PrayTheRosary Apostolate

       The month of July is dedicated to the Most Precious Blood of the Redeemer. Supreme homage is given to the Sacred Blood.

       As we adore the Sacred Heart, because it is the Heart of Jesus, who is God, so we adore the Most Precious Blood.

       The Blood of Jesus is the fountain of salvation. Each drop that flowed from the wounds of the Saviour is a pledge of man’s eternal salvation. All races of the earth have been ransomed, and all individuals, who will allow the saving power of the Sacred Blood to be applied to their soul, are heirs of heaven.

       The Blood of the Saviour is a well of consolation for troubled hearts. Can anyone, confidingly, look at the Sacred Blood trickling down from the Cross without taking courage to carry on, in spite of the difficulties which are the common lot of all?

       One glance at the Cross must be able to drive away fear. And, another, must be able to instill trust in Him who did not rest until the last drop, mingled with water, flowed out of an opened Heart. He, who was willing to do so much for men, must be willing to overlook and forget the frailties which they deeply regret; He must be willing to come to their assistance when harassed, to defend them when tempted, to comfort them when afflicted. The Blood of Jesus must be for Christians what the north-star is to sailors.

Origin of the Feast of the Most Precious Blood

       For many dioceses there are two days to which the Office of the Precious Blood has been assigned, the office being in both cases the same. The reason is this: the office was at first granted to the Fathers of the Most Precious Blood only.

       Later, as one of the offices of the Fridays of Lent, it was assigned to the Friday after the fourth Sunday in Lent. In many dioceses these offices were adopted also by the fourth Provincial Council of Baltimore (1840).

       When Pius IX went into exile at Gaeta (1849) he had as his companion the saintly Don Giovanni Merlini, third superior general of the Fathers of the Most Precious Blood. Arrived at Gaeta, Merlini suggested that His Holiness make a vow to extend the feast of the Precious Blood to the entire Church if he would again obtain possesion of the papal dominions. The pope took the matter under consideration, but a few days later sent his domestic prelate Jos. Stella to Merlini with the message: "The pope does not deem it expedient to bind himself by a vow; instead His Holiness is pleased to extend the feast immediately to all Christendom". This was 30 June, 1849, the day the French conquered Rome and the republicans capitulated.

       The thirtieth of June had been a Saturday before the first Sunday of July, wherefore the pope decreed (10 August, 1849) that henceforth every first Sunday of July should be dedicated to the Most Precious Blood.

       - Catholic Encyclopedia

Hi Mary,

Just wanted to wish you a Happy 4th of July and to say how much I appreciate this site. May Jesus, Mary and the entire heavenly court watch over you at every moment.

Scott at July 3, 2010 at 9:48 AM

Hi Mary,

Just wanted to wish you a Happy 4th of July and to say how much I appreciate this site. May Jesus, Mary and the entire heavenly court watch over you at every moment.

Thank you so much Scott for your kind words and blessing. Your comments here are always so appreciated. You are a kind and dear heart to all of us here at PTR. May you enjoy a safe and happy celebration of the 4th of July, and may Jesus and Mary enfold you in the mantle of their love.

Litany of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus

V. Lord, have mercy. R. Lord, have mercy.

V. Christ, have mercy. R. Christ, have mercy.

V. Lord, have mercy. R. Lord, have mercy.

V. Jesus, hear us. R. Jesus, graciously hear us.

V. God, the Father of Heaven, R. have mercy on us.

V. God, the Son, Redeemer of the world, R. have mercy on us.

V. God, the Holy Spirit, R. have mercy on us.

V. Holy Trinity, One God, R. have mercy on us

Blood of Christ, only-begotten Son of the Eternal Father,

R. Save us.

Blood of Christ, Incarnate Word of God,

Blood of Christ, of the New and Eternal Testament,

Blood of Christ, falling upon the earth in the Agony,

Blood of Christ, shed profusely in the Scourging,

Blood of Christ, flowing forth in the Crowning with Thorns,

Blood of Christ, poured out on the Cross,

Blood of Christ, price of our salvation,

Blood of Christ, without which there is no forgiveness.

Blood of Christ, Eucharistic drink and refreshment of souls,

Blood of Christ, stream of mercy,

Blood of Christ, victor over demons,

Blood of Christ, courage of Martyrs,

Blood of Christ, strength of Confessors,

Blood of Christ, bringing forth Virgins,

Blood of Christ, help of those in peril,

Blood of Christ, relief of the burdened,

Blood of Christ, solace in sorrow,

Blood of Christ, hope of the penitent,

Blood of Christ, consolation of the dying,

Blood of Christ, peace and tenderness of hearts,

Blood of Christ, pledge of eternal life,

Blood of Christ, freeing souls from purgatory,

Blood of Christ, most worthy of all glory and honor,

Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world.

R. spare us, O Lord

Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world,

R. graciously hear us, O Lord.

Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world,

R. have mercy on us.

You have redeemed us, O Lord, in your Blood.

R. And made us, for our God, a kingdom.

Let us pray.

       Almighty and eternal God, you have appointed your only-begotten Son the Redeemer of the world, and willed to be appeased by his Blood. Grant we beg of you, that we may worthily adore this price of our salvation, and through its power be safeguarded from the evils of the present life, so that we may rejoice in its fruits forever in heaven. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

       Holy Mother Church has a profound love for the Most Precious Blood of her Divine Spouse, since It is the Price of our salvation! Without the shedding of the Blood of the Lamb of God, we could not be redeemed.

       Without His cleansing and vivifying Blood coursing through the Church, there would be no Mystical Body of Christ.

       Without His glorious Blood, the Sacraments would have no effect. Without His redeeming Blood, Mary would never have been conceived without sin, and there would be no saints whatsoever, for "they have washed their robes and made them white in the Blood of the Lamb."

ptrapostolate at July 3, 2010 at 1:24 PM

Scott at July 3, 2010 at 9:48 AM

Hi Mary,

Just wanted to wish you a Happy 4th of July and to say how much I appreciate this site. May Jesus, Mary and the entire heavenly court watch over you at every moment.

Thank you so much Scott for your kind words and blessing. Your comments here are always so appreciated. You are a kind and dear heart to all of us here at PTR. May you enjoy a safe and happy celebration of the 4th of July, and may Jesus and Mary enfold you in the mantle of their love.

Thank YOU ever so much!

     Devotion to the Precious Blood is not a spiritual option, it is a spiritual obligation, and that not only for priests, but for every follower of Christ.

     In 96 A.D. so says Pope Clement: "Let us fix our gaze on the Blood of Christ and realize how truly precious It is, seeing that it was poured out for our salvation and brought the grace of conversion to the whole world."

SEVEN OFFERINGS OF THE PRECIOUS BLOOD

       Eternal Father, I offer Thee the merits of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy Beloved Son and my Divine Redeemer, for the propagation and exaltation of my dear Mother the Holy Church, for the safety and prosperity of her visible Head, the Holy Roman Pontiff, for the cardinals, bishops and pastors of souls, and for all the ministers of the sanctuary.Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.Amen. Blessed and praised forevermore be Jesus Who hath saved us by His Precious Blood! Amen.

       Eternal Father, I offer Thee the merits of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy Beloved Son and my Divine Redeemer, for the peace and concord of nations, for the conversion of the enemies of our holy faith and for the happiness of all Christian people.

Glory be...

       Eternal Father, I offer Thee the merits of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy Beloved Son and my Divine Redeemer, for the repentance of unbelievers, the extirpation of all heresies, and the conversion of sinners.

Glory be...

       Eternal Father, I offer Thee the merits of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy Beloved Son and my Divine Redeemer, for all my relations, friends and enemies, for the poor, the sick, and those in tribulation, and for all those for whom Thou willest I should pray, or knowest that I ought to pray.

Glory be...

       Eternal Father, I offer Thee the merits of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy Beloved Son and my Divine Redeemer, for all those who shall this day pass to another life, that Thou mayest preserve them from the pains of hell, and admit them the more readily to the possession of Thy Glory.

Glory be...

       Eternal Father, I offer Thee the merits of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy Beloved Son and my Divine Redeemer, for all those who are lovers of this Treasure of His Blood, and for all those who join with me in adoring and honoring It, and for all those who try to spread devotion to It . .Glory be...

       Eternal Father, I offer Thee the merits of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus, Thy Beloved Son and my Divine Redeemer, for all my wants, spiritual and temporal, for the holy souls in Purgatory, and particularly for those who in their lifetime were most devoted to this Price of our redemption, and to the sorrows and pains of our dear Mother, most Holy Mary . . .Glory be...

       Blessed and exalted be the Blood of Jesus, now and always, and through all eternity. Amen.

A HIDDEN TREASURE

       Appearing to one of the sisters of her community shortly after her death, St. Teresa of Avila told the sister that she would be willing to return to a life of suffering on earth until the end of time if thereby she could merit that degree of glory with which God rewards one devoutly recited "Hail Mary."

       St. Paul speaks in like manner when he says: "The sufferings of this life are not to be compared with the glory to come."

       If one short prayer is thus rewarded, what reward awaits those who offer to the Eternal Father, the Precious Blood of Jesus.

       "An offering," says Father Faber, is "More than a prayer." "In prayer we are the recipients, but when we make an offering God vouchsafes to accept something from us."

       In Our Lord's own words to Sister Mary Martha Chambon, Apostle of the Holy Wounds, " To offer to the Eternal Father the Sacred Wounds of Jesus is to offer Him His Glory, to offer Heaven to Heaven."

       Each time you offer to My Father the merits of My Divine Wounds," He said to her, "You gain an immense fortune . . .You must not remain poor, your Father is very rich."

       - from the pamphlet SEVEN OFFERINGS OF THE PRECIOUS BLOOD

       "...Unlimited is the effectiveness of the God-Man's

Blood -- just as unlimited as the love that impelled him to

pour it out for us, first at his circumcision eight days after

birth, and more profusely later on in his agony in the

garden,  in his scourging and crowning with thorns, in his climb to Calvary and crucifixion, and finally from out that great wide wound in his side which symbolizes the divine Blood cascading down into all the Church's sacraments.

        Such surpassing love suggests, nay demands, that everyone reborn in the torrents of that Blood adore it with grateful love.

       "The Blood of the new and eternal covenant especially deserves this worship of latria when it is elevated

during the sacrifice of the Mass. But such worship achieves its normal fulfilment in sacramental communion with the same Blood, indissolubly united with Christ's eucharistic Body. In intimate association with the celebrant the faithful can then truly make his sentiments at communion their own: "I will take the chalice of salvation and call upon the name of the Lord. . . The Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ preserve my soul for everlasting life. Amen." Thus as often as they come worthily to this holy table they will receive more abundant fruits of the redemption and resurrection and eternal life won for all men by the Blood Christ shed "through the Holy Spirit."

- Apostolic Letter of Pope John XXIII

ON PROMOTING DEVOTION TO THE MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST

Christ's Blood ---- the price of our redemption,

the pledge of salvation and life eternal -- may Christians

meditate on it more fervently, may they savour its fruits more frequently in sacramental communion. Let their meditations on the boundless power of the Blood be bathed in the light of sound biblical teaching and the doctrine of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church. How truly precious is this Blood is voiced in the song which the Church sings with the Angelic Doctor sentiments wisely seconded by our predecessor Clement VI :

Blood that but one drop of has the world to win

All the world forgiveness of its world of sin.

- Apostolic Letter of Pope John XXIII

ON PROMOTING DEVOTION TO THE MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST

       If you and I, at this very moment, were standing on the threshold of eternity, we would see a limitless duration extending before us which our vision would fail to terminate. Looking on this endlessness the awful truth would come to us that the time of merit had passed forever. The saints realized this truth while yet in life, and we can see the vastness of their reward. Those who have passed into eternity realize that there will be no further opportunities for additional merit, for time has passed forever.

        If regrets were possible in Heaven, unused opportunities would be the cause, for the blessed know what greater capacity for giving accidental honor to God they would have had if they had used all their opportunities. Because of God's mercy they have no regrets, but their status is sealed forever.

       The position of the priest in heaven must be tremendous for he offers daily a Victim-of-Infinite-Worth; and yet each one of us can offer the same Victim in a different manner by sincerely saying:"Eternal Father, I offer Thee the merits of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus."

THE PRECIOUS BLOOD AND HEAVEN

Promises of Our Lord to Sister Mary Martha Chambon

Those who pray with humility and who meditate on My Passion, shall one day participate in the glory of My Divine wounds.

Their members will receive from them a resplendent beauty and glory.

The more you shall have contemplated My Painful wounds on this earth, the higher shall be your contemplation of them glorious in Heaven.

The soul who during life has honored and studied the Wounds of Our Lord Jesus Christ and has offered Them to the Eternal Father for the Souls in Purgatory will be accompanied at the moment of death by the Holy Virgin and the Angels; and Our Lord on the Cross, all brilliant in glory will receive her and crown her.

       The Precious Blood which we worship is the Blood which the Savior shed for us on Calvary and reassumed at His glorious Resurrection; it is the Blood which courses through the veins of His risen, glorified, living body at the right hand of God the Father in heaven; it is the Blood made present on our altars by the words of Consecration; it is the Blood which merited sanctifying grace for us and through it washes and beautifies our soul and inaugurates the beginning of eternal life in it.

"Nourished by his Body and Blood, sharing the

divine strength that has sustained count less martyrs, they will stand up to the slings and arrows of each day's fortunes -- even if need be to martyrdom itself for the sake of Christian

virtue and the kingdom of God. Theirs will be the experience of that burning love which made St. John Chrysostom cry out: Let us, then, come back from that table like lions breathing out fire, thus becoming terrifying to the Devil, and

remaining mindful of our Head and of the love he has shown for us. . . This Blood, when worthily received, drives away demons and puts them at a distance from us, and even summons to us angels and the Lord of angels. . . This Blood,

poured out in abundance, has washed the whole world clean.

. . This is the price of the world; by it Christ purchased the Church... This thought will check in us unruly passions. How long, in truth, shall we be attached to present things? How long shall we remain asleep? How long shall we not take

thought for our own salvation? Let us remember what privileges God has bestowed on us, let us give thanks, let us glorify him, not only by faith, but also by our very works.

       - from the pamphlet SEVEN OFFERINGS OF THE PRECIOUS BLOOD

"Would that men on earth honored the Precious Blood in the manner in which they who are in heaven give honor and praise and thanksgiving! They proclaim that It purchased the glory which they enjoy. Without It, they would have remained slaves of Satan and outcasts from the eternal mansions of God. Let us profess that we owe to the Sacred Blood of Jesus all that we have in this life, and that to It we shall owe all that we shall enjoy in a better and eternal life!"

     - Heavenly Friends, by Rosalie Marie Levy

"If only Christians would reflect more frequently on

the fatherly warning of the first pope: "Look anxiously, then,

to the ordering of your lives while your stay on earth lasts.

You know well enough that your ransom was not

paid in earthly currency, silver or gold; it was paid in the

precious blood of Christ; no lamb was ever so pure, so

spotless a victim." If only they would lend a more eager

ear to the apostle of the Gentiles: "A great price was paid to ransom you; glorify God by making your bodies the shrines of his presence." Their upright lives would then be the shining example they ought to be; Christ's Church would far more effectively fulfill its mission to men. God wants all men to be saved, for he has willed that they should all be ransomed by the Blood of his only-begotten Son. If only men would be more responsive to these promptings of his grace, how much the bonds of brotherly love among individuals and peoples and nations would be strengthened. Life in society would be so much more peaceable, so much worthier of God and the human nature created in his image and likeness."

  - from the pamphlet SEVEN OFFERINGS OF THE PRECIOUS BLOOD

     "Viewed as a part of the Sacred Humanity hypostatically united to the Word, the Precious Blood deserves latreutical worship or adoration. It may also, like the Heart or the Wounds from which it flowed, be singled out for special honour, in a way that special honour was rendered it from the beginning by St. Paul and the Fathers who so eloquently praised its redeeming virtue and rested on it the Christian spirit of self-sacrifice. As Faber remarks, the

lives of the saints are replete with devotion to the Precious Blood.

       In due course of time the Church gave shape and sanction to the devotion by approving societies like the Missionaries of the Precious Blood; enriching confraternities like that of St. Nicholas

in Carcere, in Rome, and that of the London Oratory; attaching indulgences to prayers and scapulars in honour of the Precious Blood; and establishing commemorative feasts of the Precious Blood, Friday after the fourth Sunday in Lent and, since Pius IX, the first Sunday of July.

        -Catholic Encyclopedia