Catholic to the Core

Okay, I'm back...

2009-06-02T10:45:00.002-05:00

I have been in Texas for a year and a half. I am back due to debilitating headaches that have plagued me for nearly a year now. I don't know what the Lord has in mind for me in the future but I am excited and anxious to find out what that might be. Please keep me in your prayers. God Bless.

Last Post!

2007-12-12T18:20:00.001-06:00

I wanted to say 'Goodbye' this is going to be my last post to say God Bless and Good Bye. I am leaving in just about 2 weeks (Dec 31) to enter the School Sisters of Saint Francis. My family and I will make the trip December 31 and I will begin my life in the Religious Life. I greatly appreciate all of your prayers and support for me. God Bless! Sarah

Anima Christi

2007-11-24T14:36:00.000-06:00

Soul of Christ, sanctify me. Body of Christ, save me. Blood of Christ, inebriate me. Water from the side of Christ, wash me. Passion of Christ, strengthen me. Oh good Jesus, hear me. Within Your wounds, hide me. Suffer me not to be separated from You. From the malignant enemy defend me. At the hour of my death, Call me and bid me come to You. That with Your saints, I may praise You, forever and ever. Amen

2007-11-13T12:55:00.000-06:00

These are pictures from http://www.toonslinger.com very good artist. Pope John Paul II and Blessed Mother Theresa Pray for Us!

Bella!

2007-11-11T20:30:00.000-06:00

I want to say "Go see Bella!!" It is a wonderful film that will touch your heart. This movie has a great pro-life message that at the same time is quite subtle. Please go see this film, go, go, go!

Pray for this film that it will touch many lives and just maybe save some too! God Bless!

Receive the Power - Guy Sebastian and Paulini

2007-11-07T20:52:00.001-06:00

Pope John Paul II Pray for us!

Prayer Request

2007-11-03T21:36:00.000-05:00

To everyone who reads this, please pray for EWTN's Fr. Francis Mary. If you watched Life on the Rock this past week you know why if you did not, he needs your prayers to understand God's will for his life, he is struggling in his priesthood. Pray that his time spent away from EWTN will bear great renewal for him! God Bless you Fr. Francis Mary! You are certainly in my prayers! Fr. Kevin Fete Pray for us! Thank you for your prayers!

2007-11-03T18:52:00.000-05:00

Today I spent my Saturday with Susie (RECON) and Scott Hahn, in Lincoln, NE. We drove to Lincoln and listened to Scott Hahn speak on three topics: The Lambs Super, Love Comes First, and Letter and Spirit. These talks touched me deeply. I thank God deeply for Scott Hahn, for answering the call to enter the Catholic Church in 1986. What a wonderful day being able to listen to Scott make the Mass come alive again for everyone present and then to have Bishop Buskowitz to celebrate the Mass.

I met Scott and had him sign my copy of The Lamb's Supper, as you can see he was also gracious enough to take a picture with me! Thanks Susie :-)!

The other picture here is of two women of great faith that I have been privileged to know for much of my life. Mary and Fay. These two women are so in love with our Lord I have been personally touched by them growing up. Thank you God for these wonderful women!

Thank you to Susie who is like a second mom to me! I love you!

To my Mom and Dad, I hope you read this and know how much I love you and am grateful for you and your love and faith. Happy Anniversary! 28 years! God Love You!

I feel so blessed today, I remember Sr. Mary Michael from the School Sisters of Christ the King that said something along the lines of this: God is always giving us grace, sometimes it in just a little dripping, sometime He turns on the fire hose full throttle! I feel it full throttle tonight!

Thanks for reading! God Bless! Thank you Scott Hahn! I had a great day listening to you! God Bless your ministry!

LONG Live the Chocolate!

2007-10-31T09:59:00.003-05:00

Here are the sixteen signs that you are a chocoholic:

1. You like to dip strawberries, cherries and bananas in chocolate so you start experimenting at dinner with broccoli and cauliflower substituting chocolate for cheese.

2. You buy a bottle of chocolate syrup and carry it around in a small paper bag for a quick nip when you need it.

3. You pour yourself a cup of coffee in the morning and use twelve chocolate spoons. You never touch the coffee.

4. You were delighted to discover that they make a chocolate bar for PMS, so you buy yourself three every month to get you through pre-menstrual, present-menstrual and post-menstrual syndrome.

5. Your significant other buys you a five-pound box of chocolate for Valentine's Day and you eat the whole thing in one night. The next morning you try to call in sick, but you can't dial the phone because your sugar levels are so high you can't calm the tremors. So you nurse yourself back to health with little nips from that chocolate syrup bottle.

6. Whenever you see "Back-to-school" advertisements you drool because you know there will soon be kids at your door selling the World's Finest Chocolate bars for a dollar each.

7. When kids come to your house on Halloween you "make change" by depositing hard candies in their pumpkins and withdrawing Snickers, Crunch, Hershey's and 3 Musketeers bars.

8. Whenever there is a morning meeting scheduled at work you grab a double-chocolate monster-sized muffin to go with your cup of cocoa, then sit on the edge of your chair all through the meeting waving your arm calling, "Me, me! I know, I know!" and they have to call a break so you can walk off some of the effects from all the sugar.

9. You actually call it a "hit" at three o'clock in the afternoon when that chocolate craving strikes and you need it to get through the rest of the day.

10. You've eaten all twenty-four pieces of chocolate in your advent calendar by December 1.

11. You think the best after-holiday sales follow Halloween, Valentine's Day and Easter.

12. You think Hershey's 65% cacao bars are for rookies and Lindt's 85% cacao bars are for professionals.

13. You think it's great when you go on a diet and the breakfast bars, snack bars, protein bars, and shakes come in chocolate and you've actually tried diet chocolate-flavored cola.

14. You plan to start a grassroots movement to get the cacao bean listed in the protein section of the food pyramid.

15. You think the woman in the Dove commercial who's satisfied with just one piece of chocolate is faking it.

16. You've got ‘Chocolate Forever' tattooed on you somewhere.

From Catholic Exchange

Please Pray

2007-10-05T08:29:00.001-05:00

Hello, I wanted to pass along a prayer request! I am going on a retreat this week-end, please pray that it is fruitful for me, I have not been on a retreat in some time and very much need one and I am very excited for this opportunity. God Bless, I will tell about it when I return! Here is e-mail I received from Spirit & Life, It is a good read:

Plan A: Keep "Plan B" Out of Catholic Hospitals
On September 28th the Connecticut bishops issued an unfortunate statement allowing the Plan B abortion-causing drug to be used in cases of rape in Catholic hospitals. I have written respectfully and urgently to the Connecticut Catholic Conference (CCC) and to each bishop individually to ask them to withdraw this potentially precedent-setting statement, and I pray that they do so. I am extremely concerned that this statement will begin to have a domino effect on other Catholic hospitals and healthcare institutions, and I write to you today to ask your ongoing partnership in this concern.

First, let me be clear about our obligations as Catholics. While our bishops operate in union with the Vicar of Christ, no individual bishop or conference of bishops, however wise or holy, has the charism of infallibility. Our respect for our bishops is sometimes exercised in presenting them with the clear facts that their advisors may have missed. It is an expression of our filial cooperation in their ministry. In this case, we have no option but to humbly ask them to reverse their decision due to some extremely egregious errors contained in the statement.

Errors of fact
Error number 1: "The administration of Plan B pills in this instance cannot be judged to be the commission of an abortion because of such doubt about how Plan B pills and similar drugs work."

The truth is that there is absolutely no doubt about how the Plan B pills work. Just ask the manufacturer, Barr Pharmaceuticals, whose product insert states: "This product works mainly by preventing ovulation (egg release). It may also prevent fertilization of a released egg (joining of sperm and egg) or attachment of a fertilized egg to the uterus (implantation)." (My italics.) It's that third item that makes Plan B an abortion-causing drug. The same can be said for every chemical contraceptive.

Error number 2: "...the teaching authority of the Church has not definitively resolved this matter...." Here, regretfully, Catholics are led to believe that Rome has not unambiguously addressed the issue of Plan B (a.k.a., the "morning after pill") already.

The truth of this matter is evident by a simple recourse to a statement of the Pontifical Academy for Life on the Vatican's website. The Academy stated in a document issued in October of 2001 that "from the ethical standpoint the same absolute unlawfulness of abortifacient procedures also applies to distributing, prescribing and taking the morning-after pill. All who, whether sharing the intention or not, directly co-operate with this procedure, are also morally responsible for it." The Vatican did not need to invent any new teaching on the Plan B pills because these pills fall into the category of abortifacient contraception, pure and simple. The consistent teaching of our Church on abortion applies here.

Errors of judgment
There were other errors in judgment in the bishops' statement that confuse the issue from a moral point of view. The bishops state that "to administer Plan B pills without an ovulation test is not an intrinsically evil act." This type of language just confuses the issue. It would indeed be a seriously irresponsible act to administer a killing drug not knowing whether or not ovulation has occurred and a new life is present. It would be like a hunter shooting at something moving in a forest if he were not really sure that what he saw was an animal or a human being. To use the language of "intrinsically evil" would make us think - legalistically - that it would be okay to take an action if it were only possibly evil. Hair-splitting language like this does not give us guidance when our moral obligation is to err on the side of life whenever there is a doubt. Furthermore, Dr. Chris Kahlenborn has shown that Plan B only works to halt ovulation half the time. Thus fertilization may occur even after the pill is administered, and a chemical abortion would result.

The core of the matter
What we are faced with here is the long arm of the culture of death reaching into our Catholic institutions and coercing us to comply with its totalitarian dictates. The Connecticut state legislature, with the complicity of the governor, passed a law that forbad the use of ovulation tests in cases of rape - why? This unwarranted government intrusion into a purely medical decision was totally unnecessary and would not likely have affected any other institutions than Catholic ones. It is, in my opinion, a law that was drafted deliberately to coerce Catholic hospitals to comply with the contraceptive dictates of the abortion providers. Remember this same state was the origin of the 1965 Griswold v. Connecticut Supreme Court case which legalized contraception! It is no wonder that Connecticut is reaping the rotten fruit of the seeds that it sowed over forty years ago.

The bishops were forced into a "reluctant compliance" with this law, according to Bishop Lori of Bridgeport, but this is just the tip of the iceberg. Acts of blatant coercion of Catholic consciences are already far advanced and will only continue unless the Church is willing to stand up and rebuke the arrogance of these coercive measures and carve out strict realms of conscience which are unreachable by activist courts and corrupt politicians. That will require Church leaders to be willing to fight ferocious battles against the dictators of relativism in order to assert our rights of conscience and faith. All Catholics, but especially our leaders, will have to be clear-headed and uncompromising in the face of the temptations to put our Catholic institutions in league with the liars and manipulators of the culture of death.

I envision a day in which Catholic leaders may have to resign from lucrative positions in business and shut down Catholic healthcare institutions rather than cooperate in the arrogant and coercive programs of the culture of death. Actually, I think that day has already arrived.

What we can do
Our greatest weapon in this battle against the culture of death is prayer. I ask you to pray for the bishops, above all, who are usually the target of attack by the culture of death and are often surrounded by compromisers. We need their strong moral leadership unfettered by lawyers and "ethicists" who prevent them from taking up arms in the culture wars. We are at a point in our Church's history where bishops and priests are being called to martyrdom for the sake of the Faith, and only prayer will give them that courage to embrace their vocations to the last drop of blood.

Secondly, we all need to make a firm decision to never be silent in the face of any form of chemical killing. Abortifacient contraception is a back-door plague which enters into lives, institutions and societies in the guise of the birth control "savior," but it is just one more way to kill, and with greater frequency at that.

Finally, stay tuned for more battles in more states with more Catholic healthcare institutions. One phone call I had with the legislative advisor of the Connecticut Catholic Conference gave me the impression that the domino effect is already happening in other episcopal conferences, and that concerns me deeply. The vigilance of many great pro-life forces, coupled with prayer and massive protests from people of conscience will undoubtedly give our Church leaders the courage to imitate the Good Shepherd, who laid down His life for His sheep.

Sincerely Yours in Christ,

Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer,
President, Human Life International

Good News

2007-10-02T09:37:00.000-05:00

I am so sorry that I have not been blogging lately! I had to take a break as our computer at home has broken!

I wanted to share some great news!

I just received word yesterday that my application to the School Sisters of Saint Francis in Panhandle, TX. I am so exited! I want to thank everyone who has been praying for me in my discernment. God Bless!

I should be entering in the new year after I can get rid of my College Debt! Your continued prayers are greatly appreciate!

God Bless!

2007-09-08T12:45:00.000-05:00

Appeal from the Holy Father for World Youth Day 2008

Dear Young People,

One year from now we will meet at World Youth Day in Sydney! I want to encourage you to prepare well for this marvellous celebration of the faith, which will be spent in the company of your bishops, priests, Religious, youth leaders and one another. Enter fully into the life of your parishes and participate enthusiastically in diocesan events! In this way you will be equipped spiritually to experience new depths of understanding of all that we believe when we gather in Sydney next July.

"You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8). As you know, these words of Jesus form the theme of World Youth Day 2008. How the Apostles felt upon hearing these words, we can only imagine, but their confusion was no doubt tempered with a sense of awe and of eager anticipation for the coming ofthe Spirit. United in prayer with Mary and the others gathered in the Upper Room (cf Acts 1:14), they experienced the true power of the Spirit, whose presence transforms uncertainty, fear, and division into purpose, hope and communion.

A sense of awe and eager anticipation also describes how we feel as we make preparations to meet in Sydney. For many of us, this will be a long journey. Yet Australia and its people evoke images of a warm welcome and wondrous beauty, of an ancient aboriginal history and a multitude of vibrant cities and communities. I know that already the ecclesial and government authorities, together with numerous young Australians, are working very hard to ensure an exceptional experience for us all. I offer them my heartfelt thanks.

World Youth Day is much more than an event. It is a time of deep spiritual renewal, the fruits of which benefit the whole of society. Young pilgrims are filled with the desire to pray, to be nourished by Word and Sacrament, to be transformed by the Holy Spirit, who illuminates the wonder of the human soul and shows the way to be "the image and instrument of the love which flows from Christ" (Deus Caritas Est, 33).

It is this love - Christ's love - for which the world yearns. Thus you are called by so many to "be his witnesses".

Some of you have friends with little real purpose in their lives, perhaps caught up in a futile search for endless new experiences. Bring them to World Youth Day too! In fact, I have noticed that against the tide of secularism many young people are rediscovering the satisfying quest for authentic beauty, goodness and truth. Through your witness you help them in their search for the Spirit of God. Be courageous in that witness! Strive to spread Christ's guiding light, which gives purpose to all life, making lasting joy and happiness possible for everyone.

My dear young people, until we meet in Sydney, may the Lord protect you all. Let us entrust these preparations to Our Lady of the Southern Cross, Help of Christians. With her, let us pray: "Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and enkindle in them the fire of your love".

www.wyd2008.org

May our Lord be brought to all people thoughout the world this World Youth Day! May it be the biggest yet! May God Be Praised in all things! God Bless!

World Youth Day 2008

2007-09-08T12:41:00.001-05:00

Images of the World Youth Day Cross and Icon! Praised Be Jesus Christ...Now and forever! Amen

2007-09-08T11:52:00.000-05:00

Holy Father John Paul II at the Tomb of Padre Pio on the 100 Anniversary of his birth

Photo and information from www.padrepio.com

2007-09-08T11:48:00.000-05:00

St. Padre Pio Pray for us!

St. Padre Pio's feast day is not until the end of the month but I found this and wanted to share it with you! God Bless

Praised be Jesus Christ...Now and forever Amen!

The Blessing Video

2007-09-07T20:25:00.001-05:00

Be a blessing!

Selah-You Raise me Up

2007-09-07T20:03:00.001-05:00

Hello

2007-09-06T10:13:00.000-05:00

I am sorry I have not had any new posts lately, I have been in Texas visiting again the School Sisters of St. Francis in Panhandle, TX. I spent a week there again and turned in my application for possible acceptance, I am now waiting on a few last minute things for the application and I will know in a few weeks if my application was accepted! Please keep me in your prayers! God Bless you! I have enjoyed my time there and truely feel God is calling me to continue this path with the School Sisters.

The Superior asked me what I really enjoyed about my time at the convent and I said "I feel beautiful here" it may sound kind of strange but I really feel that this convent is where I have felt the most beautiful.

Please keep me in your prayers as I am needing to pay off College debt before entering!

St. Augustine Feast Day

2007-08-28T10:43:00.000-05:00

A Wayward Son Returns Home

He was deluded by paganism and lived a sinful lifestyle! Yet he became one of the greatest thinkers in Western history, and more importantly, a saint. St. Augustine (354-430) was a brilliant scholar and teacher even as a young man, but he was led astray by the false charms of a wayward life. He lived with a mistress and fathered a child out of wedlock, and deeply resented the prayers his mother, St. Monica, offered on his behalf.

Knowing that his mother wanted to accompany him when he moved to Rome, Augustine slipped away (telling her he was going down to the docks to send off a friend, when in fact he, himself, was departing). Heartbroken, Monica followed him to Rome and then to Milan, where she was encouraged to persevere in her prayers by the great bishop, St. Ambrose.

Ambrose's own spiritual and intellectual integrity prompted Augustine to re-examine his own beliefs, and during the spiritual crisis which resulted, Augustine heard a voice telling him to "take and read" the Bible. When he did so, he opened by chance to St. Paul's statement that "the night is far spent, and the day draws near ... therefore, put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the desires of the flesh" (Rom 13:12-14).

Upon reading this passage, Augustine finally experienced a sense of true peace and enlightenment, leading to a profound conversion. He was baptized a Christian on Easter, 387, and he and St. Monica rejoiced together in the short time remaining before her death.

Augustine returned to North Africa and was ordained a priest; in 396 was chosen as Bishop of the city of Hippo. He was a very successful pastor and an even greater theologian, playing a major role in overcoming the heresies of Donatism (an excessively harsh understanding of Christianity) and Pelagianism (the false belief that humans can save themselves without the help of God's grace). He helped develop the Church's teachings on grace, original sin, and the Holy Trinity. He is a Doctor of the Church. His autobiography, the Confessions is beloved by many, and his life is an inspiration to all who seek the merciful forgiveness of God.

Catholic Exchange

St. Monica

2007-08-27T13:20:00.000-05:00

Rewards of Persistent Prayer

St. Monica (331-387) was the mother of St. Augustine (whose feast day is August 28). Monica, her pagan and licentious husband Patricius, his cantankerous mother, and her three children (including Augustine) all lived together in North Africa.

There was plenty of potential for family strife and discord, but Monica's patience and charity made the difference; her saintly example eventually brought about the conversions of her husband and mother-in-law.

Augustine, however, proved a tougher nut to crack; he indulged in a free and loose lifestyle, and adhered to a pagan philosophy condemned by the Church. After Patricius died, Monica tried to discipline her brilliant but wayward son (at one point even locking him out of her house), but to no avail. Monica's constant sacrifices, prayers, and admonitions seemed to have little effect (other than annoying her son).

At the age of twenty-nine, Augustine tried to break free of his mother's influence, travelling to Rome and then to Milan; a determined Monica followed him and was present when her son finally experienced a conversion. Augustine became a Christian in 387; St. Monica became ill and died soon after this. The time remaining to mother and son was short but beautiful, for they shared their faith and discussed the life to come.

Information from Catholic Exchange

Catholic Church

2007-08-24T18:02:00.001-05:00

Please watch! Can you tell me who is singing? God Bless! Wonderful, beautiful video! God Bless!

St. Bartholomew, Apostle

2007-08-24T09:23:00.001-05:00

August 23, 2007

The name of the Apostle St. Bartholomew is included among the lists of the Twelve Apostles, but aside from this, there's no mention of him in the New Testament. Many scholars feel he is the same man as Nathaniel, whom St. John's Gospel has Jesus describing as "an Israelite in whom there is no guile" (Jn 1:45).

Bartholomew initially doubted the possibility of the Messiah coming from Nazareth, but upon meeting Jesus he immediately declared Him to be "the Son of God and the King of Israel" (Jn 1:49). Early Church legends describe Bartholomew as having preached the gospel in India and Armenia, where he supposedly suffered martyrdom by being flayed alive; the historical value of these legends is open to question.

St. Bartholomew is in a sense the "unknown Apostle," and for this reason, he can serve as a patron saint for almost all of us. Most of us will never become famous or important in the eyes of the world, but this matters little; all of us are perfectly known, and infinitely important, in the eyes of God. The simple, everyday lives we lead can, if we offer them to God, become ways of helping bring about His Kingdom. St. Bartholomew isn't as well known as Peter, John, Thomas, or some of the other Apostles; what matters is that he responded wholeheartedly to God's call.

Largest Ever Planned Parenthood Abortion Mill Threatens to Open Near Chicago

2007-08-23T10:47:00.001-05:00

A huge new abortion clinic, said to be the largest Planned Parenthood Center in the United States, has been constructed near Chicago. In response Illinois pro-lifers have launched a major grass-roots campaign to prevent it from opening on its scheduled date this September.

If the 22,000-square-foot, $7.5 million facility opens, it will offer contraceptives, pregnancy tests, sexually transmitted disease testing and abortions. Officials expect to receive 8,000 patients and 10,500 visits within the first year. Of those visits, reports the Chicago Daily Herald, about 2,400 will be for abortions.

Eric Schiedler, Communications Director of the Chicago-based Pro-Life Action League, described the overwhelmingly positive support that the organization's efforts have received. He told LifeSiteNews.com that over the course of just ten days, hundreds of pro-lifers have added their support, vowing to prevent Planned Parenthood from entering Aurora.

City residents had no idea what was being constructed in the East side of Aurora, near Chicago. As Schiedler remarked in a recent report, "Planned Parenthood snuck into town." He added, "They were nearly finished building this place before we learned about it. We haven't got much time to stop them, but we're doing all we can."

Schiedler told LifeSiteNews.com that pro-lifers are calling for an investigation of the city council of Aurora into the fraudulent process by which Planned Parenthood came into the community. Planned Parenthood constructed the facility under another name, listing it as the "Gemini Medical Office Building."

"Planned Parenthood knew what they were doing," Schielder said in a press release. "Pro-lifers have stymied them before when they knew Planned Parenthood was coming to town. This time they kept things quiet until it was too late to halt construction."

Schiedler told LifeSiteNews.com, "They lied to the city of Aurora...They let the city council believe it was going to be a quiet, medical office." According to the Beacon News, however, Steve Trombley, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood/Chicago Area, said that the building would be the largest Planned Parenthood health center.

The pro-life community has launched a full-force grassroots effort to stop the clinic's opening. On August 9 they began the "40 Days for Life" praying, fasting and 24-hour vigil campaign with this intention. The largest "40 Days for Life" Campaign is scheduled to take place in cities across the nation starting on September 26.

The Pro-Life Action League is also organizing a massive pro-life demonstration in front of the Planned Parenthood facility next Saturday morning, August 25 from 9 to 11 a.m.

2007-08-19T11:45:00.000-05:00

This image if of the Sacred Heart. From Please keep this image close to your heart. God bless you in you devotion to our Lady! Don't just hold it, look at it, touch it. But contemplate it, pray it, love it. Keep this weapon close!

2007-08-19T11:37:00.000-05:00

The Below images are from Trinity Heights in Souix City, Iowa. God Bless!

Trinity Heights Sioux City, IA

2007-08-19T11:28:00.000-05:00

Bishop Vasa Pro-Life Homily

2007-08-18T11:06:00.001-05:00

Oh My @#%$@#$!

2007-08-17T22:53:00.000-05:00

Thou Shalt Not take the Lord's name in vain. That is the third commandment given to Moses from God.

# 3 Kind of important, so why is it so often broken without a second thought? I hear our Lord's name taken as a curse everyday! I know I am not the only one, it is everywhere! It is really heart breaking! God is not someone to curse but to praise, to worship and adore. Here is the thing, it just seems to be an expression like, "Oh My!" nothing to worry over, no offense, no problem. Why?

I have started to say a Hail Mary every time I hear someone curse the Lord's name. I don't remember all the time, but I try to at least recognize it and apologize for them. It breaks my heart! Today, if you hear someone curse using the Lord's name say a prayer for them and apologize to our Lord for them, that will mean something. God Bless

2007-08-14T18:49:00.000-05:00

Maximilian Kolbe
[photograph of Saint Maximilian]

Also known as
Apostle of Consecration to Mary; Maksymilian Maria; Massimiliano Maria Kolbe; Maximilian Mary Kolbe; Rajmund Kolbe; Raymond Kolbe
Memorial
14 August
Profile
Second of three sons born to a poor but pious Catholic family in Russian occupied Poland. His parents, both Franciscan lay tertiaries, worked at home as weavers. His father, Julius, later ran a religious book store, then enlisted in Pilsudski's army, fought for Polish independence from Russia, and was hanged by the Russians as a traitor in 1914. His mother, Marianne Dabrowska, later became a Benedictine nun. His brother Alphonse became a priest.

Raymond was known as a mischievous child, sometimes considered wild, and a trial to his parents. However, in 1906 at Pabianice, at age twelve and around the time of his first Communion, he received a vision of the Virgin Mary that changed his life.

I asked the Mother of God what was to become of me. Then she came to me holding two crowns, one white, the other red. She asked if I was willing to accept either of these crowns. The white one meant that I should persevere in purity, and the red that I should become a martyr. I said that I would accept them both. -Saint Maximilian

He entered the Franciscan junior seminary in Lwow, Poland in 1907 where he excelled in mathematics and physics. For a while he wanted to abandon the priesthood for the military, but eventually relented to the call to religious life, and on 4 September 1910 he became a novice in the Conventual Franciscan Order at age 16. He took the name Maximilian, made his first vows on 5 September 1911, his final vows on 1 November 1914.

Studied philosophy at the Jesuit Gregorian College in Rome from 1912 to 1915, and theology at the Franciscan Collegio Serafico in Rome from 1915 to 1919. On 16 October 1917, while still in seminary, he and six friends founded the Immaculata Movement (Militia Immaculatae, Crusade of Mary Immaculate) devoted to the conversion of sinners, opposition to freemasonry (which was extremely anti-Catholic at the time), spread of the Miraculous Medal (which they wore as their habit), and devotion to Our Lady and the path to Christ. Stricken with tuberculosis which nearly killed him, and left him in frail in health the rest of his life. Ordained on 28 April 1918 in Rome at age 24. Received his Doctor of Theology on 22 July 1922; his insights into Marian theology echo today through their influence on Vatican II.

Maximilian returned to Poland on 29 July 1919 to teach history in the Crakow seminary. He had to take a medical leave from 10 August 1920 to 28 April 1921 to be treated for tuberculosis at the hospital at Zakpane in the Tatra Mountains. In January 1922 he began publication of the magazine Knight of the Immaculate to fight religious apathy; by 1927 the magazine had a press run of 70,000 issues. He was forced to take another medical leave from 18 September 1926 to 13 April 1927, but the work continued. The friaries from which he had worked were not large enough for his work, and in 1927 Polish Prince Jan Drucko-Lubecki gave him land at Teresin near Warsaw. There he founded a new monastery of Niepokalanow, the City of the Immaculate which was consecrated on 8 December 1927. At its peak the Knight of the Immaculate had a press run of 750,000 copies a month. A junior seminary was started on the grounds in 1929. In 1935 the house began printing a daily Catholic newspaper, The Little Daily with a press run of 137,000 on work days, 225,000 on Sundays and holy days.

Not content with his work in Poland, Maximilian and four brothers left for Japan in 1930. Within a month of their arrival, penniless and knowing no Japanese, Maximilian was printing a Japanese version of the Knight; the magazine, Seibo no Kishi grew to a circulation of 65,000 by 1936. In 1931 he founded a monastery in Nagasaki, Japan comparable to Niepokalanow. It survived the war, including the nuclear bombing, and serves today as a center of Franciscan work in Japan.

In mid-1932 he left Japan for Malabar, India where he founded a third Niepokalanow house. However, due to a lack of manpower, it did not survive.

Poor health forced him to curtail his missionary work and return to Poland in 1936. On 8 December 1938 the monastery started its own radio station. By 1939 the monastery housed a religious community of nearly 800 men, the largest in the world in its day, and was completely self-sufficient including medical facilities and a fire brigade staffed by the religious brothers.

Arrested with several of his brothers on 19 September 1939 following the Nazi invasion of Poland. Others at the monastery were briefly exiled, but the prisoners were released on 8 December 1939, and the men returned to their work. Back at Niepokalanow he continued his priestly ministry, The brothers housed 3,000 Polish refugees, two-thirds of whom were Jewish, and continued their publication work, including materials considered anti-Nazi. For this work the presses were shut down, the congregation suppressed, the brothers dispersed, and Maximilian was imprisoned in Pawiak prison, Warsaw, Poland on 17 February 1941.

On 28 May 1941 he was transferred to Auschwitz and branded as prisoner 16670. He was assigned to a special work group staffed by priests and supervised by especially vicious and abusive guards. His calm dedication to the faith brought him the worst jobs available, and more beatings than anyone else. At one point he was beaten, lashed, and left for dead. The prisoners managed to smuggle him into the camp hospital where he spent his recovery time hearing confessions. When he returned to the camp, Maximilian ministered to other prisoners, including conducting Mass and delivering communion using smuggled bread and wine.

In July 1941 there was an escape from the camp. Camp protocol, designed to make the prisoners guard each other, required that ten men be slaughtered in retribution for each escaped prisoner. Francis Gajowniczek, a married man with young children was chosen to die for the escape. Maximilian volunteered to take his place, and died as he had always wished - in service.
Born
7 January 1894 at Zdunska Wola, Poland as Raymond Kolbe
Died
14 August 1941 by lethal carbonic acid injection after three weeks of starvation and dehydration at the Auschwitz, Poland death camp; body burned in the ovens and ashes scattered
Venerated
30 January 1969 by Pope Paul VI
Beatified
17 October 1971 by Pope Paul VI; his beatification miracles include the July 1948 cure of intestinal tuberculosis of Angela Testoni, and August 1950 cure of calcification of the arteries/sclerosis of Francis Ranier
Canonized
10 October 1982 by Pope John Paul II; declared a martyr of charity
Patronage
drug addiction; drug addicts; families; imprisoned people; journalists; political prisoners; prisoners; pro-life movement

Happy Feast Day to St. Clare

2007-08-11T20:23:00.000-05:00

2007-08-10T16:25:00.001-05:00

According to Sister Mary Catherine, Mother Vicar of Our Lady of the Angels Monastery:

"Mother Angelica remains in good spirits. She spends much of the day in her room, gaining in Holiness. The Nuns love spending time with Mother as she is at peace and displays a gentle countenance and joyful laugh. Christ radiates in her. One positive note on her physical condition, Mother's speaking and writing ability, which was hampered by the stroke she suffered in 2002, continues to improve with time."

May God Bless Mother and her work even now!

2007-08-09T17:34:00.000-05:00

The below post is directly from http://www.secondexodus.com/

2007-08-09T09:09:00.001-05:00

SAINT THERESA BENEDICTA OF THE CROSS

The Early Years
Edith Stein was born on October 12, 1891, Yom Kippur, of Orthodox Jewish parents. A brilliant Jewish girl, but at age 14 she suddenly stopped praying and dropped out of school, angry because an anti-Semitic teacher consistently refused to put her at the head of the class even though the entire class thought she had earned it. However, eager for education, she received private tutoring and was admitted to the University of Breslau, one of the very first women admitted to full matriculation at a major university, where she majored in psychology.

The Philosophy Years
In the summer of 1913, when she was nearly 22 years old, Edith was an atheist on the surface but a Jew deep in her heart. This is fairly common among young Jews when their faith is presented to them simply as ethical idealism. They see it as a philosophy rather than a faith, and find it appropriate to probe its defects. Edith took a neutral position on God and refused all religious practice. Instead, she began to look for intellectual principles more deeply rooted in truth than those of Judaism.

Edith Stein did not find these higher principles in psychology, so she switched to the University of Göttingen to study philosophy under Edmund Husserl. His “phenomenology” sought to make philosophy a hard science by resolving the conflict between empiricism (observation) and rationalism (reason and theory). Phenomenology highlights the origin of all philosophical and scientific systems and theoretical constructs in the experiential life. Soon Edith became Husserl’s most gifted student; and when she had brilliantly completed her studies with a doctorate summa cum laude, he took her on as his assistant and collaborator.

The Old Damascus Road
Christ calls to us in ways that fill our needs. Phenomenology led Edith Stein into a state of Voraussetzungslosigkeit, total impartiality, without which she would have been incapable of opening herself to thinking of God in terms of objective analysis. She set out to understand what should be her relationship with God. She began to weigh the three alternatives within her environment: Jewish, Protestant, and Catholic.

She tried to return to the Judaism of her parents, especially by reading the Old Testament prophets. After deep exploration, Edith decided that Judaism did not fill the need in her heart. But she never tried to refute it, as some Jews who have become complete in Christ do. She was always respectful. Her exploration of Protestant religion fit in with her preference for Bach’s Christian music. More important, the Christian response to grief for the atrocities of World War I and the strength of Christian hope born of the Cross of Christ deeply impressed her.

Edith had tried to reach Christ on a rational level, but He reached her heart. She had become close to Adolf and Anna Reinach, both Jewish converts to the Evangelical Church. Adolf enlisted early in World War I and was killed in 1917. Edith went to his home to help Anna arrange his scholarly papers. She had also come to console Anna. Anna, however, was serene; her deep Christian faith led her to see the Cross in Adolf’s death. Anna’s deep faith made a deep impression on Edith, and prepared her for what was to come. Relating this experience many years later to Father Hirschaum,a Jesuit, Edith told him, “This was my first meeting with the Cross, with the divine strength it brings to those who bear it. I saw for the first time within my reach the Church, born of the Redeemer’s sufferings in his victory over the sting of death. It was at that moment that my incredulity was shattered and the light of Christ shone forth, Christ in the mystery of the Cross.” However, this was preparation. Many Jews who find Christ, myself included, experience something like what Saul of Tarsus experienced on the road to Damascus, which breaks our attachment to our old way of thinking and prepares us for the conversion itself.

During the next three or four years Edith, again like many Jews attracted to Christ, entered a period of intense reflection. She read numerous books on Catholic spirituality. One day she bought a book on the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius. She began by getting involved in the Exercises at a purely psychological level, but after a few pages she found this impossible. She ended up doing the Spiritual Exercises as an atheist thirsting for God. The Exercises were Christ’s preparation for what was to follow. That came in June 1921. she went to Bergzabern, to the home of a friend, Hedwig Konrad Martius, a regular meeting place of Husserl former students. Edith discovered in the library The Book of the Life, the autobiography of the great Spanish mystic, St Teresa of Avila, who originated the Carmelite Reform that restored and emphasized the austerity and contemplative character of primitive Carmelite life. Edith, astonishlingly, finished the entire book in a single night. Closing it, she exclaimed, “This is the truth! Her Damascus transformation was complete; all became light for her.

The Path to Carmel
Edith was baptised on January 1st 1922 and at once began to consider becoming a Carmelite nun. She had always sought the most complete path; Carmel seemed the only way to satisfy her desire for totality. Thirty years old, full of energy and enthusiasm, her faith became an integral part of her life.

Mt. Carmel is in some mysterious way associated with Jews who become Catholic. The prophet Elijah had spent most of his life on Mt. Carmel. Elijah, the rabbis taught, would return to herald the arrival of the Messiah. Jesus told us Mt 11:14 “[John the Baptist] is Elijah who is to come.” Rev. Elias Friedman, a Jew who became a Catholic priest and founded the Association of Hebrew Catholics, was a Carmelite friar. Edith Stein, when she was baptized, received a vocation to Carmel.

Twelve years passed, however, before she entered the Carmel of Cologne. During that time she taught at the Institute for Scientific Pedagogy in Munster, gave lecture tours, studied, and above all matured interiorly. Here again, Christ’s ways are above ours. Edith may well have continued her brilliant academic career for the rest of her life, but the rising tide of anti-Semitic measures made it impossible for her to continue teaching. Edith became a Carmelite nun, taking the name of Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. Her name, “of the Cross,” probably taken in honor of St. John of the Cross, was prophetic. The Germans discovered her Jewish origins. She was no longer safe behind monastery walls in Germany, so in the wee hours of New Year’s Day 1939 she was taken to Holland, to the Carmel of Echt. It seemed tranquil, but Edith sensed that she would not escape the destiny of her people.

The Final Journey
On Sunday July 26, 1942, a protest by the Catholic Bishops of Holland against the Nazi deportation of Dutch Jews was read at every Mass in all churches. It said, “In this we are following the path indicated by our Holy Father, the Pope.” Gestapo General-Commissar Schmidt announced, “We are compelled to regard the Catholic Jews as our worst enemies and consequently see to their deportation to the East with all possible speed.” One week later, the Gestapo arrested, deported, and sent to Auschwitz all Dutch Catholics of Jewish origin. At the Carmel of Echt, while she was writing her book on the doctrine of St John of the Cross, titled The Science of the Cross, two officials of the German occupation forces came to the monastery. She had to go with them, together with her sister Rose, also a convert, who had joined her in Echt. Edith and Rose Stein were deported to Auschwitz. On August 9th, 1942, St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, in a white house filled with Zyklon-B gas, went to heaven.

Pope John Paul II beatified Sr. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross on May 1, 1987 and canonized her on Oct. 11, 1998.

St. Teresa Benedicta, pray for us!

2007-08-08T18:40:00.001-05:00

2007-08-05T21:26:00.000-05:00

The below post is from this blog Thank you! God Bless!

2007-08-05T21:23:00.001-05:00

From Fr. Tom Euteneuer of Human Life International

2007-08-05T18:53:00.000-05:00

Abortion: The Devil's Masterpiece

A few weeks ago, I visited Leroy Carhart's partial birth abortion mill in Omaha, NE and beheld for a few uncomfortable moments a totally repulsive center of human wickedness. Just looking at the dilapidated former car repair garage turned into baby-killing factory and the squalor of the entire surrounding area, I could not help but notice that the evil of abortion degrades everything that it touches. Abortion is not only a social plague; it is also the spiritual negation of God's entire plan for man's happiness and eternal welfare. Whenever God says "Yes" to life and fertility the devil yells a resounding "No!"

Abortion's spiritual power is its perfect violation of all the commandments. First of all, most abortions are the result of sins against the sixth or ninth commandments (adultery/fornication/lust). Abortion is certainly a sin against the fifth commandment prohibiting murder. Likewise, it violates the third commandment because the vast majority of babies are killed on abortion's heaviest business days, Saturdays (the Sabbath). Abortion is also a reversal of the fourth commandment where father and mother "dishonor" the child in the most heinous way and, in doing so, curse the holiness of God (second commandment) which is manifested in the only creature made in His "image and likeness." As a false religion, abortion is a violation of the first commandment forbidding the worship of any other gods but the Lord, and this religion is undoubtedly fed through a highly sophisticated system of falsehoods and deceits (eighth commandment) which lead women into the abortion chambers.

Furthermore, abortion literally steals (seventh commandment) both our personal and national futures by depriving us of children! Anyone concerned about the present immigration issue should remember that the presence of more than 40 million Hispanic immigrants in this country tracks the destruction of 47 million of our own children by abortion since the Roe death decision. The saying, "nature abhors a vacuum" is as true in demographics as it is in physics. Finally, the tenth commandment (coveting our neighbor's goods) is about the capital sin of greed, the very thing that drives so many of the abortionists to do the killing work. Abortionists often claim to hate abortion, but they love the money behind it.

Abortion is like a huge spiritual vortex of sin pulling people into it, and even the Church can be compromised by this evil too. Most of the sins listed above are sins of commission, but the Church's sins are generally sins of omission, which abortion inspires - the terrible silence of the clergy on this topic, heretical "Catholic" politicians who are never disciplined by bishops, the easy justification of abortion by Catholic educators, the moral compromise by Catholic medical personnel on abortifacient contraception and sterilizations, etc. I am sure the devil just laughs and pats himself on the back when he sees the Church, that has the spiritual power to undo "all his work and all his empty promises," sitting back and pretending that abortion is a non-issue.

All of this is to point out that abortion is a spiritual power that negates God's plan for love, life and the family. It not only destroys bodies but destroys souls, which from the point of view of eternity, represents the devil's greatest masterpiece of evil.

Fr. Tom Euteneuer
President of Human Life International

I think he has said it best and their is not much more to say other than St. Gianna Molla Pray for us!

THIRD DAY - SHOW ME YOUR GLORY - LIVE

2007-08-05T18:42:00.001-05:00

This song was written based off scripture from the Transfiguration! (I think Third Day are closet catholics!)

Feast of the Transfiguration

2007-08-05T18:35:00.000-05:00

Monday is the feast of the Transfiguration.

How beautiful it must have been for the apostles to see such beauty even if they did not understand what was happening. But would have I? I doubt it!

Prayer for Knowing My Vocation

2007-08-05T18:30:00.001-05:00

Jeus, In you Sacred Heart you have loved me woderfully and have challenged me to live my life in oneness with you.

Daily send forth your Spirit of courage to help me respond to your love

of wisdom so I may know the path I am to take

of love so I may be witness to you in all I do and say. AMEN

This is for your Susie:)

2007-08-05T18:17:00.000-05:00

This is a quote from Saint Therese of Lisieux:

"I have realized that whoever undertakes to do anything for the sake of earthly things or to earn the praise of others, deceives himself. Today one thing pleases the world, tomorrow another; and what is praised on one occasion is denounced on another. Blessed are you, my Lord and my God, for you are unchangeable for all eternity. Whoever serves you faithfully to the end will enjoy life without end in eternity. AMEN"

O Lord, you who said: Unless you become as little children, you shall not enter the kingdom of Heaven: grant, we beseech you, that in humility and simplicity of heart we may so follow the blessed virgin Theresa, as to obtain reward everlasting. Who livesw and reigns world without end. AMEN

O servant of God, Saint Theresa of the Child Jesus, who in your dying moments said: I will spend my heaven in doing good upon earth, hasten to let fall upon me a shower of roses that I, too, may be inflamed with that fire of love which burned so brilliantly in your breast which brought you so gloriously to the arms of Jesus, my Lord and my God. Amen.

What matters in life is not great deeds, but great love
Without love deeds, even billiant, count as nothing.
My vocation is to love

Breastplate of St. Patrick

2007-08-05T18:05:00.000-05:00

This is the prayer of St. Patrick I thought I would share with you as I truly love this pray as when I read it it helps me remember to put God first in my life always! Now I know it is not March but I just came across this again today and wanted to share it! God Bless you all

ST. PATRICK'S BREASTPLATE

I bind unto myself today the power of God to hold and lead, His eye to watch, His might to stay, His ear to hearken to my need; the wisdom of my God to teach, His hand to guide, His shield to ward; the word of God to give me speech, His heavenly host to be my guard.

Christ be with me, Christ within me, Christ behind me, Christ before me, Christ beside me, Christ to win me, Christ to comfort me and restore me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ in the hearts of all that love me, Christ in the mouth of friend and stranger.

I bind unto myself the Name, the strong Name of the Trinity, by invocation of the same, the Three in One, and One in Three, of whom all nature hath creation; Eternal Father, Spirit, Word, praise to the Lord of my salvation, salvation is of Christ the Lord. Amen.

I did it!

2007-08-05T18:02:00.000-05:00

I figured out how to get my posts to be listed on the same page! I am very excited and a little proud of myself (but not too proud) as I am sure that I will have something else come up and I will again be dumbfounded as to how to solve a new thing with this here blog! Anyway now you can see all posts on the same page!

2007-08-05T15:09:00.001-05:00

Images of Jesus

2007-08-05T14:26:00.001-05:00

These are some of my favorite images of Jesus Christ that I have come across! It is always the eyes that makes me ponder God's great love for us! How blessed we are that God would send his Son to us and for us. May God Bless you this day when you look at him in the Eucharist may you know how much God loves you and know he is truly with you at every moment of everyday!

2007-08-05T14:13:00.000-05:00

I have finally figured out how to post images!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But I still can't figure out why my posts are going to other pages when it could still just stream on the same page! Any suggestions? I have gone to the help and have had no luck finding the answer to my particular issue.

Anyway,
I wanted today to say that I have been having a great time on a couple of different Catholic Forums just meeting and discussing the Church with other people! I have gone to CHN Forum, Catholic Answers Forum and Catholic Community. It has been fun! Technology can work to our advantage if we let it. I can now contact and exchange ideas with people in so many different avenues that I have never tried before. More to come! God Bless!

2007-08-05T14:03:00.001-05:00

This image is also from Cross Ministries! It was just amazing! God Bless those who volunteer their time for progressing the Kingdom of God!

2007-08-05T13:58:00.001-05:00

This image is of the 190 foot Cross in Groom, Texas that I visited on my week to visit the School Sisters of St. Francis. More to come!

I need help

2007-08-04T12:01:00.000-05:00

Good Morning! I have been noticing that my page goes to archive very quickly and I am wondering that maybe readers are not seeing all of my posts! TJ or Susie or anyone can you help! God Bless!

2007-08-01T17:39:00.000-05:00

New Blog from Omaha! http://www.defendusinbattle.org/

It great to have community of people who share the same thoughts and feelings regarding the Church!

Check out www.chnetwork.org every Wednesday there is a Fellowship Hall Forum. I have been on Chat one time before and my dear friend Susie (aka Joyful Catholic from RECONecting to the Truth) is also going to be there tonight! It was great fun! It was amazing how fast a few hours will go by so fast when chatting on line!

New Blog

2007-07-31T21:33:00.001-05:00

I just found this blog on vocations and thought it was interesting! http://www.vision-vocation-guide.blogspot.com/

Prayer Request

2007-07-31T21:27:00.000-05:00

Please pray for my friend Cindy she is going through some very difficult things physically/spiritually/emotionally. She is in need of many prayers for her and her family. God Bless you in your prayers for her and her family:)

2007-07-29T17:43:00.000-05:00

Q. Dear Fr Anthony,

I have just finished university and am working in my area of study. However, I now desire to be a priest. The problem is that, like many college students, I took out student loans. Thus, I have a small debt. By my calculations, it will take me a few years before I pay off the debt AND earn enough money to pursue a life in the priesthood. Is there any way around this, or must I simply wait?

- James

A. Dear James,

Your problem is not unusual, and it’s one of the reasons I tell those who are thinking about a vocation that it may not be wise to put it off until after college.

Once a young man is in the same position as you, with college debts to pay and feeling the call to be a priest, it is important NOT TO put off any action towards pursuing the priesthood until after he pays the debt. You need to start looking into it right away. You need to speak to the diocesan vocation director if you think you are called towards diocesan priesthood, or to the vocation director of the religious order you are interested in if you think you are called to religious life.

The first reason for this is that these men will help you see if you really do have the signs of a vocation, and the answer to this question will guide your actions. If they tell you that you may have a vocation, this will give a new sense to time you have between now and when you are free to join the seminary. For example, knowing you may have a vocation you will not invest time in dating, you will have the motivation and desire to curtail other interests and expenses, you will not increase your debt, you will have more time to work extra and get your debts paid off ASAP.... You will also probably feel the need to get involved in your local church a little more, and dedicate more time to prayer.

In other words, focus totally on your vocation. These are some of the best years of your life, don’t let them slip away. And a year you save now is a year earlier you will be able to enter the seminary, a year earlier you will be ordained, and a year more you will serve souls.

- Fr Anthony
www.vocations.com

2007-07-29T17:41:00.000-05:00

Looking for a living model that personifies the apostle for our times that I am trying to explain, I find no better example than the Holy Father, John Paul II. A short while ago, a columnist wrote of him that in the Church’s whole history, no man, no saint, no other Pope has preached the Gospel like him to all nations, in accordance with the Lord’s last words in St. Matthew.

Every continent has seen him as a messenger of hope thanks to his apostolic journeys, sparing himself no toil or fatigue as long as he can fulfill his apostolic mission. Without a doubt the present Pontiff is an extraordinary gift of Christ to his Church. He has gone out to preach to the five continents. He has not been afraid to explain clearly the demands of the Gospel and to proclaim it in every arena. He is the first promoter of the new evangelization to which he has summoned the whole Church because for him, as for St. Paul, it is a duty to preach the Gospel. He is the number one missionary in the Church, a model of the Shepherd who gives his life in order to gather all men into the one fold of Christ.

This is piece from a weekly e-mail I receive from vocations.com Enjoy! God Bless our Beloved John Paul II may he rest in peace. God Bless!

2007-07-29T14:28:00.000-05:00

My Daily Eucharist - Reflection for July 29, 2007

"Above all I exhort thee to call upon me and ask me to help thee; for thou must know, that I am the special Advocate and Protectress of those who desire to arrive at great purity for receiving holy Communion. Whenever they invoke me for this purpose, I present myself before the throne of the Most High, and, as one well knowing the disposition required for harboring God Himself, I ask His favor and grace for those who are about to receive Him in the holy Sacrament. I have not lost in heaven the solicitude and zeal, which I exhibited upon earth. Having asked me, proceed to ask also the intercession of the angels, for they also are very anxious to see souls approach the holy Eucharist with great devotion and purity."
The Mystical City Of God
Words of Our Lady spoken to Venerable Mary of Agreda

This is from www.mycatholic.com . I thought after my previous post on the rosary it was appropriate to include this reflection. I want to ask for your prayers for members of my family that have left the Church for the church of unbelief. God Bless

2007-07-29T13:22:00.000-05:00

Fifteen Promises of Mary to those who recite her Holy Rosary

Imparted to Saint Dominic and Blessed Alan

1. Whoever shall faithfully serve me by the recitation of the Rosary, shall receive single graces.

2. I promise my special protection and the greatest graces to all those who shall recite the Rosary.

3. The Rosary shall be a powerful armor against hell, it will destroy vice, decrease sin, and defeat heresies.

4. The Rosary will cause virtue and good works to flourish; it will obtain for souls the abundant mercy of God; it will withdraw the hearts of men from the love of the world and its vanities, and will lift them to the desire for eternal things. Oh, that souls would sanctify themselves by this means.

5. The soul which recommends itself to me by the recitation of the Rosary, shall not perish.

6. Whoever shall recite the Rosary devoutly, applying himself to the consideration of its sacred mysteries shall never be conquered by misfortune. God will not chastise him in His justice, he shall not perish by an unprovided death; if he be just he shall remain in the grace of God, and become worthy of eternal life.

7. Whoever shall have a true devotion for the Rosary shall not die without the sacraments of the Church.

8. Those who are faithful to recite the Rosary shall have during their life and at their death the light of God and the plenititude of His graces; at the moment of death they shall participate in the merits of the saints in paradise.

9. I shall deliver from Purgatory those who have been devoted to the Rosary.

10. The faithful children of the Rosary shall merit a high degree of glory in Heaven.

11. You shall obtain all you ask of me by the recitation of the Rosary.

12. All those who propagate the Holy Rosary shall be aided by me in their necessities.

13. I have obtained from my Divine Son that all the advocates of the Rosary shall have for intercessors the entire celestial court during their life and at the hour of death.

14. All who recite the Rosary are my sons and daughters, and brothers and sisters of my only Son Jesus Christ.

15. Devotion of my Rosary is a great sign of predestination

I saw this on www.dailycatholic.com and I wanted to share with you how much the rosary has helped me in the last couple of years (even when I have not prayed it as regularly as I should to even begin to receive these graces! When I first started discerning the religious life I had a rosary that my dad brought home from Medjugorje it was made from rose wood and I recieved it when I was a freshman in High School at some point I lost it and some time before I began to think about the religious life I found it again, and of course it was a few years old and it no longer had the scent of roses as it once had. But, after I visited the first community (The Benedictine Sisters of Jesus Crucified)it began to smell again of roses!

I thought this was amazing and that it meant that I should joint that community even though I had previously wanted an active community (the Benedictines are Monastic) but non-the-less I continued to communicate with these sisters and then went back to visit them a second time when their Mother General was visiting from the Motherhouse in France! My rosary still smelled when I was there! After I had moved to France I to where their noviciate is located. I spent five months there in France, after realizing that this was not where God was calling me I came home and visited two other communities one was the Intercessors of the Lamb (I took a ten-day discernment retreat there, I love that community but never felt a strong call there). Then, I visited the Sisters of the Lamb of God in Owensboro, KY. They are a nice older community but they are not as traditional as I am and I liked them but just did not, after going home and thinking about it, talking about it with my spiritual director, and praying about it, I just did not feel that that was the avenue that God wanted me to go down.

So after several months of searching for a job (I had left my previous job before going to France) and searching for a community that would accept people with disabilities I went to Chicago with the School Sisters of Christ the King (a beautiful community in Lincoln, NE) to the Institute on Religious Life national conference, which is where I met Sr. Mary Michael from the School Sisters of St. Francis. I was providence that she came up to me after her and a few other religious had given their vocation talk. I had just been told that my disability would probably be a problem with another community that I was really interested in and so at the time I was praying and crying out to God in confusion and hurt that I had been told no again. That was an answer to my prayer that Sr. Mary Michael approached me at the end!

My whole point in telling you about my story here is two-fold: first stay close to your heavenly mother she will guide you. Second, I wanted you to get to know me a little better and knowing the process I have been through in the last two years. I know that it will happen in God's time and not mine no matter how hard I try!

God Bless all who read this and who post their comments! Susie, TJ, Kim and others. God Bless.

Back from Texas!!

2007-07-29T12:01:00.000-05:00

I have returned from Texas after visiting the School Sisters of Saint Francis. The sisters are in Panhandle, TX. (That is the name of the town not just the area of where in Texas they are!)

I had a fantastic week! I arrived on Sunday afternoon. The community is very true to the Magisterium. I will be going to visit again in the upcoming weeks. After I visit again then the Community council will meet with me and decide if they would like to invite me to enter as a postulant!

I visited just as four of their sisters were returning from the Motherhouse in Austria. They showed us wonderful pictures from Assisi and the Motherhouse. From where the congration began in 1723. How amazing to see the places of other sisters of the same congregation!

They also visit the places where St. Francis lived as well as St. Claire. They visit his tomb. One day we at Mass we received hosts that were made in Assisi and touched to the tomb of St. Francis! That was an unbelievable day! Another day we went to a place outside of Groom, Texas where there is a 190-Foot Cross and life-size stations of the cross (they are modeled after the stations in Lourdes!) That was beautiful! They also have up some stairs, on a hill the three crosses, representing Calvery! Looking at the faces of the good thief and the bad thief you see a difference in them! It was so incredible (I did not have my camera but I found their website www.crossministries.net . It was amazing! God Bless, and more later!

Saint of he Day

2007-07-24T14:16:00.000-05:00

July 24, 2007
St. Sharbel Makhlouf
(1828-1898)

Although this saint never traveled far from the Lebanese village of Beka-Kafra, where he was born, his influence has spread widely.
Joseph Zaroun Maklouf was raised by an uncle because his father, a mule driver, died when Joseph was only three. At the age of 23, Joseph joined the Monastery of St. Maron at Annaya, Lebanon, and took the name Sharbel in honor of a second-century martyr. He professed his final vows in 1853 and was ordained six years later.

Following the example of the fifth-century St. Maron, Sharbel lived as a hermit from 1875 until his death. His reputation for holiness prompted people to seek him to receive a blessing and to be remembered in his prayers. He followed a strict fast and was very devoted to the Blessed Sacrament. When his superiors occasionally asked him to administer the sacraments to nearby villages, Sharbel did so gladly.

He died in the late afternoon on Christmas Eve. Christians and non-Christians soon made his tomb a place of pilgrimage and of cures. Pope Paul VI beatified him in 1965 and canonized him in 1977.

Comment:

Pope John Paul II has often said that the Church has two lungs (East and West) and it must learn to breathe using both of them. Remembering saints like Sharbel helps the Church to appreciate both the diversity and unity present in the Catholic Church. Like all the saints, Sharbel points us to God and invites us to cooperate generously with God's grace, no matter what our situation in life may be. As our prayer life becomes deeper and more honest, we become more ready to make that generous response.

Quote:
When Sharbel was canonized in 1977, Bishop Francis Zayek, head the U.S. Diocese of St. Maron, wrote a pamphlet entitled “A New Star of the East.” Bishop Zayek wrote: “St. Sharbel is called the second St. Anthony of the Desert, the Perfume of Lebanon, the first Confessor of the East to be raised to the Altars according to the actual procedure of the Catholic Church, the honor of our Aramaic Antiochian Church, and the model of spiritual values and renewal. Sharbel is like a Cedar of Lebanon standing in eternal prayer, on top of a mountain.”

The bishop noted that Sharbel's canonization plus other beatification cases prove “that the Aramaic Maronite Antiochian Church is indeed a living branch of the Catholic Church and is intimately connected with the trunk, who is Christ, our Savior, the beginning and the end of all things.”

Saint of the Day

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July 23, 2007
St. Bridget
(1303?-1373)

From age seven on, Bridget had visions of Christ crucified. Her visions formed the basis for her activity—always with the emphasis on charity rather than spiritual favors.
She lived her married life in the court of the Swedish king Magnus II. Mother of eight children (the second eldest was St. Catherine of Sweden), she lived the strict life of a penitent after her husband’s death.

Bridget constantly strove to exert her good influence over Magnus; while never fully reforming, he did give her land and buildings to found a monastery for men and women. This group eventually expanded into an Order known as the Bridgetines (still in existence).

In 1350, a year of jubilee, Bridget braved a plague-stricken Europe to make a pilgrimage to Rome. Although she never returned to Sweden, her years in Rome were far from happy, being hounded by debts and by opposition to her work against Church abuses.

A final pilgrimage to the Holy Land, marred by shipwreck and the death of her son, Charles, eventually led to her death in 1373. In 1999, she, Saints Catherine of Siena and Edith Stein were named co-patronesses of Europe.

Comment:

Bridget’s visions, rather than isolating her from the affairs of the world, involved her in many contemporary issues, whether they be royal policy or the Avignon papacy. She saw no contradiction between mystical experience and secular activity, and her life is a testimony to the possibility of a holy life in the market place.

Quote:
Despite the hardships of life and wayward children (not all became saints), Margery Kempe of Lynn says Bridget was “kind and meek to every creature” and “she had a laughing face.”

July 22nd, 2007 16th Sunday in ordinary time

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This week, Jesus, we honor two very special people in Your
salvific plan.

St's Joachim and Anna, the mother and father of Mary, our mother.

Because of the marvelous plan of salvation laid out by You long
before the creation of the world, You had these beautiful
parents give birth to the baby that was to be free of original
sin, and be full of grace from the moment of her conception.

You graced these parents with a unique gift that will be honored
throughout all of history, Mary our mother.

Let us see, by this birth, that there are no accidents of life,
but that all babies are conceived in Your image and likeness,
and that all life is sacred.

Let us all rededicate ourselves to fight against the sin of
abortion, and helped get it stopped throughout the world.

Let us work for the rights of all people, including the unborn,
to live on this planet in peace and prosperity.

Let us unite with You, and all of Your angels and saints, in
giving glory and honor to our heavenly Father, and to the Holy
Spirit, by honoring all of Your creation, including the people
of all the world.

Let us work in love, to give love to others. Amen and Amen.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for loving us totally.

2007-07-21T20:51:00.000-05:00

I leave for Texas in less than 12 hours and I am not packed, not because I am not excited, but because I procrastinate! My aunt has a koozie that says "Procrastinators Unite...Tomorrow!" That made me laugh! Very true for me tonight! Anyway, I will return on Saturday July 28! So please pray for me and I will let you know all about it when I return. God Bless, now to packing I go!

Tony Melendez

2007-07-21T15:44:00.001-05:00

What an inspiration!

Angelus

2007-07-21T15:42:00.001-05:00

I came across this today and thought it was beautiful. Enjoy!

I can only Imagine - Catholic Version

2007-07-21T15:35:00.001-05:00

This was on my friend Joyful Catholics Blog and I found it today and so I had to post it. God Bless!

Big Daddy Weave - Every Time I Breathe (Video)

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Enjoy!

2007-07-21T15:10:00.000-05:00

The below article from www.catholicexchange.com
is something that I have reflected on a lot, the story in the Gospels of Jesus meeting Martha and Mary and the lesson there that we must learn to stop in our busy lives and stop to love God in this moment. Even if that moment is stressful, scary, or what ever. We must learn to stop and thank God or invite him to come into the scary, the stress. But especially in the celebrations of life. God asks of us to allow him in every part of our lives. Not just the stress or not just the joy. We must follow and not lead.

Whatever work, home, school brings into our lives we need to let God LEAD. Live and let God is a saying that my spiritual director says often to me. She also says "God is God and I am not" and "Let God do his thing, he PROMISED he would" God's promises for sure hold water much more so than mine!

As I am getting ready to leave for Texas tomorrow (pray for me!) I think this was a good focus for me as I know that I need to let God show me what He wants to show me and He will reveal His Divine Will to me at His time! NOT MINE! God Bless you who have read my posts and commented. God Bless, See you in a week.

Touched by Grace from Catholic Exchange

2007-07-21T15:08:00.000-05:00

July 20, 2007

Martha seems to be one of the Gospel characters we can easily identify with. There are at least two recorded conversations between her and Jesus, and both times it is easy to come away saying, “I hear you, sister.” Our Lord, however, uses both of those occasions to reveal some profound truths. On one occasion, recorded in chapter 11 of John’s Gospel, Jesus goes to the tomb of Martha’s brother, Lazarus. Lazarus has already been in the tomb several days by the time Our Lord arrives. Martha goes out to meet Him, saying, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. And even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” If we have ever lost a loved one, we can readily identify with Martha’s anguish. Maybe we prayed and prayed for healing that never seemed to come. Martha is hurting, and she lets Our Lord know that. Jesus tells her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live.”

What a profound revelation Christ makes regarding His own self. He is eternal life, and He shares that life with those who believe in Him. That lesson is echoed elsewhere in the Scriptures: “For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will” (Jn 5: 21); and “(We) proclaim to you the eternal life which was with the Father and was made manifest to us — that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you may have fellowship with us; and our fellowship is with the Father and the Son Jesus Christ” (1 Jn 1:2-3).

What comfort these words can bring to us. Death takes our loved ones from us, but Christ has conquered death. We have good reason to hope that our loved ones are not lost forever. Rather, we have good reason to hope that they have gone on ahead of us, and that one day, through the grace and mercy of God, we shall see them again in Paradise. We identify with the anguish of Martha, but Christ is the source of hope.

The second conversation between Martha and Jesus is the one presented to us this Sunday. Jesus is in Bethany visiting with His friends. While Martha is bustling about the house trying to provide hospitality, her sister, Mary, is sitting at Jesus’ feet listening to His teaching. Martha takes note of this: “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?” Again, we might be able to identify with Martha. We might live very busy lives, and finding time for good, solid meditative prayer seems almost like a luxury. There is just too much that needs to be done. This can certainly happen in family life with its many demands. It can just as easily happen even in priestly ministry. It is easy to get caught up in doing things — ministering to the many needs of others, administrative duties, teaching — and neglect personal prayer. Again, we need to make note of Jesus’ response to Martha: “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things; one thing is needful. Mary has chosen the good portion, which shall not be taken away from her.”

The “good portion” chosen by Mary is Jesus Himself. While He is so near, she has chosen to sit with Him and listen to Him. We might think of Peter’s words to Jesus after the Bread of Life discourse in John 6. When Jesus asks the apostles if they, too, will leave Him, Peter asks where they could possibly go. Jesus’ words are the words of everlasting life. This should be enough to tell us that time spent in personal prayer is not a luxury. When it comes to the interior, or spiritual, life, prayer and meditation are critical. There we hold up to Our Lord our daily activities and scrutinize them in the light of His teachings to see what needs to be discarded or strengthened, to see what is leading us closer to Him or taking us away from Him.

No time of prayer, especially prayer before the tabernacle, is ever wasted. What we bring with us each time may be a little different. At times we will readily praise and adore Jesus, our Savior and Redeemer. At times we will come in sorrow for our sinfulness and weakness, seeking His mercy. At times we will come in gratitude for the spiritual and material gifts He has given us. At times we will come with numerous petitions for ourselves and others. At all times, we give Jesus our hearts. He will give us the good things we need.

What are those good things? Pope Benedict XVI gives us an answer in his book Jesus of Nazareth: “The ‘good things’ that he gives us are himself. This reveals in a surprising way what prayer is really all about. It is not about this or that, but about God’s desire to offer us the gift of himself — that is the gift of all gifts, the ‘one thing necessary.’ Prayer is a way of gradually purifying and correcting our wishes and of slowly coming to realize what we really need: God and his Spirit” (p. 137). Yes, Martha is a character we can all identify with. And thanks to her, we have learned some important lessons about Our Lord.

Fr. Paul Grankauskas is parochial vicar at St. Mary of Sorrows Parish in Fairfax, Virginia.

News from American Catholic

2007-07-21T10:40:00.002-05:00

Sedona chapel chosen top Arizona 'wonder' in online poll

SEDONA, Ariz. (CNS) -- Built on the red rocks near Sedona, the Chapel of the Holy Cross draws between 30 and 60 people for Taize prayer every Monday night. The chapel, which St. John Vianney Parish administers, is a popular stop in Arizona's second most popular city for tourists and it was just named the top "Wonder of Arizona" in a statewide vote. When a reporter visited the chapel July 9, two days after the vote, there were more than 50 people -- including visitors from Illinois, Maryland and even Canada -- on hand for the prayer service. "People who come aren't all Catholic," said Betty McGinnis, who leads the music during the service and is parish administrator at St. John Vianney. Visitors to azcentral.com, the Web site of the Arizona Republic daily newspaper, voted on the "7 Wonders of Arizona" over the last few months. Marguerite Brunswig Staude, a devout Catholic woman, designed the small chapel and believed in finding God through the arts. Her original plans were for a cathedral, but after moving to Sedona with her husband in 1941, she modified the design. Construction on the Chapel of the Holy Cross began in 1955.

Now that is great that a chapel would call such attention to itself, people of all religions and faiths. How wonderful! (And Arizona has the Grand Canyon!)Let us pray that people will come to know the Lord through this place. Here in Omaha, we have the Holy Family Shirne, and it is such a blessing. I have visited there a few times and I leave changed each time. It is a truly beautiful place. The Holy Spirit is felt there. Thank you to Matt, Denise, my dad, and Susie (who are just some of the volunteers that work and keep the Holy Family Shrine running day to day. God Bless you all!

Saint of the Day

2007-07-21T10:40:00.001-05:00

July 21, 2007
St. Lawrence of Brindisi
(1559-1619)

At first glance perhaps the most remarkable quality of Lawrence of Brindisi is his outstanding gift of languages. In addition to a thorough knowledge of his native Italian, he had complete reading and speaking ability in Latin, Hebrew, Greek, German, Bohemian, Spanish and French.

He was born on July 22, 1559, and died exactly 60 years later on his birthday in 1619. His parents William and Elizabeth Russo gave him the name of Julius Caesar, Caesare in Italian. After the early death of his parents, he was educated by his uncle at the College of St. Mark in Venice.

When he was just 16 he entered the Capuchin Franciscan Order in Venice and received the name of Lawrence. He completed his studies of philosophy and theology at the University of Padua and was ordained a priest at 23.

With his facility for languages he was able to study the Bible in its original texts. At the request of Pope Clement VIII, he spent much time preaching to the Jews in Italy. So excellent was his knowledge of Hebrew, the rabbis felt sure he was a Jew who had become a Christian.

In 1956 the Capuchins completed a 15-volume edition of his writings. Eleven of these 15 contain his sermons, each of which relies chiefly on scriptural quotations to illustrate his teaching.

Lawrence’s sensitivity to the needs of people—a character trait perhaps unexpected in such a talented scholar—began to surface. He was elected major superior of the Capuchin Franciscan province of Tuscany at the age of 31. He had the combination of brilliance, human compassion and administrative skill needed to carry out his duties. In rapid succession he was promoted by his fellow Capuchins and was elected minister general of the Capuchins in 1602. In this position he was responsible for great growth and geographical expansion of the Order.

Lawrence was appointed papal emissary and peacemaker, a job which took him to a number of foreign countries. An effort to achieve peace in his native kingdom of Naples took him on a journey to Lisbon to visit the king of Spain. Serious illness in Lisbon took his life in 1619.

Comment:

His constant devotion to Scripture, coupled with great sensitivity to the needs of people, present a lifestyle which appeals to Christians today. Lawrence had a balance in his life that blended self-discipline with a keen appreciation for the needs of those whom he was called to serve.

Quote:

“God is love, and all his operations proceed from love. Once he wills to manifest that goodness by sharing his love outside himself, then the Incarnation becomes the supreme manifestation of his goodness and love and glory. So, Christ was intended before all other creatures and for his own sake. For him all things were created and to him all things must be subject, and God loves all creatures in and because of Christ. Christ is the first-born of every creature, and the whole of humanity as well as the created world finds its foundation and meaning in him. Moreover, this would have been the case even if Adam had not sinned” (St. Lawrence of Brindisi, Doctor of the Universal Church, Capuchin Educational Conference, Washington, D.C.).

Saint of the Day

2007-07-20T19:12:00.000-05:00

St. Arsenius

July 18, 2007

Although there is some question about his early life, it seems that St. Arsenius was born in Rome around the year 354, became a deacon, and later tutor to the sons of the Emperor Theodosius I of Constantinople. He lived at court amid great wealth and pomp, had splendid apartments, rich clothes, and a host of servants. After ten years of this kind of life, Arsenius began to feel the need to renounce the world and flee to the desert. It is said that he heard a voice saying, "Arsenius, flee the company of men, and thou shalt be saved."

Around the year 400, Arsenius joined the desert monks at Skete; later he went to Canopus and Troe. He lived the most austere of lives, performed penances, and prayed unceasingly. When told that he had been left a legacy by a relative who was a senator, he refused it saying, "I died eleven years ago and cannot be his heir." When Arsenius did indeed die, he was 95 years old.

Other Saints We Remember Today

St. Vincent de Paul (1660), Priest and Founder

Lessons

St. Arsenius left us with forty-four maxims and moral anecdotes. His sayings give us much food for thought:

Asked one day why he, a learned man, sought the advice of a monk who had no education, he replied, "I am not unacquainted with the learning of the Greeks and the Romans; but I have not yet learned the alphabet of the science of the saints, whereof this seemingly ignorant Egyptian is master."

Again, when asked why many uneducated Egyptians seemed to make more progress in the ways of virtue than educated men, Arsenius answered, "We make no progress because we dwell in that exterior learning which puffs up the mind; but these illiterate Egyptians have a true sense of their own weakness, blindness, and insufficiency; and by that very thing they are qualified to labor successfully in the pursuit of virtue."

Employed as many of the monks were in making mats of palm leaves, Arsenius never changed the water in which he moistened the leaves, allowing it to become fetid. He claimed, "I ought to be punished by this smell for the self-indulgence with which I formerly used perfumes."

His abbot once asked him why he so much shunned the company of the other monks. The saint answered, "God knows how dearly I love you all; but I find I cannot be both with God and with men at the same time; nor can I think of leaving God to converse with men."

Although St. Arsenius did give spiritual instruction to many of his brethren, he often said, "I have always something to repent for after having talked, but have never been sorry for having been silent."

Spirit & Life weekly post

2007-07-20T18:47:00.000-05:00

Spirit & Life®
"The words I spoke to you are spirit and life." (Jn 6:63)
Human Life International e-Newsletter
Volume 01, Number 76 | Friday, July 20, 2007
..................................................................................
www.hli.org

The Blood That Saves

In the month of July the Church meditates in a special way upon the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ. While it may seem strange for a religious people to be devoted to something as earthly as blood, it is not just anyone's blood that we meditate on. It is the Blood of the Paschal Lamb who was slain for the sins of the whole world, and we truly worship His Blood as the perfect sacrifice which sanctifies us.

The Old Testament gives us abundant evidence of the sanctifying power of blood. For example, the blood of Abel cried out to God from the earth when he was killed by Cain. Moses instructed the people of Israel to apply the blood of a lamb on the doorposts and lintels of their homes in Egypt in order to be saved from the destroying angel, and then he sprinkled the blood of the covenant over the people to purify them and strengthen them to keep God's commands. King Solomon established the cult of blood sacrifice of animals as Israel's primary form of worship and atonement for their sins. A blood sacrifice even averted a plague in the time of David. Blood, therefore, had an undeniable significance for the people of Israel as expiation for sins, protection from evil and as a means of consecration.

The New Testament tells us, however, that there is one perfect sacrifice of blood which surpasses all others. This sacrifice is the Blood of Christ "which speaks more eloquently than the blood of Abel" says the Book of Hebrews (12: 24); Hebrews also says that It cleanses our consciences to make us capable of true worship and St. Paul adds that It has the power to break down the barrier wall of animosity between God and man. We know that Christ's Blood flowed from His pierced Heart on Calvary as a font of sacramental life of the Church, and St. Peter's first letter describes this Blood as precious "beyond all price, the blood of a spotless, unblemished lamb." (1:19) Truly, there is no greater gift in all eternity than the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ!

So if this Blood was shed for each one of us, how do we receive Its full benefit? Simple. We spiritually "apply" the Blood of Christ to things and people for their sanctification. This is done by an act of imagination, will and prayer on our part, especially at the moment of consecration at Mass. Because Christ's Blood can dissolve bonds of evil and sin we can spiritually "cover" our loved ones and friends with the Blood of Christ if they are living immoral lives or immersed in environments of great sin. Imagine a rain of Precious Blood gently falling on your son or daughter in their home or workplace. One may bring a loved one spiritually to Calvary and place his hand on the wood of the Cross so that the Blood of Christ will flow down and seep into the very depths of his being. This happens by our willing it and by the depth of faith with which we make our prayer.

We can also bring a person, spiritually, to the altar at Mass, and when the priest raises the chalice at the moment of consecration, place her in the chalice to be immersed in love and detached from her sin. These devotional exercises do not replace the sacramental grace of Confession of course, but they apply the Blood towards the salvation of our people.

There is no greater force of spirit and life than the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ. It is our protection from the evil one, our detachment from sin and our sanctification in all circumstances of life. It brings conversion, enlightenment and peace when we apply it to all the needs of the world, especially the greatest need: the salvation of souls. That, after all, is why It was shed!

Sincerely Yours in Christ,

Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer,
President, Human Life International

P.S. Stay tuned for next week's Spirit and Life on the Precious Blood as it relates to our work in the pro-life movement. This will be an excerpt from my upcoming book on Exorcism.

Divine Mercy Chaplet

2007-07-19T20:21:00.001-05:00

Amazing video clip from Mark Mallet's Chaplet of Divine Mercy. WOW!

EWTN Family Celebration

2007-07-19T20:10:00.000-05:00

http://www.ewtn.com/FamilyCelebration/index.asp

Please consider going this weekend! It will be a fantastic time for all in Birmingham. I will be in Texas but I will praying for its success and outreach and for a good time to be had by all. God Bless EWTN for their ongoing work in evangelization for the Church.

Readings for Friday July 20, 2007

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Ex 11:10—12:14Although Moses and Aaron performed various wondersin Pharaoh’s presence,the LORD made Pharaoh obstinate,and he would not let the children of Israel leave his land.

The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,“This month shall stand at the head of your calendar;you shall reckon it the first month of the year.Tell the whole community of Israel: On the tenth of this monthevery one of your families must procure for itself a lamb,one apiece for each household.If a family is too small for a whole lamb,it shall join the nearest household in procuring oneand shall share in the lambin proportion to the number of persons who partake of it.The lamb must be a year-old male and without blemish.You may take it from either the sheep or the goats.You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, and then,with the whole assembly of Israel present,it shall be slaughtered during the evening twilight.They shall take some of its bloodand apply it to the two doorposts and the lintelof every house in which they partake of the lamb.That same night they shall eat its roasted fleshwith unleavened bread and bitter herbs.It shall not be eaten raw or boiled, but roasted whole,with its head and shanks and inner organs.None of it must be kept beyond the next morning;whatever is left over in the morning shall be burned up.

“This is how you are to eat it: with your loins girt, sandals on your feet and your staff in hand,you shall eat like those who are in flight.It is the Passover of the LORD.For on this same night I will go through Egypt,striking down every first born of the land, both man and beast,and executing judgment on all the gods of Egypt—I, the LORD!But the blood will mark the houses where you are.Seeing the blood, I will pass over you;thus, when I strike the land of Egypt,no destructive blow will come upon you.

“This day shall be a memorial feast for you,which all your generations shall celebratewith pilgrimage to the LORD, as a perpetual institution.”

Responsorial Psalm Ps 116:12-13, 15 and 16bc, 17-18R. (13) I will take the cup of salvation, and call on the name of the Lord.How shall I make a return to the LORDfor all the good he has done for me?The cup of salvation I will take up,and I will call upon the name of the LORD.

R. I will take the cup of salvation, and call on the name of the Lord.

Precious in the eyes of the LORDis the death of his faithful ones.I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;you have loosed my bonds.

R. I will take the cup of salvation, and call on the name of the Lord.To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving,and I will call upon the name of the LORD.

My vows to the LORD I will payin the presence of all his people.R. I will take the cup of salvation, and call on the name of the Lord.

Reading II
Col 1:15-20
Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn of all creation.
For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth,
the visible and the invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers;
all things were created through him and for him.
He is before all things,
and in him all things hold together.
He is the head of the body, the church.
He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,
that in all things he himself might be preeminent.
For in him all the fullness was pleased to dwell,
and through him to reconcile all things for him,
making peace by the blood of his cross
through him, whether those on earth or those in heaven.

Gospel Mt 12:1-8Jesus was going through a field of grain on the sabbath.His disciples were hungryand began to pick the heads of grain and eat them.When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him,“See, your disciples are doing what is unlawful to do on the sabbath.”He said to the them, “Have you not read what David didwhen he and his companions were hungry,how he went into the house of God and ate the bread of offering,which neither he nor his companionsbut only the priests could lawfully eat?Or have you not read in the law that on the sabbaththe priests serving in the temple violate the sabbathand are innocent?
I say to you, something greater than the temple is here.If you knew what this meant, I desire mercy, not sacrifice,you would not have condemned these innocent men.For the Son of Man is Lord of the sabbath.”

2007-07-19T19:22:00.000-05:00

I have been talking to my new friend Al who is going to be beginning his 3rd year in seminary in Houston. I met him last week at the Luis Pulau Heartland Festival. Which was very exciting! The Archdiocese of Omaha gave permission for us Catholics to attend. Many great artists were there: Madisa (American Idol fame), Catholic artist Matt Mauher (fantastic), Jeremy Camp (LOVE Him).

I met Al a the Archdiocese tent and we had a great talk with my friend Susie. She is awesome. I will have a link for her RECON blog later. As well as her friend and now mine the Tiber Jumper.
Al and I talked for quite sometime about discernment into religious life or in his case the priesthood (he will be ordained 2012!) Please pray for him and other seminarians.

God Bless

Welcome to the blog

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Good Day, welcome to my blog. My name is Sarah. I am a 26 year old woman who has been searching for religious community for about 3 years. I am leaving for Texas on Sunday to visit the School Sisters of Saint Francis. I am very excited! I have been Catholic all my life. I was born with Spina Bifida and I have had strugges with finding a community that can accept people with disabilities. I am wanting to find people who may know of communities that I can look into and also if anyone has been discerning the priesthood or religious life also. I would love to get to know more people who are discerning also. I live in Nebraska.

I also want to share with all who read this blog the Catholic Church. Which I love!