Friend us on Facebook

Join us on Instagram

Follow us on Twitter

Liturgy of the Hours

Sacred Heart

Ordinary Time

With You is the Source of Life

From a work by Saint Bonaventure, bishop

Take thought now, redeemed man, and consider how great and worthy is he who hangs on the cross for you. His death brings the dead to life, but at his passing heaven and earth are plunged into mourning and hard rocks are split asunder.

It was a divine decree that permitted one of the soldiers to open his sacred side with a lance. This was done so that the church might be formed from the side of Christ as he slept the sleep of death on the cross, and so that the scripture might be fulfilled: They shall look on him whom they pierced. The blood and water that poured out at that moment were the price of our salvation. Flowing from the secret abyss of our Lord's heart as from a fountain, this stream gave the sacraments of the Church the power to confer the life of grace, while for those already living in Christ it became a spring of living water welling up to life everlasting.

Arise, then beloved of Christ! Imitate the dove that nests in a hole in the cliff, keeping watch at the entrance like the sparrow that finds a home. There like the turtledove hide you little ones, the fruit of your chaste love. Press your lips to the fountain, draw water from the wells of your Savior; for this is the spring flowing out of the middle of paradise, dividing into four rivers, inundating devout hearts, watering the whole earth and making it fertile.

Run with eager desire to this source of life and light, all you who are vowed to God's service. Come, whoever you may be, and cry out to him with all the strength of your heart. "O indescribable beauty of the most high God and purest radiance of eternal light! Life that gives all life, light that is the source of every other light, preserving in everlasting splendor the myriad flames that have shone before the throne of your divinity from the dawn of time! Eternal and inaccessible fountain, clear and sweet stream flowing from a hidden spring, unseen by mortal eye! None can fathom your depths nor survey your boundaries, none can measure your breath, nothing can sully your purity. From you flows the river which gladdens the city of God and makes us cry out with joy and thanksgiving in hymns of praise to you, for we know by our own experience that with you is the source of life, and in your light we see light.

RESPONSORY

Psalm 103: 2, 4; 24:9

Praise the Lord, my soul, and never forget all his benefits.

– He saves your life from rain and crowns you with mercy and compassion.

Taste and see that the Lord is good.

– He saves your life from rain and crowns you with mercy and compassion.

From our Spiritual Advisors ...

The Months of Mary

Fr. Mike Barry, SS.CC.

Palm Desert, CA Chapter Spiritual Advisor

May is the month of Mary and so for that matter is October. In fact, every month is the month of Mary! The Blessed Virgin Mary only has about six scriptures that directly refer to her. What do we know about Mary? She is obedient from the start, she answers, “Be it done unto me according to your word." (Lk 1:38) She is committed to the Lord. The first miracle is performed at her request at Cana of Galilee. Most importantly, Jesus gives her to us at the foot of His cross and she takes Him very seriously. She took that assignment to her Immaculate Heart and fulfilled it. She has appeared over 1600 times in human history. She has appeared 53 approved times sanctioned either by the Vatican or by the local Bishop. She has certainly fulfilled her role of Mother and she continues even to the present day. She has appeared in almost all the countries of the world.

Her most famous appearances have been in Lourdes and Fatima. In Lourdes she appeared to St. Bernadette, an unknown teenager. Mary, in that instance, follows Her Son's lead in taking care of the "anawim", the little people, or poor ones. She is always reaching out to us as a mother. In Fatima she warned us about where the world was heading. She told us to say the Rosary and again it was to the "anawim", the three children. Her most famous, I would suggest, is to Juan Diego in Mexico. It was in 1531. Previously, the Indian tribes had come to the Church wanting to join but wanting also to keep their own gods. They used to sacrifice young men to their gods. When Mary appeared to Juan Diego in 1531 she said, “I represent the God of all the tribes.” What is even more spectacular is that about seven million souls had left the church and in the era of Guadalupe, seven million souls joined. One of the most significant apparitions was in Quito, Equador in 1610 where Mary appeared to Sister Marianna de Jesus Torres. She told her that at the end of the 20th century the Church would be corrupt from top to bottom and that the age of innocence for little children would be lost. We can see the effects of that prophecy being lived out in our world today. There are many Marian movements and devotions today. It behooves us to be enrolled in one. A day should not go by without us saying the Rosary. There are also slogans which should inspire us like St. Louis de Montfort's "To Jesus through Mary" or the Latin, "Monstra te esse Matrem" (Show thyself to be a Mother). It all comes down to the fact that we cannot have Mary without Jesus and we cannot have Jesus without Mary.

Albany NY Chapter Evangelizes Through ZOOM

By Denise Fraioli, Communications

L-R: Carol Heckman, Secretary; Kelly Stiffen, Treasurer; Diane Bigos, Coordinator;

Fr. Flannery, Spiritual Advisor; Nancy Hooley, Asst. Coordinator and Fran Schmidt, Historian.

Just like that our Albany NY Chapter went Z-O-O-M! Monthly in-person prayer gatherings turned into weekly online praise, prayer, and Rosary. Covid-19 was not going to stop us, we had the Father, Son, Holy Spirit and Blessed Mother on our Team. The technology component lent a few hurdles in the beginning.

Diane Bigos, our Coordinator, led with terrific grace. She spent endless hours online tooling around in Zoom creating test invites amongst our Team and in turn messaging us to respond to the links. She contemplated the most appropriate spot in her home to broadcast, conscious of lighting and background, eventually setting up a virtual background consisting of our Magnificat Banner and statue of the Blessed Mother.

Lights, camera, action! Our Team held numerous planning meetings, virtually of course! If we could not face each other on Zoom; how could we face the masses? It was wonderful to see one another in the world of lock-down. We resolved the length of weekly gatherings as well as formatting; finding it very much mirrored our in-person prayer gatherings. It just took a little more preparation. Before you knew it, Diane was sharing her screen, sharing music, sharing meditations and litanies. We found that 1-1/2 hours between 7-8:30 pm on Wednesdays is perfect for weekly prayer gatherings. It allows time for participants to filter in and enjoy 15 minutes of musical worship with Gail O’Brien and her acoustic guitar. Individuals have the opportunity to lift personal prayer intentions before coming together to pray for the Church and Magnificat Ministry. Then we prayed the Rosary. Our Chapter is blessed to have some extremely devout women: Carol Heckman, Nancy Hooley, Fran Schmidt and Kelly Stiffen are fluid in their prayer and they deliver beautiful meditations. Zoom gatherings have allowed us to meet women who may not otherwise have joined us. It’s a pleasant surprise to see who is logged on!

Hungry for more ... The longing continues for our Magnificat Breakfasts. We are people intended to gather together in God’s word in person. We have hosted several Visitations with speakers Sally Gilpin, Lynda Holler, Ruth Fazio and Amanda Torrelli. Practice makes perfect. Well, maybe not perfect, but certainly better all the time. Scheduling practices the prior week, reviewing the agenda, timing the music, and practicing individual roles is very productive. Assigning a co-host helped manage the waiting room, muting and enabling speaker view. We require registration, but no fee, and graciously accept love offerings. Attendance has been around 30-35 participants.

On May 15th we hosted a Holy Hour at historic St. Mary’s Church in Albany led by Fr. Flannery, our Spiritual Advisor. Our Service and Advisory Teams, Music Ministry, other helpful members, and spouses were able to gather and pray in person and adore Our Lord. We were truly blessed! On September 11, we will gather at the Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs, Auriesville, NY. Fran Schmidt will share a meditation, details are still unfolding. On November 13, our spiritual senses will really be awakened with our first in-person breakfast in 2 years.

Life in the Spirit Webinar begins August 12th!

Open to everyone at no charge!

Becoming Reacquainted With St. Joseph

By Carol Dazzio, CST Advisory Team Member

Gentle old St. Joseph, gray hair, and beard, standing in the shadowy background behind a young and beautiful Blessed Mother and sweet Baby Jesus. 

This was the St. Joseph I remember growing up as I looked at the portrayals of the Nativity or the Flight into Egypt or other scenes of the Holy Family. I always thought of him as an old man.

When Pope Francis declared The Year of St. Joseph, I suddenly had a desire to understand and to get to know him better. I decided to pray Fr. Donald Calloway’s CONSECRATION TO ST. JOSEPH, THE WONDERS OF OUR SPIRITUAL FATHER. I came to realize St. Joseph’s strength and greatness and the real need for his protection in our world today.

The following are only a few of the Wonders of St. Joseph that Fr. Calloway speaks about in his book.

Over the centuries many saints, popes and mystics had a special devotion to St. Joseph. He is known as Patron of the Universal Church. Not only was he the father of Jesus, but he was also a strong protector and zealous defender of Mary and Jesus. We need his protection over the Church today. He can be a Spiritual Father and protector for each one of us.

St. Joseph was probably a young man. He walked to Egypt to escape Herod and back home when it was safe, and to Jerusalem on Holy Days. It would have been difficult for an old man to have made such long journeys. He was a carpenter, a manual laborer which required a young man’s strength. 

St Joseph was a virgin. Although married to Mary, he remained a virgin throughout his life. Many saints, popes and theologians affirm his Virginal Fatherhood.

Did you know there is a liturgical feast celebrating the marriage of Mary and Joseph? It is called the “Feast of the Holy Spouses” and is celebrated traditionally in many areas on January 23. I was very excited to learn of this Feast because January 23 is the day on which my husband and I married 56 years ago!

Fr. Calloway describes many other Wonders of St. Joseph including Patron of a Happy Death and Terror of Demons. He is ready to assist us in all our needs and desires by his powerful intercession through his precious son Jesus and Mary. During this year dedicated to him, I encourage you to delve deeper into this wonderful saint so that you too can come to a new understanding, appreciation, and love for him!



St. Joseph, Pray for Us!

Consecration to St. Joseph — Healing

By Mary Powell, Regional Rep Region 4

I have to share the healing my husband Brent had while I was doing the Consecration to St. Joseph with Magnificat. My husband Brent has had bronchitis on and off for many years. Sometimes it would lead to pneumonia. The doctor would usually prescribe antibiotics and steroids for this, which has some uncomfortable side effects. This year while doing the Consecration to St. Joseph, I noticed Brent was getting his usual symptoms, tiredness, coughing and general weakness, which meant a trip to the doctor.

One night after saying the Consecration to St. Joseph and listening to Fr. Calloway, I prayed to St. Joseph for his intercession to heal my husband. When I prayed this prayer, I really sensed that my prayer to St. Joseph was heard and that my husband received a healing. I did not tell my husband about my prayer to St. Joseph. To my surprise the following morning, my husband Brent told me he felt really good. I was thrilled and could see the difference in his appearance. No doctor was needed! We did not have to go to the doctor and get the usual meds with all their side effects. Even the test he had for his heart came out good. 

Thank you, St. Joseph, for your intercession and your help for my family. Glory to God!

North County San Diego April Meal

By Elise Botch, Editor of the CST Newsletter

North County San Diego’s, Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapter had their first Meal since the beginning of the Pandemic, on Saturday, April 24^th, in the St. Mary’s Catholic Church Hall in Escondido, CA. It was well attended by over 100 women, all very excited to be meeting again and praising the Lord together.

The set-up was a little different than normal as we had to adhere to the social distancing guidelines, wearing masks, sitting in individual chairs 6 feet apart and having an individually boxed continental breakfast. It did not deter our program to go on as normal. The new Coordinator, Cindy Rippee, introduced the Service Team, many of which were also new on the Team.



The guest speaker was a former Service Team member, Karen Forrey. She served as Treasurer of the Team for 4 years. Karen, a convert to Catholicism, gave a beautiful testimony to the redemption of her faith after being ‘a rebel without a cause’ as she described herself. What turned her life around and her faith in God was the many acts of kindness given toward her by her friends. Many of which were supporting her in the audience that day. Her story brought tears to our eyes and touched our hearts.

The Meal was free but the love offering more than made up to cover all the costs. God is good!

Karen Forrey, speaker

Fr. Pat Crowley giving a talk on the Holy Spirit

Donna Lee Music Ministry

NCSD Service Team: left-right Cindy Rippee - Coordinator, Karen Forrey - Speaker, Mary Leeds - Treasurer, Lidia Rennix - Asst. Coor, Gina McKenna - Secretary, Mary Carey - Historian / Reg 1 Rep

Praise and Worship in song

Being prayed over by the Service Team, Karen's husband, Packy, and Fr. Pat Crowley.

In Memoriam of Lorraine Voorhies Levine: 1928 - 2021

By Marilyn Quirk, Founding Coordinator

Lorraine passed away peacefully on April 7, 2021 at the age of 92. She served on the original Magnificat Service Team. She was a leader of a large women’s Prayer Group and was involved in the very beginning of Magnificat. Lorraine served on the Service Team from 1981-1991. She did not have an official title but was a very influential member of the CST! She prophetically envisioned Magnificat as “A garden, with all varieties of flowers and degrees of growth.” She said the fragrance that exudes from the garden of Magnificat would affect the whole Church! 

May this beautiful and faithful handmaid rest in God's eternal peace.

Our Lady of Divine Providence, Rhode Island Chapter

By Linda Gatta, Coordinator

The Feast of The Immaculate Heart of Mary, June 12th will be the Magnificat RI Chapter’s first event since November 2019. This past year has been most challenging for all and yet we have been able to pray, share, witness and encourage one another through ZOOM and email. The response we are getting thus far is quite uplifting as so many have missed our Magnificat Meals. Our Spiritual Advisor, Fr. Garcia, celebrated Mass for all of us in April. Finally this month, our Service and Advisory Team along with Father were able to meet for a wonderful luncheon meal in my home. With much faith and hope we are planning a fall event after we attend the Conference in New Orleans. We are all so grateful for our Beautiful Sisters in Christ who lead us through the heart of our Mother!

Our Lady of the Lakes, Walker, MN Spring Meal

By Mary Rients, Coordinator

On May 1st, Our Lady of the Lakes in Walker, MN held a breakfast with Cathy Behrens as our speaker. Cathy graciously volunteered to meet with our service team on Friday night for praise and worship. Betty Garoutte, our former coordinator and advisor and her husband, Dick, hosted us. Dick prepared a fresh walleye fish dinner for us! After our meal, we had prayer, praise and worship which was a beautiful preparation for Saturday. We had 45 guests and held our meal at Charlie’s Up North restaurant in Walker, MN. Cathy’s talk was inspiring to all and we received very positive feedback. Several of our guests were non-Catholic and expressed their joy at having participated. It was delightful to meet on a beautiful spring morning with beautiful spring flowers decorating our tables and a beautiful bouquet of yellow roses for Our Blessed Mother.

L to R: Father George Zeck, Betty Garoutte, Cathy Behrens, Jeanette Goehring,

Mary Rients, Stacey O’Rourke, Darryle Carlson, Lorri Henning and Rosemary Ellis

Cathy Behrens, singing with the praise

and worship team

Cathy Behrens, speaker

Successful Visitations of the Rochester, NY Chapter

By Mary Tyndall, Acting Secretary and Louise Carson, Coordinator

Our Chapter has indeed been blessed during this time of pandemic!

The Service Team has persevered and continued to meet via ZOOM twice a month. Virtually praying and planning together has helped us to truly realize the importance of physically being together.

We have managed to have three Visitations during that time. Our Team has risen to the occasion learning with Yasmine Putnam’s help and encouragement to manage the technical issues with hosting a Virtual Visitation. It was another blessing for us!



The three excellent witnesses included our Spiritual Advisor, Fr. Bernard Dan, speaking about “Spiritual Challenges of the Pandemic”, Amanda Torrelli who is a young Charismatic enthusiastic Catholic in love with Jesus, and Alexandra Andrews who was an abortion survivor from an orphanage in Russia.

Fr. Bernard Dan

Praise God for all He has

accomplished through us!

Amanda Torrelli

Alexandra Andrews

MAGNIFICAT MINISTRY PODCAST!

Did you know that you can hear great Magnificat testimonies, teachings, and encouraging words on your computer, tablet, or phone? Click on Podcast and enjoy listening to the variety of programs available to you. Every Monday you can listen to the Bread of Life Bible Study which will prepare you for Sunday's readings. You can save programs as a favorite to your computer or phone and listen to them anywhere and anytime. Tune in regularly and don't forget to sign up for updates!

LISTEN TO OUR PODCAST

God loves a cheerful giver!

(2 Cor. 9:7) 

MAGNIFICAT'S UPCOMING WEBINAR EVENTS

Life in the Spirit Seminar - Thursdays, August 12 - September 16 7:00 pm Central Time (6 week session). Registration opens July 1.

Bible Study #2 - Women, Called and Sent For Such a Time as This

Begins January 2022 (21 week session)

Watch our Website and Social Media for more details.

Praise Report

Magnificat women, being there for one another; praying together, singing, laughing, crying, encouraging and supporting one another is what makes the garden grow.

Magnificat as “A garden, with all varieties of

flowers and degrees of growth”

Don't forget to download our Magnificat App.

Type Magnificat Ministry in your App Store!

Google Store (Android/Smartphone)

Apple Store (iPhones and iPads)

Friend us on Facebook

Join us on Instagram

Follow us on Twitter

Listen to our Podcast

Watch us on Youtube