Author: momthingsthroughchrist

Book review: Bless My Child: A Catholic Mother’s Prayer Book

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Bless My Child: A Catholic Mother’s Prayer Book
Julie Cragon
Cover art: Rose Walton
ISBN-10: 1594710147
ISBN-13: 978-1594710148
UPC: 033500021060

This book review is on a book of prayers for Moms! I actually bought it for myself while I was pregnant, having discovered it when I purchased the grandparents’ version as a gift to my own mother in celebration of her first grandchild. There is a lot of overlap between the two, but I don’t think it hurts to have more than one person praying for the same thing!

This thoughtful collection of prayers can be used for many stages of your child’s life, from gestation into adulthood, including for the sacraments!

The prayers themselves are quite modest in their language, without pretense or ostentation (haha, the irony of this review!), and seem to have been written from the heart. They relate to our daily parenting life, the joys, struggles, milestones, and everything in between, and they resonate well with the yearnings of a mother’s heart – some have definitely brought a tear to my eye! Perhaps the best thing about this book is that it also reminds us to pray for ourselves as moms, asking for God’s help and guidance in raising our little saints.

I acknowledge that it is difficult to write prayers for an individual without knowing their gender (that he/she can get a bit clunky and impersonal!). Cragon’s prayers address this by cycling through the use of masculine and feminine pronouns, so some prayers are written using he/him, and other prayers with she/her, but can be prayed for a child of either sex. This may be a stumbling block to some, but I find it easy enough to replace pronouns that didn’t apply with the appropriate ones for my child – I simply think about my child while I read each prayer, and correct as I go along.

There is a Catholic spin on it, hence the title. This is mainly because of the prayers written for receiving the sacraments, as I mentioned earlier. There are also prayers to patron saints of various issues our children may encounter on life’s journey, though neither of these are strictly Catholic things. Aside from these categories of prayer, the book contains many other prayers that could be applied to parents across denominations.

I have the paperback edition, although it is also available as an e-book for Kindle. The satin finish book cover has a sleek feel to it, with just enough grip to be easily held. The paperback book itself is fairly light, and isn’t too big, so it won’t take up too much space on your bedside table or in your bag.

This prayer book would make a great addition to any Catholic mother’s repertoire! It would be a touching gift for any faith-filled mother to celebrate a pregnancy, new birth, baptism, or just because!

Until next time, let’s pray for each other. And remember, we can do Mom things through Christ who strengthens us!

Reflections on Parenting: Prayers for patience

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As parents, how many times are we taught the virtue of patience? I remember hearing a homily once with the basic message of “be careful what you ask for”, because usually, if you ask for more patience, God, in His wisdom, will give you opportunities to practice patience!

Still, it’s so important for us to grow in patience. With our children, because they need it, and in all other times, because God calls us to it!

Do you pray for help when parenting gets challenging (and when you find yourself getting impatient at other times)? Any favourite prayers? I’d love to read them in the comments!

My personal go-to seems to be “God help me”, usually uttered under my breath right in the moment. There are, however, many more prayers for patience, some simple, some more complex, depending on the situation. Below are some prayers for when you need a little help keeping calm and patience.

For the virtue of patience

Come Holy Spirit, and grant me the virtue of patience.

Lord, may your patience

Lord, may your patience with me be a motivation and a source of growth in my patience with others.

The Serenity Prayer

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.

Teach me, my Lord, to be sweet and gentle in all the events of my life, in disappointments, in the thoughtlessness of others, in the insincerity of those I trusted, in the unfaithfulness of those on whom I relied.

Let me forget myself so that I may enjoy the happiness of others. Let me always hide my little pains and heartaches so that I may be the only one to suffer from them. Teach me to profit by the suffering that comes across my path. Let me so use it that it may mellow me, not harden or embitter me; that it may make me patient, not irritable; that it may make me broad in my forgiveness, not narrow or proud or overbearing.

May no one be less good for having come within my influence; no one less pure, less true, less kind, less noble, for having been a fellow traveler with me on our journey towards eternal life.

As I meet with one cross after another, let me whisper a word of love to You. May my life be lived in the supernatural, full of power for good, and strong in its purpose of sanctity. Amen

Prayer to Our Lady of Consolation

Blessed Mary, Mother of Consolation, pray with me for the virtue of patience. There are so many times when my lack of patience keeps me from becoming the kind of person God wants me to be.

Guide my thoughts to you and the example we have in your own life. Help me to become patient, as you were patient. Through your guidance, may I become more accepting of others around me. Assist me to welcome difficult times with a patient heart.

May I be patient, Mary, as was your beloved husband, Joseph. His quiet acceptance of the will of Our Loving Father should be an example for me always. His patience was most wonderful in the eyes of God.

Pray for me, dear Mother of God, that I will allow the Father to come into my heart and help me grow in patience. Amen.

From the Basilica and National Shrine of Our Lady of Consolation, Carey, OH

Hope these can be helpful for you! Until next time, let’s pray for each other. And remember, we can do Mom things through Christ who strengthens us!

Joys of the week: July 1-8

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These weekly reviews always sneak up on me… how do they come so often?! Anyway. Let me kick us off.

Our baby started walking! Still a few tumbles here and there, but it’s enough steps to stop counting. It’s so bittersweet… but if I cut myself out of the picture, I’m happy that bub is getting more independent and gradually spreading those wings! I’m so wary that I’ll blink and it’ll be time to head off to college, but that’sgoing to be another (bittersweet) joy for another day.

I bought matching summer swimwear for the whole family this week. Usually I don’t like to match (and often avoid matching with my husband!), but these outfits have a fun citrusy summer vibe, so I’m actually excited to wear them together! It was a bit tricky, as I had bought hubby’s swim trunks online and had to go to the ohysical stores to see if they had anything in my size that would work… and they did! We even got a matchy picnic blanket!

I got off the waitlist and onto the real list for a dance event! It’s not for a few months, but I have been looking for opportunities to up my dance, and I am glad to be going! I’m pleasantly surprised at the level I was put in, as well! Feeling a little rusty at present, but there are a few opportunities between now and then, where hopefully I will be able to dust off the cobwebs and get back into it.

Let me know what your joys have been this week – I’d love for us to celebrate one another’s little victories and give thanks to the Father! Until next time, let’s pray for each other. And remember, we can do Mom things through Christ who strengthens us!

Saint of the Month: St Ignatius of Loyola

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St Ignatius of Loyola
Feast day: July 31
Patron of Dioceses of San Sebastian and Bilbao, Biscay & Gipuzkoa, Basque Country, Military Ordinariate of the Philippines, Society of Jesus, Soldiers, Educators and Education.

This month, we celebrate St Ignatius of Loyola. The founder of the Jesuit order, which was important in the wake of the Reformation, he is patron of a number of communities and educational institutions throughout Spain and the Philippines, and well-known Loyola University in Baltimore MD, educators/education in general, soldiers and spiritual retreats, as well as the order he founded (SJ).

I chose to look at St Ignatius of Loyola this month because I think his Imaginative Prayer, or Ignatian Contemplation, is something we can introduce to our little ones to get them praying about the Gospels. This form of prayer lends itself so well to young minds!

I would introduce it by saying something like, “today we’re going to be in a Bible story! We’ll read it together first, and then pretend we are part of it to imagine what it might have been like for us personally”

Below is a description of how to engage in imaginative prayer.

  1. Choose a bible story – one that really has a story feel. Probably not from anything like Leviticus, Psalms, Proverbs, or the Epistles. Children’s Bibles are a great resource for this, as they tend to be much more story-oriented. There are also a few audio and a video contemplations on this website (you’ll have to scroll down a little to get to the good stuff).
  2. Ask for the guidance of the Holy Spirit as you join in the story
  3. One person reads through the story aloud in prayer
  4. Act out the story using prompts, or for older children (or yourself!), you can simply have some silent prayer thinking about the story (in traditional Ignatian contemplation, you might choose a character or an object in the story and think about experiencing the story from their point of view) and then discuss it. It is important to consider what message God is sending them through this exercise.
  5. Read the story aloud again, but this time, ask your children to bear in mind (or act out) the new details they were able to see from the imaginative time.

Try it out and let me know how it goes!

St Ignatius of Loyola, pray for us!

Until next time, let’s pray for each other. And remember, we can do Mom things through Christ who strengthens us!

Monthly Devotion: the Precious Blood

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The month of July is dedicated to the Precious Blood.

There are so many things that I could say about this, but I think I’d like to focus on the life-giving aspect of blood.

The Jewish faith, which is the early basis of our Catholic faith, holds that the life is in the blood and God gave it to make atonement through sacrifice (Leviticus 17:11). This is the context into which Jesus entered our world as God’s word incarnate, and gave Himself as the ultimate sacrifice. The significance of blood throughout the Old Testament is vital (no pun intended), and it prefigures Christ’s sacrifice, which carries that same significance. Perhaps that’s something to dive deeper into in a future post, though. Today, I’d like to look at the role of the blood in motherhood and what it can reveal to us about Christ’s Precious Blood.

When I think about blood specifically as it pertains to motherhood, there are two functions that stand out:

  1. As women, we bleed monthly (more or less). This blood is what forms the lining of the uterus. It is usually replaced at the beginning of each cycle, but that uterine blood is retained if a woman falls pregnant. The new baby, which at this point consists of a fertilised egg, is implanted into this cushion of blood, which surrounds the new life as it continues to develop inside the womb. The very beginnings of every human life require blood – blood that is not theirs.
  2. After the baby is born, many mothers take up breastfeeding. In this process, the milk is made from their blood, and for newborns, this milk contains all the nutrients required for growth and development, and even anitbodies that can help protect them from some diseases. Mothers give of their own blood in order to continue to sustain their dependent infants and help them grow.

The life-giving graces we obtain through the spilling of the Precious Blood of our Lord are elevated above our human understanding of blood, but in my reflection on this subject, a couple of parallels have emerged for me.

Jesus’ blood is necessary for us to partake in new life, just as the lining of the uterus provides the environment needed for a new baby’s life to take hold. The zygote is implanted, literally buried in this lining, so it is completely covered by it. In the lining, it is protected and begins to grow. Had Christ’s Precious Blood not been shed on the cross, we would not be washed before God and adopted into His family. His blood is on us and on our children (Mt 27:25), covering us and making it possible for us to begin our lives as God’s children.

Then, like the nourishment a baby receives from breastmilk, the blood of Jesus which we receive each time we partake in the Eucharist (who is present in body, blood, soul, and divinity no matter if the form is under the appearance of bread or wine), is spiritual nourishment. I find Christ’s title of “Good Pelican” to be particularly poignant in this regard. When there is insufficient food for her babies, a mother pelican will use her beak to take parts of her own flesh to feed to them and help them grow – though extreme, it is similar to how breastfeeding works, and is also analogous to the Lord’s own sacrifice of self. Through the gift of the Eucharist, we receive Jesus, and He takes us to Himself to change our hearts little by little, helping us attain spiritual growth. The Eucharist also provides a protective factor. You see, much like the antibodies in breastmilk can help babies fight off illness, the Eucharist washes away venial sins, helping to heal our souls of spiritual ills.

Anyway, these are just some musings, but I hope they can help us to appreciate the life we receive through the precious blood of Jesus in a new way.

Have you noticed any other parallels when it comes to the Precious Blood? Let me know your thoughts!

Until next time, let’s pray for each other. And remember, we can do Mom things through Christ who strengthens us!

Joys of the Week: June 25-July 1

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Wow, how is it already July? Time seems to move faster every day! Well, time to take stock and give thanks for another week. Let me know your joys in the comments so we can rejoice with one another and praise God for His goodness!

We have had some good news on the health front for our baby, which has been a long (and stressful) time coming! Over the last several months, we’ve sought professional help and implemented the suggestions and I am so grateful for the blessings God has given us on this path. So glad we’ve finally found what works!

My parents will be visiting us soon and I managed to find them a place to stay not far from us (unfortunately we don’t have space to host). I am getting excited about it, because it’s been over a year since I last saw them.

I have been struggling spiritually the last few weeks… I didn’t realise, but I had committed to so much that I was experiencing spiritual burnout! I just fell into a hole and could not manage to pull myself out. How ironic with my recent post about self-care! But by God’s grace, and thanks to the prayers of probably a dozen people, He has empowered me to pick myself up, dust myself off, and once again continue to follow Him, perhaps with less productivity, but with no less zeal and love.

Looking forward to sharing the joys – please leave yours down below! Until next time, let’s pray for each other. And remember, we can do Mom things through Christ who strengthens us!

July Prayers

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As the month draws to a close, it’s time to start a new prayer thread. Just like last time, simply leave your prayer requests in the comment section! I will come back throughout the month to see if there are any new prayers I need to add to my personal prayer list, so even if it comes up a few weeks from now, just come back to this post and pop it in and know I’ll pray for you! Since this is about community-building, I would ask that you keep everyone else who comments in your own prayers too, along with Pope Francis’ prayer intention for July which is:

July: for a Eucharistic life

We pray that Catholics may place the celebration of the Eucharist at the heart of their lives, transforming human relationships in a very deep way and opening to the encounter with God and all their brothers and sisters.

I can’t wait for you to see next week’s monthly devotion post to find out why this is so apt! 

Thanks for being part of this community and for your prayers. I truly believe it’s the most you can do, even (and especially) when you alone can do nothing.

Until next time, let’s pray for each other. And remember, we can do Mom things through Christ who strengthens us!

A little prayer: The Five Finger Prayer

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As Catholics, we are called to be the primary teachers of prayer to our children (CCC 2685, 2694). But if we didn’t grow up in a culture of prayer, it can be difficult to know how to do this or what to pass on to our children. So, I’m using this platform to share prayer ideas we can incorporate in our family prayer life!

Today’s prayer is The Five Finger Prayer. Technically speaking, it isn’t a prayer in itself, but more of a formula on how to pray. A big thank you to Monica from Arma Dei for sharing the poem above. She wrote it based on the Five Finger Prayer, and it’s very helpful for remembering how to pray for personal intentions. It is one of the many beautiful traditions you can find in the book, A Treasure Chest of Traditions for Catholic Families, and you can purchase a copy here! Not an affiliate link, just something I wanted to share!

It’s in the infographic above, but here it is in text only, so it’s a little easier to read:

First, My thumb, nearest to me:
I pray for my friends and family.
Next my pointer: I pray for my teacher,
My doctor, my dentist, my priest and preacher.
Next, my third, my finger most tall:
I pray for our leaders who guide us all.
Next, my fourth, my finger most weak:
I pray for the sick, poor, young, old and meek.
Now, the pinkie, the LAST and the small:
I pray for these others, then me last of all!

I like this prayer because it helps us remember the different people who need our prayers, those who we love and who help and guide us through life, and it helps us put ourselves after others. Of course, even though this prayer leads us to consider other people, this generally tends to remain a request prayer, so we should be mindful to also incorporate praise, thanksgiving, and repentance through other prayers.

Have you used the five finger prayer before? How did it go? Do you have any suggestions for its use? Please share in the comments!

Until next time, let’s pray for each other. And remember, we can do Mom things through Christ who strengthens us!

Meat-free Friday recipe: green mango and chickpea salad with garlic prawn skewers

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Again, no life story here, just a fresh summer salad meal that’s perfect for entertaining Catholics and non-Catholics alike on any given Friday! I’ll just add that the shrimp make this a celebratory kind of Friday unless you can grab those shrimp on sale. Let’s try to exercise austerity in remembrance of Christ’s suffering. Otherwise, you could always skip the shrimp and just do the salad with a little extra protein (I like to use the age-old staple of canned tuna, or you could serve some crispy fried tofu on the side for a little crunch!).

Materials:

  • 2 small bowls
  • Medium bowl
  • Skewers
  • Watertight jar
  • Large bowl

Ingredients:

  • 1 small red onion, finely diced
  • 3 tbsp white vinegar
  • 1 tsp white sugar
  • 1 pound large shrimp, shelled, tails on
  • ¼ c + 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tbsp fresh cilantro, finely chopped
  • 2 tbsp + ¼ c fresh flat parsley, finely chopped
  • 2 tbsp tarragon, finely chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic + 1 small clove garlic, minced
  • 1 tbsp + 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Cayenne pepper powder (optional, to taste)
  • 1 tbsp garlic powder (optional)
  • 2c chickpeas (if canned, drain)
  • 1 small green mango, julienned
  • 1 cayenne chilli, thinly sliced on the bias (optional and/or remove seeds/membranes to decrease heat as desired – the more seeds you keep, the hotter it will be)
  • 1 large lebanese cucumber, diced
  • 1 small yellow or orange bell pepper, diced
  • 1c cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
  • 1 large handful parsley, roughly chopped
  • 1 large firm but ripe avocado, diced
  • ½ tsp Dijon mustard

Prep:

For the pickled onion (can be done ahead of time):

  • Place onion, white vinegar and sugar into a small bowl and mix. Let sit at least 30 minutes then strain

For the Garlic Shrimp:

  • Whisk together ¼ c olive oil, cilantro, 2 tbsp parsley, tarragon, 4 cloves of garlic, 1 tbsp lemon juice, cayenne pepper powder (optional), a generous pinch of salt, and a sprinkle of pepper in a medium bowl.
  • Set aside about a quarter of the mixture in a small bowl.
  • Add the shrimp to the remaining mixture in the medium bowl, cover, and let sit at least 30 minutes.
  • Thread the shrimp onto the skewers, making sure to get a bunch of the garlic and herbs on each shrimp skewer, and if you like, dust with garlic powder for an extra garlic kick.

For the dressing:

  • Into a jar, pour the lemon juice, garlic, mustard, oil, and season with salt and pepper.
  • Close the lid tightly and shake well. Add thyme leaves (if desired) and lightly swirl.

Instructions:

  • On a grill or grilling pan heated to medium high heat, cook shrimp skewers, about 2 minutes each side. Once all skewers have been cooked, dress with remaining herby garlic mix.
  • In a large bowl, mix together pickled onion, chickpeas, mango, cayenne pepper (optional), cucumber, bell pepper, tomatoes and parsley.
  • Pour dressing over the mix as desired, and toss.
  • Add avocado and gently toss.
  • Enjoy!

I’m interested to know what you thought, so please let me know in the comments! Same goes if you made any changes you’d like to share!

Until next time, let’s pray for each other. And remember, we can do Mom things through Christ who strengthens us!

Joys of the Week: June 11-17

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What a week it has been! You’ll have to excuse the late joys post; the little one is going through a rough patch, so this short post has literally taken me days to write up!

We started with my baby’s birthday party and that was so good on so many counts! A day of joy, despite all the stress in the lead-up and the tiredness in the aftermath.

We went on a neighborhood walk and met a baby who lives a few doors down and whose birthday is the day before our baby’s! We even had a playdate with them! We had fun and we hope to see them again soon!

Our family had a few moments after the Saturday Vigil Mass to socialise with some of the parishioners, which was lovely. We learned that the stained glass windows in our church were entirely done by local volunteers as a gift to the parish didn’t – it took ten years of planning!

So now it’s your turn. What were some of your joys (from last week!)?