Wednesday, July 31, 2013

These Stone Walls: A Father and a Priest . . .




a-father-and-a-priest-pope-francis-energizes-world-youth-day-father-gordon-j-macrae-slider-s
July 2013 brought advice for an angry priest from Venerable Fulton Sheen, and brought Pope Francis to cast Lumen Fidei upon World Youth Day and Millennial Catholics.
If you follow weather reports from the Northeastern U.S., then you know that New England has spent much of July in the grip of a heat wave. The three H’s – hazy, hot, and humid – pose a big challenge in prison where “climate control” is an 8-inch fan pushing hot air around a stifling concrete prison cell. As I wrote recently, plugging in my typewriter means unplugging that little fan. On the day I begin typing this post, the heat index in Concord, NH is 106 F, and likely ten degrees hotter “inside.” On such days, these stone walls quickly close in on us, and claustrophobia adds to the obstacles I wrote of months ago in “When the Caged Bird Just Can’t Sing: The Limits of Prison Writing.”
I received a lot of snail mail from TSW readers in June and July. I’ve tried to use pen and paper to respond to some, but for the most part the letters piled up to await cooler days. I’m sorry for that. I read every letter – most more than once – and, though it’s likely no consolation, I’m using one of the sturdier ones right now as “fan mail” – literally!
Knowing that as a prisoner I have no on-line access, several TSW readers have enclosed in their snail mail some of the interesting things they come across in the Catholic on-line world. I want to write about three such items, all received on the same July day posing for me a challenge about faith, fidelity, and fatherhood.
The first was a July 8, 2013 article from the National Catholic Reporter entitled “I am an angry priest,” by Gerald Kleba, a priest serving the Archdiocese of St. Louis, Missouri. Father Kleba began with an anecdote about arriving to anoint a dying parishioner surrounded by her adult children whom Father Kleba had known since their teens:
“I was wearing walking shorts and a sports shirt, so when the hospice nurse arrived at the house I had to introduce myself. ‘I’m Gerry Kleba, the family priest.’ I’m not much into clericalism, so I don’t use the title, ‘Father’ . . . “
Before I even got to the source and substance of Father Kleba’s anger, I found this part of his story to be terribly sad. I have often quoted a brief but brilliant article by my friend, the late Father Richard John Neuhaus entitled “Clerical Scandal and the Scandal of Clericalism.” In clear and compelling prose, Father Neuhaus laid out the harm that has been done to the Church and the faithful – both laity and priests – as a result of clericalism, especially in its priorities for preserving both a sense of entitlement and image.
The clericalist agenda for “keeping up appearances” was, for Father Neuhaus, a causative factor in the sexual abuse scandal that arose out of the cultural and sexual revolution of the 1960s and 1970s. The fact that the full impact of The Scandal was not really seen and felt until 2002 was evidence of the will of clericalism to preserve image at all cost.
That cost was very great, and paying it is the source of why Gerry Kleba is an angry priest as he put forth in NCR. The sad part for me was that shedding clericalism does not mean shedding a priestly identity. It does not mean discarding clerical garb, and it certainly does not mean declining to be known and seen as “Father.” The very last thing our Church and culture need is another Father who doesn’t want to be one.
Shedding the title, “Father” does nothing to ward off clericalism, and in fact adds to it an equally destructive scandal. The diminishment of fatherhood is a catastrophe in Western Culture with far-reaching and costly effects that I wrote of in a Father’s Day post entitled, “In the Absence of Fathers: A Story of Elephants and Men.” I live in a world in which the absence of fathers has had devastating consequences that have destroyed many more young lives than any sex abuse scandal. Our Church and our culture are in denial about this. The vastly growing numbers of young men in prison – many of whom have never met their fathers – would interpret an effort by me to cast off “Father” as a massive disappointment at best, and, at worst, a cruel joke.
Titles are not used in prison, but many young prisoners call me Father every chance they get. When I asked one why, he shrugged and said, “I just wanted to hear myself say it to someone.” They know the story that sent me to prison. They don’t believe it. They say there is no one else here they can trust. Read “In the Year of the Priest, the Tale of a Prisoner,” and then remind me again why we priests should cast off “Father.”
Be to Me a Father and a Priest StravinskasFather Kleba went on in his article to describe how his anger over the sexual abuse crisis in the priesthood has so stifled his ability to express fatherly concern for the young people in his parish today, but I believe he is missing the most obvious of those opportunities. It takes great courage to Be to Me a Father and a Priest, the title of a book about his priestly vocation by Father Peter M.J. Stravinskas (Newman House Press). It takes great fatherly love and courage to respond to a vocation to priesthood in the current milieu. The young men I hear from who are preparing for priesthood are outstanding in their courage. None of them could fathom a future in which they deal with the dangers of clericalism by shedding a priestly identity or the title, “Father.” To do so, for them, would be to shed the very courage that brought them to respond to priesthood in the first place.
This is not a criticism of Father Kleba, but I could not help but wonder what he might have expected from the readers of the National Catholic Reporter. The comments posted on the article, many of which were sent to me, were for the most part vile and hostile. Those who did not attack Father Kleba himself attacked the very substance of what Father Kleba embraced at ordination. Similar comments at NCR and other “leftist” venues seem to call for the radical feminization of Catholic Christianity in a tone that does not imply a wish to broaden a feminine presence and perspective in the Church and priesthood, but rather to eradicate all semblance and evidence of a masculine one. For them “Father” is twisted into power, abuse, and entitlement, and not community, love, and personal sacrifice.
FROM THE VENERABLE FULTON SHEEN
I paused for a half hour right here because Bishop Fulton Sheen just appeared on my little television screen, right on cue. In “Vatican II Turns Fifty: Catholic in an Age of Discontent” awhile back, I described the climate in which Bishop Sheen became a television star in the 1950s. I was just a small child then, but Father Gerry K1eba should remember him and that era quite well. As I watched and listened to Bishop Sheen just moments ago, I was struck by the power of his voice and screen presence. In a half hour, he laid bare the evil of Communism and its atheist state, the Soviet Union. As an orator, Stalin didn’t stand a chance against Fulton Sheen.
I was also struck by the difference in his TV venue – then and now. Today, you would see Bishop Sheen nowhere but EWTN, a Catholic network that must battle for space on the airwaves of secular broadcasting. In the 1950s, however, there was no “Catholic TV.” Bishop Fulton Sheen won the Emmy Award for “Most Outstanding Television Personality” on secular network television. Nothing evenly remotely similar could happen today, and I just can’t call that progress.
Just a day before the National Catholic Reporter published Gerry Kleba’s “I am an angry priest,” Msgr. Charles Pope published “Are We Down with the People or Up with the Cross?” on his Archdiocese of Washington blog. He began with some advice for priests by Venerable Fulton Sheen:
“We become real priests when we empty ourselves and no longer seek our [own] identity, and where we are lifted up to the cross, not going ‘down to people.’ Too many of us today feel we have to be loved . . . [thinking] the young will not love us unless we talk like them, eat like them, drink like them, clothe ourselves like them. No! They will not love us simply because we go down; they will love us when we lift them up. Else, the world will drag THEM down . . .”
(Bishop Fulton Sheen, “The Meaning of Being a Priest”).
I could not possibly add anything to that except perhaps a realization that I should be reading a great deal more of Bishop Fulton Sheen. In those few lines, he diagnosed clericalism and chartered a path out of it. Had priests listened to him then, the scandal that makes Father Kleba so angry could not have happened. I, for one, am listening now, and from these words of wisdom I must fill in something absent from my seminary training of the “me-first” 1970s: the power and necessity of fatherly sacrifice.
Two weeks ago, Catholic writer Ryan MacDonald published an article entitled “In Fr Gordon MacRae Case: Whack-a-Mole Justice Holds Court.” He raised a point I had not considered very well. My appeal effort – now beginning its next inevitable step, as Ryan revealed – is not just up against the case against me, but up against the entire cultural assault on both fatherhood and the priesthood.
I am an angry priest, too! I am angry that many other priests are angry about all the wrong things. I am angry about being scapegoated among too many U.S. priests; Most of all, I am angry about “Our Catholic Tabloid Frenzy About Fallen Priests,” the title of a recent TSW post that I had hoped other priests might read and disseminate with courage. A few did. Most didn’t. One TSW reader sent a link to it to all 12 board members of the Association of U.S. Catholic Priests. Not one responded. Not one.
But all of this anger is just empty if we as priests do not empty ourselves, as Msgr. Charles Pope and Venerable Fulton Sheen suggest, and seek to be lifted up to the cross. I now know my true sin as a priest: that the greater loss in my painful injustice was not my freedom, but my name. I found too painful the fact that many spoke ill of me, that other priests abandoned me, that some in the Church want to silence me. If, as Bishop Fulton Sheen suggests, I can be lifted up to the Cross, then I can see what’s wrong with the preceding sentence. It just has too many occurrences of “me.”
MILLENNIAL CATHOLICS EMBRACE LUMEN FIDEI
Also on the same day Father Gerry Kleba published “I am an angry priest” in NCR, TSW reader, Kevin D. Sullivan posted the first of a two-part manifesto for Millennial Catholics and the future of faith. A student in the class of 2014 at Georgetown University, Kevin published “Francis, a Pope for all Catholics (especially Millennials)” at the Washington Post “On Faith” blog on July 8. Part two entitled, “Millennials are faithful, but not always religious,” was posted at the Washington Post on July 15.
The “Scandal of Clericalism” Father Richard John Neuhaus wrote about came into being in the Church because many Catholics – both priests and laity alike – came to see the proper role of laity in the Church as to be the recipients of faith and grace rather than participants in it. Kevin Sullivan presented us with the perfect solution to clericalism – the example of Pope Francis:
“At every turn, the new Holy Father has been courageous. Pope Francis has opted for a simpler life . . . and challenged Christians to fulfill Christ’s mission in a tone never heard before. We have been invited not to follow him, but to join him in our common spiritual journey.”
In the second part of his article on the faith of Millennials, Kevin Sullivan wrote of a sea-change among his peers at Georgetown in just the last two years. He wrote of how perhaps ten students attended a 10 PM Sunday Mass on campus two years ago, and now there is standing room only. Kevin interprets this as I do: “the missing piece to my generation’s unique struggle with faith was community.”
Throughout last week, Pope Francis brought the light of faith to over two million young people from around the world who converged upon Rio de Janiero, Brazil for World Youth Day 2013. It was a massive celebration of community led by a man the world calls “Father.” This 76-year old Pontiff, who so many in the secular media questioned at election because of his age, absolutely energized over two million young people at World Youth Day, and called upon the world to be lifted up to the Cross. That is our community, our destiny, our freedom. The thunderous cheers heard round the world echoed what Kevin Sullivan wrote in the Washington Post:
 ”As the Holy Father continues to show remarkable courage, there is only one more way we can fully stand in solidarity with him. By showing courage ourselves as American papists. Such an embrace is not simply about allowing Pope Francis to lead us, but also about helping him to lead. Humbling himself from the moment of his very first words as Pope, Francis has offered us an opportunity that Millennial Catholics can uniquely embrace. By praying with him and journeying with him as papists, it will be more than the Church that is renewed. It will be our entire culture as well.”
Pope Francis Rio




Matt C. Abbott: "Papal sound bites: soothing the soul?"

 
Matt C. Abbott column
Papal sound bites: soothing the soul?


Matt C. Abbott
Matt C. Abbott
July 31, 2013

Pope Francis' style of speaking in edifying and sometimes humorous sound bites is definitely music to journalists' ears.

Given our media age of tweets, texts and tidbits, it's understandable.

What's frustrating to observe is the spin that often follows in the media. It's as if the Catholic faith has been reduced to whatever the pope's latest off-the-cuff remark happens to be.

But let's face it: That's just the way it is. It's not going to change anytime soon, whether it's Pope Francis or some future pope (assuming there's going to be a future pope, of course).

The media aren't particularly interested in quoting the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which does provide the authentic magisterial teachings. Yet even if they did, I wonder how many Catholics – or non-Catholics, for that matter – would give a darn? Probably a distinct minority.

Thus, when the dust settles from this latest papal encounter with the press, virtually everything will remain the same in the short run.

Anti-Catholic bigots will remain bigoted.

Catholic-friendly non-Catholics will remain non-Catholic, with many saying something to the effect of, "That Pope Francis sure seems like a nice and humble guy!"

Heterodox Catholics will continue to be heterodox.

Sedevacantists will continue to reject Vatican II and the Novus Ordo Mass, asserting that all post-Vatican II popes have been apostates and freemasons-in-disguise.

And orthodox Catholics will continue to hope and pray for the best, even throwing in a clean but corny joke or two (well, that's what I like to do, at least).

In the long run, it's hard to say what the effect of Pope Francis' pontificate will be. Perhaps he'll prove to be a holy genius who leads the Church into a new time of glory.

Then again, maybe not.

Maybe things will stay more or less the same.

Maybe things will get worse [shudder]. God only knows.

In the meantime, I'm very intrigued, even a bit perplexed, by the following allocution of Pope St. Pius X – one of the greatest popes in the history of the Church, no doubt – delivered in 1912, documented in the book The Pope, the Council, and the Mass, by James Likoudis and Kenneth D. Whitehead:
Food for thought.
 
 

Matt C. Abbott is a Catholic columnist with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication, Media and Theatre from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, and an Associate in Applied Science degree in Business Management from Triton College in River Grove, Ill. He has worked in the right-to-life movement and is a published writer focused on Catholic and social issues. He can be reached at mattcabbott@gmail.com.



© Copyright 2013 by Matt C. Abbott




Tuesday, July 30, 2013

From Mark Mallett: Prowling for Pray

Mark

Prowling for Pray



 

Be sober and vigilant. Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for [someone] to devour. Resist him, steadfast in faith, knowing that your fellow believers throughout the world undergo the same sufferings. (1 Pet 5:8-9) 

St. Peter’s words are frank. They should awaken every single one of us to a stark reality: we are being hunted daily, hourly, every second by a fallen angel and his minions. Few people understand this relentless assault on their souls. In fact, we live in a time where some theologians and clergy have not only downplayed the role of demons, but have denied their existence altogether. Perhaps it is divine providence in a way when movies such as the The Exorcism of Emily Rose or The Conjuring based on “true events” appear on the silver screen. If people do not believe in Jesus through the Gospel message, perhaps they will believe when they see His enemy at work.
Published in: | on July 30th, 2013 | 

The Moynihan Report: Letter #78: Pope's press conference


 
July 30, 2013, Tuesday -- The Pope's press conference, complete transcription
 
One observation on the Pope's celebrated interview: His praise of the Orthodox liturgy
 
Friends,
 
Here below is the complete transcription of the 80-minute press conference held by Pope Francis on July 28, on the airplane returning to Rome from Brazil.
 
Though I have not had time to translate the entire text, I expect to have it ready soon. Still, for those of you who can understand Italian, it seemed that it might be useful to send this out now, so that the original Italian is available for you to work with.
 
The speaker is given in parentheses before the paragraph spoken.
 
The Pope changes from Spanish to Italian on several occasions, and the text gives the Italian translation for these Spanish sections.
 
The names of the journalists who asked the questions are also given.
 
The Pope begins by giving his own reflections on World Youth Day, remarks which are in no way controversial, and then the session is opened up to questions, which the Pope answers, one by one.
 
I note here one thing only, though I hope to be able to offer further comment on this interview soon.
 
Toward the end of the interview, a Russian journalist asks the Pope to comment on the 1025th anniversary, currently being celebrated in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus, of the baptism of the Rus', the ancient Russian people, centered at the time (988 A.D.) in Kiev.
 
In response, the Pope makes a very positive judgement on the liturgy of the Orthodox. To my knowledge, this response has been little noted.
 
"They have conserved that pristine liturgy, no?" Pope Francis says. "So beautiful. We [i.e., the Latin Christians] have lost a bit the sense of adoration, they conserve it, they praise God, they adore God, they sing, time does not count. The center is God and that is a richness that I would like to emphasize on this occasion as you ask me this question."
 
(Original Italian: "Hanno conservato quella pristina liturgia, no?, tanto bella. Noi abbiamo perso un po’ il senso dell’adorazione, loro lo conservano, loro lodano Dio, loro adorano Dio, cantano, il tempo non conta. Il centro è Dio e quella è una ricchezza che vorrei dire in questa occasione in cui Lei mi fa questa domanda.")
 
At a moment when many are continuing to wonder about Francis' attitude toward the old liturgy of the Church, it is important to note these words of the Pope, which as far as I know have not been noted by any journalist commenting on this long interview.
 
I would also note that the remarks on homosexuality, which have been so commented on throughout the world, come at the very end of an hour and twenty minute interview. They come after the Pope has said once -- indicating he is about ready for the interview to come to an end -- that he has kept all the journalists from having their dinner. His words are in response to the very last question of this long session. In other words, the remarks come at the end of a very long and wide-ranging interview at the conclusion of which, humanly speaking, one has to imagine, the Pope was physically rather tired.
 
This transcription of the interview may be found on the Il Sismografo website, which is quite a useful website for those wishing to view a selection of the latest articles about Vatican affairs (Link: http://ilsismografo.blogspot.it/2013/07/conferenza-trascrizione-papa-integrale.html#more)

Sunday, July 28, 2013

From Opus Bono Sacerdotii : Bishop's Request




 
Opus Bono Sacerdotii
Work for the Good of the Priesthood
Deacon Giglio
 
A bishop has contacted Opus Bono for help.
 
One of his priests, Father Jim, has been calling Opus Bono everyday for a week! He is terrified that we will not be able to raise the money necessary for his care. “I raised millions for charity when I was a pastor, but now that I need help for myself, forgive me for saying this, but I can't get a dime to my name!” He exclaimed.
 
Father Jim is an elderly Catholic priest who is now in-firmed and in critical need of our immediate financial support. The diocese simply cannot afford the additional $500 per month cost to provide for Father Jim's unique health needs.
 
Would you please consider helping Father Jim by making a monthly Corporal Act of Mercy right now?
 
Your monthly contribution of any amount that you can afford will provide Father Jim with much needed additional care; but more importantly, it will relieve the awful anxiety he is feeling concerning lack of care. It will affirm to him that he is loved!
 
During these hot summer months, donations fall off drastically as family activities – wedding, graduations, reunions, etc. – take priority over our charitable giving – as they should. But, we really need your support right now, so that we can provide for Father Jim who is in desperate, urgent need.
 
To make a monthly donation on-line please go to: http://www.opusbono.org/donate.html
 
Or, you can mail your monthly support for Father Jim to:
 
Opus Bono Sacerdotii
P.O. Box 633
Oxford, MI 48371
 
We are so very grateful for your support!
 
May Our Lady of Priests be your health and your protection.
 
Joe
 
Joe Maher
President
 
 
 
 
Opus Bono Sacerdotii
P.O. Box 663, Oxford, MI 48371-0663   P 313.937.6305 



Saturday, July 27, 2013

Spiritual Gems - The Presence of Jesus and What He Desires of You- July 27, 2013

 The Presence of Jesus and What He Desires of You
 
If you would only recognize the gift of God in the Eucharist!  If you would only understand my predilection for you.  If you were only to comprehend the infinite love with which I follow you everywhere.  If you could see My fervent desire to do you good.  If you could see with your eyes the mountain of graces that I have bought with My blood and that hang over you,  longing for you to open your heart to receive them.  If you would only appreciate My Cross,  the secrets that it hides and the delights that God has reserved for the moment that you embrace them with love.
 
Our Lord to Venerable Concepcion de Cabrera de Armida

Please do forward these spiritual gems to your Catholic friends.

You can receive complimentary materials to make your Consecration to God through Mary’s Immaculate Heart ( important spiritual protection at this time in salvation history) at myconsecration.org... where you can also learn about Our Lady of Las Lajas.

You can learn more about our Lady of Fatima at www.wafusa.org.

God Bless you and your work,
 
Deacon Bob   Tony
     
Deacon Bob Ellis   Anthony Mullen
Executive Director   MyConsecration.org
World Apostolate of Fatima, USA   647 Edmonds Avenue
A Pontifical Association of the Faithful   Drexel Hill, PA  19026
visit us at: www.wafusa.org   visit us at: www.myconsecration.org

From The Friars eLetter: Why Me?

When people ask me how or why I came to be a Franciscan Friar of the Renewal, my first response is usually “It wasn’t my idea!” It really wasn’t! I was very unqualified, having spent my high school and college years running from God and living in direct opposition to the teachings of Jesus. Besides, I had other plans, like having a large family and making a million dollars. Still, the call came. God called me, the sinful guy with other plans, to follow Him, to be with Him, to live for Him, and to serve His people. I tried to protest, tried to run, but ultimately I surrendered to God’s mysterious, yet clear and relentless pursuit of me.

I thought of this recently as the daily mass readings from Exodus 3 recounted the call of Moses (readings for July 17 and 18). At the time of his call, Moses already had a life of his own. With his Egyptian life behind him, he was now married and tending the flocks of his father-in-law in the land of Midian. It seems that he also felt unqualified. In fact, he felt terrified. God was asking him to return to Egypt and liberate His people from their slavery. The problem, at least as Moses saw it, was that he had a death sentence hanging over his head. Years earlier, he had fled for his life after killing an Egyptian in defense of one of his fellow Hebrews. Now, God wanted to send him back to face Pharaoh and demand that he release God’s people. Moreover, it seems that Moses was not a great speaker (Ex. 4:10). So, in understandable exasperation, he questions God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and lead the children of Israel out of Egypt?” It’s a good question. In a way, Moses really wasn’t the best choice.



The Lord’s response to this good question was simple: “I will be with you.” God doesn’t try to reassure Moses by listing all of his admirable qualities. The Lord’s response implies that He didn’t choose Moses because he was the best choice or the most qualified. He chose Moses in order to demonstrate His own power and love. The Lord chose Moses so that he and all of the Israelites would know that it is God—working through Moses—who saved His people. Moses’ only reassurance in the midst of his own weakness and unworthiness is the Presence of God Himself!

Brothers and Sisters, is it not the same for us? Have we not felt our own weakness in the face of the call of God? Whether it be “the call” to a particular vocation or the daily call to live the gospel, we can easily feel unworthy and incapable of responding. But there’s a hidden wisdom at work here, even if it seems foolish.

In moments of self-doubt, when you’re asking “Why me”, remember these words of St. Paul: For consider your call, brethren; not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth; but God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong…[His] grace is sufficient for you, for [His] power is made perfect in weakness…[Therefore let us] gladly boast of [our] weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest upon [us] (1 Cor 1:26-27; 2 Cor 12:9).
+ Fr. Isaac Mary Spinharney, CFR
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Thursday, July 25, 2013

July 25, 2013 Medjugorje Message










 
Our Lady of Tijalina - Medjugorje      
Our Lady, Queen of Peace
   

J.M.J.
July 25, 2013
Feast of St. James  

Dear Family of Mary!

Our Lady's July 25, 2013 message from Medjugorje: 

"Dear children! With joy in my heart I call all of you to live your faith and to witness it with your heart and by your example in every way. Decide, little children, to be far from sin and temptation and may there be joy and love for holiness in your hearts. I love you, little children, and accompany you with my intercession before the Most High. Thank you for having responded to my call."

In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
Cathy Nolan
Mary TV





Logo



 "Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world!"   
Blessed John Paul II  -
Be connected! 
 





From Mary TV: Denis' update









 

Logo
 



"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world!"
Blessed John Paul II 


Be connected!   


  
July 24, 2013
Feast Day of St. Charbel

Dear Mary TV Family:

Marija gave Mary TV permission to film her apparition in Medjugorje last night (see July 23, 2013 apparition at <www.marytv.tv>).  Afterwards she said: "At the moment of the apparition and Our Lady came, I recommended to Our Lady all of us, all our intentions, all that we have in our hearts.  Our Lady prayed over us and she blessed us all." 

Last year Cardinal Schoenborn told Mary TV that Our Lady prays over and blesses those also connected to the apparition through the internet.  And the religious items they have placed by their computers for Our Lady to bless are blessed the same as those placed right in front of her during her apparition.

When Our Lady appears to Mirjana on Friday, August 2nd, everyone praying over the internet through Mary TV will be prayed over by Our Lady and receive her blessing the same as those physically present during the apparition that is taking place in Medjugojre....  The Holy See has confirmed Cardinal Schoenborn's assessment of blessings through the internet:  "The Vatican has announced that those Catholics who follow the events of World Youth Day via social media will be granted the same indulgence - and time off purgatory - as those who attend the event in person."  (Also note the Archdiocese of Montreal's announcement, "A blessing from God on the Internet" at < http://diocesemontreal.org/en/news/latest-news---en/reader/items/a-blessing-from-god-on-the-internet.html>)

During this Year of Faith we want to keep moving ahead responding to Blessed John Paul II's last appeal to the Church, The Rapid Development, "Do not be afraid of new technologies!"  For example, we're hoping to begin streaming live the homilies given during the English Masses in St. James Church in Medjugorje.    Moving ahead usually means increased cost....  But I've got a plan!

After the building where Mary TV is located stood unfinished for 5 years - open to the elements - I began calling upon St. Andre Bessette to get it done.   For several months leading up to his October 17, 2010 canonization, I would call upon him every day during our Rosary over the internet, requesting that as his first miracle as an official saint in the Church he would get the building finished!   Not to take this on would be embarrassing for him.  He had built the Oratory for St. Joseph.  How could he leave unfinished this building in Medjugorje for Our Lady?

Everyday during the rosary I would beg him publicly.... His canonization came and went.  There was nothing!  I felt ashamed for him.   Within a few weeks I received an email from Leo Daly congratulating me for getting the money to finish construction.  I thought he was making a joke.... He sent pictures!  A totally unexpected way had opened up for the building to get finished - not through me!  Saint Andre did it!

One day in Medjugorje years ago, the Pastor, Fr. Pervan, handed me a fax that had just arrived at the parish office.  Cardinal Frantisek Tomisek was inviting me to come to Prague to film his testimony.  He wanted the world to know that Pope John Paul II had told him that if he weren't Pope he would be living in Medjugorje helping to hear confessions....That's where John Paul II told the cardinal he would be living as a priest if he weren't the pope!

At the end of this year Blessed John Paul will be canonized.  He'll become Saint John Paul the Great.  Here's my plan.  Let's all make little shrines to him by our computers - even just with only his picture on a holy card.  Everyday let's remind him of the request he made to us in his last Apostolic Letter, The Rapid Development;  that we use modern means of communication technologies to spread good news to the world. .... Let's bombard him with prayer - reminding him of his love for Our Lady and love for Medjugorje...requesting that his first act as an official saint in the Church is to get our studios completed and to take care of all of Mary TV's financial needs so that we can move ahead for Our Lady.  That's his job.  He take care of all of Mary TV's financial needs!*

Thank you and God bless you!

Denis

* Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, Archbishop of Krakow (who for nearly 40 years was Blessed John Paul's personal secretary) has told me that he is praying in his chapel in Krakow for Mary TV: "Thank you very much for the good news regarding MARY TV.  I hope that all things with TV in Medjugorje will go according to God's will.  I promise you my prayers through the intercession of the Servant of God, John Paul II - true disciple of Blessed Virgin Mary, Totus tuus!"

PS.  We'll leave future financial needs to Saint John Paul the Great... Two immediate needs:
A) a new Dslr Camera for our crew in Medjugorje...  Cost $2,000
B) Cathy needs a designated computer for live streaming...Cost $2,000   Having to carry back and forth from the studio her office computer, she knocked a class of water on it and we can't get it to start up.  She may also need to replace this computer that she uses for her reflections, running the business office, keeping records, etc.  (I'll let you know if that computer survived that bath at the beginning of our rosary tomorrow morning....)

PPS.  Keep an eye on our website for special programming of the Youth Festival this coming week.  We hope to have testimonies and special coverage!  We will try to announce in advance the programs!



Tuesday, July 23, 2013

From The Friars eLetter: Lifeful Faith





There is life in our faith and not ephemeral but everlasting. There is love in the Lord’s touch, in his eyes. There is movement in his hands and speech in his mouth. There is compassion in his heart—there is certainly that. In Nain he raised a widow’s son like Elijah of old had done in Zarephath. You could almost hear the prophet’s heart as he cried out, “O God, let your life-breath come back to him.” Stretching himself over the boy because what else could he do? In dramatic moments dramatic gestures are always appropriate; it reveals the confidence and the reverence Elijah had toward God, but also the disparity of his heart and also the total investment of his body, heart and soul in his prayer.



Jesus raises the son of the widow in a manner dramatic for its subtleties rather than its grand gestures. Its in the way you hear him say gently to the widow, “do not weep,” and placing his hand on the bier, the bearers stand still, and I hear him nearly whispering to the boy, “young man, I say to you arise: like how caressing Jarius’ daughter, he takes her hand and says, “little girl, arise,” and they do. It’s almost as if they’re doing him a favor like a child coming out of slumber at his parent’s command despite a confused state of lingering sleepiness. It’s beautiful because it’s delicate. The resurrection of life is here almost as fragile as its cessation, but what, in reality, what could be powerful?

The miracles reveal different aspects of God: the first his majesty and power, the second his closeness and intimate tenderness. For us we see how God likes to work through compassionate hearts tender and capable of being moved, and confident that in crying out or merely whispering, they will be heard. Yes, they will be heard because there is life in our faith not ephemeral but everlasting.

+ Br. Joseph Michael Fino, CFR
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Saturday, July 20, 2013

Spiritual Gems - How to Receive Holy Communion - July 20, 2013

 How to Receive Holy Communion

Immediately after receiving our Lord, while you are interiorly recollected, introduce Jesus into the Heart of Mary.  There give Him to His Mother.  She will receive Him lovingly and will adore Him profoundly.  She will render Him in spirit and in truth many honors which we can not because of our ignorance.  Lay your heart at the feet of the heavenly King and offer your will....Do not disturb your soul as long as it is recollected and at peace in the Heart of Jesus.  In this gentle rest on the Heart of your God, your soul receives grace which nourishes it, unites it more sweetly to its Beloved.... and Profits It More Than Any Other Spiritual Exercise!

When this moment is passed, then begin to thank God for the great gift of Himself.

 

St. Louis de Montfort


Please do forward these spiritual gems to your Catholic friends.

You can receive complimentary materials to make your Consecration to God through Mary’s Immaculate Heart ( important spiritual protection at this time in salvation history) at myconsecration.org... where you can also learn about Our Lady of Las Lajas.

You can learn more about our Lady of Fatima at www.wafusa.org.

God Bless you and your work,
 
Deacon Bob   Tony
     
Deacon Bob Ellis   Anthony Mullen
Executive Director   MyConsecration.org
World Apostolate of Fatima, USA   647 Edmonds Avenue
A Pontifical Association of the Faithful   Drexel Hill, PA  19026
visit us at: www.wafusa.org   visit us at: www.myconsecration.org

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

[Video] Our Lady of Mount Carmel













                                             





Our Lady of Mount Carmel

Reflection for 7/16/13
http://youtu.be/qwNLMja5VlA

Photos by Joe Freeman, catholicrelics.co.uk, Ari Bronstein, Catholic Church (England and Wales)











Monday, July 15, 2013

Catholics urged to pray for victims of Syria conflict


Tribulation Times

July 16, 2013

(Mat 24:6-8) And you shall hear of wars and rumours of wars. See that ye be not troubled. For these things must come to pass: but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: And there shall be pestilences and famines and earthquakes in places. Now all these are the beginnings of sorrows.

MIDEAST UPDATE




VATICAN RADIO: Catholics urged to pray for victims of Syria conflict

The head of the bishops conference of England and Wales, Archbishop Vincent Nichols presided at a Mass in London’s Westminster Cathedral on Friday to pray for all those suffering the effects of the civil war in Syria.

In a statement issued earlier in the week, all of the English and Welsh Church leaders called on Catholics to pray for a peaceful solution to the conflict and to offer whatever practical support they can through aid agencies that are operating in the region.

The bishops first appealed for solidarity with the people of Syria following their plenary meeting last autumn, asking the Catholic community to make December 4th, feast day of St John Damascene, a day of prayer for all those suffering from violence and injustice in the region.  Since then the conflict in Syria has intensified with the death toll now reaching 100.000.

RELATED: 'Shadow war' targets Christians in Syria

ZENIT: Please Pray for Egypt

The UK head of a charity that supports persecuted Christians is calling on people to pray for peace in Egypt after a sudden spike in attacks on Copts in the wake of President Morsi’s dramatic downfall.

Neville Kyrke-Smith of Aid to the Church in Need, whose fact-finding trip to Egypt coincided with the demonstrations that preceded Mohammed Morsi’s fall from power, spoke of his concern about a “specific and targeted assault” on Christians across the country since the change of regime.

Mr Kyrke-Smith, National Director of ACN UK, said: “At this critical time in Egypt – as reports come in of recent attacks on churches in the regions – it is very important to pray for peace in Egypt for Christians and all peoples.

RELATED: A Christian’s Ground-Zero View of Revolution in Egypt


Father Rafic Greiche

ISRAEL IN THE NEWS

DEBKA.COM: Israel struck Latakia arsenal last week. Will Putin and Assad make good on threats of reprisal?



BLOG: Has the end game begun? Privately, senior Israeli officials now warning Iran war could come in 2013.

COMMENTARY: Is Obama Trying to Start Israel-Syria War?

2. In a word, let us be all to God, all for God and all in God; and remember that He wills you to lead an exemplary life, wholly pure and angelic.

Prayer request?  Send an email to: PrayerRequest3@aol.com
This month's archive can be found at: http://www.catholicprophecy.info/news2.html.