7 Quick Takes This Week:: Remembering the Souls in Purgatory, showtime, tree, Advent, Thanksgiving

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It's not November any more, but it is always important to pray for the 

Souls in Purgatory.

They need our help.

Guess what's being offered up here.  

I developed tendonitis of my thumb

getting ready for a show starting today.

Yikes!

It hurts, but I know the 

Souls in Purgatory 

suffer so much more,

so with joy  I offer this pain up to Jesus for the 

Souls.

 Use it, Jesus, to help the Souls.

Use it, Jesus, to save souls.

Thank You,
Loving Savior.

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 My article on Catholic365.com has had over 1.4K shares on Facebook.   Praise God that it's reaching so many people!

Here's the link::

Click  HERE

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I don't do many shows a year.

Often times, they are not worth the time invested.

I only do 1-3 selected shows a year.

Most of them are scheduled around this time.

There was only one show that I was able to be in, and it begins today.

I'm featuring these ornaments in the show.

If they don't sell,

they are going to be on my tree! 

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 Even though it's still Advent, our tree is up and lit.  I love our tree!
The ornaments are all new.  I thought we had bought way too many new ones, but it was just enough!

Now, I wait for the birth of our King!

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Yes, it's very non-traditional, 

but this is our Christmas wreath.

It took me about ten minutes,

and
I think it's the best one in the neighborhood.

Remember,

you can offer your joys, too,

for the 

Souls in Purgatory.

They appreciate anything you do for them.

 

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The flowers are finally gone.

What's left of the roses are these beautiful rose hips.

I don't have enough to make 

Rose Hip Jam, but I do love to look at these beautiful seed pods

nestled 

against the snow.

The red and green are 

Christmas colors.

They are brilliant against the snow. 

 --- 7 ---

 Memories of Christmas Past.

Dreams of Christmas Present.

Anticipation of Christmas Future.

God is Good.

Have you thanked Him for all the beauty in this earth?

Praise God!

Thank God!

We are your servants.

Thank You!

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

Even Though It's December and We are no longer thinking about those who have passed before us or about Thanksgiving....

We need to continue to pray for the Souls in Purgatory and

to be a people of gratitude to God.

"For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me."

Matthew 26:11

Whether the poor are the poor of this world or the "poor souls" of the next world,

THEY

WILL

ALWAYS

BE 

WITH 

US,

ALWAYS.

Pray for the Souls in Purgatory daily.

This is an excellent article on how these souls whom we seek to help with our prayers will help us.

There are many testimonies.

CLICK

HERE.

Being a People of Gratitude To God.

Sacred Scripture tells us:

"Rejoice always,  pray without ceasing,  give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18 

"I will bless the Lord at all times;
    his praise shall continually be in my mouth.  

My soul makes its boast in the Lord;
    let the humble hear and be glad. 

 O magnify the Lord with me,
    and let us exalt his name together."

Psalm 34: 1-4

"Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving."

Colossians 4:2 

Prayer and Thanksgiving!

Fasting and Acts of Charity.

 

 

 

When Praying for the Souls Gets Real...

My cousin died, very unexpectedly,
last week.  She made her husband's  lunch.  She called her children, then she went to bed and sleep.  The next morning, her husband was not able to wake her.  She was pronounced dead in spite of heroic efforts of her husband to revive her. 

I received a text at morning Mass regarding her death.  The text came in the middle of Mass, so I shut my phone off without looking at the text.  It wasn't until later that I read the message. 

The name on the text was not familiar to me, but it came off of Facebook.  I checked the sender's page to discover that the sender was my second cousin who had been requested by Facebook to use his actual name, instead of the nickname he had chosen.  (No judgment, just frustration.)

I was sitting at breakfast when I realized that it was my 58 year old first cousin how had died in her sleep.  

I quickly said the St. Gertrude Prayer for my cousin.  She was in decent health at the time of her death.  The coroner signed off saying her death was due to a heart attack.   I also went back to church to schedule some Masses for the repose of her soul.  Is she in Purgatory?  I don't know.  Did she go directly to heaven?  Again, I don't know.  Did she go to hell?  I don't know.  I certainly hope and pray that she didn't, but again, we don't know. 

I am going to assume that my cousin is in Heaven or Purgatory.  If she is in Purgatory, there is nothing she can do for herself.  She must endure the purging of her soul, which will bring her to heaven.  The pains of Purgatory are quite real.  Those who are in Purgatory, while suffering greatly,
rejoice in their sufferings and pray for those who are still on earth.  They know they are holy.  They know they are saved, but they have not achieved perfection and must suffer until they do.

We, on earth, can help the dear Souls.  We can pray for the souls daily, hourly.  We can offer our Masses for them.  We can have Masses said for them.  We can pray the Divine Mercy for them.   All of these offerings to God, relieve the Souls in Purgatory and help them gain heaven.  Right now, I am storming heaven with prayers for my cousin.  If she's not in Purgatory, then the prayers I offer will go to someone else.  If she is in Purgatory, then my prayers will help her. 

I hope she is out of Purgatory soon.  If you can see your way to offer a prayer for her, that would be most appreciated.   We want her to be in heaven soon.

Pray for the Souls in Purgatory

The Roses Are Hanging In There, but what does this have to do with Purgatory?

We've had several hard, killing frosts, and the roses are still blooming.   The basil is dead.  The rosemary is gone.  The Brown Eyed Susans are seeds.  The Milkweed  are just stems and pods.  Yet, the roses are still still blooming. 

Our God is the God of Miracles.  Let us give Him praise!

Even in the midst of a storm, God walks with us, protecting us, and leading us through the storm.

On the coldest day, God sends us His warmth, surrounding us with His Love. 

Like a true Father, Brother, and Guide, He seeks to leads us in His Ways.  When we stray from His Path, and we return, He welcomes us back to His Unending Love, as the father welcomed the prodigal Son. 

God loved us into existence.  He made us in His Image and Likeness.  Our souls will live forever!  We make the choices, but there are consequences for our sins.  If we seek His forgiveness, we are healed in His Unending Love.  (A priest will forgive us our sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.) 
Like the child who has broken a window and must pay for the damage, we are given the gift of Purgatory by God.  If we do not enter heaven upon death, we are not condemned to hell.    Our time in Purgatory expiates our sins. 

Once in Purgatory, we can do nothing for ourselves.  Souls can pray for those left behind, but once in Purgatory, we must rely on the Masses, prayers, and works of charity made by others for our souls.   Yes, there is great suffering in Purgatory, but souls rejoice because they are on their way to heaven.

Like the roses who have escaped the frost, the souls in Purgatory are both poor and holy.  The souls have escaped the condemnation of hell for their sins, so they are holy.  They are not yet purified, but they are holy.  Since their purification is not complete, they are poor for they suffer grievously for their sins.  They do not see God, but they yearn for His presence.  Like roses who have survived the frost, they are protected and saved.  In this they rejoice.  Yet, they burn from within, awaiting the time when their perfection is complete, and they enter heaven to bask in the glory of the beatific vision.

"Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
    let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
 For the Lord is a great God,
    and a great King above all gods."
Psalm 95: 2-3

Walking the Camino - Praying for the Dead

Purgatory.  A gift from God so that we might be with Him for all eternity. 

In this Camino, let us remember all who have died  and seek to relieve their pain, for their sufferings are great, even though they have achieved salvation. 

As we continue to walk this Camino, let us pray daily for the Holy Souls in Purgatory.

(Article 12, Section III, 1030-31 Defines Purgatory as a place of purification  for those who have achieved salvation, but who have not yet achieved the degree of holiness they need to enter heaven.)

Upon death, the soul of the deceased person, which will live eternally, is judged by God.  A soul is  either  sent to heaven, hell, or purgatory.  Souls who are cleansed and united with God, enter heaven.  Souls who have rejected God and have refused to repent of their sins are condemned to hell.  Souls who have died in the state of grace, but who have not had all of their sins expiated, are sent to purgatory. 

After death, a soul is no longer able to help itself.  A soul can pray for others, but it cannot pray for itself.  When a soul enters purgatory for the final purgation, a soul can only hope for the prayers of those left behind to ease their sufferings.  Although joyful in the knowledge that they have been saved and will enter heaven when their time of purgation is over, a soul in purgatory suffers greatly for those sins that have not been expiated. 

Padre Pio said: The souls in Purgatory pray for us, and their prayers are even more effective than ours, because they are accompanied by their suffering.  So, let's pray for them, and let's pray them to pray for us."
Do we know who goes to heaven, hell, or purgatory? 

No, we don’t, unless officially canonized by the Catholic Church, only God knows. 

If we do not know where a soul goes upon death, for whom should we pray?
We should pray for every deceased person whether we knew them or not.

Are there any prayers we should say for the Holy Souls?
There are many ways and prayers to pray for the Holy Souls.  Here are some suggestions.

The St. Gertrude Prayer is said to release 1,000 souls from Purgatory, each time that it is prayed.

Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the masses said throughout the world today, for all the holy souls in purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen.

Another good prayer.

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord; And let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen
What else can we do for the Holy Souls?
We can have Masses offered for the souls of the deceased.

Masses are important for both the living and the dead.


We can pray Rosaries for the deceased.
Padre Pio said: ”The souls in Purgatory repay the prayers that we say for them."

 Aside from prayer, is there anything else we can do for the souls in Purgatory?
We can offer our works of charity and our sufferings for them. 

Increase your prayer time.

Pray for the Holy Souls in Purgatory daily as we walk this Camino Del Rey.