Ella and James Preece are a Catholic couple living in Kingston Upon Hull in Yorkshire in the UK. This is our blog.

Items Tagged With: Praying Mantis

Women in the Old Testament "An introduction to some of the inspirational women found in the Hebrew Scriptures" When we saw that talk in the Handbook of Short Courses, Ella was interested. Do they want us to be inspired by Judith?

Judith, you may remember, is the Woman in the Old Testament who gets herself close to the enemy king and then chops his head off in the night. It's been beautifully portrayed in this lovely painting by Botticelli...

Botticelli Judith

...and in one of Ella's favourite statues, this rendition by Donatello which we saw in Florence...

Donatello Judith
[photo source]

We should really have a replica of that in the garden. Anyway, what Ella doesn't know (and she's gonna love it) is that the Internet has revealed what the top minds of the renaissance could never imagine. A taxidermist, well, an entomologist to be precise (no, they don't stuff dead talking trees, they stuff dead insects by the look of things) has taken dead Mantises and, inspired by the Mantis females habit of biting off the head of her mate, has stuffed them and posed them in Ella's favourite Biblical scene...

Rogue Entomologist Judith

Ella will be pleased!

Actually, there's a whole series of famous mantis beheadings.

Gotta catch'em all!

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To the Blessed Virgin Prayer for England

O Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God and our most gentle Queen and Mother, look down in mercy upon England thy "Dowry" and upon us all who greatly hope and trust in thee.

By thee it was that Jesus our Saviour and our hope was given unto the world; and He has given thee to us that we might hope still more.

Plead for us thy children, whom thou didst receive and accept at the foot of the cross.

O sorrowful Mother! intercede for our separated brethren, that with us in the one true fold they may be united to the supreme Shepherd, the Vicar of thy Son.

Pray for us all, dear Mother, that by faith fruitful in good works we may all deserve to see and praise God, together with thee, in our heavenly home.

Amen.

Couple's Prayer

O God, our heavenly Father, protect and bless us. Deepen and strengthen our love for each other day by day.

Grant that by thy mercy, neither of us may ever say one unkind word to the other. Forgive and correct our faults, and make us constantly to forgive one another should one of us unconsciously hurt the other.

Make us and keep us sound and well in body, alert in mind, tender in heart, and devout in spirit. O Lord, grant us each to rise to the other's best. Then, we pray thee, add to our common life such virtues as only thou canst give.

And so, O Father, consecrate our life and love completely to thy worship, and to the service of all about us, especially those whom thou hast appointed us to serve, that we may always stand before thee in happiness and peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.