HOPE -

VIRTUE FOR FEBRUARY

“Hope is the theological virtue by which we desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our happiness, placing our trust in Christ’s promises and relying not on our own strength, but on the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit.” Catechism of the Catholic Church (1817)

“The virtue of hope responds to the aspiration to happiness which God has placed in the heart of every man; it takes up the hopes that inspire men’s activities and purifies them so as to order them to the Kingdom of heaven; it keeps man from discouragement; it sustains him during times of abandonment; it opens up his heart in expectation of eternal beatitude. Buoyed up by hope, he is preserved from selfishness and led to the happiness that flows from charity.” C.C.C. (1818)

Scripture verses for February

Let us put on the breastplate of faith and charity, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. 1Thessalonians 5:8

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:12-13

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:12-13

Ejaculatory prayers for the month

Sacred Heart of Jesus, I trust in Thee.

Sacred Heart of Jesus, I trust and hope in Thee.

Prayer

O Lord Jesus Christ, Redeemer of the world, Thou who didst ask faith and confidence from all the sick and sore distressed and didst grant to each one according to his faith, grant me the grace of an unshakable hope and confidence in Thee. Let me remember that since Thou didst die for me, there is no good thing Thou wilt ever deny me if only I trust in Thee always.

Relying on Thy merits and the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary I firmly hope for the pardon of my sins, the help of Thy grace, and life everlasting. In difficulties, in desolations, in anxieties and trials, make me content to be deprived of all human help and consolation and to be dependent wholly on Thee.

Make me remember my weakness and distrust myself so that I shall ever seek Thy help in prayer. Help me to learn that nothing in life I worth possessing if the cost means separation from Thee. Permit me, in the hour of death, to say with all the confidence of Thy saints and martyrs: “In Thee, O lord, have I hoped; I shall not be confounded forever.”

(Examination of Conscience for Adults by Rev. Donald F. Miller, C.SS.R.)