- Institute
GivingNovena2021
Introduction |
Day 1 |
Day 2 |
Day 2 |
Day 3 |
Day 4 Testimonial |
Day 5 |
Day 6 Testimonial |
Day 7 |
Day 7 |
Day 8 |
Day 8 |
Day 9 Testimonial |
Testimonial Day 4
Day 4 - Pekny Family Testimony
As a family of 9 children, we have been blessed over the years with many infants in our home. Many times, when we’ve brought the newborn home in those first few days, the older children hover; move in close to see the teeny limbs, fingers and toes. At an instant they are sighing in admiration as the tiny babe sniffles, hiccups or opens a bleary eye. They squeal with delight when the small child clasps hold of their finger with such a grasp that it seems he won’t let go. Such affection given to this fragile, helpless, babe can only be magnified when we look upon the Divine Infant Jesus reaching out his hands to us from the creche or triumphantly standing and giving a blessing holding the world in His hands. Devotion to the Infant King is as comfortable and heart rendering as longingly gazing upon a defenseless infant coming into the hearts and homes of a family. Baby Jesus did just that for all mankind. He humbly came into our earthly world to save us from all sin. If tiny newborns can move our souls to love unconditionally, how much more can our Infant King move and guide our souls to Sainthood?
With this devotion to the Infant King, we have been blessed with many joys and have been led through many hardships. We remember, in particular, a friend praying for our son who was critically ill during his infancy. He prayed for our son in front of the statue of the Infant King. Little did our friend know that our son was coming home from an exhausting, perilous and quite lengthy hospital stay that very day. This year, our son turns 8, and we owe a great deal of gratitude to our Infant King for carrying our son and our entire family through the struggles we faced when he was so small, sick and vulnerable. As our Lord has said, “The more you honor Me, the more I will bless you.”
Testimonial Day 6
Day 6 - I-Wen Connick Testimony
Even from his mother’s womb, Saint John the Baptist leapt with joy upon his first meeting with Our Lord in utero. Kings came from afar to seek and to worship a newborn baby whom they knew to be King and Lord. Mary and Joseph adored and loved Baby Jesus. So why not me?
Our Creator, God Almighty, so loved us that He stooped to take on our human nature as a baby, to experience all human frailties, including the indignities of our most helpless and dependent state. That He embraced the Incarnation as a human infant, with full foreknowledge of His destiny on the Cross is an incomprehensible mystery that filled me with gratitude and love.
In these past years of contemplating Him, I have found that it is so easy to show my love to the Divine Infant, and so easy to experience God’s infinite love and forgiveness from Him as an Infant. I find myself gravitated towards Jesus my Lord in the Infant King when I find myself troubled or in great need. In praying to Him, the unconditional love is immediate and pure comfort. Instinctively, we know and feel mutual attachment and bonding with an innocent, pure, loving baby, and the Infant King is as innocent and pure and loving as they come. He has always answered my prayers, granted me many blessings, and accepted my love.
I have contemplated the image of the Infant King statue from the Shrine much and often through the years. The countenance and attitude of this particular rendition of the Infant King have inspired me to love Jesus more, to recognize His majesty, His loving sacrifice, and thus to be His servant and disciple. St. Bernard’s words say it best about this devotion: “Great is the lord and greatly to be praised; little is the Lord and greatly to be loved.”
Testimonial Day 9
Day 9 - Moran Family Testimony
The love mankind shares for a child comes easily due to the natural sincerity, innocence and affable qualities blessed upon the nature of children. It would seem that God, in His perfect understanding of His Creation, has provided man with the opportunity to approach Him with this same easy love, and the Incarnation is the most profound example. It would follow that the manner of Christ’s entry into this world is not necessary for God but rather, necessary for us to follow Him.
The treasured image of St. Joseph and the Blessed Mother bowed over the cradle of Christ the Infant King with all love and care of good parents and in humble worship of the Divine Child, communicates to our family a scene full of joy, humility and charity to cherish and emulate. It is a scene not just to be contemplated once a year but one that continually provides clarity on how we must adore Our Lord and live out our lives. The gaze of St. Joseph and Our Lady upon the tender Child, draws us to the devotion of the Infant King, and we approach Him as did the shepherds and the Maji, with bowed head and on bended knee.
Since eternity has no time; God as the Infant King is the same Just Judge and Glorious King of all ages. How merciful God is to allow us to approach Him as a child and with such ease! In this way, our hearts are softened by the gentle image of the Christ Child to surrender in selflessness and align our hearts to the Will of the Infant King.
Saint Patrick Parish and Oratory in Waterbury, Connecticut run by the Institute of Christ the King, offers us a life that is rich in the divine sacraments. Canon Joel Estrada and Abbé Kevin Kerscher guide the parish with exemplary leadership by offering the highest level of praise, glory, order and beauty to Christ the Infant King in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. As parishioners at St. Patrick’s these last two years, we have been incredibly fortunate to share as members in this growing and vibrant parish of faithful Catholics. As made evident by the name, the devotion to Christ the King is at the heart of the Institute of Christ the King. We are thus continually encouraged to cultivate this particular devotion keeping it dear and alive in our hearts.
