Ave Sacer Christi Sanguis...

Ave sacer Christi sanguis,
Iter nobis rectum pandis
Ad aeterna gaudia.

Ave ponis salutaris,
Nullus unquam fuit talis
Bonitatis copia.

Miserere mei, Christe,
Fiat Mihi rivus iste
Peccatorum venia.

Salva me ab omni malo,
Fac me frui summo bono
In colesti patria.

Hail sacred Blood of Christ,
You open for us the right path
to eternal joys.

Hail saving Drink,
No one has ever been
such a source of goodness.

Have mercy on me, O Christ,
May this stream be for me 
the pardon of my sins.

Save me from all evil, 
Make me enjoy the higher good
in the heavenly fatherland.

 ~Kevin Allen

The month of July is dedicated to the Precious Blood of Jesus, and during July's First Sunday gathering our three oldest children sang a capella Ave Sacer Christi Sanquis, a most fitting piece for the occasion. And it was a balm for us - hearing those wonderful, beautiful, almost angelic voices of our own flesh and blood - when the world continues its rapid, chaotic, and diabolic decline and fall away from God. May the blood of His glorious sacrifice make and keep us worthy!

Also, we had spent the 33 days in preparation and on the Feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, on July 16th, our family was able to renew our consecration to Jesus through Mary according to the instructions of St. Louis de Montfort. We have a special book in which we all right a portion of the consecration prayer (even the youngest copies out a little bit) and each of us signs our name after making the prayer together after confession and communion at Mass. Our Lady of Mt. Carmel is most known through the practice of wearing the brown scapular, a sign of devotion to Christ's mother. Wearing the scapular and making the consecration renewal each year have become fruitful mainstays for our family, and it is hard to remember how we got by before we grew into these humbling practices! Surely it is a sign of God's providential care, and the power of prayer - for surely others must have prayed for us over all the years - that we are where we are today, rich not in material wealth but in the desire to do God's will.

Simply, we hope to continue firmly on the path upon which God has placed us and pray for perseverance and humility to do so. Most recently we were talking with close friends about the humbling blessing of finding ourselves at a moment when there seems no other course to take - difficult as it may be to live out the faith without obstacle or some semblance of attack - but yet there is no feeling of anxiety or hesitation, rather a steady resignation, hope, and deeper happiness than ever before experienced in life. Christ is King and His blood is precious, this we believe! We also reflected upon the overlap of homeschooling, getting back to the land, and the rich and abiding treasures of our faith - intricately woven are these things, and we are glad! Certainly our Holy Mother, sorrowful and pure, has helped us every step, as St. Louis de Montfort teaches, making the way clear and showing how the Lord's burden is light. Deo gratias for His gifts, graces, and divine guidance; for His precious and purifying blood; and for the aid of Our Lady!