St. Philomena Prayer Apostolate

Bring Our Children Back to the Sacraments

In these times when so much confusion and absence of Faith are manifest - especially among the young, St. Philomena is a powful intercessor. This little Saint has been invoked successfully in cases involving return to the Sacraments of fallen away Catholics, problems with children, unhappiness in the home, and conversion of sinners. Pope Pius IX proclaimed his youthful martyr the "Patroness of the Children of Mary."

Fittingly, St. Philomena was chosen patroness of our apostolate of prayers, which is dedicated to the spread of the Faith among young people. Any child, but particularly one who has fallen away from the Sacraments, needs to be enrolled in the apostolate.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

The Cord of St. Philomena

What - the history and meaning:
The wearing of a cord in honor of a saint is an ancient tradition of the Church. In the early Church virgins wore cords/cinctures as a sign or emblem of purity. Very few saints have the extraordinary privilege of a cord. Devotion of the Cord of St. Philomena came into being as a result of the innumerable graces obtained through her intercession. The Cure of Ars (St. Jean Marie Baptiste Vianney, 1786-1859) who had so many times experienced the power of this saint loved to see the faithful wear the precious Cord. Pope Leo XIII blessed and approved the Cord and attached many privileges and indulgences to the wearing of it.
St. Philomena Cords are white and red and are to be made of either linen, wool or cotton threads so interwoven as to give an almost equal preponderance to the two colors which represent virginity and martyrdom. The two knots on the one end of the Cord honor her double title of virgin and martyr. St. Philomena is regarded as a powerful protectress of the virtue of chastity because, if the reputed facts of her life are true, her own virginal purity was so outstanding. Hence her clients believe God has given her a special power of assisting those who are tempted against this virtue.

Why wear the Cord?
The use of the St. Philomena Cord is one of the ways we honor her and secure protection from her. The Cord is a sign of devotion to St. Philomena and an action prayer of petition seeking through her intercession health of body and protection of soul. She is model and powerful intercessor of two greatly needed virtues in our time - steadfast faith and courageous chastity.

Who should wear the Cord?
"All the baptized are called to chastity. The Christian has ‘Put on Christ,’ the model for all chastity. All Christ’s faithful are called to lead a chaste life in keeping with their particular states of life. At the moment of his Baptism, the Christian is pledged to lead his affective life in chastity." (Catechism of the Catholic Church CCC: 2348) Note this includes: Married, singles and the consecrated. This cord is a perfect sacramental for us all, with many graces and blessings.

How is the Cord to be used?
It is normally worn around the waist under one's clothing. The Cord should be properly blessed (as the enclosed Cord is). No ceremony is required in conferring it. In putting on the Cord we should commit to constantly honoring St. Philomena in order to merit her protection against all evils of soul and body and also to obtain through her intercession perfect chastity and the spirit of faith necessary in these most challenging times. One who wears the Cord should recite the accompanying prayer each day.

Much of the above and additional information can be found in: Saint Philomena: The Wonder-Worker, by Fr. Paul O'Sullivan, OP & Saint Philomena: Powerful with God, by Sr. Marie Helene Mohr, SC. Both can be obtained from Tan Books, PO Box 424, Rockford, IL 61105.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

St. Philomena Chaplet

The chaplet itself consist of a medal of St. Philomena and three white beads connected together to a junction. At the junction is attached in a loop thirteen red beads commemorating the number of years St. Philomena spent on this earth. On the medal ask for the grace of faith by saying the Apostles' Creed.

On each of the white beads say an Our Father in honor of the Blessed Trinity and as a thanksgiving for all the favors obtained through her intercession.

On the each of the red beads say the following:

Hail, O holy St. Philomena, whom I ac- knowledge, after Mary, as my advocate with the Divine Spouse, intercede for me now and at the hour of my death.

St, Philomena, beloved daughter of Jesus and Mary, pray for us who have recourse to thee. Amen.

In conclusion say:
Hail, O illustrious St. Philomena, who shed so courageously your blood for Christ! I bless the Lord for all the graces He has bestowed upon thee during thy life, and especially at thy death. I praise and glorify Him for the honor and power with which He has crowned thee, and I beg thee to obtain for me from God the graces I ask through thy intercession (make intension here).

Prayers of the Chaplet:
The Apostles' Creed

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell; the third day He arose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of Saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. Amen.

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

The Story of St. Philomena

On May 25, 1802, excavators in the ancient Catacomb of St. Priscilla in Rome came upon a well-preserved shelf tomb sealed with terra-cotta slabs in the manner usually reserved for nobility or great martyrs. The tomb was marked with three tiles, inscribed with the following confusing words: LUMENA / PAXTE / CUMFI. However, if one places the first tile last and separates the words properly, the very intelligible sentence emerges: Pax tecum, Filumena, which is “Peace be with you, Philomena.” Also inscribed on the tiles were symbols: a lily, arrows, an anchor and a lance, which would appear to indicate virginity and martyrdom. Inside the coffin there were discovered the remains of a girl of about twelve ore thirteen years of age, along with a vial or ampulla of her dried blood.

Transferred to the Treasury of the Rare Collection of Christian Antiquity in the Vatican, the remains were soon forgotten by the public, especially since no record existed of a virgin martyr named Philomena. But in 1805, a Neapolitan priest, Don Francesco di Lucia, traveling to Rome with his newly appointed bishop, requested and , after a brief delay, received the relics of this martyr “Philomena” to enshrine in his village church at Mugnano, near Naples.

Immediately upon the official donation of St. Philomena’s sacred remains, signal favors began to be granted through her intercession and unusual events to occur. The favors, graces and even miracles started to increase, even before her enshrinement at Mugnano, and they steadily grew in number thereafter – such that this virgin martyr soon earned the title, “Philomena, Powerful with God.” In 1837, only 35 years after her exhumation, Pope Gregory XVI elevated this “Wonder-Worker of the Nineteenth Century” to sainthood. In an act unprecedented in the history of Catholicism, she became the only person recognized by the Church as a Saint solely on the basis of her powerful intercession, since nothing historical was known of her except her name and the evidence of her martyrdom.

St Philomena has been successfully invoked by her supplicants in every sort of need, such that she has become another patron of “ hopeless” and “impossible” cases, like St. Jude or St. Rita, but she is known to be especially powerful in cases involving conversion of sinners, return to the Sacraments, expectant mothers, destitute mothers, problems with children, unhappiness in the home, sterility, priests and their work, help for the sick, the missions, real estate, money problems, food, for the poor and mental illness. But truly, as her devotees have discovered, no case, of whatever matter, is too trivial or too unimportant to concern her.

Among her most devoted clients was St. John Vianney (the Curé of Ars), whose childlike devotion to this virgin Saint played an intimate part in his daily life. Other Saints who were always devoted to her, prayed to her and sang her praises were St. Peter Julian Eymard, St. Peter Chanel, St. Anthony Mary Claret, St. Madeleine Sophie Barat, St. Euphrasia Palletier, St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, St John Nepomucene Neumann, Blessed Anna Maria Taigi and Ven. Pauline Jaricot.

A number of Popes have also shown remarkable devotion to St. Philomena as well: Pope Leo XII (1823-1829) expressed the greatest admiration for this unknown child-saint and gladly gave his permission for the erection of altars and church in her honor. Pope Gregory XVI (1831-1846), who authorized her public veneration, showed his esteem and devotion to the Saint by giving her the title of “Patroness of the Living Rosary.” A Mass and proper Office in her honor were approved by him in 1834 or 1835. This is an extraordinary privilege granted to comparatively few Saints. Pope Pius IX (1846-1878) proclaimed her “Patroness of the Children of Mary.” Pope Leo XIII (1878-1903) made two pilgrimages to her shrine before his election to the papacy. After he had become the Vicar of Christ, he gave a valuable cross to the sanctuary. He approved the Confraternity of St. Philomena and later raised it to an Arch-confraternity (which is still headquartered at her shrine at Mugnano, Italy). Pope St. Pius X (1903-1914) spoke warmly of her and manifested his devotion to her in various ways. Costly gifts were given by him to her shrine.

Truly, St. Philomena is a powerful intercessor – seemingly held quietly in reserve by Our Divine Lord during these many centuries-for especially strong help in our times, when so much confusion and absence of faith are manifest. Her principal feast day is August 11. St. Philomena powerful with God, pray for us!

TAN Books and Publishers, Inc.