The Catholic Gift Store

04/17/2022

We hope you have a Blessed Easter!

12/31/2020

We hope you have a Blessed New Year! We will reopen with our regular hours on January 4.

12/23/2020

We hope you all have a Blessed Christmas! Our regular hours will resume on December 28.

12/12/2020

Today is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe!
------------------------------------

In December 1531, Mary appeared to an indigenous man named Juan Diego on the hill of Tepeyac outside of Mexico City. She was dressed as an Aztec princess and spoke to Juan Diego in his native language of Nahuatl.

To convince the local bishop of the truth of Juan Diego’s experience, Mary told Juan Diego to gather roses into his tilma, or cloak, and bring them to the bishop. When he had emptied the tilma of the roses, the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe was left imprinted on the cloth.

Today, this beautiful image of Mary inspires devotion in many churches throughout the Americas, and it is even reproduced in popular culture as a symbol of Latin American and Catholic identity.

On December 12, the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe draws crowds at parishes across the U.S. and Latin America, celebrating the woman who has been named by the Vatican as Empress of the Americas.

The story of Our Lady of Guadalupe is one of many examples of God working through a specific culture to share a universal message. God is not faraway and distant, but right here speaking to us in our own language.

11/28/2020

Today is Small Business Saturday! Be sure to shop small and support your favorite shops and restaurants❣️Today is also the final day before advent, so stop in and pick up calendars for your littles, a wreath and candles, or a book to deepen your faith during this season!

11/18/2020

We have copies of Every Sacred Sunday for the upcoming liturgical year! This is a great tool to help you get more out of the mass and focus on the readings, especially during these unprecedented times!! Learn more about the product below 👇👇👇

The Every Sacred Sunday Mass journal is designed to help you intentionally prepare & engage with the Mass each week. It contains the readings for each Sunday and Holy Day of Obligation for one liturgical year with a simple journaling template after each reading. Here's a quick summary of what this one-of-a-kind journal has to offer you:
+ 300+ full color pages & keepsake quality hardcover
+ Organized by liturgical color with dated end tabs
+ Simple journaling template after each set of readings
+ Key prayers included in front & back covers
+ Eco-friendly printing in USA

ORDER HERE: https://thecatholicgiftstore.com/products/every-sacred-sunday?_pos=1&_sid=66355ff48&_ss=r

11/11/2020

God Bless our veterans!

11/02/2020

Today is All Souls' Day to remember those who have departed.

Did you know there are plenary indulgences you may obtain during the month of November by praying for the souls in Purgatory?

1) Visit a cemetery and pray for the dead. (Typically November 1-8*)

2) Piously visit a church and recite the Our Father and the Creed. (Typically on All Souls' Day*)

*The Vatican has extended the opportunity to earn a full indulgence throughout the entire month of November.

In addition, one must meet the ordinary conditions of an indulgence: detachment from sin, pray for the intentions of the Pope, receive the Eucharist, and attend sacramental confession within 20 days of the indulged act.

Those who are homebound may participate in the indulgence by reciting prayers for the deceased before an image of Jesus or Mary, being detached from sin, and having the intention of fulfilling the ordinary conditions of the indulgence as soon as possible.

What is an indulgence?: “An indulgence is a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven, which the faithful Christian who is duly disposed gains under certain defined conditions through the Church’s help when, as a minister of redemption, she dispenses and applies with authority the treasury of the satisfactions won by Christ and the saints”. (Indulgentarium Doctrina 1)

11/01/2020

Happy All Saints’ Day! Today we celebrate ALL saints who are in union with God in Heaven!

10/16/2020

Today is the feast day of Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque!

She was entrusted to spread the devotion of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Jesus gave The Twelve Promises to Saint Margaret Mary for those devoted to His Sacred Heart:

1. I will give them all the graces necessary for their state of life.
2. I will establish peace in their families.
3. I will console them in all their troubles.
4. They shall find in My Heart an assured refuge during life and especially at the hour of their death.
5. I will pour abundant blessings on all their undertakings.
Sinners shall find in My Heart the source of an infinite ocean of mercy.
6. Tepid souls shall become fervent.
7. Fervent souls shall speedily rise to great perfection.
8. I will bless the homes where an image of My Heart shall be exposed and honored.
9. I will give to priests the power of touching the most hardened hearts.
10. Those who propagate this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart, never to be effaced.
12. The all-powerful love of My Heart will grant to all those who shall receive Communion on the First Friday of nine consecutive months the grace of final repentance; they shall not die under my displeasure, nor without receiving their Sacraments; My heart shall be their assured refuge at that last hour.

10/15/2020

Today is the feast day of Saint Teresa of Avila!

Teresa's mother was deeply religious but passed when Teresa was 11. She developed a deep devotion to Our Lady as her spiritual mother. After debating her vocation, she joined the Carmelite Convent in Avila, Crown of Castile (Spain) at age 20. She fell ill and became bedridden after joining and nearly died. She attributed an intercession of Saint Joseph to her recovery.

Her spirituality was founded upon writings on contemplative prayer and abstinence from worldly pleasures by Francisco of Osuna, Peter of Alcantara, Ignatius of Loyola, and Augustine of Hippo. Augustine's writings helped her realize that every great saint was once a sinner.

The Carmelite convent she joined in Avila was seemingly lax. Although they were supposed to observe cloister, daily visitors were allowed in the convent. Teresa found it difficult to achieve the contemplative prayer she desired. With the guidance of Peter of Alcantara, her spiritual director, she established a new convent called St. Joseph's in 1562. She founded the convent on the principles of poverty, abandonment of property ownership, and strict monastic rule. She remained in seclusion for the first five years to focus on prayer and writing. In 1567, she received approval from the Carmelite General to establish more convents of the reformed Carmelite order. She opened monasteries for men and was assisted by John of the Cross in this endeavor.

Unreformed members of the Carmelite order persecuted her. Her efforts were misrepresented to the Carmelite general and she was prohibited from founding additional convents. She was forced into "voluntary" retirement, to which Teresa obeyed. John of the Cross was also imprisoned. She sent letters to King Philip II of Spain, who admired her greatly, and he had the Holy Inquisition drop the cases of heresy against her so she could continue the reform. The new Carmelite order also received a decree from Pope Gregory XIII granting independent jurisdiction.

After facing years of illness, she died in 1582. Her date of death is debated. The calendar changed from Julian to Gregorian, which removed the dates from October 4 through 15. She either died before midnight on October 4 or early on the morning of October 15, but the liturgical calendar places her death on the 15th.

In total, she founded 16 convents and several other men's monasteries. She was canonized 40 years after her death in 1622. Saint Teresa of Avila was the first woman to be declared a doctor of the church. This means her writings have special doctrinal authority. Her spiritual writings are among the most read. Although she faced lifelong struggles - from illness and suffering to being misunderstood and misrepresented in her reform efforts - she always remained a woman "for God".

10/09/2020

October is the month of the Rosary!! In this video Fr. Mark-Mary and Fr. John Anthony Boughton discuss the Rosary throughout history - from conversions to miracles!

Fr. Mark-Mary and Fr. John Anthony Boughton talk about the influence The Rosary has had throughout history. It ain’t just your grandma’s prayer! The Rosary h...