All Saints Day

“To become saints means to fulfill completely what we already are, raised to the dignity of God’s adopted children in Christ Jesus… The saints bring to light in creative fashion quite new human potentialities… The saints are themselves the living spaces into which one can turn… There is no isolation in heaven. It is the open society of the saints and, consequently, also the fulfillment of all human togetherness… One might say that the saints are, so to speak, new Christian constellations, in which the richness of God’s goodness is reflected. Their light, coming from God, enables us to know better the interior richness of God’s great light… Nothing can bring us into close contact with the beauty of Christ himself other than the world of beauty created by faith and light that shines out from the faces of the saints, through whom his own light becomes visible.”

Pope Benedict XVI

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Our Holy Father’s Prayer Intentions for September

VATICAN CITY, 1 SEP 2010 (VIS) – Pope Benedict’s general prayer intention for September is: “That in less developed parts of the world the proclamation of the Word of God may renew people’s hearts, encouraging them to work actively toward authentic social progress”.

His mission intention is: “That by opening our hearts to love we may put an end to the numerous wars and conflicts which continue to bloody our world”.

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Our Holy Father’s Prayer Intentions for March

VATICAN CITY, 1 MAR 2010 (VIS) – Pope Benedict’s general prayer intention for March is: “That the world economy may be managed according to the principles of justice and equity, taking account of the real needs of peoples, especially the poorest”.

His mission intention is: “That the Churches in Africa may be signs and instruments of reconciliation and justice in every part of that continent”.

Let us pray together with our Holy Father and the universal church!

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BENEDICT XVI’S PRAYER INTENTIONS FOR NOVEMBER

Our holy Father’s prayer intentions for the month of November. Let us be united with our Church and our brothers and sisters in prayer and good works for the upcoming month.

VATICAN CITY, 30 OCT 2009 (VIS):

Pope Benedict’s general prayer intention for November is: “That all the men and women in the world, especially those who have responsibilities in the field of politics and economics, may never fail in their commitment to safeguard creation”.

His mission intention is: “That believers in the different religions, through the testimony of their lives and fraternal dialogue, may clearly demonstrate that the name of God is a bearer of peace”.

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Music, Sweet Music!

“There is the Music of Heaven in all things,” Hildegard of Bingen reminds us. Experience Heaven on earth with an assortment of sacred sounds that soothe. My favorite is Morton Lauriden’s Lux Aeterna performed by the Los Angeles Master Chorale. For real serenity I also enjoy Chant by the Benedictine Monks of Santo Domingo De Solos and VoxDe Nube by Noirin Ni Riain and the Irish Monks of Glenstal Abbey. To experience the healing power of a piano noctourn try Piano Reflections by Kelly Yost.

Our Holy Father recently had some words to say about the gift of music:

MUSIC CAN BECOME PRAYER

VATICAN CITY, 17 OCT 2009 (VIS) –

This evening in the Paul VI Hall, the Holy Father attended a concert by the International Piano Academy of Imola, Italy, marking twenty years since its foundation. The Chinese pianist Jin Ju, using seven pianofortes from different historical periods, played pieces by Bach, Scarlatti, Mozart, Czerny, Beethoven, Chopin, Tchaikovsky and Liszt.

At the end of the concert the Pope expressed his thanks to the academy and to the pianist, who “enabled us to savour … the emotional impact of the music she played”.

“This concert has, once again, given us the chance to appreciate the beauty of music, a spiritual and therefore universal language, and hence the appropriate vehicle for understanding and union between individuals and peoples. Music forms part of all cultures and, we could say, accompanies all human experiences, from suffering to pleasure, from hatred to love, from sadness to joy, from death to life”.

Benedict XVI then highlighted how “over the centuries and the millennia music has always been used to give form to what cannot be expressed with words, because it arouses emotions otherwise difficult to communicate. It is, then, no coincidence that all civilisations have given importance and value to music in its various forms and expressions.

“Music, great music”, he added in conclusion, “distends the spirit, arouses profound emotions and almost naturally invites us to raise our minds and hearts to God in all situations of human existence, the joyful and the sad. Music can become prayer”.

BXVI-CONCERT/MUSIC/IMOLA ACADEMY VIS 091019 (260)

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