love to St Margaret Mary and her confessor Father Claude de la Colombiere who staunchly defended Margaret Mary when Church authorities regarded her visions of the Sacred Heart of Jesus with suspicion.

St Margaret Mary

St Therese was always concerned that Maurice not look at her as a great soul but a very little and very imperfect soul; “a poor flower without distinction”. She wanted Maurice to understand this. She didn’t want him to idealise her as he did in the beginning. Her being a Carmelite made a great impression on him. He needed to understand this, as it was at the heart of the spiritual discovery she had made – her Little Way.

In her childhood she dreamt of fighting on battlefields as the exploits of St Joan of Arc delighted her. She understood that her mission was not to crown a mortal king but to make the King of Heaven loved, to conquer for Him the kingdom of hearts. She desired to proclaim the Gospel in all four corners of the earth. She wanted to be a missionary, a priest, a Doctor of the Church and a martyr but she was called to other exploits and more glorious conquests in the solitude of Carmel.

St Therese dressed as St Joan of Arc

Therese was imparting her Little Way on Maurice. She hastened to do this as by June 1897 her health was rapidly declining and she wanted to finish Maurice’s education. As death was calling her she wrote, “I hope that someday Jesus will make you walk in the same way as me”.

Her most profound intuition was that the very nature of God’s Love is to be merciful. "He does not love us because we deserve to be loved but because we need to be loved." It became the foundation of her Little Way. Through this Little Way she was boosting Maurice’s morale and trying to encourage all the good in him. She agreed with his spiritual director that “God was calling him to be a saint and that he could not be one by halves”.

Fr Maurice as a White Father

Maurice responded with such openness in his next letter, “Do you realize that you open up new horizons to me? Especially in your last letter I find insights on the mercy of Jesus, on the familiarity which He encourages, and on that simplicity in the soul’s relationships with the great God, which until now had hardly occurred to me – doubtless because I was never introduced to them with the same simplicity and persuasion of which your heart is full”.

Maurice discovered that Therese is dying and was devastated. h
He knew she was sick but not so close to heaven as this and had no hope for a cure, “Oh my poor little sister, what a blow for my poor heart! It was so unprepared. Don’t ask of it that joy which you feel at the approach of bliss. It remains attached to its heavy cross…You are about to go away and my heart will be alone once more. Teach me to Love him the way you do”

She responded, “When I shall come into port I shall teach you …of my soul, how you must sail the stormy sea of the world, with abandon and love of a child who knows that his Father cherishes him, and would never think of leaving him alone in the hour of danger.”

Close to her death she reveals to Maurice that Mother Agnes is her sister “twice over” she asks him to take on the attitude of her sister regarding her impending death “that instead of losing me you will find me and that I will never leave you again.” How beautiful and strengthening for him and for us, when we think of the saints in this way, that we have them closer to us from heaven than whilst they were here on earth.

St Therese on her deathbed

Maurice received a picture of St Therese, “I saw you for the first time it was as if I were recognizing you”. He had reconciled himself to her “lightening up the corners of heaven” and that her features (that he now knew from this photograph) lit up and would be “smiling at his very soul and brimming with life.” Maurice had come to terms with the fact that his Spiritual Mother was departing, he took solace in the fact that she would never leave him and that this was only temporary.

He was concerned that when Therese arrived in heaven that Jesus would reveal all his wretchedness to Therese. He said; "if this should happen as soon as he started to speak of it put your hand over his mouth and come to my defence, for without you I don’t have a leg to stand on".

St Therese had particular devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus

By this stage they had become friends deep and true. He was reassured “that she was his angel appointed by God to watch over him, and she had been commanded to stand by him”.

Maurice had developed from a young man desperate for prayer to one offering her his matured and confident prayers. He had grown more solid in his faith, mindful of himself and could reach out to others with maturity and sincere charity – all this due to his openness to the spiritual formation of Therese.

Maurice’s last letter arrived two days after Therese died. He had accomplished his dream of becoming a missionary. It is believed that he set off around the time Therese died. He writes, “I owe you this immense honour of being a missionary of Jesus. You have succeeded completely for it is you who have done this all.” Therese died as he was crossing from Marseilles to Algiers.

White Fathers today

Maurice arrived in Africa an optimistic seminarian and left a broken priest 8 years later. He had joined the White Fathers and even though he travelled much, tried to start new missions and endured the hard conditions, his sensitive nature returned. He was led by some other priests who were much more resilient to the environment of Africa and had no sensitivity to Maurice’s lack of stamina.

He had a close call with Black Water Fever which he thought he would die from but survived after being treated rapidly with medication and rest. He tried his best but left Africa and the White Fathers overwhelmed and discouraged. Maurice was broken by the missions. He slipped badly both physically and psychologically. Slowly he was going out of his mind.

He was found lost and wandering and was brought to a institution at Caen for the insane run by the Bon Sauveur Sisters where he was cared for with dignity until his death on the 14 July 1907, five weeks before his thirty-third birthday. This was the last similarity between him and St Therese as her father also died with a degree of humiliation.

This book by the end had me in tears. It is a profoundly touching book and I would recommend it to all lovers and devotees of St Therese - actually to everyone.
There is a link to where to buy this book in the left side bar.

TO LIVE OF LOVE

Poem of St. Therese of Lisieux

The eve His life of love drew near its end,
Thus Jesus spoke: "Whoever loveth Me,
And keeps My word as Mine own faithful friend,
My Father, then and I his guests will be;
Within his heart will make Our dwelling above.
Our palace home, true type of heaven above.
There, filled with peace, We will that he shall rest,
With us, in love.


Incarnate Word! Thou Word of God alone!
To live of love, 'tis to abide with Thee.
Thou knowest I love Thee, Jesus Christ, my Own!
Thy Spirit's fire of love enkindleth me.
By loving Thee, I draw the Father here
Down to my heart, to stay with me always.
Blest Trinity! Thou art my prisoner dear,
Of love, to-day.


To live of love, 'tis by Thy life to live,
O glorious King, my chosen, sole Delight!
Hid in the Host, how often Thou dost give
Thyself to those who seek Thy radiant light.
Then hid shall be my life, unmarked, unknown,
That I may have Thee heart to heart with me;
For loving souls desire to be alone,
With love, and Thee!


To live of love, 'tis not to fix one's tent
On Tabor's height and there with Thee remain.
'Tis to climb Calvary with strength nigh spent,
And count Thy heavy cross our truest gain.
In heaven, my life a life of joy shall be,
The heavy cross shall then be gone for aye.
Here upon earth, in suffering with Thee,
Love! let me stay.


To live of love, 'tis without stint to give,
An never count the cost, nor ask reward;
So, counting not the cost, I long to live
And show my dauntless love for Thee, dear Lord!
O Heart Divine, o'erflowing with tenderness,
How swift I run, who all to Thee has given!
Naught but Thy love I need, my life to bless.
That love is heaven!


To live of love, it is to know no fear;
No memory of past faults can I recall;
No imprint of my sins remaineth here;
The fire of Love divine effaces all.
O sacred flames! O furnace of delight!
I sing my safe sweet happiness to prove.
In these mild fires I dwell by day, by night.
I live of love!


To live of love, 'tis in my heart to guard
A mighty treasure in a fragile vase.
Weak, weak, am I, O well beloved Lord!
Nor have I yet an angel's perfect grace.
But, if I fall each hour that hurries by,
Thou com'st to me from Thy bright home above,
And, raising me, dost give me strength to cry:
I live of love!


To live of love it is to sail afar
And bring both peace and joy where'er I be.
0 Pilot blest! love is my guiding star;
In every soul I meet, Thyself I see.
Safe sail I on, through wind or rain or ice;
Love urges me, love conquers every gale.
High on my mast behold is my device:
"By love I sail!"


To live of love, it is when Jesus sleeps
To sleep near Him, though stormy waves beat nigh.
Deem not I shall awake Him! On these deeps
Peace reigns, like that the Blessed know on high.
To Hope, the voyage seems one little day;
Faith's hand shall soon the veil between remove;
'Tis Charity that swells my sail always.
I live of love!


To live of love, 0 Master dearest, best!
It is to beg Thee light Thy holiest fires
Within the soul of each anointed priest,
Till he shall feel the Seraphim's desires;
It is to beg Thee guard Thy Church, 0 Christ!
For this I plead with Thee by night, by day;
And give myself, in sacrifice unpriced,
With love always!


To live of love, it is to dry Thy tears,
To seek for pardon for each sinful soul,
To strive to save all men from doubts and fears,
And bring them home to Thy benign control.
Comes to my ear sin's wild and blasphemous roar;
So, to efface each day, that burning shame,
I cry: " 0 Jesus Christ! I Thee adore.
I love Thy Name!"


To live of love, 'tis Mary's part to share,
To bathe with tears and odorous perfume
Thy holy feet, to wipe them with my hair,
To kiss them; then still loftier lot assume,
To rise, and by Thy side to take my place,
And pour my ointments on Thy holy head.
But with no balsams I embalm Thy Face!
'Tis love, instead!


"To live of love, what foolishness she sings!"
So cries the world. "Renounce such idle joy!
Waste not thy perfumes on such trivial things.
In useful arts thy talents now employ!"
To love Thee, Jesus! Ah, this loss is gain;
For all my perfumes no reward seek I.
Quitting the world, I sing in death's sweet pain:
Of love I die!


To die of love, O martyrdom most blest!
For this I long, this is my heart's desire;
My exile ends; I soon will be at rest.
Ye Cherubim, lend, lend to me your lyre!
O dart of Seraphim, O flame of love,
Consume me wholly; hear my ardent cry!
Jesu, make real my dream! Come Holy Dove!
Of love I die!


To die of love, behold my life's long hope!
God is my one exceeding great reward.
He of my wishes forms the end and scope;
Him only do I seek; my dearest Lord.
With passionate love for Him my heart is riven.
O may He quickly come! He draweth nigh!
Behold my destiny, behold my heaven,
OF LOVE TO DIE.