July Devotion: The Precious Blood

Like the Sacred Wounds of Jesus, His Precious Blood deserves special honor because of its close relation to the Sacred Passion. That honor was given to it from the beginning by the Apostles who praised its redeeming power. (Rom. 5:9 "we are justified by His blood"; Heb. 13:12 "and so Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people by His blood, suffered outside the gate"; 1 John 1:7 "and the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin.")

The Church has always held devotion to the Precious Blood in high esteem. We continue to recognize and publicly acknowledge the profound indebtedness of the whole human race to Christ, Priest and Victim.

· Sanctifies us. The same blood that justifies by taking away sin, continues to work within us. Its action gives us the grace to continue on the path toward the Kingdom of God. It assists us in achieving our new nature, leading us onward in subduing sin and in following the commands of God.

"I adore You, O Precious Blood of Jesus, flower of creation, fruit of virginity, ineffable instrument of the Holy Spirit, and I rejoice at the thought that You came from the drop of virginal blood on which eternal Love impressed its movement; You were assumed by the Word and deified in His person. I am overcome with emotion when I think of Your passing from the Blessed Virgin's heart into the heart of the Word, and, being vivified by the breath of the Divinity, becoming adorable because You became the Blood of God." (St. Albert the Great)

At their recent meeting, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops had continuous Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament for "healing and peace." They encouraged parishes and communities to have ongoing Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. In these dark months of woundedness, pain and violence we need to turn to the Precious Blood of Jesus in the Eucharist, for healing, peace, and light.

"What power we have in the Precious Blood of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist! He is there to protect us, to be our refuge and our redemption. (In Exodus 12, God told Moses to have His chosen people mark their door posts with the blood of an unblemished lamb, during the first Passover. Those who did this were spared when the Angel of the death passed by). This is why Archbishop Sheen said that we must call down the Blood of the Lamb, Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament. For, he warned, when we stop calling down the Blood of the Lamb, we start calling down the blood of each other." (From our book Bread of Life)

"In the tumultuous events of our time, it is important to look to the Eucharist: it must be at the heart of the life of priests and consecrated people; the light and strength of spouses in putting into practice their commitment to fidelity, chastity and the apostolate; the ideal in education and in training children, adolescents and young people; the comfort and support of those who are troubled, of the sick and all who are weeping in the Gethsemane of life." (Pope John Paul II)

"The only time our Lord asked the Apostles for anything was the night when He went into His agony. But as often in the history of the church since that time, evil was awake, but the disciples were asleep. That is why there came out of His anguished and lonely Heart a sigh: 'Could you not watch one hour with Me?'" (Mt 26:40). Not for an hour of activity did he plead, but for an hour of friendship (Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen).

St. Maria Goretti, Patroness of Youth & Children of Mary, Feast-July 6 St. Maria of Italy (1890-1902), couldn't wait to make her First Communion. She wanted to receive Jesus in the Holy Eucharist so that she could become more beautiful and pure like Him; she wanted Him to live in her, close to her heart. After she received Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament for the first time, she stayed in Church for a long time after Mass to talk to Him. Maria's family lived with and worked for a farmer. His son Alessandro kept trying to make Maria sin against purity. One day, when everyone else was working, Alessandro grabbed Maria and tried to make her sin. Maria kept crying out for him to stop, and each time she did, he stabbed her. Courageously, Maria resisted him and was stabbed fourteen times. St. Maria died the next day.

"Look at Maria Goretti.... Like her, be capable of defending your purity of heart and body. Be committed to the struggle against evil and sin. Always esteem and love, purity and virginity." (Pope John Paul II, 1990)

O my God, help those priests who are faithful to remain faithful; to those who are falling, stretch forth Your Divine Hand that they may grasp it as their support. In the great ocean of Your mercy, lift those poor unfortunate ones who have fallen, that being engulfed therein they may receive the grace to return to Your Great Loving Heart. Amen. Precious Blood of Jesus protect them!

The Eucharist is the fruit of our Lords Passion. Jesus gave up His Body on the cross so that He may give you His Body in the Holy Eucharist. Jesus poured out His very last drop of Blood on the cross so that He may fill you with His Divine Love each time that you receive Him in Holy Communion and visit Him in Eucharistic Adoration!

"The Eucharist, in the Mass and outside of the Mass, is the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, and is therefore deserving of the worship that is given to the living God, and to Him alone" (Pope John Paul II, September 29, 1979, Phoenix Park, Ireland)

"The bread and wine, fruit of human hands, transformed through the power of the Holy Spirit into the body and blood of Christ, become a pledge of the 'new heaven and new earth,' announced by the Church in her daily mission." "In Christ, whom we adore present in the mystery of the Eucharist, the father uttered his final word with regard to humanity and human history." "To live the Eucharist, it is necessary, as well, to spend much time in adoration in front of the Blessed Sacrament, something which I myself experience every day drawing from it strength, consolation and assistance." "How could the Church fulfill her vocation without cultivating a constant relationship with the Eucharist, without nourishing herself with this food which sanctifies, without founding her missionary activity on this indispensable support?" "To evangelize the world there is need of apostles who are 'experts' in the celebration, adoration and contemplation of the Eucharist" (Pope John Paul II, World Mission Message 2004).

"The Precious Blood belongs in an especial manner to men. Much more, therefore, does God invite them to come to its heavenly baths, and receive therein, not only the cleansing of their souls, but the power of a new and amazing life. Every doctrine in theology is a call to the Precious Blood. Every ceremony in the Church tells of it . . . . Every supernatural act is a growth of it. Everything that is holy on earth is either a leaf, bud, blossom or fruit of the Blood of Jesus. To its fountains God calls the sinner, that he may be lightened of his burdens. There is no remission of him in anything else. Only there is his lost sonship to be found. The saints are no less called by God to these invigorating streams. It is out of the Precious Blood that men draw martyrdoms, vocations, celebacies, austerities, heroic charities, and all the magnificent graces of high sanctity. The secret nourishment of prayer is from those fountains" (Father Faber, The Precious Blood).

Our Lady of Mt. Carmel appeared to St. Simon Stock in Aylesford, England with the gift and message of the scapular, promising salvation to all who wear this sign of her protection. "I entrust this new initiative [union with Jesus in the Eucharist] to the Virgin Mary, 'Eucharistic woman' (see encyclical 'Ecclesia de Eucharistia,' Nos. 53-58). May she, who in the Year of the Rosary helped us with her look and her heart to contemplate Christ (see 'Rosarium Virginis Mariae,' Nos. 10-17), in the Year of the Eucharist make every community grow in faith and love toward the mystery of the Body and Blood of the Lord" (Pope John Paul II, Corpus Christi, June 2004).

"Is not this gazing upon the Eucharistic Saviour a magnificent profession of our faith in the Divinity of Christ, such as was made by the incredulous Thomas? When St. Thomas said, 'My Lord and my God!' we may be sure he did not keep his eyes cast down, but looked with open and sincere gaze into the eyes of his Master" (Fr. Lukas Etlin, O.S.B.).

Bl. Pier said to youth, "Feed on this Bread of Angels and from it you will gain the strength to fight your inner battle . . . against passion and all adversities, because Jesus Christ has promised to those who feed on the Holy Eucharist eternal life and the graces necessary to obtain it. When you are totally consumed by this Eucharistic fire, then you will be able more consciously to thank God who has called you to become part of that multitude, and you will enjoy the peace that those who are happy in accordance with this world have never experienced, because true happiness does not consist in the pleasures of the world or in earthly things, but in peace of conscience, which we only have if we are pure in heart and mind."

Giorgio (1901-1925), of Turin, Italy, was born into a wealthy and influential family. He was a rugged athlete, who loved mountain climbing. Pier Giorgio served in many Catholic organizations; he especially promoted Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and devotion to Our Lady--both publicly and among friends. He ministered to the needy, and was a great defender of chastity. Pier Giorgio was often found praying his Rosary before the Blessed Sacrament, even in the middle of the night. Called by Pope John Paul II "the man of the eight beatitudes," Pier Giorgio lived a life of heroic virtue. Inspired and strengthened by daily participation in Mass, Communion, Adoration and praying the Rosary, he spent his short life in service of the needy, poor and sick.

Lily of the Eucharist and Lily of the Mohawks. Born in Auriesville, NY, Bl. Kateri awoke early every morning to journey through the woods to the Chapel to visit and receive Jesus in the Holy Eucharist. She waited outside, even in the bitter cold of winter, until the chapel opened. A consecrated virgin, Bl. Kateri prayed, "I offer my soul to Christ the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament." She devoted her life to prayer, penance and the care of the sick and elderly. Her litany reads: "Kateri, who loved Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, pray for us."

Known as the "Seraphic Doctor," St. Bonaventure--a Franciscan--wrote: "Lord Jesus Christ, pierce my soul with your love so that I may always long for you alone, who are the bread of angels and the fulfillment of the soul's deepest desires. May my heart always hunger for you, so that my soul may be filled with the sweetness of your presence."

"St. Joachim and St. Anne were poor. They belonged to the Levitical family, and lived on the tithes of the Temple. However, Mary was born with a splendor far surpassing all the riches of the daughters of the world . . . She was enriched with God's choicest gifts. But on the day of her birth, she was already rich in her own right; she had already acquired treasures of merit during the nine months of silent, uninterrupted adoration in her mother's womb" (St. Peter Julian Eymard). Sts. Joachim and Anne, pray for us!