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There are so many wonderful feast days in December that help kids deal with the long, waiting period of Advent. December 12 is the feast of  La Virgen de Guadalupe , Our Lady of Guadalupe. It is a marvelous story to tell children.  In 1521 – Our Blessed Mother appeared to San Juan Diego on the Hill of Tepeyac, near Mexico City. So much of  Mexican folk art  depicting Our Lady of Guadalupe is vibrant, colourful, and beautiful in its simplicity. continue reading

As the Morning Rising: Guadete Garden : Guadete Garden The 'o' at the centre of joy Is the unseen-to-the eye shape Of a blackbird's throat As from its orange b...

A wonderful Christmas story to share by the Christmas tree with family and friends. A story you will never forget. PLEASE CLICK HERE

Scientists have been wondering how our moon formed, and why its orbit isn't over Earth's equator. It looks like our moon formed after something about the size of Mars hit Earth, roughly 4,500,000,000 years back. But the giant-impact hypothesis didn't explain why our moon orbits Earth only five degrees away from Earth's orbital plane. The math had said that our moon would be orbiting pretty much over Earth's equator.... ...God is Large and In Charge I occasionally wonder if I should keep explaining why reality doesn't offend me, and why facts don’t threaten my faith.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

As the Morning Rising: Beloved of all the Nations : We are a waiting people, whose prayerful ushering airs the rooms of home and heart, as we prepare for the coming of the One who is belove...

God always comes to be born anew in our hearts. I can trust that He will come. For He comes even on a  frosty whisper, Lighting the darkness with pinpoints of hope Just as the stars appear each dark night. He will come, i n spite  of myself; His arrival does not depend on my preparations. Only that I wait expectantly in the dark. If I open my inner stable door, He will come like a tiny child Silently slipping into the open spaces in my heart.    continue reading

St John the Baptist in Prison Juan Fernández de Navarrete Gospel Matthew 3:1-12 ( NRSV, Anglicised Catholic Ed .) When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?’ Jesus answered them, ‘Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offence at me.’ As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: ‘What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written, “See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who

In his book  A Yankee at the Court of King Arthur,  Mark Twain imagines the old and ailing King becoming a commoner, visiting his people, hoping to improve their lot. This idea was an afterthought, but with God it was his first thought. Nor did he visit his people merely to improve their lot, but to transform it by bringing back all who so chose, to enjoy the rapturous joy without ending that he enjoyed.  Because it was his first thought, not just to dress like a human being, but to become one through his Son Jesus, then that decision inevitably entailed another -  a human mother. Now it stands to reason that if she was to give birth to a perfect human being, then she too must be perfect or her imperfections would be transmitted to her son.   read on....

Christians in the first centuries of the Church believed in the Immaculate Conception of Mary. In fact, all Christians, until 500 years ago, up until and including Martin Luther, believed in the Immaculate Conception. Luther was the founder of Protestant Reformation. continue reading

8 Notes to a Nobody , by Cynthia T. Toney, is a heartwarming, yet truthful, depiction of what it is like to be a teenage girl, coming of age. In Cynthia Toney’s tale, Wendy Robichaud, an eighth grader, comes face-to-face with some of the struggles that teens unfortunately face: eating disorders and teen suicide; feelings of inferiority and loneliness. Read more...

As the Morning Rising: Immaculate Conception Prayer/ Poem : Immaculate Conception  O Mary conceived without sin Chosen to bear God’s only Son You are more beautiful Than our imagini...

Advent readings at Mass focus us on the coming of Jesus in Majesty at the end of time, while Christmas decorations recall his coming in History in Bethlehem, but his third coming that we commemorate during Advent is his coming in Mystery. This coming gets pushed aside. Let’s think about it, for it is the coming that most personally impacts us. Jesus comes to us mysteriously through the kindness of strangers. On Thanksgiving a newspaper appeared on lawns all down my street, but I didn’t get one. I even went out and checked behind the large maple on my tree lawn. I called the publisher and a recording informed me that I hadn’t ordered this special edition. Later, when I went out to Mass, there was a newspaper propped against my back door. When I returned from Mass, there was another paper at my front door. I can only guess that neighbors saw me looking for paper and generously gave me theirs. This thought made me feel warm and cozy all day long. That afternoon I prepared

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There is a wonderful blog written by a man of prayer, David Torkington, who considers it his life’s work to share the joy of true Christian prayer and to teach people how to pray.  He has also published countless books.   In his own words, David says,” All my writings try to promote the Christian way of prayer, and I consider it my life’s work.” read an interview with David on true Christian prayer  

As the Morning Rising: Dublin in the Half-Light of December

I wish that when I was 28 and taking classes for the RCIA program at our local Catholic church, that someone had come up to me and said this: "In five or six more years, you are going to love this. You are going to love being Catholic. You are going to find the rosary beads and the Church calendar so beautiful. All the things that seem so foreign to you now will be deep with rich, meaty meaning. You will look around and your faith will make you so deeply happy."

God does 'Impossible Things'  Spend just a few minutes  learning my story  and you'll know without a doubt that God truly does impossible things.  He mends the broken so  they are able to forgive  the seemingly unforgiveable. Prepares the unqualified and anxious to be soldiers in his army.  Jesus worked miracles to allow the blind to see and lame to walk; today he continues to give sight, but now perhaps moreso to those who are spiritually blind.  Offering strength to walk in His ways to those stumbling due more to circumstance than physical ailment.  He  raised Lazarus from death  to life; and awakens our hearts to new life in him. Close your eyes (after you hit play of course) and allow  Sarah Kroger's  beautiful voice to transport us in this moment to a place in our hearts where we believe - that God can truly do  Impossible Things.        CONTINUE HERE for the Seeking Scripture and Reflection ... All Rights Reserved, Allison Gingras 2016

La promoción de los derechos humanos ha sido, desde el siglo pasado, uno de los grandes labores de los grandes organismos internacionales y de muchos gobiernos alrededor del mundo. Su importancia es central para construir una cultura de paz y progreso. Pero la realidad de los informes sobre su implementación y seguimiento son desalentadores: estos derechos se transgreden continuamente alrededor del mundo.(1) Pero ¿Por qué? ¿Cuáles son las razones de fondo que minan el respeto a lo más elemental del ser humano? La respuesta está más cerca de lo que pensamos y, además, la solución germina dentro de cada uno de nosotros. En este sentido el escritor Eduardo Carrasco nos presenta una guía al cuestionamiento escribiendo en un artículo: “Pero los derechos existen únicamente en la medida en que sean reconocidos por quienes deben respetarlos. Por lo tanto, nuestros derechos dependen de que los demás los reconozcan… Lo único que nos cabe a nosotros en cuanto a ellos, es res

I want to tell you about a criminal who escaped from justice even though he had committed terrible atrocities, including murder. He avoided punishment because the authorities who should have condemned him, were delighted that he was doing their dirty work for them. When he caught his victims, he had them flogged and thrown into prison before putting them to death. Who was this devil incarnate and what finally happened to him? He was a Jew called Saul who finally became a saint called Paul. He confessed his crimes to Jesus himself, as you can see if you read the Acts of the Apostles (22:17-21). Jesus not only forgave him but told him a great mystery, a secret that he had not told anyone whilst he was alive on earth, at least not the whole of it. We are preparing to celebrate the beginning of this secret, this mystery, in only a few weeks’ time, so I want to do for you what St Paul did for the very first Christians.           read on....

As the Morning Rising: St John the Baptist : A voice cries in the wilderness: Prepare a way for the Lord! Isaiah 40:3

My 'Advent Window' opened when I was twenty years old. I was in what I call my 'God doesn't bother me and I don't bother Him' phase. There was so much to do... friends to hang out with, boys to date, parties to go to. I took no time to think about God; in fact, I was ignoring Him altogether. God, however, was 'thinking' of me, and began reminding me of Himself through a series of little seasonal things. A song heard on the radio, a nativity scene featured on the courthouse steps, Christmas songs piped into stores to draw customers... (click to continue..)

Today's reading from the Gospels, Matthew 3:1 - 12 , doesn't seem particularly Christmassy. Not in the 'presents wrapped under the tree' sense. " 1 2 In those days John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea. "(and) saying, 'Repent, 3 for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!' ... "...When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees 7 coming to his baptism, he said to them, 'You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? "Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance....." ( Matthew 3:1 - 2 , 7 - 8 ) More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

As the Morning Rising: Advent Prayer : Lord, may my actions this day be as the twinkling of light so that someone somewhere will say. 'There goes a Christian.'

Read the Word of God with a prayerful heart. John the Baptist appeared in the desert, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. All of Judea, including all the people of Jerusalem, went out to see and hear John. And when they confessed their sins he baptized them in the Jordan River.  (Mark 1:4-6) This painting gives us a glimpse of the type of crowd that gathered around John the Baptist. He must have been a compelling speaker for people to have come from 'all of Judea' and 'Jerusalem' to see and hear him.  I listened to a toastmaster recently who described the competitions speech makers enter. They are judged on presentation as much as content. I suspect John was provided with a natural talent for drawing a crowd. If he was all doom and gloom I wonder how many people would have bothered to travel out to meet him.  Surely his message was an exciting and challenging one? 'Get ready, something...someone...is coming who

30 Day Advent Retreat A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth.   At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.  ( Luke 1:39-41 ) Photo by Jaimie Trueblood used with permission Everything we have  reflected on so far, in this 30 Day Retreat, is impossible! Yet anything is impossible with God.  Listen to this  beautiful reflection by John Michael Talbot, singing and sharing how all things are possible, in the power of the Holy Spirit.   John Michael Talbot 'Holy is His Name.' Follow Retreat on:  http://susannetimpani.blogspot.com.au/

Here's a chatty little look at our Advent plans.  They may not be elaborate but they are helping to point us to Christmas and the sweet celebration of the Christ Child's birth. Read more at Veils and Vocations .

KIC 8462852, Tabby's Star, has been in the news recently. Scientists are pretty sure that something very large orbits the star, but haven't worked out what it is. A few scientists, looking at the data, say that it's probably a really odd natural phenomenon: but that it might something built by folks who aren't human. SETI, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, is still a science in search of a subject. But quite a few scientists are taking it seriously, which is why Berkeley SETI Research Center added few stars to the Automated Planet Finder's observing queue.... ...What I say about SETI and science in general may take some explaining, if you're new to this blog. Basically, I think God is large and in charge; and that part of my job is appreciating God's work — not telling the Almighty how it should have been made...." More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

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'Uno, dos, tres' Andrew Sachs in 2004 7 April 1930 - 23 November 2016  [ Wikipedia ] The death of Andrew Sachs was announced today. He had been suffering from  dementia   for the last four years. He played Manuel, a Spanish waiter from Barcelona, in the twelve episodes of  Fawlty Towers , six made in 1975 and six in 1979. 'Manuel' is one of the funniest characters ever to appear on TV and, I would venture, in the whole of literature. He was put-upon by his employer, Basil Fawlty, but everyone was on his side. The  Uno, dos, tres  clip above is one of my favourites, as I have a smattering of Spanish. And, as an Irishman, I really enjoyed the episode below involving the 'Orally men', men working for a cheap, corner-cutting Irish builder named O'Reilly, doing some 'repairs' to Fawlty Towers, a small hotel located in Torquay in the south-west of England. I remember watching the first series of  Fawlty Towers  with my late Da

Today is the feast of St. Edmund Campion, Jesuit priest and English Elizabethan martyr. His story was told in 1935 by Evelyn Waugh, better known for his fiction, chief of which in my estimation is  Brideshead Revisited.   Waugh wrote in the Preface to  Saint Edmund Campion  that he was not attempting a scholar’s approach to his subject. All I have sought to do is to select incidents which strike a novelist as important and to put them into a narrative which I hope may prove readable. The facts are not in dispute so I have left the text unencumbered by notes or bibliography. It should  be read as a simple, perfectly true story of heroism and holiness. I’m marking the saint’s feast by re-reading Waugh’s book about him. When we think of English Catholic martyrs nowadays, I think most thoughts turn to St. Thomas More – a man worth remembering, to be sure. Campion more than holds in own in such company. His apologia to the Queen’s Privy Council as he was undergoing persecution is pr