Catholic Prayer Club
… a Worldwide Apostolate
June
2007 A.D.
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Our
Feature article….
The Spirit of Joy
Saint Francis maintained: “My best defense
against all the plots and tricks of the enemy is still the spirit of joy. The
devil is never as happy as when he has succeeded in robbing one of God’s servants
of the joy in his or her soul. The devil always has some dust on hold that he
blows into someone’s conscience through a small basement window so as to make
opaque what is pure. But in a heart that is filled with joy, he tries in vain
to introduce his deadly poison. The demons can do nothing against a servant of
Christ whom they find filled with holy gladness; whereas a dejected, morose and
depressed soul easily lets itself be submerged in sorrow or captured by false
pleasures.”
That is why he himself always
tried to keep his heart joyful, to preserve that oil of gladness with which his
soul had been anointed (Ps 45:7). He took great care to avoid sorrow, the worst
of illnesses, and when he felt that it was beginning to infiltrate his soul, he
immediately had recourse to prayer. He said: “At the first sign of trouble, the
servant of God must get up, begin to pray, and remain before the Father until
the latter has caused him or her to retrieve the joy of the person who is
saved.” (Ps 51:12)…
I
sometimes saw Francis with my own eyes picking up a piece of wood from the
ground, placing it on his left arm, and scraping it with a straight stick as if
he were moving a bow on a violin. In this way, he mimed an accompaniment to the
praises he was singing to the Lord in French.
The Catholic Prayer Club®
One
of the joys of life is the opportunity to travel, in particular to those areas
steeped in the historic traditions of our Catholic faith. By the Lord’s Grace I
will make such a journey this month on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land led by Fr.
Mario Di Cicco, O.F.M. President and Rector of the Franciscan School of
Theology in Berkeley, California. I feel especially graced to accompany Fr.
Mario on this visit to the scenes of our salvation, retracing the steps Jesus
took in obedience to God’s will. Among
the many highlights of this journey of faith will be the celebration of Holy
Mass where the Lord lived and at many of the places where he carried forth his
public ministry. Be assured that each of you will be remembered in a very
special way in my prayers at these Masses and throughout the pilgrimage and, in
particular for your prayer intentions that so many of you have shared with me
since the formation of The Catholic Prayer Club ministry. May the beginning of
summer bring you peace, spiritual renewal and the best of life.
Steve Macy
Co-Steward
The
CPC Prayer Intention for This Month
That
all citizens of the world, individually and in groups, may be enabled to
participate actively in the life and management of the common good.
Lord hear our prayer
Why
not start a prayer group in your home area?
Details are available on the following page……
You can help us spread the good word of our Lord…by becoming a
CPC Prayer Ministry Leader in your home area.
As a CPC Prayer
Minister (PM) you will form and lead a small Home Based Prayer Community (HBPC)
in your hometown.
It’s easy to
get started. All you need to do is invite several friends, co-workers or family
members to join your HBPC. Local communities are generally comprised of from 3
to 15 members who gather in community every other week to pray, reflect and
share our faith. The Catholic Prayer Club will provide you with all of the
materials you need to form organize and lead your ministry and Home Based
Prayer Community.
So if you feel
called to a ministry in the service of the Lord, please contact Steve Macy or
Aurora Ragaza Co-Stewards of The Catholic Prayer Club at
The
Catholic Prayer Club®
On the Worldwide Web www.catholicprayerclub.org
While our
Ministry is free of charge it is not free of cost. Please consider supporting
CPC with a tax - deductible donation by clicking the secure link below
Donate Here Through
JustGive®
http://www.justgive.org/nonprofits/donate.jsp?ein=14-1977600