Association Of Catholic Bloggers

heart speaks unto heart: Catholic Universities in America : "My daughter Mary is hoping to go to an American University & is researching with her teachers. Does anyone have any suggestions for a degree in Theology?

" My people are ruined because they don't know what is right or true." Hosea 4:6 Be honest. How often do you read your Bible? Do you meditate on the scriptures so that they become written on your heart? While it is difficult to find time to read God's Word, it's so important. We need the Word so much on the inside of us that there's no room for anything else. This verse from Hosea really says a lot. If we don't know what we believe... if we don't know what is right and wrong .... how will we ever be able to live a life in Christ? When we are faced with an ethical dilemma, we need God's guidance in our life. His Word is full of wisdom and guidance, but if we don't know it, it doesn't do a lot of good.  Neglecting the Word of God is like having a road map to where you are going and never bothering to look at it for direction.  So get out your road map to life and dive into God's Word today and everyday. He will help us to make the bes

I will sing of thy steadfast love, O LORD, for ever; with my mouth I will proclaim thy faithfulness to all generations. ---Psalm 89:1 These uncertain times we live in feel like when my dad used to ask me to go down in the basement alone to do chores. It was always a dark descent even when the lights were on ...even in the daytime. I'd fight him and pitch a fit..but he'd still ask me to go. My memory plays back the hollow sound of the wooden steps with each click of my shoes on the way down. I can still hear it and feel the fear. It's almost as if the Lord has resuscitated this memory to help me remember the faith of a child and how He strengthened me to do what I was asked even though I was afraid. We need to know how to courageously continue on in our faith even when it appears the bottom is falling our of our country and the church. Dad...I can't go down there. How will you know if something happens to me? He would say, I'll be right here in the kitchen. But I can

Today I attended my first Tridentine Mass! I drove a little distance to get to a small rural church that offers the Latin Tridentine Mass every Sunday at noon, and I was very happy to be there. It was quite different from the Novus Ordo Mass offered at my parish church, where we do not kneel (we sit in chairs, not pews), clap to contemporary Christian music, hold hands during the Our Father, and applaud the cantor following reception of the holy Eucharist (!). The atmosphere today was   not   so different, however,  from a small Roman Catholic church I frequented before entering the Church (because it was close to where I was working at the time) where the Novus Ordo Mass was celebrated with reverent solemnity: silent prayer before mass, kneeling, and the singing of the Ave Maria at the conclusion of the celebration. I have missed going to mass at that little church. Since this was my first Latin Tridentine Mass, I do have some questions.  Obviously, I expected the mass to be in Lati

The last few days have not been good ~ not because of anything that's happened, but because of my attitude. I allowed myself to sink into a whinging, self-pitying sorry-for-myself mood ~ just be glad I haven't blogged it! The crux of the matter though, to be brief, is my unwillingness to take up the task God has set before me, and ended up in the "I Wish" zone ~ I Wish I didn't have to do this/that, I Wish things were different, I Wish I didn't have all htis work to do etc. etc. The I Wish zone isn't a pleasant or a godly place to live! What's turned things around for me is pondering on Mary, encouraged by a book I am reading which looks at three statements she makes in the Gospel..."Here I am...Yes!...Magnificat!" These three words sum up most of Mary's words in the Gospel, but encapsulated in them is the blueprint I as a Christian need to follow. Ecce... When Mary receives the news that she is to become the Mother of G

A Priest’s Prayer Loving Father, I praise you, I love you, I adore you. Send your Holy Spirit to enlighten my mind to the truth of your Son, Jesus, Priest and Victim. Through the same Spirit guide my heart to his Sacred Heart, to renew in me a priestly passion that I, too, might lay down my life upon the altar. May your Spirit wash away my impurities and free me from all my transgressions in the Cup of Salvation, Let only your will be done in me. May the Blessed Mother of your dearly beloved Son, wrap her mantle around me and protect me from all evil. May she guide me to do whatever He tells me. May she teach me to have the heart of St. Joseph, her spouse, to protect and care for my bride. And may her pierced heart inspire me to embrace as my own your children who suffer at the foot of the cross. I humbly cry to her: please be my consoling mother, and help me to be a better son. Lord, make me a holy priest, inflamed with the fire of your love, seeking nothing but your greater glory an

Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Blessed Sacrament Church, Paterson, NJ Happy Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel! For years I have prayed the following prayer as my morning offering.  I wonder just how many brown scapulars I have gone through over these years.  This morning offering comes the World Apostolate of Fatima . Their beautiful shrine located in Washington, NJ is also known as the Blue Army Shrine. Morning Offering O my God, in union with the Immaculate Heart of Mary (here kiss the Brown Scapular), I offer Thee the Most Precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Our Lord, Jesus Christ, joining with it my every thought, word and action of this day. O my Jesus, I desire today to gain every indulgence and merit I can, and I offer them, together with myself, to Mary Immaculate, that she may best apply them to the interests of Thy Most Sacred Heart. Precious Blood of Jesus, save us! Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us! Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us! Ame

The Gleaners , Jean-François Millet, painted 1857  Readings (New American Bible, used in the Philippines and USA) Gospel , Matthew 13:24-43 (Jerusalem Bible, used in Australia, England and Wales, Ireland, Scotland) Jesus put a parable before the crowds, 'The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat, and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, the darnel appeared as well. The owner's servants went to him and said, "Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?" "Some enemy has done this" he answered. And the servants said, "Do you want us to go and weed it out?" But he said, "No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow till the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it

I grew up in a family with three girls and one boy and the atmosphere was weighted toward the feminine: my sisters and I played with Madame Alexander dolls, hosted singing "concerts" in our basement, wore Lanz of Salzburg nightgowns and, when we girls were teenagers, experimented with dozens of brands of shampoo. Now, I'm raising two sons. The experience is filling out my understanding of childhood. Consider this.   Read more here...

By Allison Salerno   Okay, maybe the 50 or so folks at our local public library who watched "The King's Speech" tonight with my husband and me were the last people on the earth to see this Academy Award-winning film about King George VI's struggles to overcome his stammer. But if you are among those who haven't seen this movie yet, do. Other than some foul language, spoken by the king himself as he struggles to find his voice, this movie is a great movie for families. It's an inspirational story,  a love letter to speech therapists everywhere, and its message is about how trust and perseverance can help us overcome many obstacles.

Retreat by Fr John Abberton , one of our blog authors, at Pantasaph Franciscan Friary October 28th to 30th 2011 A meditation on the gift of motherhood in relation to creation, the story of salvation and the Church. Why has motherhood been attacked by Satan? Why is motherhood seen as a burden to be avoided rather than a vocation and a gift to be welcomed? Christ gave us His own mother. As the new Ark of the Covenant and New Eve, she opens the way to a true understanding of motherhood in this life, and how it points to what is to come in the next. Click here to book

The Holy Spirit, prayer, feminine genius and teens Our son and his wife  Having raised one teen to adulthood and raising his two sisters presently in the midst of their teen years has given me experience in watching teens grow, but wisdom?  If anything, I think I'm losing it with each new issue that comes up.  With teen eyes watching as I make my way through life I tend to forget they are taking notes.  They listen, hear, and notice my every wart, judgement, prejudice, and criticisms, some they adopt and others they fight.  But which ones should they take on and which ones should I disembark from.  As each year passes and I get older am I doing the right thing by them, I question myself.  Their antics are a constant  When does one become an expert in a field they have experienced, studied, and made through?  Since I have been a mother for 30 years now, am I considered one?  An emphatic "No" is my answer.  I know that many claim to be experts in one thing or

Does it seem to you there is a lack of love in the world? Why is it that people get weepy over rainforests and kittens, but can be so nasty to each other? When we don’t think anyone is watching, who do we choose to be: the meanie, or the lover? We can posit many theories for the scarcity of charity, the dearth of decency, the collapse of kindness. People are stressed, rushed, busy, overextended, tired, unfulfilled, and lonely. They have their nose to the grindstone and don’t have the time or inclination to look up. Perhaps they’ve been hurt or disappointed in their life, causing bitterness to ooze into every word and deed. In their woundedness, people fear being hurt even more, and erect a hard shell of protection. In their loneliness they expect to be overlooked yet again, and rebuff overtures of friendship. Sorrow and hardship can’t be the only answer though. We’ve all gone through hard times. We’re all busy with daily life, and have all coped with hurt in one way or anothe

From "The Way of Divine Love": That men may be attracted (and herein lie the novelty and force Of the Message) � the Sacred Heart manifests through her His infinite mercy. He loves them every one, just as they are, even the most despicable, even the greatest sinners, one can almost say, especially the most miserable and sinful. He does not ask for their good qualities or virtues, but only for their wretchedness and sins. Far from being an obstacle, their very faults are thus an encouragement to draw near Him. " I am God, but a God of love! I am a Father, but a Father full of compassion and never harsh. My Heart is infinitely wise, and knowing human frailty and infirmity stoops to poor sinners with infinite mercy. " I love those who after a first fall come to Me for pardon....I love them still more when they beg pardon for their second sin, and should this happen again, I do not say a million times but a million million times, I still love them and pardon them,

Mac in the Daily Mail. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2013717/Mac--The-unusual-David-Beckhams-newborn-daughter.html

Mighty deeds and miracles rarely produce great faith. Rather, we see in the lives of the saints that it is through great darkness and aridity that faith grows strong. Do not ask for signs but follow what God has clearly revealed as His will. This is the surest way. I am grateful that God has allowed this blog to bless other people's lives and has allowed more Catholics to follow God's will. Rest assured you'll be hearing more from me in the Philippines from now on!

Hello, I am Ros, from over at shadowlands . The above photograph is how I would like to see us all, eventually, with Jesus. I know we also have to be mature and brave and grown-up, but that picture is my ideal Judgment Day encounter. A child, unafraid, with their Father. I am new to the Association. Welcome. Oh no, you all have to say that to me don't you? Sorry! As you can see, I am rather scatterbrained but every now and then, I get thoughts that just have to be aired. I didn't know what to introduce myself with post wise but I do like to pray for priests (the rosary). I also blog about living life one day at a time, one hour at a time. I like worship music and the thought of us ALL being welcomed into glory. Does that sound a bit protestant? I can sound a bit proddy at times, I had a bit of a Baptist upbringing mingled with pentecostals and charismatic smatterings and I love C S Lewis, feel like I know him actually! Not in a terribly clever way, just amateurishly nostalgic

Delighted to discover someone passing by had taped my friend's son while he was visiting Picadilly Circus with his American family. Gabriel is the youngest of four boys.  -Allison Salerno

  Jacob Blessing the Children of Joseph , Rembrandt, 1656 Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph (Exodus 1:8 RSV-CE). I was really struck by these words at the beginning of the first reading in today's Mass. Last week we were listening to parts of the moving story of how Joseph, sold into slavery by his brothers, was later reunited with them and their father Jacob when famine brought them to Egypt where, unknown to them, he had become governor. The descendants of Jacob, grandson of 'Abraham, our father in faith', as the Roman Canon describes him, became the Hebrew people, the Israelites, the Jewish people. The story of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph is our story. But 'there arose a new king over Egypt who did not know Joseph'. At Mass this morning I reminded the Sisters and aspirants of the Capuchin Tertiary Sisters of the Holy Family that our faith is a gift, a gift that can be lost by an individual and by a whole community. When I ent

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 .