Guard of Honor News
October 2013
These days, we invite you to meditate (and practice!) Especially given spiritual counseling for the month by our Foundress, Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart Bernaud. Thus we find the origins of operation of the Association as it was in its infancy! Thank you for your understanding.
In the month of the Rosary, asking the Virgin Mary to us:
In the HOLY PRESENCE of GOD
What strength and in this thought: ” God, look at me! ” His paternal eye follows me everywhere, none of my actions escapes him, the slightest desires of my heart, in my humble efforts will be by him recorded… but alas, my faults, my differences, my losses are also! If I can not escape the watchful eye of God on me, how easily the remembrance of God is far away it from my memory… well there falls in our way of perfection, because that would persist in doing evil he said to himself: ” God sees me?” Constant remembrance of the divine presence is not only a preservative against sin, it is also a powerful stimulant. Many difficulties would be attenuated in our lives and many desolations be consoled if we were impregnated with this idea of faith: God is present, always ready to help me, his love behind my arms, he expects a rise to my mind, a memory of my heart… to hasten to my help and free me nets. If only we stood attentive to this divine presence, how perfectly we would accomplish our duties and the smallest acts that make up our day! A quick thought from time to time in the day, especially at the beginning of our actions and we are sure our inner gaze meets that of our Heavenly Father, this exchange will flow many blessings. When it becomes a happy habit is a need for a faithful soul to return to the intimate itself to find his God now become a familiar host of his heart. The soul then tells him all things, claims advice, sits on her breast again and does not know his strength to live outside this holy presence. During this month, make this sweet experience we are engaged and so we will experience ” the kingdom of God is within us” watching God, we will love and loving Him transform us! (Sr. Mary of the Sacred Heart Bernaud)
July 2013
Dear friends Guards of Honour
This July is not punctuated by any great solemnity. This gives us the opportunity to refocus on the essential sacrament of our faith: the Eucharist.
In 1884, our founder, Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart Bernaud had written incisive lines on the Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. I deliver this for your summer meditations:
“What the Sun, King of the stars, is in our universe that it illuminates, beautifies and makes fruitful, the Holy Mass is in the spiritual world of souls. Everything comes from this august Sacrifice, everything converges with all the graces that flow from two millennia
Christ could have consented to remain on the cross until the end of time to reach the heart of men and attract them to him by the sight of his pain, but such was not the will of his Father. It was at least a relief to the Heart of Jesus to perpetuate the sacrifice of our altars where he is our permanent victim, where he continues to redden us with his Blood and fill us with his grace while enriching us with its merits. Ah, if only we had faith! If with the eyes of our soul, we could see the Word of God incarnate again in the hands of the priest in the humble Host: What would be our impulses of love, gratitude and deep adoration!
In all latitudes, at all times, this miracle is renewed. Jesus Christ, Our Lord, extended skyward his arms, hands and feet pierced, open and bleeding heart, keeps screaming mercy for us. And God is appeased, forgives.
This is what the Mass is: a victim who glorifies God is a God who meets a God who gives thanks and begs for his ungrateful and rebellious creatures that we are. One Mass gives God more glory than all acts of virtue together, it also brings more grace to a soul than any other devotion.
How to effectively attend? As Guard of honor our place must be beside Mary near the Eucharistic Altar-the role she filled at Calvary. Standing at the foot of the Cross, she was united to the Holy Victim and its provisions, it glorified God! Offering her Son, she implored all graces, all blessing for men to become his children.
From the Sanctus until after the communion, banish unnecessary thoughts, the moment is so solemn! These minutes weigh an eternity of merit and glory, do not lose one. Spend in silence, adoration, gratitude and love. Penetrate us with this thought: the dispensation of the merits acquired at Calvary is made at each Mass each day to the faithful souls through the centuries by Jesus Christ sacrificed on the altar.
but say to God: “Father, I am insolvent to pay my debt to you, but here I go to the altar, I’ll give you your Divine Son who became my victim and on his behalf, You will free me, you’ll forgive me and bless me! “
To conclude, let us resolve to prefer the Mass over any other devotional practice and attend more often and reverently as we can! “(Sr Bernaud)
You can order the secretariat of the Honor Guard:
– The book “When the Heart of God speaks to the heart of man, Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart and the spirituality of the Guard of Honour” co-authored by P. Peyrous and G. Vines. It is priced at € 18 (+ € 2 port).
– And the 150th anniversary DVD priced at € 20 including postage (lectures, sermons, photos, video)
June 2013
Dear Guards of Honour,
After concentration on the beautiful feasts of May under the patronage of the Virgin Mary, the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus dominates the entire liturgy of June Dear to all the guards of honor, no one can imagine being a ‘guard’ and remain indifferent to the object of his commitment: the Heart that has so loved men!
This is what we remembered our founder in her “letter” of June 1886:
The Divine Support!
In our sorry time, complaints rise from the crowd of poor Christians and few find answers and consolation. Yet there is a Heart that collects the most compassionate love for this universal cry of pain: that of Jesus. He said to all but especially to his beloved Guards of honor: “Come to me, you who are weary and heavy laden, come and I will give you consolation! Come to me, you who weep and wail and I will comfort you! Come place your heart on my Heart, this Heart is powerful, it is loving, and it’s yours! “These unspeakable words are full of divine realities. On every page of the Gospels of Jesus we heard itt “as one who is thirsty come to me and drink. I am the way, the truth and the life. I am the good shepherd… etc.. “However, we remain weak and sorry! Why? Because we search for consolation and support from others, we beg a little joy, strength, a bit of courage from the poor creatures like us while yet Scripture warns us “if you press arm flesh, you press a reed that will pierce your hand “and we pull more disappointed and sorry. The Solemnity of the Sacred Heart reminds honor guards that we have a filial trust in the divine Heart. What is more precious than this teaching? It is so good to have support from the Heart of God, to be able at all times, call for help and be sure that He will always answer you. “The Lord is my refuge, my God is the support of my hope…” sings the psalmist. Yes the heart of God, the Heart of Jesus can be a strong support. Everything collapses, everything collapses around us, the strongest links are broken, legitimate support disappear, yet sincere affections decline and we are lonely: lonely mind, solitary heart, and, often, solitary body. This is why the gentle Jesus opens his Heart, offers us his Heart, gives us his Heart!
Ah, dear friends, respond to the gift of love by all confident and grateful love our poor hearts! Come to Jesus, let us turn to Him in all our sorrows, in all our doubts in all our shortcomings, “To whom shall we go, you have the words of eternal life” said the apostles. Following them, St. Margaret Mary went further: “No, a child does not die between the arms of a Father who is all powerful” and although we can add: “You alone, O Jesus, are the balm for all our pain! “
Sister Mary of the Sacred Heart Bernaud
other holidays of the month:
2 June: Solemnity of the Blessed Sacrament (Feast God) to help us further penetrate this mystery, ponder these words of St. John Chrysostom “Think of what you’re high honor, which table you participate. What the angels see trembling, they dare not contemplate freely because of the splendor that radiates, we make our food: we will unite, and with Christ we become one body and one flesh. He feeds us with His own blood, and by all means, we incorporated into Him. “
7: 1st Friday of the month AND Solemnity of the Sacred Heart * “O most loving Heart of Jesus, adorable Heart so worthy to be loved by this great love you have shown me your life, your passion and death, ignites my soul fire of your love. For this immense love that you constantly testify me staying day and night in the Eucharist, O Eucharistic Heart of Jesus, grant that I love you truly. You who reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever. So it is. “(From the Novena of the Sacred Heart, Day 7)
* We can obtain a plenary indulgence confessing us (8 days before or after the date), communing day Day and pray for the intentions of the Holy Father (I believe in God + + + Our Father Hail Mary) and any other prayer springing from our heart!
8: Solemnity of the Immaculate Heart of Mary: On this day, fleurissons our prayer corner or let us go in a church before a statue of Mary and renew our consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary: “Virgin Mary, Mother of God and our Mother We are dedicated to your Immaculate Heart to be fully available and dedicated to the Lord. For you, we will be presented to Christ, your Son, and only begotten Son of God, and through Him and with Him, to his Eternal Father. We walk in the light of faith, hope and love for the world to believe that Christ is sent by the Father that He came to us transmit speech. We too will be his messengers to do know and love to the ends of the earth. Thus, under the maternal protection of your Immaculate Heart, we are one people with Christ has won for us by his death, witnesses of his resurrection, and He offered to the Father for the glory of the Most Holy Trinity, we worship, praise and bless. So it is. “(Fatima Prayer)
11: Memory of St. Barnabas, 13 of St. Anthony of Padua…
24: Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist: He is the one who announced the coming of Christ and became small and discreet so that the figure of Jesus shine. Make our own the prayer:
“… We implore you, deign we get to walk through your glorious not to keep the faith of our fathers, zealously defend the interests of the Holy Catholic Church, and to achieve the purposes of Divine Providence in each of us, after the exile of this life, we can find ourselves in the heavenly country, there to change the praise of the eternal King of all peoples, for ever and ever.”
29: Solemnity of St Peter and St Paul: “… glorious Princes of the Apostles, St. Peter and St. Paul, who have been the first to preach the heavenly doctrine, and which have the first implementation, which you Shares have never had a reason other than the divine you, whose death was a sacrifice of obedience most generous, get us, O favored disciples of Jesus Christ, the Gospel spirit perfect obedience shows us faithful followers of your examples, made us to fulfill God’s will in everything unto death so that having faithfully followed Christ with you on earth, we can be received into heaven, to sing the victories of the Divine Mercy, which is prepared for those who are truly obedient… ” (from the Novena, Day 1)
Dear friends, many of you were present at our Jubilee of the 150th anniversary of the Honor Guard, all the Sisters of the Visitation and I thank you very much for everything that has been lived, and thanks for sharing these 5 days unforgettable! The next issue of our quarterly magazine will be devoted entirely to this event, we need your photos, your stories, send your memories or stories by mail or email! Thank you in advance: the Honor Guard is YOU ALL!
May 2013:
Dear Guards of Honor May 2013
When May arrives, it’s always like a breath of fresh air, invigorating entering the pace of our lives! We feel reborn! And this year may offer beautiful successive parties to reinvigorate our faith: Ascension, Trinity, Pentecost… that the Church invites us to live solemnly. To help us in this direction, here are a few lines wrote Sister Mary of the Sacred Heart Bernaud for honor guards:
“To understand the value of our soul and its powers, it is sufficient to remember that the three divine Persons combine to make him reach his sublime and eternal destinies. God the Creator Father, continues to keep her in assistance at all times. God the Redeemer Son has bought us at the price of his blood and we continueto drink by the channel of its sacraments. God the Holy Spirit purifier works to sanctify this world to glorify it later in heaven. In theory, we know that we have a soul, it is the most noble part of our being as created in the image of God, redeemed by Christ. Often elsewhere, our thoughts are confined only to this. We are far from suspecting that the Holy Spirit works in the supernatural work of our perfection. It is a strong and patient teacher who shapes the soul. It is the heart that speaks. This is where, speaking quietly, he instructs us, excites us, we straighten up, he directs us, strengthens us and comforts us. His anointing teaches us all things, this anointing is poured into the soul and relaxes all the springs, it is a balm that pours and perfumes. This is an attraction to the center of ourselves where the deity seat. By showing us the empty corruptible things, the Holy Spirit enriches us with real goods, those of grace!
To be heard, He calls our attention, it requires silence and sometimes loneliness “I will take my beloved in solitude and speak to her heart” little fit because few know how to be quiet and recollected.
“Listen, my daughter and give ear, said the divine Bridegroom soul to his spouse.” Yes, He wants to talk to us. And to hear, we must not be distracted or dissipated but must seriously want to keep listening. It is this desire that animates all true honor guards, then the Holy Spirit will enlighten, guide, develop every soul gathered and obedient to His grace! And as the bride of Solomon, we can say: “I hear the voice of my beloved.” (Sr M SC Bernaud 1888)
Well enjoy the beautiful days and festivals to be silent and to listen:
May 1: Saint Joseph the Worker. To us who have chosen to be present to Jesus for an hour of our daily activities, ask St. Joseph, model of perfect silence, we inspire good measure of our schedules to focus on Christ at the heart of our material obligations. Pray also for those who are desperately seeking work.
May 3: first Friday of the month dedicated to the Sacred Heart, in this month of Mary, who better than the Heart of a mother can offer our prayers to the Heart of Jesus? Model of docility to the Holy Spirit, entrust him all our intentions, our concerns and our thanksgiving!
And that same day, Saints Philip and Jacques Apostles. “Lord, said Philippe, show us the Father and it suffices us. “Jesus answered,” Philip, who sees me sees the Father. “We entrust to their intercession those who have never met Christ and do not believe in God, they encounter true witnesses of the faith and leave heckle!
May 9: Ascension. How often get up our eyes to heaven, imploring Christ, even asking for his return that “furnish” good order in our land? But if Christ ascended to Heaven, He is no less present in all the tabernacles of the world (“I am with you until the end of time”) in every Eucharist where He is close to us. He joined His Father, but He gives himself as food, it is the Bread of Life! Whoever eats this bread will never die and join Christ in heaven!
May 13: Our Lady of Fatima. 13 May 1917, the Virgin Mary appeared to three shepherd children, Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta, she asks them to do penance and especially to pray the Rosary, where the institution of the Month of Mary in May. To honor Mary, several times in the day, we can recite the invocation She taught the children: “O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and drive all the sky souls, especially those in most need of Thy mercy.”
May 14: Saint Matthias. Replacing Judas, having received the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, he devoted the rest of his life preaching the Gospel and died a martyr in Palestine. Ask her missionary enthusiasm, be it around us, in our communities!
May 19: Pentecost. Jesus promised that He sends His Spirit gives courage and vigor to proclaim the Gospel. Nothing gets by force, but by the ardor of faith and a great love that embraces and fills apostolic zeal! Ask the Holy Spirit to warm our warm, sad, or frightened hearts Spirit, become witnesses of Christ! Come Holy Spirit, come!
May 22: Saint Rita (1381-1457) mystic, meditating on the Passion of Jesus every day, it is “the saint of lost causes.” Although we can entrust all our most legitimate concerns but we can also ask him to intercede for our faith grow!
May 26: Holy Trinity: “Glory to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit…” How many times do we say this without even taking the time to think about Unit three distinct persons and yet not do that a? What wealth for us believers to know that when speaking to one, each receives our prayer! Love a thrice holy! As we teach the founder, we might say today “Glory to the Father who created us, the Son who redeemed us and the Holy Spirit who sanctifies us! “
May 30: Saint Joan of Arc (1414-1431) Joan of Arc secondary patroness of France. Let us pray fervently for the French found the true meaning of the Gospel values so that our country regains its title as the eldest daughter of the Church, model of hope and faith in a world losing fundamental benchmarks.
May 31: The Visitation: Mary, you brought your comfort your cousin Elizabeth, give each of us to accomplish daily gestures of love, charity, meekness and reconciliation in our families, all is testimony of love and manifestation of our faith in Jesus Christ!
We commend to your prayers our largest international gathering of the 150th anniversary will be held from 8 to 12 May and for honor guards who could not join us, we assure you of our own.
The book “When the Heart of God speaks to the heart of man, Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart and the spirituality of the Guard of Honour” co-written by Father B. Peyrous and Genevieve Vineyards has been published. It will be available mid-May at a price of 18 € (175 pages) at the Monastery of the Visitation at Paray le Monial or head of the Guard of Honor.
Beautiful month of May to all!
United in prayer with you all,
For the Secretariat, Geneviève.
April 2013:
New Guard of Honor Centers opening in the Diocese of Mans, France and in the nation of Burkina-Faso.
There are 42 Centers in France and hundreds around the world in 26 countries!
In Paray Le Monial- 516 new Guard of Honor members in 2012!
New Book: Quand le Coeur de Dieu parle au Coeur de l’Homme: Soeur Marie du sacre Coeur et la spiritualite de la Garde d’Honneur
by Bernard Peyrous and Genevieve Vignes
available May 2013 in Paray le Monial