Association Of Catholic Bloggers

Still got the Easter joy? We’re only half way through the Easter season, yet most people have moved on. They’re thinking of summer vacation, or better yet, Christmas! I know a handful of people that are already counting the days to Christmas, shopping year-round for Christmas presents. But today, I want you to stop for a second and think about the power of the Resurrection. The fact that Jesus loved each of us so much that He would suffer and die on the Cross for our sins, and then rise from the dead, is so over-the-top love, that we need to stop and let that soak in. Who else in your life could claim that feat? No one. Who else shows that depth of unconditional love toward you? No one. This life-changing event was so momentous, in the arc of history, that we need seven weeks to celebrate the awesome power and love of God; an unparalleled power waged against sin and death; a supreme love that is never-ending and filled with mercy and forgiveness. Keeping the Easter Joy I hope

Ever feel like your prayers aren't working?  If you find yourself thinking "I don't know why I bother praying," or, "Is anybody really listening?" than this PODCAST is for YOU! Listen in as I take up this topic which includes some insight from Pope Benedict XVI on what it does for us when we call out to God in those times of distress. Don't forget to subscribe (it's easy!) and share with a friend! (If you are making plans for the upcoming year and you would like to arrange for me to speak to your parish, group or organization, I can be reached at johnseven38@yahoo.com) Janet Cassidy janetcassidy.com janetcassidy.blubrry.net

As you may have heard, Washington State could be the first state to allow human composting in 2020 if a current bill is signed by their governor.    Don’t know what human composting is?   Stay with me. There is a gentle video online showing the care and respect provided for the family who lays their loved one in a special core to decompose. Through the breakdown of natural material like straw or wood chips, your loved one’s body decomposes and then “becomes a new material” which is basically soil.    If a family wishes, they can take the yard of soil that is their loved one’s remains, and spread it on the ground to bring new life out of their death.   For instance, “You can even become a lemon tree” if you want to, according to the founder of the company promoting this. Like so many other things that are sacrilegious, the video explaining how this takes place and the process itself is all dressed up in a sweet-talking, gentle, explanation.   It is like an old adv

The Last Supper , El Greco  [ Web Gallery of Art ] Today's Gospel is from the Last Supper Discourse of Jesus. Readings   (New American Bible: Philippines, USA) Readings   (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa) Gospel  John   13: 3i-33a, 34-35 ( New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised Catholic Edition, Canada)     When Judas had gone out, Jesus said, ‘Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him.  If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once.  Little children, I am with you only a little longer.”  ‘I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.’ Léachtaí i nGaeilge John 13: 3i-33a, 34-35 in Filipino Sign Language A familia

Garland of Flowers with Madonna and Child Christiaen Luyck  [ Web Gallery of Art ] Bring Flowers of the Rarest This hymn, very popular in Ireland particularly in May, was written by Mary E. Walsh in the late 1800s. The words are  here . It was sung by the late Irish tenor Frank Patterson at the  Faith of Our Fathers  concert in Dublin in 1997. Frank was a deeply committed Catholic and died in 2000 at the age of 61. May he rest in peace The Virgin and Child in a Garden of Flowers Rubens  [ Web Gallery of Art ] Missa IX, Cum Jubilo This Gregorian chant setting of the Mass is sung on Solemnities and Feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is sung here by the  Schola Gregoriana Mediolanensis, Milan. Virgin and Child in a Stone Niche, Surrounded by Garland of Flowers Gaspar Peeter Verbruggen the Elder   [ Web Gallery of Art ]

Have you ever found yourself absorbing the negativity of the world around you so much that you started wondering, "Isn't there any good left, anywhere?" In today's episode of Cassidy Comments , I explore how we can keep balance in our lives so that we can enjoy an equal measure of joy and hope against such a backdrop. There are some concrete things we can do to stay focused on the light of the Resurrection on our path to eternal life.  Join me for a discussion on how to live this life with an eye toward our life beyond. This world is amazing, but something even greater is coming! Be sure to hop on over to janetcassidy.com to read my reflections and don't forget to subscribe & share with a friend! God bless, Janet Cassidy janetcassidy.com janetcassidy.blubrry.net

I love Springtime, because it is a time for new beginnings. Blossoms pop up out of the ground, and leaves pop out on the trees, evidencing new life. This should give us all hope for better days ahead. Springtime is a season that comes around every year, but it is also a season of our lives. Hope in My Students My fondness for Springtime centers around my students; those graduating with undergraduate degrees. As an Adjunct Professor of Theology, it always gives me joy to see students graduate, filled with boundless energy to change the world with their newly earned degrees. As each student begins one of my classes, I meet with each of them, one-on-one. I want to know what it is that they want to do with their undergraduate Theology degree. If you could hear what I hear from them, you. too, would be filled with hope. Some students want to be priests or enter religious life. Others want to teach the faith in their parish. And still others want to take the route I took; to be an au

The following was first published in the Catholic Times, May 15, 2011 (without the prayer.) “In my name, have you named what you do?” This question from a song by David Kauffman (“I am a God Nearby”)   has been stuck in my head since I first heard it.   We do lots of things, but do we do what we do in the name of Jesus?   Must everything we do be in His name?   How would it change my behavior if I consciously acted in the name of Jesus all the time? Such an awareness would surely bring about a change in word and action.   You’re not going to swear if your conversation is in the name of Jesus.   You’re not going to gossip, lie, or covet in the name of Jesus.   Come to think of it, there simply isn’t any deceitful or sinful word or action that you can utter or participate in that you can do in the name of Jesus! Doing something in the name of Jesus forces us to consider the choices we make.   We naturally become a little more selective about what we choose to do.   Our

Today is the feast of Our Lady of Fatima, marking the first of six visitations to three children in Fatima, Portugal. On May 13,1917, Lucia dos Santos, and Francisco and Jacinta Marto were tending their sheep when Mary first appeared to them, asking them to come to that same place on the 13 th  of every month for the next few months. Our Lady of Fatima Calls Us to Pray the Rosary In her visitations, Our Lady asked them to pray the Rosary daily to obtain peace. This request was made at the time of the first World War. On her third visitation, Our Blessed Mother gave the children a prayer to recite. We now say this prayer at the end of each of the five decades of the Rosary: Oh, my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell. Lead all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of thy merc y. In her apparitions, Our Blessed Mother continuously requested prayers for the reparation of sinners. Many times, when we recite the Rosary, we do just that; we pray f