Association Of Catholic Bloggers

With all of the violence experienced recently, I am at the point where I can’t take much more. Although far removed from the direct impact of the violence, I am nonetheless negatively impacted. I can only imagine the nightmare for those experiencing the loss of their loved ones. My heart goes out to the survivors and family members of gun violence. Like them, I’m tired of the violence. One Sunday, after the ambush of police officers in Baton Rouge, and wall-to-wall coverage on cable news,  I found myself looking for some kind of escape... Read more...

Providentially, I received my newest book, The Heartbeat of Faith: 59 Poems, Fingerplays, and Prayers, on my birthday. I wrote this book because a teacher at a workshop I gave commented how useful she found my poem about etiquette in church. Strangely I didn’t even remember writing it! If this poem was a help to her, I reasoned that a book full of such poems would be welcomed by other teachers, parents, and grandparents. The faith is caught at an early age. Psychologists tell us that basic attitudes are formed in the first five years of life. My book is for children from ages 3 to 7. I like to tell the story of the father whose son was very quiet in his room. The dad cracked open the door and peered inside just in time to see his little boy get up from his train set, run to the statue of the Sacred Heart and kiss it. “Why did you do that?” the father asked. “Because he’s a good guy,” the tot replied. He already knew about Jesus. Click to continue

(Via  http://ourladyofcandlesnationalshrine.com/prayers/  This the picture of the actual shrine. It is truly breath taking!)  Although she is the Saint of the Carney Islands, Our Lady of Candelaria is prayed to for protection against poverty, a rich harvest, and success in business. She also is prayed to prevent illness. I have begun this Novena to her because well mainly I need help with all of those things. This is a very personal thing for me that I am about to share with all of you. However, the Holy Spirit has influenced me to share my Novena experience with all of you!  To read more click  here.

As the Morning Rising: Glens of Antrim Photo Album

While some may consider strange occurrences in the world as coincidence - I definitely prescribe to what I refer to as the GODCIDENCE mindset! Why wouldn't the God of the universe, who created me out of love, not also want to show himself to me -- especially when I am seeking!!   "Seek and ye shall find!" Today's godcidence is brought to you by the letter J for JOY!! Though when this all began to fall into place, one would have never seen joy as the end result. Late Saturday night I received a private message on Facebook to pray for a young man who had been in a serious accident. I prayed, but went rather quickly back to my reading - feeling confident that all would be fine.   The next morning I learned, sadly he did not make it. My heart ached for the family's great loss; but also within those emotions was great shame and guilt for not praying harder. If it had been my son; I would have gone to my knees to beg God's mercy - regardless of

Today we celebrate the Feast Day of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, an 18 th century Catholic priest, who founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer in 1732. He created this Congregation with the charism of preaching parish missions to the faithful. He believed that by evangelizing on the moral virtues, in the parish missions, he could bring souls closer to Christ. And that he did! Saint Aphonsus Liguori taught that by embracing virtue, we grow closer to Christ. He authored several popular books informing the faithful on how to make this happen. Read more...

(from The Cloistered Heart)

Truthfulness and humility are virtues, pride is a sin, and we’re supposed to practice humility. 1 So Olympic athletes should say they're puny? Small wonder some folks think faith makes no sense. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Life's path is  never straight.  There may be smooth stretches, but they don’t last. A dead end causes our plans to screech to a halt. A fork in the road forces us to make an unexpected decision. A hidden obstacle trips us up.  If we fall hard enough, the injury is not only painfully inconvenient, but sometimes it signals the end. Or does it?  Would it make any difference if we followed the voice of a trusted Global Positioning System? (GPS) This examines all the possible routes and – within its robotic limitations – directs us away from the no through roads and back onto the path. If we switched  on our inner GPS, by sitting in quiet prayer, we are likely to hear the Voice of God. However, there is one significant difference... Read More:  http://susannetimpani.blogspot.com.au/

Fr Jacques Hamel (3o November 1930 - 26 July 2016) Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth,  for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory (Colossians 3: 2-4. Second Reading.) Gospel   Luke 12:13-21  ( NRSV, Catholic Ed . , Can.)  Someone in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.”   But he said to him, “Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?”   And he said to them, “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.”   Then he told them a parable: “The land of a rich man produced abundantly.   And he thought to himself, ‘What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?’     Then he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will stor

  FATHER FRANCIS MAPLE DOES WEALTH BRING CONTENTMENT? Lk. 12:13-21 We can’t live on fresh air. Money plays a large part in all our lives. Most of us have to concern ourselves with earning a living. That concern occupies a sizeable portion of our waking hours. Making ends meet requires careful planning and hard work. We also have to provide for the possibility of accidents and the probability of old age. To ignore such matters is to invite disaster for ourselves and our family. In this world no one can lead a responsible life without giving some time and attention to money. Jesus realised this and so devoted much of His teaching to how we are to cope with money and possessions. In today's Gospel He told the story of a farmer who had accumulated a fortune. His wealth was measured not in money, but in produce. His land had produced such a bountiful harvest that he had to build additional storage space. He had enough to last him for the rest of his life. He coul

  En este Año Santo de la Misericordia que transcurre lleno de eventos que nos empujan a salir de nosotros mismos, la visita del Papa Francisco a Polonia nos trae recuerdos conmovedores de cuando estuvo en México a principios de año.  Se ganó el corazón de miles de mexicanos que salieron a la calle a buscar al sucesor de Pedro que venía de Roma y se encontraron con un hombre sencillo y cercano que brincaba del Papamóvil para saludar a los niños y enfermos. Encontró a nuestro pueblo cabizbajo y enfermizo y como buen médico de almas nos miró a los ojos y nos abrazó, no sólo con su ser sino también con sus palabras de aliento y ternura. Nos aplicó la medicina poderosa de la misericordia: escucha, interés y amabilidad. Pero también, como buen amigo y padre, nos habló derecho y sin repujas. Con sinceridad y sin rodeos nos habló de aquello de nuestro ser que nos encadena al sufrimiento, que no nos deja ser felices y que nos urge cambiar... @mujer_catolica

Today was set aside by the French Bishops as a day of prayer and fasting after the slaying of Father Hamel in Normandy.  Even if you did not get to fast today, please pray along with me for our clergy and the conversion of our enemies. Please visit Veils and Vocations for the prayers.  God bless.

In 1989, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) issued  Letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church on Some Aspects of Christian Meditation.  Cardinal Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, signed the document. The Latin title is   Orationis formas (OF).  Its purpose: “[M]any feel the need for sure criteria of a doctrinal and pastoral character which might allow them to instruct others in prayer, in its numerous manifestations, while remaining faithful to the truth revealed in Jesus, by means of the genuine Tradition of the Church. This present letter seeks to reply to this urgent need, so that in the various particular Churches, the many different forms of prayer, including new ones, may never lose their correct personal and communitarian nature.”  (OF  no. 1) It goes on to detail several problems found in modern prayer methods. Read the rest at Is Centering Prayer Catholic?

My life never really went along as planned. When I was a young, unbaptized woman, I wasn’t sure I wanted to get married and I certainly wasn’t going to have children! After my conversion to the Catholic faith, I got married and we had three children. I was a stay-at-home mom for 25 years when I decided it was time to return to work. I got a job in retail during the Christmas holiday (which nearly killed my Christmas spirit!). You can read my very first post at CatholicMom.com here .

My new morning commute began July 11 one week after  I quit my job .  I was anxious to attend daily Mass and to continue my daily walk that I did when I worked. You can read the rest of the article and view the photo gallery of my new commute at Being Catholic ... Really .

Scientists studied the atmospheres of two exoplanets, planets orbiting another star, earlier this year. Both planets are roughly Earth-sized, with atmospheres a bit like the Solar System's terrestrial planets. Juno arrived at Jupiter last month, and will start its science mission in October. Finally, scientists found more than a thousand new planets; including more than a hundred Earth-sized ones. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

REMEMBER THE STORY OF LAZARUS RAISED FROM THE DEAD? WHAT LESSON OR LESSONS IS THERE IN THIS STORY FOR YOU ? PLEASE CLICK HERE

It is day 2 of our novena, please keep praying and feel free to share this even if you missed a day.  Here is the post for day 1 if you are behind. Visit Veils and Vocations for the prayers.

Patience is one virtue which anybody who knows me will readily state I do not possess in abundance. And what little I have was very much tested one day at the post office. Only a single teller was on duty, so the line was longer than usual. And then who should step up to the counter but The Girl Who Could Not Make Up Her Mind. continue

People’s mouths drop open and their eyebrows shoot up when they discover I raised nine kids because I am tiny and do not look like a worn out, frazzled wreck. God has blessed me with a gift of joy which defies my circumstances. Mothering came naturally to me; it was easy to look like a saint on the outside as I mothered nine little people.  The trouble was, although I looked like I lived a life of self-denial, losing myself to give life to others, I tended to over control. I depended on my strength to get through the overwhelming chores which were part of running a household of eleven.  In all honesty, though, the only chore which actually threatened to kill me as a mother of a large family was the laundry, specifically pairing all the socks. continue reading

I am hosting this pray along of a novena of novenas for the protection of our priests and deacons, as well as the conversion of our enemies--not only for our sake, but the sake of their souls. Please pray along with me and share this with your friends and family, our clergy needs our prayers and petitions more than they ever have! Please visit Veils and Vocations for more information and the novena prayers. God bless.

In 2013, I had the honor of traveling with the Boston Deaf Apostolate  to Rio de Janeiro for World Youth Day! Despite my best intentions to share every moment of #WYD2013, technology limits and a busy schedule left me only able to share my experience in snippets of 140 character moments. The sweet #WYDRio tweets: Finally here waiting for train to Christ The Redeemer Statue !! So blessed to be here #WYD2013 Came face to face with my favorite #EWTN Priest, Fr. Mark Mary yesterday was too #shy to say hi. Such a #Catholic dork #WYD2013 #Grace Just drove by building where Pope having lunch!!! At least that is what our guide said #WYDBOS By the way at 5ft tall I see nothing. lol #WYDBOS lots of happy screaming Catholics #blessed To SEE me wearing a very FASHIONABLE trash bag and to read more of my amazing World Youth Day experiences visit Allison's blog ... Reconciled To You 

A friend of mine on Facebook posted this  article  about the murder of Father Jacques Hamel by Islamic state terrorists.  It was the first I had heard of this unspeakable murder. Please read the rest of the article at Being Catholic ... Really .

Doing the dishes: boring. Cleaning the bathroom: boring. Making the bed: boring. Most of our lives are lived in the ordinary. There is little that is extraordinary about our lives. Of course, you have the celebrities, the politicians, the jet setters who make our lives seem boring and mundane. Well, compared to them, our lives are boring and mundane, and that’s all right. Not everyone can be famous. Not everyone can be rich. Not everyone can live an exciting life. Rarely did the saints live more than ordinary lives. Yet, in the ordinary, they found God and holiness.  Read More at Prayerfully Yours

As the Morning Rising: Touched by the Father's Love : Sometimes our experience of an event is enough in itself to give us hope and strength when darkness looms and storms move in. I can ...

" If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking ." James 1:5   Where I lack the greatest wisdom without a doubt is in discerning the Will of God. There are several factors that block my clearly hearing God speak in my life - primarily my own voice and will are often drowning out God's voice. A very anxious person by nature - I erroneously believe the more of my life I control; the better my life will be. I seem to have this crazy notion that I know better than the creator of the universe what is needed for me to be happy.   God is not in the happiness business - he is in the holiness business.  Paradoxical however,  the more I order my life to holiness - the truly happier I will be. Not the fading worldly happy but a much deeper, "it can't be taken away from you" joy! His ways are always 'different and higher' (Isaiah 55) from any ideas I may hold onto.   I see tomorrow, and the next d

ARE YOU LONESOME TONIGHT? PLEASE ... CLICK HERE

When the kids were little, someone told my husband and me, “Little kids, little problems. Big kids, big problems.” At the time, I was trying to wean my son off breast milk at 19 months, and he was refusing. He loved our time together, and he didn’t want food. I was ready to be done, and he had teeth!  Read more at Prayerfully Yours

In Honor of the anniversary of Humanae Vitae I thought I'd share our journey. The real, and somewhat ugly, but redeeming journey. Read about it here .

About a month ago, I had a dream that changed my life. In the dream, I was alone in a moving car. My legs were embedded between the back of the front passenger’s seat and the actual seat itself. I tried to free my legs so that I could get into the driver’s seat and stop the car. However, I couldn’t break free. I looked out the front window, and I saw that the car was heading down a very snowy, icy and steep hill. The car slid on the ice and drifted off to the side of the road, filled with trees. As I headed straight for a tree, feeling helpless, all I could say was... Read the rest of the story .

  En  su primera visita a México, el Papa Francisco ha querido venir como peregrino a  México para compartir nuestra amor a la Guadalupana y hacernos llegar su esperanza en lo que la Misericordia de Dios puede traer a nuestro corazones y a nuestro pueblo: Paz. Esa paz que muchas naciones necesitan. Como lo ha mencionado él en su documento sobre el Año de la Misericordia, los beneficios del perdón llegan muy lejos hasta curar heridas producidas por ofensas y daños. No solo al interior del perpetrador sino también del ofendido: “Siempre tenemos necesidad de contemplar el misterio de la misericordia. Es fuente de alegría, de serenidad y de paz. Es condición para nuestra salvación.” (1)

As the Morning Rising: In The Quiet of the Night : Sometimes we find answers in the dark rather than in the light. Maybe it's because the day holds many distractions for us and in ...

'We must always reserve in our hearts amidst all affairs, as it were, a secret closet, where we are to keep retired within ourselves and where no business of the world can ever enter.'   St. Antonino Peirozzi (from The Cloistered Heart)

I like being an American, most of the time. I know that my country is far from perfect, but I'd rather be here than anywhere else on Earth. Living in Sauk Centre, a smallish central Minnesota town, probably helps. I really like it here. But it's no Brigadoon , unchanged and unaffected by the outside world.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Man Praying , Van Gogh, April 1883, The Hague Gospel Luke 11:1-13 NRSV, Catholic  Jesus was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” He said to them, “When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us. And do not bring us to the time of trial.” And he said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.’ And he answers from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up

'Genetics news' caught my eye this week. DNA from barley that's been sitting in a cave for six millennia is helping scientists learn about agriculture's origins. A fits-in-your-hand Biomolecule Sequencer is at the International Space Station. If it works, folks up there won't have to send samples down for analysis. Finally, the world's first farmers were an unexpectedly diverse lot.... ...Science? In a "religion" blog??... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

As the Morning Rising: Good Things: St George's Market Belfast : God doesn't owe us anything - yet in His grace, He still gives us good things. - Billy Graham

Did you realize that infants are not only open to the Mercy of God but that they can be vessels of His mercy to you as well? Babies live in the present moment, in God’s presence. It might amaze many but according to the  Catechism of the Catholic Church , infant baptism is another example that the Church recognizes the unseen Almighty can relate to a baby: The sheer gratuitousness of the grace of salvation is particularly manifest in infant Baptism. The Church and the parents would deny a child the priceless grace of becoming a child of God were they not to confer Baptism shortly after birth. continue reading 

This is a post from my blog in which I show how I discovered a method of forgiveness that really works. You might give this a try if you are having trouble forgiving someone or if you are still in pain from someone else's actions.  I stared at the computer screen. According to Facebook, my eighth grade teacher, Sister Ann (not her real name), had died at the age of 99. Former students posted about what a wonderful teacher she had been, what a sweet person she was. Which she was—to everybody except me. In about the fourth grade, I began being bullied by some of the other girls in my class. I couldn’t figure out what had caused this shift in attitude. We were still the same girls as before, weren’t we? Yet, all of a sudden they called me stupid and ugly. Despite my prowess with a basketball, I was always the last chosen for a team—and even then the team captains argued over who had to take me. Of course my athletic skill had nothing to do with it. It was all about populari