Association Of Catholic Bloggers

I read “Miracle Man” in two and a half  days!  Normally, books take me a lot longer to read, but  I couldn’t put “Miracle Man” down.  “Miracle Man” is the true story of a man named Bernie and the fulfillment of God’s plan for him and his family.  Not what was expected or wanted, the journey directed by God affected not only Bernie and his wife, Judy, but countless other lives of people who came to serve.  Prior to the start of the book, tragedy had touched both the lives of Judy and Bernie, tragedies that many people could not survive. Both had lost children, however, in spite of these tragedies, Judy and Bernie stayed the course of their faith and marriage. When tragedy again reared it’s ugly head, God intervened, and His graces poured forth.  Bernie’s heart kept beating in spite for the dire predictions of doctors and medical professionals.  Surprise, God was in charge! Read More at:  His Unending Love

Carving of St. Patrick at My Parish Church Some of my Chicago Irish Facebook friends humorously posted that Valentine Day indicates that St. Patrick Day will be here soon.  The Chicago Irish, like American Irish in other large cities, celebrate St. Patrick Day in a big way.  And one doesn’t have to be ethnically Irish to join in the festivities. I have observed in the past decade or so that St. Patrick Day Celebrations, like Mardi Gras in New Orleans, have degenerated into a kind of day of debauchery, especially characterized by drunkenness and overall immoderation.  This sort of celebration is a far cry from how I remember St. Patrick Day celebrations in our family, perhaps a half century ago.  Also, it seems to dishonor, rather than to honor, St. Patrick, the one whose holiness Catholics celebrate on that day More  here.

Dear mom who's pregnant again and tired, I know you feel like you are supposed to be excited. I know you feel like you are supposed to be overjoyed. But maybe this time, you are feeling a little (or a lot) overwhelmed.  Maybe this time, you are wondering how you are going to handle the newborn world with another little one (or maybe three other little ones) at home. Maybe this time, you are wondering how you are going to navigate getting up and driving to school instead of sleeping when your newborn is sleeping. Maybe this time, it isn't all about wandering the stores looking for little shoes. Maybe this time, you are cramming the crib into the corner of the master bedroom and apologizing when your sweet husband is already stubbing his toe on it. It's ok. I hear you. {Read More Here}

What do these words mean to someone who's not already pro-life? Pro-life. Anti-abortion. Anti-choice. Pro-abortion. Pro-death ... and so on, ad nauseam. When does a term stop being descriptive and start becoming a weapon? How can I learn to listen, and listen well, when someone who fights for abortion approaches me for a conversation? If we are all to work together to respect humanity's God-given dignity, connect we must, in charity and truth. But how? I need to crowd-source an answer to a question I've already addressed. I'm sure there are wiser responses than mine. Someone asked me today why I used the word "preborn" in a recent post. To me, the term is descriptive and appropriate and needs no elaboration. My questioner takes a different view. How do YOU bridge verbal divides when it comes to the life issues? Read more here.

I needed a touch of comfort overnight. A power outage plunged the house into darkness, sending us in search of flashlights we could not find. I recalled having written, yesterday, of a "wall" between me and the publishing of a blog post (this due to a computer glitch). I had realized the wall was not between me and God. What a simple thought, and what a real one. It's a thought I found, in the dark of a cold night, to be as comforting and protecting as a soft, warm cloak. Storms may rage and plunge the world around into darkness. But not one storm can place a wall between me and God.... (continue)

I'm a Catholic, so I say "in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit" a lot: mostly when I start praying. Coming from a recovering English teacher, that may seem shocking. Since it's the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit: shouldn't it be "in the names of the et cetera?" No, because I am referring to God's name: the one God; the almighty Father, his only Son, and the Holy Spirit — the Most Holy Trinity. 1 (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 233 ) I worship the God of Abram: God Most High, the creator of heaven and earth. ( Genesis 14:18 - 19 ) Abram's name got changed to Abraham, Abraham and his wive Sara got impatient, waiting for God's promise; three dozen centuries later, we're still dealing with that domestic disturbance ; and that's another topic. Topics. ( Genesis 16:1 - 12 , Genesis 21:2 - 14 ) More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

These tips are taken from:  Pope Benedict XVI, Questions and Answers . Huntington: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division, 2008. The elaboration is mine. The Bible is not an ordinary book First of all it is important to realize that the Bible is not an ordinary book (or, to be more precise, collection of books). It cannot be read with the mindset of a historian or a literary critic. It cannot be correctly approached from a distant academic standpoint. More poetically, the Bible is read by both the heart and mind, not by the mind alone. Start by praying and talking to God Prayer is communication with God. By praying before reading, we permit our hearts to be open to his message. In a sense, we open the line of communication with God, who, although always present, waits patiently for us to speak with him. By beginning with prayer we are more likely to be receptive to the message that he will send us through his Word.

A h, parents A ren’t we great? A lways running around serving, A cting like a combination of Martha and Mary. A+ parents  who are in control, right? . Think again. When any one of us, whether  a mother or not, refuses to give up control, we shut out the power of the Holy Spirit. In fact, we end up acting just like vacuum cleaners when it is God’s job to purify our family in His power, mercy and grace. He desires that we simply become conduits of His Love. It is by Christ’s suffering that mothers and their families are healed, not by the mother acting like a sacrificial lamb or a scapegoat like in the Old Testament. But  He   was  wounded for our transgressions, He  was  bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace  was  upon  Him , And by  His  stripes we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5)       continue reading

St. Thomas Aquinas, the Angelic Doctor, is well known for his voluminous writings, his mind-bending theological and philosophical insights, and the unparalleled beauty of his Eucharistic hymns. And yet, above all else, Aquinas was a man of prayer  - after a mystical experience he had near the end of his life, he declared that all his writings were like "straw" in comparison to this supernatural revelation. Read more here....

Bovine tuberculosis may not be a big problem, if Ministry of Agriculture in Northwest A&F University, Yangling, research pays off. Meanwhile, we may be learning who made Europe look and sound the way it does today: and scientists at the Max Plank Institute discovered how a uniquely-human gene helps our brains grow.... I've seen attitudes toward science and technology shift, quite a bit. I grew up when quite a few folks still thought human ingenuity would solve all our problems: or at least make "the future" a magical place to live.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

WHAT KIND OF BUSINESS IS GOD IN? TO FIND OUT CLICK HERE .

We are just over two weeks in to Lent.  How is it going? On Ash Wednesday, there were posts and pictures all over social media of ash covered foreheads. People everywhere were discussing what they were giving up for the next forty days and what they were going to do to make this Lent a prayerful, sacrificial time. It is easy to get started… …but 40 days is a very long time… …and our attention spans are very short… …and we haven’t even reached day 20 yet! On Ash Wednesday, I stated that I was going to give up my i-phone for six hours a day.   I had originally planned on three hours, but decided that six would be a much bigger sacrifice. I have since discovered... Read more:   http://www.restfulwaters.net/40daysisalongtime/

My friend Sister Mary John Paul wrote an intriguing and thought-provoking article for our Associate newsletter. She let me share it here. Coincidentally (?) it echoes the theme of a book I’m reading now called Becoming Beholders. The book develops the idea that everything, person, and occasion can be a channel of grace, a sacrament. In it a line from a poem by Gerard Manley Hopkins, S.J., is quoted: “These things, these things were here and but the beholder/Wanting.” The poet wrote this when he watched a beautiful harvest scene on a lovely day and realized the beauty of it was lost on him as he dwelt on the past and dreaded the future. Enjoy Sister’s thoughts! Click to continue

From  The Gospel of John  (2003) directed by Philip Saville Gospel   John 2:13-25  The Passover of the Jews was near, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.    In the temple he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and the money changers seated at their tables. Making a whip of cords, he drove all of them out of the temple, both the sheep and the cattle. He also poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. He told those who were selling the doves, “Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s house a marketplace!” His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume me.” The Jews then said to him, “What sign can you show us for doing this?” Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” continue reading the gospel Christ Driving the Moneychangers from the Temple   Rembrandt, c.1626. Pushkin Museum, Moscow [ Web Gallery of Art ] In 1990 I went to renew my driving lice

I don't have a bucket list, per se. Sure, there are things I'd like to do, but I won't feel my life a failure if I don't get to do them.  However, I have formulated what I call my "Million Dollar Plan."  These are the things I would do, if I ever were handed a million dollars. Read more at Veils and Vocations .

In our study of Teresa of Avila’s Interior Castle , we have come to the end of the third mansions, the end of the Purgative Way. The fourth mansions begin the second stage of the spiritual life, the Illuminative Way. How are these stages different? Souls in the Purgative way are beginners–yes, even those in the third mansions. They may be very zealous about following God, but they have not yet advanced very far. Thus far they have been combating sin and attachment with the ordinary grace God gives Christians. They have had to work hard. But eventually they come to a place where that is no longer enough. They have advanced as far as they can without greater help. Then God steps in and begins to cleanse them himself. Pere Marie-Eugene writes: We come now to the souls that are in the first three Mansions, or in the first phase of the spiritual life. To say that there is in them a mystical life would be formally to contradict Saint Teresa who characterizes this phase b

Order Online! Pope Francis encourages us to pray from the heart. In his Message for Lent 2015, he invokes the Sacred Heart of Jesus: During this Lent, then, brothers and sisters, let us all ask the Lord: "Fac cor nostrum secundum cor tuum": Make our hearts like yours (Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus). In this way we will receive a heart which is firm and merciful, attentive and generous, a heart which is not closed, indifferent or prey to the globalization of indifference. I'm guessing a bunch of us have never seen--let alone prayed--the Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, so let's get to it! Some words may be unfamiliar, so use the handy little glossary as needed. Join me at  Praying with Grace   to discover the version  available  from the Apostleship of Prayer, which accommodates group prayer or inspires profound  private prayer, just you and Jesus.

A good self-mortifying exercise for Lent?  Look no further than your local self-publishing site. Actually,   Smashwords    publishing  is  wonderful, explaining every step with diagrams and in ordinary terms  in a  Smashwords Style Guide. . .but I am a technological idiot. After days of fumbling, forcing myself to work as if I was technologically intelligent, I finally self-published a short, free e-book on Smashwords.  The bonus of this ordeal is now, if anyone is stuck while trying to self-publish, just ask me..I made all the mistakes.    continue reading Link to  Echoes of the Divine “Melanie Juneau—motherofnine9—knows that a woman’s ground of creativity lies as close as her child’s heart. In her delightful stories and memories of mothering nine children, she shows how a Christian mother bathed in love brings all the power and light embodied in her faith to that most important sphere of hope, the family. ”— Isabel Anders, author of Blessings and Prayers for Married Couples 

LIES                                                                TRUTH You are not worthy.                                        You are worthy.  I died for you.   You are not loved.                                          I died because I love you.   No one  loves you.                                           I AM your Father.  I love you.   You are alone.                                                 With Me, you are never alone. Read More at:  His Unending Love

Does God know it's March and Spring should be here soon? It's March 1st and another snowstorm is sweeping across the eastern United States. It's cold and snowy and bitter outside, and if I could have reached through my dashboard to the Christian DJ who predicted "gusty breezes in the week ahead," I might have shaken him pretty good. "Gusty breezes???" Who is he kidding. The euphemism isn't fooling any of us this far into the season. And euphemisms weren't the only thing from some long past English class that floated through my head this morning. It's March 1st, and I'm also reciting the cliche, March comes in like a lion, but goes out like a lamb,  as if saying it will make it come true, but while I'm saying it, I'm really thinking,  "blah blah blah,"  as I wonder yet again how many more days I'll have to turn up the heat in the morning and how many more times we'd wait to hear whether school wil

This March is the 500 th   anniversary of the birth of Saint Teresa of Ávila, Carmelite nun and Doctor of the Church. One of her legacies to the Church is her teaching about prayer. In Teresa’s final book,  The Interior Castle , written near the end of her life, she summarized her life of prayer. In it she imagined that her growth in love of God had been a journey from the outskirts of a crystal castle to its center, inhabited by her King. The castle image with its many rooms symbolized her soul. The King was God who beckoned Teresa to come to him and to be spiritually united with him. Responding to her King’s call meant that Teresa first had to leave the dark, cold, noisy place outside the castle, where she spent so much time. Steadfast prayer was the key to unlock the castle door. Once inside she prayed faithfully. Quietly and persistently Teresa traveled through the castle’s rooms, each representing a stage of growth in her personal relationship with God. Read the rest a

I shared a powerful video  by Ascension Press called " Will You Follow"  a few weeks ago. It is a dramatic, vocation video aimed at teens, part of a soon-to-be-released five-part series called Altaration designed to enliven teens with a love and enthusiasm for the Mass. This 3-minute trailer for Altaration is  extremely moving, thrilling actually. Mark Hart speaks in the power of the Holy Spirit. His words rang in my heart and lifted my spirits with fresh insights into the true meaning of the Mass. His words cast a fresh light on what is really happening on the altar and lit a new fire of love for the Father, Christ and the Eucharist within me . The video shows flashes of other young people and priests, real men, real role models who will appeal to teens. continue reading

Each time I say a deeper yes to God, I battle thoughts about what to expect. Will a giant cavern suddenly open up beneath my feet? Will I be asked to hike barefoot through burning deserts? I really should know better by now. Funny that I seldom consider (when I'm uttering deeper yeses) the truth that God's will is always for my good.... (click here to continue...)   Painting: Jules Cyrille Cave

Once in a while I run into the notion that emotions, particularly strong or unpleasant ones like anger, are bad — or 'beastly,' not something people should experience. Reality check. Emotions are part of being human. There's something seriously wrong with someone who lacks emotions. It can be a sign of hebephrenia , or other serious disorders. We may seem less emotional as we mature: but that's because most of us learn how to manage our emotions. Or mismanage them.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Are you a night worrier? My mother has never had any trouble falling asleep at night. But once in a while, if she’s unlucky enough to wake up during the night, that’s it for sleeping. She calls them “racing thoughts.” Turning, churning, and tumbling in her mind at a pace that won’t stop. What is it about the middle of the night that things always seem so dire? We awake with a feeling of dread. A worry that seemed small during the day seems to blow up in the dark of our bedroom. Taking on a menacing shape. Like that monster from our childhood, threatening to creep out and grab us in our sleep. Larger problems seem insurmountable, even hopeless.         Read more

Transfiguration of Christ , Paolo Veronese,1556, Cathedral of Santa Maria, Montagnana, Italy  Gospel   Mark 9:2-10      Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them,   and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one   on earth could bleach them.   And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus.   Then Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings,   one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”   He did not know what to say, for they were terrified.     Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, “This is my Son, the Beloved;   listen to him!”   Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus. continue reading Bishop Edward Galvin (1882 - 1956) After his ordination in 1909 for his native Diocese of Cork in the sou

In preparation for Mass this weekend, Father Steven LaBaire of Holy Family Parish in Worcester offers his insight on the gospel reading: "In the ancient world, the journey up a mountain often symbolized “enlightenment” or “seeing” things in a “new” or different way from previously. In this Sunday’s gospel, Jesus takes his students (disciples) up a very high mountain. (Mark 9:2-10)" Click here to continue.

(from The Breadbox Letters)

When he was only twenty eight, the Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky was, condemned to death. It was the spring of 1849. He was condemned for reading ‘subversive literature and frequenting suspect gatherings of anarchists’. There was nothing in these charges, but at the time the Tsar, like other monarchs, who had survived the aftermath of the French revolution, was still paranoid. Two days before Christmas he was taken to the place of execution. The prison yard where he was to meet his death, was arranged with funereal decorations to suit the occasion and strike further terror into the condemned. The whole thing was a farce, a pantomime, ordered by the Tsar. It seemed to appeal to his obscure sense of theatre. As the executioners raised their rifles the procedure was suddenly interrupted by a messenger, hot foot from the palace, with a reprieve - the charade was over. The sentence was commuted to eight years hard labour in Siberia. Later Dostoyevsky said that day, December 23 rd

How we live our interior spiritual lives matters a great deal, right down to the last detail. I have taken on as my Lenten journey the study of St. Bernadette Soubirious. This journey was inspired by a Facebook post back on February 11 by Father James Martin, SJ. In honor of the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes he recommended the viewing of "The Song of Bernadette," a critically acclaimed 1943 movie starring Jennifer Jones. He wrote, "The film, based on the book by Franz Werfel actually corresponds very closely to the real-life story of St. Bernadette Soubirous, with only a few exceptions."  ... I am reading Werfel's book along with a book by Abbé Francis Trochu : My desire is to get into the interior life of this saint. Bernadette's life was one of fidelity to those small details that make one a saint. Click here to read a wonderful example of her way of holiness--what does this example inspire you to do?.

Those trilobites were huge: in the Cambrian. These days, foot-long critters are common, and not particularly big. Scientists thought related species of animals generally got bigger as they evolved: now a team has evidence to back up that assumption. We still don't know why critters usually get bigger, though. That, and seven "croc" species sharing the same turf in the Amazon Basin — before the Amazon was there — is what I picked for this week's post.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I should not have given up killing mice for Lent

Recently, I have been compiling all of the prayers I want our kids to have committed to memory, that I believe we should know. I feel firmly that we would be in grievous error if our children were not baptized, attending Mass faithfully, and praying at mealtime.  But I don’t want to stop there. I don't want to do just the bare minimum when it comes to their rich faith. I want them to be hungry for knowledge and wisdom. I want to help them to come to a rich understanding of Catholicism. Thus, I have been compiling the things (besides the Catechism) that they are committing to memory. Here is the list. You can view and/or print  my Memory Work document here , on GoogleDocs. I included English and Latin versions for some of the prayers. {read the rest at pictureaskyline }

Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan:  But wanting to justify himself,* he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” * (A lawyer asked this question.)  Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii,gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man

monastery bell Cristian Bortes Manastirea Neamtului July 2008 What comes to mind when you hear the word “discipline?” Punishment? Do you think of those times as a child when you were disciplined by your parents for doing something wrong? Dull, repetitive actions such as practicing a musical instrument or working out to keep in shape? Perhaps even prayer, like reciting the rosary, feels like such a discipline, an endless repetition of Our Fathers and Hail Marys. I was resistant at first to applying discipline to my spiritual life. How can a discipline be heartfelt? I remember watching “The Nun’s Story” with Audrey Hepburn and noticing the way she chafed at the bell ringing for prayer. .... Lent offers a wonderful opportunity to establish a prayerful spiritual discipline. I would like to offer my regimen as an example. Click to continue.