Welcome dear friends in Christ Jesus, to the Novena to Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. This Novena is dedicated to the Peace between Israel and the Muslim Countries. Amen. God Bless over 6 million Jews and other persons who died by hatred and ignorance in World War II, Amen. Novena to Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein). Preface. The novena was composed by Elias Friedman, O.C.D., founder of the Association of Hebrew Catholics (AHC), who recommends it to all devotees of Saint Edith. The most suitable time to observe it would be for Her Feast Day, in annual remembrance of the days spent by our saintly martyr in the death train, accompanied by her sister, Rosa, and many other Hebrew Catholics, on the way to the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau. We present the Novena to the public, hoping thus to further devotion to our holy Carmelite and as a model for Hebrew Catholic’s to imitate. Edith Stein offered herself, like Jesus, our Lord and Messiah, as a victim of expiation for the redemption of her people and of mankind. May our efforts hasten the day when all Israel shall proclaim: Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord (Baruch haba beShem Adonai) David Moss, President Association of Hebrew Catholics ------ Novena – Day 4, Mon. Aug. 3-4, 1942 esiconscan1aNovena to Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein). Day 4 – Monday, August 3rd to August 4th, 1942 At the Amersfoort transit-camp. When the vans reached the camp, they emptied their passengers who were taken over by the S.S. guards. These began to drive them, cursing and swearing, beating them on their backs with their truncheons, into a hut where they were to pass the night without having had a meal. The hut was divided into two sections, one for men, one for women. It was separated from the main lager by a barbed-wire fence. Altogether, the lager held at that moment, about three hundred men, women and children. The beds were iron frames arranged in a double tier, without mattresses of any kind. Our prisoners threw themselves on the bare springs trying to snatch a few minutes sleep; but few slept that night, if only because the guards kept switching the lights off and on, from time to time, as a precaution against attempts to escape, which was next to impossible in any case. Their cold harsh voices filled the prisoners with anxiety about the future and, in these circumstances, it is anxiety which can turn a prison into a hell on earth. The religious grouped themselves spontaneously into a little community which regarded Saint Edith as its Superior, so unquestionable was the ascendancy of her spirit. Arrangements were made to recite the Breviary, the Rosary and to meditate. A copy of the Imitation of Christ which had been smuggled into the camp provided matter for meditation. The Confiteor was sung daily, despite the catcalls of the guards. The two Trappist priests were unable to celebrate Holy Mass and distribute Holy Communion at Amersfoort; but they heard confessions and did what they could to redress the morale of the internees, shaken by the sudden change in their fortunes. Their presence was a blessing, all the more so, since it was generally felt that the journey was a ‘journey to heaven’ as one Sister put it; for them their would be no return. On one occasion, the guards stood the two Trappist Fathers against a wall and pointed their guns at them, in the presence of the Sisters — all for a joke. The prisoners were resigned to their fate; no one criticized the Dutch Bishops for the pastoral letter, the publication of which was the immediate cause of their distress, for no one knew whether there were not other causes at work. Twice a day the prisoners were granted a respite; they were allowed to walk around inside their barbed-wire enclosure for ten to fifteen minutes under the watchful eyes of their German guards. The hygienic facilities in the camp can be left to the imagination. The guards forced them to stand for hours waiting for the roll-call to take place. One starving internee picked up a piece of dry bread that had been thrown away; for the ‘theft’, the entire camp was punished by being made to stand for hours on end in the barracks-square, until they began to drop down from sheer exhaustion. It was the signal for a series of kickings and beatings as the guards tried to force their prisoners onto their feet again. Gospel Readings. “You will then be handed over for punishment and execution and men of all nations will hate you for your allegiance to me.” Matthew 24:9 “Jesus was led off under arrest to the house of Caiaphas the High Priest, where the lawyers and elders were assembled … The chief priests and the whole Council tried to find some allegation against Jesus on which a death-sentence could be based, but they failed to find one … The High Priest tore his robes and exclaimed, ‘Blasphemy! Need we call further witnesses? You have heard the blasphemy. What is your opinion?’ ‘He is guilty,’ they answered; ‘he should die.’ Then they spat in his face and beat him with their fists.” Matthew 26:57 “The men who were guarding Jesus mocked him. They beat him, they blindfolded him and they kept asking him, ‘Now, prophet, who hit you? Tell us that.’ And so they went on, heaping insults upon him.” Luke 22: 63-65 “Herod and his troops treated him with contempt and ridicule.” Luke 23:11 Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be (Any suitable prayer may be said here). Saint Edith, Pray For Us! ----------- Prayers to Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein) Patroness of Europe; loss of parents; martyrs Lord, God of our fathers, you brought Saint Teresa Benedicta to the fullness of the science of the cross at the hour of her martyrdom. Fill us with that same knowledge; and, through her intercession, allow us always to seek after you, the supreme truth, and to remain faithful until death to the covenant of love ratified in the blood of your Son for the salvation of all men and women. We ask this through Christ, our Lord. Amen. Novena to The Holy Spirit. by Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. Who are You, sweet Light, that fills me And illumines the darkness of my heart? You lead me like a mothers hand, And should You let go of me, I would not know how to take another step. You are the space That embraces my being and buries it in Yourself. Away from You it sinks into the abyss Of nothingness, from which You raised it to the light. You, nearer to me than I to myself And more interior than my most interior And still impalpable and intangible And beyond any name: Holy Spirit eternal love! Are You not the sweet manna That from the Sons heart Overflows into my heart, The food of angels and the blessed? He Who raised Himself from death to life, He has also awakened me to new life From the sleep of death. And He gives me new life from day to day, And at some time His fullness is to stream through me, Life of Your life indeed, You Yourself: Holy Spirit eternal life! Are you the ray That flashes down from the eternal Judges throne And breaks into the night of the soul That had never known itself? Mercifully relentlessly It penetrates hidden folds. Alarmed at seeing itself, The self makes space for holy fear, The beginning of that wisdom That comes from on high And anchors us firmly in the heights, Your action, That creates us anew: Holy Spirit ray that penetrates everything! Are You the Spirits fullness and the power By which the Lamb releases the seal Of Gods eternal decree? Driven by You The messengers of judgment ride through the world And separate with a sharp sword The kingdom of light from the kingdom of night. Then heaven becomes new and new the earth, And all finds its proper place Through your breath: Holy Spirit victorious power! Are You the master Who builds the eternal cathedral, Which towers from the earth through the heavens? Animated by You, the columns are raised high And stand immovably firm. Marked with the eternal name of God, They stretch up to the light, Bearing the dome, Which crowns the holy cathedral, Your work that encircles the world: Holy Spirit Gods molding hand! Are You the one who created the unclouded mirror Next to the Almightys throne, Like a crystal sea, In which Divinity lovingly looks at itself? You bend over the fairest work of Your creation, And radiantly Your own gaze Is illumined in return. And of all creatures the pure beauty Is joined in one in the dear form Of the Virgin, Your immaculate bride: Holy Spirit Creator of all! Are You the sweet song of love And of holy awe That eternally resounds around the triune throne, That weds in itself the clear chimes of each and every being? The harmony, That joins together the members to the Head, In which each One Finds the mysterious meaning of Hhis being blessed And joyously surges forth, Freely dissolved in Your surging: Holy Spirit eternal jubilation! Saint Teresa Benedicta is a Beloved Saint of mine, One of my personal Favorites. She Gave Her Life for Jesus and for the Love of Her Jewish People. She Loved, Honored and Admired Saint Teresa of Avila, so much that She Changed Her Life Around for Jesus. Saint Teresa Benedicta of Cross, Pray for the Conversion of the World. Because You were the Victim of Hatred in Wars, the evil men took away Your Life, but Your Soul is with God our Father, Amen. God Bless us all :-)
Posted on: Tue, 05 Aug 2014 16:34:39 +0000