Thursday, October 27, 2022

A prayer before meals

The traditional, common Roman Catholic prayer before eating, preceded and followed by the Sign of the Cross: "Bless us, O Lord, and these, Thy gifts, which we are about to receive from Thy bounty. Through Christ, our Lord. Amen."

The traditional, common Roman Catholic prayer after eating, preceded and followed by the Sign of the Cross: "We give Thee thanks, Almighty God, for all Thy benefits, Who live and reign forever and ever. Amen."

A meal prayer composed by Aaron S. Robertson, a Roman Catholic layman

My/Our Lord, bless the meal I'm/we're about to eat, along with everyone who had a hand, in any way, in making this meal possible for me/us. I'm/we're always grateful for the opportunity to be able to eat. Hear my/our prayers for those who struggle with, and suffer from, food insecurity and hunger. Grant them the resources they need, and let them know that you're always there for them. Amen.

Thursday, October 13, 2022

Catholic prayers for spiritual warfare

Roman Catholic prayers for spiritual warfare. Personal testimony to the power of confession and of certain prayers and saints. A true story of battling the devil and demonic harassment.

By Aaron S. Robertson

Introduction

In this post, I describe a specific incident, or, perhaps more accurately, a specific way (because there was more than one episode spread out over time), in which I had found myself battling demonic harassment. Following my testimony, which, among other subjects, speaks to the power of the confessional and to certain prayers and saints, I offer three videos here from YouTube, each being a prayer in Latin, either spoken or chanted. These prayers have helped me immensely, and I include them in a regular prayer routine.

Setting some context in regard to my faith journey

I rediscovered my Roman Catholic faith back in December 2021 after nearly 20 years of wandering in the dark wilderness. An epic blog post about my conversion on a Sunday morning back in December immediately upon awakening from bed and the journey since then is pending. Since March 2022, after visiting the confessional one evening, I have been frequently experiencing very powerful and noticeable involuntary movements in my face and neck while praying. Sometimes, I experience an electrifying feeling going up and down my right leg while praying, as well. And still sometimes, I experience a feeling on the the right side in my head, near my ear on that side, as if a nerve is being pulled back. I cannot mimic any of these movements if I wanted to.

The leg incidents seem to happen most often while praying to/reflecting on God the Father, in particular, but the more frequent face and neck movements can occur while reciting a variety of prayers - whether invoking the Holy Spirit and engaging in conversation with Him, or while calling upon our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, or while asking Blessed Mary and/or any of the angels and saints for their intercession. The nerve-pulling sensation in my head can occur in different settings, such as during Mass or even in the confessional during the priest's absolution. I have been keeping a regular log of nearly every one of these powerful encounters with prayer and reflection.

My testimony regarding this one specific way in which I had found myself battling demonic harassment; speaking to the power of the confessional and to certain prayers and saints

St. Philomena, 291-304.
St. Philomena, 291-304. 
On Wednesday, August 24, 2022, I went to confession at another parish, since I was not quite sure if I would make it to confession at my home parish the following evening due to a possible work obligation. During my confession, I explained to Father that, for quite some time now, I firmly believe I have been experiencing harassment and taunts in my mind coming from the devil. Lately, however, the harassment seems to have increased, and that's what brought me to confession on this night, to primarily talk about this and seek counsel on the matter.

The taunts, I explained, usually take on the form of vile, hate-filled, abusive language directed toward our Lord, the very same profanity I had admittedly used toward, or about, so many individuals in the days prior to my conversion in December 2021. I explained to Father that I believe it’s coming from the devil for three reasons. The first reason is that these thoughts appear to be repelled and unable to enter my mind while listening to prayers of deliverance/minor exorcism, usually recited in Latin, and either spoken or chanted (see YouTube videos of these prayers below). Additionally, these thoughts are simply illogical. They make absolutely no sense; in that I have no hatred or anger for God. There appears to be an artificial disconnect created here between my mind and my heart, I explained, and God knows where my heart is at. I wouldn’t be attending Mass, confession, and praying regularly if I wasn’t a believer and if I didn’t have love for God. Finally, I return to the point that, by my own admission, these degrading and vile cuss words were used by me against others in my prior life. By the grace of Almighty God through previous confessions, I no longer use these words, and while I truly believe and understand that these past offenses were forgiven and forgotten by Almighty God, we know that the devil and his demon friends don’t forget - and they certainly don’t forgive. They will attempt to taunt us with our own pasts any way they can.
St. Philomena, virgin and martyr.
St. Philomena, virgin and martyr.


After hearing all this, Father told me that, yes, he believes this is the work of the devil, as well, and he reminded me of something I’ve heard from other priests and fellow lay believers alike - that I should consider it a compliment of sorts that I’m being harassed by the devil. It lets me know that I must be doing something right. As we try to get closer to God, the devil certainly does not want this, and so he will throw anything he can at us to scare us, confuse us, and get us to back off. He also reminded me that our Lord and Savior Himself was tempted and harassed by the devil, and that I should take comfort in knowing this. As penance, he assigned me to recite the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel, a prayer that I had already certainly become well-familiar with. I recited it in the church immediately after my confession, but I also had with me the Litany of St. Philomena prayer, and I was wearing my blessed wrist cord devoted to her. I recited this prayer, as well, immediately following my confession.


St. Michael the Archangel
St. Michael the Archangel.

Later on this same evening, well past my confession and prayers, something started to become very noticeable to me. I was watching television when the taunts, via this same horrible language, began again. This time, however, without listening to the same helpful Latin prayers/chants I just mentioned, the thoughts were instantly repelled. As quickly and as frequently as they tried to enter my mind, they were whisked away. I couldn’t even try to say the words in my mind by my own accord - I couldn’t complete them. I asked the Holy Spirit if this was due to the intercession of Ss. Michael and Philomena, and I received three involuntary neck movements that I took to be a powerful, "Yes."

The next day, on the morning of August 25, shortly after I had awakened, I prayed the St. Patrick’s Breastplate prayer. After reciting each one of these three lines in the prayer that follow one another consecutively, “In the faith of confessors, In the innocence of holy virgins, In the deeds of righteous men,” I received one intense involuntary movement of my neck, for a total of three. When it came to experiencing these movements at the reciting of these lines, I understood “In the faith of confessors” to mean the priest who had just heard my confession the prior evening; “In the innocence of holy virgins” to mean St. Philomena; and “In the deeds of righteous men” to mean God’s holy priests in general.

In the middle of the night between August 25 and August 26, at approximately 2:30am, I awakened to use the bathroom. I was experiencing attempted harassment and taunting by the devil again in my mind, the same hateful, abusive language I had previously described. The language was being repelled before it could fully enter my mind, but serious attempts to break in were being made. I briefly prayed before a picture of Christ, and asked for help from St. Philomena. At that moment, I received three involuntary movements of the neck. Of course, I took this to be a confirmation that both our Lord and the good saint were present and had heard me.

Flash forward to me publishing this here in October. I still occasionally experience this form of harassment, but it is far less frequent, and the words are still repelled before they can fully enter my mind. I can’t even complete them in my mind if I wanted to. They’re incinerated on arrival before they can take root. My own parish priest says that I can credit the role of my guardian angel in all of this, as well, which I certainly do.

Presenting these three Latin prayers via YouTube, and a sincere warning about not reciting these prayers yourself if you are not an ordained priest

What follows are three YouTube videos. Each one is a prayer in Latin. The first one is in spoken form. It is an exorcism prayer written by Pope Leo XIII, and it is recited here by Fr. Dom Lorenzo, SSCV. It can be read in English here. The next two videos feature prayers sung in chant form. The first one is St. Anthony's Cross Exorcism, while the second one is St. Benedict's Cross Exorcism.

All three of these prayers are beautiful and effective. I frequently play them in the background quietly while reciting my own prayers.

A sincere warning here that you should never recite prayers of exorcism yourself if you are not an ordained priest. Of the prayers presented here below, this is especially true regarding the first one written by Leo XIII and recited by Fr. Dom Lorenzo. Doing so can be very dangerous for us laypeople, since prayers of this type address and command Satan directly.





Tuesday, October 11, 2022

Layperson's prayer during Mass

Composed by Aaron S. Robertson

A silent prayer for the layperson during Mass near the time for the Blessed Sacrament

My Lord, hear my prayers for everyone gathered here today in your name. I pray for deliverance from whatever troubles them in their personal or professional lives, or perhaps on their own faith journeys. Have mercy on us all, forgive us our sins, and allow us all to receive you in most Holy Communion. Give us the spiritual food and armor we all need to make good choices, better choices, that are more pleasing to you and more in line with our Father's will and expectations for us; the spiritual food and armor we all need to continue to fend off the harassment, taunts, and traps of Satan and his demon friends; the spiritual food and armor we all need to be of greater charity, all in the service of others and all for your glory. Wash away every blemish that diminishes our friendship with you, and bring us all closer to you and to one another. Amen.

Monday, October 10, 2022

Prayer for those who have no one to pray for them today

Composed by Aaron S. Robertson

A prayer for those who have no one to pray for them today

Come Holy Spirit, Come Holy Spirit, I pray. My friend, my advocate, my guide and teacher, my merciful and loving Almighty God. Hear my prayers for all those who have no one to pray for them today. Make your presence known to them. Comfort them. Grant them your graces and healing, along with any resources they may need. Help them grow in faith. Amen.

For all those who have no one to pray for them today, I pray: [Hail Mary prayer three times -]

Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

Prayer for all those you have ever hurt

Composed by Aaron S. Robertson

A prayer for all those you have ever hurt during your lifetime

My Lord, hear my prayers for all those whom I have ever hurt, in any way, during my lifetime, during my nearly [insert number of years] years on this earth. Whether I can recall all their names and faces or not; whether I can recall all the atrocious deeds I committed against them or not. You know. I pray for every one of them. Grant them your graces and healing. Have mercy on them, forgive them of their own sins, and I pray for their conversions. Amen.

For all those whom I have ever hurt during my lifetime, in any way, in my nearly [insert number of years] years on this earth, I pray: [Hail Mary prayer three times -]

Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

Prayer to Blessed Virgin Mary

Composed by Aaron S. Robertson

In the morning:

Begin with Hail Mary prayer three times -

Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

My sweet, kind, gentle, beautiful, caring, understanding, merciful, nurturing, and compassionate spiritual mother and holy queen, Blessed Mary, ever virgin. Pray for me, Mary, a sinner in need of your love, your guidance, your support, and your prayers. Help bring me closer to yourself; to your beautiful son, our lord and savior Jesus Christ, the only begotten son of the one true living God, who truly did die for me and for all, so that we may be freed from the bondage of sin and know Almighty God. Help bring me closer to your husband, your most chaste spouse, good St. Joseph, the ultimate male role model who answered God's call. Help bring me closer to Almighty God's army of angels, including my own guardian angel and good St. Michael. Help bring me closer to our communion of saints. Pray for me, Mary, a sinner, and help preserve me from mortal sin during this day. Amen.

In the evening, the same:

Begin with Hail Mary prayer three times -

Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

My sweet, kind, gentle, beautiful, caring, understanding, merciful, nurturing, and compassionate spiritual mother and holy queen, Blessed Mary, ever virgin. Pray for me, Mary, a sinner in need of your love, your guidance, your support, and your prayers. Help bring me closer to yourself; to your beautiful son, our lord and savior Jesus Christ, the only begotten son of the one true living God, who truly did die for me and for all, so that we may be freed from the bondage of sin and know Almighty God. Help bring me closer to your husband, your most chaste spouse, good St. Joseph, the ultimate male role model who answered God's call. Help bring me closer to Almighty God's army of angels, including my own guardian angel and good St. Michael. Help bring me closer to our communion of saints. Pray for me, Mary, a sinner, and help preserve me from mortal sin during this night. Amen.

Saturday, October 1, 2022

Going Up the Country Canned Heat

I realize I haven't done an "Exploring the world of music" post in quite a while. Here is a fun song I'm excited to share with you. Being the classic rock and blues fan that I am, I've loved this song since I was a kid. It's called "Going Up the Country". Now, we're going to hear three versions of the song in this post.

The first video here is what appears to be the original version. It was recorded in 1928 in Chicago by a bluesman and songster named Henry Thomas. Born in 1874 in Big Sandy, Texas, Henry Thomas was known by the nickname "Ragtime Texas". It's thought that he died around 1930. His version is known by the title, "Bull Doze Blues". The lyrics in this original version by Thomas are very different from what is perhaps the best-known and most popular version of the song recorded by the blues rock band Canned Heat some 40 years later in 1968. Canned Heat's version will be the second video here. Canned Heat's Alan Wilson, nicknamed "Blind Owl", rewrote the lyrics, but kept the same musical arrangement. Both versions are perhaps famously-loved for their pleasant, calming, cheerful, beautiful panpipe/flute arrangement.

The third video is a live version, based on Canned Heat's lyrics, performed by the Bud Spencer Band, a group I recently discovered for the first time. Instead of a panpipe or flute in this live version, a harmonica is used. I love how much fun they're having with this song on the stage!

Before we get to the first video featuring the original version of the song by Henry "Ragtime Texas" Thomas, here is a story shared in the comments section on the YouTube page for this video by a user named Gareth. As I write this, he shared this story about two years ago, and it has 6.4K thumbs-up likes. Thank you so much for sharing this story with the world, Gareth. I was truly touched by it. That's the power of music. Here's that story:
My great-grandfather fought in WW1 for Great Britain (he was Scottish), in 1918 he befriended an American soldier who offered him work on his family's cattle farm in Huntsville after the war. Great grandad was lost mentally and craved a sea change, so he accepted the offer. In the mid 1920s he wrote in his diary about seeing an amazing black musician called 'Rag Rhyme Texas'. His music reached him in ways no other white music had before, and it transformed his outlook forever.

He returned to Scotland in the Great Depression, and in 1968 his nephew played the Canned Heat version on his record player. Great grandad nearly had a heart attack and broke down in tears, that panpipe chorus was unforgettable he said. After much research my uncle found the record of Henry Thomas in the 70s, and we learned that his nickname was actually 'Ragtime Texas'.

This is a story our family passes down from generation to generation, and we owe Henry Thomas so much in helping our family out of a very dark place.








Finally, here are the lyrics to both versions. First up is the version by Henry Thomas, followed by Canned Heat.

Henry "Ragtime Texas" Thomas - "Bull Doze Blues", 1928

I'm going away, babe, and it won't be long.
I'm going away and it won't be long.
I'm going away and it won't be long.

Just as sure as that train leaves out of that Mobile yard.
Just as sure as that train leaves out of that Mobile yard.
Just as sure as that train leaves out of that Mobile yard.

Come shake your hand, tell your papa goodbye.
Come shake your hand, tell your papa goodbye.
Come shake your hand, tell your papa goodbye.

I'm going back to Tennessee. I'm going back to Memphis, Tennessee.
I'm going back to Memphis, Tennessee.

I'm going where I never get bull-dozed.
I'm going where I never get the bull-doze.
I'm going where I never get bull-dozed.

If you don't believe I'm sinking.
Look what a hole I'm in.
If you don't believe I'm sinking.
Look what a hole I'm in.
If you don't believe I'm sinking.
Look what a fool I've been.

Oh, my babe, take me back.
How in the world...
Lord, take me back.

Canned Heat - "Going Up the Country", 1968

I'm going up the country, babe, don't you wanna go?
I'm going up the country, babe, don't you wanna go?
I'm going to some place where I've never been before.

I'm going, I'm going where the water tastes like wine.
I'm going where the water tastes like wine.
We can jump in the water, stay drunk all the time.

I'm gonna leave this city, got to get away. I'm gonna leave this city, got to get away. All this fussing and fighting, man, you know I sure can't stay.

Now baby, pack your leaving trunk,
you know we've got to leave today.
Just exactly where we're going I cannot say, but we might even leave the USA.
'Cause there's a brand new game that I don't want to play.

No use of you running, or screaming and crying.
'Cause you've got a home as long as I've got mine.