SAINT JOSEMARIA ESCRIVÁ DE BALAGUER Juan Larrea Holguín Saint Josemaria Escrivà de Balaguer was born at Barbastro (Spain) at 9-I1902. He was ordained priest at Saragossa the 28-III-1925. The 2-X-1928, he founded by divine inspiration the Opus Dei. The 26-VI-1975 he died suddenly at Roma, after having looked with immense love, by last time, an image of the Virgin, president the work room. At that time the Opus Dei were extended in the five continents and had more than 60.000 members from 80 nationalities, at service of the Church with the same spirit de full union with the Pope and the bishops that lived always saint Josemaria Escrivá. The Holy Father Joan Paul II canonized the founder of Opus Dei at Roma, the 6-X-2002. His liturgical celebration is the 26 de June. The corpse of saint Josemaria lies at the prelatice church of Sancta Maria of Peace, (viale Bruno Buozzi 75, Roma.)
NOVENA to SAINT JOSEMARIA ESCRIVÁ DE BALAGUER Writen by Mons Juan Larrea. (Bishop of Guayaquil. Ecuador) Prayer for all the days Oh, God, that by means of the most holy Verge have conferred to saint Josemaria, priest, innumerable graces, choosing him as the most faithful instrument for founding the Opus Dei, way of sanctify at professional work and in the performance of ordinary Christian duties, do that I also would know to convert every moment and circumstances of my life in occasion of loving You, and serving with joy and simplicity the Church, the roman pontiff and the souls, illuminating the ways of the earth with the brightness of the Faith and Love. Grant me by the intercession of saint Josemaria the favor that I ask (ask).Amen Paternoster, Hail Mary, Glory. ************************************************** The SANTIFY OF WORK FIRST DAY Saint Josemaria taught constantly, with the example and with his word: the great way of sanctify for men and women consists in realizing the own work imitating Jesucrist.
The spirit of the Opus Dei is rested, like on a hinge or fundamental axe, in sanctifying thework. The saint used to teach: the work has to be sanctified, the man has to be sanctified on the work, being sanctified in the work, and sanctify others with the work”. He desired ardently that all Christians imitate Jesus, who had a life of work; first in the years of Nazareth, in the artisan workshop of Joseph, and then after, in the tireless labor of announcing the gospel in the public life, and from the high of the Cross, where He freed His Spirit, after have fulfilled with fullness what the Father had commissioned to make. The work, sanctified with fullness by Jesus, it is till now, for all, a great instrument of sanctifying; In it, we all realize our own vocation, we fulfill the God’s Will, and have the opportunity for practicing all the virtues, of developing the several talents and serve to brothers.
Between his writings. “What always I taught- from forty years ago- is that all honest human work, intellectual or manual, has to be done by the Christian with the greatest possible perfection. With the human perfection (professional competition) and with Christian perfection (with love to the God’s Will and in service of men.) Because so done this human work, because in spite of its humble and insignificant that seemed the task, contribute to ordering Christianly, the temporal realities to manifest its divine condition – and is assumed and integrated in the miraculous WORK of Creation and of the Redemption of world: it is elevated so to the order of the grace, it is sanctified and become a work of God...” (Talks with Mons Escrivá de Balaguer. n.10) PRAYER Concede us, Lord, by the intercession of saint Josemaria, to realize our work according the spirit of Jesucrist, sanctify us in it, and to serve of instruments for the others sanctify fulfilling in all, Your holy Will with the greatest perfection and with your help of your grace. By Jesucrist our Lord. Amen J ACULATORIA “Cor Iesu Sacratissimum et Misericors, dona nobis pacem!”
“¡Most Sacred Heart and Compassionate of Jesus, ¡Give us the peace” ********************************* SANCTIFICATION OF HOME AND THE FAMILY SECOND DAY The apostolate and the teachings of saint Josemaria, was leaded constantly to bettering the situation of the families for they would be vivified with the spirit of Jesucrist and being so, like he used to say, “houses luminous and merry”. From the same way he considered he sanctify of work as a primary duty, equally he appreciated the fulfilling of the family duties as a medium of maxima importance for the union with God. As, in a good part, the God‘s Wish is manifested through the professional and familiars obligations, when are fulfilled all the duties of work and of family, we are fulfilling our vocation of men and women living in the middle of the world. At least from 1928, saint Josemaria predicated the matrimony constitutes a specific vocation to a lot of people. And for them is a real way of sanctity. These teachings belonging to perennial patrimony of the Church, and were reminded, a lot of years after by the Vatican Concili II, giving origin to incomprehension, accusations, and inclusively to a painful persecution; but the saint priest ever affirmed, with absolute conviction; it is not needed go out off the proper place for getting the sanctity, by the contrary, one has to persevere in the fulfilling of the own duties, beginning for the familiar ones. He sofered when comproved the attacs to the família, to the sanctity, to the unity and indissolubility of the matrimony, and for the campaigns agains the life and the dignity of the human love, and urged to his sons and others pesonnes to compensate by these sins and to contrarest these evils making sure of “suffocate the evil with abundance of good”.
Between his writings. “It moves me what said the Apostol qualifing the christian matrimony as “sacramentum magnum”- great sacrament. From here also I deduce that labor of family fathers is most important.
- YouParticipate from creator power of God and by this the human love is saint, noble and good: a joy of the heart towhich the Lordr- in His loving Providence-wants that others with freedom renounce. - Every son that God concedes you is a divine benedictio: ¡Do not fea the sons”! (Forja. n. 691) PRAYER We thank You, Lord, because has sanctifyied the family life, borning and living within the Sacred Family; and because has given us to Christians the sacrament of matrimony, as a royal way of sanctity and source of graces and felicity. Concede us we would know to correspond to so high gifts and to guard with fidelity this treasure. JACULATORIA
“Jesus, Joseph and Mary, protege our families”
**************************************** SANCTIFICATION OF THE WORDL THIRD DAY Our Lord Jesucrist said His follower had to be “Light of word” and “the salt of the earth” expressing with these considerations, the dinamic attitute, active, own for His disciples. To us correspond, effectively, portarthe truth of gospel to all peoples and inform with it the temporal realities. The first Christians fulfilled admirably that mission entrusted by the Lord, and they have gotten revitalize with the faith a pagan wordl, illuminating the culture, the social, politic and economic, artistic, professional structures etc. Aquesta task of reordering the world, from within, being ferment of the mass, salt giving sabor to the culture, light illuminate the most several situations of the men, correspond yo us ara a nosaltres; and saint Josemaria va dedicated all his life inculcar-nos this sense of elevated responsability. The Christians have to continue the
salvational work of Jesucrist, transforming the world in which we live, from the authentic convertion of our hearts. Si cada home actua as a son of God, like imitator of Jesucrist, will bw able for influence with eficace for change the canviar els ambients mor paganizate, en ambients completely humans i christians, where reign the Justice, the carity, the peace, and in definitiva the felicity that God wants for His sons. Actuant cevery one in complet freedom and responsability, guideds all by the great ideals an princips els grans christians ideals and principis, we shall be the constructors of the kingdom of heaven in awordl, contant always with our Father God, who gives the efficace to the works of men. Comportant nos així, amb plena responsabilityt and personal freedom, we do not compromete to the Church, i en canvi ens comprometrem cada un i ens santificaremwith the la grace of God, without going out of our place in the world, like the salt and the light.
From his writings. “I dream and the dream became reality- with a multitud of sons of God, sanctifying in theirs life of normal citizents, comparting the eagerness, excitements and efforts, with other creatures. I need to shaut them this divine trutht: if you keep in the wordl, it is not because God would forget of you, it is not because He had not called you. He has invited you to continue in the activities, in the anxieties of the earth, He had you to know your human vocation, your profession, your qualities, are not far from divine designs, to the contrary, He has them sanctified as most pleasant offering to the Father.” ( Christ is passing by. N.20) Prayer Concede us, Lord, to be Your testimonies in the wordl: and imitating lyour most sanct life, ens esforcem for filling with your light and your truth all the surroundings, assuming every one the own responsability, and to work with the freedom and glory of the sons of God. Amen. JACULATORIA
“Your Wish be done on earth so at in heaven” (Cfr Mt, 6-10)
OUR GROUNDS: WE ARE SONS OF GOD. FOURTH DAY The consideration of being adoptive sons of God fills de Déu, was- for saint Josemaria – the graond of his interior life and of all he taught to everybody that were near him. Efectivelly, the Providence instilled him a deep conviction of God is our father. He had more than a time, the espiritual experience of this truth as the most real and influent in his way of feeling, thinking, and actuate. On the other hand, he corresponded to these excepcional graces with a constant compromise, along all his life for cultivating this this sense of divine filiation. He knew availe of little things: “human industries” or reminders for return a time and other to the contemplation of the sublim and fascinant truth: ¡I am son of God! Equally he insisted to the souls that he conducted that it is needed to try keeping in continuous dialogue with the Lord, with the confidence of a son que actuates constantly under the loving glance of his Father God. From the consideration of his adoptive filiation in Crist, he derived a seren hapiness even in middle of his stern tests and sufferings, a steady determination to imitate to Jesucrist witout messure, and with an incomparable zeal for the glory of the Father.
Between his writings. “It is necessary that we persuade ourselves that God is near of us always- we
live as the Lord would be there far, where the stars are shining, andwe do not considere that also He is always to our side. And He is always as a loving father - to every one of us loves more than all mothers of the world can love their sons, helping them, inspiring them, blessing them and ….. Forgiving them. ¿How many times we had hem fet desarrugar la arrufada of our fathers, telling them, after a malifeta: ¡I am not going to do any more!- may be the same day we have again fallen one more time…and our father,with a feign
hardness in the voice. The face serious, reprimand us... at the time that his heart soften, because he knows our debility, thinking poor child ¡Which efforts does for a good behaviour! We need to be convinced, be soaked, saturate us that Father and our very Father is the Lord who is near us and in heaven. (The way. n.267) PRAYER
Lord, who has taught to call you “Father”and has wanted that we would be your sons, concede us by the intercession of saint Josemaria, to cultivate the feeling of our divine filiation as faithfull sons. Amen JACULATORIA “Lord, would I be good, and all the others better than me” (Cfr.The way. n.284)
**************************************** THE UNITY OF LIFE FIFTH DAY The permanent conviction actualitzed of the divine filiation, have to lead us to have a simple and strong unity of life. And like creatures loved by our father God, hem we have to behaviour in all moments with the faithfulness of the good sons. Saint Josemaria predicated continuosly, with works and words, qthat the Christian, being son of God, cannot actuate in any moment as he was not so. He considered the great evil of contemporary wordl consists in the breaking between the faith and the life, and invited with optimism to repair this unity truly saving.The proposed ideal consisted in to elevate, with the grace of God, all of our actions to sobrenatural plan, converting –the so called in instruments of sanctify and apostolate. The family life, the fulfilling of professionals duties, civics, patriotics, socials, etc… For a Christian they are the privileged medium for doing the God Will, and then be sanctified and to serve the Lord and the fellow men. Així mateix, les ocupacions més diverses, for saint Josemaria,can andi have to convert in ocasions of prayer, of finding God, ador Him, serve Him, and love Him. “One hour of study, for a modern apostol, is one hour of prayer” (Way n.335) used to say, with reference to normal ocupació for a student, what is to study.
And in the same way the domestic labors, the work of a peasant, of an intellectual or of anybody, directed with uprightness of intention to the sevice of God, are converted in magnificent mediums of union with Him. This unity of life, frequently taught by saint Josemaria, also that the men would be deeply sincers: nothing is in they of mere appearance but all his behaviour responds to deep convictions, actualized in each moment.
From his writings. “We have to try then, do not lose the sobrenatural point of view, seing after the facts, God: in front of what is pleaseand and the disagreeable, in front of the consolation and in front of the distress by the death of a loved one. First of all, we have to talk with our father God, looking for the Lord in the center of your soul. It is not that one can consider like foolishness, unimportant: it is a clear manifestation of interior life constant, of authentic dialog of love. A practice that is not going to produce us any psicologic deformation, because- for a Christian- have to result as natural as the beat of the heart. ( Friends of God. N.247) PRAYER
Lord, concede us to astuate like Your holy Mother, conservant keping alwais in our heart, with love and attention, Your words and the facts of your life, for illuminate with them our exsistence of sons wanting be faithful, withour love for the little things and in the great ones. Amen JACULATORIA “Cor Mariae dulcissimum, iter para tutum!” “Most sweet heart of Mary, prepare us a safe way”. ***********************************
PROGRESS IN VIRTUES SIXTH DAY To be consequents with our condition of sons of God, and to live the unity of life that corresponds, we have to try to practice all the virtues, both the mere natural (like the order, the disciplin, the loyalty, the laboriosity, the veracity) and the sobrenatural, and between them the most elevated which is carity. This
perfection for the other men, “the whole law and the prophets”; and in the last Supper, He announced the carity like the el emblem of His disciples. Saint Josemaria put alwais emphasis in the carity, considering that are of no the justice, the castity and any other virtue if they are not impregnate in carity. By this, the first and more important which we have to beg to God is to know loving Him over all things, and to the other men- by love of Him- like to ourselves. He has taught that carity has to be universal, without exclusion from this nobody, without distintions nor prejudices. The Christian has to love he poors and the riches, the near ones and far ones, the believers and the not believers. It is not possible in follower of Christ no resent, hate, wish of vengeance or any other attitude contrary to the carity. “We are not anti-nothing” used to say saint Josemaria; and gived thanks to God because he not needed to pardon, because God have taught him to love all men. By the other hand, carity well ordered begins by the nearest people, with which exactly can be more dificult to practice the details of comprehension, delicacy, of tolerance, service, of active and consolating presence at the hard moments. It is there where it has to show with works the carity, in the thousand details of every day.
From his writings. “However high you try to love, never will you love enough. The human heart has an enormous expansion coefficient. When loves, it widens in a crescendo of love than surpass all the barriers. If you love the Lord, there not will be a creature not finding a place in your heart” (Cfr Via crucis, 8ª station. n. 5) PRAYER By the intercession of saint Josemaria, we implore, Lord, to have a great and generous heart to love “with works and really” to fellow men, being utterly devoted for he would be happy, till getting with all our brothers the immense joy of looking at You and love You with perfection in heaven, in company of the most saint Virgin and all the engels and saints. Amen. JACULATORIA “Jesus, do my heart similar the Your”
*********************************************** TO TEACH THE CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE SEVENTH DAY To get all men be saved- as wants God and wehave to wish it- is nedeed to do shine the doctrine of Jesucrist, teaching la with the example of the own life and with the written or spoken word. The Christian is bearer of Jesucrist. And as the same divine redemptor who has came to put fire to earth and what wants is that it burns, we need promote in us the fervent and efficient desire of propagating the revelated truth. Saint Josemaria considered that majority of evil of the wordl, come from the ignorance; over all of the religious ignorance. Effectively, a lot of men do not commit sins by malice, but by out of way or by equivocation. In short, by ignorance of the truth that is Jesus. The greatest compassion work will be, frequently, to teach the truths that save. Saint Josemaria used to say that the Work of God “is a great catequesi”, and he do not get tired insisting in the necessity of using all licit means to get the truths of Gospel arrive to people: “From a hundred, we are interested in hundred” used to say and encorauged all, always, to not be contented with any got apostolic fruit, but to aspire to more and more in this service of the truth and the salvation of the souls. In the fulfilling of this duty of teaching the truths of our Faith, we fulfill an imperative mandate of Christ. To be Christians corresponds us the lovely and necessary mission of being “light of wordl”. Everybody has to exmine one self for how is he filling this transcendental duty.
From his writings. “Pious, then, like children: but not ignorants, because everyone has to strive, at the messure of their responsabilities, in the serious, cientific study of the faith; and all what is the theology. Then: piety of children, and doctrine of theologians. The eagerness to acquire this theologic cience- the good and firm Christian doctrine – is actived, in place first, by the wish of knowing and loving God. At the same time, it is also a consequence of general preocupation of the soul for getting the deepest signification of this wordl, what is forme and image of the Creator. With periodic monotony, some people try to ressuscitate an alleged incompatibility between faith and reason, faith and science, between human
intelligence and the divine Revelation. This incompatibility only can appear, and apparently, when are not understood the real terms of the problems” (cfr. Christ is passing by. n.10) PRAYER We thank You, Lord, because has brought to the wordl the fullness of grace and truth, and You wants would be we who take the truths of salvation to our brothers. Help us to fulfill the happy missio of being the light of world. Amen. JACULATORIA “¡Dómine, ut videam!- ¡Lord, would I to see!” (Mc 10,51) ***********************************************
MEANS FOR BEING FAITHFULL EIGHTH DAY We can live with faithfulness, in the middle of the wordl, our live of sons of God, if we put the means: a continue formation for improving our knowledge and practice of the doctrine of Jesucrist; the piety feeding the spiritual life; and the apostolic action tending to improve the live of the others. And with all this, also a perfect unity, a fulfillment of the duties of the own state. In this way the vocation is actualized to the sanctity, the vocation received with the Baptism, when the Lord had us “moved from death to life” as Saint Joan teaches us, and where we “cover with our Lord Jesucrist” in expression of Saint Paul. Saint Josemaria was not tired of instilling these practic truths: with good doctrine and good piety, we can be apostols of the Lord in the middle of the world, sanctifying us and sanctifying a lot of people, like the leavening yeast to the mass. The life of piety does not drives us awai from the temporal realities, by the contrary has to take us to “love the world with passion” as said saint Josemaria; without being worldly; being in the world determined in improving the structures and all people; dedicated with eagerness to the service the others at different duties we have as citizents, as members of a family, as workers, as friends... The piety is expressed and is fed with the prayer, the mortification and the sacraments, that produce fruits of good works, of carity and the service to others. It is not a dealing for accumulate exterior practices, but to try to fill
with prayer spirit what we do; of cultivate the presence of God with love; and live with happiness the luminous reality of our condition of sons of God. By this, it is convenient to concrete a life plan of piety and to have a spiritual leading that stimulate us to fulfill it and improve it constantly. FROM HIS WRITTINGS “Be as child exige us to believe like believe the children, to love as the children love, to abandone like children do, to prat as children pray. And all that, is needed for practicing what I want describe at these lines: The beginning of the way, having as final the full madness for Jesus, is a confiat love to the most holy Maria. -¿Do you want to love the Virgin? –then, ¡treat her! ¿ How? - Praying well the rosary of our Lady”. (cfr Holy Rosari, foreword)
PRAYER God Holy Spirit, we implore You to give us the gift of piety, so we would know how listen your voice and correspond to your inspirations in our prayer and in our works. Would the prayer and the mortification prepar us for getting the best fruit in the reception of the holy sacraments and the whole of our life would be penetrated for the sense of our condition of sons of Godde. Amen. JACULATORIA “Talk, Lord, Your server lisen” (1 Psalm 3,9)
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CHRIST, MARY AND THE CHURCH NINTH DAY So summarized saint Josemaria the greats loves of his heart and the great loves that ardently desired all would have: Christ, Mary and the Church. Jesucrist, with His most Holy Humanity, is the Way, the Truth and the Life, as He had declared. For us the consideration of the most Holy Humanity of Christ takes us to adore His divinity; and united to Him, moved by the Holy Spirit, we arrive to the Father. The christian, baptized in the name of the three divine Persons, has to look for them along the life, dealing with them like a only and indivisible God in the Trinity of the Persones.
Most holy Maria, Mother of Christ and our Mother, brothers us with Jesus, teach us always to “do what He would say”. She is the perfect model of diciple of the Salvator, She precede us at the pilmigrage of the faith. By this saint Josemaria writed: “To Jesus always we go and return by Maria” (The way. n 495) The authentic devotion to the Virgin Maria consists, over all, in trying to know her; and by this to contemplate what of She we know from the Gospel, the Church tradition and the teachings of the Magistery. If we know her, we shall love as the most perfect mother and we shall try to imitate her. We also have to confide entirely in her most good natured protection and shelter, looking from She help in our necessities and getting support on her powerfull intercession. Jesús made His first miracle at Cannas by a petition of Maria, and He will go on listenning the requests of the most holy Virgin in favour of her sons. The love to the Church has to take us “to serve she as as she wants to be served” said saint Josemaria. All his life he had a heroic dedication to the sacrified and humble service of the Church. This love to Church was expressed mainly in the devotion, the docility and love to the the Vicari of Christ, the only universal Pastor. FROM HIS WRITTINGS “¡Mother!- shout-her strong, - she listen you, she sees you in danger and offer, your mother Sancta Maria, with the grace of her Son, the comfort of her skirt, the tenderness of her caresses: and you will find comforted for the new fight” (The way n.516) PRAYER We beg You, Lord, that imitating saint Josemaria and with his intercession, would we each time more the most Holy Humanity of Jesucrist; would we love more each time the holy Maria, the Church and the Pope; and sheltering always to the maternal protection of the Virgin, we behaviour as faithful sons of the Church. Amen. JACULATORIA “Thanks, my God, by the love to the Pope that has put in my heart” (cfr.The way n.573) ********************