Association Of Catholic Bloggers

FRANCISCUS 13 March 2013 Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum; habemus Papam: Eminentissimum ac Reverendissimum Dominum, Dominum Georgium Marium Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae Cardinalem Bergoglio qui sibi nomen imposuit Franciscum The photo above  of the then Cardinal Bergoglio was taken in 2008. Our new Holy Father is described on the Vatican website as 'Pope Francis', not 'Pope Francis the First', or simply as 'Franciscus', the Latin form of the name, as above, or its equivalent in other languages. Numbering only comes in when there is more than one pope with the same name. The plaque above, in St Peter's, listing all the popes buried there, follows that convention. The first four, for example, are 'S Petrvs (St Peter), Linvs, Cletvs, Evaristvs' without any number after the name. (In Latin the letters 'u' and 'v' were often used instead interchangeably.) Sts Linus and Cletus are mentioned in the Roman Canon, also ca

POPE   FRANCIS Jorge Mario Bergoglio (born 17 December 1936) Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina May God bless his ministry abundantly.

"We have a Pope."  White smoke billows from the Sistine Chapel Chimney.

Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo, David (detail) 'Lord God,  You are our eternal Shepherd and Guide. In Your mercy grant Your Church  a shepherd  who will walk in Your ways, and whose watchful care will bring us Your blessing.'  (from The Catholic Prayer Book, Servant Books, 1986, p.183)

Free Kindle e-Book - The Book of Jotham Email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser . DON'T FORGET ABOUT THE... Free Kindle e-Book. The Book of Jotham by Arthur Powers March 12th and 13th only! Tuesday and Wednesday You are invited to have a Free Kindle e-Book  on Tuesday, March 12th and Wednesday, March 13th of The Book of Jotham by Arthur Powers .   2012 Tuscany Prize for Catholic Fiction - Novella Winner For 23 years the completed manuscript of The Book of Jotham sat in the author’s desk drawer—typewritten—collecting dust and time. On an early autumn day in 2012, the m

                       "Clear and crisp, substantive and yet easy to follow."   "Successfully communicates Catholic wisdom on marriage and family by weaving well-selected quotations drawn from the tradition with living examples from her family and other faithful Catholic couples today."   "Shows that married couples who are faithful not just to one another but to the example of Christ the Bridegroom and the teaching of his Bride will find their love flourish and be fruitful now and in the life to come, for it will be fed by deeper wellsprings than anything available in our shallow culture today." I am so grateful for these words of support from Dr. Michael Hoonhout, professor of systematic theology at the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception here in the Diocese of Rockville Centre.  More...

No Women Priests...and why... NO WOMEN PRIESTS...AND WHY... I was preparing to go to Holy Mass at St. Stephen the Martyr, talking about the clustering of the two parishes, and how we need more priests.  The woman I was talking to said, "We need women priests." I was very clear, I said  NO .  Man is God's only priest, and from the beginning that it is how it has been.  But instead of just saying, "No".  I think I owe her and explanation of why there is no women priests and why there can never be. Just by saying No to her, I haven't taught her anything.  I'd like to correct that.  The way for Jesus to come was prepared for, it was not a random act of God.  It is no coincidence that the sacrifice for the Passover of the Jews was the blood of a  MALE lamb, and a lamb without blemish.  And as God wastes nothing, but takes what came before and transforms the pascal sacrifice into something greater, Jesus. And with his sacrifice on the cross, hi

I thought that might get a couple of clicks over here... ;) ;) I'm not pregnant. Well, not in the traditional sense of the word. But in many ways, I do feel pregnant. I was thinking about this yesterday. My mind wandered to all of the times I heard women complaining about being pregnant, and all of the times my fellow-infertile friends shared their similar accounts, and how each complaint used to cut like a knife. Used to. I remembered one particularly hurtful comment I read on a Facebook status years ago... it wasn't even a close friend, just an acquaintance from high school, who wrote (while pregnant with child #3): "Does any woman actually enjoy being pregnant??!" That comment haunted me for weeks... it hurt so badly, because all I could think was how I wanted to scream at her, and every complaining pregnant woman, that YES, I would enjoy being pregnant, and YES, there are women who would gladly trade places with her, and YES, no amount of suffering in pregnanc

My husband has been coaching our sons in  basketball  for more than a decade. This afternoon, he coached as a father for the last time. During more than 20 years of knowing my husband, I have rarely seen him cry, even in private moments. Today he nearly shed tears as he spoke with his eighth grade recreation department team after their final game. He has been filled with sadness the past few days with the sense of loss over this part of his life. How blessed I am to have this man in my life and as the father to our two teenaged sons.    Keep Reading...

O Holy Mary, Help Us Go Against the Grain O Holy Mary, you help us to receive the Sermon on the Mount, Those beatitudes much talked about but seldom applied, Because they go against the grain, as if the Gave river in Lourdes Were flowing backwards up the glaciers of the Pyrenees. O Holy Mary, you help us to become the people of the Word, The people of the Eucharist, the people of the message. What is the use of going faster, if we do not know where we are going? What is the use of producing more and more, if we do not know how to share? What is the use for the poor to get richer and for the rich to get poorer, If neither one nor the other knows how to live like Christ? O Holy Mary, in a world dominated by money, you teach your generosity, In a world of glitz and lies, you show your transparency, In a world that sneers and soils, you offer your purity. Teach us how to avoid being a fully printed page; But instead, a blank page, where the Holy Spirit can write down A

This That and the Other Thing: Sunday Snippets--A Catholic Carnival

Long ago I used to be a young man and dear Margaret remembers that for me. The Dutchman  is a song written by Michael Peter Smith in 1968. It's about an elderly couple living in Amsterdam, Margaret and the title character. The unnamed Dutchman has dementia and Margaret cares for him with a sadness over what has happened to him over the years. It's a story of unconditional love. Portrait of an Old Man with Beard ,  van Gogh, December 1885 ( Web Gallery of Art ) I became involved with  The Pastoral Care Project  in the Archdiocese of Birmingham, England, while based in the Columban house in Solihull from September 2000 to April 2002 when I moved to Glasgow, Scotland, though I stayed there for only a few months before returning to the Philippines. The mission statement of the Project is above. I first got involved when the founder of the Project, Mrs Frances Molloy, invited me to celebrate Mass in a home for old people. The mission statement of the

Of theology he was not the least Continent Africa was his conquest The greatest thinker of the Romans then He studied what was to become of Man And changed the Christian faith for that The empire would worship the one Spirit He made the ancient faith all powerful Like Jesus healing at the stirring pool He turned away from fornication And even those times of insufflation The world stopped going round the sun And the angels played their Carillion To bring all those saints and sinners back home Thanks to St Augustine’s world of wisdom

A few years ago at Mass in another diocese, the priest began a homily on the importance of daily prayer. I was elated. We hear this far too seldom from the pulpit. My elation soon turned to disappointment, however. He talked about being aware of the world around you, and your own thoughts and feelings. Shockingly, he didn't mention God at all! I realized the priest (apparently without knowing it) was not really advocating prayer, but a Buddhist-inspired form of meditation. Both Christians and Buddhists use the term “meditation,” so it's no wonder sincere people confuse the practices of the separate religions. But they are quite different. Keep reading to learn the difference.  (I had a problem with my post this morning. If you tried to read this and couldn't find it on my blog, please try again! Sorry for the inconvenience.)

War The flowers shiver in the summer breeze Fields full waving on the mountain The village girls dance Men with guns wait near the snow-capped peaks What will the new year bring? More planes? More death? More victory? Onward they plod Along gravel paths Winding Village to village You cook Ten thousand men No one makes anything better with the rations than you But when you get home You will have lost your confidence I too lost my confidence I just learned to live in a different box Joanna Bennett

I am looking for someone who has the time to take over as editor of this Blog.  It involves moderating any comments, posting and commenting and approving new Blog editors - if you are interested then please email me at j.bennett150@btinternet.com  Thank you

Well, I thought it high time to introduce myself here at the Association of Catholic Women Bloggers. Hello! I am Amy, and I blog at This Cross I Embrace. I've been blogging for almost 5 years now, and what started as a whiny, venting Infertility Blog has morphed into a ( still whiny, venting ) Life Experiences through Infertility Blog. I am so happy to be a part of this blog association, and look forward to sharing more! Here's a recent post from my blog to wet your whistles: Unnatural Family Planning

If you think being chaste means not having sex, you're wrong. Chastity means using your sexuality in the way God intended. Single people who are chaste don't have sex (and don't do a lot of other things as well). Married people who are chaste DO have sex. But, one reader asked, what exactly is chaste sex? Read more...

Rooted in Love: Our Calling as Catholic Women: A Worthwhile Use of Time! : A Worthwhile Use of Time! When "Rooted in Love" came onto my path, I'd recently made the difficult decision to leave a wel...

Catholic author Nancy Carabio Belanger has posted an incredible blog about worship. Nancy is a talented writer whose books for tweens (Olivia and the Little Way; Olivia's Gift) are the kind that draw kids in, build them up and encourage kids without being too sugary-sweet or--hold onto your hats--without introducing vampires and witches! Anyhow, in Nancy's current blogpost, she pulls back the curtain on Catholic worship and makes some increidble points--well worth our time for reflection this Lent. http://nancybelanger.blogspot.com/2013/03/who-are-we-worshiping-exactly.html Enjoy. Cheryl Dickow www.BezalelBooks.com