VERY SPECIAL DELIVERY

May the Lord open up
the windows of heaven
and pour you a blessing
that you will not have room
enough to receive it all.

May the Lord bless
you exceedingly and abundantly,
above all you could ever hope for.

May the Lord bless you
that you may walk in a
financial overflow.

May you fall in love with him
for the rest of your days
in the Name of Jesus.
Amen!

All you do is.. Send this on !

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May 22nd - St. Rita of Cascia

Rita Lotti was born in 1381 in the tiny hamlet of Roccaporena, near Cascia,
in the Province of Umbria, Italy. Her parents Antonio and Amata looked upon
their only child as a very special gift from God since she was born to them
as they were already getting on in years.

The Lottis were a devout Christian couple, offering their daughter the
witness of strong faith in God and a practical example of Gospel living,
especially in their role as official peacemakers or reconcilers among their
fellow citizens. It should not have been surprising then that Rita, who
shared her parents strong faith and religious devotion, would have desired
to dedicate her life to God as a nun. Unexpected, rather, was the response
of Antonio and Amata, who preferred to see Rita married, and who, in fact,
had arranged a suitable husband for her.

Though initially disappointed, Rita understood this choice to be the
expression of God's will for her and so she consented. Both the civil and
ecclesiastical climates at the time were not healthy ones - frequent
conflicts and family rivalries were routinely settled by the rule of
vendetta on the social level - and the scandal of antipopes and their rival
bishops dominated the life of the Church. The only child of aging parents
would have been far safer under the protection of a good husband, they
thought, than she would be behind the unguarded walls of a convent.

Thus Rita was married to Paolo Mancini, a good man though of strong and
impetuous character. Their marriage was blessed with two sons, perhaps
twins, and Rita's days were soon filled with the typical concerns of wife,
mother and housekeeper, while Paolo was employed as a watchman for the town.
As a minor civil servant, Paolo often found himself drawn into the conflicts
that existed between rival political factions, and this may account for the
tragedy which eventually touched the Mancini family. One day as he was
returning from work Paolo was ambushed and killed. The pain which this
unexpected and violent death inflicted upon Rita was only compounded by the
fear that her sons would seek to avenge their father's death.

Her example of forgiveness, her words of instruction and pleading, her
prayers for their change of heart, were unable to move the two boys to
forego any act of retaliation, and so Rita entrusted the cause totally to
God, asking him to handle the situation which was beyond her control. As it
happened, both sons died within the year.

Now alone, Rita gave herself to works of charity and to a more intense life
of prayer. Eventually the desire to enter the convent once more grew in her,
but her request for entrance among the Augustinian Nuns of Cascia was
refused, not once but three times. Though Rita was known to the nuns of the
Monastery of Saint Mary Magdalene, her good character and religious spirit
were outweighed, in the judgment of the community, by the violence that
surrounded Paolo's death. The nuns were afraid of tempting the peace of
convent life, possibly because one of their members belonged to the family
responsible for Paolo's murder. But Rita felt deeply that this was the
vocation to which she was called and she turned to her three patron saints
to intercede for her. After the third refusal of the nuns, Rita recognized
that she herself must put their fears to rest. She approached Paolo's family
as well as their rivals, and persuaded them to put an end to their hostility
and to live in peace.

The example of her own forgiving spirit, no doubt, was an inspiration and -
perhaps an embarrassment - to them. The families were reconciled. They
signed a document to this effect, and when Rita presented the document to
the nuns, they no longer had reason to refuse her. Rita Lotti Mancini now
became Sister Rita.

For the next forty years Rita lived the life of an Augustinian Nun,
according to the Rule of the saint she had chosen years before as her
spiritual father, Saint Augustine of Hippo. His was a gentle Rule which
invited the members of the community to strive in every way possible to
achieve communion of mind and heart with God and one another. Her days were
spent in prayer and contemplation, in service to the sick and the poor, and
in activities necessary to support the life of the small community.

After twenty-five years of religious life, Rita was given what she
considered a most treasured and singular gift from God. Always devoted to
Jesus crucified, her desire constantly grew to share in his great act of
love for her and for all humanity by helping to carry his cross. One day as
she knelt in prayer, her forehead was pierced by a violent wound, a thorn
from the crown that covered Jesus' own head. She bore this wound for fifteen
years until the day of her death.

For the last several years of her life Rita was confined to bed. The last of
the many crosses she was presented in life was now the humbling condition of
an invalid, totally dependent upon the charity of her sisters. Finally, on
May 22,1457 Rita's life on earth came to an end. The various crosses she had
born as wife, widow, mother and nun were now put aside once and for all as
she met the embrace of her Risen Lord.

She is patron of those in desperate situations, of parenthood, and against
infertility

Saint Quote:
Although tares, or impure vessels, are found in the church, yet this is not
a reason why we should withdraw from it. It only behooves us to labor that
we may be vessels of gold or of silver. But to break in pieces the vessels
of earth belongs to the Lord alone, to whom a rod of iron is also given. Nor
let any one arrogate to himself what is exclusively the province of the Son
of God, by pretending to fan the floor, clear away the chaff, and separate
all the tares by the Judgment of man. This is proud obstinacy and
sacrilegious presumption, originating in a corrupt frenzy.
- St. Cyprian

Bible quote:
But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and
keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely
live, he shall not die.
- Ezekiel 18:21

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Prayer to St. Rita:

O powerful St. Rita, rightly called Saint of the Impossible,
I come to thee with confidence in my great need.
Thou knowest well my trials, for thee thyself were many times
burdened in this life. Come to my help, speak for me,
pray with me, intercede on my behalf before the Father.
I know that God has a most generous heart and that
He is a most loving Father. Join thine prayers to mine and
obtain for me the grace I desire

(here mention your request).

Thou who wast so very pleasing to God on
earth and are so much more so in heaven,
I promise to use this favor, when granted, to better my life,
to proclaim God's mercy, and to make thee more widely
known and loved. Amen.