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One of the greatest novels I have read

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I discovered Lucy Beckett just over a year ago when I was taking a rest in North Yorkshire. She is a wonderful writer and has a great knowledge of many things including history, philosophy, music and theology. This is a novel about pre-war (WW11) Germany. It is also about faith, conversion and love. As far as I am concerned the prose is faultless (and I read a lot!). I am personally fascinated by pre and post war Germany and how things have developed there after the last World War. But anyone who wants a good read about conversion should try this novel. It is so good I place it on a par with Brideshead Revisited .

" Out of Egypt " - one woman's journey away from lesbianism

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I've been reading this inspiring book about one woman's journey away from lesbianism. Jeanette Howard, author also has another book "Into the Promised Land" - Beyond the Lesbian Struggle. I find with EIGHT daughters & through engaging with many of their friends that the struggle with same sex attraction is widespread. The "gay scene" is very "fashionable" & even sought after. I would like to discuss this subject in more depth when I get chance & full internet access which we are still waiting for.

God Is The Lord

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I posted this on my own blog a few days ago. My usual readers found it powerful. I have to be honest~ this is one of those posts that felt like it wrote itself so all the credit goes to the Holy Spirit. It must have been something He wanted said. I thought I would share it here with all of you. God Is the Lord The fear of the Lord is honor, and glory, and gladness, and a crown of joy.    The fear of the Lord shall delight the heart, and shall give joy, and gladness, and length of days.    With him that feareth the Lord, it shall go well in the latter end, and in the day of his death he shall be blessed.     The love of God is honorable wisdom.    And they to whom she shall show herself love her by the sight, and by the knowledge of her great works.  ~Sirach 1:11~15 My morning prayer and meditation today was focused on Fear of the Lord, one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. I began meditating and reflecting on this gift after reading what  Fr.Alfred Delp  had to say about it. The h

When A Sassy Remark Shows Me a Sure Thing

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  By Allison Salerno "Mom. Stop blaring your music. I'm trying to read."  So said our 11-year-old yesterday as he lay on the comfy blue couch, reading, and I sat in the nearby armchair, listening on my macbook to my new favorite music: Iron and Wine. His sassy comment was its own kind of music. If you know our son in real life, you know what a triumph this comment is. You see, our son struggles with a language-based learning disability. When he was four, his speech was unintelligible, even to me, his stay-at-home mom. The only person in the world who could understand L. was his older brother, who for years served as a translator for him to the rest of the world.

The God in my Coffee

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I had one of those lovely moments of insight and grace yesterday afternoon, which was sorely needed after the second night's disturbed sleep in a row I have been waking up feeling horribly anxious and panicky over Mum moving, and feeling I can't cope, and we haven't got enough time to get things ready! I never feel like this in the day and can always successfully deal with any anxiety very quickly! But at 3.30 in the morning, it is an entirely different experience. I feel overwhelmed, and scared and very anxious. I know all the techniques, and what works for me, but it doesn't seem to work in the middle of the night! I pray, I hand it over to God, I invite the presence of the Holy Spirit into the situation, but my mind keeps returning to whatever is bothering me. I know what the Psalmist meant when he wrote of "the terrors of the night"! In the end, all that really seems to help is to get up, make a cup of tea, sit in the garden (yes, in the we

Not a "Catholic Association"

A criticism has been made that this blog cannot use the name "Catholic" without permission. This is nonsense. This is a blog for Catholic women (and Catholic "others"). No Catholic woman needs special permission to call herself a Catholic, and Canon Law allows us to meet in association without asking permission from the Bishop. The specific permission referred to is for associations which want to identify themselves publicly as Catholic associations or groups - such as a possible new religious orders or an association that may, by its title, be assumed to belong to the institutional Church. Can I not begin a blog for "Catholic priests"? Must I ask permission from my bishop for that? Nonsense. This criticism is based on a false and overly-severe reading of Canon Law. No permission is required for this blog.

Facing a Charism At a Teen Birthday Party

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By Allison Salerno Last night, when I walked into a house with our teen in the Bay Ridge section of Brooklyn, New York City, I saw something I've never witnessed: a living room with 30, no maybe 40 happy teenagers, playing guitars and singing. This was a 17th birthday party for a young man in GS (Gioventù Studentesca), the youth group of CL (Communion and Liberation. ) The happy birthday boy was at the electric piano, with his father by his side on the guitar. Where does all this beauty come from? To me, it is a sign of the Holy Spirit moving among us.

Trolls

Every time that mankind comes up with something positive a negative comes out of the woodwork.I think we are all familiar with the great good the Internet has brought to so many, but sadly the opposite can also be seen so often to rear it's ugly head. With Internet activity as well as the blessing of worldwide communication and friendship has come an ability to the narrow minded and perverse to spread gossip and falsehoods.all the more harmful as the Internet can be such an intimate space in the way it becomes an extentsion of our selves and our homes. The blogg sphere has coined a name for these kind of people who inhabit the internet seemingly with spite and jealousy as their motives though often they start out seemingly as friends. How like the playground bully they become! Setting up their gang, and seeking to sow discord ,often these folk hide their identity,sadly this blogg and some of it's contributors have for some reason become the target for one of these trolls. How

'Listen, anyone who has ears!' Sunday Reflections, 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A, 10 July 2011

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  The Sower , Jean-François Millet, painted 1850 Readings (New American Bible version, used in the Philippines and the USA) Gospel: Matthew 13:1-23 or 13:1-9 (Jerusalem Bible version, used in Australia, England and Wales, Ireland, Scotland)  Jesus left the house and sat by the lakeside, but such large crowds gathered round him that he got into a boat and sat there. The people all stood on the beach, and he told them many things in parables. He said, 'Imagine a sower going out to sow. As he sowed, some seeds fell on the edge of the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Others fell on patches of rock where they found little soil and sprang up straight away, because there was no depth of earth; but as soon as the sun came up they were scorched and, not having any roots, they withered away. Others fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Others fell on rich soil and produced their crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Listen, anyone who has e

New start

Jackie we can carry on as we are all owners of the blogg with equal Ability to post and edit. Let us carry on in all good faith and humility asking Jesus,Mary and Joseph to aid us.

BBC News - Swallows hatch in Pembrokeshire kitchen

BBC News - Swallows hatch in Pembrokeshire kitchen lucky lady.

Fiftysomething: !Coming Out

Fiftysomething: !Coming Out : "Well I have decided to go public! I started wearing a scarf at mass on occasions and now I will be wearing a veil at every mass I go to, ..."

The Priest, Our Lady and Catholic Women (Mothers)

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This is a photo of my late mother, Audrey, and my sister on our last visit to Lourdes. When my mother died (April 10, 2010), after the initial shock and a brief period of awful grief, I received a wonderful grace which meant that the worst aspects of grief were simply overtaken by immense gratitude and a great sense of peace. It is not just an emotional thing - it has lasted until now and has brought with it a deeper appreciation of the gift of motherhood - a gift of huge and unique importance for the world and the Church. One of the touching things that brought this home was a card we found in my mother's prayer books which has a picture of the Visitation on one side and a special request to Our Lady to look after a mother's children on the other. In that prayer there is a space where a mother might write the names of her children. Of course, there we are, the three of us. Two other things happened which were obviously a preparation for her death. On my last anniversary of ord

Clarification on ACWB & Guild

Sadly one of our blog authors has been removed from posting on this Guild due to mentioning the ACWB. Apparently a woman objected & was of the opinion that the ACWB was set up in opposition to this guild. I can catagorically state that the ACWB was something I have long been planning. I love many of the American forums on true Catholic feminity & womanhood & a lot of British women are superb inspiration as Catholic women, mothers, grandmothers etc. Perhaps the ACWB differs also in not discussing Liturgical issues & preferences. We don't have stipulations as to what kind of Catholic/Christian women can join.The forum is proving enormously successful. Quite a few of our blog authors appear regularly on EWTN. We have 62 followers & 36 authors. We discuss our faith, families, difficulties etc & provide support. we are blessed in having 3 priest authors who provide much spiritual inspiration. I would like to invite any women who write for the Guild to join us in

Operations?

Les is actually in surgery today! Many thanks for the prayers.

heart speaks unto heart: Six teenagers in the house!

heart speaks unto heart: Six teenagers in the house! : "Well I'm pretty used to having SIX teens in the house. I have to say some of my easiest times were when I had six children under six! There..."

Encouraging Summer Reading That Speaks to Teens' Souls

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Our 14-year-old son returned from a vacation with the youth group of Communion and Liberation this week, eager to buy a copy of the latest translation of Giacomo Leopardi's "Canti" as well as a good translation of Fyodor Doystoevsky's "Crime and Punishment." His emerging interest in fine literature is yet another reason my husband and I are so grateful for CL, a lay ecclesiastical movement within the Catholic Church. Our son is learning that faith is a living entity and that the beauty expressed by poets, and musicians is one way we can gaze upon the Infinite. My conversation with him also is a reminder we parents have an obligation to continue to nurture our children's souls as they navigate adolescence. Here is what Leopardi, a poet, essayist and philosopher of the early 19th century, has to say about the Infinite: Read more here...

Mourning and weeping in this vale of tears

To have known joy means you must have experienced despair, to recognise the light you must have passed through darkness. Life can be a bit hard sometimes, after great happiness periods of bleakness and sadness. well lets say its a bit like that for me just now. I have had some wonderful blessings recently, but just now I am beset my doubt, debt and despair.  My financial situation was the same last month but it wasn't so much of a burden. my physical health has not really changed but when I am down it feels much worse, My family situation is no different really but now its problems seem harder and more insoluble. My prayer life seems barren and stilted. What do I do? I ignore my doubts, I thrust them aside and bury them. My pain is a new pain an ache in a different place how do I cope with this challenge? I try to keep moving and doing something as long as I can, the pain is not less but I can ignore it while hands and eyes and brain are busy. How can I pray? I look at M

SOLT News: Press Release Concerning Fr John Corapi from SOLT ...

SOLT News: Press Release Concerning Fr John Corapi from SOLT ... : "July 5, 2011 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE From: Rev. Gerard Sheehan, SOLT Regional Priest Servant Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity Ro..."

Of asking and receiving

Those of us Catholics who go to Church, and maybe read a little Scripture are familiar with these words: ask and you shall receive. (If you're old school, you may prefer this one: ask and ye shall receive. It means the exact same thing, it just sounds more days-of-yore) Back in my youth group/young adult group days, when I spent a great deal of time in prayer, and thinking about prayer, and talking about prayer, and asking questions about prayer, I was told again and again that it is good to just talk to God... lay it all out there, to not be afraid to ask for what is needed, even wanted - to even 'lay a fleece before the Lord' and challenge Him to come through in some specific way. Did you just gasp? I'm pretty sure I heard a gasp. I'm not disputing the merit of honesty in your relationship with God - on the contrary, anything less than utter honesty with God is like Number Five Nephew hiding his face behind his hands and thinking I can't see him. God already

Sister Teresita, 103 years old, world's longest serving recluse

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peace...justice...prayers...Our Lady of America

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+ T oday I unite my  prayers and thoughts  with my dear FB friends  of the image of  "Our Lady of America" Cathy  Pray for those who are selfish and don't care about relatives, especially those who are alone! Nancy  http://www.romeofthewest.c om/2007/09/photos-of-basil ica-of-saint-louis-king.ht ml Bernadette Lady of America, CONVERT THIS NATION..... Kathleen  Our Lady of America, please watch over us as we petition you for blessings from you Son. Rebecca  Thanks Nancy for this wonderful picture!We will pray hard so that one day the image will be placed in the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington D.C. May the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title The Lady of America lead the coun ... try to Jesus to restore holiness and virtues Among the leaders and citizens and to stop the culture of death sins of the flesh low morality disunity disputes and to protect the kids youths and families who are under the current of modernism and materialism.Jesus

Fr Patrick Brennan - 19 years a priest today!

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Go over & wish Fr Pat Happy Ordination Anniversary here

Lift the City - a Catholic Eucharistic flashmob in Preston, England

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I found this video on CathNew s, Australia. I've been to Preston, which means 'Priest town', a number of times while based in Britain from 2000 to 2002, doing mission appeals. Most of the town is in the Archdiocese of Liverpool but part of it is in the Diocese of Lancaster. I made a friend in another part of the Diocese of Lancaster who was seriously contemplating suicide. But one Good Friday the local Catholic parish held a Way of the Cross. She happened to see it and it led her away from her depression and eventually into the Catholic Church. What the Capuchin Friars in Preston did on Ascension Thursday this year is a variation on the traditional Corpus Christi processions that used to be so common in many parts of the world. The processions were expressions of faith by the community. This was partly so but also a form of evangelisation, raising questions in people's minds. The Friars run a chaplaincy at the University of Central Lancashire. At the chaplaincy 

life and losses

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I am waxing a little philosophical today… I have had cause to think about this recently as a result of my (counselling) work, and working at a deep level with a client who was grappling with the whole issue of life and losses. I’m not talking about loss through bereavement here, but the necessary losses which form part of our every day life. But the process of bereavement and other types of loss is often very similar… Loss is really change and vice versa, is it not? Whether we move on from a job, move house, leave school or college, life brings changes. It is unavoidable, no matter how we use our energies to try to keep the status quo. God, although unchanging, is the God of changes, and all creation including our *self* is never static, but constantly evolving. This happens on a physical level…I will not be exactly the same person by the time I have finished this post as I was when I started it. Cells will have died, reproduced, divided, skin will have been shed, and my heart wil

Prayers

My daughters Father-in-Law, Les Fry  is finally having his operation today ,please of your charity pray for a succeful outcome. many thanks, and I will pray for your intentions also. Placing all our trust in the sacred Heart of Jesus.

Quote of the day

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"We know that even the smallest force of love is greater than the greatest destructive force and can transform the world" Pope Benedict XVI

Happy Fourth of July!

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 One of the great contributions of the USA to popular culture is the Broadway/Hollywood musical. Among the masters at writing these were composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II. Most of their works were produced first on stage and later made into movies. The exception was State Fair , a 1945 film for which they wrote the score. It Might as Well Be Spring , from that production, won the Oscar that year for best song. I doubt that there is a better version than that of Welsh bass-baritone Bryn Terfel in the video above. The words of Lorenzo in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice could surely be applied to anyone who doesn't enjoy this performance with its great melody, words and arrangement and a singer clearly enjoying himself: The man that hath no music in himself, Nor is not mov'd with concord of sweet sounds, Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils . (Apologies on behalf of the Bard of Avon for the 'non-inclusive' 'man'!)

The Immaculate Heart Of Mary Knows The Way

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Today we celebrate the feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Last year I wrote a post for this feast in honor of Our Lady; it is one of my most read posts (well according to Blogger Stats that is) so I thought I would share it here. The Immaculate Heart of Mary Knows The Way The feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary is always celebrated on the Saturday after the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and it is done so for good reason~ the Immaculate Heart of Our Lady is inseparably linked to the Sacred Heart of her Son. Five years ago on this feast day, I made the Consecration to Mary through the  Militia Immaculata , the organization founded by St Maximilian Kolbe. I renew my consecration each year on this feast day. My regular readers know that Mary played a subtle (to me anyway), but vital role in my return to her Son and my faith. In a certain way, I sometimes feel like I have lived,and continue to live the Joyful Mysteries in my own life. My Annunciation   came in the form o

'Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened'. Sunday Reflections, 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year A

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St Margaret Mary Alacoque Contemplating the Sacred Heart of Jesus , Corrado Giaquinto, c.1765 Readings   (New American Bible, used in the Philippines and the USA)  Gospel Matthew 11:25-30 (Jerusalem Bible, used in Australia, England &Wales, Ireland, Scotland) Jesus exclaimed, 'I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do. Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, just as no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 'Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light.' AN SOISCÉAL : Matha 11:25-30 (Gaeilge, Irish) San am sin la

Introduction..Jackie Parkes

Hi everyone. Just to introduce myself. I have been married to Andrew for 27 years & we have 10 living children & 2 miscarried babies. Our eldest Jennifer (24) is a doctor & was married in April to Daniel. Our second daughter Katherine (21) has a BA Hons in English & is starting her Masters Degree. Claire (19) is a teaching assistant in a Primary School. Rose (18) has just completed her A2's & is starting Uni in September. Mary (17) is deputy Head Girl at St Paul's Girls School & has finished her AS subjects. She is very much into her Christian music & plays for us in the evening when we pray & sing. Elizabeth (16) loves babysitting & has completed her GCSE's. Patricia is a qualified diver & is doing her Duke of Edinburgh expedition at Harvington Hall this weekend. Alexander (14) is busy growing! & doing GCSE's & Andrew jr (12) is in year 7 at St Thomas Aquinas Catholic School. Both boys serve at the Birmingham Oratory. Jac

A Quote for the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

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"I came to cast fire upon the earth; and would that it were already kindled." (Luke 12:29) We have approached the fire of the love of God. Let us allow that fire to burn our lives. Let us feed the desire to spread that divine fire throughout the world, making t known to all the people around us. They too can experience the peace of Christ and find happiness there. A Christian who lives united to Christ's heart can have no goals but these: peace in society, peace in the Church, peace in his soul, the peace of God which will reach its climax when his kingdom comes." ~ St. Josemaria Escriva