Catholic Saints, who have written on the Spiritual Life, suggest that a "remote preparation" is necessary in order to better understand the Word of God.  This includes being a lover of the Truth as well as the practice the Virtues of Humility, Meekness, and Docility to God the Holy Ghost.  "Proximate preparation" includes two prayers:  1) The Act of Contrition; and, 2) The Veni, Sancte Spiritus.

An Act of Contrition

O my God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, because I love Thee above all things with my whole heart and soul.  I detest all of my sins because it was for them and His Love for me that Jesus Christ, the Second Person of the Most Blessed Trinity, my Lord and my God, suffered, was crucified, and died on the cross.  O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee by my sins, faults, imperfections, negligences and carelessness, Who art all good and deserving of all of my love.

I firmly resolve with the help of Thy Grace, to sin no more, to confess my sins, to do penance, to amend my life, to avoid all of the near occasions of sin, and always give to Thee freely, liberally and generously what is of supererogation and perfection, not only in greater things, but especially in lesser things, so that I may gain beforehand Thy efficacious, superabundant, particular and special Graces and Helps so that I will always be victorious in resisting and overcoming all temptations of the world, the flesh, and the devil and his followers.  Grant me those Graces and Helps needed so that my every thought, word and action may be done solely out of love for Thee, Who art Love.  Amen.

Saint John Chrysostom

It was the custom of Patriarch Saint John Chrysostom [b. Antioch, c. 347 A.D. - d. at Commana in Pontus on Friday, September 14, 407 A.D.], Patriarch of Constantinople [Thursday, February 26, 398 A.D. - Thursday, June 24, 404 A.D.], exiled from his See the 2nd time on Thursday, June 24, 404 A.D., Father and Doctor of the Catholic Church, to properly prepare himself and his Congregation before preaching. He taught that unless God the Holy Ghost prepares the minds and hearts of the Preacher and of the Congregation, the Preacher preaches in vain and the Congregation listens in vain.

Therefore, so as not to waste your time, please pray the Veni, Sancte Spiritus, remembering how one Holy Saint was of the opinion that a Sermon is a Sacramental.

Veni, Sancte Spiritus

Come, O Holy Ghost, fill the hearts of Thy faithful
And kindle in them the fire of Thy love.

V. Send forth Thy Spirit, and they shall be created;
R. And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth.

Let Us Pray

O God, who didst instruct the hearts of Thy faithful by the light of Thy Holy Spirit, grant us in the same Spirit to relish what is right and ever to rejoice in His consolation. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary; pray for us.
Saint Thomas Aquinas, Patron Saint of Catholic Schools, pray for us.

“And they bring to Him one deaf and dumb; and they besought Him that He would lay His hand upon him.” (GOSPEL of today’s Mass [Mark 7:32]).

V  In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Amen.

Faith in Christ caused the people, who were practicing the Virtues of Mercy and of Charity, to bring to Christ a person who was deaf and dumb and, in Faith, to ask Christ to heal this person by merely laying His hand on him.

And, of course, Christ rewarded their Faith by healing this man who was deaf and dumb.  So here is but one example of the concern Christ has for the temporal needs of each of us.  Although the primary work of Christ was the Redemption of mankind from sin and eternal damnation, part of His work also was to be a Teacher as well as a Redeemer.  This He did in various ways.  One way He taught was by example, becoming a role model for each of us and to give all of us good examples to follow, especially the exercise of the Virtues.  Another way He taught was by preaching the Gospel for three years which ended by His unspeakable sufferings and finally His Holy death on the cross to prove His infinite love for each of us by making it possible for each of us to save our immortal souls and to one day to be able to go to Heaven.

Sometimes, because of the cares and worries of just trying to survive every day, some of us tend to forget that by doing these things, Christ has Faith in each and everyone of us that we will take advantage of the wonderful gifts He has given us to help us to save our immortal souls, including the Mass and the Sacraments.

But there are some things that Catholics sometimes tend to take for granted.  Although these things are obviously not on the same level as the Mass and the Sacraments, they still have the power to help those who use them correctly.

What are these things that help us to preserve and deliver us from many evils and obtain for us temporal goods of various kinds?  The Catholic Church calls them “Sacramentals”.

Here are a few examples of Sacramentals:

1) One category of Sacramentals is something most of us would not think of as being a Sacramental, namely Exorcisms;
2) Another category of Sacramentals is the one with which most of you are already familiar, namely various material objects which the Catholic Churches Blesses and Consecrates for Divine Worship and for our own personal pious use through the ministry of her Priests and Prelates, as, for example:

a) Holy Water, which is composed of clean water and a very little amount of salt, both of which are first Exorcized and then Blessed, and then mixed together;
b) Holy Oil - there are different kinds of oil: Liturgical Holy Oil of which a Bishop makes three different kinds to be used Liturgically by Prelates and Priests.  One or more of these Holy Oils are used in administering the Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Orders, and Extreme Unction.  There are also other kinds of Holy Oil which are usually touched to the relic of a Saint; etc.
c) salt;
d) bread;
e) palms;
f) Altars;
g) Chalices;
h) Crucifixes;
i) candles;
j) Rosaries;
k) medals;
l) scapulars;
m) etc.

They are called “Sacramentals” because they resemble the Sacraments in some way although they are essentially different from them.  There are 4 primary differences between the Sacraments and the Sacramentals which differences are great.

1) The Sacraments were instituted by Jesus Christ to give Sanctifying Grace and to operate by the efficacy which He gives them.  But the Sacramentals were instituted by the Catholic Church and produce their effects by the prayers and Blessings of the Catholic Church.

2) The Sacraments have an infallible effect, unless the effect is blocked by some kind of an obstacle.

But the effects of the Sacramentals depend primarily on the pious intention of the person who makes a proper and devout use of them.

3) The Sacraments immediately effect inward sanctification.

But the Sacramentals, by imparting what are called subordinate Graces, only contribute towards sanctification.  Yet the Sacramentals do protect us from temporal evils.

4) The Sacraments are, in general, not only necessary, but also, God commands us to receive them as, for example, the Sacrament of Baptism without which a Soul can never enter Heaven because Original Sin has not be cleansed from the Soul.

But the Sacramentals are only recommended by the Catholic Church as being useful, helpful, and wholesome.

The bottom line is that the Sacramentals deliver and protect our person and material possessions from the injurious influences of Satan.  Christ Himself gave to His Church the power to cast out evil spirits as the Scripture reminds us:

“And He gave them power to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils” (Mark 3:15).

The Catholic Church has always made use of this power.  The means she uses for the casting out of evil spirits are the Sacramentals such as the invocation of the Holy Name of Jesus, the Sign of the Cross, Holy Water, and Exorcisms.  The Medal of Saint Benedict is claimed to have an Exorcism, of sorts, on the reverse side.

But the Sacramentals are also remedies against illnesses, weaknesses and frailties of the body.  They are powerful remedies against epidemics, storms, drought, and floods.

The History of the Church records lots of cases where Sacramentals have helped people.  Saint Martin extinguished a terrible conflagration by making the Sign of the Cross over it.  Saint Benedict Blessed a Chalice that contained poisoned wine with the Sign of the Cross and the Chalice immediately fell into many pieces.  Bishop Saint Nicetas stilled a violent storm at sea by making the Sign of the Cross over it.

In addition, the Sacramentals have banished mental anxiety, fear, frustration and worry, as well as horrible sadness. The Sacramentals have weakened what theologians call the irascible passions of human nature and have also proven themselves helpful in the time of temptations.

While on the subject of temptations, Sacramentals have a much greater power than most Catholics realize regarding cases of temptations which tend to overwhelm a person against one’s will and vehemently allure and entice a person to various sinful acts such as blasphemy, unbelief, despair, impurity, and other vices which the person being attacked normally strongly detests.  The Sacramentals help us not only in overcoming such temptations more easily, but, in some cases, they can also cause them to totally stop, returning the exhausted person to a state of peace.

In addition, Sacramentals procure for us various natural and supernatural goods.  Although the Sacramentals do not give Sanctifying Grace, in some instances they could obtain Actual Graces, especially obtaining the Graces of repentance and conversion for sinners. The Angelic Doctor teaches that sometimes some Sacramentals effect even the remission of venial sins and of their temporal punishments (Saint Thomas Aquinas, O.P., [b. 1225 A.D. in Rocca Secca, Naples, Italy - d. Wednesday, March 7, 1274 A.D. in Fossa Nuova, Italy], Doctor of the Church, Summa Theologica  III, Question 65, Article 1, Reply to Objection 8).

But please DO NOT think that you can deliberately commit lots of  venial sins and then get rid of them by bathing in Holy Water and not having to go to Confession!  NO!  It does not work this way!  A person must always have a firm Faith, confidence in God, use the Sacramentals with the correct intention, be 100% resigned to the Holy Will of God, and make use of Sacramentals with a pure heart, or at least a repentant heart, and make a sincere effort to live a life of Virtue.

Resolutions

For our Resolutions, having Faith in God, let all of us pray for healing from our own personal illnesses, whether Spiritual, physical, mental, emotional, and/or financial, and also for a healing for all of one’s family members.  Remember to expect miracles!  Also, always make a continuous correct use of the Sacramentals, especially those to which you are drawn and like to use, for both Spiritual and temporal help.

“And they bring to Him one deaf and dumb; and they besought Him that He would lay His hand upon him.” (GOSPEL of today’s Mass [Mark 7:32]).

V  In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Amen.

 

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