Dear Friends,
As many of you know, the United States is a nation facing a serious identity crisis. The upcoming election will likely determine whether or not the Catholic faith — and the faith of all of our brothers and sisters in Christ — will be more or significantly less welcome in a country whose essence was formed out of the fight for religious freedom.
Our worldwide EWTN family will soon begin a novena invoking Mary’s intercession for the Lord's special grace to be poured out upon the United States.
Please join with us and our friends around the world in prayer for a clear and unequivocal return to the devoted and hope-filled aspiration of our founding fathers: the freedom to live and worship as our conscience dictates.
The novena can be found below and will also be featured in the current issue of the National Catholic Register print edition:
Please share this with your friends and family — and ask all who claim the name of Christ to join us in this prayerful battle for our nation’s future.
Here’s more from EWTN:
"Novena to the Mother of God for the Nation"
Bishops to Lead Novena Prayers on Network
EWTN Global Catholic Network has collaborated with one of the pre-eminent Marian theologians in the U.S. on the creation of a new "Novena to the Mother of God for the Nation." Fr. Frederick Miller, Chair of the Department of Systematic Theology at Mount St. Mary's Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., composed the meditations and prayers which invoke Mary's intercession for our nation. The Novena will be prayed publicly beginning on the Feast of the Archangels, Saturday, September 29th through Oct. 7th, the Feast of the Most Holy Rosary,
"Catholics have always turned instinctively for help to the Mother of God in times of need," says Fr. Miller, "And so, in 2012, we turn to Our Lady for help. Many of the values that have shaped our country from the beginning seem to be at risk. Pope Benedict XVI and the American Bishops have noted the erosion of religious freedom, the first value guaranteed by the Constitution. This novena challenges all of us to a deeper conversion to Christ and a more generous life of charity. The proximity of this novena to the 2012 Presidential Election also offers an opportunity to pray for all of our government officials and to seek Divine assistance in the election."
The Novena is available in both English and Spanish and can be downloaded for free from EWTN's Novena website at www.religiousliberties.org/novena. "This is a critical time for our nation," said Michael P. Warsaw, President and Chief Executive Officer of EWTN. "My hope is that as many people as possible will obtain a copy of this powerful Novena and join together in prayer. I also hope that people will spread the word about this important devotion to their friends and neighbors, prayer groups and parishes and in every way possible."
During the Novena, leading bishops from across the nation will be celebrating the televised Mass from Our Lady of the Angels Chapel in Irondale, Alabama at 8 a.m. ET each day. Each bishop will deliver a homily highlighting the importance of prayer in the fight for religious liberty and will lead the novena prayers for that day. Celebrants will include Most Rev. James D. Conley, Bishop-designate of Lincoln (Neb.), who will open the novena; Kansas City Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann; Mobile (Ala.) Archbishop Thomas J. Rodi; Philadelphia Archbishop Charles J. Chaput; and Birmingham (Ala.) Bishop Robert J. Baker, who will close the novena.
"Catholics have always turned instinctively for help to the Mother of God in times of need," says Fr. Miller, "And so, in 2012, we turn to Our Lady for help. Many of the values that have shaped our country from the beginning seem to be at risk. Pope Benedict XVI and the American Bishops have noted the erosion of religious freedom, the first value guaranteed by the Constitution. This novena challenges all of us to a deeper conversion to Christ and a more generous life of charity. The proximity of this novena to the 2012 Presidential Election also offers an opportunity to pray for all of our government officials and to seek Divine assistance in the election."
The Novena is available in both English and Spanish and can be downloaded for free from EWTN's Novena website at www.religiousliberties.org/novena. "This is a critical time for our nation," said Michael P. Warsaw, President and Chief Executive Officer of EWTN. "My hope is that as many people as possible will obtain a copy of this powerful Novena and join together in prayer. I also hope that people will spread the word about this important devotion to their friends and neighbors, prayer groups and parishes and in every way possible."
During the Novena, leading bishops from across the nation will be celebrating the televised Mass from Our Lady of the Angels Chapel in Irondale, Alabama at 8 a.m. ET each day. Each bishop will deliver a homily highlighting the importance of prayer in the fight for religious liberty and will lead the novena prayers for that day. Celebrants will include Most Rev. James D. Conley, Bishop-designate of Lincoln (Neb.), who will open the novena; Kansas City Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann; Mobile (Ala.) Archbishop Thomas J. Rodi; Philadelphia Archbishop Charles J. Chaput; and Birmingham (Ala.) Bishop Robert J. Baker, who will close the novena.
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The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski
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