March-Saint Joseph

Purchase some catcti to decorate your house with! Let it be a reminder of Lent and being in the desert with Jesus.  Have you noticed that everyone decorates for Advent, but why don't people decorate for Lent? Decorate. This is Liturgical Living! 

The kids can pick out their own little cacti too! This aids in reminding them that it is Lent, and we are in the desert with Jesus. 

Saint Francis of Rome is one of my favorite saints! She was a devoted and loving wife. She was certain that she wanted religious life from the age 11, however, her parents objected and a nobleman was selected for her, so instead she joyfully loved and served her husband and children until her husband’s death when she entered religious life at 52. 

"A married woman must, when called upon, quit her devotions to God at the altar to find Him in her household affairs." -St. Frances of Rome

She was known to juggle family life, motherhood, marriage, chores, being a devoted housewife, friend and person all in Christ. She is a wonderful saint to unite ourselves with! 

On this day, in union with the joyful spirit to serve the family, teach your children some life skills that they don't know or know well. Teach them how to clean the dishes, how to cook something, how to do or put away their laundry, how to sew… you get what I’m saying! Teach them in the joyful and beautiful spirit of true homemaking! This also aids in family community and helping each other. Is there something “domestic” you have been meaning to work on!? Today is a great reason to do that! 

Activity:

Teach life skills! 

We focus so much on academics and other things, but we really need to focus on life skills too and have a balance! Teaching the kids, the basics is crucial in managing life. There are too many adults that haven’t been given the proper life skills, and they suffer on a daily basis for that. Today in the spirit of Saint Francis, work on life skills with the family. This is an investment to the family and to each individual to have the ability to help out at home in a positive way. Take time, and invest time in teaching life skills. The simple mundane things of life can become prayers, as we pray for more patience. Sometimes it can be difficult as they master their life skills, but the reward is worth it. 

Ideas: Teach your kids how to: 

-fold laundry

-put laundry away 

-clean dishes

-clean up (gross toothpaste all over the) bathroom counter after themselves

-sewing

-cooking

-how to do more things for themselves

Teach your children some domestic skills with joy on this day that they will use on a daily basis, to be more helpful in the family, and feel more capable and equipped as they grow up! 

Saint Patrick used the three leaved Shamrock to explain the concept of the Holy Trinity, (the Father, Son and Holy Spirit), to the pagan Irish during the 5th Century. 

This is one of my favorite traditions that I created for Saint Patricks day! Go outside with the kids and have them collect leaves, flowers and most importantly 3 leaf clovers! Use the 3 leaf clovers in the same way Saint Patrick used the shamrock, and use it to explain God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Sprit all as one. Three in one God. God acts through His son, His Holy spirit and Himself. He is all powerful and all knowing and acts in many ways! 

1. As the Father and creator of all things. 

2. As Jesus to be part God and part human to live, show us how to live our lives, suffer, die and be resurrected so that we may have eternal life in heaven with Him forever! 

3. Through the Holy Spirit that dwells in each us through baptism, and guides us to holiness! 

"your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?" 1 Corinthians 6:19 

These are the 3 ways in which the trinity of God works. 

Leprechauns have nothing to do with this actual day and saint, it is another worldly diversion from the day, like the Easter Bunny from the resurrection and Santa from the birth of Jesus. 

1. Go outside! 

2. After you collect your 3 leaf clovers, use a flower press, or heavy books and press the leaves and flowers! 

3. One of our favorite things to do with them is to make book marks with prayers on them. 

4. The 3 leaf clover is the Saint Patrick prayer book mark! We use different parts of this prayer. It's good one! 

5. If you are using Word, go to Format, Columns, 4  columns, and copy and paste a prayer on each column then print.

6.  We arrange our "shamrocks", flowers and leaves, then laminate them. If you don't have a laminator, it's fun to use the thick clear packing tape like a sandwich on both sides to preserve it! 

Make some good Irish food! Check out this website with great Irish dishes! https://insanelygoodrecipes.com/irish-recipes/

The Prayer of Saint Patrick

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through a belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
Of the Creator of creation.
I arise today
Through the strength of Christ's birth and His baptism,
Through the strength of His crucifixion and His burial,
Through the strength of His resurrection and His ascension,
Through the strength of His descent for the judgment of doom.
I arise today
Through the strength of the love of cherubim,
In obedience of angels,
In service of archangels,
In the hope of resurrection to meet with reward,
In the prayers of patriarchs,
In preachings of the apostles,
In faiths of confessors,
In innocence of virgins,
In deeds of righteous men.
I arise today
Through the strength of heaven;
Light of the sun,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of the wind,
Depth of the sea,
Stability of the earth,
Firmness of the rock.
I arise today
Through God's strength to pilot me;
God's might to uphold me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to guard me,
God's way to lie before me,
God's shield to protect me,
God's hosts to save me
From snares of the devil,
From temptations of vices,
From every one who desires me ill,
Afar and anear,
Alone or in a multitude.
I summon today all these powers between me and evil,
Against every cruel merciless power that opposes my body and soul,
Against incantations of false prophets,
Against black laws of pagandom,
Against false laws of heretics,
Against craft of idolatry,
Against spells of women and smiths and wizards,
Against every knowledge that corrupts man's body and soul.
Christ shield me today
Against poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against wounding,
So that reward may come to me in abundance.
Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks of me,
Christ in the eye that sees me,
Christ in the ear that hears me.
I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through a belief in the Threeness,
Through a confession of the Oneness
Of the Creator of creation.

Paint a shamrock 

I found these wooden ones at the dollar store

add/glue symbols for The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit to each! 

We all know Saint Joseph as a carpenter. He was a descendant of Israel's King David. Scripture tells us that he was a just and virtuous man who was betrothed to wed the young Blessed Virgin Mary. Upon finding her pregnant with the Son of God, Joseph, after a time of uncertainty, was encouraged by an angel to continue with the marriage plans. Because of his complete faithfulness and obedience and ability to discern the will of God, St. Joseph was chosen to become the spouse of the Mother of God and the adoptive father of Jesus Christ. He was the earthly guardian and protector of the Holy Family, Saint Joseph provided and cared for the material needs of Mary and the Child Jesus. Have you ever thought about the spiritual and physical strength that Saint Joseph had to be appointed the protector and leader of the holy family!? Saint Joseph was a true manyly man created in God's image. God created man to provide and protect the family and a women to care and nurture the family. The world is mixing that up, but that is just the spirit of the world that does not belong to God. Saint Joseph is the patron saint of many causes, especially fathers, families, married couples, children, pregnant women, workers, craftsmen, against doubt, the dying, and a happy and holy death, because he died the happiest death imaginable in the arms of Jesus and Mary. He is also the guardian and protector of the Universal Church. He has two feast days: St. Joseph the Husband of Mary on March 19th, and St. Joseph the Worker on May 1st.

This is a great day to pray and consecrate ourselves to Saint Joesph. Pray this prayer together as a family! 

O Glorious Patriarch and Patron of the Church! O Virgin Spouse of the Virgin Mother of God! O Guardian and Virginal Father of the Word Incarnate! In the presence of Jesus and Mary, I choose you this day to be my father, my guardian, and my protector. 

O great St. Joseph, whom God has made the Head of the Holy Family, accept me, I beseech you, though utterly unworthy, to be a member of your “Holy House.” Present me to your Immaculate Spouse; ask her also to adopt me as her child. With her, pray that I may constantly think of Jesus, and serve him faithfully to the end of my life. O Terror of Demons, increase in me virtue, protect me from the evil one, and help me not to offend God in any way.

O my Spiritual Father, I hereby consecrate myself to you. In faithful imitation of Jesus and Mary, I place myself and all my concerns under your care and protection. To you, after Jesus and Mary, I consecrate my body and soul, with all their faculties, my spiritual growth, my home, and all my affairs and undertakings. 

Forsake me not, but adopt me as a servant and child of the Holy Family. Watch over me at all times, but especially at the hour of my death. Console and strengthen me with the presence of Jesus and Mary so that, with you, I may praise and adore the Holy Trinity for all eternity. Amen.

This book is a great and recommended pairing for this day! 

The Consecration of Saint Joseph is written by this priest, known as the surfer priest! 

If you struggle to grasp Mary, this is an excellent read as well that talks about her in such a real and attainable way. You will surely have a better understating of Mary after reading this. Not only understanding Jesus, but also the Holy family is so advantageous and necessary in our faith! Father Calloway is a refreshingly modern day honest priest that shows that we are all human, and we all sin, and we can all overcome even the darkest times in our lives! He has such an amazing story of transformation and God's redemption in His soul! It is inspirational! 

The Solemnity of the Annunciation, celebrated on March 25th, honors the profound meeting between the Archangel Gabriel and the Virgin Mary, as recorded in St. Luke's Gospel. On this day St. Gabriel announced to Mary that she would miraculously conceive a Child by the Holy Spirit, who was the long-awaited Messiah who would save mankind from their sins. This is the moment of the Blessed Virgin Mary's great fiat of perfect submission to the Divine will. This day on which the Church celebrates the Incarnation of Jesus Christ in the womb of His Blessed Mother is exactly nine months before the Feast of the Nativity on December 25th. 

Activity:

Baby Shower

Make a little get together and celebrate as you would a baby shower. Have a baby shower for Jesus. Decorate in blue. What kind of gifts, and spiritual gifts can you give Jesus and Mary!? 

The dollar store is a great place to find party supplies on a budget! 

-Blue balloons!

-"It's a boy" sign

-Blue table cloth

-A fun sweet blue treat to celebrate! 

Read the Word of God  

The Birth of Jesus Foretold (Luke 1:26-38) 

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.” “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

Baby Shower!