Association Of Catholic Bloggers

    Having been raised Catholic, and knowing and believing what Catholics know and believe about Mary, I have never struggled to understand the Church's teachings about Mary, but I know that for some people, these can be a real obstacle.  The common question is, "Why go to Mary when you can pray directly to Jesus?" or, "Why do you worship Mary?" Like Blessed Fulton Sheen said . . . “There are not one hundred people in the United States who hate the Catholic Church, but there are millions who hate what they wrongly perceive the Catholic Church to be.” First, let's clear up the second question. Catholics do not worship Mary. We know she is not God. We do accept that she was conceived without sin and that God prepared her for her special role to be the mother of Jesus. But the "why pray to Mary" question takes a little more explaining, and the Bible gives us the perfect answer. At the Wedding at Cana ( Gospel of John, Chapter 2 ) the hosts of the wedd...

What with writing down what I consider reasonable health care if I am unable to communicate, running a fever that finally fizzled this week — and being aware of our current pope's state of health— maladies and medicine have been more my mind than usual. Basically, I've been a bit preoccupied. And to top it all off, this household experienced a very welcome visit from number-two daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter. So this post will be somewhat rambling: or discursive, which sounds classier. I'll start with what should be a no-brainer. Human life matters. A lot.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (A rambling look at why I am taking care while writing my Health Care Directive: medical ethics, Minnesota rules. and the Catholic Catechism.)

Tribute Money Vecellio Tiziano (Titian) [ Web Gallery of Art ] "Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” (Matthew 22:19-20; Gospel). Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, Ireland, New Zealand) Readings (English Standard Version, Catholic Edition: England & Wales, Scotland, India) Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA) Gospel Matthew 22:15-21 (English Standard Version, Catholic Edition: England & Wales, Scotland, India) At that time: The Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle Jesus in his words. And they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, ‘Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone’s opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances. Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?’ But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, ‘Why put me to the test, you hypocr...

  I hope you will join me on Tuesday, October 20th as I offer a presentation as part of a six-week series exploring prayer at Church of the Holy Family in Grand Blanc. (My sincere apologies for not getting this out in a timely manner, as the series began last week!) "Each week you will hear a different presenter and explore different styles and traditions of Catholic prayer through weekly talks and personal testimonies. Each session will offer practical inspiration to help you deepen your prayer life, grow in regularity, and draw closer to Christ."  I am attaching the flyer with details. You may register at hfgb.org for any or all of the presentations, or just walk-in if you are unable to pre-register. All are welcome! Looking forward to seeing you soon! Pray for peace, joy, and an end to war. Janet Cassidy Email me at:  jmctm2@gmail.com janetcassidy.com https://www.facebook.com/reflectionsinfaith/ https://www.youtube.com/@janetcassidy      ...

"Pope Leo Celebrates Mass in the Hospital as He Recovers From Lung Surgery", 3:07, EWTN News Nightly (October 14, 2026) I'm not making a habit of frequent posts. But I'm rather pope-conscious this week. The three-minute video says our pope is doing well, under the circumstances, and that it's "business as usual" at Gemelli Hospital, except for the Pope recovering from surgery there. EWTN News Nightly also did brief interviews with folks associated with Gemelli, and an even shorter introduction to St. Peregrine . More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Pope Leo XIV surgery and recovery. Defining miracles, and how I see the recent diagnosis and surgery.)

Spectators and vendors at John Pegsworth’s execution. (1837) Detail of a trial broadside. There was nothing in my Google news feed Tuesday about the scheduled execution by firing squad of a mass murderer, or plans to livestream the event. Nothing that I've seen, at any rate. Vatican News, on the other hand.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (What I think of the upcoming public execution of Nidal Malik Hasan: as an America and a Catholic. How I see valuing life and living in an imperfect world.)

At the moment, my Google news feed is mostly politics-as-usual, along with regional items like " Todd County Reports Suspected Measles Cases " (Derek Sidian, Fergus Now (October 12, 2026)).  Meanwhile (11:03 a.m.), Vatican News has live coverage of folks praying the rosary. It's also on YouTube: Live feed from Vatican City / Rome [11:00 a.m.-11:38 a.m. Minnesota time: "Cardinal Baldassare Reina, Vicar General of Rome, leads the recitation of the Holy Rosary in the St. John Paul II Chapel at Gemelli Hospital, to express the Church of Rome’s closeness and affection for the Pope."] Vatican Media Live — English Their YouTube channel may have mostly-English content, but this prayer is in Latin. Maybe Italian: despite having diverged the better part of two millennia back, they are still quite similar. To the ears of someone like me, whose cradle tongue, English, is a Germanic language, at any rate. And that's another topic. More at A Catholic Citizen in Ame...

  Stuff happens: which is hardly an original thought. Sometimes we could have avoided whatever happened. Sometimes: like I said, stuff happens. And would have happened no matter what we did. How we react to what happens, that's something we can control. Not the knee-jerk emotional impulses, but how we decide to deal with whatever we're feeling. I've been meaning to talk about that for some time, but hadn't gotten around to it. Then the priest who was scheduled for our parish got sick, and asked a deacon to fill in. He's feeling better, by the way. The priest, not the deacon. Anyway, Deacon Tim Pribula talked about worry, Jesus, and related topics last Sunday.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Worry, Jesus, and related topics. Being thankful, trusting God, and making sense. Putting problems in perspective.)

Pope Benedict elevating the Body of Christ [Wikipedia; photo ] Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, Ireland, New Zealand) Readings (English Standard Version, Catholic Edition: England & Wales, Scotland, India) Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA) Gospel Matthew 22:1-14 (English Standard Version, Catholic Edition: England & Wales, Scotland, India) At that time: Jesus again spoke to the chief priests and the elders of the people, in parables, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son, and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come. Again he sent other servants, saying, “Tell those who are invited, ‘See, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.’ ” But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his servants, treated them s...

    Okay, let's review . . . The president has promised to give each of us $5,000 if we vote Republican.  He gave the Chinese president royal treatment, even though we know China is helping Iran, against us, in the war. He has placed heavy tariffs on countries around the world, even though they are hurting American businessmen and consumers. He is allowing innocent people to be swooped up, detained, and (sometimes killed) by ICE (the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.) He has threatened to annihilate an entire people (Iran).   He is insulting, and isolating us from our global allies. He is focused on destroying property (The East Wing) you and I own, and is threatening to tear down an important building (The Kennedy Center) if his name is not put on it. He has elevated people without any relevant experience to positions of influence in our government, and fired experienced people who could offer differing opinions. He has banned our free press from their ...

      You've probably heard by now that recently Archbishop Fulton Sheen was beatified. This is a big deal. He is the first American-born Bishop to carry such an honor. I first heard about the miracle (he needed one  for his beatification), online. It's an interesting story about a family that prayed to him for help with their infant son. The rigorous progress to verify the miracle was completed and the infant son has grown to be a teenager. See the ** link below. Sheen had a profound affect on people, inspiring and converting them with his teachings. I like some of his quips, for which he was known, and which retain their wisdom still today: Resigning a bishopric, he said,  "I am not retiring, only retreading." "You must remember to love people and use things, rather than to love things and use people." "The refusal to take sides on great moral issues is itself a decision. It is a silent acquiescence to evil. The Tragedy of our time is that those who s...