Monthly Dedication
An ongoing Feature

APRIL

The month of April is dedicated to The Blessed Sacrament
From "Catholic Answers", & "Catechism of the Catholic Church:"

"The word Eucharist comes from the Greek word eucharistein, which means “thanksgiving.” It is the memorial sacrifice of Christ’s body and blood, presented under the form of bread and wine, which is offered to the Father for the forgiveness of sins. After this offering, the Eucharist is consumed, and through this act it transmits sanctifying grace to those who are properly prepared to receive the body and blood of Christ."

"The Catechism goes on to say, “For in the blessed Eucharist is contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself, our Pasch” (CCC 1324). The word pasch refers to the Jewish celebration of Passover, and it is no coincidence that the Eucharist commemorates the Passover meal Christ held with his disciples before his Crucifixion. But unlike the old Passover, the Eucharist is our new Passover and represents the sacrifice of the “Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29).  The Catechism explains: “[It is called] the Lord’s Supper, because of its connection with the supper which the Lord took with his disciples on the eve of his Passion and because it anticipates the wedding feast of the Lamb in the heavenly Jerusalem. [It is called] the Breaking of Bread, because Jesus used this rite, part of a Jewish meal when as master of the table he blessed and distributed the bread, above all at the Last Supper. It is by this action that his disciples will recognize him after his Resurrection, and it is this expression that the first Christians will use to designate their Eucharistic assemblies; by doing so they signified that all who eat the one broken bread, Christ, enter into communion with him and form but one body in him” (CCC 1329).

MAY

MONTHLY DEDICATION

The Month of May 
A Reflection by Fred Schaeffer, OFS
 
“The tradition of dedicating the month of May to Mary began in the 13th century. The naming of May as Our Lady’s Month was an attempt to replace the pagan festivals and to turn them into the worship of the True God and veneration of Mary, the mother of Jesus." (From: https://bayoucatholic.org/news/why-is-may-the-month-of-mary A Diocesan news item)

The Virgin Mary is very special to us (the world), and in particular to Franciscans. (See: https://www.secularfranciscansusa.org/2021/11/the-blessed-virgin-mary-and-st-francis-of-assisi/ (This article originally appeared in the TAU-USA Fall Issue #104), written by Fr. Chris Shorrock, OFM Conv., CNSA). Fr. Chris wrote: “According to St. Bonaventure (d. 1274), one of Francis’ early biographers, Francis placed himself and his order under the protection and guidance of Mary for all time.”


Most Franciscans pray a daily Rosary. Many Franciscans in Religious Orders, have a Rosary hanging from their cord (around their waist). When I was in Religious Life (almost five years as a Contemplative monk), there was a Rosary hanging from my belt. This Order followed the Rule of St. Augustine. It is sort of hard to forget it’s there, so we prayed the Rosary daily, as I do now. The following text is from https://www.secularfranciscansusa.org/2020/05/what-does-it-take-to-get-to-heaven-five-point-plan-pgs-97-100/ (not a complete quotation).


  • St. Pio said, “Prayer is the oxygen of the soul.” Prayer is the breath of the Spirit; prayer is our communication with God. Like all communication, prayer involves our active listening, clearly and correctly, to God, followed by our active response, appropriately, politely and effectively. We may pray by words, silence, sighs, tears, actions. Prayer comes from God and returns to God.

  • Second, meditation. Most of us probably spend most of our prayer time in one of the recognized forms of verbal prayer. The greatest prayer of the Church is, of course, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. We have the Liturgy of the Hours. We have the Our Father, the Hail Mary, the Glory Be, which all serve when we pray the Rosary. Yet meditation takes us deeper, closer to God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. When we pray, we need to meditate on what we are praying, for whom and to Whom we are praying, and why we are praying. When we act, whatever actions we perform, we need to do the same: meditate on what we are doing, to whom and for whom we are doing what we are doing, and why are we doing what we are doing. Prayer may be noisy; meditation should usually be silent.

  • Third, confession. All Franciscans are called to Penance, a turning away from self and sin and a turning toward the Gospel Life. Article Seven of our Secular Franciscan Rule says it so well: “United by their vocation as ´brothers and sisters of penance´ and motivated by the dynamic power of the gospel, let them conform their thoughts and deeds to those of Christ by means of that radical interior change which the gospel calls ´conversion. ´ Human frailty makes it necessary that this conversion be carried out daily. On this road to renewal the sacrament of reconciliation is the privileged sign of the Father´s mercy and the source of grace.” St. Pio spent hours and hours celebrating the Sacrament of Penance and urged frequent Confession, certainly as soon as possible after the commission of a major sin and as often as needed, at least once a month, since human memory is so short.


  • Fourth, reception. Our Lord Himself said: “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you” (John 6:53). Again, our Holy Rule, Article Five, guides us: “The faith of St. Francis, who often said, ´I see nothing bodily of the Most High Son of God in this world except His most holy body and blood,´ should be the inspiration and pattern of their Eucharistic life.” Because of the power and efficacy of proper reception of the Most Blessed Sacrament, St. Pio urged frequent, even daily, reception of Holy Communion, if and only if the recipient were properly disposed.

  • Fifth, reflection. St. Pio urged constant, even daily, reflection on “The Four Last Things”: Death, Judgment, Heaven and Hell. He urged that this reflection not be done in a fearful manner because of his quote above to pray, hope and not worry, trusting always in the love and mercy of God. Rather, the reflection on the four last things was to focus our lives. Where are we going? How are we getting there? If the basic purpose of our lives is not to know, love and serve God in this life with our whole hearts, minds, bodies and spirits, then what are we about? What is more important?


Peace and all Good,

Fred Schaeffer, OFS

April 20, 2026


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JULY: Dedicated to the Precious Blood of Jesus


"Precious Blood," mostly from public domain sources:


The feast, celebrated in Spain in the 16th century, was later introduced to Italy. For many dioceses, there were two days to which the office of the Precious Blood was assigned, the office for both being the same. The reason was that the office was at first granted only to the Fathers of the Most Precious Blood. Later, as one of the offices of the Fridays of Lent, it was assigned to the Friday after the fourth Sunday in Lent (Laetare Sunday) in some dioceses, including, by decision of the Fourth Provincial Council of Baltimore (1840), those in the United States.


When Pope Pius IX went into exile at Gaeta in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (1849), he had as his companion Giovanni Merlini, the third superior general of the Fathers of the Most Precious Blood. After they had arrived at Gaeta, Merlini suggested that the pope make a vow to extend the feast of the Precious Blood to the entire church, if he would again recover possession of the Papal States. The pope took the matter into consideration, but a few days later, on 30 June 1849, the day the French army conquered Rome and the insurgents of the Roman Republic capitulated, he sent Joseph Stella to Merlini with the message: "The pope does not deem it expedient to bind himself by a vow; instead His Holiness is pleased to extend the feast immediately to all Christendom."


On 10 August of the same year, Pope Pius officially included the Feast of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the General Roman Calendar, for celebration on the first Sunday in July, that is the first Sunday after 30 June, which is the anniversary of the liberation of the city of Rome from the insurgents. In reducing the number of feasts fixed for Sundays, Pope Pius X assigned the date of 1 July to this feast. In 1933, Pope Pius XI raised the feast to the rank of Double of the 1st Class to mark the 1,900th anniversary of Jesus's passion. In Pope John XXIII's 1960 revision of the General Roman Calendar, it was made a Class I Feast (see General Roman Calendar of 1960).


The feast was removed from the General Roman calendar in 1969, "because the Most Precious Blood of Christ the Redeemer is already venerated in the solemnities of the Passion, of Corpus Christi, of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and in the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. But the Mass of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ is placed among the Votive Masses".The feast nonetheless continues to be celebrated as a solemnity in calendars of some religious orders such as the Missionaries of the Precious Blood, the Congregation of the Passion of Jesus Christ, and the Adorers of the Blood of Christ. Furthermore, it is celebrated by parishes and communities that observe the 1962 Calendar. The whole month of July is still kept dedicated to the Most Precious Blood. (1)


  1. Kosloski, Philip (1 July 2019). "Here's why July is dedicated to the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ". Aleteia. Retrieved 29 June 2022.--


 MONTHLY:  AUGUST

Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary


August is dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

       Immaculate Heart of Mary, Pray for Us.


Pope Pius XII consecrated the month of August to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, on October 31, 1942.


“Heart of Mary, Mother of God, our Mother, Heart most amiable, on which the Adorable Trinity ever looks with complacency, worthy of all the veneration and tenderness of angels and of men: Heart most like the Heart of Jesus, whose most perfect image thou art; heart full of goodness, ever compassionate towards our miseries, vouchsafe to thaw our icy hearts, that they may be changed entirely to the likeness of the heart of Jesus. Infuse into them the love of thy virtues, inflame them with that blessed fire with which thou dost ever burn. In thee let the Holy Church find safe shelter; protect it, and be its sweet asylum, its tower of strength, impregnable against every inroad of its enemies. Be thou the road leading to Jesus; be thou the channel whereby we receive all graces needful for our salvation. Be thou our help in need, our comfort in trouble, our strength in temptation, our refuge in persecution, our aid in all dangers; but especially in the last struggle of our life, at the moment of our death, when all hell will be unchained against us to snatch away our souls, - in that dread moment, that hour so terrible, whereon our eternity depends, and, yes, most tender Virgin, do thou then make us feel how great is the sweetness of thy motherly Heart, and the strength of thy power with the Heart of Jesus, by opening for us a safe refuge in the very fount of mercy itself, whereby we too may one day join with thee in Paradise in praising that same Heart of Jesus for ever and forever. Amen.”


From: Unknown: prayer is from the old Raccolta, published prior to 1952.

Month of September - dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of Mary

The Seven Sorrows of Mary - "Mater Dolorosa" (image below)

Our Lady of Sorrows feast was first celebrated in the year 1233 – the newly-founded Servite Order in Florence, officially the Ordo Servorum Beatae Mariae Virginis, the Order of the Servants of the Blessed Virgin Mary, were the driving force behind this devotion to the sorrows of our Blessed Mother. Seven young successful men left everything they had in the world, banded together in community to follow a life of prayer, charity and devotion to the Virgin Mary. The Servites, as they are commonly known, now comprise friars (priests and brothers), sisters, contemplative nuns, and lay associates, found throughout the world. Their own particular Servite rosary is like the ‘regular’ (that is, Dominican) Rosary, but is said by praying one Our Father and seven Hail Mary’s on each of the Seven Sorrows, or ‘Dolors’, of Our Lady.


Franciscans have the option to pray the Crown Rosary of seven decades.

November - Month dedicated to All Souls (Nov. 2nd)

All Souls' Day is a day of prayer and remembrance for the faithful departed, observed by Catholic Christians on 2 November. CCC 363 "In Sacred Scripture the term "soul" often refers to human life or the entire human person. But "soul" also refers to the innermost aspect of man, that which is of greatest value in him, that by which he is most especially in God's image: "soul" signifies the spiritual principle in man." (Catechism of the Catholic Church)


See also: https://www.dmfofs2.com/reflection-on-the-soul

or, https://www.dmfofs2.com/a-flame-within-the-struggle-of-the-soul