Association Of Catholic Bloggers

I think everyone can agree, 2020 has been a tough year to date. One could hope for better days on the horizon, but the clouds look stormy. So, we must deal with reality. The coronavirus will be with us for the foreseeable future, causing uncertainty on Wall Street and Main Street, as well as within our own homes. Yet, when the clouds look their darkest, that is the time to count your blessings. Count Your Blessings When you count your blessings, it can be a real mood lift.  Here is my list. I suggest that you make one of your own. I am grateful for my: Husband of 41 years; for his love and support. Faith in God Hope in Christ’s promises Love for family, friends and neighbors, and their love for me Blessings bestowed upon me by God each day Parish priests Good health, and for my husband’s good health Job Roof over my head Clothes on my back and shoes on my feet Food on my table Cars in my garage Give Praise and Glory to God Perhaps you plan to “stay at home” th

  I was talking to one of our daughters recently about a thank-you card she wrote—in cursive.   Both of our girls write out cards to their grandma in cursive because they heard her say one time how much she enjoys reading it. I thought that was really sweet, but I was shocked to find out how challenging and time-consuming it can be for them to do this. To young adults today, cursive writing doesn’t make a lot of sense.   I argue it is quicker than print, and the argument back is that most people have sloppy cursive, so what’s the point? Personally, I think cursive writing is still relevant and it saddens me that it is considered a lost art. To me, with the passing of cursive, we have lost an important form of communication, a language if you will.   For instance, how sad it is that a young person visiting historical archives cannot enjoy reading what our founders wrote, in their own hand. Who would have thought that American English, written in cursive, would b

Daniel Lewis Lee died this morning. That's unremarkable, by itself. Roughly 150,000 people die every day. Cause of death varies. Diseases kill some of us. Others die in accidents. Civil authorities kill those who deserve death. In their government's opinion.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Sheaves of Wheat Vincent van Gogh [ Web Gallery of Art ] Readings   (New American Bible: Philippines, USA) Readings   (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa) Gospel   Matthew 13:24-43 or 13:24-30 ( New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised Catholic Edition) Jesus put before them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field;  but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away.  So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well.  And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, “Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?”  He answered, “An enemy has done this.” The slaves said to him, “Then do you want us to go and gather them?”  But he replied, “No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them.  Let both

When we look at the concept of justice from a subjective point of view, we will wind up with a variety of “opinions” on how to define justice. What seems just and fair to one individual, might seem unjust to another. And therein lies the conflict. However, if we look at the definition of justice objectively, we can come to a consensus of truth in the definition of justice. So, to find justice in what seems like an unjust society we must first look at the objective definition of justice. Find Justice in the Objective Truth The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines Justice as respect for “the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony that promotes equity with regard to persons and to the common good.”  1  So, here we see, that Justice is not what’s right for only me, but I must take into account respect for all persons and strive for equity among all. With a common definition to rely upon, we must now look at where we see injustice within society.  W

In the world of academia, philosophers, it seems to me, talk a great deal, and listening to their discussions can increase the potential to develop one’s mental capacity—or reduce it to mush. I saw a discussion online about beauty.   The professors in the conversation put forth long strings of sentences that were hard to follow.   They made a lot of sense, but they were quite difficult to comprehend, even when I listened carefully. When I was in grad school, theology forced my brain to think hard as well, but in a different way.   I had to stretch beyond my perceived aptitude.   Sort of like the idea of infinity in geometry -- “Look there, beyond what you can see!” I like to challenge my brain and listening to academics requires me to have a lot of concentration. Like the play Hamilton that is out now. I sat down to watch it with one of our daughters and I found it very intriguing, but tiring.   I found the captions distracting and between them and the fast-pac