PRAYERS TO OUR LADY

DAY 1 OF 33 TOTAL CONSECRATION

Begin With The Following Prayers:

Come Holy Ghost fill the hearts of Thy faithful...

Reading-1: Matthew 5:1-19

And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain, and when he was set down, his disciples came unto him. And opening his mouth, he taught them, saying: Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are the meek: for they shall possess the land. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice: for they shall have their fill. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the clean of heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called children of God. Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye when they shall revile you, and persecute you, and speak all that is evil against you, untruly, for my sake: Be glad and rejoice, for your reward is very great in heaven. For so they persecuted the prophets that were before you. You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt lose its savor, wherewith shall it be salted? It is good for nothing any more but to be cast out, and to be trodden on by men. You are the light of the world. A city seated on a mountain cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but upon a candlestick, that it may shine to all that are in the house. So let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. Do not think that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For amen I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot, or one tittle shall not pass of the law, till all be fulfilled. He therefore that shall break one of these least commandments, and shall so teach men, shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. But he that shall do and teach, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

Examine your conscience, pray, practice renouncement of your own will; mortification, purity of heart. This purity is the indispensable condition for contemplating God in heaven, to see Him on earth and to know Him by the light of faith. The first part of the preparation should be employed in casting off the spirit of the world which is contrary to that of Jesus Christ. The spirit of the world consists essentially in the denial of the supreme dominion of God; a denial which is manifested in practice by sin and disobedience; thus it is principally opposed to the spirit of Christ, which is also that of Mary.

It manifests itself by the concupiscence of the flesh, by the concupiscence of the eyes and by the pride of life. By disobedience to God's laws and the abuse of created things. Its works are: sin in all forms, then all else by which the devil leads to sin; works which bring error and darkness to the mind, and seduction and corruption to the will. Its pomps are the splendor and the charms employed by the devil to render sin alluring in persons, places and things.

Meditation to help us reject the spirit of the world and acquire the spirit of Christ.

The Sermon on the Mount is a wonderful summary of Christian Doctrine and is, thus, an excellent indication and reflection of the Spirit of Christ. Yet within it's 3 chapters Matthew 5, 6 and 7 we also see the ugly head of the spirit of the world. appear-either, explicitly, in the condemnations made by Our Lord, or implicitly, as the vices opposed to the virtues that Our Lord extols. He directly attacks pride, covetousness, gluttony, anger, lust, revenge, and hypocrisy. He recommends humility, meekness, compassion, justice, mercy, and purity.

He calls us "the salt of the earth" and "the light of the world", so as to encourage us to enlighten the world and prevent it's corruption. He proposes the revolutionary idea of not only bearing with one's enemies, but He also says that we must turn the other cheek and even pray for them!

He then teaches us how to pray, and how to abandon ourselves to Divine Providence.[...] Let us read them often and reflect upon them.

Reflection:
The kingdom of God is within you, saith the Lord. Turn thee
with all thine heart to the Lord and forsake this miserable
world, and thou shalt find rest unto thy soul. Learn to despise
outward things and to give thyself to things inward, and thou
shalt see the kingdom of God come within thee. For the kingdom
of God is peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, and it is not given to
the wicked. Christ will come to thee, and show thee His
consolation, if thou prepare a worthy mansion for Him within
thee. All His glory and beauty is from within, and there it
pleaseth Him to dwell. He often visiteth the inward man and
holdeth with him sweet discourse, giving him soothing
consolation, much peace, friendship exceeding wonderful.

Go to, faithful soul, prepare thy heart for this bridegroom
that he may vouchsafe to come to thee and dwell within thee, for
so He saith, if any man loveth me he will keep my words: and my
Father will love him, and we will come unto him and make our
abode with him.(2) Give, therefore, place to Christ and refuse
entrance to all others. When thou hast Christ, thou art rich,
and hast sufficient. He shall be thy provider and faithful
watchman in all things, so that thou hast no need to trust in
men, for men soon change and swiftly pass away, but Christ
remaineth for ever and standeth by us firmly even to the end.

Why dost thou cast thine eyes hither and thither, since this
is not the place of thy rest? In heaven ought thy habitation to
be, and all earthly things should be looked upon as it were in
the passing by. All things pass away and thou equally with them.
Look that thou cleave not to them lest thou be taken with them
and perish. Let thy contemplation be on the Most High, and let
thy supplication be directed unto Christ without ceasing. If
thou canst not behold high and heavenly things, rest thou in the
passion of Christ and dwell willingly in His sacred wounds. For
if thou devoutly fly to the wounds of Jesus, and the precious
marks of the nails and the spear, thou shalt find great comfort
in tribulation…

DAY 1 OF 33 TOTAL CONSECRATION

Come Holy Ghost fill the hearts of Thy faithful...

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