Association Of Catholic Bloggers

CONFIRMATION: Anointing with Holy Oil by John Ragai (2013) via  Flickr ,  CC BY 2.0 . I wrote this piece last year for Catholic Mom, and since Confirmation season is upon us again, I thought it might be helpful to share it here, in case you know anybody making his or her Confirmation. Choosing a Confirmation name is an opportunity to choose a name that has special meaning to you, a name that will help you in your journey of faith. By choosing a saint’s name, you’re asking him or her to pray for you in a special way. Having a special connection to someone in Heaven is a big deal! Read more here .

My son is receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation this year.  Preparing him for the Sacrament has given me an opportunity to reflect on this passage from Acts 1:8 where the Lord dispatches the Apostles back to Jerusalem to await the "promise of the Father", the Holy Spirit, who will empower them. Our children receive that very same Holy Spirit at Confirmation - like the apostles they too are empower to bring the love of Christ to a dark and weary world.  Read more here...

Pope Francis has an evangelization prayer close to his heart this month: he is praying for parents. As the Pope puts it, "Pray that parents may be true evangelizers, passing on to their children the precious gift of faith." Mary and Joseph were the first evangelizers of Jesus. If evangelizing means to bring the good news of salvation to the world, then Mary was a literalist: she physically brought Jesus, the saving Word of God, to the world. Joseph and Mary cared for the Word, loved the Word, and shared the Word with others in their daily lives. It almost seems unfair, in a way, doesn't it? SAY WHAT?! Read on at Praying with Grace .

Not long ago, a wonderful woman came to visit me at the Apostleship of Prayer. She is helping her son prepare for the sacrament of Reconciliation, and she wanted to show me the materials she was using. Here they are: Adaptive Reconciliation Kit by Loyola Press Beautiful. The vibrant colors, the simple text, the attractive art--everything draws me in to these materials. They are part of Loyola Press's offerings for students with special needs. Loyola Press's adaptive kits have been on my mind a great deal this month, because September is the month Pope Francis asks us to pray for people with mental disabilities. My  reflection  this month is about my own brother, Mark, who enriched many lives through his challenges. And each September morning, as I rise and pray my Morning Offering, I remember Pope Francis' prayer intention, keeping his prayer close to my heart throughout the day. Today I give thanks to Loyola Press for their excellent materials for children with s...

Father was a no show at the 8 a.m. Holy Mass today.  The old man stood at the back door waiting for him, he said he had talked to Father and that he had said he would be there.  At 8:02, we decided to have a communion service.  Jim, wonderful servant of God, did the service for us.  One of the men came up to me and a woman that I was speaking to after the service.  You never saw this man without his rosary in his hand.  It gave me such hope to see one so faithful every day to the Rosary of our Blessed Mother.  He came over and speaking to the woman spewed a derogatory comment about Father.  My heart dropped.  The woman agreed and joined in the bashing.  This isn't the first I had heard of this, and every time I hear it, it broke my heart.   They invited me to McDonald's for breakfast, I declined and said I would stay and pray.  The woman said to me, "Well he needs it!" (Meaning Father.)  What she didn't know was...

"The Lord was baptized, not to be cleansed himself but to cleanse the waters, so that those waters, cleansed by the flesh of Christ which knew no sin, might have the power of baptism. Whoever comes, therefore, to the washing of Christ lays aside his sins" St. Ambrose of Milan This morning we all went to the 9 a.m. Mass, an early one for us. Today is the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, the day in which the Church commemorates the baptism of Christ by John the Baptist in the River Jordan. Today was also the day where several eighth graders in our parish, including our son, participated in a Confirmation Commitment ceremony during Mass. Since Confirmation seals the sacrament of Baptism, the timing could not have been better. Read more here...

The Seven Sacraments: Baptism , Nicolas Poussin, painted 1641-42  The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord is observed in Ireland on Sunday 8 January and in other countries that use English widely on Monday 9 January. The Feast brings an end to the liturgical Season of Christmas. Readings   (New American Bible: Philippines, USA) Gospel Mark 1:7-11 (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa)    In the course of his preaching John the Baptist said, 'Someone is following me, someone who is more powerful than I am, and I am not fit to kneel down and undo the strap of his sandals. I have baptised you with water, but he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit.' It was at this time that Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptised in the Jordan by John. No sooner had he come up out of the water than he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit, like a dove, descending on him. And a voice came...