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A fellow walker in the park On the way to my Florida vacation, I arrived early at the Hopkins airport, so I went into its nondenominational chapel. Only a young man from India was there. As I prayed, he came over, sat down next to me, and asked, “How do you meditate?” A half hour later, this Hindu had had a course in Christian prayer. You never know when or how God will use you! Speaking of meditation, there is a unique way to adapt lectio divina. You might be familiar with this “sacred reading” prayer, but you might not know that you can also use it to “read” the events of your life. ( Lectio divina has four steps: 1. Read a Scripture passage until a word or phrase captures your attention. 2. Stop and ponder why that word means something special to you. What is God trying to tell you? 3. When you realize the word’s significance, the “aha moment,” respond to God with thanks, praise, contrition, joy, love, or petition. 4. Simply rest in God’s presence.) Click to conti

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The Agony in the Garden I felt my heart begin to break when I knew Jesus and His Apostles had left for the Garden after supper.  The Apostles were uneasy.  They sensed that My Son was sorrowful.  He had warned them that He would be killed, but they did not believe.  I fell to my knees with the other women and we began to pray.  Jesus began to suffer in the Garden.  He felt the weight of sin on his shoulders and satan was there to tempt Him again.  Jesus was sorrowful beyond words.  I could feel His sorrow in my heart.  How he could bear the weight I do not know.  I’ve never known such sorrow.  He asked His Father to let this cup pass, but the Father withdrew.  Jesus accepted His cup for love of us.  His soul was at peace, but He knew what was to come.  When they came to arrest Him, My Jesus identified Himself to the soldiers of the temple.  They began to beat Him.  When Peter tried to stop this by cutting off the ear of the soldier, Jesus reminded Peter that this had t

My family got together Sunday to celebrate Mother's Day. Just a small affair, you know, since only 22 of us could make it. I laughed when I saw the pile of Mother's Day cards stacked up on the gift table: every one of them came in a pink envelope. © Sumetho/Getty Images Pink . Pink is so sweet, innocent, and calming. I remember reading an article once that claimed pink walls reduce aggression and cause physical weakness. I've never really liked pink. And it isn't the first color that comes to mind when I think of most moms, especially my own mom. My mom is active, clever, and fiercely loyal. I'm not sure what archetypal colors represent those qualities, but probably not pink. In honor of moms everywhere, pink-lovers or not, I offer a re-post of an earlier story about my mom. Read the whole story at Praying with Grace !

Bell V. Dodd’s autobiography so colourful and so vivid, that reading it, skepticism tugged at the peripheries of my consciousness. The book is a journey into a world of intrigue, conspiracy, and frenzied activity for a cause. Dodd (1904-1969) spent her youth and young adulthood as a Communist. She worked tirelessly for a cause she believed would lead American society to become better and fairer. This book follows her experiences throughout the uncertain times of the 1920s, 30s and 40s. It encapsulates the time American relations to the USSR were dramatically fluctuating from one extreme to another. In America, children of the Great Depression were reaching adulthood and campaigning for a better world through destruction of traditional institutions and the rise of the Dictatorship of the Proletariat. Read more:  http://lenkdesigns.blogspot.com.au

     During my undergraduate years at Mt. Holyoke College, I was to take the first course of what was to become my life’s work. Yet, at this very secular college, Philosophy of Religion had not been framed as articulate reasoning to believe. Rather, it was most often presented as confounding belief despite the fallacies, heresies, and multitude of reasons stacked up against it.  Yet the more I listened to the Harvard trained divinity professor reinforce his opinion in lengthy lectures, I wondered if he was actually a believer at all.                                                                                                    See More..

Pope John Paul II wrote of "Mary's Memories" in the Rosary. In his Apostolic letter " Rosarium Virginis Mariae "  Pope John Paul, soon to be canonized, wrote, " Mary lived with her eyes fixed on Christ, treasuring his every word: “She kept all these things, pondering them in her heart” ( Lk 2:19; cf. 2:51). The memories of Jesus, impressed upon her heart, were always with her, leading her to reflect on the various moments of her life at her Son's side. In a way those memories were to be the “rosary” which she recited uninterruptedly throughout her earthly life." I wrote these Meditations on the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary.  As I wrote, I tried to look at these mysteries through Mary’s eyes.  Of course, these responses are fictional.  I am writing these, not Mary.  Let us look at Mary and see her Son.   Read more at:: Prayerfully Yours

Now that I’ve got your attention, I’d like to let you know I’m completely serious. Last Friday Russell Brand posted the most awesome anti-porn rant ever. Yes, Russell Brand, eccentric English comedian and activist. Star of Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Get Him to the Greek.  I’ve noted his wisdom in the past. For instance, check out this interview he did with Westboro Baptist Church.  I wanted to write my own analysis of his rant, but there is no point in reinventing the wheel. First, here is the video (Offensive Language Alert)... Watch his awesome rant on True Dignity of Women:  https://truedignityofwomen.wordpress.com/2015/02/27/theology-of-the-body-thursday-14-russell-brand-theologian/

.. By the way, if you are viewing this post in a reader,  click over to my blog  to view the new Page I've added (found underneath the title of my blog)~  my articles by subject . This includes my articles since 2013 that I've written here, for Catholic Mom, and for Real Housekeeping, for the first time,  categorized by subject!   It is still a work-in-progress. ;) How do you deal if you're struggling with anger? And no, the answer isn't donuts.  Or chocolate. Or ice-cream. The other day, something happened that had me completely discouraged and disillusioned.   It got me thinking about angry outbursts, and  why they happen in the first place. imagine with me... read the rest at Picture a Skyline

St. Michael the Archangel Icon Weeping at Rhodes, Greece In 2013, in Rhodes Greece, an Icon of St Michael the Archangel began weeping.  There is a video of the event, which I will post a link to at the end of this post.  When I saw this, I was terrified.  The implications are quite frightening. Statues of the Blessed Virgin and even images of our Lord have also wept in the past, sometimes even blood. .... TO READY MORE...CLICK HERE! 

Happy Mother’s Day!  I am so thankful for you, and your example of a virtuous woman who said “yes” to God, even when the task was huge, and you must have felt overwhelmed at times by the details. Thank you, and bless you, Mother, your example helps me to walk in obedience when God calls me to difficult tasks. I know that Proverbs is one of the books of Wisdom and not typically categorized as a book of prophecy…but I’m inclined to believe that Proverbs 31:10-31 is one of several exceptions to this classification of Holy Scripture.  I see you ALL OVER in this passage.  For today’s celebration, I have compiled paralell Scriptures from Proverbs and the New Testament accounts of you and your words. Come over to New Things to read the rest of this post. Blessings, Lyn

John 19: 26-27  When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her,  “Woman, here is your son,” and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.”  From that time on, this disciple took her into his home. Listen to this little one as she reveals our true mother to our hearts. One afternoon, I was making dinner, standing at the counter with my back to our three youngest children. Katie and Anthony were lounging around the kitchen table, with three-year-old Lucy perched like a little elf on a high stool, happily swinging her legs. Simply making conversation, Katie who was about eight, asked Lucy, Lucy replied,”Both!”“Lucy, who’s your favorite, mum or dad?” continue reading

The odds are that you hadn't heard of Barpak , between Kathmandu and Pokhara . It's the April 25, 2015, earthquake's epicenter. Fewer than 10 of 1,200 homes there came through intact. Survivors in Nepal are getting help from many outfits, including Catholic Relief Services . I'll get back to that. (From Reuters, via BBC News, used w/o permission.) (" Residents of Bhaktapur carry their belongs through the rubble of destroyed houses " (BBC News)) More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

A particularly tender moment in a nun's profession is when she pronounces vows with her hands in those of Mother Superior.  "My heart was full of joy," wrote one such Sister, "as I pronounced these words from the vow formula, '...I vow to God into your hands Reverend Mother to live my whole life in obedience, without property, and in chastity.'" ( Sister Mary Immaculata)  "I vow into your hands...." I read these words and immediately think of the total consecration to Mary according to St. Louis de Montfort:  "I, (name)_____, a faithless sinner, renew and ratify today in thy hands the vows of my Baptism..." In whose hands are these baptismal vows being renewed and ratified?  Into those of the Blessed Mother.  "I vow into your hands...." (continue here)

The Cocktail Queen CLICK HERE

Christians are now dealing with a new obstacle to evangelism;  we can no longer assume people know stories in the Bible or the basic tenets of the faith. Perhaps this dearth of spirituality in modern culture will serve to drive desperate people to the feet of Christ but more than ever seekers need basic catechism to lead them back into the arms of God and the Church. A few decades ago, almost everyone knew the bible, even if they did not attend church because even public schools read the bible and prayed before classes started. I am a convert. As a Protestant kid who went to Sunday School from 3 years old, I grew up on the stories of Jesus,  singing songs about His love and memorizing bible verses. I realize now that I was a prayerful kid; God was close to me. continue

Scientists found a two-century lag between temperature changes near Earth's poles — and maybe a "bipolar seesaw" temperature cycle. Other scientists say that shock waves from the Chicxulub impact may have triggered volcanic eruptions in the Deccan Traps and elsewhere.... ...We don't, I think, have all the answers about how Earth's climate changes and what we should do about it: but we're discovering what some of the questions are. That's a good start. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I saw this quote from  Abby Johnson  and started thinking about something totally unrelated: If you are a Christ follower but also hate abortion clinic workers or abortionists, then the Bible says that you are guilty of murder. We won't win this battle unless we learn to love better. If you have hate in your heart, then you need to pray.  It's really hard to hate the people that you diligently pray for. - Abby Johnson On this Mother's Day, nearly 20 years after my own Mother's death, I cannot find it in my heart to pray for her.  I've always wondered why I never do and now I know.  The  hatred I have for her still lingers after all these years  and that definitely made me pause. To read the article go to Being Catholic ... Really .

The following is quoted from a General Audience of Pope Benedict XVI from 6 February, 2013: ...I would also like to say a word about the summit of all creation: man and woman, the human being, the only being “able to know and love his creator” (Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World,  Gaudium et Spes , n. 12). Looking up at the heavens the Psalmist wondered: “when I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars which you have established; what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” (Ps 8:3-4).  The human being, lovingly created by God, is indeed tiny in comparison with the immensity of the universe. At times, as we look with fascination at the enormous expanses of the firmament, we too perceive our limitations. Human beings are inhabited by this paradox: our smallness and our transcience exist side by side with the greatness of what God’s eternal love wanted for us. Read more at  lenkdesigns.blog

I don’t know the real name of these plants, but I’ve always called them “Pocket Plants.” The flowers remind me of little pockets where we could store all of our thoughts, memories, and prayers which would enable me to stop, pull out a prayer anytime I am near these plants. You could also store any requests for prayers so that we could go back and remember the person for whom we were praying again and again. I store a lot of prayer requests in my tablet.  The problem is that I don’t always have my tablet with me. Read More at:: Prayerfully Yours

You know that I have a heart for religious vocations!  Peter Lyons is running a fundraising campaign to help him begin his priestly discernment.  This boy is such a polished, eloquent young man.   When I donated, although I wish I could have paid for the whole trip, Peter sent me a personal email. It was not a form letter, it was a heartfelt message. He thanked me, promised to pray for me, and then named exact times and places where he would pray for my intentions.  Who couldn't use a some extra prayer, especially when offered by a soul so ablazed for Christ! Read more on Veils and Vocations!

The Patron Saint of Nurses is St. Agatha.  She is one of seven women who is remembered by name in the Canon of the Mass.  She is also known as the patron saint of breast cancer and bakers.  She was martyred in the 1500’s when her breasts were cut off after she had been tortured in the Turkish invasion of 1551. Let us pray for these heroic women and men who serve in the medical field. Read More at: Prayerfully Yours

To kick off my series on the works of Mercy, I am compiling my five favorite ideas for families to live the virtue of Feeding the Hungry.  There are so many who are hungry out there, it truly is the easiest to start with.  In raising our children, we want them to not just know the faith, but live it.  St Paul said that faith without works is dead. Please join me for this twelve part series on living the works of mercy and see the faith of your family blossom and bear fruit! Source 1 Make Bag Lunches for the Homeless Our parish participates in "Midnight Run" where our priests, youth group, and parent volunteers travel to "the City" and distribute goods to the homeless. Out of the back of minivans, they spend the night handing out clothing, blankets, and toiletries.  They also distribute bag lunches that includes a sandwich, soft fruit, drink, and dessert.  For the past few years, my children and I have packed lunches for this venture. Continued

Hello.  My name is Lyn and I am a coffee addict. My observations, in the spirit of Forest Gump…how life is like coffee: Visit  New Things  to read the whole post.

Just a quick snippet about something I created for my littles! Hope you find it helpful! Blessings, Jen

It is easy to look at the state of the world and get discouraged and distracted. It would seem as if the devil is triumphing. It is often easier to lose faith and just focus on circumstances. However, where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more - Romans 5:12. I believe God would have us look beyond the evil forces at work around us and focus on him, his beauty, grace and goodness. Continue Reading @ Beautifulthorns >

What happens when you begin to fear doing something you've done for much of your life? How to cope? This scenario has been playing out since I received a healing of my singing voice. God was calling me to go public again. I share to show that fear never conquers so long as we are willing to go where God leads and we trust in him. from picturespost.blogspot.com During the fifteen years that I was a professional musician I went out on gigs, holding concerts and sometimes doing some public speaking. When my mother died in 2010, I stopped doing that sort of thing. Now, five years later, I've decided to dive back in. It is not without fear and trepidation for I am rusty! While I had my years of experience to fall back on, I wasn't sure I would remember how to do it. Something once familiar to me had become unknown territory. Was it worth trying? Yes! Click to continue reading.

© Design Pics/Getty Images When societal structures designed to protect the innocent come crashing down, we need prophets. We need messengers who remind us that, despite all desperate appearances,  God has a plan of goodness in mind for us, to give us "a future of hope" (Jeremiah 29:11). Parents can be the prophets their children need. We point them to truth, unity, goodness, and beauty; we lead them to God. We teach them how to pray, so they can develop their very own relationship with the infinite God who created them out of love. We need strength for all this prophet-work. We will find it in God, and in each other. We will find it in scripture, and in a particular way in church. It was at church on Sunday, in fact, that Reverend Sykes' words popped into my head unexpectedly Read the whole enchilada at Praying with Grace !

The warmer weather has finally arrived and getting outside will be my priority.  I'm looking forward to a summer of long walks, long bike rides and anything else that entails breathing fresh air.  I can't wait for our annual trip to Ravinia, neighborhood summerfests and all that summer brings. You can read the rest of the article and view the photo gallery at Being Catholic ... Really .

Woman Praying in Church by Jean-Baptiste Jules Trayer (Wikimedia Commons). How should a person behave when he enters the fourth mansions? How should he act throughout the day? How should he pray? First, let’s look at our behavior during prayer. As I have said (some might say ad nausuem) contemplative prayer is a gift from God. It does not come from the soul’s willing it or applying any technique. Spiritual growth through the seven (groups of) mansions is gradual. Contemplative prayer begins subtly. It usually grows slowly deeper. Infused recollection blends into the prayer of quiet, which blends into the union of the fifth mansions. A soul in the fourth mansions will probably not experience contemplation every time she prays–at least not at first. What should she do? She should not try to produce contemplation, since that’s impossible. Instead, she should go back to meditating on Sacred Scripture, affective prayer, or acquired recollection. Continue reading at Contemp

Allison Gringas is interviewing Catholic mum’s who are bloggers May 4-9 The link to Melanie's podcast is http://realjoy.podbean.com/e/a-seeking-heart-w-allison-gingras-feat-melanie-juneau-joyofnine9/#.VUzmq4B_rdg.facebook A Seeking Heart with Allison Gingras: LIVE!  WEEKDAYS – 10:00 am ET on  RealLifeRadio.com DOWNLOAD THE RADIO APP:  iOs App  or  Android App    Her  Catholic Blogger Week- Mega Giveaway Prepare for a special Seeking Heart week of shows! FIVE days — 5 Catholic Bloggers! AND to Celebrate we are hosting a MEGA GIVEAWAY! Prize #1 from me:  Books, Bracelet and a Squirrel BUDDY! read more

I even considered sleeping in and not going to Mass at 7.  Depression is that way.  However, God had other plans.   Pixie needed to go outside, and I had to get up, go downstairs and open the door for her.  So, I was up.  When she came upstairs, she demanded her breakfast.  After looking around the kitchen, I found her “cup.”  That finished the process of waking up. I showered.  Threw on some mismatched clothes.  (I’m at that age where I can do that now!)  I drove to Mass, and I sat in the back for fear of crying.  That’s fine.  I have found i can focus more on the Mass when I sit in the back.  I pulled my veil over my face, and I listened as the Mass began. At best, I can say, prayer was difficult. Read More at:: Prayerfully Yours

Every year on Labor Day, an organization called  Improvingbirth.org  arranges protests and various social media activism events to bring awareness to the state of birth in the US. The US has one of the highest  maternal  and  the highest   infant mortality  rate in the industrialized world. An untold number of women carry with them horrific birth stories. Many more women suffer from post-partum depression and psychosis. I have my  own traumatic birth story  to tell, so I have participated in some of these events and I always keep an eye out on what their organization is doing. This past year, they asked people to share their birth horror stories as part of their #breakthesilence campaign. One woman shared two that I would like to share with you... Hear this woman's eye-opening story on True Dignity of Women:  https://truedignityofwomen.wordpress.com/2014/11/07/theology-of-the-body-thursday-5-the-birthing-body/

This is my body: an outward sign. Full of meaning: rich, not empty. Full of remembering, full of life. To read the full poem, see  lenkdesigns.blogspot.com.au

Today’s Gospel:  John 14:21-26 This gospel passage is a typical example from the Gospel of John—deep, with layers of meaning and odd, cryptic language which could easily lead us in circles of confusion The best way to read this passage and most of John’s gospel is with our hearts, allowing the words to soak into our spirits. As you read this beautiful description of our intimate relationship with God, the Almighty Ruler of the entire universe, let John’s words nourish you spiritually. Jesus tells us both He and the Eternal, Immortal Father will come to us and make their dwelling within us. Then, Jesus promises even more. When He leaves His disciples physically, He will send “The Advocate, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name—he will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.”    continue

I knew, when the idea of the cloistered heart first came to me in the 1980s, that monasteries of nuns or monks have special places not open to outsiders.  I realized that these areas were called cloisters.  It was enough information to get me started.  “The whole idea of a cloistered heart,” I wrote in 1988, “is that the part of me referred to as the ‘heart’ – meaning my spirit, who I really AM – should be detached from the world in its attachment to the Creator of the world...." (read the rest here)

I grew up in the 'good old days,' when many Americans enjoyed the seemingly-secure middle class lives of the Cleavers and Andersons . Some parents, mine included, remembered that there's more to life than wealth: so I never considered running away to a commune . But I understood why some folks my age, and a bit older, decided that buying stuff you don't need with money you don't have to impress people you don't like — made no sense at all.... ...I didn't have the horror that some older folks had for places like Drop City . It seemed to me that 'those crazy kids,' with their 'un-American' talk about peace, love, and brotherhood, had decided to take at least some of my Lord's values seriously.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

The essence of the prayer of Jesus entailed dedicating every moment of every day to loving God with every part and with every fibre of his being (Lk 2:29. Jn 4:34). All his prayer was directed to this end. Pledging himself to love his Father come what may, day in day out, might be simple, but it certainly wasn’t always plain sailing. In fact on occasions it became close to hell on earth for a person of such a delicate and sensitive nature, and sometimes excruciatingly painful, both physically and mentally. What is interesting is that on two of these occasions ‘though he was alone in his prayer, Jesus took the trouble to tell others of how he prayed, and the inner anguish that this caused him, otherwise we would never have known. Quite evidently he did this so that we could be in no doubt that prayer can be at one moment ecstasy, and at another moment agony, and all stations in between. That is why he told us, through his disciples, that at the prelude to his public ministry, when he p

How do you pray? Do you find your prayer overflowing with images, thoughts and conversations or instead find yourself wrapped in silence surrounded by God’s awe inspiring presence? While at various times we may find ourselves practicing both of these, understanding the shape your prayer takes helps us to simply understand how we personally connect with God. The first form of prayer,  kataphatic , is my own prevailing mode of prayer. At times our prayer begins in seeking God, in a desire to feel the immanence and closeness of God when our mind seems busied with the affairs of this world. In these moments, as I reflect on the presence, ministry and Passion of Jesus, as Word revealed, I recognize that I am being beckoned closer. In an instant, behind closed eyes, I am enveloped by the sights, sounds and scripture intended to speak to my heart. Aware of my own transgressions and surrendering, I find myself humbled by the love and grace so undeservedly but gratuitously given. A beaut

Today is marks the start of the weekend.  It’s time to let yourself relax.   Today is the First Friday of the month.  The First Friday of the month honors the Sacred Heart of Jesus.  If you attended Mass today, you probably heard the priest speak about First Friday.    Today is also the feast day of St. Joseph the patron saint of workers.  Wednesday is the day dedicated to St. Joseph as the earthly father of Jesus.   If you didn’t get a chance to attend Mass today, hopefully, tomorrow, on the first Saturday of the month which honors the Immaculate Heart of Mary.  The lines for confession will be long tomorrow. What time is Mass and confession at your church tomorrow?  You might want to look it up so that you won’t forget, especially, the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Read More at:: Prayerfully Yours