Association Of Catholic Bloggers

We are moving in six days and I should be packing but there are some things on my heart that I need to put into writing. We've been wanting to move closer to our church where Tom works and our kids go to school for the last two years that we have lived here. We currently live 25 to 30 minutes away because the town we are in is more affordable on a ministry salary. The commute however has been getting old!  Continue Reading @ Beautifulthorns>

We live in a secular world. Yet, how we conduct ourselves, in business, has at its foundation God’s moral laws – what we call today, business ethics.  Business ethics calls for us to be honest, respectful, wise, prudent, just, tactful and courteous in transacting business with others. These ethics require us to be virtuous, if we want to be successful! Business Ethics at Work Honest  – The Eighth Commandment states, “ You shall not bear dishonest witness against your neighbor ” (Deut. 5:20). God calls us to live by the truth. Live an upright life, both in action and speech; tactfully, and with kindness. Respectful  – “ Do to others what you would have them do to you ” (Matt 7:12). God calls us to love unconditionally and that means respecting others, especially when we do not see eye to eye. We must not only respect others, but respect differences of opinion as well. Wise  – “ In the heart of the intelligent wisdom abides, but in the bosom of fools it is unknown ” (Prov. 14

I don’t know about you, but during these past weeks several of my friends have been undergoing severe trials: cancer, car accidents, death of loved ones. Such ordeals shake our faith and we wonder, Why do we suffer? and even, Is there a good God? At our chicken barbecue last month, during a random reading from my book “Heart to Heart with Mary,” a woman heard our Blessed Mother urging her to let go. At the conclusion, the woman confided to me that her daughter had recently died. Mary’s message touched her heart, brought tears to her eyes, and gave me goosebumps. In case you are in need of some comforting, encouraging words, here is another excerpt from my book:  Click to continue

A 11 años de haberse despenalizado el aborto en la Ciudad de México, los resultados de la implementación del procedimiento de INTERRUPCIÓN LEGAL DEL EMBARAZO (ILE) para reducir la mortalidad materna, han sido decepcionantes. La mortalidad materna en ese estado es mayor que en varios de los estados del país donde este procedimiento no es legal. (1) (2) leer más...  

I was so  blessed to have given a talk this past Sunday (the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary) on the power of the rosary at an Altar Rosary Society Communion Breakfast. The fidelity of the women I met there and the testimonies they shared with me of how they have seen the power of the Rosary win battles in their own lives was inspiring and I was truly blessed to be among them. Part of my talk focused on the role of Mary as our Mother and Teacher, based on this powerful quote from Pope John Paul II. Click here to read my reflections . 

In today’s Gospel, Jesus gives us an oral exam. Specifically, Jesus asks, “ What is written in the law? How do you read it?” (Luke 10:26) This is in response to a man asking Jesus what is necessary to gain entry to heaven. The man responds correctly, by noting that he is to love God with his whole heart, and to love his neighbor as himself. Yet, the man asks for clarification on the definition of “neighbor.” Jesus responds with the parable about the Good Samaritan. In this story Jesus comments on two people who avoid helping an injured man on the side of the road, as they do not want to violate Jewish law, by touching his blood, for that would make them unclean. Finally, the Samaritan offers compassion and assistance to the injured man. Jesus then asks, Which of these three, in your opinion, was neighbor to the robber’s victim ? (Luke 10: 36) This is another instance where Jesus reinforces the fact that man was not created to serve the law. Rather, the law was created to serv

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We all like to be in control — especially mothers, I think. We even try to control the action of the Holy Spirit in our own lives and in the lives of our children because we don’t always see events through the eyes of faith. Of course, most of us would deny trying to box in the Almighty, because we at least realize how ridiculous this sounds. Yet, because we really do not like to change, we do end up resisting even God. We like our comfort zone. We especially don’t like the rug ripped from under us, and that approach is usually how God must snag our attention. continue

Photo by  Nathan Dumlao  on  Unsplash I stumbled across a study on the power of gratitude. Yes, researchers are studying the impact on both the giver and receiver of gratitude. Their findings? There's power in saying thank you. I appreciate you. You mean something to me.  What if we had the courage to do this every day -- to express our love by showing gratitude to others? Read more: The Power of Gratitude.

This post is part of a series of #write31days October Recently I have watched a few tv shows that deal with the issue of the afterlife. TBH, I am profoundly intrigued by these issues. Recently, I decided to binge watch  Forever  and  The Good Place.  As the world knows I freaking love Fred Armisen, and I think the crowning achievement of  Forever , other than awesome music, was seeing someone who never gets angry actually getting a little upset. Armisen is a calm, funny presence. When you see him get upset, his acting is at its peak, and I think this is because it is coming from someone who rarely actually gets mad like this. Hilarious to Watch -- it is good stuff. :) In this post, I will mostly be talking about the show  The Good Place.  I decided to rewatch the first season, in an effort to describe what it is I like about this show. 8 reasons why I love this show: via GIPHY 1) it's deep Read the rest here

With the upcoming Feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, on Oct 7 th , I thought it might be appropriate to share with you a wonderful book, written by Meggie K. Daly. In  Bead by Bead: The Scriptural Rosary , Daly treats us to an insightful way to pray the Scriptural Rosary. You need not be an aficionado on the Rosary to appreciate this book. Perhaps you never said the Rosary but might be interested in learning how to do it. No sweat – Daly covers the basics to get you started. Bead by Bead, We Walk with Mary to Jesus Daly provides a history of how the Rosary evolved over the centuries. We learn that the Rosary is a living prayer, meant to change over time. For example, for several centuries, we said only the Joyful, Sorrowful, and Glorious Mysteries. Then in the 1970’s, Saint Pope John Paul II created the Luminous Mysteries to add to the Rosary. Anyone now can look back and go – duh! – of course we should have the Luminous Mysteries! You see, the Joyful Mysteries cover Jesus’

This summer I edited a unique and fascinating book, Thunder in the Cell by John Ballentine. John has been a prisoner for almost thirty years in the Virginia Correctional System because of drugs. During that time, a provocative dream about his mother prompted him to search for God. He began with the World Almanac and advanced to reading the Church Fathers and writings of the saints. Early on, a Catholic prisoner had invited him to Mass. After stalling for two months, John went and there was converted. Since then he has passionately promoted the Catholic faith. His memoir is anything but dull as he recounts his experiences with wit and humor. His description of prison life reminds me of the popular show "Orange Is the New Black." Click to continue

Pope Benedict with young friends  [See Mark 12:14] Readings   (New American Bible: Philippines, USA) Readings   (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa) Gospel   Mark 10:2-16 [or Mk 10:2-12] ( New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised Catholic Edition) Some Pharisees came, and to test Jesus they asked, ‘Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?’ He answered them, ‘What did Moses command you?’ They said, ‘Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her.’ But Jesus said to them, ‘Because of your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment for you. But from the beginning of creation, “God made them male and female.” “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife,   and the two shall become one flesh.” So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.’ Then in the h

Over thirty years ago, by accident rather than by design, I became aware of the terrible sexual scandals that were in fact to hit the headlines ten or so years later. However, what I discovered was so horrific that nobody would believe me. It was still the policy in Rome to  sweep such criminal atrocities under the carpet silencing any whistle-blowers and covering up for abusers. read on .......

Today is the Feast day of Saint Therese of Lisieux, a 19 th  century Carmelite nun, and Doctor of the Church. Saint Therese comes from a very devout Catholic family, where her parents, Marie-Azelle Guerin and Louis Martin, are also canonized saints of the Church. She was one of nine children, of which four died in childhood. Her remaining siblings were four sisters, who also became nuns. Saint Therese and Her “Little Way” Saint Therese is known for her “Little Way” – a way of simplicity and humility in serving Our Lord in the most mundane ways. For example, Saint Therese found value in doing the dishes without complaint. Although a Doctor of the Church, Therese was not a scholar of theology. Having lived only to the age of twenty-four, her education was not that extensive. Therefore, her “Little Way” is more of an example for all of us; educated and uneducated. Therese shows us how to ... Read more...

Why did Jesus have to suffer and die in order that we might be forgiven?  Surely, if God wanted to forgive us, and to redeem us,  He could have done so without Jesus having to suffer such a cruel death. CLICK HERE

Lala , with Jordan I first wrote this post in October 2008 and used it again in 2011 under the title  Lala and Queen Elizabeth II . I have re-posted it a number of times, with variations, because Lala's story is one that should be told over and over again.  This year I am re-posting what I posted last year, with a couple of updates on ages..   Today Lala is celebrating another birthday. No doubt, the occasion is being marked at  Punla, Ang Arko, where Lala lives, the only  L'Arche community  in the Philippines, in Cainta, Rizal, part of the metropolitan sprawl of Manila.  The Pope's Universal Prayer Intention for September 2014 was:   That the mentally disabled may receive the love and help they need for a dignified life . The truth is that persons with mental or learning disabilities can teach the rest of us about the dignity of life, as the photo above of Lala helping Jordan with his meal shows. Let us show our service to the poor, then, wi