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Since Sacred Scripture is at the center of our homeschool, I decided to begin our studies on the papal conclave with a look at the origins of the papacy in Matthew 16. We have been reading The Golden Children's Bible chronologically. We are just finishing the Sermon on the Mount with a unit on the parable of the wise and foolish builders. Reading Matthew 16 at this point provides a good bridge to studies of the pope. For the best start to this unit, you (the parent) should prayerfully read Matthew 7:24-27 and 16:14-20 ahead of time. Make it the subject of your daily meditation. (If you don't know how to do Christian meditation, read my recent post on mental prayer , or see this sample meditation .) You may want to share your insights or resolutions with your kids in the course of your studies. Then use as many of the following activities as you see fit. View the whole lesson plan.

Waiting She hates this house How it feels like one step up From a cardboard box on the street Scrooge throws one more coal on the fire He’s gone for the day Won’t be paying for gas So we shiver and wonder When we can have that big house On the avenue And when will our fortunes change So we can live in a cottage Like the ones in Country Living Or look out over a Cornish coast And be bourgeois and Paint and write and enjoy long walks on the beach And maybe if fate is smiling Like a full moon Or the sun in the summer Someone to walk and hold hands with As the waves break against the sands of time When? Jane Frances

It all comes to this, then. We must discover a simple means to obtain from God the grace needed to become holy. It is precisely this I wish to teach you. My contention is that you must first discover Mary if you would obtain this grace from God. Let me explain: 1. Mary alone found grace with God for herself and for every individual person. No patriarch or prophet or any other holy person of the Old Law could manage to find this grace. 2. It was Mary who gave existence and life to the author of all grace, and because of this she is called the "Mother of Grace." 3. God the Father, from whom, as from its essential source, every perfect gift and every grace come down to us, gave her every grace when he gave her his Son. Thus, as St Bernard says, the will of God is manifested to her in Jesus and with Jesus. 4. God chose her to be the treasurer, the administrator and the dispenser of all his graces, so that all his graces and gifts pass through her hands. Such is the po

Catholic Church Must Allow Bigger Roles for Women, Influential Cardinal Says A senior cardinal, who has been mentioned as a papal candidate and will be influential in electing the next  pope , said in an interview the Roman Catholic Church must allow women to have more  leadership  positions in the next pontificate and beyond. "The role of women in the world has increased and this is something the Church has to ask itself about," Argentine Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, head of the Vatican's office for Eastern rite churches, told Reuters, even as the Vatican's central administration is to choose the man to succeed Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. Read more at  http://www.christianpost.com/news/catholic-church-must-allow-bigger-roles-for-women-influential-cardinal-says-91193/#xfoflwRmbzoZcbiH.99  

View from the Domestic Church: "My Confirmation Book"

I went to Holy Mass and I was crying, not for myself, but sometimes God puts in on my heart to weep for souls that are lost.  This day I was crying very much for the lost.  After we received the Holy Eucharist, the Priests (we had two that day at St. Luke) began to pray for me. I know this because I could feel their prayers for me.   I could feel these men's beautiful hearts praying for me. Men by their nature are made to be the protector of the family.  How much more so is a Priest a protector, not just by his nature of being a man, but by being "in persona Christi" for those in his church 'family'? I could feel these beautiful Priests hearts praying for me, praying out of a desire to protect me, to shield me from any pain as evidenced by my tears, and if that was not possible, to have God intervene so that I would no longer cry. Good and holy priests, with hearts like St. Joseph, loving, protecting those in your charge.  Yet this heart was also like our

Mary Teaches Us to Kneel The Immaculate Conception of Mary, the luminous origin of her being, is revealed in the virginal conception of Jesus by the power of the Spirit. Mary is totally expressed in this mystery: she doesn't exist for herself, but to give herself to God's work. Similarly, humankind recreated through forgiveness cannot just aim towards earthly and temporal development, since it was made for otherworldly happiness, for God's happiness. Humanity was made to welcome and share God's life, listen to the Word and put it into practice, and make it bear divine fruit. By agreeing to be recreated as an immaculate being, the believer lives only through God and for God. Mary's privilege doesn't make her an exception within humanity, but she becomes the one in whom humanity’s grace and fecundity is restored. Mary remains in the heart of God, in the hollow of the rock from which the spring flows. She remains there, as the first tabernacle in history, a

  1.  Please pray for the soul of my sister-in-law Barbara's father, who passed away Wednesday. His name is Wilfredo Salvador and he and his wife raised their five children in Dumaguete City in the Philippines. You might remember I wrote about one of his grandchildren, Brennan Kyle Alcantara, who was miraculously rescued from flood waters during Typhoon Sendong. Keep Reading...

How is your Lent going? Did you accidentally eat meat today? Did you give in and eat chocolate, drink coffee, or indulge in whatever else you promised to give up? Have you missed your prayer time, slept through daily Mass, or skipped your spiritual reading? Don't despair. This could still be your best Lent yet. Continue reading.

Today is the Feast of St David! David, or Dewi, was a monk and a bishop in the sixth century. He followed a very ascetic spiritual life but was also highly regarded for his kindness and compassion to others, particularly the poor and the sick. He is believed to have founded the monastery at Menevia, now St David's, and also at least a dozen other monasteries. The Rule for these monasteries was based on that of the Egyptian desert monks, with a strong emphasis on hard work, abstinence from alcohol and a refraining from unnecessary speech. He died in about the year 601 and has been regarded as the patron saint of Wales since at least the twelfth century. The picture is a mosaic from Westminster Cathedral, and photographed by Lawrence OP at flickr.com

I know my purpose here on earth is to love and serve God so that I can spend eternity with Him in Heaven… But at my age, even having some of the answers to life’s bigger questions doesn’t mean there still aren’t a few things I wonder about… For instance, I was recently watching a rerun of I Love Lucy and found myself saying out loud—to no one in particular: I don’t remember Ethel being so young and pretty! In fact, she’s beautiful! How did I ever miss that? Or there was the time I was answering questions for a survey and wondered why my age group was the last choice. I thought everyone was living longer. Was I mistaken? Shouldn’t there be an age group after mine? I felt it was important to bring that to the attention of the gal conducting the survey: Have you not updated your survey recently? You know people are living much longer now and there is no way I should be in the last age group!   And yet on that same survey, my income was in the first, lowest

Cracked She looks out through the glass Still cold, still winter The fence and the shed need painting Peeling and bent Barely holding up But a lick of paint is no use now It will not cover the cracks Like the cross on the wall That someone has carefully glued back together But the crack still shows It’s lost its value now She carefully takes it down And throws it out With the clothes for the homeless Jane Frances 

‎ "To a great extent the level of any civilization is the level of its womanhood. When a man loves a woman, he has to become worthy of her. The higher her virtue, the more her character, the more devoted she is to truth, justice, goodness, the more a man has to aspire to be worthy of her. The history of civilization could actually be written in terms of the level of its women." ~Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

During the papacy of Pope John Paul II, the media dubbed Cardinal Josef Ratzinger "God's Rottweiler." But when Cardinal Ratzinger became Pope Benedict XVI, he showed his softer side. At Christmastime, he appeared to pilgrims in the Vatican as "Santa Pope," a jovial figure in a red Santa cap (called a camauro). In his youth, little Josef wanted a teddy bear every Christmas, according to his brother's memoirs. This is the side of Pope Benedict XVI that I want to remember, a gentle man who was a champion of faith, hope, and love. On this last day before Pope Benedict XVI's resignation, I want to share with you some lessons he taught me about the passionate, eternal love we all long for. Couples coming to be married in the Catholic Church (and already-married couples, too) should realize and revel in the depth of learning the Church can offer on love. The first encyclical issued by Pope Benedict XVI -- on Christmas Day, as it so happens -- was on

The Immaculate Conception is the First Fruit Sin comes second; it only exists as a parasite, when we let it have some room in a life made only for life and light. Our true being has its roots in God. Hence the great work of conversion, the return to our origins—not to the womb, but to allow ourselves be birthed again, in the truth—by letting the Spirit work in us through Mary’s faith, as though we were in her womb. We must therefore accept the Passover, the passage into the world of grace—God's world. Our being is redesigned in the darkness of Holy Saturday. Our habitual world disappears, along with its demands for visible accomplishment and successful competition. Humanity opens up to the call of a life lived under the sign of communion. I think that individuals and even society cannot do without being called back to life received by grace. Mary is the completed figure of the new world that only subsists on trust in a God who cannot be conquered by any form of darkness, a Go

Association of Catholic Women Bloggers: Blog Author required : Hi fellow Bloggers - I am looking for someone to take over as editor for the Association of Catholic Women Bloggers - a Catholic Women Blogg...

Have you heard that you can "adopt a cardinal?" Yes, in addition to praying for the Conclave electing our next pope, we can each have a specific cardinal assigned to us, so we may pray that he will be guided by the Holy Spirit.    If you would like to take this opportunity to pray particularly for one of the men who will be inspired by God to choose our next holy father,  click this line  http://adoptacardinal.org/   to read more about it. 'On this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.'  Matthew 16:18

Boxes It seems my whole life has been spent in boxes Tea chests moving us from one place to the next Other people’s expectations College University Church People move the walls And make the box smaller And smaller Until I am so constrained I have no choice But to break out And leave them in the fall out Wooden sides scattered in all directions But I breathe the air And see the sky And I am a child again Playing in a tea chest And imagining the world in a cloud Jane Frances

Hi fellow Bloggers - I am looking for someone to take over as editor for the Association of Catholic Women Bloggers - a Catholic Women Blogger of some time who is used to using the settings etc - would need to moderate comments and add Blog Authors as required.  Please email me at j.bennett150@btinternet.com if you would like to take this on.  <3

A couple weeks ago, Pat Archbold started a discussion on boys and "cursing" at the National Catholic Register . I was late in reading the post, but thought that, as a mother of 4 boys, I should address this issue. I firmly believe that the double standard between boys and girls on moral issues has got to go. Some commenters denied that cursing was a sin. Others said it should be expected of boys until they are civilized by their future wives.  Let's look at this issue rationally, instead of just emotionally. What do the Bible and the Catechism say? What is the example of Christ? Why is this issue important? Read the entire post

I'm going to go ahead and review Mary DeTourris Poust's latest book, Cravings: A Catholic Wrestles with Food, Self-Image and God, without having finished it. This is a wonderful book. This a book on the relationship of spirituality to food and the first, its publishers say, written from a Catholic perspective. Keep Reading...

The word Neshanic comes from the Algonquin language and  means "double stream."  Keep Reading...

Married Catholics today need help and they aren't getting it, which is why I started the Can We Cana? blog in December 2012.  Can We Cana? is meant to be a community of faithful Catholics supporting other faithful Catholics in their vocation of marriage.  I invite anyone who's interested to join in and contribute their questions and their advice. The blog offers marriage preparation tips in its Pre-Cana Posts, practical advice on marriage and family in its Post-Cana Posts, and invitations to meditation and prayer in its Pray-Cana Posts. My husband Manny and daughter Lelia designed the logo, since I have no artistic talent whatsoever and couldn't design a stick figure. Manny first came up with a few different ideas. One was interlocking marriage rings with the Scriptural quote, "Do whatever he tells you." Many people would recognize these words as what Our Blessed Mother said to the servants at the wedding of Cana directly before Jesus performed the miracle

The Chaste Womb of Mary Becomes Heaven All things on earth exult with joy, praise echoes from the stars, and songs follow one after the other before the nuptial chamber of the Virgin. This Virgin, who carries the Word in her womb, has become the Gate of Heaven. She who gave God to the world, has opened Heaven for us. Such a happy girl, completely free from Eve's law is she; conceiving without a man and delivering her Child without a cry. The noble womb of Mary carried within it the Redemption of the world. We glory in having been redeemed by the One who lifted the yoke of sin from us. The Son of the Father fills her with Himself; the Holy Spirit covers her with His shadow. In this way the chaste womb of the Holy Virgin is transformed into Heaven. St Peter Damian Hymn 44 for the Annunciation, PL 145, 933 CD May God bless you!

My husband and I have been scraping the bottom of the financial barrel lately. It couldn't have happened at a better time. Lent is about sacrifices, after all, isn't it? Some sacrifices are voluntary, but some are imposed from the outside. Cheerfully accepting the sacrifices we haven't asked for is as valuable as imposing mortifications of our own choosing. Cheerful acceptance, of course, is easier said than done. More...

“ I love you when you bow in your mosque, kneel in your temple, pray in your church. For you and I are sons of one religion, and it is the spirit. ” Khalil Gibran The Cross Weight bore down Almost unbearable Joy and sadness combined  “For now you shall know in part Then you shall know in full.” Almost consumed by the Spirit Such ecstasy Tears and sweat mingling The intense pain and all-pervading joy The suffering and the hope Slowly He gives Himself up To higher things Blood trickles down His companions, one with him His Mother bereft As a sword pierces her soul John takes her head and lays it on his breast In comfort They cut him down and Wrap him in clean cloths Like He was a baby In a manger

Catholics divide prayer into 2 broad categories – vocal and mental. Vocal prayer includes prayers written for recitation. Mental prayer is prayer in one’s own words. St. Teresa of Avila wrote, “Mental prayer, in my view, is nothing but friendly intercourse, and frequent solitary converse, with Him Who we know loves us." St. Thérèse of Lisieux likewise wrote, “With me prayer is an uplifting of the heart; a glance towards heaven; a cry of gratitude and love, uttered equally in sorrow and in joy." Catholics are generally comfortable with vocal prayer, but mental prayer can leave us at a loss. How can you spend 20 minutes or more in prayer without a pre-written text? How can you keep your prayer from becoming mere rambling? Read to learn a suggested form of mental prayer.

The sea is often used as a metaphor in poetry such as a metaphor for life. "I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life, To the gull’s way and the whale’s way where the wind’s like a whetted knife;” (John Masefield) (Sea Fever by John Masefield (1878-1967) “In one drop of water are found all the secrets of all the oceans, in one aspect of you are found all the aspects of existence.”   Kahil Gibran, The Prophet, Penguin Books The Sea The poets mused at the sea today With the glorious sea and sky Saw some ships that were bobbing there As the seagulls they breezed by We stayed awhile on the golden sands And watched the children play We took some time to reflect and stand On a chocolate-box sunny day We waved goodbye with the rising moon Turned from the spumy foam The time had come and gone too soon As we headed back for home Joanna Bennett

Grace comes in unexpected places. After work today, I went to the nail salon for a pedicure. A group of ladies, older and Jewish and lifelong friends, were there. The owner of the salon is a Korean woman, married for years and a devout Catholic. Her husband of many years works with her. They never had children. And so this story begins. Keep Reading....

Lent and the Eucharist It’s Lent and time to take into consideration what we can do to strengthen our relationship with God and grow more deeply in our faith.   Lord only knows how badly our world needs stronger faithful people! Big changes are on the horizon for Mother Church with a new Pope to be elected soon and the present aging Pope to step back into the recesses of the Vatican. What better way to do that than adding extra time with the sacraments of confession and Eucharist?   Christ gave Himself to us totally and completely, even to the humiliating and horrid death on the cross. During this time of Lent, we can find time in our busy schedules to give a part of us to Him, yes?   Let us examine the sacrament of Christ’s Passion: The Eucharist is food for the journey And as they were eating, He took bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them saying, 'Take; this is my body.'(Mark 14:22)  And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to th