Coronavirus Prayer Card and Medal
Volume XXIV, Number 4 – March 19, 2020
Feast of Saint Joseph
Dear CatholiCity Citizen,
Greetings in Christ. In a few days I will begin sending you more frequent CatholiCity Messages focusing on the Coronavirus and its spiritual, medical, and economic impact on our society. I assume you already know about social distancing, hand-washing, and not exposing the elderly, so I will not waste your time with any of that.
Today I have a potent spiritual tool for protection for your family and friends: a Miraculous Medal touched to my True Cross, Lourdes water, and saint relics attached to a Coronavirus Prayer Card.
My research on Coronavirus has been extensive, starting long before the virus was in the mainstream news. I have devoured several hundred of medical, social, religious, and economic articles since December.
Today and in the days ahead, I plan to provide some insight, and will continue to refer you to links and podcasts so you can make up your own mind and share what you learn with others.
Coronavirus Medal and Prayer Card Available Right Now
Our CatholiCity team and I have been working around-the-clock since Monday to provide you with this uniquely potent spiritual tool to protect your family and loved ones.
The Miraculous Medal is touched my Relic of the True Cross, my First Class Relics, and doused with genuine Lourdes water.
The special Coronavirus Prayer Card comes attached to every medal (as pictured above) so everyone you give the medal to can use the prayer and understand the priceless spiritual value of the medal.
They are ready to ship immediately for a modest donation, in unlimited quantities, with free shipping. Don't be shy or hesitate. If you order today you will have them in your hands as soon as humanly possible.
You can also print out a mail-in order form. We are asking for a minimum donation of $5 for each medal/card to help cover our printing, production, and shipping costs. We will never run out of them. Or you can just mail me a letter with your donation here:
CatholiCity
PO Box 26101
Fairview Park OH 44126
(Of course, if you don't have $5, we will mail you one. Other CatholiCity Citizens will surely cover the cost. Note: our overseas and Canadian friends must order online.)
Because God the Father's sovereign power is our best defense against all evil, anything that encourages or facilitates prayer is crucial, so please consider adding our Rosary CDs (the #1 Rosary recording in all of human history) and our extraordinarily effective and ridiculously affordable Powerful Prayers booklets in addition to your medals.
(You should also know that we have only 94 Lourdes rosaries and 104 Holy Sepulchre rosaries left on a first-come, first-serve basis. As long as these special rosaries appear on the online order from, we still have them to ship to you.)
Last weekend, one of your fellow CatholiCity Citizens emailed me a traditional prayer to Our Lady for protection against influenza and other diseases. You know me: I love composing prayers, so I adapted the prayer to include the Coronavirus.
Why the Prayer Card is So ImportantAs you can see, the Coronavirus prayer card is beautifully simple and will inform anyone you give it to that the medal's real value is spiritual because the medal has been doused with genuine Lourdes water before being touched to my exceedingly rare Relic of the True Cross and first class relics of this "all star" line-up of the most powerful intercessors in heaven:
- Saint Joseph, Husband of Mary
- Saint Anthony of Padua
- Saint Jude the Apostle
- Saint Therese of Lisieux
- Saint Frances Xavier
- Saint Maximilian Kolbe
As for the Miraculous Medal itself, of course it is of good quality and is a perfect size for lady or gentleman:
In 1830, when Our Lady personally instructed how it was to be made to Saint Catherine Laboure at the Rue du Bac in Paris (where I personally carried your intentions just last summer), it was originally called the Medal of the Immaculate Conception because of its inscription "O Mary, Conceived Without Sin, Pray for Us Who Have Recourse to Thee."
An Entire School Spared from PlagueHowever, not long after it became available, a plague without cure began ravaging Paris in 1832. An entire school of little children and many others who wore the medal were spared! This, other miracles, and astounding conversions soon caused it to be known throughout the world as the "Miraculous Medal."
My Father's Moving Account of the Miraculous MedalIf you have a few minutes, listen to this riveting audio clip of the story of Saint Catherine Laboure and the Miraculous Medal from my father's amazing talk, Marian Apparitions Explained. We put it on Youtube so anyone can watch it. (You can order or listen to the entire talk here.)
Today the medal has become to the most popular sacramental of any kind in the history of the world because it represents, in a tangible way, the powerful intercession of the Mother of God. No piece of stamped metal has any power--Mary does, because she is the mother of the Son, the daughter of the Father, and the spouse of the Holy Spirit.
Why Everyone Should Have the Miraculous MedalThe Coronavirus is real and it is a plague. Right now, you and everyone you know should be wearing a Miraculous Medal or carrying it on their person in a pocket, wallet or handbag. I keep mine in a slit in my brown scapular.
Your elderly grandparents or parents should have one.
Anyone who gets infected with the Coronavirus should have one.
Anyone you know who works in a hospital should have one.
Anyone who needs medical attention should have one.
Your children should have one.
You should have one.
The very act of faith of wearing it or carrying it, perhaps especially for someone who has little faith, will be honored by Immaculate Mary. Miracles will occur. When they do, we will tell the world, and more people will turn to God, instead of fear, during this worldwide pandemic.
Every car, bedroom, workstation in your home should have one (use any Miraculous Medal--not just the special one we are making available today!). We have always kept them on all the computers and printers at the Mary Foundation because the evil one hates 'em!
I must repeat: in my next message I may have good news on possibly better medical outcomes related to the Coronavirus for the general population over time, but in the meantime it is proving deadly and highly contagious. Our medical experts, our civil authorities, and even our bishops (I'll have more to say about them in my next Message) are taking unprecedented, drastic action with good reason, even if they are not necessarily acting correctly in all situations.
In the worst case scenarios, God spare us, we will absolutely need the same protection Immaculate Mary gave to the people of Paris.
Catholic Mom, Age 55, Dies in New JerseyA dear friend in New Jersey called asking for prayers for a family in her parish. A grandmother with eleven children died from the Coronavirus. Now her 55-year-old daughter and two other siblings have passed away. Many other family members are confirmed as infected and a handful are in ICU on ventilators. Not long after my friend's call, the New York Times posted a story about this devastated family.
We will pray for them and for each other below.
The World Prays the Rosary TodayAs most of you have heard, and as I write this on the Feast of Saint Joseph, the whole world is being encouraged to pray the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary with the Holy Father. If you are reading this after March 19th, remember that God is not a bureaucrat, so pray an extra Rosary in "the fullness of time."
My Worst Lent EverBefore Ash Wednesday, while pondering how before every Lent I have encouraged so many of you to give up things you love, and trying to think of what to give up myself, it struck me that going to daily Mass, and especially going to daily Mass to pray for you in particular, is one of the things I love most about being alive.
Daily Mass is how I "live out" being a consecrated son of Immaculate Mary. Receiving the Body of Christ and offering it for you is the most important thing I do as the founder of the Mary Foundation and CatholiCity.
"Could I give up daily Mass for Lent?" I asked myself.
Of course not, I quickly concluded, yet because the idea of not going to Mass for Lent was so bizarre, I started joking about giving up daily Mass for Lent with my sons. (I have never given up joking for Lent, either, I guess.)
Fast forward to today, and the Coronavirus pandemic has ended public Masses all over the world and in virtually every diocese in America. In this sense, it is the Worst Lent Ever in our lifetimes.
Yet Lent 2020 continues. We have been forced to give up the Eucharist. Just today my diocese announced that going Confession by appointment was available, so I drove to a nearby parish and also had all your special Miraculous Medals blessed. Two birds with one stone and all that.
The young priest, Father Kevin (just released from 14-day quarantine after a trip to Italy) was quite earnest. I actually wore a surgical mask--my oddest "confessional veil" ever.
So it is still Lent. You can pray. You can fast. Most of you can still give alms (I'm sending a donation to my six or seven favorite charities tomorrow--Catholic apostolates are already suffering financially). Not being able to see our elderly relatives is a cross.
The whole world needs us, practicing Catholics, to have the Best Lent Ever during the Worst Lent Ever.
The impact of the Coronavirus on real people and on the course of human history itself will depend on the prayers and reparations of the good Catholics worldwide and on God's mercy upon a planet filled with sinners and saints.
After all, effective human actions depend on God's grace, even if the people taking action don't know they are receiving God's grace. Every soul on this planet needs you.
Death, Fear, Freedom and...As Catholics, we should all, always and at all times, be prepared for our death, which is a doorway to eternal happiness if we are in a state of grace. Jesus said "Be not afraid" over and over again.
I do not want to die. I want to live a long life and write novels and help you reach souls and enjoy my children and grandchildren and especially my sweetheart.
Yet, I am ready to die. Are you?
Lack of fear of death is freedom. We who do not fear death are free to love. I do not want you to order these Miraculous Medals out of fear, but out of love for those to whom the Holy Spirit has already chosen from the beginning of time to receive them through you. I was inspired to offer them to you because of love.
The love that brought these Miraculous Medals and Coronavirus Prayer Cards began when my mom and dad, Bud and Pat Macfarlane, now 82 and 87, fell in love. (She is another New Jersey mom who gave birth to eleven children.) I am the fruit of their love for each other and their love for Mary. Mary loves me. Jesus gave me the grace to consecrate my heart totally to Immaculate Mary in 1983. CatholiCity is her website. Those Miraculous Medals are her medals. Mary sent you to me.
Mary loves. Death is merely a short stride, lasting for one final glorious breath, toward being with her in person.
Yes, pray. Yes, offer reparations. But most of all, keep loving during Lent. Keep loving.
One Catholic Quote
"All who wear them will receive great graces."
-Our Lady to Saint Catherine, referring to Miraculous Medals
Ben Shapiro of the Daily Wire is on Youtube and every podcast platform. He is extremely intelligent, level-headed, and has a knack for summarizing information in an entertaining way. Here is a sample of his daily show, and his last several podcasts on the Coronavirus have been excellent as well.
Perspective: Two StatisticsThe saints and the Bible pretty clearly teach that plagues are a punishment from God. If the Coronavirus is not a plague seeking to kill the innocent and not-so-innocent people we love, destroy the worldwide economy and devastate entire countries, then we need a new definition of the word plague.
And we are all guilty because we are all breathing and have thusly sinned and have tolerated sin.
In the United States, on average, approximately 2,300 unborn babies are killed in the womb every day. (I read that Planned Parenthood has been quite strident and proud about keeping their abortion clinics running during this pandemic).
Every day another 10,000+ tiny human beings with immortal souls are lost to chemical abortion (the so-called morning after pill) and to the abortifacient effect of the birth control pill (so tragically, unbeknownst to their parents).
God have mercy on us all.
Join Me in Praying the Coronavirus PrayerLet us, tens of thousands together, begin in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit...
O Immaculate Mary, conceived without sin,
I implore you on this very day to be the spiritual mother of our homes.
In the most Holy Name of Jesus Christ, your Divine Son,
preserve us from all evil, especially from coronavirus
and all other contagious diseases or sicknesses,
including illnesses of mind or spirit.
Thank you for protecting each member of our family,
all our friends,
coworkers,
and all health care providers.
May our loving Father preserve us from sin,
and from sudden death without obtaining Divine Mercy,
through the unceasing intercession of
Saint Joseph and Saint Anthony,
Saint Jude and Saint Therese of Liseiux,
Saint Maximilian Kolbe and Saint Francis Xavier,
and Saints Michael and Raphael the Archangels.
Amen.
Whew. I'm in the mood for a fight. Let's fight! Thank you for reading this and for being a part of our work and our lives. Amen. Truly, Amen.
With Saint Joseph, Terror of Demons,
Bud Macfarlane
Founder
