St. John Neumann 

Catholic Church

O thou, whom no one has ever yet invoked in vain, thou, whose power with Our Lord and Our Lady is so great, that it has been truly said, "In Heaven, Joseph commands rather than supplicates," tender father, intercede for me!

St. Joseph, be my advocate with thy Divine Son, Whose foster-father and faithful protector thou wert here below. Add to all thy glories, that of gaining the despaired of cause that I confide to thee. I believe, yes, I believe thou canst obtain my deliverance from the troubles that overwhelm me, and the desolation in which my soul is plunged.

I have the firm hope that thou wilt neglect nothing in favor of the afflicted who invoke thee. Humbly prostrate at thy feet, dear St. Joseph, I implore thee to have pity on my tears, cover me with the mantle of thy merciful protection and bless me.

Amen.

Novena Prayer to St. Joseph (March 17, 18 and 19) (Never known to fail)

Oh, St. Joseph, whose protection is so great, so strong, so prompt before the throne of God. I place in you all my interests and desires. Oh, St. Joseph, do assist me by your powerful intercession, and obtain for me from your divine Son all spiritual blessings, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. So that, having engaged here below your heavenly power, I may offer my thanksgiving and homage to the most loving of Fathers. Oh, St. Joseph, I never weary of contemplating you, and Jesus asleep in your arms; I dare not approach while He reposes near your heart. Press Him in my name and kiss His fine head for me and ask him to return the kiss when I draw my dying breath. St. Joseph, Patron of departing souls – Pray for me.

We have started our days of fasting, prayer, and alms giving as we live our first Sunday of Lent. This Sunday’s Gospel brings us to Je-sus’ encounter with the devil. It is a very enigmatic passage be-cause it reveals to us that Jesus’ journey into the desert was so that he can be tempted by the devil. Lenten tradition speaks of our own 40 days of the desert during lent. We ourselves do not enter Lent to be tempted by the devil, but it is a reminder of who is present during our time of conversion to return to the Lord with our whole heart. We are entering a time where the Catholic Church offers a season of particular grace to come back to Christ by living fully of the sacraments; most especially the sacrament of reconciliation. Being victorious over temptation and over the devil implies that we run to the fountain of forgiving grace that is in Christ and received in confession. May this Lenten season bring us to a true conversion of heart.

Juan Aguacate

PRIMER DOMINGO DE CUARESMA

Hemos comenzado nuestros días de ayuno, oración y limosna mientras vivimos nuestro primer domingo de Cuaresma. El Evangelio de este domingo nos lleva al encuentro de Jesús con el diablo. Es un pasaje muy enigmático porque nos revela que el camino de Jesús al desierto fue para que el diablo lo tentara. La tradición de la Cuaresma habla de nuestros propios 40 días del desierto durante la Cuaresma. Nosotros mismos no en-tramos en la Cuaresma para ser tentados por el diablo, pero es un recordatorio de quién está presente durante nuestro tiempo de conversión para regresar al Señor con todo nuestro corazón. Estamos entrando en un momento en que la Iglesia Católica ofrece una temporada de gracia especial para volver a Cristo viviendo plenamente de los sacramentos; Más especial-mente el sacramento de la reconciliación. Ser victorioso sobre la tentación y sobre el diablo implica que corramos hacia la fuente de la gracia que está en Cristo y que recibimos en con-fesión. Que esta temporada de Cuaresma nos lleve a una ver-dadera conversión de corazón. 

Juan Aguacate

Juan Aguacate is a parishioner of Saint John Neumann and cohost to the podcast growing in popularity, Whiskey Catholic. It is a podcast for young adults that can found on Spotify and iTunes for IOS users.

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