Keep your eyes open!...





 

September 30, 2009  

(Mat 25:37-40) Then shall the just answer him, saying: Lord, when did we see thee hungry and fed thee: thirsty and gave thee drink? Or when did we see thee a stranger and took thee in? Or naked and covered thee? Or when did we see thee sick or in prison and came to thee? And the king answering shall say to them: Amen I say to you, as long as you did it to one of these my least brethren, you did it to me.

LINK TO DONATE TO CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES: https://secure.crs.org/site/Donation2?1080.donation=form1&df_id=1080
NEWSFLASH: Catholic Relief Services Responds to Four Emergencies in One Week, Commits $1 Million

NEWS EXCERPT: World rallies after Philippine request for humanitarian help

The Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) said also on Tuesday that foreign assistance has been coming in since Sunday, the day after the tropical storm struck.

Sr. Rosanne Mallillin, executive secretary of the bishops' National Secretariat for Social Action (Nassa), said that she has been receiving calls as early as Sunday morning from foreign Catholic organizations asking how they could send donations.

Caritas Española donated 100,000 euros (about P6 million) on Sunday. The donation, Mallillin said, will be used to provide victims with immediate food aid and potable water especially for those in evacuation centers in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

"We will also provide people affected by the flooding with blankets, mosquito nets, sleeping mats, soap and more," Mallillin added.

Also, the US-based Knights of Columbus Supreme Council sent an emergency financial contribution of about $50,000 (P2.3 million) to the bishops' social action arm to help address basic needs of victims.

"We will also be inviting state councils throughout the Order to make contributions which the Supreme Council will collect and convey to the CBCP-Nassa in the coming weeks," Carl Anderson, Supreme Knight Carl Anderson, said in a letter to Angel Lagdameo, president of the bishops' conference and archbishop of Jaro.

About $25,000 (around P1 million) was also donated by Caritas New Zealand, Mallillin said, adding that Caritas Norway also vowed to make a contribution.

Meanwhile, from the original $50,000 donation, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) has increased its contribution to $250,000 for the Church's relief operation. CRS is the official humanitarian agency of the United States Catholic Bishops' Conference.

INTERVIEW: Ms. Anjali Tripathy, Program Support Officer for Catholic Relief Services (CRS) in India, describes how CRS' school feeding programs are helping the poorest of the poor in the city of Lucknow.

CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES WORLDWIDE

CRS Global Poverty Initiative Reaches Quarter Million Catholics
Catholic Relief holding conference for young people in Gaza Strip
Burkina Faso: Catholic Charity to the Aid of Displaced Persons
Restoring Iraq's Healthcare System Requires Teamwork

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 23- "On mad pride and unclean, blasphemous thought"

9. God resisteth the proud (James 4:6). Who then can have mercy on them? Every proud-hearted man is unclean before God (Prov. 16:5). Who then can cleanse such a person? 


September 29, 2009  

(Rev 12:7-9) And there was a great battle in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon, and the dragon fought, and his angels. And they prevailed not: neither was their place found any more in heaven. And that great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, who seduceth the whole world. And he was cast unto the earth: and his angels were thrown down with him.

FROM THE MAILBAG
VIA CABIO.org: Sts. Michael, Gabriel & Raphael, Archangels

Heavenly King, You have given us archangels to assist us during our pilgrimage on earth. Saint Michael is our protector; I ask him to come to my aid, fight for all my loved ones, and protect us from danger. Saint Gabriel is a messenger of the Good News; I ask him to help me clearly hear Your voice and to teach me the truth. Saint Raphael is the healing angel; I ask him to take my need for healing and that of everyone I know, lift it up to Your throne of grace and deliver back to us the gift of recovery. Help us, O Lord, to realize more fully the reality of the archangels and their desire to serve us. Holy angels, pray for us. Amen.

SPIRITUAL WARFARE IN THE HEADLINES

Filipinos witness Christianity in Muslim countries
Christians tempted to emigrate as Lebanon grows increasingly 'Islamized'
Iraqi Christians cry out to the world
Nigeria and Christian Martyrs

REVIEW: What Islam Isn't By: Dr. Peter Hammond

COMMENTARY: Christian response to radical Islam

"There is no peace in Islam," stated Hormoz Shariat, a former Iranian Muslim extremist who is now a pastor and dubbed the "Billy Graham of Iran" by some. "I ask Muslims, 'Do you have peace in your heart? Do you have peace in your relationship with God?' A Muslim is always worried about his relationship with God. They fear God. They are always fearful of what Allah will do to them.

"So Islam, even though it says it is a religion of peace, it is not," Shariat continued. "It has not brought peace to people's lives personally, to families, to relationships with others and with God."

The Iranian pastor advises Christians to see Muslims as God sees them – not with fear or hate as many view them because of the 9/11 attacks.

"So to love God is to love them," he said. "You have to get rid of hatred or fear. If you fear them, you won't approach them."

Shariat, who oversees the largest church of Iranian Muslim converts in the United States, says Islam is a religion of fear and the first thing he does when he talks to a Muslim is pray and fight the spirit of fear in them.

The "Billy Graham of Iran" also said love is not in the Quran. He said he is joyful when angry Muslims call into his radio show to verbally abuse him because it is a great opportunity to show the love of Christ. While the Muslim is shouting at him, he said he would pray, love and bless the caller.

"Every time after such a call, Muslims would call and receive Christ," Shariat said. "They say this, 'We have been studying about Jesus, listening to the program, but we were not convinced. But the way you answered that man who is angry, we are now convinced that your Jesus is the way."

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 23- "On mad pride and unclean, blasphemous thought"

8. An arrogant man yearns after authority; for otherwise, as it were, he cannot, or rather, does not wish to perish utterly. 

September 28, 2009  

(2Co 10:3-6) For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty to God, unto the pulling down of fortifications, destroying counsels, And every height that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God: and bringing into captivity every understanding unto the obedience of Christ: And having in readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience shall be fulfilled.

FROM THE MAILBAG 
VIA Frank Rega: Letter of Bishop of Mostar (Mgr. Peric) to actual priests in Medjugorje (Petar Vlasic…)

On his website (www.cbismo.com) Mgr. Peric has published on Sept. 26 2009 3 long articles with (Italian) title “Il Contesto del Fenomeno Medjugorje” 

All translated from Croatian language.

Part 1 deals with the role and manipulations of ex-Fr. Tomislav Vlasic and deceased Fr. Slavko Barbaric 

Part 2 deals with the phantasies of T.Vlasic and the manipulations of S.Barbaric around the ‘Youthfestival’ 

Part 3 first deals with the homily of bishop Peric on June 6 2009 in Medjugorje, in which he thanks the Vatican for the support to his negative standpoint on the ‘apparitions’ in Medjugorje 

Part 3 then publishes the letter d.d. June 12 2009 of the responsible bishop of Mostar to the now responsible priest of the Medjugorje-parish, Fr. Petar Vlasic:

FORBIDDEN :

- NO more retreats, spiritual exercises, conferences, foreign priests… without permission of the bishop
- NO own or foreign priests may propagate NON-recognized ‘messages’ or ‘apparitions’
- EVERY priest must show his ‘celebret’ before H.Mass
- NO more H.Sacrament or adoration in ‘Oasis of Peace’; even NO permission to reside in whole diocese
- NO services in private church in Bijakovice; is now closed.
- NO mentioning of ‘seers’, apparitions, messages’ in parish chronicle
- NO mentioning of the word ‘sanctuary’ in Medjugorje
- NO mentioning or comment of ‘messages’ or ‘apparitions’ on the 25° of the month via Marija Pavlovic
- NO private ‘apparitions’ of Mirjana Dragicevic in ‘Cenacolo’ of Sr. Elvira
- NO permission for ‘Kraljica Mira’(founder : Tomislav Vlasic) in Medjugorje or in whole diocese
- NO ‘seers’ or others in the church to pray prayers from the ‘apparitions’
- NO intentions during the rosary concerning ‘apparitions’ or ‘messages’
- NO ‘seers’ in or around the church on anniversaries of ‘apparitions’ or ‘messages’ 

Part 3 ends with a letter d.d. June 12 2009 from bishop Peric to Fr. Danko Perutina forbidding all comments on the 25° ‘messages’

HEADLINE: Pope denounces consumerism in Czech place of pilgrimage

At the beginning of his speech addressing young Christians, Benedict XVI thanked them for their presence, from which he could feel their generosity and enthusiasm.

With you, even the Pope feels young," he said.

"At your age, the first major choices are made, choices that can set your lives on a particular course, for better or worse. Unfortunately, many of your contemporaries allow themselves to be led astray by illusory visions of spurious happiness, and then they find themselves sad and alone. Yet there are also many young men and women who seek to transform doctrine into action, as your representative said, so as to give the fullness of meaning to their lives. I invite you all to consider the experience of Saint Augustine, who said that the heart of every person is restless until it finds what it truly seeks. And he discovered that Jesus Christ alone is the answer that can satisfy his and every person's desire for a life of happiness, filled with meaning and value," the pontiff said.

"Jesus constantly renews his invitation to you to be his disciples and his witnesses. Many of you he calls to marriage, and the preparation for this Sacrament constitutes a real vocational journey. Consider seriously the divine call to raise a Christian family, and let your youth be the time in which to build your future with a sense of responsibility. Society needs Christian families, saintly families!" he added.

POPE BENEDICT XVI (CZECH REPUBLIC): "We ask ourselves: In our day, is holiness still relevant? Or is it now considered unattractive and unimportant? Do we not place more value today on worldly success and glory? Yet how long does earthly success last, and what value does it have?"

VIA CHELSIA ON YOM KIPPUR: The Pope and His Jewish Friends. So Near, and Yet So Far

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 23- "On mad pride and unclean, blasphemous thought"

7. The cypress does not bend to walk on earth; nor does a lofty-hearted monk bend to acquire obedience. 


September 25, 2009  

THE TRIB TIMES WILL RETURN NEXT WEEK, GOD WILLING (James 4:15).

(Joh 6:53-54) Then Jesus said to them: Amen, amen, I say unto you: except you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you shall not have life in you.  He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath everlasting life: and I will raise him up in the last day.

INTERMOUNTAIN CATHOLIC: SCAP (Sunday Celebration in the Absence of a Priest) shows the importance of the Eucharist

EXCERPT VIA SPERO NEWS: Reform of the Liturgy

If the Liturgy is to be reformed, then it must have been formed in the first place. I will treat here of the Divine Liturgy, which is so called because it has been given to us as a gift from God. If we do something different than what God has revealed to us, we have not received the gift. In the very first place, Our Lord has given us the Liturgy as food.

In the Gospel of St. John, Jesus compares this food to the manna given to the Israelites in the desert, "I say to you, it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven." Jesus adds, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst," and "the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world" (Jn 6:32,35,51).

The Eucharist is divine food; it is the bread of life, and even more, it is God giving himself to us. Pope John Paul II wrote, "The church has received the Eucharist from Christ her Lord not as one gift – however precious – among so many others, but as the gift "par excellance," for it is the gift of himself, of his person in his sacred humanity, as well as the gift of his saving work" ("Ecclesia de Eucharistia," 11).

FLORIDA CATHOLIC: Tulsa bishop returns to celebrating Mass facing altar

EXCERPT: AD ORIENTEM by The Most Reverend Edward J. Slattery, Bishop of Tulsa

Facing the same direction: From ancient times, the position of the priest and the people reflected this understanding of the Mass, since the people prayed, standing or kneeling, in the place that visibly corresponded to Our Lord's Body, while the priest at the altar stood at the head as the Head. We formed the whole Christ - Head and members - both sacramentally by Baptism and visibly by our position and posture. Just as importantly, everyone - celebrant and congregation - faced the same direction, since they were united with Christ in offering to the Father Christ's unique, unrepeatable and acceptable sacrifice. When we study the most ancient liturgical practices of the Church, we find that the priest and the people faced in the same direction, usually toward the east, in the expectation that when Christ returns, He will return “from the east.” At Mass, the Church keeps vigil, waiting for that return. This single position is called ad orientem, which simply means “toward the east.”

Multiple advantages: Having the priest and people celebrate Mass ad orientem was the liturgical norm for nearly 18 centuries. There must have been solid reasons for the Church to have held on to this posture for so long. And there were! First of all, the Catholic liturgy has always maintained a marvelous adherence to the Apostolic Tradition. We see the Mass, indeed the whole liturgical expression of the Church's life, as something which we have received from the Apostles and which we, in turn, are expected to hand on intact. (1 Corinthians 11:23) Secondly, the Church held on to this single eastward position because of the sublime way it reveals the nature of the Mass. Even someone unfamiliar with the Mass who reflected upon the celebrant and the faithful being oriented in the same direction would recognize that the priest stands at the head of the people, sharing in one and the same action, which was - he would note with a moment's longer reflection - an act of worship.

VIA INSIDE THE VATICAN NEWSFLASH: A storm is about to be unleashed on the Pope, the Vatican, and, by extension, the Catholic Church.

The first drops of rain have just fallen, with public accusations that the Pope lied this winter in connection with the "Williamson affair." (see link)

What is it about?

Whether this storm will "blow over," or intensify into a "perfect storm," only time will tell.

But whatever happens, there is this to keep in mind: many, inside and outside of the Church, would like the Church's traditional liturgy, known as the Latin Mass -- the old liturgy celebrated up until 1970, and two years ago designated by Pope Benedict XVI as the "extraordinary rite" of the Mass -- to disappear.

And they are irritated that Benedict -- against many and vociferous objections -- "restored" the old liturgy, which many thought had been buried definitively.

As strange as it may seem, this battle is in part about that -- about the survival of the Church's old liturgy -- about her way of worshipping God.

But when I say this, I do not mean to downplay other, quite obvious concerns, for example, the tense situation in the Middle East, or in the world economy.

I mean to say that, on a fundamental level, it is not simply a political or economic battle, as important as political and economic factors are, but a spiritual battle.

IN THE NEWS: Catholics confront conservative shift

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 23- "On mad pride and unclean, blasphemous thought"

6. A haughty monk contradicts violently, but a humble one cannot even look another in the face. 

September 24, 2009  

(Tit 1:7-9) For a bishop must be without crime, as the steward of God: not proud, not subject to anger, nor given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre: But given to hospitality, gentle, sober, just, holy, continent: Embracing that faithful word which is according to doctrine, that he may be able to exhort in sound doctrine and to convince the gainsayers.

POPE BENEDICT XVI: "We know how things in society, and not infrequently in the Church too, suffer because of the fact that many of those to whom a responsibility has been entrusted, work for themselves and not the community – the common good."

EDITORIAL: Charity, Civility, and Speaking the Truth by Deal W. Hudson

IN THE NEWS: DeFede: A New Black Eye For Miami Catholic Church

Since the story of a priest fathering a stripper's baby broke this weekend, the tale of Father David Dueppen has generated interest across the country and focused unwanted attention on the Archdiocese of Miami.

After weathering the storm around Father Alberto Cutie, the latest scandal threatens to be far more sordid and embarrassing to the church since it knew Father Dueppen had been involved with the woman, Beatrice Hernandez, as early as 2005.

It has long been a frequent criticism of the Catholic Church that it is slow to clean up their messes. For years the church was criticized for failing to recognize a problem with its priests molesting children. And while the case of Father Dueppen and Beatrice Hernandez involves two consenting adults, the church's response is the same: pay off the victim and move the priest to a new parish.

In this case, Hernandez said she began her affair with Father Dueppen nearly seven years ago after the priest came into the strip club Porky's. They began dating and eventually lived together before breaking up in 2005.

After she left Father Dueppen, Hernandez notified the church about the affair and claimed her religious faith had been exploited by Father Dueppen.

In 2006, Hernandez said the church paid $100,000 to quietly settle the case before its details became public. The church confirms that it paid Hernandez for an inappropriate affair between Father Dueppen and Hernandez, but they would not confirm the amount.

After the payment was made, Father Dueppen was relocated from St. Francis de Sales on Miami Beach to a new parish in Broward County.

The Archdiocese issued a statement Monday defending their handling of father Dueppen. After the initial affair with Beatrice Hernandez became known three years ago, Father Dueppen was placed on a 13 month leave where "received professional and spiritual assistance, including his obligation to live faithfully the celibate life and all other aspects of the moral life."

The Archdiocese said Father Dueppen was only assigned to a new church after they received "a favorable professional report and a renewed assurance by Father Dueppen that he was capable and willing to live the celibate life."

Unfortunately, Father Dueppen's assurances of celibacy fell short and he renewed the affair with the woman in 2008 culminating with the birth of their child – Marilyn Epiphany Hernandez – on January 27.

VIA THE ARCHDIOCESE OF MIAMI WEBSITE: Since 1966, the Archdiocese of Miami Insurance Programs have paid $26.1 million in settlement, legal and counseling costs associated with sexual misconduct allegations made by minors involving priests, laity and religious brothers and sisters.

RENEWAMERICA.COM: The case against Archbishop John Favalora of Miami: why he must resign

PEWSITTER.COM: New Service Launched For Contacting Catholic Bishops and Diocesan Newspapers

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 23- "On mad pride and unclean, blasphemous thought"

5. A venerable man said to me: 'Suppose that there are twelve shameful passions.  If we deliberately love one of them (I mean, pride), it will fill the place of the remaining eleven'. 

September 23, 2009  

(Heb 12:1-2) And therefore we also having so great a cloud of witnesses over our head, laying aside every weight and sin which surrounds us, let us run by patience to the fight proposed to us: Looking on Jesus, the author and finisher of faith, who, having joy set before him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and now sitteth on the right hand of the throne of God.

SAINT PIO OF PIETRELCINA

FEATURED: The Flying Monk

CATHOLIC SENTINEL: The Poor Friar Who Prayed

CNA: Church prepares for St. Pio's feast day

EXCERPT: Let God Be God 

In everything, St. Pio constantly counseled people, by word and example, to "pray, hope and don't worry." Could there be a more fitting message for our time of stress and uncertainty — or a more effective means to spiritual growth? Father Apostoli thinks not.

"Once you make known your needs, fears, hopes, concerns, doubts and struggles to God in prayer, and have asked for his help," explains the Franciscan priest, "you have to now trust the Lord to listen because of his great compassion."

Padre Pio asked his spiritual charges to show the sincerity of their trust by working hard at not worrying. As Father Apostoli explains, "It's a big order. We tend to push the panic button, to look at the things that can go wrong. We worry like mad."

And worry may signal that we're trying to take control of matters that belong to God. "If I really believe God does love me and will truly take care of me, I should not worry," concludes Father Apostoli.

As St. Pio himself put it: "The Lord is a father, the most tender and best of fathers. He cannot fail to be moved when his children appeal to him."

PADRE PIO'S PRAYER AFTER HOLY COMMUNION

Stay with me, Lord, for it is necessary to have You present so that I do not forget You. You know how easily I abandon You.

Stay with me, Lord, because I am weak and I need Your strength, that I may not fall so often.

Stay with me, Lord, for You are my life and without You I am without fervor.

Stay with me, Lord, for You are my light and without You I am in darkness.

Stay with me, Lord, to show me Your will.

Stay with me, Lord, so that I hear Your voice and follow You.

Stay with me, Lord, for I desire to love You very much and alway be in Your company.

Stay with me, Lord, if You wish me to be faithful to You.

Stay with me, Lord, as poor as my soul is I want it to be a place of consolation for You, a nest of Love.

Stay with me, Jesus, for it is getting late and the day is coming to a close and life passes, death, judgment and eternity approaches. It is necessary to renew my strenth, so that I will not stop along the way and for that, I need You. It is getting late and death approaches, I fear the darkness, the temptations, the dryness, the cross, the sorrows. O how I need You, my Jesus, in this night of exile!

Stay with me tonight, Jesus, in life with all its dangers, I need You.

Let me recognize You as Your disciples did at the breaking of the bread, so that the Eucharistic Communion be the Light which disperses the darkness, the force which sustains me, the unique joy of my heart.

Stay with me, Lord, because at the hour of my death, I want to remain united to You, if not by Communion, at least by grace and love.

Stay with me, Lord, for it is You alone I look for, Your Love, Your Grace, Your Will, Your Heart, Your Spirit, because I love You and ask no other reward but to love You more and more.

With a firm love, I will love You with all my heart while on earth and continue to love You perfectly during all eternity. Amen.

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 23- "On mad pride and unclean, blasphemous thought"

4. Where a fall has overtaken us, there pride has already pitched its tent; because a fall is an indication of pride. 

September 22, 2009  

(Mar 9:36-37) And taking a child, he set him in the midst of them. Whom when he had embraced, he saith to them: Whosoever shall receive one such child as this in my name receiveth me. And whosoever shall receive me receiveth not me but him that sent me.

CAMPAIGN: 40 DAYS FOR LIFE

40 Days for Life, September 23 - November 1, is a community-based campaign that draws attention to the evil of abortion through the use of a three-point program:

* Prayer and fasting
* Constant vigil
* Community outreach

40 Days for Life takes a determined, peaceful approach to showing local communities the consequences of abortion in their own neighborhoods, for their own friends and families. It puts into action a desire to cooperate with God in the carrying out of His plan for the end of abortion in America.

The 40-day campaign tracks Biblical history, where God used 40-day periods to transform individuals, communities ... and the entire world. From Noah in the flood to Moses on the mountain to the disciples after Christ's resurrection, it is clear that God sees the transformative value of His people accepting and meeting a 40-day challenge.

40 Days for Life is a focused pro-life campaign with a vision to access God’s power through prayer, fasting, and peaceful vigil to end abortion in America.

The mission of the campaign is to bring together the body of Christ in a spirit of unity during a focused 40 day campaign of prayer, fasting, and peaceful activism, with the purpose of repentance, to seek God’s favor to turn hearts and minds from a culture of death to a culture of life, thus bringing an end to abortion in America.

LOCATIONS: http://www.40daysforlife.com/location.cfm

RELATED: Pro-Life Activism Adapting And Thriving

FROM THE MAILBAG
VIA Tina: A new movie has been produced about the the abortion industry. It is highlighting the big business and financial aspect of the industry, the devastating effects on womens' lives and the fact that babies are being murdered. The producers felt a film was neede because although people often use the word "abortion" in political discussions, most people think they are talking about unwanted babies or women in a problem pregnancy. There's so much more that needs to be discussed and exposed. The issue is not thoroughly discussed in public forums like other political issues.

The film needs a distributor. You can help make that happen by viewing the trailer on you tube. Link is at the bottom of this article. And remember to pray about it! Thank you!
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/aug/09082506.html

VIA Father Alex:  Fr. Dwight, OMI - one of our Vocation Directors - got himself into the history books by walking earlier this year across the USA for life!

Click here: An Oblate walks across America - for life

Fr. Dwight is no stranger to us here at St. Stephens since he began his journey with the OMI by spending a few days with us Oblates while he was still a layman, back in the 1980's! He is a licensed 'pilot' and 'an 'RN'... he left it all behind to follow Jesus, no turning back! He also spent a whole summer with us back in 1991 when he was a seminarian studying in Oblate College in Washington DC. That summer, he saved the life of one of our parishioners that suffered the beginnings of a heart attack while in Church... that parishioner (Felix Munoz, lead for one of our best choirs in the Parish) is the father to our first OMI vocation from St. Stephen, David Munoz, OMI now working as a transitory deacon in San Antonio, TX and soon to be ordained in 2010 - our first Puerto Rican OMI!

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 23- "On mad pride and unclean, blasphemous thought"

3. Let all of us who wish to avoid this pit listen: this passion often finds food in gratitude, for at first it does not shamelessly advise us to deny God.  I have seen people who thank God with their mouth, but mentally magnify themselves.  And this is confirmed by that Pharisee who said ironically: O God, I thank Thee. 


September 17, 2009  

THE TRIB TIMES WILL RETURN NEXT WEEK, GOD WILLING (James 4:15).

(2Th 2:13-15) But we ought to give thanks to God always for you, brethren, beloved of God, for that God hath chosen you firstfruits unto salvation, in sanctification of the spirit and faith of the truth: Whereunto also he hath called you by our gospel, unto the purchasing of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, brethren, stand fast: and hold the traditions, which you have learned, whether by word or by our epistle.

NEW RON SMITH REPORTS

Is It Proper To Bestow The Apostolic Blessing On Someone Who Supports Abortion?
What Is The Church's Authority To Not Allow Priests To Marry?

VIA COSTA RICA: Catholic Church Will Not Be Silent About Anti-Catholic Movements

In response to attempts by lawmakers to eliminate a clause from the country's constitution that states the official religion of Costa Rica is the Catholic faith, Bishop José Francisco Ulloa of Cartago said the Church "will not be silent" and will not abandon her mission to defend human life and the family.

In a recent homily at the cathedral, the bishop remarked, "Certain groups and ideologies exist that pretend to weaken and even eliminate the mission that Jesus Christ entrusted to his Church, as if the Church of Jesus were dependent upon human whims or on some part of a political constitution. The Church is divine and nobody can destroy her," he said.

Referring to the Costa Rican constitution, which declares that the country's official religion is the Catholic faith, but that the state shall not interfere with the free exercise of any religion that does not contradict "universal morality or good morals," Bishop Ulloa said there are some who mistakenly believe that "the Catholic Church is going to be silent" about the proposed changes or that it will "compromise the principles that God has entrusted her to proclaim throughout history for the good of the human person and of humanity."

"The Church will always respect life from conception to natural death," he said. "The Church will continue to proclaim God's truth about marriage between one man and one woman without fear. The Church will continue to defend the rights of the family at all costs," the bishop added.

He went on to note that some lawmakers believe that with these changes "they will kill God. They are totally wrong. God does not die. He is the God of life, He is eternal, unchangeable. All creation depends on Him and only in Him does human life find meaning."

"When the human being denies God, he becomes dehumanized and loses his dignity," the bishop continued. "When a state becomes atheist, it is capable of committing the worst injustices and the gravest aberrations. History is witness to this."

Bishop Ulloa went on to encourage Costa Ricans to choose wisely those who will occupy political office and to cast their votes for candidates that defend life, marriage and the family. "Let us protest loudly and without fear against these anti-human, anti-Christian and atheistic policies that some wish to impose upon us," he said.

VIA TRINIDAD & TOBAGO: Called To Be Catholic

Called to be Catholic, from the Eucharist we go, the Body of Christ.

As Jesus brought healing, truth, joy and reconciliation when He walked on earth, now we, Christ's Body, united in constant prayer with Mary our Mother, continue his mission building the civilisation of love.

Our faith will always be more than what we do within the walls or our Church, as demonstrated by the refreshing story on the back page of last Sunday's Catholic News which told of Catholic youth, mainly from the Southern and Central Vicariates, who travelled to the Toco Parish on the east coast to paint the Catholic primary school before the start of the new term.

St James, in this Sundays' Second Reading, says about faith: "if good works do not go with it, it is quite dead" (2:17).

The Church in its various congregations is a complex institution made up of ordinary people who are sinners.

Still it remains a divinely inspired institution, far greater than the sum of its parts: it is after all the Body of Christ.

It is a Church called in every age, no less than in ours, to obedience and trust in the mysteries of the living God — in the midst of conflict and darkness.

What does it mean to be a Catholic? It must mean belonging to a family of Christians where its members are challenged by the command of Jesus: "Repent and believe the Gospel" (Mark 1:15). It means responding to the call of conversation and faith, which finds expression in a variety of ways in the unique experiences of its members — which makes the question a more than useful tool to enrich the faith of those who respond to it and listen to what others have to say.

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 23- "On mad pride and unclean, blasphemous thought"

2. The consummation of vainglory is the beginning of pride; the middle is the humiliation of our neighbour, the shameless parade of our labours, self-praise in the heart, hatred of exposure; and the end is denial of God's help, the extolling of one's own exertions, fiendish character. 

September 17, 2009  

(Rom 12:19) Revenge not yourselves, my dearly beloved; but give place unto wrath, for it is written: Revenge is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord.

FAITH IN ACTION: Coleman lawyer: 'I try to see Jesus Christ in the face of everyone I defend'

Belleville lawyer John O'Gara, has stood beside people accused of the most heinous crimes committed in the state -- a necropheliac serial killer who targeted children, a murderer convicted of shooting a 9-week-old infant in the face with a shotgun and most recently, a Columbia father and husband accused of strangling his whole family.

"I try to see Jesus Christ in the face of everyone I defend," O'Gara said. "Does that mean I love all my clients or have loved all my clients? Absolutely not. I'm a person like everybody else. There are clients who have pushed every button and make me angry, then I have to draw inspiration from the people who love them."

O'Gara, 48, has a new client, Christopher Coleman, former bodyguard for television evangelist Joyce Meyer, who faces the death penalty if he's convicted of the strangulations of his wife and two young sons.

O'Gara defends clients facing the death penalty because his love of the law and his Catholic faith compels him to do it, he said.

There's a portrait of Thomas Moore, patron saint of lawyers, in the lobby of his office. O'Gara keeps a prayer written by Moore in the center drawer of his desk. O'Gara attended St. Stephen's Catholic Grade School in Caseyville, then Althoff Catholic High School, Quincy College and St. Louis University Law School.

"I'm a complete product of the Catholic school system," O'Gara said.

As a testament to his faith, O'Gara opposes the capital punishment, championing death penalty reforms by former Gov. George Ryan.

"He really believes that what people do to the least of his brothers and sisters you do to Jesus Christ," said the Rev. Clyde Grogan, O'Gara's friend. "He stands with people who have no one to stand beside them. He's a true Catholic."

In 2001, a jury recommended the death penalty for O'Gara client Lorenzo Fayne, who pleaded guilty to four counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of East St. Louis children, but Ryan commuted the sentence to life in prison. In the 20 capital cases O'Gara's represented, it's the only case where one of O'Gara's clients received the death penalty.

MORE: Proof That Texas Executed An Innocent Man Could Turn Tide On Death Penalty

SEE ALSO: Retired attorney uses "pamphlet power" to fight death penalty

CATHOLIC SENTINEL: Repealing the death penalty

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 23- "On mad pride and unclean, blasphemous thought"

1. Pride is denial of God, an invention of the devil, the despising of men, the mother of condemnation, the offspring of praise, a sign of sterility, flight from Divine assistance, the precursor of madness, the cause of falls, a foothold for satanic possession, a source of anger, a door of hypocricy, the support of demons, the guardian of sins, the patron of pitilessness, the rejection of compassion, a bitter inquisitor, an inhuman judge, an opponent of God, a root of blasphemy. 


September 16, 2009  

(Luk 12:51-52) Think ye, that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, no; but separation. For there shall be from henceforth five in one house divided: three against two, and two against three.

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Catholic Prophecy and a Future Invasion of Europe

EDITORIAL: Muslim Europe: The demographic time bomb transforming Christian continent

How dramatic are the population changes? Everyone is aware that certain neighbourhoods of certain cities in Europe are becoming more Muslim, and that the change is gathering pace. But raw details are hard to come by as the data is sensitive: Many countries in the EU do not collect population statistics by religion.

The population changes are stirring unease on the ground. Europeans often tell pollsters that they have had enough immigration, but politicians largely avoid debate.

The European Union (EU) is facing an era of vast social changes and few are taking notice of this.

Britain and the rest of the European Union are ignoring a demographic time bomb: A recent rush into the EU by migrants, including millions of Muslims, will change the continent beyond recognition over the next two decades, and almost no policy-makers are talking about it.

The numbers are startling. Only 3.2 per cent of Spain’s population was foreign-born in 1998. In 2007 it was 13.4 per cent. Europe’s Muslim population has more than doubled in the past 30 years and will have doubled again by 2015. In Brussels, the top seven baby boys’ names recently were Mohamed, Adam, Rayan, Ayoub, Mehdi, Amine and Hamza.

Europe's low White birth rate, coupled with faster multiplying migrants, will change fundamentally what we take to mean by European culture and society. The altered population mix has far-reaching implications for education, housing, welfare, labour, the arts and everything in between. It could have a critical impact on foreign policy: A study was submitted to the US Air Force on how America's relationship with Europe might evolve. Yet EU officials admit that these issues are not receiving the attention they deserve.

The study for the US Air Force by Leon Perkowski in 2006 found that there were at least 15 million Muslims in the EU, and possibly as many as 23 million. They are not uniformly distributed, of course. According to the US's Migration Policy Institute, residents of the Muslim faith will account for more than 20 per cent of the EU population by 2050 but already do so in a number of cities. Whites will be in a minority in Birmingham by 2026, says Christopher Caldwell, an American journalist, and even sooner in Leicester. Another forecast holds that Muslims could outnumber non-Muslims in France and perhaps in all of western Europe by mid-century. Austria was 90 per cent Catholic in the 20th century but Islam could be the majority religion among Austrians aged under 15 by 2050, says Mr Caldwell.

RELATED LINKS

Spain approves Islamic Eid as official holiday for first time
Catholic bishops oppose minaret ban
Post-Christian Europe facing demographic disaster
Via Italy News: Catholic-Islam Marriage Drama
France Army Organizes Hajj Trips

EDITORIAL: Islam Has Its Luthers, Too. But Reform Is Far Away

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"

24. Vainglory is often the cause of dishonour instead of honour, because it brings great shame to its enraged disciples. 


September 15, 2009  

(John 17:20-22) And not for them only do I pray, but for them also who through their word shall believe in me. That they all may be one, as thou, Father, in me, and I in thee; that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou hast given me, I have given to them: that, they may be one, as we also are one.

FIRST VISIT TO ROME OF ARCHBISHOP HILARION OF VOLOKOLAMSK

Archbishop Hilarion of Volokolamsk, president of the Department for External Church Affairs of the Patriarchate of Moscow, is due to visit Rome from 15 to 20 September at the invitation of Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, according to a communique released by the council.

This will be Archbishop Hilarion's first visit to Rome since he was appointed as president of the Department for External Church Affairs of the Patriarchate of Moscow to substitute Metropolitan Kirill following the latter's election as Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia.

The archbishop will be received by the Holy Father and will meet, among others, Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B.; Cardinal Walter Kasper; Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, and Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture.

"In the wake of the many meetings and conversations with the Patriarch in the past", says the communique, "this visit will confirm the ties of friendship between the Catholic Church and the Russian Orthodox Church, on the solid basis of mutual understanding and respect, with a view to closer collaboration and to favour the presence of the Church in the lives of the peoples of Europe and the world".

NATIONAL CATHOLIC REGISTER: Is Catholic-Orthodox Unity in Sight?

RELATED

Learning Eastern, Western spirituality aids Christian unity, says Pope
Orthodox Christian Faithful Meet at Unity Conference
Incense and icons in Jerusalem

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"

23. Vainglory makes those who are preferred, proud, and those who are slighted, resentful. 


September 11, 2009  

THE TRIB TIMES WILL RETURN NEXT WEEK, GOD WILLING (James 4:15).

(Rev 3:14-19) And to the angel of the church of Laodicea write: These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, who is the beginning of the creation of God: I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot. I would thou wert cold or hot. But because thou art lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will begin to vomit thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest: I am rich and made wealthy and have need of nothing: and knowest not that thou art wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. I counsel thee to buy of me gold, fire tried, that thou mayest be made rich and mayest be clothed in white garments: and that the shame of thy nakedness may not appear. And anoint thy eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. Such as I love, I rebuke and chastise. Be zealous therefore and do penance.

LINK: Rebellion and Lukewarm Catholics- The pervasive apathy of our time is a result of rebellion and its bad fruit is aimlessness.

NEWSLINK: Pope encourages strong witness of Gospel, commitment to charity

Pope Benedict XVI encouraged Italian Catholics to strengthen the witness of the Gospel in all areas of life, from personal charity to politics.

The pope made the remarks Sept. 6 during a visit to Viterbo, a city near Rome where cardinals instituted the first papal conclave more than 700 years ago.

At an outdoor Mass at a sports complex, the pope told a crowd of some 20,000 people that announcing and witnessing the faith remains a task for every era of history. It begins with the responsibility to listen to God's word and discern his signs, he said.

"The most immediate sign of God is certainly attention to one's neighbor," he said. The charitable activity of the church and its members is an essential expression of faith and an important service to modern society, he said.

The pope said lay Catholics, in addition to doing volunteer and charity work, should also witness the faith in other areas, including service to political action.

"The seasons of history go by, the social contexts change, but what doesn't change and disappear is the vocation of Christians to live the Gospel in solidarity with the human family, in step with the times," he said.

The pope said the desert, popular in the Bible as a place of spiritual drama and difficulty, has relevance in contemporary times.

"The most profound desert is the human heart, when it loses the capacity to listen, to speak and communicate with God and with other people. Then one becomes blind because, unable to see reality, ears are closed against those who cry for help, and the heart is hardened in indifference and selfishness," he said.

VATICAN.VA: MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI FOR THE 83rd WORLD MISSION SUNDAY 2009 

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"

20. Whenever he sees that any have acquired in some slight measure a state of peace, he immediately urges them to leave the desert for the world, saying: 'Set out in order to save the souls which are perishing.' 


September 10, 2009  

(Jud 1:17-19) But you, my dearly beloved, be mindful of the words which have been spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who told you that in the last time there should come mockers, walking according to their own desires in ungodlinesses. These are they who separate themselves, sensual men, having not the Spirit.

HEADLINES

New Zealand bishops oppose adoptions by homosexual, unmarried couples
Lawmakers in Uruguay Vote to Allow Gay Couples to Adopt
German High Court OKs Gay Adoptions
'Gay law' could destroy family unit: Cardinal

VIEWPOINT: 'Catholic church can love homosexuals, not homosexuality'

EDITORIAL: Screwtape Proposes an Episcopal Toast 

VIA INSIDE THE VATICAN NEWSFLASH:  Here are a few teachings from Church Fathers on the matter of homosexuality:

Tertullian, the great apologist of the Church in the second century, writes: “All other frenzies of lusts which exceed the laws of nature and are impious toward both bodies and the sexes we banish… from all shelter of the Church, for they are not sins so much as monstrosities.” (Tertullian, De pudicitia, IV)

Saint Basil of Caesarea, the fourth century Church Father who wrote the principal rule of the monks of the East, establishes this: “The cleric or monk who molests youths or boys or is caught kissing or committing some turpitude, let him be whipped in public, deprived of his crown [tonsure] and, after having his head shaved, let his face be covered with spittle; and [let him be] bound in iron chains, condemned to six months in prison, reduced to eating rye bread once a day in the evening three times per week. After these six months living in a separate cell under the custody of a wise elder with great spiritual experience, let him be subjected to prayers, vigils and manual work, always under the guard of two spiritual brothers, without being allowed to have any relationship… with young people.” (St. Basil of Caesarea, in St. Peter Damien, Liber Gomorrhianus, cols. 174f.)

Saint Augustine is categorical in the combat against sodomy and similar vices. The great Bishop of Hippo writes: “Sins against nature, therefore, like the sin of Sodom, are abominable and deserve punishment whenever and wherever they are committed." (Rom. 1:26). (St. Augustine, Confessions, Book III, chap. 8)

Saint John Chrysostom writes: “All passions are dishonorable, for the soul is even more prejudiced and degraded by sin than is the body by disease; but the worst of all passions is lust between men… There is nothing, absolutely nothing more mad or damaging than this perversity.” (St. John Chrysostom, In Epistulam ad Romanos IV)

Saint Peter Damian’s Liber Gomorrhianus [Book of Gomorrah], addressed to Pope Leo IX, is considered the principal work against homosexuality. It reads: “Just as Saint Basil establishes that those who incur sins [against nature] … should be subjected not only to a hard penance but a public one, and Pope Siricius prohibits penitents from entering clerical orders, one can clearly deduce that he who corrupts himself with a man through the ignominious squalor of a filthy union does not deserve to exercise ecclesiastical functions, since those who were formerly given to vices … become unfit to administer the Sacraments.” (St. Peter Damian, Liber Gomorrhianus, cols. 174f)

Saint Thomas Aquinas, writing about sins against nature, explains: “However, they are called passions of ignominy because they are not worthy of being named, according to that passage in Ephesians (5:12): ‘For the things that are done by them in secret, it is a shame even to speak of.’ For if the sins of the flesh are commonly censurable because they lead man to that which is bestial in him, much more so is the sin against nature, by which man debases himself lower than even his animal nature.” (St. Thomas Aquinas, Super Epistulas Sancti Pauli Ad Romanum I, 26, pp. 27f)

Saint Bernardine of Siena, a preacher of the fifteenth century, writes: “No sin has greater power over the soul than the one of cursed sodomy, which was always detested by all those who lived according to God….. Such passion for undue forms borders on madness. This vice disturbs the intellect, breaks an elevated and generous state of soul, drags great thoughts to petty ones, makes [men] pusillanimous and irascible, obstinate and hardened, servilely soft and incapable of anything. Furthermore, the will, being agitated by the insatiable drive for pleasure, no longer follows reason, but furor.” (St. Bernardine of Siena, Predica XXXIX, in Le prediche volgari (Milan: Rizzoli, 1936), pp. 869ff.)

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"

19. Do not take any notice of him when he suggests that you should accept a bishopric, abbacy or professorship; for it is difficult to drive away a dog from a butcher's counter. 


September 9, 2009  

(Gen 3:4-5) And the serpent said to the woman: No, you shall not die the death. For God doth know that in what day soever you shall eat thereof, your eyes shall be opened: and you shall be as Gods, knowing good and evil.

CLONING IN THE HEADLINES

Should we bank the genes of extraordinary people for cloning?
World's 1st Cloned Wolf Dies of Unknown Cause
Copy that: Scientists clone oldest living organism

CATHOLICPROPHECY.INFO: Cloning: A Diabolical Counterfeit of Eternal Life

EXCERPT ESSAY: "Darkness At Noon: The Eclipse of the Permanent Things" by Peter Kreeft:

You may doubt the paradoxical point that progress retards progress. You may think it too pessimistic, world-denying, anti-progressive, irrelevant—"out of it," in a word. Well, here is one more argument for my outrageous paradox against progress. Let's take modernity's supposed progress to its limit, its end, its success. I think its failure will be most clearly and spectacularly evident if we look at its supreme success, by its own standards—like a prosecuting attorney who simply lets the accused criminal talk on and on and hang himself.

Modernity's progress in conquering nature is incomplete because nature still holds one trump card over all her conquerors: death. Nature always has the last word. Suppose genetic engineering conquered death. That would be the supreme triumph. Or would it?

Let's backtrack to Eden. You remember the story, of course. It began with the invention of advertising. Satan invented the first advertisement: "Eat this; it will make you like God." It was a lie, of course, like most of the industry. Modern technology is Satan's new advertisement. It tempts us, as it tempted Eve, to become like God in power (but not in virtue). Artificial immortality would be the supreme sell job. We would mortgage our soul for that, the conquest of the very power of life. That would conquer even the highest of the angels, the seraphim, whom God stationed at the gate of Eden with a flaming sword to prevent us from eating the fruit of the tree of eternal life. Death was God's severe mercy, the tourniquet around the wound of sin, to limit sin to 80 years or so. Remove the tourniquet, and history would bleed to death. Imagine the Roman Empire forever. Imagine the Third Reich forever. Imagine America forever. Lewis speaks of our "nightmare civilizations" whirling around themselves in never-ending gyrations of selfishness and despair (in Miracles), and (elsewhere, in Mere Christianity) of eggs that never hatched (by death) and so went rotten. "You can't just be a good egg forever; you must hatch or go bad." Death lets us hatch; artificial immortality would make us go bad forever. Hell incarnate would reign on earth. That would have to be the end of the world. And most geneticists estimate we will have it in 2-300 years (according to Osborn Seagerberg in The Immortality Factor).

How wonderful Progress is!

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"

18. I have noticed the demon of vainglory suggesting thoughts to one brother, while he reveals them to another, and he incites the latter to tell the former what is in his heart, and then praises him as a thoughtful reader. And sometimes, unholy creature that he is, he even touches the bodily members and produces palpitations. 

September 8, 2009     

(Mat 1:20-21) But while he thought on these things, behold the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in his sleep, saying: Joseph, son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife, for that which is conceived in her, is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son: and thou shalt call his name Jesus. For he shall save his people from their sins.

MANILLA BULLETIN: Catholics mark Virgin Mary's Nativity

The Catholic Church and Marian devotees celebrate on Tuesday the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, one of the oldest Marian solemnities and one of the cardinal feasts of the liturgical devotion to the Blessed Mother.

Catholic churches, Marian shrines and congregations, and schools named in honor of the Holy Mother will hold masses, novenas, special devotions, living rosaries, and processions in observance of the birth of Mary, the greatest of all Christian saints and the mother of the Christian faith.

The Liturgy of the Hours, one of the highest expressions of liturgical worship, which involves the recitation of morning, midday, and evening prayers, will be held in many churches. Marian devotees will recite the Holy Rosary, including the Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Many religious congregations, such as the Sons of the Holy Mary Immaculate, will profess their religious vows today to signify their total love, devotion, and commitment to the Virgin Mary.

The Church calendar observes only two birth anniversaries of saints, that of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and St. John the Baptist, the precursor of Christ, on June 24.

"The Church, in commemorating the feast of the birth of the Blessed Mother, celebrates the dawning of the day of redemption, the moment when she, who was to be the mother of our Savior, was born. In celebrating the nativity of Mary, Christians anticipate the Incarnation and birth of her Divine Son and give honor to the mother of our Lord," Church officials said. 

RELATED: Mary: Hope of All Creation

UDAYTON.EDU:  The History of the Liturgical Celebration of Mary's Birth

CHURCH FATHERS: The Gospel of the Nativity of Mary

Our Lady's Nativitye

    Joye in the risinge of our orient starr,

    That shall bringe forth the Sunne that lent her light;

    Joy in the peace that shall conclude our warr,

    And soone rebate the edge of Satan's spight;

    Load-starr of all engolfd in worldly waves,

    The card and compasse that from shipwracke saves.

    The patriark and prophettes were the floures

    Which Tyme by course of ages did distill,

    And culld into this little cloude the shoures

    Whose gracious droppes the world with joy shall fill;

    Whose moysture suppleth every soule with grace,

    And bringeth life to Adam's dyinge race.

    For God, on Earth, she is the royall throne,

    The chosen cloth to make His mortall weede;

    The quarry to cutt out our Corner-stone,

    Soyle full of fruite, yet free from mortall seede;

    For heavenly floure she is the Jesse rodd

    The childe of man, the parent of God.

Robert Southwell (1560-1595)

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"

17. It is not he who disparages himself who shows humility (for who will not put up with himself?), but he who maintains the same love for the very man who reproaches him. 

September 4, 2009     

THE TRIB TIMES WILL RETURN NEXT WEEK, GOD WILLING (James 4:15).

(John 17:20-23) And not for them only do I pray, but for them also who through their word shall believe in me. That they all may be one, as thou, Father, in me, and I in thee; that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou hast given me, I have given to them: that, they may be one, as we also are one. I in them, and thou in me: that they may be made perfect in one: and the world may know that thou hast sent me and hast loved them, as thou hast also loved me.

CHICAGO NEWS HEADLINE: Catholic Church: Too Few in the Pew

The Roman Catholic church wants you to come "home."

With roughly 66 percent of Roman Catholics in the Archdiocese of Chicago considered "lapse" or "non-practicing" because they don't attend mass regularly, the Church will be taking to the airwaves with a television campaign blitz during the holiday season, according to a report out Wednesday on ChicagoCatholicNews.com.

The time is right for this type of evangelization effort because "we see a larger number of people inactive in their faith," a spokeswoman for the campaign, Nancy Polacek, is quoted as saying.

A similar campaign last year in Arizona and Texas yielded a 12 percent increase in Catholics "coming home," according to Ryan Hanning, the coordinator of adult evangelization for the Diocese of Phoenix.

The Chicago Archdiocese hopes for similar results among its 2.3 million members.

"This is not about money or numbers, it's about souls," said Penny Wiegert of the Rockford diocese, which is pairing with the dioceses of Chicago and Joliet in the ad campaign.

The campaign -- called Catholics Come Home -- will include television commercials produced by a non-profit of the same name (http://www.catholicscomehome.org/).

CATHOLIC SENTINEL: Churches and priests set apart by holiness of Sacrament

SPIRITUAL WARFARE

Archdiocese Plunges Deeper Into Fight Against Legalizing Gay Marriage in D.C.
CBS Airs "Most vile, Obscene" Attack on Catholic Church "Ever Aired"
Never Make a Deal With the Devil About Prayer

POPE BENEDICT XVI: People must become more humble, less materialistic

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"

16. It is a great work to shake from the soul the praise of men, but to reject the praise of demons is greater. 

September 3, 2009     

(1Ti 2:1-4) I desire therefore, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings be made for all men: For kings and for all that are in high station: that we may lead a quiet and a peaceable life in all piety and chastity. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, Who will have all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

AMERICAN LIFE LEAGUE (ALL): A PLEA TO FAITHFUL CATHOLICS
 
Now that the funeral Mass for Senator Edward Kennedy has taken place, including President Barack Obama's eulogy at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Basilica in Boston's Mission Hill section, ALL asks you to remember the soul of Senator Kennedy in your prayers. We further ask you to pray for Catholic Church leaders whose resolve appears to have weakened as political concerns overtake the nurturing of souls for Christ. What took place in Boston is a scandal that will result in irreparable harm as the faithful continue to be confused about what is and is not truly and authenically Catholic. The public exhibition of hubris, which is precisely what the public Mass featuring Obama, was at the very least, an egregious insult to Christ and His Church, not to mention a scandal to the faithful. Please pray for the Church, her leaders and her future in the United States, for as Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger wrote more than 12 years ago:

    "The words of the Bible and of the Church fathers rang in my ears, those sharp condemnations of shepherds who are like mute dogs; in order to avoid conflicts, that let the poison spread. Peace is not the first civic duty, and a bishop whose only concern is not to have any problems and to gloss over as many conflicts as possible is an image I find repulsive."

    —Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, 1997

RELATED LINKS

Ted Kennedy, The Senator, The Man and His Church
Kennedy's Funeral Further Damages the Church's Credibility
EWTN's Arroyo Takes Cardinal McCarrick to Task over Kennedy & Pope Letters
Conservative group assails Kennedy's funeral mass

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"

15. When you hear that your neighbour or friend has abused you behind your back or even to your face, then show love and praise him. 

September 2, 2009     

(Luk 12:11-12) And when they shall bring you into the synagogues and to magistrates and powers, be not solicitous how or what you shall answer, or what you shall say. For the Holy Ghost shall teach you in the same hour what you must say.

BENEDICT XVI'S PRAYER INTENTIONS FOR SEPTEMBER

Pope Benedict XVI's general prayer intention for September is: "That the word of God may be better known, welcomed and lived as the source of freedom and joy".

His mission intention is: "That Christians in Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar, who often meet with great difficulties, may not be discouraged from announcing the Gospel to their brothers, trusting in the strength of the Holy Spirit".

NEWSLINK: Roman Catholic seminarians embrace strict rules

The seminarians' wallets are empty, except for driver's licences and insurance cards. To buy cigarettes or clothes or anything else, they must ask their superiors for money — an exercise in obedience and a reminder that material things aren't important.

They have virtually no time alone, on or off campus, and are required to travel in pairs, "two by two," like Jesus' disciples. They live in a world without cellphones or personal computers, and their evenings end promptly at 10.

No Roman Catholic seminary is a resort. But few men who study for the priesthood endure the sort of rules that govern life at the Redemptoris Mater House of Formation.

Redemptoris Mater is a new experiment in moulding Catholic priests who are faithful to church teaching and authority, and zealous in their desire to lead other Catholics down that same road.

On the one hand, the rules are a throwback to 50 years ago, when would-be priests led regimented existences apart from the rest of the world. But Redemptoris Mater men also teach the faith at parishes and spend two years on mission trips, knocking on doors looking for Catholics in Bronx housing projects or Minneapolis suburbs.

The rules "are difficult to get used to, but it's because we come from this very individualistic society, where it's just me," says seminarian Joseph Toledo. "Those things have to be torn down. But it isn't like we're living in a bubble, either."

Toledo is the 29-year-old son of a Puerto Rican cab driver, and is one of the few American-born seminarians on the rolls in 2008-2009. All told, there are 33 students from 14 countries.

In this, they reflect the changing face of the U.S. priesthood. Their greater ethnic diversity and hunger to show fidelity to the church are hallmarks of the coming generation of priests, according to a study released this month by the National Religious Vocation Conference, an organization of Catholic vocation directors.

In other ways, Redemptoris Mater seminarians stand apart from their peers.

VOCATIONS IN THE NEWS

Ten Episcopal nuns in Archdiocese of Baltimore to join Catholic Church
Religious orders go to Internet to find new members
Ann Arbor sisters can't build fast enough to house new members
Catholic Church sees influx of foreign-born priests

Ladder of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"

14. No one knoweth the things of man save the spirit of man which is in him. And so let those who try to praise us to our face be silent and ashamed.
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