Association Of Catholic Bloggers

As the Morning Rising: Our Lady of the Snows

A young child, who knows enough words to communicate, can describe their prenatal memories and their birth from their own unique perspective, not as an observer. Most of my nine children were able to verbalize their womb and birth experiences if my husband and I posed questions before they were three and a half or four years old because most children can no longer remember after that age. Human life is sacred  because  from its beginning  it involves the creative action of God and  it remains for ever in a special relationship with the Creator , who is its sole end. CCC 2258 read more

As the Morning Rising: The Master's Feet : Nothing can be too beautiful to lay at the Master's feet, nor too complex for us when all is told.

Peter Ingemi, in his blogging persona as  Da Tech Guy , is a Massachusetts-based writer and political reporter whose blog is a staple for conservatives in the region. The writers Ingemi welcomes on his blog (a group that includes me) all get fair warning before coming on board that the boss is unapologetically Catholic. In his new book, Ingemi puts aside political reporting and takes up a labor of love:  Hail Mary: the Perfect Protestant (and Catholic) Prayer  [Imholt Press, 2017, 80 pages, $6.99 paperback, $2.99 Amazon Kindle e-book]. Ingemi is donating a portion of every sale to his local Catholic radio station in north central Massachusetts. The book’s title is intriguing and perplexing at the same time... Read the rest of the post at EllenKolb.com.

I picked a mix from 'science news' this week: tardigrade genes, fertility fears, and what is probably the world's oldest living culture. Folks in Western civilization have known about our neighbors in Australia for about four centuries. Understanding their beliefs became easier, I think, when some of us realized that respecting them makes sense. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

As the Morning Rising: Walk on the Wild Side : My husband, not once but twice in recent days has spotted a kingfisher on a local countryside River Walk. On the second occasion it had ...

When Tom and I started and pastored a non-denominational church years ago, there was a young, single guy that joined us. When we came back to the Catholic Church, he followed, went through RCIA and became Catholic.  He is currently in Thailand as a missionary, fighting human trafficking. He works with a Protestant organization but greatly desires to partner with Catholics. Unfortunately, he hasn't had much luck finding Catholic groups over there to partner with. Continue Reading @ Beautifulthorns>

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Did you ever offer to help someone who firmly rejected your offer to help?  If so, how did you feel?  Conversely, how did you feel when you were able to be of assistance to someone?  Maybe you helped a person carry a load or cook a meal or drive somewhere. No doubt this act of charity warmed your heart, made you happy, and perhaps let you feel a bit proud! When we accept someone’s offer to help us, we cause these same positive feelings in them. This is an act of charity. However, being strong, independent Americans, we tend to reject other people’s offers of help. We say, “No, thank you,” or “I can manage, thank you.” By doing this, we deprive them of their chance to do a good deed. We are like Peter who protested to Jesus at the Last Supper, “You will never wash my feet!” Click to continue

Do you think that you can pick and choose who you want to love? Do you think you can toss aside those not selected? Think again! As Christians, we are called to love, serve and forgive everyone. That is neighborly love! However, given our human weaknesses, that’s a tall order! Yet, as followers of Christ, it is a mantle we must take upon ourselves. Christ asks much of us, but with his command to “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt 22:39), He gives us the grace needed to fulfill His desire. Who is Your Neighbor? Although I have the best next-door neighbors (Mike and Carolyn), they alone are not the only ones that Christ calls me to love. When Christ says “Love your neighbor” He is referring to every person that crosses your path. He is not asking you to form a friendly bond with every human being, but He is asking you to... Read more... 

Often, when a big new animated movie comes out on DVD, we rent it from Redbox and watch it together with our 3 year old for a little family movie night. But for some reason, despite the hype surrounding Disney's Moana , we never got around to seeing it. Now, it's actually streaming on Netflix already, so we gave it a watch... Continue Reading

A "Benefit for Teri (Sanden) Starkey" notice was on the Our Lady of Angels bulletin board this Sunday. The event was Saturday, July 29, and in Litchfield; a town south and a bit east of here, about an hour and half away. I saw the notice a day late to do anything by Saturday, but figure I could pass along what I learned. She has cystic fibrosis, and needs new lungs. The clinic in her area wouldn't or couldn't do the procedure. The good news is that an outfit in North Carolina will. However, getting a chance to keep her alive means raising money to move her, her two kids, and husband, to North Carolina. That's something like a thousand miles away. My guess is that the family has above-average medical expenses, too.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Ignatius of Loyola. Born in 1491, in Azpeitia, Spain, Ignatius grew up dreaming of becoming a knight in the Spanish army. With an affinity for the military, its structure and leadership, Ignatius followed through on his dream. However, in a battle against the French in 1521, Ignatius was struck by a cannon ball – between his legs! Ouch! Saint Ignatius – Soldier for Christ While recuperating, over an extended period, he grew restless. Therefore, to combat the boredom, the hospital staff brought him the only books they had available to read. One book was about Christ, and another about the saints. In reading these books, Ignatius recognized the obedience to Christ and the perfection of the saints as similar to the attributes of dedicated army personnel. The inspiration of Christ and the saints created... Read more...

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The "most disturbing image" gag in Wiley Miller's Non Sequitur comic depends on a fairly common misunderstanding of Catholic belief. The important word in that sentence is misunderstanding. Papal infallibility doesn't mean that. I'm none too pleased that Catholic beliefs are misunderstood by non-Catholics: and by some Catholics. But I can't fault a cartoonist for poking fun at cultural quirks I see as silly. Not reasonably. Besides, strips featuring the Church of Danae's "so-called holy scriptures" have given me pretty good illustrations of what I don't believe.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Morning in the monastery:  it starts with a bell.   Come to think of it, most activities in the monastery start with a bell.  Time to rise:  the bell rings.  Time to pray, eat, study, work, have recreation : the bell rings. Anyone who has spent time in a monastery knows the bell as at least a background.   Monastics look upon it as the voice of God. In the dark silence of our monastery morning, the bell calls.  It may not be all that welcome.  It shatters our darkness and our dreams.  If we don't live in a physical monastery, our bell might be a baby's cry.  Or the insistent bleep of an alarm clock.  And oh, our slumber has been so comfortable.  Go away, we think as we slap at the snooze button; give me just a few more minutes.  Let me have time with this dream... .. (continue reading)

As the Morning Rising: Fatima - a personal reflection : On entering the Basilica of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary at Fatima I found myself overcome with emotion. Having discovered ...

  En esta época de grandes logros en el empoderamiento de la mujer, la anticoncepción   ha sido considerada como el parteaguas en la liberación femenina. El control de su fecundidad se consideró como la llave que le abriría la puerta de la equidad con el hombre. Pero esta “única” opción, privilegiada por la imperante cultura utilitaria, ha cobrado un precio muy alto a las mujeres, ha limitado sus posibilidades y las ha dejado con una realidad poco plena en su vida sentimental.                           Tan marcado es el vacío que el 60% de las mujeres que usan un método anticonceptivo regularmente en Estados Unidos se han mostrado interesadas en considerar otras opciones para planificar su fertilidad pero solo el 1% ha recibido información de parte de sus doctores acerca de opciones nuevas.(1) Y las que han abandonado su uso lo han hecho por los efectos secundarios y la insatisfacción que reportan. (2)  

I never wanted to write this post. What I wanted was to finish watching season 3 of “Jane the Virgin” on Netflix and go out on the inevitable cliffhanger, and at least be able to recommend the show with some reservations. Instead, I stopped after the 18 th episode of the season and said enough is enough. Actually, it is apparently NFP awareness week right now and a lot of Catholic bloggers are writing on the subject . So what better time to write about a show that epically fails at almost every of its frequent and rich opportunities to showcase Catholic sexual morality?... Continue Reading

The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster could have been much worse. But it may have been avoidable. Meltdowns and non-nuclear explosions at the power plant didn't directly kill anyone. More than 40 patients who were evacuated from a nearby hospital died later. They had been critically ill. Getting rushed away from a nuclear incident in progress wouldn't have been good for their health. Three former power company executives now face criminal charges. The earthquake, tsunami, and meltdowns in 2011 killed nearly 16,000 folks and left many others homeless. Many folks still can't return to their homes. Quakes happen. This one was nobody's fault. What happened in Fukushima is another matter. I'll be looking at the disaster, what's happened since, and why questioning authority can be a good idea. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .