Direction

Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

ImageKristin's Crosses
[public domain]

Our Lady of Guadalupe

Prayer to Our Lady of Guadalupe
by St. John Paul II

O Virgin of Guadalupe,
Mother of the Americas,
grant to our homes the grace of loving
and respecting life in its beginnings,
with the same love with which
you conceived in your womb
the life of the Son of God.
Blessed Virgin Mary,
Mother of Fair Love,
protect our families so that
they may always be united
and bless the upbringing of our children.

Our hope, look upon us with pity,
Teach us to go continually to Jesus,
and if we fall
help us to rise again and return to Him
through the confession of our faults
and our sins in the Sacrament of penance,
which gives peace to the soul.

We beg you to grant us a great love
of all the holy Sacraments,
which are, as it were,
the signs that your Son left us on earth.
Thus, Most Holy Mother,
with the peace of God in our consciences,
with our hearts free from evil and hatred,
we will be able to bring to all others
true joy and peace,
which come to us from your Son,
our Lord Jesus Christ,
who with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
lives and reigns for ever and ever.
Amen.

The First Sunday of Advent

ImageKristin's Crosses

First Sunday of Advent - KristinsCrosses.com

“Advent is the season of the presence and expectation of the eternal. For this very reason, it is in a particular way a period of joy …joy in the fact that God made himself a Child. This joy, invisibly present within us, encourages us to journey on with confidence.”

Pope Benedict XVI

Prayers for Lighting the Advent Wreath Candles
From A Prayer Book of Catholic Devotions

First Week

All powerful God, Increase our strength of will for doing good that Christ may find an eager welcome at his coming and call us to his side in the kingdom of heaven, where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit one God, forever and ever.
Amen.

Feast of Saint Andrew

ImageKristin's Crosses
[public domain]

Fresco in Holy Trinity Parish Church in Schwarzenberg, by Angelica Kauffmann, 1757

Prayer to Saint Andrew, the Apostle

O Glorious Saint Andrew,
you were the first to recognize
and follow the Lamb of God.
With your friend Saint John, you remained
with Jesus for that first day, for your entire life,
and now throughout eternity.
As you led your brother Saint Peter to Christ
and many others after him,
draw us also to Him.
Teach us to lead others to Christ
Solely out of love for Him
and dedication in His service.
Help us to learn the lesson of the cross
and to carry our daily crosses without complaint
so that they may carry us to Jesus.
Amen.