Faith for the Journey of Life

Our Lady of Lourdes

2007-02-06T17:11:00.000-08:00

Sunday, 11 February, marks the occasion of Our Blessed Mother's first appearance to St. Bernadette in the Grotto at Lourdes, France in 1858. The story of Lourdes is well known in our Catholic faith. Our Mother's appearance at Lourdes and the miracles associated with her and Jesus are amongst the great treasures that God has blessed our Church with.

On that fateful Sunday in 1858, St. Bernadette was gathering firewood for her family when Our Blessed Mother entered into her life in a most powerful way. During this and the several following appearances, St. Bernadette did not know who this mysterious woman was. Over the next several months, Our Blessed Mother appeared periodically to St. Bernadette. Local authorities harassed and tried to suppress St. Bernadette but no avail; her faith would not be deterred.

After the appearances began, so, too, did the miracles. On one occasion, Mary revealed a miraculous spring that faithful pilgrims that have journeyed to ever since. On another occasion, Our Blessed Mother spoke the words "I am the Immaculate Conception," and in doing so, confirmed this dogma that had been defined by Pope Pius IX just a couple years prior.

"Everything about Mary directs us to her Son, our only Saviour, in anticipation of whose merits she was immaculate and full of grace," wrote Pope Pius XII in his 1957 encyclical Le Pelerinage de Lourdes. "Everything about Mary raise us to praise of the adorable Trinity; and so it was that Bernadette, praying her rosary before the grotto, learned from the words and bearing of the Blessed Virgin how she should give glory to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit."

Lourdes is notable for its miraculous spring, its miraculous healings, its Grotto and the vast crowds of pilgrims who journey there each year. Lourdes should also serve as a powerful reminder of the great miracle of God's love. For in sending Mary to St. Bernadette - a humble, poor peasant girl in an obscure corner of France, God has shown us yet again that His love makes no distinctions based upon economic status, social class, gender, nationality or any of the other divisions that we humans erect between ourselves and others.

Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us!

Prayer for the Canonization of Father Michael J. McGivney

2007-01-23T17:06:00.000-08:00

In 1881, God called a young parish priest in Connecticut to form an organization of Catholic men to help the less fortunate and support the Church. Today, that priest's vision is an international organization with millions of dedicated members. The organization is the Knights of Columbus; the priest was Father Michael J. McGivney.

As a proud member of the Knights of Columbus, I humbly post the prayer for Father McGivney's canonization. This prayer is often prayed at Knights functions that I attend and I encourage you to pray this as well...

"God, our Father, protector of the poor and defender of the widow and orphan, you called your priest, Father Michael J. McGivney, to be an apostle of Christian family life and to lead the young to the generous service of their neighbor. Through the example of his life and virtue may we follow your Son, Jesus Christ, more closely, fulfilling his commandment of charity and building up his Body which is the Church. Let the inspiration of your servant prompt us to greater confidence in your love so that we may continue his work of caring for the needy and the outcast. We humbly ask that you glorify your servant Father Michael J. McGivney on earth according to the design of your holy will. Through his intercession, grant the favor I now present (here make your request). Through Christ our Lord. Amen. Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be."

(Courtesy of Father Michael J. McGivney Guild website)

Random Thoughts on Life Issues

2007-01-22T14:22:00.000-08:00

Today in Washington DC and numerous places around the country, the defenders of life have gathered on the occasion of the infamous Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision to remind America of the evils of abortion. On this occasion, I offer my random thoughts on life issues.

"Children are a gift from the Lord, the fruit of the womb, a reward(Psalm 127:3)." No further comment is necessary.

In college, I, like many other well-meaning people, was opposed to abortion but supported a woman's right to choose. Then a close friend of mine aborted her pre-born baby. Her experience taught me that you cannot be against abortion and for choice. Thank you, Lord, for opening my eyes and leading me onto the right side of this issue.

Following Bill Clinton's election to the Presidency in November 1992, Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz authored a most inspiring prayer for life. (See my previous posting.) Now as a new anti-life majority led by pseudo-Catholic Nancy Pelosi takes over in Congress, let us re-visit this prayer in the hopes that the Holy Spirit may lead them to defend life.

When presented with a choice between her life and the life of her pre-born baby, St. Gianna Molla chose not to abort her baby. Doing so cost St. Gianna her life but spared the life of her child. May St. Gianna pray for all expectant mothers that their choices may be for the good of their pre-born children.

On the issue of slavery, Thomas Jefferson once wrote..."I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, that is justice cannot sleep forever." I find those words most alarming when I reflect that abortion is no less evil than slavery was in Jefferson's time.

I participated in my first March for Life in January 1995 and have attended several since then. At each of the Marches for Life that I have participated in, I have marvelled at the diversity of the participants. People of all ages, faiths, ethnicity, socio-economic background and home states gathering together for the rights of unborn children. Thank God for the freedoms we enjoy to public proclaim life and petition our elected officials on life issues.

I note with great concern that since Roe v. Wade, the forces of choice have chosen to expand their attacks on life in disturbing directions: partial birth abortions, euthanasia, cloning, stem cell research, using abortion for population control, birth control, the infamous "morning after" pill RU-486, etc.

Several years ago, I attended a Rosary prayer session outside an abortion clinic in coastal New Jersey. The clinic chose to close for the day rather than have their clients / victims face a large group of people praying for the lives of pre-born babies and their mothers.

And in conclusion...Lord, please have mercy!

Daily Prayer for Life

2007-01-22T14:12:00.000-08:00

In honor of today's March for Life in Washington DC today, I offer the inspiring prayer written by Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz...

"Heavenly Father, as the author of life, touch with compassion the hearts of those women and men who with Your help, have conceived human life and now think of abortion, not parenthood. Help them to understand that their newly created child and all children are made in Your image and likeness, made for eternal life.

Dispel their fears and helplessness and give them true and generous hearts to love their babies and give them birth and all the needed care that a parent alone can give. And when Your children turn away from You through abortion, penetrate their hearts to seek Your loving forgiveness and healing power.

Finally Lord, soften the hearts of the abortionists, and enlighten all elected officials, particularly our current President, to accept Your loving grace and to recognize and protect the inviolability and sanctity of all human life from conception to natural death. Amen."

Bishop Bruskewitz wrote this prayer a couple weeks after Bill Clinton was elected President. You will note that the Bishop's prayer refers to the anti-life / pro-choice Clinton.

The Heavens Declare

2007-01-20T07:23:00.000-08:00

"The heavens declare the glory of God;
the sky proclaims its builder's craft.
One day to the next conveys that message;
one night to the next imparts that knowledge.
There is no word or sound;
no voice is heard;
yet their report goes forth through all the earth,
their message to the ends of the world.
God has pitched a tent there for the sun;
it comes forth like a bridegroom from his chamber,
and like an athlete joyfully runs its course.
From one end of the heavens it comes forth;
its course runs through to the other;
nothing escapes its heat."

Psalm 19:1-7

[Photo taken Oceanside, California, November 2005]

A New Year for Divine Mercy

2007-01-14T07:26:00.000-08:00

My Knights of Columbus council recently hosted a Holy Hour with a Divine Mercy icon. Our Supreme headquarters circulates this icon amongst Knights councils to inspire greater devotion to Divine Mercy. The Holy Hour featured Gospel readings, hymns, a Homily on Divine Mercy, the praying of the Divine Mercy Chaplet and the praying of the Divine Mercy Litany.

If you are not familiar with the Divine Mercy devotion, please allow me to offer a brief overview. The Divine Mercy devotion is based upon the private revelations of our Lord and Savior to a Polish nun in the 1930s - St. Maria Faustina Kowalska. As the world was precariously perched between world wars, our Most Merciful Father saw fit to bless mankind by reminding us of His great mercy and deliver us a message of great hope amidst the impending horrors of renewed war and totalitarian oppression. Over the period of several years, Jesus delivered numerous messages to St. Faustina about God's mercy and instructed her in several ways to promote and honors his mercy. This includes the Divine Mercy Chaplet (said on the Rosary), Divine Mercy Sunday (the first Sunday after Easter), the Divine Mercy Novena and the Divine Mercy image.

The Divine Mercy image (which the aforementioned Knights icon depicts) shows a resurrected Jesus with rays emanating from his chest. The best description comes from St. Faustina's own diary...

"The two rays denote Blood and Water. The pale ray stands for the Water which makes souls righteous. The red ray stands for the Blood which is the life of souls. These two rays issued forth from the depths of My tender mercy when My agonized Heart was opened by a lance on the Cross. Happy is the one who will dwell in their shelter, for the just hand of God shall not lay hold of him (299). By means of this image I shall grant many graces to souls. It is to be a reminder of the demands of My mercy, because even the strongest faith is of no avail without works. (742)."

Jesus spoke these descriptive words to St. Faustina and as the dutiful recorder that she was, St. Faustina conveys His words to us to remind us of God's great mercy for us all.

Today, we do not need look to very far in this world to see why we are all in such great need for God's mercy. Anti-family advocates are ramming gay marriage through courts and legislatures in New Jersey and other states. Babies continue to be killed in the womb in the publicly stated name of "choice" and the publicly denied name of "profit" and "convenience." War rages in various parts of the globe. Christians and Jews are persecuted for their faith. Islamo-fascism threatens the lives of millions of innocent people. Our culture's pop icons are promoting licentiousness and greed amongst our young people. And so on and so forth...

In spite of all the millions of ways in which we provoke God's justice and push His patience, God still loves us and provides us with the means to make amends. Through His Son's Cross and His incomprehensible love and mercy, eternal damnation need not be our ultimate fate. As Jesus's personal secretary of Divine Mercy, St. Faustina reminds us of that.

Divine Mercy, Crown of All God's Handiwork...I place all my trust in You!

One Night in Judea

2006-12-23T08:07:00.000-08:00

In the Roman Province of Judea a long time ago...

"Grandpa, grandpa, come quickly!" an excited young boy commanded as he rushed into the hut of his grandfather early one dark spring night. "You have to see...."
The young boy's words were cut short as he caught sight of his elderly grandfather; the countenance of the old man spoke volumes that even a young boy was able to read in an instant. "Grandpa Jacob, what's wrong?!" the boy asked, perplexed at what he had stumbled into.
The old man was seated alone on the floor by the hearth of a fireplace. A scroll lay partially unrolled in his lap. The only light in the room was that shown by a small lamp and a smoldering fire.
"It is the sad state of affairs this world is in," the old man Jacob finally confessed to his grandson. "I was just reflecting upon the history of our people and what we find ourselves in, John."
A look of bewilderment appeared on the small boy's face. Before he could ask, the old man spoke again. "For thousands of years, our people have suffered greatly at the hands of ourselves and foreign peoples," he said slowly with much lament. "The Romans are just the latest ones to have been conquered us. We have seen our lands and villages pillaged. Our sons and daughters killed or marched off into captivity. Our sacred Temple sacked and desecrated."
"We have strayed from God and suffered the consequences of our disobedience," he continued. "Time and again, prophets warned us and we ignored them. Now God is using the Romans to teach us the same lesson we have not learned so many times before. For our fate, we have no one to blame but ourselves."
"Equally distressing is the delay in our Messiah's coming," the old man continued. "Isaiah and other prophets promised his coming. He would be a light in the darkness. He would shepherd his people Israel. He would redeem us and restore God's kingdom to us. He would teach us the ways we have forgotten and ignored. But alas, it has been so long. I have lived so long, but still we wait and wait and wait." Then with a great sigh, he asked, "Oh, when will our Messiah arrive to set us captives free?"
Patiently, the young boy listened to his grandfather's lament. His face shown a mixture of confusion, but the excitement which had brought him here still shone through.
"I'm sorry, John," the old man apologized when he suddenly remembered the young boy's news which he had wanted to share. "What was it that you wanted to show me?"
"There's a big, bright new star in the sky, Grandpa!" the young boy exclaimed with much enthusiasm.
"Oh?!" the old man replied as the news jolting him out of his melancholy demeanor. "Well, show me this new star," he commanded as he rose to his feet.
The young boy grabbed his grandfather's hand and led him outside into the night. Raising an arm to the east, he pointed at a bright object in the sky. "There it is, Grandpa!" he shouted. "In the sky over Bethlehem!"

Christmas Blessings and a Question that I Cannot Answer

2006-12-23T07:47:00.000-08:00

To our Heavenly Father, the Psalmist writes "What are humans that You are mindful of them, mere mortals that You care for them? Yet You have made them a little less than a god, crowned them with glory and honor (Psalm 8:5-6)."

It is believed that David penned these words. Here David expresses both his gratitude to God for his goodness and his puzzlement at why God is so good to mankind.

Centuries later, David's question takes on a completely new and more powerful meaning as the Son of God descends to earth. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but have eternal life," Jesus says to Nicodemus (John 3:16).

As we prepare to celebrate the birth of the Son of God, again we must ask the question with David "What are humans that You are mindful of them, mere mortals that You care for them?" and add to those words, "What are humans that You sent Your only Son to redeem them with his very life?"

Jesus's words can only partially answer that, not because of any deficieny on his part, but rather because of the limits of our own intellect and understanding. God is mindful of humans because God created them and loves them. But why God loves us so much is a question beyond my own comprehension.

God's limitless love for us is simply a truth that I accept and am grateful for.

Who's Who in the Rosary (Part Four - Moses & Elijah)

2006-12-17T09:47:00.000-08:00

While the twenty Mysteries of the Holy Rosary celebrate the life of Jesus and depict events that occurred in the times of the New Testament, the Rosary has a strong foundation in the Old Testament. To the casual observer, the Old Testament foundation is not readily apparent. Jesus Christ - the Son of God made man, the Word made Flesh, Emmanuel - is the living fulfillment of God's promises made periodically throughout the Old Testament.

If we look deeper into the Mysteries of the Rosary, we can see the Old Testament antecedents from which they spring. For example, laying the groundwork for the Nativity when Christ is born into this world, Isaiah had previously prophesied that "the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel (Isaiah 7:14)."

Inspired by God's Holy Spirit, Isaiah prophesies at length about the promised Messiah. Most notably, Isaiah prophesies the Messiah's Passion in what is known as the four "Servant of the Lord" oracles. "But he was pierced for our offenses, crushed for our sins, upon him was the chastisement that makes us whole, by his stripes we were healed," says Isaiah (53:5). This words are fulfilled at Calvary.

The strongest and most obvious connection to the Old Testament found in the Holy Rosary occurs in the Fourth Luminous Mystery - "The Transfiguration." And it is in this Mystery that we find the only two Old Testament figures to appear in the Rosary: Moses and Elijah.

During the Fourth Luminous Mystery, Jesus takes St. Peter, St. John and St. James up a mountain to pray. In their midst, Jesus becomes Transfigured before them in a heavenly radiance far surpassing any human glory. Elijah and Moses appear to converse with Jesus. Amazed at the sight before him, St. Peter offers to build shelters for Jesus as well as Elijah and Moses. Then God speaks from heaven: "This is my chosen Son; listen to him (Luke 9:35)."

Moses and Elijah are two of the most important persons in the Old Testament and their presence at the Transfiguration is further proof that Jesus is the living fulfillment.

It was Moses that led the people of Israel out of Egypt and through the 40 years in the desert under God's direction. Through Moses, God communicated His Ten Commandments and his directives on how the Israelites should live and worship Him. Just short of reaching the Promised Land, God calls Moses home to Him.

Elijah is one of the most important prophets in the Old Testament. He is a great miracle worker. He brings the widow's son back to life. He defeats Baal's prophets on Mount Carmel. He preaches God's word with great courage. Then God summons him to heaven on a fiery chariot.

Like the Jewish people of our own day, the Jews of Jesus's day expected Elijah to return preceding the appearance of the long-awaited Messiah and to play a major role in the establishment of God's kingdom. But as Jesus points out, "I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him but did to him whatever they pleased (Matthew 17:12)." St. John the Baptist fulfills this role.

This extraordinary meeting between Jesus and Elijah and Moses dramatically proclaims that Jesus the Son of God is infinitely of greater importance than either of these great human servants of God. Elijah and Moses's service was vitally important as a preparation for the Christ's mission. Now God sends His own Son to guide all of His people. Now Jesus is going to lead all of God's people out of the wilderness of sin and into the Promised Land of God's kingdom. Now Jesus is going to suffer and die for our sins and be raised triumphantly three days later to destroy death.

Who's Who in the Rosary (Part Three - The Angels)

2006-12-10T09:21:00.000-08:00

They are the spiritual beings that serve God and humanity. The Catechism of the Catholic Church declares "with their whole beings the angels are servants and messengers of God (329)." The Catechism further states that "Angels are spiritual creatures who glorify God without ceasing and who serve his saving plans for other creatures (350)."

Accordingly, the Angels play an important role in the Rosary as well. They appear in two Joyful Mysteries, one Sorrowful Mystery and three Glorious Mysteries.

At the very beginning of the Rosary journey, the archangel St. Gabriel appears to the Blessed Virgin Mary and announces that she will bear the Son of God. "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God," St. Gabriel assures her (Luke 1:30).

The angels appear next in the Third Joyful Mystery - the Nativity. They appear to the shepherds and announce the birth of the Saviour. "Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people," says the Angel of the Lord. After telling the shepherds where to find the newborn Messiah, a great heavenly host appears in the sky above the shepherds proclaiming "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests" (Luke 2:9-14).

During Jesus's agony in the Garden of Gethsemane (the First Sorrowful Mystery), an angel appears to help strengthen Jesus for his upcoming Passion (Luke 22:43).

Angels appear in three of the Glorious Mysteries: the Resurrection, the Ascension and the Crowning of Mary.

On Easter morning, angels are there at the Empty Tomb to announce Jesus's Resurrection. In one of the most memorable statements ever recorded in the Bible, the angels tell the astonished women at the tomb, "Why do you seek the living one among the dead? He is not here, but he has been raised." (Luke 24:1-10).

We next see angels at Jesus's Ascension. As the Apostles stare up into the sky in amazement, two angels appear with them and say, "Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky? This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will return in the same way as you have seen him going into heaven." (Acts 1:11).

Lastly, as the Rosary comes to a close, the angels sing in jubilation at the Crowning of Mary as Queen of the Universe by the Thrice Holy God.

Angels appear periodically in the mysteries of the Rosary. Just as they journey with Jesus and Mary through the Rosary, they journey with us through our own lives. They announce God's Good News to us. They are their to strengthen us in difficult times and they are there to share in our good fortune. They praise God and help us to know him better. Through contemplation in their roles in the Rosary, we can better understand how God works through them in our own lives.

Angel of God, my Guardian dear
to whom God's love commits me here.
Ever this day be at my side,
To light and guard, to rule and guide.

Vivat Jesus!

Remember Pearl Harbor

2006-12-07T14:19:00.000-08:00

Sunday, December 7th, 1941 began as a peaceful, sunny morning in Oahu, Hawaii. The battleships and other warships of the U.S. Pacific Fleet lay at anchor in Pearl Harbor. At bases all across the island, soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines were all enjoying a relaxing morning in this tropical paradise. Just before 0800, Father William Maguire, Chaplain of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, was about to board a motor launch to take him to the battleship USS California for Sunday Mass.

Then suddenly without warning, dozens of Japanese warplanes screamed down out of the sky, raining death and destruction upon the American forces caught by surprise on the land and ships below.

“Standing there with my foot on the gunwale of the boat, I felt stunned and strangely sick,” Chaplain Maguire later wrote. “The only words that came were: ‘God help us --- we’re in it!’”

Despite the dangers, Chaplain Maguire made it over to USS California. He offered a General Absolution to the crew and ministered to the wounded and dying until the ‘Abandon Ship’ order was issued. After that, the Chaplain helped organize the evacuation of wounded to hospitals ashore and continued his ministry there.

Nearby, the battleship USS Oklahoma was struck by several aerial torpedoes which opened up her side and caused her to capsize. Aboard USS Oklahoma, Catholic Chaplain Father Aloysius Schmitt helped a number of sailors to escape from the ship via a porthole. Unable to escape himself, Chaplain Schmitt drowned; witnesses later reported that his final words were “Please let go of me, and may God bless you all.”

Most of the casualties suffered that horrible day occurred aboard the battleship USS Arizona when a bomb exploded one of her magazines. Protestant Chaplain Thomas Kirkpatrick was one of the sailors and Marines who were killed aboard Arizona.

The surprise attack was devastating. Twenty-one Navy ships were sunk or damaged. Four of the Pacific Fleet’s battleships were sunk; the other four were all damaged to varying degrees. “Pearl Harbor was a scene of desolation,” wrote Chaplain Maguire. “Battleship Row was a sight to break a sailor’s heart.” On the military and naval airfields around Oahu, 188 American aircraft had been destroyed and another 159 damaged. Altogether 2,403 Americans had been killed and another 1,178 Americans wounded.

This week, America remembers the 65th Anniversary of Pearl Harbor. Let us remember as well and thank God for those lives whom He saved that day and the freedom we enjoy today.

See also...
Donald F. Crosby, S.J. Battlefield Chaplains: Catholic Priests in World War II. (Lawrence, KS: U of Kansas P, 1994).

William A. Maguire, CAPT, CHC, USN. The Captain Wears a Cross. (NY: Macmillan, 1943).

Welcome Home Holy Father!

2006-12-05T16:48:00.000-08:00

Last week, Pope Benedict XVI completed a successful and peaceful trip to Turkey and for that, let us thank God in Heaven.

A lecture that the Pope gave back in September was seized upon by many Muslims as an excuse to launch hateful and erroneous attacks upon him. Violence erupted in various places of the world and death threats were made against him. Many in the West rose in the Pope’s defense and he even clarified his official position on Islam. Nevertheless fears for his safety while he was in Turkey were justified.

So in thanksgiving for Pope Benedict XVI’s successful and safe trip to Turkey, I offer the words of the Psalmist…

“I will exalt you, O LORD,
for you lifted me out of the depths
and did not let my enemies gloat over me.
O LORD my God, I called to you for help
and you healed me.
O LORD, you brought me up from the grave;
you spared me from going down into the pit.
Sing to the LORD, you saints of his;
praise his holy name.” (Psalm 30:1-4)

For more about the Pope’s trip, visit Catholic News Service at
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0606848.htm

Who's Who in the Rosary (Part Two - Mary)

2006-11-28T17:37:00.000-08:00

“Hail Mary, full of grace…” the words spoken by the Angel Gabriel resound through the recitation of the Rosary and honor our Blessed Mother as she honors God through her life. Mary was chosen by God for the most important mission ever undertaken by a mortal human: being the Mother of the Saviour of the World. She shared in his life and was with him through his great trials and his greater triumphs. So as we travel through the life of Jesus in the Rosary we also travel through the life of Mary because his life was her life.

After Jesus and God and the Holy Spirit, the Blessed Mary ever Virgin, Our Heavenly Mother, participates in the Rosary in the most prominent way. Mary appears in all five Joyous Mysteries. In the Second Luminous Mystery (the Wedding at Cana), Mary instructs “Do whatever he tells you.” Since Mary accompanied Jesus during part of his ministry, it is logical to say that she appears in the Third Luminous Mystery as well. Mary meets Jesus on the Way of the Cross (Fourth Sorrowful Mystery) and stays with him beneath his Cross at the Crucifixion (Fifth Sorrowful Mystery). Then Mary appears in all five Glorious Mysteries, from Jesus’s Resurrection to her crowning in Heaven.

The Church has long recognized the important role in human salvation that Mary performs. The Church teaches that through Mary we know Jesus.

“Mary is "blessed" because - totally, in body and soul and for ever -she became the Lord's dwelling place,” stated Pope Benedict XVI in his Homily for the Mass of the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (2006). “If this is true, Mary does not merely invite our admiration and veneration, but she guides us, shows us the way of life, shows us how we can become blessed, how to find the path of happiness.”

“Everything about Mary directs us to her Son, our only Savior, in anticipation of whose merits she was immaculate and full of grace. Everything about Mary raises us to the praise of the adorable Trinity; and so it was that Bernadette, praying her rosary before the grotto, learned from the words and bearing of the Blessed Virgin how she should give glory to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,” wrote Pope Pius XII in his encyclical Le Pelerinage de Lourdes (1957).

In praying the Rosary, we honor Mary and in honoring Mary we honor her Glorious Son.

Thanksgiving to God!!

2006-11-23T07:20:00.000-08:00

"Give thanks to the Lord, invoke his name;
make known among the peoples his deeds!
Sing praise, play music;
proclaim all his wondrous deeds!
Glory in his holy name;
rejoice, O hearts that seek the Lord!
Rely on the mighty Lord;
constantly seek His face.
Recall the wondrous deeds he has done,
his signs and his words of judgment,
You descendants of Abraham his servant,
offspring of Jacob, the chosen one!
The Lord is our God
who rules the whole earth."
(Psalm 105:1-7)

As we celebrate this Thanksgiving holiday and reflect upon the state of the world today, it is very easy to become discouraged by the evils and misfortunes that are plaguing humanity.

The rogue states of Iran and North Korea are actively seeking weapons of mass destruction.

Israel lives under the constant threat of terrorists and renewed attacks launched by Hamas and Hezbollah and sponsored by Iran and Syria.

Americans are fighting and dying to establish peace and democracy in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Scientists are daily pushing the envelope of God's patience by attempting to usurp His creative role through cloning.

Babies continue to be killed in the wombs of their mothers in the name of 'choice.'

The victims of natural disasters are struggling to recover and re-establish their lives and livelihoods.

I could go on and on and on but you get the picture.

Yet through this all we have much to be faithful and at the top of that list is Jesus Christ.

In Christ Jesus, we have God made man to save us from our sins. In Christ Jesus, we have a God who so loved us that He sent His only Son into the world to suffer and die for us that we may have eternal life with Him in Heaven and live in continual Thanksgiving with our Creator.

So when we despair of this world and its troubles, let us take comfort in the truths stated by St. Paul so eloquently, "For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-39)."

The Lord's blessings be upon you! Happy Thanksgiving!!

Abraham Lincoln and Thanksgiving

2006-11-22T13:59:00.000-08:00

In honor of tomorrow's Thanksgiving holiday, I offer an excerpt from President Abraham Lincoln's Thanksgiving Proclamation from October 1863. The full proclamation may be found at http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/online_books/source/sb2/sb2w.htm

Before perusing this, I wish to offer some historical context to this Proclamation. In October 1863, the United States was in the grips of a disastrous Civil War. At various times during the preceding years of war, President Lincoln had publicly beseeched God and offered National Fasting Daysfor an end to the war. The first couple years had not gone well for the Union as they suffered a series of military defeats in the Eastern Theater. In 1863, fortunes seemed to be improving for the North. At the beginning of the year, Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation, proclaiming freedom to the slaves being held in the Confederate States. A Confederate invasion had been decisively thwarted by Major General Meade at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Another Union Army under Major General U.S. Grant had captured Vicksburg, Mississippi, thus cutting the Confederacy in half along the Mississippi River. Finally after over two years of unrelenting strife, Lincoln and the Northern States had something to be thankful for.

"It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American people. I do, therefore, invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens. And I recommend to them that, while offering up the ascriptions justly due to him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners, or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the almighty hand to heal the wounds of the nation, and to restore it, as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes, to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity, and union." -- President Abraham Lincoln

Who's Who in the Rosary (Part One - The Trinity)

2006-11-14T15:22:00.000-08:00

Among the devotions to our Lord Jesus and his most Blessed Mother, the Rosary is the most powerful and most pious way to honor them. Prayerful reflection upon the Mysteries of the Rosary immerses us in the life of our Saviour and his Mother and in the story of salvation.

"And truly, from the frequent meditation on the Mysteries, the soul little by little and imperceptibly draws and absorbs the virtues they contain, and is wondrously enkindled with a longing for things immortal, and becomes strongly and easily impelled to follow the path which Christ Himself and His Mother have followed," wrote Pope Pius XII in his 1951 encyclical on the Rosary - Ingruentium Malorum.

In my previous posting, I offered up a Rosary for my fellow members of the Armed Forces and their families. While praying and reflecting upon the Rosary, I was amazed at the many people - both good and bad - who appear in the Rosary's twenty Mysteries. So in this first installment, I shall reflect upon the various people who appear in these Mysteries. I shall begin with the Trinity.

The Trinity - Father, Son and Holy Spirit - are present and prominent in all twenty Mysteries. In that Jesus is One in Being with both the Father and the Spirit as One God in Three Persons, wheresoever Jesus - God the Son - is, God the Father and God the Spirit are also present.

There are three Mysteries when God the Father participates in a very prominent way. In the First Luminous Mystery, after Jesus is baptized, God the Father speaks from Heaven saying, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17). Then after Jesus is Transfigured in the Fourth Luminous Mystery, God the Father again speaks, saying to Saints Peter, John and James, "This is my beloved Son. Listen to him" (Luke 9:35). Lastly, in the Fifth Glorious Mystery, God the Father along with the Son and Spirit, crown Mary Queen of the Universe.

The Holy Spirit prominently appears in four Mysteries. The Holy Spirit first appears in the First Joyous Mystery when Mary conceives Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:26-38). Next the Holy Spirit appears in the First Luminous Mystery. "After Jesus was baptized, he came up from the water and behold, the heavens were opened [for him], and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove [and] coming upon him," records Matthew's Gospel (3:16). In the Third Glorious Mystery, the Holy Spirit, sent by Jesus, descends upon the Apostles and Mary on Pentecost (Acts 2:1-41). Thus emboldened and inspired by the Holy Spirit, the Apostles begin to spread the good news about Jesus and preach boldly in his Name. Lastly in the Fifth Glorious Mystery, the Holy Spirit participates with God the Father and God the Son in crowning Mary Queen of the Universe.

Jesus is a primary participant in each of the Twenty Mysteries of the Rosary. Through the Rosary, we journey with Jesus through his earthly life and beyond. The Joyful Mysteries commemorate his early life: his conception, his mother's Visitation with Elizabeth, his glorious birth, his presentation and his finding in the Temple. In the Luminous Mysteries, Jesus is baptized, turns water into wine at the wedding in Cana, preaches, is transfigured and institutes the Holy Eucharist at the Last Supper. The Sorrowful Mysteries commemorate his Passion in the Garden of Gethsemane, his scourging and crowning with thrones, his carrying of the Cross and lastly his Crucifixion and death on the Cross. In the Glorious Mysteries, Jesus overcomes death and is resurrected. He ascends to Heaven, then sends the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and Mary. The Fourth and Fifth Glorious Mysteries honor Mary's assumption into heaven and her crowning as Queen of the Universe by God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

Through the Holy Rosary, we draw closer to the Thrice Holy God and travel with Jesus during his earthly life. Next we shall focus upon our Blessed Mother, the Angels and St. Joseph and see how they participated in Jesus's life.

I Prayed A Rosary for You...

2006-11-12T17:28:00.000-08:00

This posting began as a light-hearted exchange Saturday afternoon between myself and a Navy corpsman friend of mine. I trained with my Reserve unit this weekend. We were just finishing our training for the day and I was heading off to the Vigil Mass at a nearby Church. My friend asked me to say a prayer for him at Mass and I replied that he needed more than just one.

Not long after...as I waited for Mass to begin...I reflected upon my friend's request and upon the responsibilities that we as members of America's armed forces had voluntarily taken upon ourselves. Whether we are active duty or reserve or National Guard, we take an oath to defend our nation, with our own lives if necessary. We can be sent and are sent into harm's way anywhere and anytime that our leaders decide to do so. We risk everything for the freedom of our country and the defense of our way of life. In doing so, we place great burdens upon our families and loved ones, who oftentimes don't know where we are or if we are safe. And we don't always come home alive.

And again, remembering my friend's request, I pulled out my Rosary beads and implored my loving Father's assistance on behalf of my brothers and sisters in arms...

For my brothers and sisters in arms around the globe, I prayed for a Rosary for you...

for you sailing upon the seas or beneath the waves...

for you standing the watch upon a hilltop in Afghanistan or checkpoint in Iraq or a base gate in Texas or a guard tower in South Korea or a flight line in Turkey...

for you flying through friendly and unfriendly skies...

I prayed a Rosary for you - Chris, John, Don, and Hugh, my friends who have been mobilized and sent forward into harm's way in Iraq...

And I prayed for your families back home who wait in anxious worry...

I prayed for you who ride a HUMVEE or LAV or 7-ton down an Iraqi road expecting an IED at any moment...

for you who kick in doors looking for the enemy and often finding trouble...

for you who suffer from the blast of an explosive device or the fragment of rocket or a bullet, I prayed to God to spare your life and thanked Him when He did...

for you who treat the wounded, I prayed a Rosary for your skills and for your physical, spiritual and mental well-being in the midst of the ravages of war...

for you who are recovering from burns, wounds, loss of limbs and illnesses in Landstuhl, Walter Reed, Bethesda, Balad and other hospitals...

I prayed for Navy 'Doc' Travis who lost his life to an IED while on foot patrol with Marines in Iraq...

for Marines Daniel and Carl who were killed by an IED in western Iraq last year and whose memorial service I attended shortly thereafter at our base - even though I had never met either of them...

for Chris, a National Guardsman from my hometown, who was killed by a bullet while on a convoy and for his wife and child that he left...

for Marine James who lost his life to a sniper's bullet, despite the best efforts of Navy doctors and the prayers of a Navy chaplain to save him...

for Gerald and Michael who were killed in a helicopter crash near Ramadi last year, I prayed a Rosary for you...

for all my friends and colleagues in Navy blue serving with Marine green, I prayed a Rosary for you.

I prayed a Rosary in Thanksgiving to our most merciful Father for bringing me home safely from Iraq and returning me to my fiancee and family.

I prayed a Rosary in Thanksgiving for all of us who have come home alive and for all of your families who have had to deal with the long months of endless worry and uncertainty.

For you did not come home alive, I prayed a Rosary for you and for your widows, your widowers, your sons and your daughters, your grandchildren, your mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, and everyone else who mourned your death and pain because of your absence.

Serving our country in a time of war is a tremendous responsibility wrought with danger and sacrifice for both the service member and his/her family.

So for all of us who serve and have served and will serve and have died in the service of our country and for all of your families...

...I prayed a Rosary for you.

A Critical Time for Our Nation

2006-11-08T15:14:00.000-08:00

We have entered a critical time for our nation. Yesterday was certainly not a good day for supporters of life. Today, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for two cases dealing with the Federal ban on partial birth abortion.

By the narrowest of margins, Missouri voters approved a highly controversial amendment to their state constitution to allow human cloning for research.

The Democrats won control of the House of Representatives and stand poised to win the Senate too if incumbent Republican Senator George Allen loses his hotly contested election battle. Throughout this year's electoral campaign, the Democrats have made it quite clear that they are friends of the abortion industry and not of the abortion industry's victims.

Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi is expected to be chosen Speaker of the House. This does not bode well because Pelosi - a Catholic in Name Only - diligently represents an ultra-liberal, pro-choice/anti-life district from California.

"When President Bush signed the so-called 'Partial-Birth Abortion Ban' into law, he became the first President in history to ban a safe and medically-accepted medical procedure. It was a deliberate attack on reproductive health care and a violation of women's privacy and their right to make their own decisions," said Congresswoman Pelosi back in June 2004. (See http://www.house.gov/pelosi/press/releases/June04/CourtRulingPartial-Birth060204.html )

Under Pelosi's leadership, we can expect that Congress will not be friendly to the pre-born.

The pro-life movement lost one of its strongest champions when Pennsylvania voters failed to re-elect Republican Senator Rick Santorum. We can only pray that his successor, Bob Casey Jr., will emulate his esteemed late father and follow conscience instead of party line.

Many pro-life public officials did win their re-election battles, including New Jersey's own Congressmen Chris Smith and Mike Ferguson. Ferguson won despite his opponents dispicable attacks upon his defense of the pre-born. With anti-life Democrats in charge now, we will need strong pro-life leaders like Smith and Ferguson to defend life.

Today the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for two cases that deal with the Constitutionality of the Federal Partial-Birth Abortion Ban: Gonzales v. Carhart and Gonzales v. Planned Parenthood.

The Federal law banning partial birth abortions was thoroughly researched by Congress, strenuously debated and in the end, Congress made the right decision by enacting this ban. President George W. Bush signed the ban into law in November 2003. Subsequently courts in Nebraska and California declared the ban unconstitutional.

The Bush Administration has vigorously fought for life and for this partial birth abortion ban. The American Center for Law and Justice is just one of many organizations supporting this ban. The ACLJ has filed amicus curai briefs with the Court in support of the ban. See www.aclj.org

Now it is for the U.S. Supreme Court to decide whether or not this monstrously barbaric procedure ought to be outlawed.

Our nation has entered a critical time. Anti-life forces have won control of the House and possibly the Senate too. The Supreme Court is now deciding the Constitutionality of the partial birth abortion ban. Now is the time for intensified pray and vocal defenses of life.

"Most merciful Father and Creator of life, we humbly beseech Thee in Thy greatness to enlighten all public leaders who hold responsibility for life issues. May Thine Holy Spirit guide them to the truth that all life is sacred from natural conception until natural death and at every single moment in between and inspire them to defend life against all attacks. In Jesus's Most Holy Name, Amen."

Praying for and with the Pope

2006-11-07T17:37:00.000-08:00

In spiritual solidarity with our Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI, I am encouraging all to pray for his November intentions.

I ask you to pray for:

"That, everywhere in the world, an end be put to all forms of terrorism."

"That through the effort of believers, together with living forces of society, the new and old chains which prevent the development of the African continent may be broken."

I would also like to add that we pray for the safety and protection of our Pope during his upcoming journey to Turkey.

St. Michael defend the Pope in spiritual battle and be his protection against the forces of hatred and violence. May God rebuke the Prince of Lies and his minions and protect us all from their evil machinations. Vivat Jesus!

Trenton Diocese Celebrates 125 Years

2006-10-30T16:36:00.000-08:00

My wife Lisa and I had the privilege of participating in the Trenton Diocese's 125th Anniversary Mass held yesterday at the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton. Our small part consisted of carrying banners representing three of the diocese's 118 parishes in the opening procession.

On 11 August 1881, Pope Leo XIII created the Diocese of Trenton with his Papal Bull Ad Futuram Rei Memoriam (For the Future Memory of Things). The Trenton Diocese was created from the Diocese of Newark and originally consisted of the fourteen southern counties of New Jersey. Its first bishop was Bishop Michael J. O'Farrell.

Twice in its history, the Diocese of Trenton has been divided to form new dioceses. In 1937, the southern-most counties were split off to form the Diocese of Camden. In 1981, four more counties were split off to form the Diocese of Metuchen. Today, the Diocese of Trenton consists of the counties of Burlington, Mercer, Monmouth and Ocean and includes over 800,000 Catholics.

The 125th Anniversary Mass was truly an inspiring celebration. Bishops representing other dioceses in New Jersey, New York, Delaware and Pennsylvania concelebrated the Mass with Trenton Bishop John M. Smith. Numerous priests also concelebrated the Mass. Also participating were the Knights of Columbus, the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre, and choirs. Bishop Smith celebrated Mass with a chalice formerly used by Pope Leo XIII.

In his Homily, Bishop Smith noted many of the historical events that have occurred during the Diocese's history including two world wars, the Great Depression, the September 11th terrorist attacks, and the war in Iraq. He also highlighted some of the technological advancements such as the Internet, cell phones, airplanes, and automobiles.

On a personal note, I was thankful for the participation of Bishop Edward Kmiec from the Diocese of Buffalo, New York, in the celebration. Many years ago, I received the Sacrament of Confirmation from him when he was serving as Auxiliary Bishop of the Trenton Diocese. I did not get to speak with him though, and he probably would not have remembered me anyway.

Yesterday was a great celebration of history and of faith. Inspired by the Holy Spirit and following in the example of Christ, the bishops, priests, religious and lay people of the Trenton Diocese have been faithful and diligent servants of our Holy God. To be able to join with Bishop Smith to celebrate this faith history was great privilege for which I thank our God in His Son's Name.

[For historical information on the Trenton Diocese, I consulted the diocesan newspaper's 125th Anniversary commemorative issue - 26 October 2006.]

How I Became A Knight

2006-10-29T09:19:00.000-08:00

At the beginning of my senior year of college, I became actively involved in the Newman Club of my college, an organization of Catholic college students. Though I had been a practicing Catholic my whole life, being part of the Newman Club gave me many new opportunities to serve God.

After graduation, I tried to stay active with the Newman Club. I went on retreats and pilgrimages with them. I attended various religious functions that they sponsored. But living over 1 1/2 hours from the college made participation difficult.

In the meantime, I sought out other organizations to serve God. Unfortunately, nothing could quite fit my spiritual needs.

This unfulfilled search lasted for several years after graduation. In late November of 2000, I was reflecting upon this while in prayer before Mass. I was feeling that I was not doing enough for God but was not sure how to correct that. Somehow the thought of the Knights of Columbus popped into my head. I was vaguely familiar with the organization. The Knights were very active in my church. So I said to God "The next time the Knights do a recruitment drive, I'll join."

God didn't waste anytime replying to my pledge. Less than five minutes later, a man strode up to the lectern, introduced himself and announced that the Knights of Columbus were holding a recruitment drive that very weekend. God did His part; now it was my turn. After Mass, I filled out a membership application and several weeks later, I was initiated into the Order.

Joining the Knights of Columbus was one of the best decisions I've ever made. Through the Knights I have been able to serve my God, country and Church in many meaningful ways.

If you are not familiar with the Knights, they are the world's largest Catholic men's service organization. Founded by Father Michael J. McGivney in 1881 in Connecticut, the Knights are dedicated to supporting the Church and building God's kingdom. The Knights are helping to re-build churches and schools devastated by Hurricane Katrina. The Knights raise money for children with special needs, seminarians, retired priests, and a host of other worthy causes. The Knights are fighting for the rights of pre-born babies and to keep the words "One Nation Under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance. For more information visit www.kofc.org

Who is Linus?

2006-10-28T11:41:00.000-07:00

With his ubiquitous blue blanket, his adeptness at quoting Scripture and his words of wisdom beyond his youthful age, the Peanuts character Linus is one of the most enduring and lovable icons of American culture. Linus has waited in vain for the Great Pumpkin, waxed poetically about the sacrifices at D-Day and brought the true meaning of Christmas clearly into focus by quoting Luke's Gospel in the midst of commercialism.

There is much that we know about Linus, fictitious as he is though. Yet there is another Linus that we know very little about. That is Pope St. Linus, the successor to St. Peter and 2nd Pope of the Catholic Church.

What little we do know about St. Linus comes to us from several early Church writers, namely St. Irenaeus, Church historian Eusebius, St. Hippolytus and Julius Africanus. St. Irenaeus and Eusebius record him as succeeding St. Peter after his matrydom. At the time, there was no Pope in the modern sense of the word. Nevertheless, St. Linus led the Church in Rome for twelve years. He in turn was succeeded by St. Anencletus.

In his Second Letter to St. Timothy, St. Paul wrote, "Eubulus, Pudens, Linus, Claudia, and all the brothers send greetings (4:21)." St. Irenaeus, Eusebius, and some Western traditions identify this as Linus the successor of St. Peter. Given that St. Paul was writing from Rome at the time, he could have been referring to St. Linus. However, as the Jerome Biblical Commentary noted, Linus was common name at the time.

The details about St. Linus's life are sketchy but we can draw some deductions. In succeeding St. Peter, St. Linus took on a mantle of tremendous responsibility at a time when the early Church was struggling to survive and define itself. Many of its early leaders and evangelists had been killed or imprisoned, most especially St. Peter and St. Paul. Early Christians were struggling against not only the Roman authorities but Jewish religious leaders. Many, if not most, Christians believed that Christ would return within their lifetimes.

Both Linus the comics character and St. Linus the Pope have impacted the world in their own ways. While the blanket-toting Linus's impact may be more readily apparent, St. Linus undoubtedly helped a fledgling Church at a time when it needed leadership, faith and courage to survive.

[Richard P. McBrien's Lives of the Popes and The Jerome Biblical Commentary were consulted for this posting.-BJD]

Military Chaplains Serving God and Country

2006-10-26T18:46:00.000-07:00

For as long as Americans have been going off to war, ministers, priests and other clergy have been accompanying them as chaplains. Military chaplains have been serving the spiritual needs of America’s service men and women since colonial times, through the Revolution, Civil War, and two world wars and now in the global war on terrorism.

The Army, Air Force, and Navy all provide chaplains for their members. In addition, the Navy provides chaplains for the Marine Corps and the Coast Guard.

Military chaplains pre-date the establishment of our nation. In 1775, the Continental Congress adopted legislation providing for chaplains for first the Continental Army and then the Continental Navy.

Military chaplains have honorably served throughout America’s toughest battles and campaigns. At Gettysburg, Father William Corby granted absolution to the soldiers of the famed Irish Brigade before they plunged into the maelstrom of the Wheatfield. Chaplains served in the trenches of France during World War One and Navy chaplains were with the Marines in their epic Battle of Belleau Wood.
During the infamous Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Navy Chaplains Thomas Kirkpatrick of USS Arizona and Father Aloysius Schmitt of USS Oklahoma were among the 2,403 military personnel killed that day. Just before the Battle of the Bulge, Third U.S. Army's Chief Chaplain Msgr. James O'Neil drafted a prayer for good weather for General Patton and several days later, God granted good weather for Third Army to halt the German Army's surprise counter-offensive.
Navy Chaplain Father Joseph O’Callahan was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroism aboard the carrier USS Franklin when she was nearly sunk by kamikazes off Japan in 1945.

During the Korean War, Army Chaplain Father Emil Kapaun was captured and imprisoned by the Communist forces. Enduring appalling living conditions, Father Kapaun ministered to his fellow prisoners until succumbing to pneumonia. The Catholic Diocese of Wichita, Kansas is promoting his cause for sainthood. Visit www.frkapaun.org for more information.

Army Chaplain Father Charles Watters of 173rd Airborne Brigade and Navy Chaplain Father Vincent Cappodanno of the 3rd Battation / 5th Marines both were awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously for ministering to the wounded in the midst of fierce battles in Vietnam. Father Watters was also a 4th Degree member of the Knights of Columbus.

During my time in the Sandbox, I was impressed by the great efforts that our Armed Forces make to provide religious ministry to service members. At my base - which was one of the larger ones in Iraq - the Army and Navy chaplains pooled their resources to provide religious ministry. On any given Sunday, there were a dozen different worship services - Catholic, Lutheran, Methodist, non-denominational, contemporary Protestant, evangelical, etc. - held in four different locations on the base. During the week, there were Bible studies and prayer groups. Our base did not have Jewish or Mormon chaplains assigned so lay leaders coordinated the worship for their faith groups. A Jewish chaplain was flown in for the Jewish soldiers and Marines to celebrate the High Holy Days. I was able to attend Mass every Sunday and Holy Day that I was there. In addition, the Catholic chaplains flew out to the forward areas regularly to provide worship services for the smaller bases.

Military chaplains have served America’s military members in every conflict and war. They have ministered to the wounded and dying, often while under fire. They have held worship services aboard ships, at established bases and under the most rudimentary field conditions. They have provided counseling and spiritual direction. Back at home they have comforted the families of those who have fallen. They have lived the words "for God and country."

Pray for Vocations

2006-10-23T16:39:00.000-07:00

The author of A Catholic Life blog (see my links section) has created an outstanding website about our Catholic faith. He goes by the name of Moneybags.

Moneybags was kind enough to create a link between our two respective blogs and so I am pleased to return the favor. He is also discerning a vocation to the priesthood.

So in his honor and to spiritually aid him in his most worthy endeavors and to aid all those whom God is calling, I am proud to post up this prayer for vocations by Pope Benedict XVI:

O Father,
raise up among Christians
numerous and holy vocations to the priesthood,
to keep the faith alive
and guard the gracious memory of your Son Jesus
through the preaching of his word
and the administration of the Sacraments,
with which you continually renew your faithful.
Give us holy ministers of your altar,
who are careful and fervent guardians of the Eucharist,
the sacrament of the supreme gift of Christ
for the redemption of the world.
Call ministers of your mercy, who,
through the sacrament of Reconciliation,
spread the joy of your forgiveness.
Grant, O Father,
that the Church may welcome with joy
numerous inspirations of the Spirit of your Son
and, docile to His teachings,
may she care for vocations to the ministerial priesthood
and to the consecrated life.
Sustain the Bishops,
priests and deacons,
consecrated men and women,
and all the baptized in Christ,
so that they may faithfully fulfil their mission at the service of the Gospel.
This we pray You through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Mary, Queen of Apostles, pray for us.

Pope Benedict XVI,
(Message of the Holy Father for the 43rd World Day of Prayer for Vocations)
(The Holy Father's Message is posted at www.usccb.org/vocations)

NBC Deletes Madonna Crucifixion Scene

2006-10-21T06:50:00.000-07:00

The American Family Association (www.afa.net) is reporting that NBC has decided to delete the controversial and blasphemous crucifixion scene from its November broadcast of a Madonna concert. AFA reports that NBC received over 750,000 e-mails of opposition to this scene being broadcast.

Madonna has earned quite a reputation for offensive acts towards Christianity. Originally, NBC planned to broadcast a scene in which Madonna appears on stage crucified. This scene was considered highly offensive by a great many Christians who did not hesitate to let their outrage be known.

I am glad that NBC has chosen not to air this blasphemy and I pray that the Holy Spirit may enlighten Madonna as to the errors of her ways which mock Christianity and the great love our Saviour has for us all.

Pope Innocent III and St. Francis of Assisi

2006-10-19T17:30:00.000-07:00

Adorning the walls of the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi are a series of twenty-eight frescoes painted by the famed Florentine Renaissance artist Giotto (1276-1337). They tell the story of a man’s extraordinary journey of faith; it is often said that St. Francis’s life more nearly mirrored Jesus Christ than any other human being. Each of Giotto’s frescoes is powerful in its spiritual representation and magnificent in its use of color, structure and form.

For me personally, one frescoe stands out in particular from this inspiring group: "The Dream of Innocent III." As the title indicates, the frescoe depicts a dream that Pope Innocent III had in 1208. On the viewer's right side of the frescoe, a richly adorned Pope Innocent III sleeps in an ornate bed chamber. On the left side, the Lateran Basilica in Rome leans dangerously. Its collapse is prevented by a humble man dressed in a simple robe who physically uses his shoulders to hold up the Basilica.

At the time of Innocent III's dream, St. Francis had gathered a small group of followers and was making his way to Rome to seek Papal authorization for their fledgling monastic order. The Pope interpreted his dream to mean that St. Francis would been instrumental in reforming and strengthening the Catholic Church. Accordingly, the Pope not only received St. Francis but also approved his order.

"The Dream of Innocent III" depicts two men who in seemingly contradictory ways both made major contributions to the Church established by Jesus Christ. Pope Innocent III represented Church power and authority. "Innocent III was one of the most important and powerful popes in the entire history of the Church, and his pontificate is considered the summit of the medieval papacy," wrote Richard P. McBrien in his Lives of the Popes (208). Innocent III exerted his authority over not just the Church but secular states as well. He combated heresy, reformed the Church and the clergy, and convened the Fourth Lateran Council.

In stark contrast to the powerful Pope Innocent III was the humble St. Francis. The son of a wealthy merchant, St. Francis renounced his life of privilege and embarked upon a faith journey of abject poverty and spiritual wealth. He soon attracted a group of like-minded followers and by example launched a religious order that dramatically improved the Church through piety, poverty and service. Led by his friend St. Clare, a female order developed to complement his efforts. He even was blessed to bear the Holy Wounds of our Savior - the Stigmata. Death did not end his holy mission as evidenced by his many posthumous apparitions and intercessory miracles.

In considering the "Dream of Innocent III," we can symbolically see how selflessly St. Francis devoted himself to the Church Christ established on earth. He uses his body to prevent the Basilica from collapsing. His countenance is one full of faith and determination, and is devoid of fear and ambition. Like his role model Jesus Christ, he is willing to sacrifice himself for the good of the Church and mankind.

[Note on sources: In preparing this reflection, Richard P. McBrien's Lives of the Popes (NY: HarperSanFrancisco, 2000), H.W. Crocker III's Triumph: The Power and Glory of the Catholic Church (NY: Prima Publishing, 2001), and The Illustrated Guide of Assisi were consulted.]

Giotto's masterpiece may be viewed online at

http://www.abcgallery.com/G/giotto/giotto138.html

Faith for the Journey of Life Blog provides this link for illustrative purposes only and does not endorse the content of this website.

Pope Canonizes Bishop / Knight of Columbus

2006-10-17T18:27:00.000-07:00

Pope Benedict XVI canonized Bishop Rafael Guizar Valencia (1878-1938) during a Mass held in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, 15 October 2006. "May the example of St. Raphael Guizar Valencia be a call to brother bishops and priests to consider as a fundamental element of their pastoral projects - alongside the spirit of poverty and evangelization - the formation of priestly and religious vocations and their formation in accordance with Christ’s heart," said the Pope.

Bishop Guizar Valencia was an advocate of the poor, an untiring missionary, an educator, a courageous defender of the Church, strong proponent for priest formation and a member of the Knights of Columbus. He spent much of his life fleeing religious persecutions and living in exile in Cuba and Guatemala.

It was while he was living in Cuba that he was elected Bishop of Vera Cruz, Mexico on 1 August 1919. He returned to Mexico the following January. While Bishop, he founded a clandestine seminary in Mexico City that operated for fifteen years.

"A bishop can do without a mitre, a crosier, and even a cathedral," the future saint once remarked, "but never without a seminary, because the future of his diocese depends on the seminary."

While serving as Bishop, St. Raphael Valencia became a member of Knights of Columbus Council 2311 in Vera Cruz on 16 August 1923.

St. Raphael Guizar Valencia is the seventh Knight of Columbus to be canonized as a saint. The other six Saint / Knights - Fathers Luis Batiz Sainz, Jose Maria Robles Hurtado, Mateo Correa Magallanes, Miguel de la Mora de la Mora, Rodrigo Aguilar Aleman, and Pedro de Jesus Maldonado Lucero - were all martyred in Mexican during the religious persecutions of the 1920s.

Also canonized with Bishop Guizar Valencia were the Italians St. Filippo Smaldone (1848-1923) and St. Rosa Venerini (1656-1728) and a French nun St. Theodore Guerin (1798-1856) who established schools in the United States.

While on a mission in Cordoba in December 1937, the Bishop suffered a heart attack. Despite being bedridden, he continued to manage his diocese and seminary and celebrate daily Mass. The Lord God called him home on 6 June 1938.

[Information for this posting providing by the Knights of Columbus website www.kofc.org and the Vatican website www.vatican.va ]

The Sacrament of Reconciliation and a Trip to the Sandbox

2006-10-09T16:33:00.000-07:00

As instituted by our Lord Jesus Christ and administered by our Holy Catholic Church, the Sacrament of Reconciliation is a vital way for us sinners to be reconciled with God and renew our friendship with Him. Last year, the importance of this Sacrament took on a whole new significance when I was mobilized and deployed to Iraq.

On the day that I left for Iraq last year, I stood talking with a Navy chaplain in the terminal of the air base that we were leaving from. A young Marine approached us. Like us, he would soon be boarding a plane to fly to Iraq and an uncertain future. With an apparent look of unease, he asked if the chaplain was a Catholic priest and if he could hear a confession.

I could easily relate to the Marine's concerns. We were about to depart for a war zone and no one except God knew for certain what lay in store for us. Iraq is not a place you want to go to with a soul full of unconfessed sin.

Just a month prior I was filled with the same anxieties. I was mobilized for service in Iraq with just six days to prepare. The unit that I was being assigned to had already deployed. I was supposed to catch up with it in Iraq, so time was critical. I had a million things to do and just a few days to get them done. Since I was heading into a war zone, making a good confession and getting right with the Lord was a high priority for me.

I made an appointment with a priest friend of mine - Father Maz - to receive the Sacrament. Unfortunately, in the rush to get ready for mobilization, I was unable to make the appointment and had to call Father to cancel. Over the phone he prayed to our Blessed Mother for my protection.

Needless to say, I was quite anxious about when I would get a chance to confess. I fully expected to be in Iraq in less than a week and I wanted to receive absolution before I got there.

Shortly after talking with Father Maz, I drove past Our Lady of Fatima Church located near my air base in Pennsylvania. Remembering that the church had Perpetual Adoration, I stopped in to talk to Jesus. As I walked into the Adoration Chapel, I saw a priest praying in the front pew.

I am a firm believer that there are no coincidences with God. So I saw that priest's presence in the Adoration Chapel for what it was: God looking out for me. Dressed in my summer white Navy uniform, I walked up to the priest and said, "Excuse me, Father. I am heading to Iraq in a few days. Could you hear my confession?" So in the presence of Our Lord, I made my Confession and received absolution from that priest.

As it turned out, getting me to Iraq took longer than anticipated. A month later, I was in the air base terminal in North Carolina talking with a Navy Chaplain when a young Marine approached us looking for a priest to confess to. Unfortunately, this chaplain was Christian but not a Catholic priest.

But there was another Navy Chaplain traveling with us who was a Catholic priest. After a few minutes of searching, I located the Catholic Chaplain and brought the Marine to him. As best could be done under the circumstances, the Marine confessed his sins and received absolution from the Catholic Chaplain right there in the air terminal.

Just like God took care of me in the Adoration Chapel back in Pennsylvania, God took care of this Marine in that air terminal in North Carolina. We both boarded the plane for Iraq, still uncertain of the future but certain of God's love for us and His boundless mercy. For those who seek God with a repentant heart, God will not keep His mercy for them.

Columbus's Voyage of Faith

2006-10-07T07:25:00.000-07:00

Christopher Columbus was and is to this day, a man of myth and controversy. Others set foot in the New World before him. He is attacked for his worldly ambition and his supposed treatment of the native peoples. He is castigated for having opened the New World up to European colonization and exploitation.

Oftentimes lost in the various controversies and myths surrounding Christopher Columbus is the fact that his 1492 voyage of discovery was also very much a voyage of faith. True, Columbus had worldly intentions. However, his voyage was also both based upon his devout Christian faith and intended to bring that Christian faith to the indigenous peoples of the lands he sailed to.

Columbus faced a great many obstacles in his efforts to prepare and embark upon such a momentous voyage. Contrary to popular myth, however, convincing people that the world was not flat was not one of them. Most educated persons of Columbus's time knew that the world was round based upon the learning of the ancient Greeks. Those who doubted Columbus's enterprise did so because they believed the world was much larger than he had calculated. They were right; Columbus gross over-estimated the circumference of the world.

For a mariner embarking upon such a great voyage during the 15th Century, great faith was also needed. Columbus's ships were miniscule compared with the ships that cross the Atlantic today. The famed Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria are estimated to be less than 80 feet in length, with a draft of 6 to 10 feet and a beam between 20 and 25 feet. His ships were subject to the vicisitudes of wind, weather and waves. He lacked accurate charts and weather information. His navigational equipment was rudimentary compared with today's equipment. Any number of factors could have destroyed him and his ships, rendering him a historical footnote.

To help him overcome these difficulties, Columbus drew upon great faith in God. Columbus was a devout Catholic who regularly attended Mass. On the morning of setting out on his voyage, Columbus attended Mass. As was common among mariners of the day, Columbus and his crew prayed at frequent intervals throughout the day while at sea. Everyday at sunset, they sang the Salve Regina. His writings and his journal of the voyage have frequent references to God. He placed great trust in God for his safety and that of his crew.

"In matters of the Christian religion, without doubt he was a Catholic and of great devotion," wrote the famed Spanish priest and historian Father Bartolome de Las Casas in his Historia de las Indias. Not only did de Las Casas know Columbus personally but both his father and uncle had sailed with him.

For Columbus, this voyage was not just about trusting in God to see him through it. It was very much about bringing God and the Christian faith to the people whom he would meet. As de Las Casas wrote of Columbus and the indigenous peoples, "he desire and was eager for the conversion of these peoples and that in every region the faith of Jesus Christ be planted and enhanced." Columbus strongly believed that God wanted him to bring Christianity to the peoples of the Far East.

On 12 October 1492, Columbus and his party set foot upon an island he named San Salvador after Jesus Christ. On the shore, they knelt in thanks to God for having brought them here. On this and other islands he visited, Columbus erected Crosses to claim these lands for Christ.

It was Columbus's faith and his opening of the New World to Christianity that inspired a young priest in New Haven, Connecticut in October of 1881 to name his new charitable order in his honor. The order is known as the Knights of Columbus and that young priest was named Father Michael J. McGivney.

Altogether, Columbus ultimately made a total of four voyages to the New World. He set up colonies, explored and conducted missionary activities to spread Christianity. To his dying day, he believed that he had reached India, not realizing he had literally bumped into a new continent.

[Hundreds of books have been written on Christopher Columbus. One of the best is Samuel Eliot Morison's Admiral of the Ocean Sea - A Life of Christopher Columbus. (NY: MJF Books, 1942).]

The Two Madonnas

2006-10-05T17:43:00.000-07:00

There are two Madonnas prominent in the world today but the contrasts between them could not be greater.

The first Madonna is the Mother of God, the Theotokos, the Handmaid of the Lord whose "Yes" to God enabled our Savior to embark upon his mission of salvation. Selflessly devoted to God and her son, Mary lived a life of great faith, humility and love. She is Queen of the Universe and our ever faithful advocate and adopted mother. She is a model of faith and love.

Mary the Mother of God's greatest trial occurred during the agonizing Passion of her son. From the time she met him as he carried the instrument of his death until he gave up his life on the Cross, Mary was with him agonizing in a mental and emotional ordeal second only to his own. She held his lifeless body in her arms and helped put her son into the sepulcher. She was the other victim of our sins.

The other Madonna is the trashy pop singer who abandoned her Catholic faith and made an "entertainment" career of licentiousness and religious mockery. Her latest outrage makes a mockery of Jesus's Crucifixion. During a concert to be broadcast on NBC next month, the singer Madonna appears on stage crucified on a disco ball-like cross.

Had this Madonna been at Calvary, her behavior probably would have been far, far different than that of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Her voice would have joined with those of the chief priests and scribes as they mocked Jesus hanging on the cross: "He saved others; he cannot save himself. Let the Messiah, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe. (Mark 15:31-32).

There are two Madonnas prominent in the world today...but there is only one who is worthy of the name. She is the Blessed Mother of Jesus. She agonized with her son at his crucifixion; she did not mock him and his great act of love for mankind.

Madonna's Latest Outrage Targets the Cross of Christ

2006-10-05T17:04:00.000-07:00

In all of human history no event has greater eternal significance for us all than Jesus Christ dying on the Cross for our salvation. Yet, next month, Madonna (the trashy pop singer - not the Mother of Our Savior) and the NBC television network will be making a public mockery of the greatest act of love ever performed.

This November, NBC plans to broadcast a concert by pop singer Madonna that includes a scene in which she mocks the Crucifixion of our Savior.

"In the show, Madonna, wearing a fake crown of thorns, descends on a suspended mirrored, disco ball-type cross," reports the American Family Association on its website www.afa.net. "When some Christian leaders complained about the mockery, NBC ignored their concerns."

Several Christian groups, including the AFA and the Catholic League, are publicly opposing this outrage and are calling upon us to take action with them. Through its website, the AFA is collecting and forwarding e-mails to NBC calling for them not to broadcast the Madonna crucifixion scene of her concert. I urge you to visit www.afa.net to join in AFA's efforts.

For Christians and for the human race as a whole, there is no more important event than the Cross and Resurrection of Jesus. As the late great Pope John Paul II wrote in Crossing the Threshold of Hope, "Contained within the Cross and the Resurrection is the certainty that God saves man, that He saves him through Christ, through His Cross and His Resurrection" (68).

Throughout her infamous career, Madonna has been notorious for her outrageous statements and acts towards Christianity. Had she been at Calvary she probably would have joined with those mocking him as he hung in agony for our sins.

Madonna's conduct is disturbing enough but equally disturbing is NBC's complicity in her outrageous behavior by broadcasting that offensive crucifixion scene. Does NBC have such little regard for the Christian members of its audience that the network would broadcast such an attack upon the core beliefs of their faith?

There still is time for us to act and act we must. Christ suffered and died on the Cross for us all; we ought not to ignore this offense against him. The Madonna concert is scheduled to be broadcast sometime next month. E-mail, write or call NBC and urge them not to broadcast the crucifixion scene:
Bob Wright,
Chairman
NBC
30 Rockefeller Plaza
New York, NY 10112
Phone: 212-664-4444

Echoing the words of our Savior with the most profound humility and charity, I beseech our merciful God..."Father, forgive NBC and Madonna, for they know not what they do."

The Power of the Word

2006-10-03T06:26:00.000-07:00

As St. John so eloquently tells us in his Gospel, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word Was God…And The Word Became Flesh and Dwelt Among Us…(John 1:1, 14).” And now over 2000 years after that extra-ordinary event, we ought to pause and reflect upon the power of that Word Who Became Flesh for us and for our salvation.

Over 2000 years ago, the Word was just a newborn baby laying in a humble manger whose birth was only known to a few people chosen by God. Today, hundreds of millions annually celebrate his birth.

In the last 2000+ years, the Word has been taught to peoples all across the globe. The Word has been translated into most human languages. Such has been the power of the Word that it has been able to unite peoples of very different cultures and histories. For the Word sees all people not by race or history or ethnicity or any other of those barriers we choose to erect to one another. The Word sees us all as children of the Word’s Father and loves us accordingly.

The Word chose twelve apostles to bring His Word to the far corners of the globe and He founded His Church so that His Word would be taught to future generations.

And the Word has seen much struggle and strife during those past 2000 years. Because the Word was not of this world, this world has time and time again sought to destroy the Word.

But the Word has survived and flourished. Such is the power of the Word that it has survived World Wars, schisms, the Reformation, scandals, and competing religions. It has suffered and triumphed over great persecutions at the hands of the Roman Empire, the French Revolution, barbarians, Nazis, Communists, Muslims, and a long, long line of dictators. The Word has overcome the most vial and base aspects of the human souls whom the Word came into the World to reform and liberate.

The Word even survived and overcame assaults upon himself while he was on earth. The Word flourished on earth despite rejection and doubt, treachery and deceit, and countless other evils. The Word has even survived His own Crucifixion, rising again triumphantly on the third day. Such has been the power of the Word.

But the Word’s Power is not Power in the Sense of this world. In this world, power is attributed to military strength, political influence, and strong economies. Power is seen as the ability to influence others. Too often, power is imposing one’s will upon others against their will. Too often, power is oppression, exploitation, control and repression.

But the Power of the Word is not of this world. His power is forgiveness, compassion and mercy. His power is doing unto others as you would have them do unto you. His power is love your neighbor as yourself and love God above all else.

The Word’s power liberates, not imprisons; it uplifts, not suppresses; it seeks to promote the best in people, not draw out the worst.

The Word is a promise: a promise of salvation and redemption, a promise of a better world than this, a promise of a world without end with the Word in Heaven with the Father.

May the Word be with us always. May we ever be mindful of the love that brought us the Word and sustains us through the Word. May we always be thankful for the Power of the Word. May the Word always animate and inspire our hearts, minds and souls for His greater glory.

In the Beginning...

2006-10-01T18:21:00.000-07:00

With one exception, everything and everyone has a beginning: the universe, the earth, people, civilizations, nations, ideas, movements, and so on. The one exception is He who began everything and His Son and His Spirit.

The universe and the earth began by God simply willing them into being. "In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless wasteland, and darkness covered the abyss, while a mighty wind swept over the waters. Then God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light." (Genesis 1:1-3). "Of old you laid the earth's foundations; the heavens are the work of your hands," the Psalmist declares (Psalm 102:26). God had no material that He crafted into stars and planets and what not. He simply willed it to happen.

Since the creation of the earth and man, civilizations and kingdoms and empires and nations have begun. Ancient Sumeria began in Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt began along the Nile River over 5,000 years ago. The Roman Empire began with the end of the Roman Republic. The Byzantine Empire began with a split from the Roman Empire in the Fourth Century A.D. The colonization of the New World began with Christopher Columbus. The United States began with a Declaration of Independence in July 1776.

Great and small movements, beneficial and infamous ideas, and epochs of history have also had their beginnings: the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, the French Revolution, the Industrial Revolution, democracy, fascism, Communism.

We people have our beginnings. We begin with God and by God for God created each of us. "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you" (Jeremiah 1:5). Despite what the abortionists and the aetheists say, God begins our lives at conception in the wombs of our mothers with the cooperation of our parents.

All things and all people have beginnings. The one exception is God - Thrice Holy, One in Three Beings. God has no beginning because He simply exists in a way that no one outside of the Trinity can understand. God cannot have a beginning because to begin means to be within time and God exists outside of time. He created time so He cannot exist subject to time.

Similarly neither Jesus nor the Holy Spirit have beginnings. God did not create Jesus. Jesus has always been one in being with the Father. As St. John tells us, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God." (John 1:1-2). Emanating from God the Father and God the Son, the Holy Spirit also has no beginning.

Though Jesus has always existed one in being with the Father and has no eternal beginning, Jesus had several beginnings during his earthly life. He began his earthly journey at the Incarnation, conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mary (Luke 1:26-38). He entered into his earthly life born of the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem (Luke 2:1-14; Matthew 1:25) . He begins his public ministry by preaching the Good News and by calling ordinary men to be his disciples (Matthew 4:12-17; John 1:35-51). He began his Church on the night before his Crucifixion when he instituted the Holy Eucharist (Luke 22:14-20).

We all begin with God but that does not mean we are with God today. When we enter this world, there a million things and people trying to separate us from God. There are countless distractions in this world: money, fame, sports, careers, entertainment, sin, etc. There are people and evil spiritual beings who purposefully try to wrest us from God. They try to deceive us and lead us astray and too often they are successful. Sometimes, we get separated from God through no fault of our own because there is no one to help us know God. Sometimes we just wander away from God because we take Him for granted or we get pre-occupied with the things of this world. Sometimes we get angry at God and willfully run away from Him.

If anything in the preceding paragraph applies to you, all is not lost. You can begin again with God. If you never knew God, you can begin a relationship with God. If you have turned away from God, you can have a new beginning with God. Open your heart to God and let Him begin to be a part of your life.

If you begin with God and stay with God, you will not have an end with God.

St. Benedict and Pope Benedict XVI

2006-09-29T07:58:00.000-07:00

[Author's Note:] This installment was originally written last year for another one of my Blogs but in light of the recent attacks upon Pope Benedict XVI, I have decided to update it and re-post it here.

Our current Pope derives his name from the great Saint Benedict, a man whose faith and life in the pursuit of Christ’s ideal initiated a spirituality and devotion to God that resonates to this day. It is difficult to summarize the spiritual impact that St. Benedict had upon Europe in just a few words. St. Benedict did not invent monasticism, nor was he the first to develop a Rule of Order for monasteries. St. Benedict took monasticism in new spiritual directions, reforming it and fostering its growth. His order devoted itself to teaching children, feeding the poor, preaching the Gospel, serving the sick and infirmed, and honoring the Father through prayer and worship. Under St. Benedict’s example and his Rule of Order, monasteries and monks spread Christianity and preserved European civilization. With its piety and simplicity, St. Benedict’s Rule was widely adopted and followed. As Church historian H. W. Crocker III has written, “He is the consummate example of the best of the Church.”(100).

For many years now, Europe has been in spiritual decline. In his book Memory and Identity, the late Pope John Paul II summarized Europe’s spiritual growth and post-Enlightenment decline. “So-called ‘Enlightened’ European thought tried to dissociate itself from this God-Man, who died and rose again, and every effort was made to exclude him from the history of the Continent,” he wrote. “This approach still has many stubbornly faithful adherents among thinkers and politicians of today.”(97).

Today, Europe is in need of spiritual revival. “There’s no doubt that the Catholic faith is doing better just about everywhere else in the world except Europe,” moral theologian Pia de Solenni wrote last year in the Catholic weekly Our Sunday Visitor.

It has been widely reported that Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger adopted the name of Benedict as a signal of his desire to renew Europe spiritually. Numerous popes throughout history have drawn inspiration from St. Benedict. Pope St. Gregory the Great included him in his Dialogues, describing his miraculous deeds and faith. Pope Pius XII called him “the Father of Europe.” Pope Paul VI declared him to be Europe’s patron saint. Thus far, sixteen popes have taken his name, including our new one. Of those Benedict popes, one has been canonized and another beatified.

In 1979, Pope John Paul II exhorted Europe to follow St. Benedict’s example. Now in 2006, a new Pope is drawing inspiration from him to renew Europe. Can one man really change the spiritual nature of Europe? At various times in Europe’s history, individual men and women have changed the spiritual nature of Europe. With the assistance of the Holy Spirit, it can be done again. In the 6th Century, a man named Benedict led Europe to a new spiritual plane; in this 21st Century, may God empower a new pope named Benedict to lead Europe back to its Christian heritage.

[Sources: Pope John Paul II’s Memory and Identity: Conversations at the Dawn of a Millennium. NY: Rizzoli, 2005.; H.W. Crocker III’s Triumph: The Power and Glory of the Catholic Church (NY: Prima Publishing, 2001); Pia de Solenni’s “Pope Benedict XVI could bring hope back to Europe.” Our Sunday Visitor: 8 May 2005: 13.]

Pope Benedict XVI, Islam, and Religious Tolerance

2006-09-27T06:41:00.000-07:00

Earlier this month, Pope Benedict XVI ignited a world-wide firestorm of controversy and Muslim outrage with a speech at Regensburg University in Germany about faith and violence.

My purpose for this installment of my Blog is not to condemn Islam. The ferocity of Muslim responses, however, compels me to put forth a few words in defense of my Pontiff.

It is regrettable that a great many in the Muslim world have completely missed the point of the Pope’s remarks.

In condemning religious justifications for violence, the Pope quoted – without endorsement – remarks by the 14th Century Byzantine Emperor Manuel Paleologos II: “Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.”

At no time in that speech did the Pope endorse the Emperor’s words, agree with the Emperor’s words or state that the Emperor’s words are the official position of the Catholic Church with regard to Islam.

[Please let me make this abundantly clear – my quoting of the Emperor’s words in no way means that I agree with the Emperor. We have already seen too well the effects of words being taken out of context.]

Muslim outrage to the Pope’s words was immediate and virulent. Salih Kapusuz, the deputy leader of Turkey’s ruling party, went so far as to compare the Pope with Hitler and Mussolini.

Sadly the vehement response by many Muslims is indicative of the religious intolerance that is prevalent in much of the Muslim world. In many Muslim countries, including our own ally Saudi Arabia, the mere mention of the name of Jesus is grounds for imprisonment. In many Muslim countries, Muslims who convert to Christianity are often killed. Ottoman Turks – the predecessors of Salih Kapusuz – massacred upwards of 1.5 million Armenian Christians between 1915 and 1923. Muslims such as those in Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran are fanatically committed to the destruction of Israel and the Jewish people. The September 11th terrorist attacks were committed by radical Muslims inspired by radical Muslim theology. Christians and Jews both face persecution, imprisonment and death in many Muslim countries from Egypt and the Sudan to Indonesia.

If those who are condemning the Pope had taken the time to read what he had actually said, they would clearly see that the Pope was not condemning Islam but condemning those who use violence to promote religion and those who use religion to justify violence. The Pope was advocating the use of faith and reason to achieve peace.

For a religion that declares itself as being peaceful, the widespread, violent reaction to the Pope’s speech contradicts that notion. A peaceful religion does not respond to insult by setting churches on fire, burning religious leaders in effigy, committing murder, and making death threats.

Pope Benedict XVI and his predecessor the late Pope John Paul II have been untiring advocates for peace and have struggled against violence in the name of religion. The recent outrage at Pope Benedict’s remarks is illustrative of the obstacles that proponents of peace (Christian, Jewish, Muslim and secular, among others) face in the Muslim world.

Who is God?

2006-09-25T15:45:00.000-07:00

Since all life begins with God, we should start this Blogging journey with God.

Who is God? Certainly neither this Blog nor all the blogs in the world could not adequately answer this question.

But for discussion purposes, let me briefly answer who God is to me. As a Catholic Christian, I believe that God is all-powerful, eternal, without beginning and without end, all-knowing, and all-seeing. God exists everywhere. God created everything simply by willing it into being. God has incomprehensible power at His disposal but He also has incomprehensible mercy and love for us. Just as God's power has no bounds, neither does His love and mercy. As Saint John records in that famous passage (John 3:16), God so loved the world that He sent His only Son into the world to redeem it. God is actually Three in Being - the Trinity. He is God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Three in one and one in three, a concept that is sooooo beyond human comprehension that it must be accepted on faith alone.

Who is God? Well this post was just to give you a basic frame of reference for who I believe God is. Essentially I shall continue answering this question with each subsequent posting.

Vivat Jesus!

Life is Journey...Have Faith

2006-09-25T14:59:00.000-07:00

Life is journey whose ultimate and eternal destination is determined by faith and how that faith is used. Whether you acknowledge it or not, your journey began with God and will ultimately end with Him or without Him.

In this Blog, I will share my thoughts on the journey of faith. I have been blessed by our most merciful God with many wonderful faith experiences and with knowing many faithful people. It is to His glory and in humble appreciation for His blessings in my life that I dedicate this Blog

Though I would like to believe that my writings have some inspiration from God, I do not claim any special revelation from Him per se. He did not speak to me from a burning bush like He did with Moses. He did not call to me directly like He did with Isaiah, Jeremiah, Elijah or any of the other Old Testament prophets. He did not send the archangel Saint Gabriel with any special messages. He did not send His Son to find me on the shores of Galilee like He did with Saints Peter, Andrew, James and John. He did not send the Blessed Mary with messages like He did with Saint Bernadette.

No, God does not speak to me in such dramatic, direct fashion. Nevertheless, I do believe that God does speak to me. He speaks to me through the Bible. He speaks through the teachings of Jesus Christ and the Roman Catholic Church. I believe that He speaks through the words and actions of others. I also believe that God talks to me in the silence of my heart during prayer. But I do not believe that I am the only one that God is conversing with.

As the title indicates, my Blog is about the Journey of Life and the Faith that is required for it. This is a very broad topic and at this point, I have no road map for where this Blog is going to lead. I pray for inspiration and I follow that inspiration wherever it leads me.

Basically, my postings will fall into one of five categories:

1. Christian / Catholic History
2. Catholic Theology
3. Catholic Personalities (Popes, Saints, Ordinary People, etc.)
4. Faith and Other Religions, including non-Christian religions
5. My Own Faith Journey

Hopefully, you will find something useful in what I share via this Blog.

Vivat Jesus!