Seek His Face

2010-05-21T07:20:00.006-04:00

A small note to all who read this little blog. His Eminence Cardinal Justin Rigali has decided to send me to Rome for further studies in the area of Spirituality, therefore, it seems best that at this time I cease posting reflections on this blog. It would be most appropriate for me to be totally dedicated to my studies. I will leave the blog online as long as it seems proper. As I leave this little online apostolate, I entrust everything, and all of you, to the care of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Knowing that Our Lady is all good and all loving, I am confident that when we entrust everything to Her, that everything in turn will be entrusted to Our Blessed Lord. The purpose of this blog was to offer daily spiritual reflections and occasional catecheses that would hopefully serve to draw all of us closer to God. It was my hope that this webpage would be an extension of what the Good God has already called me to do in His service as a parish priest. Above all, it was my hope that this little work would bring greater glory to God (Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam)! A sincere note of gratitude to all who have faithfully read these reflections and even contributed their own thoughts and reflections. Let us now pray for each other in the hope that God will bless us and give us holiness of life, so that we might persevere in our vocations until death.

May God bless and keep you!

Sincerely in Christ,

Father Check

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Prayer of Protection

Virgin Most Holy, Mother of the Word Incarnate,

treasurer of graces, and refuge of us, poor sinners!

We have recourse to thy maternal love with lively faith,

and we beseech thee

for the grace ever to do the holy will of God.

We give our hearts into thy most holy hands,

begging thee for health of soul and body.

We firmly hope that thou,

our most loving Mother, wilt hear us.

Wherefore with lively faith, we say: Hail Mary, etc. (three times).

Amen.

The Ascension of Our Lord

2010-05-13T05:03:00.001-04:00

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The Solemnity

of the

Ascension of Our Lord

After Our Lord's Resurrection, He remained for forty days with His Apostles, and this is a wonderful and beautiful reminder of Our Lord's love and mercy. The last time that Christ had been with the Apostles as a whole was in the Upper Room for the Last Supper. He was with a smaller group during His Agony in the Garden. And when He went to the Cross still an even smaller group, which included His Mother Mary, Saint Mary Magdalen and Saint John the Beloved Apostle. The Apostles fled in fear and they were hiding, and yet when Our Lord appears to them and stands in their midst, even though the doors where locked, He does not condemn them but gives them the gift of His peace. He does not give peace as the world gives it, He gives the peace of heaven, which is not like any other in this world. And then He remains with them for forty days, teaching them all things necessary for the proclamation of the Gospel and for building up of His Church. Our Lord's earthly mission would now pass to His Apostles and His priestly powers would be given to them, His first priests, and His work of sanctifying the world given to all the Church. On this day, we commemorate the day when Our Lord returned to the bosom of His Father, so that the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, might come from the Father, and this Holy Spirit, the Spirit of the Father and the Son, would remain with the Church until the end of time and guide her into all truth. Our Lord's saving work, which began visibly at the Incarnation and which culminated in the Crucifixion and Resurrection, now finds its fulfillment as the Son is received into the glory of the Father. His Sacrifice has been received and now Christ will reign forever over the entire universe as Christ the King. His triumph is also the triumph of the whole Mystical Body, the Church, which at the last day, Christ will present in all its beauty and perfection to Our Father. We can all contribute in some way to that beauty and that final perfection by allowing the garce of God to transform the whorld through us. We can give glory to God and help to save souls by fulfilling our vocations. We can make the world a better place by allowing the peace of Christ to descend into our hearts and then we can bring that peace, the peace of Heaven, that which only Christ can give, to all the world. There is much that we can do, if only we cooperate with God's grace! May the grace of God sustain us and make us strong. May the grace of God purify us and make us clean. May the grace of God keep us faithful until the very end. And may the Ascension of Our Lord inspire us sanctify the world by living only for heaven. Amen.

Holy Martyrs

2010-05-12T05:38:00.003-04:00

Today the Church is celebrating the memorial of the martyrs Saints Nereus, Achilleus, Domitilla and Pancras. Nereus and Achilleus were both baptized by Saint Peter and and are mentioned in the Gospel. They were servants of Flavia, who was the niece of the Roman Emperor. Domitilla was the granddaughter of Flavia and she had vowed her virginity to Christ. All three suffered martyrdom around the year 100 A.D. Pancras was martyred in Rome at the age of fourteen. he was martyred in the year 304 for refusing to sacrifice to idols. While little is know about the lives of these saints, what we do know is that they gave their lives for Our Lord and held nothing back in giving over to Him everything that he had given to them. The Scriptures remind us that those who seek to save their lives will lose them and those who freely lose their lives for the sake of Christ and His name will save them. Let us follow the example of the holy martyrs and give everything to God who has given everything to us! Amen.

Tuesday of the Sixth Week of Easter

2010-05-11T05:20:00.003-04:00

Today I simply offer this passage

from today's First Reading at Mass for your reflection.

From the Acts of the Apostles 16:22-34

The crowd in Philippi joined in the attack on Paul and Silas,
and the magistrates had them stripped
and ordered them to be beaten with rods.
After inflicting many blows on them,
they threw them into prison
and instructed the jailer to guard them securely.
When he received these instructions, he put them in the innermost cell
and secured their feet to a stake.

About midnight, while Paul and Silas were praying
and singing hymns to God as the prisoners listened,
there was suddenly such a severe earthquake
that the foundations of the jail shook;
all the doors flew open, and the chains of all were pulled loose.
When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open,
he drew his sword and was about to kill himself,
thinking that the prisoners had escaped.
But Paul shouted out in a loud voice,
“Do no harm to yourself; we are all here.”
He asked for a light and rushed in and,
trembling with fear, he fell down before Paul and Silas.
Then he brought them out and said,
“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus
and you and your household will be saved.”
So they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to everyone in his house.
He took them in at that hour of the night and bathed their wounds;
then he and all his family were baptized at once.
He brought them up into his house and provided a meal
and with his household rejoiced at having come to faith in God.

Convocation

2010-05-10T05:12:00.002-04:00

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His Eminence, Cardinal Justin Rigali, is gathering together all the active diocesan priests of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia for a special convocation as part of the Church's Year for Priests. The Keynote Speaker will be Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York, and there will also be a talk given by Bishop Louis DeSimone, Retired Auxiliary Bishop of Philadelphia. The convocation begins today and will go until Wednesday. Please continue to keep all priests in your prayers and especially during these three days as we gather with our Archbishop and Shepherd and ask God to enrich, sustain and renew us with His Sacred Presence.

In order to view this video it is best to stop the music that is playing in the background. Scroll down to the music player near the bottom and hit the pause button, that will stop the music so that the video can be viewed without hindrance.

God Bless you!

The above video comes from: www.catholictv.com

Happy Mother's Day

2010-05-09T08:07:00.002-04:00

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Happy Mother's day to all Mothers!

May Our Blessed Mother watch over you and protect you!

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Next to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Monica is one of the best examples of Christian motherhood. For years, she prayed for the conversion of her only son. Her persistence was answered with abundant grace: Her son, Augustine, became a saint and a doctor of the Church.

Saint Monica faced a culture in which Christianity had not yet fully taken hold; we live in a culture in which Christianity is increasingly marginalized and children are pulled from the Faith. This prayer for her intercession, therefore, is particularly appropriate today.

Prayer to St. Monica
Exemplary Mother of the great Augustine,
you perseveringly pursued your wayward son
not with wild threats
but with prayerful cries to heaven.
Intercede for all mothers in our day
so that they may learn to draw their children to God.
Teach them how to remain close to their children,
even the prodigal sons and daughters
who have sadly gone astray.
Amen

Mary, Our Mother

2010-05-08T05:56:00.003-04:00

"The lives of the saints are not limited to their earthly biographies but also include their being and working in God after death. In the saints one thing becomes clear: those who draw near to God do not withdraw from men, but rather become truly close to them. In no one do we see this more clearly than in Mary. The words addressed by the crucified Lord to his disciple - to John and through him to all disciples of Jesus: 'Behold, your mother!' (John 19:27) - are fulfilled anew in every generation. Mary has truly become the Mother of all believers. Men and women of every time and place have recourse to her motherly kindness and her virginal purity and grace, in all their needs and aspirations, their joys and sorrows, their moments of loneliness and their common endeavors."

--Pope Benedict XVI, Encyclical Letter Deus Caritas Est (God is Love), no. 42.

25 December 2005.

Friday's Special Feature

2010-05-07T07:27:00.005-04:00

Friday is our day when we have a special feature in order to spotlight one of our Seminarians. Each Friday we try to learn something about the men preparing for the Priesthood in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. After having listed our Deacons who will be ordained this year, and recognizing that this will be our last Friday with a post, it seems fitting not to continue this Special Feature. In its place I offer you this wonderful link to a list of Vocations Resources, which can be used for families, schools and parishes.

http://www.heedthecall.org/resources.html

Prayer For Vocations
Father of wisdom and love, fill our youth with an openness to Your Holy Will. Help them to discern their vocation and give them the courage to respond with a heart full of generosity and love. Guide their ways, protect their purity and strengthen them to trust Your plan. With the help of the Blessed Virgin Mary, may they discover their calling and enter the vineyard of Your service with confidence in Your never failing mercy and unconditional love. We ask this dear Father, through your Son and Our Lord Jesus Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, One God, forever and ever. Amen.

Our Day of the Blessed Sacrament

2010-05-06T06:49:00.004-04:00

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Each Thursday we celebrate

and honor the Most Blessed Sacrament!

O Sacrament Most Holy!
O Sacrament Divine!
All Praise and All Thanksgiving,
Be every moment Thine!

"Were it not for the constant presence of our divine Master in our humble chapel, I would not have found it possible to persevere in sharing the lot of the lepers in Molokai...The Eucharist is the bread that gives strength... It is at once the most eloquent proof of His love and the most powerful means of fostering His love in us. He gives Himself every day so that our hearts as burning coals may set afire the hearts of the faithful,"

- Saint Damien, Apostle of the Lepers

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"Before the coming of Jesus Christ, men fled away from God and, being attached to the earth, refused to unite themselves to their Creator. But the loving God has drawn them to Himself by the bonds of love, as He promised by the prophet Osee [Hosea]: "I will draw them with the cords of Adam, with the bonds of love" (11:4). These bonds are the benefits, the lights, the calls to His love, the promises of Paradise which He makes to us, but above all, the gift which He has bestowed upon us of Jesus Christ in the Sacrifice of the Cross and in the Sacrament of the Altar..."

- St. Alphonsus Maria Ligouri

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Prayer of St. Faustina before the Eucharist

I adore You, Lord and Creator, hidden in the Most Blessed Sacrament. I adore You for all the works of Your hands, that reveal to me so much wisdom, goodness and mercy, O Lord. You have spread so much beauty over the earth and it tells me about Your beauty, even though these beautiful things are but a faint reflection of You, incomprehensible Beauty. And although You have hidden Yourself and concealed Your beauty, my eye, enlightened by faith, reaches You and my soul recognizes its Creator, its Highest Good, and my heart is completely immersed in prayer of adoration.

My Lord and Creator, Your goodness encourages me to converse with You. Your mercy abolishes the chasm which separates the Creator from the creature. To converse with You, O Lord, is the delight of my heart. In You I find everything that my heart could desire. Here You light illumines my mind, enabling it to know You more and more deeply. Here streams of graces flow down upon my heart. Here my soul draws eternal life. O my Lord and Creator, You alone, beyond all these gifts, give Your own self to me and unite Yourself intimately with Your miserable creature.

O Christ, let my greatest delight be to see You loved and Your praise and glory proclaimed, especially the honor of Your mercy. O Christ, let me glorify Your goodness and mercy to the last moment of my life, with every drop of my blood and every beat of my heart. Would that I be transformed into a hymn of adoration of You. When I find myself on my deathbed, may the last beat of my heart be a loving hymn glorifying Your unfathomable mercy. Amen.

2010-05-05T07:47:00.002-04:00

May is the Month of Mary! It is a wonderful time for all of us to consider the Church's beautiful theology concerning the Ever-Virgin Mother of God and it is also an ideal time for all of us to recommit ourselves to God through His Mother and ours. Below are three short excerpts from the Introductory section of the Treatise on True Devotion to Mary by Saint Louis Marie DeMontfort. To read more, please follow the link at the bottom
of today's post.

"It was through the Blessed Virgin Mary that Jesus came into the world, and it is also through her that he must reign in the world."

"Mary is the supreme masterpiece of Almighty God and he has reserved the knowledge and possession of her for himself. She is the glorious Mother of God the Son who chose to humble and conceal her during her lifetime in order to foster her humility. He called her "Woman" as if she were a stranger, although in his heart he esteemed and loved her above all men and angels. Mary is the sealed fountain and the faithful spouse of the Holy Spirit where only he may enter. She is the sanctuary and resting-place of the Blessed Trinity where God dwells in greater and more divine splendour than anywhere else in the universe, not excluding his dwelling above the cherubim and seraphim. No creature, however pure, may enter there without being specially privileged."

"I declare with the saints: Mary is the earthly paradise of Jesus Christ the new Adam, where he became man by the power of the Holy Spirit, in order to accomplish in her wonders beyond our understanding. She is the vast and divine world of God where unutterable marvels and beauties are to be found. She is the magnificence of the Almighty where he hid his only Son, as in his own bosom, and with him everything that is most excellent and precious. What great and hidden things the all-powerful God has done for this wonderful creature, as she herself had to confess in spite of her great humility, "The Almighty has done great things for me." The world does not know these things because it is incapable and unworthy of knowing them."

TREATISE ON TRUE DEVOTION TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN
St. Louis de Montfort
http://www.ewtn.com/library/montfort/truedevo.htm

Tuesday of Fifth Week of Easter

2010-05-04T06:46:00.000-04:00

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The Power of Jesus Christ

In today's Gospel we have these beautiful words of Our Lord, "Jesus said to his disciples: 'Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid. You heard me tell you, ‘I am going away and I will come back to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father; for the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you this before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe. I will no longer speak much with you, for the ruler of the world is coming. He has no power over me, but the world must know that I love the Father and that I do just as the Father has commanded me.'" (John 14:27-31a)

Two lines stand out: "Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid," and "For the ruler of the world is coming. He has no power over me, but the world must know that I love the Father." Dear friends, often times we are struggling with temptations and with crosses in this life, but we let them get us down and discourage us. Discouragement is one of the greatest tools of the devil. He uses it to make us loose our fervor for doing good, such that we don't even try anymore. Be very careful about discouragement because it can either weaken our will for pursuing a good and holy life, or it can distract us. Discouragement is something that we all struggle with from time to time, but let us remember that our real power comes when we recognize our weakness and that it is ultimately by the grace of God that we can do all that is good. It does not depend on our power, but on the power of God. And when we realize that we only have to cooperate with God's grace and allow His power to work through us, than our hearts will truly not be troubled or afraid! And we will know, with great conviction in our hearts, that even though evil exists in the world and even though the ruler of this world is coming it will have no power over us, because Christ is alive within us and the ruler of this world has no power over Him. Amen.

Saints Philip and James

2010-05-03T07:25:00.004-04:00

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Saint Philip and Saint James the Lesser

Saint James, was the Son of Alphaeus. We don't know much about him. We do know that he is not the James of Acts, the son of Clopas, “brother” of Jesus and later bishop of Jerusalem and the traditional author of the Letter of James. James, son of Alphaeus, is also known as James the Lesser to avoid confusing him with James the son of Zebedee, also an apostle and who is known as James the Greater. Saint Philip came from the same town as Peter and Andrew, Bethsaida in Galilee.

We know that Jesus chose them to be among the 12 Apostles, two of the 12 pillars of the New Israel, his Church. Like the other Apostles James and Philip were human men who became foundation stones of the Church. They were regular men, with weakness and imperfections and even with sins. But just as the Father is seen in the Son, so the Son was seen in these men. They allowed the grace of God to transform their lives, to set them on fire. Whenever we are burdened by our weaknesses and our sins and even our limitations, the example of the Apostles and of all the saints reminds us that it is by the grace of God that we are able to do good and holy things. No human power, even the greatest, is nothing compared to the grace of God! Holiness and its fruits are entirely the gift of God's grace, and not a matter of human achievement. Saints Philip and James, pray for us!

Sunday Catechesis

2010-05-02T06:54:00.004-04:00

Before today's Sunday Catechesis, just a brief announcement: There will be no Family Holy Hour today, however, the Church will be open for adoration until 5 pm.

For today's Sunday Catechesis:

The Vatican Publishing House has recently released a new edition of the Statistical Yearbook of the Church, comprising information on the main aspects of Catholic Church activity in various
countries for the period 2000-2008.

I hope that you find this information of interest!

Over these nine years, the Catholic presence in the world has grown from 1,045 million in 2000 to 1,166 million in 2008, an increase of 11.54 percent. (NB: (A thousand million is the same as a billion). Considering the statistics in detail, numbers in Africa grew by 33 percent, in Europe they remained generally stable (an increase of 1.17 percent), while in Asia they increased by 15.61 percent, in Oceania by 11.39 percent and in America by 10.93 percent. As a percentage of the total population, European Catholics represented 26.8 percent in 2000 and 24.31 percent in 2008. In America and Oceania they have remained stable, and increased slightly in Asia.

The number of bishops in the world went up from 4541 in 2000 to 5002 in 2008, an increase of 10.15 percent.

The number of priests also increased slightly over this nine-year period, passing from 405,178 in 2000 to 409,166 in 2008, an overall rise of 0.98 percent. In Africa and Asia their numbers increased (respectively, by 33.1 percent and 23.8 percent), in the Americas they remained stable, while they fell by 7 percent in Europe and 4 percent in Oceania.

The number of diocesan priests increased by 3.1 percent, going from 265,781 in 2000 to 274,007 in 2008. By contrast, the number of regular priests showed a constant decline, down by 3.04 percent to 135,159 in 2008. Of the continents, only Europe showed a clear reduction in priests: in 2000 they represented 51 percent of the world total, in 2008 just 47 percent. On
the other hand, Asia and Africa together represented 17.5 percent of the world total in 2000 and 21.9 percent in 2008. The Americas slightly increased its percentage to around 30 percent of the total.

Non-ordained religious numbered 55.057 in the year 2000 and 54,641 in 2008. Comparing this data by continent, Europe showed a strong decline (down by 16.57 percent), as did Oceania (22.06 percent), the Americas remained stable, while Asia and Africa grew (respectively, by 32 percent and 10.47 percent).

Female religious are almost double the number of priests, and 14 times that of non-ordained male religious, but their numbers are falling, from 800,000 in 2000 to 740,000 in 2008. As for their geographical distribution, 41 percent reside in Europe, 27.47 percent in America, 21.77 percent in Asia and 1.28 percent in Oceania. The number of female religious has increased in
the most dynamic continents: Africa (up by 21 percent) and Asia (up by 16 percent).

The Statistical Yearbook of the Church also includes information on the number of students of philosophy and theology in diocesan and religious seminaries. In global terms, their numbers increased from 110.583 in 2000 to more than 117.024 in 2008. In Africa and Asia their numbers went up, whereas Europe saw a reduction.

Friday's Focus

2010-04-30T06:43:00.000-04:00

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Friday is our day when we have a special feature in order to spotlight one of our Seminarians. Each Friday we try to learn something about the men preparing for the Priesthood in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

May God bless these men and grant us numerous and holy vocations!

Rev. Mr. Matthew J. Tralies
Class: IV Theology

Parish: Visitation BVM, Trooper

What year did you enter the seminary?
Fall 2003

What did you do prior to seminary entrance?
Prior to entrance into the seminary I went to college at Villanova University where I received my degree in Political Science.

What influenced your decision to enter the seminary?
While in college I began to deepen my spiritual life, especially through time before Christ in the Blessed Sacrament, the rosary and pro-life work. Also, the example of an Augustinian priest, Father Joseph Shannon, influenced me in a tremendously positive way.

Why do you want to be a priest?
The number one reason is because I honestly think God is calling me to serve Him and His church as a priest. I also want to be able to offer Mass and administer the sacraments. Lastly, there is a deep satisfaction that comes with helping people whenever you can.

What did your family and friends think about your decision to enter the seminary?
Both were surprised because I waited till late to tell them about my entrance to Saint Charles. Both family and friends support me and I rely on them so much to help me in this process.

What do you do for fun?
Pretty much the same thing most guys my age (26) enjoy – spending time with friends, movies, some sports, travel.

Who is your favorite Saint?
The writings of Saint Josemaría Escrivá have been helpful to me spiritually, especially his collection of sayings and advice found in a little book called The Way.

What advice would you give to a young man thinking about the seminary?
If you truly feel God may be calling you to priesthood, the seminary is the appropriate place to undergo your discernment. The seminary has a “come and see approach” where men seriously discern if God is or is not calling them to serve as a priest.

Thursday - Day of the Eucharist

2010-04-29T06:52:00.000-04:00

Family Holy Hour

All are welcome to a Family Holy Hour on Sunday, May 6th, 2010, from 3:45 to 4:45 p.m. in the Upper Church at Saint Monica's Roman Catholic Church, located at 17th & Ritner Sts. in Philadelphia. Exposition and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament and the Singing of the Divine Mercy Chaplet. Remember... The Family That Prays Together, Stays Together! Spread the word!

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"God is everywhere, in the very air I breathe, yes everywhere, but in His Sacrament of the Altar He is as present actually and really as my soul within my body; in His Sacrifice daily offered as really as once offered on the Cross,"

- St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

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"By a beautiful paradox of Divine love, God makes His Cross the very means of our salvation and our life. We have slain Him; we have nailed Him there and crucified Him; but the Love in His eternal heart could not be extinguished. He willed to give us the very life we slew; to give us the very Food we destroyed; to nourish us with the very Bread we buried, and the very Blood we poured forth. He made our very crime into a happy fault; He turned a Crucifixion into a Redemption; a Consecration into a Communion; a death into Life Everlasting,"

- from Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen's This is the Mass

Let God Lead

2010-04-27T06:38:00.002-04:00

So often when we pray, we ask God to take away our distress, to take away our suffering, to take away our pain, but Christianity has never preached a God who takes away distress or suffering or pain, but rather a God who takes up the cross, a God who freely choose to suffer for our sakes. God teaches us that if we want to get to heaven, we have to take up our crosses daily and follow after Him. Perhaps we need our crosses! Saint Augustine tells us that God never asks us to do anything without giving us the grace to do it! And so when we pray we might ask God for an increase in grace to carry our burdens and to be strong, we might ask God for the power to survive the distresses and the difficulties of life. “Ask and you will receive,” that’s what Jesus told us. In this lies the wisdom that only Christ can gave. The world teaches us that we should try to get rid of our suffering as soon as possible and that suffering is worthless or below our dignity, but God teaches us to embrace our suffering and to carry our crosses. The Lord Jesus never promised a life without troubles, but rather He promises us that he will be with us throughout our lives always there, always trying to help us and to give us courage. Right before His own suffering and death he told his disciples that there would be a lot of suffering and pain: he told them that they would expelled from the synagogues, that they will be handed over to be killed, but then he reminds them with so much love, “I have told you this so that you might have peace in me. In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, [because] I have conquered the world.” God did not create evil or suffering or pain, these things don’t come from God, but He knows that these things are in the world and that they will be there until the end, and so he tries to help us and to teach us how to carry our crosses and that if we do so out love these things can purify us and strengthen us and even make us holy. And He doesn’t just tell us how, he shows us how, because He Himself carried the cross. One of the greatest lessons in the Scriptures is that with God all things are possible. When we are burdened by our troubles and think that we are about to break, when all seems lost or even hopeless and when we are tired, let us united ourselves to the Lord and ask Him to take over. I once saw a bumper sticker on a car and the sticker said, “God is My Co-Pilot.” It’s a very nice thought, but a little off! God shouldn’t be the Co-Pilot, He should be the Pilot. He should be driving, He should be directing! I saw another bumper sticker sometime later and it said, “If God is your Co-Pilot, Switch seats.” In the Gospel today Our Lord told us, My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand." May we have the grace to live as those first Christians and find true happiness by following our Shepherd. Amen.

Promoting Vocations

2010-04-26T05:23:00.000-04:00

Some News: Bishops Launch National Website To Promote Vocations To Priesthood And Consecrated Life

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Bishops’ Secretariat of Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations is initiating a new website on April 25 to be a resource for both laity and clergy in the promotion of vocations. The launch date is the World Day of Prayer for Vocations and Good Shepherd Sunday.

The site has two goals:
1. To help individuals hear and respond to the call by God to the priesthood or consecrated life, and

2. To educate all Catholics on the importance of encouraging others through prayer and activities to promote vocations.

Vocation: (Latin–vocare: called)

A vocation is who God has “called” us to be. All of the baptized possess the vocation of the universal call to holiness and service in the Church.

This site is dedicated to the promotion of vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life.

The Vocations Website can be found at www.ForYourVocation.org

Sunday Catechesis - Year for Priests

2010-04-25T07:37:00.002-04:00

Wisdom of Saint John Marie Vianney

"All good works together are not of equal value with the sacrifice of the Mass, because they are the works of men, and the holy Mass is the work of God. martyrdom is nothing in comparison; it is the sacrifice that man makes of his life to God; the Mass is the sacrifice that God makes to man of his Body and Blood. Oh, how great is a priest! If he understood himself he would die...God obeys him; he speaks two words, and Our Lord comes down from heaven at his voice, and shuts himself up in a little Host. God looks upon the altar. 'That is my well-beloved Son,' he says, 'in whom I am well pleased.' He can refuse nothing to the merits of the offering of this Victim. If we had faith, we should see God hidden in the priest like a light behind a glass, like wine mingled with water. After the Consecration, when I hold in my hands the most holy Body of our Lord, and when I am in discouragement, seeing myself worthy of nothing but hell, I say to myself, 'Ah, if I could at least take him with me! Hell would be sweet with him; I could be content to remain suffering there for all eternity, if we were together. But then there would be no more hell; the flames of love would extinguish those of justice.' How beautiful it is. After the Consecration, the good God is there as he is in heaven. If man well understood this mystery, he would die of love. God spares us because of our weakness."

Retreat

2010-04-20T04:44:00.000-04:00

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Father Check will be away on retreat until Saturday, 24 April 2010.

Posting will resume on Sunday, 25 April 2010.

Please check back on Sunday!

Prayer for Priests

Dear Lord,
we pray that the Blessed Mother
wrap her mantle around your priests
and through her intercession
strengthen them for their ministry.
We pray that Mary will guide your priests
to follow her own words,
“Do whatever He tells you” (Jn 2:5).
May your priests have the heart of St. Joseph,
Mary’s most chaste spouse.
May the Blessed Mother’s own pierced heart
inspire them to embrace
all who suffer at the foot of the cross.
May your priests be holy,
filled with the fire of your love
seeking nothing but your greater glory
and the salvation of souls.
Amen.

Saint John Vianney, pray for us.

Source: www.usccb.org

Holy Longing

2010-04-19T06:16:00.000-04:00

In one of the Psalms, the Psalmist writes, "As the deer longs for streams of water, so my soul longs for you, O God. My being thirsts for God, the living God. When can I go and see the face of God?" (Psalm 42: 2-3) These words are a beautiful reminder of the reason for which we have been created, and that is communion with God. Our souls have a deep thirst for God, one that can only truly be satisfied by Him. In the Gospel today (John 6:22-29) some people were searching after Our Lord and when they came to Him, He said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, you are looking for me not because you saw signs but because you ate the loaves and were filled." Once they had tasted the "bread" that only He can give the no longer desired earthly bread. This is certainly the case in the lives of the saints, for once they had let God into their hearts and experienced the consolation of His love, no matter what they had to suffer in this life, it was all worth it, when offered to the Good God, in exchange for His goodness and love. Do we see that only God can satisfy the deepest desires of our hearts and that we have been made for Him alone? How sad it can be and unfulfilling when we seek happiness apart from God! Now we all fall into this trap from time to time, and because of our weakness we all fall away from God and sometimes seek fulfillment apart from God. But on this day, based on these beautiful readings from the Sacred Scriptures, let us turn away from the "leaven of this world" and seek only the "bread from heaven." For this "bread from heaven" is that which the Son of Man will give and this bread will not only satisfy our hearts, but will make us live forever. Amen.

Sunday Catechesis - Year for Priests

2010-04-18T07:26:00.000-04:00

The Priesthood of Jesus Christ

"Through the ministry those sent by Christ... effect and offer that which they themselves can neither effect nor give. Priests should therefore regard themselves as living signs and bearers of that mercy which they offer, not as though it were their own, but as a free gift from God... The priest makes Jesus, the Pastor who came to serve and not be served (Matthew 20:28), present to men... Christ introduces the sacrifice of himself, for our redemption, into the eternal sanctuary. The offering, the sacrificial victim, is inseparable from the priest... The effectiveness of all evangelizing activity depends on this unbreakable unity of priest and sacrificial victim, or priesthood and Eucharist."

--- From "The Priest and the Third Christian Millennium: Teacher of the Word, Minister of the Sacraments, and Leader of the Community."

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A Prayer to the Mother of God for Priests

Written by Saint Charles Borromeo

"O Holy Mother of God, pray for the priests your Son has chosen to serve the Church. Help them, by your intercession, to be holy, zealous, and chaste. Make them models of virtue in the service of God's people. Help them to be pious in meditation, efficacious in preaching, and zealous in the daily offering of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Help them administer the Sacraments with love and joy. Amen."

Friday of the Second Week of Easter

2010-04-16T07:09:00.000-04:00

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Friday's Special Feature

Friday is our day when we have a special feature in order to spotlight one of our Seminarians. Each Friday we try to learn something about the men preparing for the Priesthood in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

May God bless these men and grant us numerous and holy vocations!

Rev. Mr. Michael Pawelko
Class: IV Theology

Parish: Saint Isidore, Quakertown

What year did you enter the seminary?
Fall 2002

What did you do prior to seminary entrance?
After high school I entered the workforce, first assembling and inspecting aircraft instruments and later working with fiber optics. I was also active in my local Knights of Columbus Council and volunteered in many different activities at my parish from bingo to being a sacristan.

What influenced your decision to enter the seminary?
A younger priest who came to my parish and had a great devotion to the Eucharist and the Rosary influenced my decision to give it a try.

Why do you want to be a priest?
I believe it is what God wants of me and there is no greater life than to serve at His altar and preach the gospel.

What did your family and friends think about your decision to enter the seminary?
When I first told family and friends that I was serious about applying to the seminary, I experienced the full range of responses from “that is great” and “good for you” to “are you crazy?”. But, now there is general support, even among those who thought I was “crazy”.

What do you do for fun?
I love to listen to music, go to the ball games, watch sports and periodically go to the movies. Nothing exciting or exotic, I’m afraid, but just good, clean fun.

Who is your favorite Saint?
Besides Our Blessed Mother, who is the cause of our joy, I would have to say St. Augustine, who is the Patron Saint of Theologians.

What advice would you give to a young man thinking about the seminary?
Don’t be afraid! For you can only learn more about yourself and God’s plan for you by giving the seminary a try.

Thursday: Our Day of the Blessed Sacrament

2010-04-15T07:46:00.000-04:00

The following is the first in a series of reflections from St. Peter Julian Eymard on the Feast of Corpus Christi:

Every day comes from God. They unfailingly succeed one another through His loving kindness. God allows man six days of the week for his labor and his needs, but the seventh He reserves for Himself. Sunday is therefore more particularly the day of the Lord. But of all the days there is one which is, in a more excellent manner, the day of God and is called the day of God: Fete-Dieu, as the French put it, which, done literally into English, would read God's Feast Day. That is truly the day which the Lord has made for Himself, for His own glory, and for the manifestation of His love. Corpus Christi! God's Feast Day! What a beautiful name! God's Feast Day and ours also! Let us see in what way.

This feast day of God, which the Church calls Festum sacratissimi Corporis Christi, "Feast of the most sacred Body of Christ," is the only day dedicated exclusively to the honor of His adorable Person, of His living presence in our midst. The other feasts commemorate some mystery of His past life; they are beautiful; they glorify God; and they are a rich source of graces for us. But after all they are only reminders, anniversaries of an already distant past, which relives only in our piety and devotion. Our Savior is no longer personally present in those mysteries; He accomplished them once for all and left only His grace in them. But Corpus Christi is an actual mystery; the object of this feast is our Lord's Person, living and present in our midst. That is why the celebration of it has a character all its own. No relics or symbols of the past are exposed, but the very object of the feast, which is living. In the countries where God is free, see how all the people proclaim His presence, how they prostrate themselves before Him! The impious themselves tremble and bow the head; God is there! How glorious for our Lord's presence is this feast, on which all men acknowledge His presence and adore Him!

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Be My Witnesses

2010-04-13T07:22:00.000-04:00

Our Blessed Lord wants us to be His witnesses in the world and to let the light of His countenance shine through us! In the first reading today from the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 4:32-37), we heard about those first witnesses, the disciples and Apostles who walked with Our Lord, the Scriptures tell us, "With great power the Apostles bore witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great favor was accorded them all." In other words, their witness to the resurrection became a great blessing for the whole Church. There is a story told of a little boy who was once walking through a Church with his mother. It was a beautiful day and the rays of the sun streamed through the windows and beams of beautiful colored light landed gracefully upon the floor of the Church. The little boy saw this and pointed up to the window and asked his mother, “What is that?” The mother told him, “That is one of the saints.” Each time they came to a beam of light the child asked the same question, “What is that?” and his mother answered each time, “That is one of the saints.” Sometime later that same boy was in his classroom, and his teacher asked the question, “What is a saint?” to which the little boy answered, “A saint is someone that the light shines through.” One day Jesus told his followers, “You are the light of the world. So let your light shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” One of the most important things that we can do is to let the light of Christ shine through us, by being witnesses to His resurrection, by doing good works and by giving a good example to others. There are a thousand different ways that each of us can do this throughout our lives. Whenever we give witness to Christ, we are letting His light shine through us, and just like those saints in the stained glass windows, we are bringing greater blessings to all in the Church. Our Lord Jesus has chosen us to be his disciples, may we always give witness to all the world of the power and beauty of our Catholic Faith. Amen.

Holy Boldness

2010-04-12T07:34:00.000-04:00

Holy Boldness

In the first reading today we heard from the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 4:23-31) the account of what happened after Saints Peter and John were released from prison. We heard how they went back to their own people and reported what the chief priests and elders had told them. It was not in the reading today what they had told them, but if we go back a few verses in the Scriptures we read that they were instructed never to speak of or to preach in the name of Jesus again. And then in today's reading, they return and begin to tell their friends of the "stern warning" that they had received. They pray to the Lord, saying, "And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and enable your servants to speak your word with all boldness, as you stretch forth your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are done through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” And with an amazing display of God's goodness to them for their fidelity to him, even in the midst of threats and great difficulties, we learned that as they were praying, "the place where they were gathered shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness." What strikes me the most is that they did not cower when threats were waged against them, they were not afraid to preach and teach the truth! They relied on God and on His grace and this grace gave them a power in speaking and acting, it gave them a "holy boldness." This "holy boldness" was so characteristic of the early Church and is so needed today! I think in a specil way of our Dear Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, who has always been a tireless coworker and defender of what is tru and good and beautiful. And how the wholrd and the devil attacks him so! Dear friends, you and I ought to pray for this grace, that when we are threatened by popular opinion, and even prejudice and false accusations, when we are persecuted because of our beliefs, or even when our faith in daily living is challenged, we too should rely on God's grace so that the power of His love can once more transform the face of the earth. O Great God, enable us, your servants of today, to speak your word with all boldness, and through us continue to strength forth your hands to heal and to work wonders and signs never before seen. We ask this in the name of your holy servant and Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Family Holy Hour

2010-04-10T15:22:00.001-04:00

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Family Holy Hour

All are welcome to a Family Holy Hour on Divine Mercy Sunday, April 11, 2010, from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. in the Upper Church at Saint Monica's Roman Catholic Church, located at 17th & Ritner Sts. in Philadelphia.

Exposition and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament

and the Singing of the Divine Mercy Chaplet.

Remember...

The Family That Prays Together,

Stays Together!

Spread the word!

Friday of Easter Week

2010-04-09T05:55:00.000-04:00

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Friday is our day when we have a special feature

in order to spotlight one of our Seminarians. Each Friday we try to learn something

about the men prepareing for the Priesthood in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

May God bless these men and grant us numerous and holy vocations!

Rev. Mr. Harold McKale
Class: Pastoral Year
Parish: Our Lady of Grace, Penndel

What year did you enter the seminary?

1995-2000; 2007 to Present

What did you do prior to seminary entrance?
Most recently, I taught Scripture and Latin at Archbishop Wood High School. I have also taught Scripture and British Literature at Roman Catholic. For the past five years I was also privileged to be Cathedral Sacristan, assisted at the Office for Special Projects and was also a summer feeding monitor at Nutritional Development Services Office of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

What influenced your decision to enter the seminary?
The great example of so many priests of the archdiocese as well as the T.O.R. Franciscans. Also, at the cathedral I had contact with a wide variety of priests, religious and laity who were very encouraging as well as family and friends.

Why do you want to be a priest?
I desire to be a priest because I sincerely believe that it is God’s will for me. I look forward to offering the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and working for the salvation of souls.

What did your family and friends think about your decision to enter the seminary?
Most of them were/are supportive and expected that I would enter Saint Charles Seminary.

What do you do for fun?
I enjoy long walks, cigars, reading, the orchestra and opera. Whenever the opportunity arises, the Jersey shore is a welcome respite. Also, hunting season provides an opportunity to spend time with my Dad, brother and uncles.

Who is your favorite Saint?
Saint Patrick, Saint Harold and Saint Anne.

What advice would you give to a young man thinking about the seminary?
Be open and be willing to take a risk.

Thursday of Easter Week

2010-04-08T06:57:00.002-04:00

"This food we call the Eucharist, of which no one is allowed to partake except one who believes that the things we teach are true, and has received the washing for forgiveness of sins and for rebirth, and who lives as Christ handed down to us. For we do not receive these things as common bread or common drink; but as Jesus Christ our Savior being incarnate by God's Word took flesh and blood for our salvation, so also we have been taught that the food consecrated by the Word of prayer which comes from him, from which our flesh and blood are nourished by transformation, is the flesh and blood of that incarnate Jesus."

- St. Justin Martyr, 2nd Century

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"Let us pause to consider the unsurpassed munificence of the providence of God Who sustains the life of our souls by means of the greatest Sacrament. Compare it with the food which nourished Adam in the state of innocence and you will see how superior it is. God had put many trees at the disposal of Adam in the Garden of Eden. But among them there was one which bore a fruit which taken from time to time had property of preserving life for ever. In like manner in the Garden of the Church one finds a variety of foods that sustain the life of the soul. But above all there is the Divine Sacrament which stands out as the tree of life inasmuch as it is the bread of eternal life. It is infinitely superior to the other tree which was earthly because drawn from the earth. The Eucharist which comes from heaven is heavenly since it gives life to the soul while the fruit of the tree of life gave life to the body."

- Luis de la Puente (d. 1624)

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O Sacrament Most Holy, O Sacrament Divine,

All Praise and All Thanksgiving be every moment, Thine!

Wednesday of Easter Week

2010-04-07T06:38:00.001-04:00

What beautiful readings we have from today's Mass! In the first reading we hear of Saint Peter curing a man who had been crippled since birth. This man used to spend his days begging for alms at the "Beautiful Gate," which led to the Temple area. I imagine, as people often do today, that many walked right by him, ignoring him, even though they were going into the Temple to pray! But not Saint Peter! When he walks by this man, and the man calls out, Peter offers him no money, but instead something even greater. "Peter said, 'I have neither silver nor gold, but what I do have I give you: in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean, rise and walk.' Then Peter took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles grew strong. He leaped up, stood, and walked around, and went into the temple with them, walking and jumping and praising God." And then in the Gospel today, we heard the story of the disciples walking on the Road to Emmaus and how the Lord appeared to them, but they were prevented from recognizing Him. It was only when He "broke the bread" that their eyes were opened and that they recognized Him! Dear friends, what do these two accounts help us to learn today. A simple phrase perhaps can help us: "Jesus is found in the broken." They see him not just "in the bread" but in the "breaking of the break." It was in this Eucharistic action, this living sacrifice, which we celebrate and offer and at every Mass, that they recognized Our Lord. But notice where He also found, albeit in a different form; Saint Peter recognized Our Lord hidden within this poor, crippled, and we can even say "broken" man. "Jesus is found in the broken." Let us remember this today (and everyday) and try to recognize Him! And let us pray that our eyes might not be prevented from seeing Him where wants to be found. Amen.

Tuesday of Easter Week

2010-04-06T06:48:00.001-04:00

When I was in college, I studied Biology. And, as with any field of science, we did many experiments and each time we had to write a report on our results, we would do as best as we could to prove that the results were accurate. We would list all the evidence in support of the conclusions that were reached. In contrast to this, the Scriptures, which gives us everything that is necessary for our salvation, have an interesting way of reporting the evidence in support of the resurrection. Instead of listing the positive evidence in support of it, they seek to prove it by telling us of the weakness and even confusion of the disciples and apostles. And yet, it is through their weakness and confusion that the disciples and apostles come to believe and to discover that what the Lord told them was true. They had heard him speak of this day countless times, but they did not understand what he meant. We heard even in the Gospel today about how they were discovering what had happened: "Mary Magdalene stayed outside the tomb weeping. And as she wept, she bent over into the tomb and saw two angels in white sitting there, one at the head and one at the feet where the Body of Jesus had been. And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken my Lord, and I don’t know where they laid him.” Our Lord may not give us all the evidence that we think we need in order to believe. He gives us all that we need, we need only to listen to His words and trust that what he tells us is true. Faith is not like a science experiment, and I am very glad that the Scriptures, which have a Divine origin, teach us in a very human way, that is, in a way most suited to our understanding. Just like disciples and apostles who slowly discovered the truth as it was unfolding before their eyes, so may we, by God's grace, allow the truth to unfold before us and within us. Oh Lord, like Mary Magdalene we often are looking, wondering and seeking, help us to trust. Increase our faith, so that relying on what You have revealed to us, we might attain eternal life. Amen.

Monday of Easter Week

2010-04-05T09:31:00.007-04:00

I rarely, if ever, post personal information on this blog. Due to its nature as a forum for reflecting on spiritual topics and the lives of the saints, it does not seem proper to mention details of my own life. However, on this one occasion, I may have to break this rule. The details of today’s post will directly influence the future of this little web-based apostolate. It was made public last week, that His Eminence Cardinal Justin Rigali, Archbishop of Philadelphia, has asked me to go to Rome, in Italy, for Graduate Studies in the area of Spirituality. This new assignment becomes effective on June 21, 2010.

I want to personally thank you, the readers, for your great interest in the many spiritual and religious topics that we have covered on this blog. Due to the nature of this new assignment, I will not be able to continue with these posts. I have chosen May 13, 2010, to be the last day on which I will be posting these reflections. Following that date, there will be no further rflections, although the blog will remain on line. This is a significant date in the Church’s Calendar because it is the Solemnity of the Ascension of Our Lord and it is also a day which has been traditionally dedicated to the Honor of Our Lady of Fatima.

Please keep me in your prayers and be assured of a remembrance in all of my prayers and sacrifices! May God bless you and keep you!

In the Joy of the Risen Lord,
Father Ronald Check

Resurrection of Our Lord

2010-04-04T08:48:00.003-04:00

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Happy Easter!

Victimae Paschali To the Paschal victim
laudes immolent Christiani. may Christians offer songs of praise.

Agnus redemit oves: The Lamb has redeemed the sheep;
Christus innocens Patri The innocent Christ
reconciliavit peccatores. has reconciled sinners to the Father.

Mors et vita duello Death and life have clashed
conflixere mirando: in a miraculous duel:
dux vitae mortuus, The Leader of Life is dead,
regnat vivus. yet reigns alive.

Dic nobis Maria, Tell us, Mary,
Quid vidisti in via? what did you see on the way?
Sepulcrum Christi viventis, I saw the tomb of the living Christ,
et gloriam vidi resurgentis, and the glory of His rising,

Angelicos testes, The angelic witnesses,
sudarium et vestes. the shroud and His clothes.
Surrexit Christus spes mea: Christ, my hope, has risen:
praecedet suos in Galilaeam. He will go before his own into Galilee.

Credendum est magis soli More trust should be placed
Mariae veraci In truthful Mary
Quam Judaeorum Than in the deceitful
Turbae fallaci. Crowd of Jews.

Scimus Christum surrexisse We know that Christ has truly risen
a mortuis vere: from the dead.
Tu nobis, victor Rex miserere O Conqueror and King, have mercy on us.
Amen. Alleluia. Amen. Alleluia.

The Burial Of Jesus

2010-04-03T07:34:00.003-04:00

V/. Adoramus te, Christe, et benedicimus tibi.
R/. Quia per sanctam crucem tuam redemisti mundum.

From the Gospel according to Matthew 27:59-61

"Joseph took the body, and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud, and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn in the rock; and he rolled a great stone to the door of the tomb, and departed. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the sepulchre."

MEDITATION

Jesus, disgraced and mistreated, is honorably buried in a new tomb. Nicodemus brings a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds weight, which gives off a precious scent. In the Son’s self-offering, as at his anointing in Bethany, we see an “excess” which evokes God’s generous and superabundant love. God offers himself unstintingly. If God’s measure is superabundance, then we for our part should consider nothing too much for God. This is the teaching of Jesus himself, in the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5:20). But we should also remember the words of Saint Paul, who says that God “through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of Christ everywhere. We are the aroma of Christ” (2 Cor 2:14ff.). Amid the decay of ideologies, our faith needs once more to be the fragrance which returns us to the path of life. At the very moment of his burial, Jesus’ words are fulfilled: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (Jn 12:24). Jesus is the grain of wheat which dies. From that lifeless grain of wheat comes forth the great multiplication of bread which will endure until the end of the world. Jesus is the bread of life which can satisfy superabundantly the hunger of all humanity and provide its deepest nourishment. Through his Cross and Resurrection, the eternal Word of God became flesh and bread for us. The mystery of the Eucharist already shines forth in the burial of Jesus.
-- Meditation composed by Pope Benedict XVI

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"Now there was a virtuous and righteous man named Joseph who, though he was a member of the council, had not consented to their plan of action. He came from the Jewish town of Arimathea and was awaiting the kingdom of God. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. After he had taken the body down, he wrapped it in a linen cloth and laid him in a rock-hewn tomb in which no one had yet been buried. It was the day of preparation, and the sabbath was about to begin. The women who had come from Galilee with him followed behind, and when they had seen the tomb and the way in which his body was laid in it, they returned and prepared spices and perfumed oils. Then they rested on the sabbath according to the commandment." (Luke 23:50-56)

Good Friday

2010-04-02T09:00:00.000-04:00

Good Friday Prayer
O Jesus, Who by reason of Thy burning love for us
hast willed to be crucified
and to shed Thy Most Precious Blood
for the redemption and salvation of our souls,
look down upon us here gathered together
in remembrance of Thy most sorrowful Passion and Death,
fully trusting in Thy mercy;
cleanse us from sin by Thy grace,
sanctify our toil,
give unto us and unto all those who are dear to us our
daily bread,
sweeten our sufferings,
bless our families,
and to the nations so sorely afflicted,
grant Thy peace,
which is the only true peace,
so that by obeying Thy commandments
we may come at last to the glory of heaven.

Amen.

Holy Thursday

2010-04-01T07:32:00.002-04:00

A few prayers for Priests on Holy Thursday, the day on which Our Lord instituted at once the Holy Eucharist and the Holy Priesthood.

A Prayer for Priests
By St. Therese of Lisieux

O Jesus, eternal Priest,
keep your priests within the shelter of Your Sacred Heart,
where none may touch them.

Keep unstained their anointed hands,
which daily touch Your Sacred Body.

Keep unsullied their lips,
daily purpled with your Precious Blood.

Keep pure and unearthly their hearts,
sealed with the sublime mark of the priesthood.

Let Your holy love surround them and
shield them from the world's contagion.

Bless their labors with abundant fruit and
may the souls to whom they minister be their joy and consolation here and in heaven their beautiful and
everlasting crown. Amen.

A Prayer for Priests
By John Cardinal O’Connor

O loving Mother Mary, Mother of Priests, take to your heart your sons who are close to you because of their priestly ordination and because of the power which they have received to carry on the work of Christ in a world which needs them so much. Be their comfort, be their joy, be their strength, and especially help them to live and to defend the ideals of consecrated celibacy.

Lord Jesus, we your people pray to You for our priests. You have given them to us for OUR needs. We pray for them in THEIR needs.

We know that You have made them priests in the likeness of your own priesthood. You have consecrated them, set them aside, anointed them, filled them with the Holy Spirit, appointed them to teach, to preach, to minister, to console, to forgive, and to feed us with Your Body and Blood.

Yet we know, too, that they are one with us and share our human weaknesses. We know too that they are tempted to sin and discouragement as are we, needing to be ministered to, as do we, to be consoled and forgiven, as do we. Indeed, we thank You for choosing them from among us, so that they understand us as we understand them, suffer with us and rejoice with us, worry with us and trust with us, share our beings, our lives, our faith.

We ask that You give them this day the gift You gave Your chosen ones on the way to Emmaus: Your presence in their hearts, Your holiness in their souls, Your joy in their spirits. And let them see You face to face in the breaking of the Eucharistic bread.

We pray to You, O Lord, through Mary the mother of all priests, for Your priests and for ours. Amen.

Wednesday of Holy Week

2010-03-31T05:32:00.002-04:00

Someone recently shared this wonderful little video about Our Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI and I thought it would be very nice to share it with you.

Enjoy!

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To learn more about Our Holy Father, please follow the link below:

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/index.htm

Also... a wonderful article in defense of Our Holy Father, written by Archbishop Timothy Dolan, the Archbishop of New York. It is definitely worth reading during these days when the Pope is being attacked.

http://blog.archny.org/?p=589

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"My dear friends –
at this moment I can only say:
pray for me,
that I may learn to love the Lord more and more.
Pray for me, that I may learn to love his flock more and more
– in other words, you, the holy Church,
each one of you and all of you together.
Pray for me,
that I may not flee for fear of the wolves.
Let us pray for one another,
that the Lord will carry us
and that we will learn to carry one another."

~ His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI, Papal Inaugural Mass, April 24, 2005

Tuesday of Holy Week

2010-03-30T06:59:00.000-04:00

Tuesday of Holy Week
Readings: Isaiah 49:1-6; John 13:21-33; 36-38

"I tell you solemnly; one of you will betray me!" (John 13:21)

Throughout Jesus' ministry He always spoke of love without limits, forgiveness instead of revenge, and service over domination. In our gospel, Jesus struggles with His own commitment to live those words that He has spoken so often and so fervently. We see that Jesus is "deeply troubled," His depression arising from the betrayal of Judas and the lying of Peter. Now Jesus must forgive the betrayal and deceit that has torn and ripped apart the fabric of love between Him and His friends. Jesus realizes that He must stand alone to face his sufferings and death. It will not be His disciples or His friends that see Him through, but only His trust in God. Jesus believes God will not fail Him.

The words of Isaiah give Jesus hope that there is an anchor in this sea of deceit: "The Lord called me from birth, from my mother's womb he gave me my name. God is now my strength." (Isaiah 49:1, 5).

We also are not free from the disciples' flaws. How often have we been like Judas, rejecting the call to love and entering the darkness, or like Peter, lying to protect our own skins? We ask forgiveness and renew our fidelity to the Lord Who walks alone.

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Prayer for Tuesday of Holy Week

Father, may we receive your forgiveness and mercy as we celebrate the passion and death of the Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

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Today's meditation comes to us from: http://www.2heartsnetwork.org/holyweek.htm

By The Hand

2010-03-29T06:48:00.000-04:00

In our first reading (Isaiah 42:1-7) from Mass today we heard these beautiful words:

"Thus says God, the LORD,
who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spreads out the earth with its crops,
Who gives breath to its people
and spirit to those who walk on it:
I, the LORD, have called you for the victory of justice,
I have grasped you by the hand;
I formed you, and set you
as a covenant of the people,
a light for the nations,
To open the eyes of the blind,
to bring out prisoners from confinement,
and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness."

It is during this week that all faithful Christians relive the passion, the death and the resurrection of Our Lord. It’s very common after people die, for their loved ones to sit around and tell stories about the person who has just passed away. They do this so that they can relive those moments, so that they call to mind the times they laughed and the times they cried. And this, in a way, is what we do during this week. We remember how much Jesus loved us, that He loved us to His death. We remember that He gave His Body and Blood for us, that He endured His sufferings for us, that He carried His cross for us and that He died for us! What a beautiful testament! “No greater love has a man than this, but to lay down His life for His friends, You are my friends,” He told us! And so no greater love exists is all the universe, than the love of Christ for us. When we are sad or troubled or struggling we should remember this. That Almighty loved us and loves still so much, that He would give everything of Himself just so that we could have our sins taken away and so that we could enjoy forever the happiness and the joy of heaven. As we with Our Lord this week, let us remember that He always goes with us, that he not only stands beside us, but that He is in us and as the Prophet Isaiah told us, "I have grasped you by the hand." Let us go with Our Lord, and all things will be possible! Amen.

The Legacy of Jesus

2010-03-27T07:57:00.003-04:00

"In the Gospel we have heard how the Lord gave Mary as a Mother to the beloved disciple and, in him, to all of us. In every age, Christians have received with gratitude this legacy of Jesus, and, in their recourse to his Mother, they have always found security and confident hope which gives them joy in God and makes us joyful in our faith in him. May we too receive Mary as the lodestar guiding our lives, introducing us into the great family of God! Truly, those who believe are never alone."

-- Homily at Mass in Isliger Feld, Regensburg, 12 September 2006.

Friday's Special Feature

2010-03-26T04:58:00.003-04:00

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As part of a "Special Feature" every Friday we will have the chance to learn about one of our own Seminarians preparing for priestly service in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Please remember to pray for these men and to ask God for an increase in vocations to the Holy Priesthood.

Rev. Mr. Stephen C. McCarthy
Class: IV Theology

Parish: Saint Joseph the Worker, Fallsington

What year did you enter the seminary?
2004

What did you do prior to seminary entrance?
I attended Pennsbury High School, then studied education at Penn State for two years.

What influenced your decision to enter the seminary?
My pastor, family and the parish community have had an enormous impact on my decision, especially my twin brother, Dan, who was in the seminary from 2002-2007.

Why do you want to be a priest?
I want to be a priest to serve the people of God by ministering to them in their times of need, especially through the sacraments, and, in doing so, to serve and love God in the way which I feel He has called me.

What did your family and friends think about your decision to enter the seminary?
Most of them were very supportive. Some didn’t understand at first, but most were very happy and proud. Now they all support me and their fears were put at bay by my happiness and joy at where I am in life.

What do you do for fun?
I like to go out with my friends and brother seminarians and to spend time with my family and my parish community.

Who is your favorite Saint?
Saint Tarcisius, the boy martyred in pagan Rome for carrying the Eucharist to Christians in prison for celebrating the faith.

What advice would you give to a young man thinking about the seminary?
I would reiterate the words made famous by our beloved late Pope John Paul II, to “be not afraid,” but rather “come, follow me”.

Thursdays - Our Day of Eucharist

2010-03-25T06:15:00.000-04:00

From the writings of St. Alphonsus Ligouri:

Jesus Christ finds means to console a soul that remains with a recollected spirit before the Most Blessed Sacrament, far beyond what the world can do with all its feasts and pastimes. Oh, how sweet a joy it is to remain with faith and tender devotion before an altar, and converse familiarly with Jesus Christ, who is there for the express purpose of listening to and graciously hearing those who pray to him; to ask his pardon for the displeasures which we have caused him; to represent our wants to him, as a friend does to a friend in whom he places all his confidence; to ask him for his graces, for his love, and for his kingdom; but above all, oh, what a heaven it is there to remain making acts of love towards that Lord who is on the very altar praying to the Eternal Father for us, and is there burning with love for us. Indeed that love it is which detains him there, thus hidden and unknown, and where he is even despised by ungrateful souls! But why should we say more? "Taste and see."

Passion Prayer

2010-03-24T07:31:00.000-04:00

As we move closer to the celebration of Our Lord's Passion and Death,

this simple prayer seems apropos to help us along our way.

Dear Lord Jesus,
by Your Passion and Resurrection
You brought life to the world.
But the glory of the Resurrection
came only after the sufferings of the Passion.

You laid down Your life willingly
and gave up everything for us.
Your body was broken and fastened to a Cross,
Your clothing became the prize of soldiers,
your blood ebbed slowly but surely away,
and Your Mother was entrusted to the beloved disciple.

Stretched out on the Cross,
deprived of all earthly possessions and human aid,
You cried out to Your Father that the end had come.
You had accomplished the work given You,
and You committed into His hands,
as a perfect gift,
the little life that remained to You.

Lord, teach me to accept all afflictions
after the example You have given.
Let me place my death in Yours
and my weakness in Your abandonment,
Take hold of me with Your love,
that same foolish love that knew no limits,
and let me offer myself to the Father
with You so that I may rise with You to eternal life.

Amen

I Am Going Away

2010-03-23T06:40:00.000-04:00

In the Gospel today (John 8:21-30) Our Lord says to the Pharisees, "I am going away and you will look for me, but you will die in your sin. Where I am going you cannot come." This is a very telling line about the truth of our existence. The Pharisees are, seemingly in eyes of the Lord, public sinners. He is always challenging their ways and their interpretation of the law, etc. In this one line, He reminds them, and us, that if we do not repent and "turn away from sin" and try with all our hearts "to be faithful to the Gospel," that it is possible for us to die in our sin. It is possible, if we do not turn from sin and turn toward the Christ, that we can loose our place in heaven. We are not all guaranteed a place in heaven just because we were born! This is a very common mis-perception. Yes, there is a place prepared for us, but we must do our best to respond to God's grace, to turn from our sinful ways, to be obedient to God's holy will, and to be faithful to loving Him until death. There is no place in heaven for those attached to sin and worldly things. So just like with the Pharisees, we may look for Christ, but if we don't turn away from sin, it is possible that we, like them, could also die in our sin and lose what God wants so much for us to have, a place in the heavenly kingdom. There's an old saying, "If you know where your going, you're more likely to get there!" We have been created for heaven and to spend eternity with God, let us know this, and do our best to go where we ought to be! For if we are attached to our sins and cannot let go of them, then Our Lord may say to us, as He said to those Pharisees, "Where I am going you cannot come." We ought not to belong to what is below, but to what is above, and we should strive to belong now to heaven, so that when Christ comes and calls us to go, we might be able to get up and follow Him into Paradise! Amen.

Neither Do I Condemn You

2010-03-22T06:19:00.002-04:00

Today we heard a most beautiful Gospel about forgiveness! The Scribes and Pharisees brought this woman to Jesus to test him because in the old Jewish law certain sins were punished by stoning to death, and adultery was one of those sins. But just imagine how this woman felt when she was brought before Jesus. I’m sure she felt complete and utter shame because of her sin and she was probably terrified because this mob brought her to Jesus for judgment. Her life was in his hands! And Jesus in His great wisdom does something that the Scribes and Pharisees could’ve never predicted. Instead of pointing the finger of judgment at the woman, He turns the tables on them and says to them, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” In other words, He’s reminding them, that we are all sinners, and that we should never pass judgment on one another. It is God’s job to judge, not ours. And the Scriptures tell us that after His words, “they went away one by one, beginning with the elders.” Because they knew what He was saying was true. And then Jesus was left alone there with this woman. Now remember the words that Our Lord just spoke, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Jesus is without sin, and so by His own righteousness, He has every right to throw a stone at her and to condemn her, He can do that and be just, but He doesn’t! Instead He does something truly beautiful. He says to her, “Has no one condemned you?” She replied, “No one” Then He said her, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on don’t sin anymore.” Now imagine how this woman felt when he forgave her and told her to go! The greatest act of charity that anyone can perform is to forgive. Since this was the greatst act of charity by God for man, and this is what Our Lord did on Calvary! Our Lord came for the forgiveness of our sins! He cried out from the cross right before He died, “Father forgive them”! All of this is meant to teach us that God is forgiving; that even though we sin, even though we go astray, He’s always ready and willing to forgive us. He wants us to know His mercy. He wants us to know the peace and the joy and the happiness that comes when the burden of our sins and our guilt is washed away. And God’s mercy is very great, greater than any sins can commit. Even if we have great sins on our souls, even if we think we’ve done too much, God’s mercy is always greater. Saint Theresa, once noted that even if we have committed many great sins, if we go to God and ask His forgiveness, our sins, no matter how great they are, can be taken away so completely that it would be as if we took a drop of water and threw it into a great furnace, that drop of water would disappear very quickly, and it’s the same with us. When we go to God and ask for His forgiveness, He is so good to us: so merciful, so forgiving and so loving! Let us to go Him then, and standing lovingly under His cross, may the merits of His passion and death wash all of our sins away! Amen.

Our Blessed Lady

2010-03-20T08:34:00.005-04:00

This beautiful picture touched me this morning very much and I wanted to share with you! Look at how tenderly the child Jesus looks at His Mother. Look at how lovingly She gazes at His Holy Face. He looks to her as the "handmaid." She is the one who has been created by God to perfectly and most beautifully reflect the image of her Creator. She has no stain of sin on her soul and no wrinkle of concupiscence taints this "Lily of the human race". The child Jesus looks to her with so much affection because He sees in her the Blessed Trinity come alive! He sees in her the image of His Great Father. He sees in her the fire of the Holy Spirit alive and burning brightly. He sees in her, His own image, Which is Love Itself! And when She gazes at Him, she sees what all the angels and saints behold in heaven, the continence of God! Her gaze reminds us, of what we shall do, if by God's mercy we attain to the blessedness of heaven. Let us look at their eyes and see the great love that is communicated by this simple glance. For by this gaze they communicate something of themselves to each other. It is a gaze of total submission. It is a gaze of complete and utter peace and joy. It is a gaze of ecstatic love. Let us then look to Mary, and see in her how we ought to be, reflections of Trinitarian Love. And let us then look to Jesus, and see in Him what we will become, if we allow Blessed Mary to be our Mother, as She was His. Amen!

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"It was through the most holy Virgin Mary that Jesus came into the world, and it is also through her that He has reign in the world."

"Mary was singularly hidden during her life. It is on this account that the Holy Ghost and the Church call her Alma Mater - Mother secret and hidden. Her humility was so profound that she had no inclination on earth more powerful or more constant than that of hiding herself, from herself as well as from every other creature, so as to be known to God only."

-- From Saint Louis Marie DeMontfort in True Devotion to Mary

Friday's Special Feature

2010-03-19T07:20:00.002-04:00

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At the request of some of our readers, we will be having this "Special Feature" honoring one of our Seminarians each week. Every Friday we will learn a little about one of our Seminarians preparing for priestly service in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Please remember to pray for these men and to ask God for an increase in vocations to the Holy Priesthood.

Rev. Mr. Thomas J. Gardner
Class: IV Theology

Parish: Saint Luke the Evangelist, Glenside

What year did you enter the seminary?
Fall 2002

What did you do prior to seminary entrance?
I entered the seminary the year I graduated high school.

What influenced your decision to enter the seminary?
The example of my parish priests.

Why do you want to be a priest?
I want to find complete happiness and joy in following Jesus wherever He calls me to go.

What did your family and friends think about your decision to enter the seminary?
I was very fortunate because both my family and friends were supportive of my decision to enter the seminary, although I think they were a little surprised.

What do you do for fun?
I like to play basketball and exercise. I also play the guitar a little bit. I really enjoy music.

Who is your favorite Saint?
My favorite saint is probably Saint Therese of Lisieux. I like to think of her as my older sister.

What advice would you give to a young man thinking about the seminary?
Remember that God is never outdone in generosity.

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Prayer for Seminarians

O Jesus, Eternal High Priest, I offer You through Your most Immaculate Mother, Mary, Your own Precious Blood, in all the Masses being said throughout the world as a petition for graces for all seminarians, Your future priests, and especially for the grace of perseverance of those whom I especially know and in whom I am most interested. Give them meekness, humility, prudence, patience, and a burning zeal for souls. Fill their hearts with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Teach them both to know and to love the Church, that they may always and everywhere speak, act, and think with her, the glorious spouse of Christ. Teach them generosity and detachment from the miserable things of this world; but above all, teach them to know and to love You, the one and only Eternal Priest. O Good Shepherd of souls, here this my petition for saintly priests. Amen.

St. John Vianney, Curé of Ars, pray God to bless all priests, and to bless our seminarians now preparing for the sacred priesthood; grant them success in their studies and perseverance in their efforts. Amen.

Thursday in Honor of the Blessed Sacrament

2010-03-18T07:29:00.002-04:00

The following excerpt was taken from the writings of Mother Teresa, now Blessed Teresa of Calcutta:

Like Mary, let us be full of zeal to go in haste to give Jesus to others. She was full of grace when, at the annunciation, she received Jesus. Like her, we too become full of grace every time we receive Holy Communion. It is the same Jesus whom she received and whom we receive at Mass. As soon as she received Him she went with haste to give Him to John. For us also, as soon as we receive Jesus in Holy Communion, let us go in haste to give Him to our sisters, to our poor, to the sick, to the dying, to the lepers, to the unwanted, and the unloved. By this we make Jesus present in the world today.

We cannot separate our lives from the Eucharist; the moment we do, something breaks. People ask, "Where do the sisters get the joy and energy to do what they are doing?" The Eucharist involves more than just receiving; it also involves satisfying the hunger of Christ. He says, "Come to Me." He is hungry for souls. Nowhere does the Gospel say: "Go away," but always "Come to Me."

Our lives must be woven around the Eucharist. Ask Jesus to be with you, to work with you that you may be able to pray the work. You must really be sure that you have received Jesus. After that, you cannot give your tongue, your thoughts, or your heart to bitterness.

Put your sins in the chalice for the precious blood to wash away. One drop is capable of washing away all the sins of the world.

When communicating with Christ in your heart - the partaking of Living Bread - remember what Our Lady must have felt when the Spirit overpowered her and she, who was full of grace, became full with the body of Jesus. The Spirit was so strong in her that she immediately rose in haste to go and serve.

Each Holy Communion, each breaking of the Bread of Life, each sharing should produce in us the same, for it is the same Jesus who came to Mary and was made flesh. We, too, should be in haste to give this life of Jesus...

Saint Patrick

2010-03-17T08:11:00.000-04:00

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Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

This beautiful prayer of Saint Patrick, most commonly known as "St. Patrick's Breast-Plate", was composed by him in preparation for this victory over Paganism. The following is a literal translation from the old Irish text:

I bind to myself today
The strong virtue of the Invocation of the Trinity:
I believe the Trinity in the Unity
The Creator of the Universe.

I bind to myself today
The virtue of the Incarnation of Christ with His Baptism,
The virtue of His crucifixion with His burial,
The virtue of His Resurrection with His Ascension,
The virtue of His coming on the Judgement Day.

I bind to myself today
The virtue of the love of seraphim,
In the obedience of angels,
In the hope of resurrection unto reward,
In prayers of Patriarchs,
In predictions of Prophets,
In preaching of Apostles,
In faith of Confessors,
In purity of holy Virgins,
In deeds of righteous men.

I bind to myself today
The power of Heaven,
The light of the sun,
The brightness of the moon,
The splendour of fire,
The flashing of lightning,
The swiftness of wind,
The depth of sea,
The stability of earth,
The compactness of rocks.

I bind to myself today
God's Power to guide me,
God's Might to uphold me,
God's Wisdom to teach me,
God's Eye to watch over me,
God's Ear to hear me,
God's Word to give me speech,
God's Hand to guide me,
God's Way to lie before me,
God's Shield to shelter me,
God's Host to secure me,
Against the snares of demons,
Against the seductions of vices,
Against the lusts of nature,
Against everyone who meditates injury to me,
Whether far or near,
Whether few or with many.

I invoke today all these virtues
Against every hostile merciless power
Which may assail my body and my soul,
Against the incantations of false prophets,
Against the black laws of heathenism,
Against the false laws of heresy,
Against the deceits of idolatry,
Against the spells of women, and smiths, and druids,
Against every knowledge that binds the soul of man.

Christ, protect me today
Against every poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against death-wound,
That I may receive abundant reward.

Christ with me, Christ before me,
Christ behind me, Christ within me,
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ at my right, Christ at my left,
Christ in the fort,
Christ in the chariot seat,
Christ in the poop [deck],
Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks to me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

I bind to myself today
The strong virtue of an invocation of the Trinity,
I believe the Trinity in the Unity
The Creator of the Universe.

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To learn more about Saint Patrick:
1. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11554a.htm
2. http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=89

Health Care Reform

2010-03-16T10:21:00.005-04:00

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Legitimate Health Care Reform

"Genuine health care reform that protects the life and dignity

of all is a moral imperative and a vital national obligation"

- Bishop William F. Murphy

For today's post, I am providing this much needed information

from the US Bishops about Health Care Reform.

The US Bishops Position on Health Care Reform:

1. A truly universal health policy with respect for human life and dignity
2. Access for all with a special concern for the poor and inclusion of immigrants
3. Pursuing the common good and preserving pluralism including freedom of conscience and variety of options
4. Restraining costs and applying them equitably across the spectrum of payers

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Please follow this link to the US Bishops webpage to contact Congress now and let your voice be heard in this most critical debate for our country. The US Bishops have done a wonderful service here in making it very easy to contact our Congressional leaders.

http://www.usccb.org/healthcare

Faith and Signs

2010-03-15T06:56:00.000-04:00

In the Gospel according to Saint Mark (Chapter 9), there is a beautiful story of Our Lord curing a boy who has been possessed by demons for many years. The father of the boy asks Our Lord, "if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us." And Our Lord replies in an apparently bothered and irritated manner. He says to the man, "'If you can!' Everything is possible to one who has faith." And the man, with great humility, replies to Him, "I do believe, help my unbelief!" This man would never have come to Our Lord unless He had faith, and the Lord knows this, that's why He sternly reminds the man that faith is necessary in order for Him to act and save his son.And this is what Our Lord does, He heals the man's son. Faith is necessary because without faith Our Lord would be offending free will if He simply "made every well." Unless we go to Him and ASK, we shall not receive. True freedom must be always be respected. This also happens in today's Gospel (Saint John 4:43-54), in a similar way, with the curing of the official's son. This royal official came to Jesus asking him to come and cure his son who was near death. And Jesus responds,"Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe." So, dear friends, we may need signs to inspire our faith, but only because we are weak.. There are two things that seem important for us to remember: firstly, we cannot go to Our Lord simply because we want something from Him! We should go to Him because He loves us and because we want love Him in return. Secondly, if we are seeking signs, we cannot and should not seek them merely for our own good, but rather, for the sake of an increase in faith, hope and love. Let us ask God, not for signs, but for a greater faith and a deeper love. If signs come, they are a gift from God. Let us gives thanks to God for all the wonderful gifts He gives, especially the gift of faith, by which we come to know the signs that He regular performs in our midst, and through which we come to believe in Him Who has been sent for our salvation! Amen.

Sunday Catechesis- Year for Priests

2010-03-14T09:29:00.002-04:00

From the Words of

Saint John Marie Vianney

Be like ministers who offer Jesus Christ to God his Father and make him the sacrifice of all they are, and take as a good model the good thief on the cross. What progress he makes during the three hours that he finds himself in the company of his dying Saviour! First, he opens the eyes of his soul to recognize his deliverer; then, fastened to the cross, and having nothing that remains free but his heart and tongue, he offers both to Jesus Christ. He consecrates his heart to him by faith and hope, and humbly asks of him a place in paradise; and he consecrates his tongue to him by proclaiming his innocence and holiness: "It is just that we should suffer," he says to his companion,"but as for him, he is innocent." He makes himself Christ's panegyrist at a time wen others think only of outraging him, and so great is his charity that he does all he can to convert the other...

My children, you listen when you like the preacher; but if the preacher does not suit you, you turn him into ridicule... We must not think so much about the man. It is not the body that we must attend to. Whatever the priest may be, he is still the instrument that the good God makes use to distribute his holy Word. You pour liquor through a funnel; whether it be made of gold or of copper, if the liquor is good it will still be good.

Reflections on Our Lady

2010-03-13T09:43:00.003-05:00

Flame of Love

"Mary teaches that to love according to God it is necessary to live in him and of him: God is the first 'home' of human beings, and only by dwelling in God do men and women burn with a flame of divine love that can set the world 'on fire.'"

-- Pope Benedict XVI, Message for the Eightieth World Mission Sunday, 29 April 2006

Special: Seminarian Feature

2010-03-12T06:05:00.004-05:00

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At the request of some of our readers, we will be having this "Special Feature" honoring one of our Seminarians. Every Friday we will have the chance to learn about one of our own Seminarians preparing for priestly service in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Please remember to pray for these men and to ask God for an increase in vocations to the Holy Priesthood.

Rev. Mr. James DeGrassa
Class: IV Theology

Parish: Saint Madeline, Ridley Park

What year did you enter the seminary?
I first came into the seminary in 2000.

What did you do prior to seminary entrance?
I attended Cardinal O’Hara High School. I worked at a nursing home in Ridley Park and at Acme Food Market.

What influenced your decision to enter the seminary?
Many factors influenced my decision to enter. I was often told by many people to think about the priesthood. It was through much prayer and reflection, visiting the seminary, and speaking with the priest at my high school, Father Maloney, that I finally entered the seminary.

Why do you want to be a priest?
I want to be a priest because I feel in my heart that God wants me to be a priest. I think he is calling me to live a life of sacrifice and joy as a priest.

What did your family and friends think about your decision to enter the seminary?
At first I was nervous to tell them about my decision to enter the seminary but to my surprise everyone was 100% supportive and over joyed about my decision.

What do you do for fun?
I like to travel, hang out with friends, go to the movies, listen to music, I play the piano and guitar, I like to swim and exercise.

Who is your favorite Saint?
St. Paul – he is a model for any seminarian because he lived totally for Christ – from his writing to his example in life.

What advice would you give to a young man thinking about the seminary?
At first there will always be a little doubt – but you have to trust and take a LEAP if faith. If you feel in your heart a draw to the priesthood – “come and see”. To ignore this feeling is to ignore God.

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Jesus, Good Shepherd, you said, "The harvest indeed is great but the laborers are few." We lovingly accept your invitation: "Pray the Heavenly Father to send forth laborers into His harvest." Inspire in our Archdiocese a crusade for vocations. Grant us more priests, we bed you! May they be the salt of the earth, the light of the world, the city placed on the mountaintop for the salvation of mankind, redeemed by Your Blood.

Look on us, Lord Jesus and on our need for priests. Help those you are calling to hear Your voice and to respond generously to Your call. Holy Mary, perfect disciple of Our Lord, Mother and Guardian of vocations, pray for us and pray for all those young men called by God to be priests. Amen.

The Blessed Sacrament on Thursdays

2010-03-11T09:25:00.003-05:00

"My Lord Jesus Christ, who, for the love You bear to mankind, do remain night and day in this Sacrament, full of pity and love, awaiting, calling, and receiving all who come to visit You; I believe that You are present in the Sacrament of the Altar; I adore You from the depths of my own nothingness; I thank You for the many graces You have given me, and especially for having given me Yourself in this Sacrament...,"

- St. Alphonsus Ligouri

Meditation of Saint Francis of Assisi

Let everyone be struck with fear,

the whole world tremble,

and the heavens exult

when Christ, the Son of the living God,

is present on the altar in the hands of the priest!

O wonderful loftiness

and stupendous dignity!

O sublime humility!

O humble simlimity!

The Lord of the universe,

God and the Son of God.

so humbles Himself

that He hides Himself

for our salvation

under an ordinary piece of bread!

See the humility of God brothers, and pour out your hearts before Him (Psalm 62:8)!

Humble yourselves that you may be exalted by Him (cf. 1 Peter 5:6)

Hold back nothing of yourselves for yourselves, that He Who gives Himself totally to you may receive you totally!

Amen.

Something For Fun

2010-03-10T06:33:00.000-05:00

For today's post, I thought it might be nice to advertise this wonderful new feature on the Vatican's webpage. The webpage now offers a link to take virtual tours of Saint Peter's Basilica, Saint John Lateran, Saint Paul Outside-the-Walls, Saint Mary Major, the Redemptoris Mater Chapel, and the Vatican Necropolis. It is wonderful way to learn about these treasures of the Catholic Church. Please follow the below link for details.

Cheers! And thanks to Sister Lisa from Saint Monica's for the link!

http://www.vatican.va/various/basiliche/index_en.html

The Invitation of Grace

2010-03-09T07:26:00.001-05:00

Saint Teresa of Jesus (Saint Teresa of Avila) once wrote, "Christ does not force our wills. He will only take what we give Him, but He will never give Himself entirely to us until we give ourselves entirely to Him." In the spirit of her thought provoking words, I offer you the follow reflection, which comes from a beautiful little pamphlet called "God Alone and I: Carmelite Meditations." There is no listed author only that the booklet was "Compiled and adapted by the Carmel of Flemington," and to them I give the credit for today's reflection.

Our Lord told us that He would always come and stand at the threshold but it is the soul that must open the door. "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any man... open to Me the door, I will come in." Yes, He will come over and over again until the hour of our death and only the soul can put a stop to His coming. These knockings are inspirations of grace, silent and secret. We are free to accept them or to reject them. Our Lord will never force our will, but if we correspond to these inspirations with great fidelity He will enter in and take possession of our souls. Then, little by little, His light and truth will enlighten every hour of our life. Often we are held back by the secret fear that "having Him we may not have naught beside." For years Saint Teresa could not find the courage to give up certain infidelities until one day she knelt before an image of Our Lord being scourged and begged Him to take away from her the power to resist Him. She said, "I then made greater progress; for I was now very distrustful of myself and placed all my confidence in God."

Perhaps during Lent, we can all learn this great lesson, which Saint Teresa learned, and pray that we might open the door completely to Our Lord, giving Him total control of everything that we possess: our minds, our hearts, our souls, in short, everything! Then we shall be truly free! And never more will fear reign in our lives. Amen.

Doing Things God's Way

2010-03-08T06:21:00.000-05:00

In today's first reading from Mass (2 Kings 5:1-15ab), Naaman comes to Elisha, the Prophet, seeking a cure for his leprosy, and Elisha tells him to go and wash seven times in the Jordan, and his flesh will be clean and he will be free from his leprosy. Naaman however becomes angry, saying, “I thought that he would surely come out and stand there to invoke the LORD his God, and would move his hand over the spot, and thus cure the leprosy." Naaman is angry that the prophet did not cure him as he wanted him to. And Naaman complains further, this time about the waters of the Jordan, "Are not the rivers of Damascus, the Abana and the Pharpar, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be cleansed?” The Prophet speaks for God, better to follow God's ways and cured than his own designs and expectations and simply wallow in his anger. And then in the Gospel today (Luke 4:24-30), Our Lord said to the people in the synagogue, "Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place." And then the Scriptures tell us, "When the people in the synagogue heard this, they were all filled with fury. They rose up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong." Perhaps like Naaman, they wanted the Lord to act as they saw fit. Perhaps they wanted him to perform miracles, and not because of their faith, but simply because of their curiosity. Dear friends, like Naaman and like those people in the synagogue, we often want God to do our will, to do things our way and for our own ends, but God is not our puppet! God is not supposed to follow our ways, we are supposed follow His ways. Look at Adam and Eve in the Garden, did not God give them perfect freedom and yet they chose to do their own will and not His will with regard to the tree, and look at the disastrous consequences that ensued! Through the Prophet Isaiah, the God once said, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways. As high as the heavens are above the earth, so high are my ways above your ways and my thoughts above your thoughts." Whenever we struggle with making the choice of following God's ways or our own, may we remember that true happiness can be found only in doing the will of God and let us pray as Christ Himself prayed before His passion and death, "My Father, if this chalice can not pass away, and I must drink, thy will be done." (Matt. 26:42) Amen.

Sunday Catechesis - Year For Priests

2010-03-07T06:39:00.003-05:00

In the letter of Saint Paul to the Romans it says, "But how can they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach?" (Romans 10:14)

The Church teaches us in Presbyterorum Ordinis* (no. 2): Priests "are able by the sacred power of orders to offer sacrifice and to forgive sins, and they perform their priestly office publicly for men in the name of Christ....The office of priests, since it is connected with the episcopal order, also, in its own degree, shares the authority by which Christ builds up, sanctifies and rules his Body. Wherefore the priesthood, while indeed it presupposes the sacraments of Christian initiation, is conferred by that special sacrament; through it priests, by the anointing of the Holy Spirit, are signed with a special character and are conformed to Christ the Priest in such a way that they can act in the person of Christ the Head."

What a beautiful thought for all of us to remember! That the priest acts in the person of Christ Himself for our sakes. How great an obligation for priests, but how great a blessing for the Church! Now the "special character" placed on the soul of the priest by which he is "conformed to Christ the Priest," is a great mystery and will not be fulled known until we are in heaven (God-willing). However, if God can create the whole universe out of nothing, if He can make the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame walk, if he can make lepers clean, if he can change water into wine, He certainly can take a man and make him the peoples representative before God and God's representative before men (cf. Hebrews 5). Let us give thanks to God, Who does not want to leave us orphans, but who calls men and makes them His own personal servants, not only for the good of the Church, but also for her salvation. May God continue to send more priests, servants of Divine Love, to bless us, to govern us, to lead us and to sanctify us for God. Amen.

* Presbyterorum Ordinis is the Decree on the Life and Ministry of Priests, Promulgated by His Holiness Pope Paul VI on 07 December 1965. Click here to see the entire document: http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_decree_19651207_presbyterorum-ordinis_en.html

Blessed Virgin Mary on Saturday

2010-03-06T06:04:00.005-05:00

Our Lady, Our Advocate

"Mary, the Mother of the Lord, has received from the faithful the title of Advocate: she is our advocate before God. And this is how we see her, from the wedding feast of Cana onwards: as a woman who is kindly, filled with maternal concern and love, a woman who is attentive to the needs of others and, out of a desire to help them, brings those needs before the Lord."

--Pope Benedict XVI, Homily at Mass in Islinger Feld, Regensburg, 12 September 2006.

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Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary,
that never was it known that anyone who fled to your protection,
implored your help or sought your intercession,
was left unaided.
Inspired with this confidence,
I fly to you, O Virgin of virgins, my Mother;
to you do I come, before you I stand, sinful and sorrowful.

O Mother of the Word Incarnate,
despise not my petitions,
but in your mercy hear and answer me.

Amen.

New Vocations Video

2010-03-05T07:54:00.007-05:00

Today I offer you this link to a new Vocations Video that the Archdiocese of Philadelphia has put together to help inform young men, and others, about the Priesthood. Please support this effort of the Vocations Office to promote vocations by visiting the site, by spreading the word about vocations and above all by praying for an increase in vocations to the Priesthood and the Religious Life. During this Year for Priests it is important for all of us to know that we all have the duty of promoting and supporting vocations to the Sacred Priesthood. The Priesthood is a gift to the whole Church and the whole Church needs the Priest in order to receive the Sacraments and to be strengthened to make our journey through this life to eternal life.

This first link is to the New Video: http://www.heedthecall.org/Videos.html

This second link is to the Webpage for the Vocations Office and it is full of wonderful resources for schools, for families and for individuals: http://www.heedthecall.org/

Also, one of our readers suggested that we feature the various seminarians in some way on this blog. This is an excellent suggestion! So, beginning next Friday, we will do so. Every Friday we can look forward to learning something about the men who are discerning God's will in the Seminary. And in a special way, perhaps, we can all pray for them, that God will strengthen them to persevere and that more men will step up and follow after Our Lord.

God bless and keep you!

Thursday of the Second Week of Lent

2010-03-04T07:07:00.000-05:00

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Reflections on the Eucharist

Jesus is condemned by His own people, by the very ones He showered with His favors. He is condemned as a fomenter of rebellion, He Who is goodness itself; as a blasphemer, He Who is holiness itself; as one seeking power, He Who made Himself the least of all. He is condemned to die on the Cross like the lowest of slaves.

Jesus lovingly accepts this sentence of death: He came down to this earth in order to suffer and die and to teach us to do the same.

In the Holy Eucharist Jesus is again condemned to death: primarily in His graces, which are rejected; in His love, which is slighted; in His sacramental state, by the unbeliever who denies Him, by horrible sacrilege...

Jesus is more cruelly treated by bad Christians than by the Jews. In Jerusalem He was condemned only once, but in the Blessed Sacrament, He is condemned everyday and in thousands of places, and by an appalling number of unjust judges.

And yet Jesus allows Himself to be insulted, despised, condemned: He still continues His sacramental life in order to show us that His love for us is without condition or reserve, that it is greater than our ingratitude.

O Jesus, forgive, I beseech Thee, all sacrileges! Should I ever have committed any, I want to pass my life making reparation for them and loving and honoring Thee for them that despise Thee. Grant me the grace to die with Thee!

- From the "Stations of the Cross" by St. Peter Julian Eymard

Wednesday of the Second Week of Lent

2010-03-03T05:33:00.005-05:00

From the Gospel of today's Holy Mass:

But Jesus summoned them and said,
“You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them,
and the great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you.
Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.
Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve
and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Our Lenten practices are not only meant to strengthen us against temptation, they are not only meant to purify our souls, but they ought also to be an impetus to charity. Our penances, supported by the grace of God, should draw us out of ourselves and make us less selfish and more selfless. One of the consequences and effects of sin, among many others, is that sin tends to make us focus on ourselves and to turn in ourselves, causing us to love ourselves above God and our neighbor. Penance can help to correct this. Did not Our Lord Himself, endure suffering and the cross for the sake of the joy that lay before Him? (cf. Hebrews 12:2b) His suffering and death was the greatest act of charity in human history! He did not need this, He did it for you and for me! It is a sign that our suffering and our penances, should also lead us to perform acts of charity and lead us to perform such acts out of love for one another. Let us ask the Good God for the grace to faithful to our Lenten practices so that we might be purified and strengthened, and also that we might be urged to be serve as He served, by laying down our lives for one another. For when we do as He did, each according to our own vocations and states in life, than the love of God, will once more shine out in our world as a sign to all who see us, that it is Christ who lives within us! Amen.

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"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfecter of faith. For the sake of the joy that lay before him he endured the cross, despising its shame, and has taken his seat at the right of the throne of God. Consider how he endured such opposition from sinners, in order that you may not grow weary and lose heart. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood."

~ Hebrews 12:1-4

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Today is also the Feast of Saint Katherine Drexel!

http://www.katharinedrexel.org/
http://www.ewtn.com/library/mary/drexel.htm

Saint Katherine Drexel, Pray for us!

Tuesday of the Second Week of Lent

2010-03-02T06:25:00.000-05:00

We have these beuatiful words from the Prophet Isaiah in our first reading from Mass today:

"Wash yourselves clean!
Put away your misdeeds from before my eyes;
cease doing evil; learn to do good.
Make justice your aim: redress the wronged,
hear the orphan’s plea, defend the widow.

Come now, let us set things right,
says the LORD:
Though your sins be like scarlet,
they may become white as snow;
Though they be crimson red,
they may become white as wool."
~ Isaiah 1:16-18

How Good God is to us! He desires so much to forgive us of our sins! Why then do we fail to go to Him and ask forgiveness? Do we fear Him now? We should not fear Hom now, but if we do not seek His forgiveness, we shall certainly fear Him after death. Better to seek God's mercy while we are still alive and not waste time thinking that at the moment of our death we might have the possibility of repentance. Perhaps we will, and perhaps we won't, that is all in the care of God's Providence. God the Father is the Father of mercies, God the Son has suffered and died for the forgivness of sins, and God the Holy Spirit is working among us so that the graces of this eternal plan of love and mercy might be applied to our souls! Saint Ambrose tells us, "God is able whensoever He wills to forgive us our sins, even those which we think cannot be forgiven." And we can have access to the fruits of Christ's passion and death whenever we go to confession and to Mass. We can know the peace and the freedom that comes from the grace of the sacrament of penance and above all from the Holy Eucharist! It seems strange to fear confession! Do we fear the peace of God? Do we fear the freedom that we truly desire? Do we fear having the weight and guilt of sin taken away? Dear friends, the Lord Jesus, is the physician of our souls and He has willed that His Church might continue His work of healing, of forgiveness and of mercy. May we come to know the effects of God's forgiveness in our lives by trusting in Him and by opening our hearts to the power of the Holy Spirit available to us in the Sacrament of God's mercy. Amen.

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"Return to me with your whole heart,
with fasting, and weeping, and mourning;
Rend your hearts, not your garments,
and return to the Lord, your God.
For gracious and merciful is he,
slow to anger, rich in kindness,
and relenting in punishment."

~Joel 2:12-13

Monday of the Second Week of Lent

2010-03-01T06:41:00.003-05:00

Our first reading today begins with these words,"Lord, great and awesome God, you who keep your merciful covenant toward those who love you and observe your commandments! We have sinned, been wicked and done evil; we have rebelled and departed from your commandments and your laws." (Daniel 9:4b -5) And the reading continues with a great acknowledgement of sin. Most spiritual writers suggest that in order for us to begin our spiritual growth, in order for us just to begin the journey along the path that leads to God, we must first begin by acknowledging our sin and seek to purify ourselves of sin. Saint Francis DeSales says, "a soul that hopes for the honor of being made a spouse of the Son of God must 'put off the old man, and put on the new' by forsaking sin and removing and cutting away whatever obstructs union with God." (IDL, Part 1, section 5) He goes on to say that this really is the first step, of many, along the path of holiness and one that must be frequently returned to throughout the journey. He says,"The first purgation we must make is that of sin and the way to make it is by the holy sacrament of penance." (IDL, Part 1, section 6) This, my dear friends, touches on the whole reason for Our Lord's life, for His Passion and Death, and Resurrection, which are calling to mind during this great Lenten Season. Many scriptural references could easily be given to remind us that He came for the forgiveness of our sins and that He came to take away our sins. If our Lent is going to be a fruitful one than we need to acknowledge our sins, and humbly seek God's mercy and forgiveness. If we are going to take our spiritual lives seriously and not just "go through the motions," then we need to allow God's saving work of redemption to touch our very lives, and where better to allow God into our hearts then in the confessional. For it is there, that God's infinite love and mercy touches each person, and the goodness of our Heavenly Father becomes real and prepares us to enter more deeply into the mysteries of life and death that we celebrate at every Mass. So long as our sin rules our lives, there is little room for Christ. Pride is often the greatest obstacle to spiritual growth and peace. May our Lent be one of humility and of true contrition for our sins, so that we honestly and openly begin and continue along the pilgrimage of holiness. May the Good God inspire in each one of us a great desire to be free from shackles of sin so as to live as free men and women in the kingdom of God. Amen.

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"If we say, 'We have fellowship with him,' while we continue to walk in darkness, we lie and do not act in truth. But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, then we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of his Son Jesus cleanses us from all sin. If we say, 'We are without sin,' we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we acknowledge our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from every wrongdoing. If we say, 'We have not sinned,' we make him a liar, and his word is not in us." -- 1 John 1:6-10

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NB: "IDL" is my abbreviation for Saint Francis DeSales classic work "The Introduction to the Devout Life."

Sunday Catechesis - Year of the Priest

2010-02-28T09:11:00.001-05:00

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The Year for Priests

Today I share with you these words of Pope Benedict XVI from his address delivered to the members of the Congregation for the Clergy on 16 March 2009. And below, two beautiful videos, with reflections from the Cure of Ars, Saint John Marie Vianney, the Patron Saint of Priests.

"The missionary dimension of the priesthood is born from the priest's sacramental configuration to Christ.... The necessary, indeed indispensible, aspiration to moral perfection... must dwell in every authentically priestly heart... Precisely to encourage priests in this striving for spiritual perfection on which, above all, the effectiveness of their ministry depends, I have decided to establish a special 'Year for Priests' that will begin on 19 June and last until 11 June, 2010. In fact, it is the 150th anniversary of the death of the holy Cure of Ars, John Marie Vianney, a true example of a pastor at the service of Christ's flock... Within and through his own humanity every priest must be well aware that he is bringing to the world Another, God himself. God is the only treasure which ultimately people desire to find in a priest... The priest is called to be expert in divine intimacy so that he may be able to lead souls entrusted to him humbly and trustingly to the same encounter with the Lord...As Church and as priests, we proclaim Jesus of Nazareth, Lord and Christ, crucified and risen, Sovereign of time and of history, in the glad certainty that this truth coincides with the deepest expectations of the human heart."

The Marking of Iniquities

2010-02-26T05:43:00.000-05:00

Today at the Mass we have this beautiful Psalm, Psalm 130, with these words, "If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?" The Psalmist is crying out to God from the depths of his being. He says, "Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord; Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to my voice in supplication." He is calling out to God that God may hear his prayer and then he says to the Lord, "If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand? But with you is forgiveness,t hat you may be revered." Dear friends, the greatness of God comes not from His power to punish, but from His power to forgive! We know that God has the power to do whatever He wills; He is, after all, the Lord of the entire universe and as the Church prays "all times and seasons obey His laws." His greatness however, ought not to measured by his ability to control, but by His ability to be merciful. Our Dear Lord has gone to great lengths to prove the depth of His mercy. Many of the saints and doctors of the Church have taught us that God did not have to go to such lengths as He did to prove the depth of His love, and yet He freely decided to do so. He gave everything and with so much humility so that our sins might be forgiven. So many times we are afraid to approach the throne of His mercy in confession, we should not be afraid. God greatly desires to forgive our sins, He waits for us in the confessional in the person of the priest, but we have to come to Him, we have to seek out and ask for His mercy. God is so great and so good, may the benefits of His suffering and death wash away our sins and remake us into His sons. Because of His great mercy, because of His greatness "kindness and plenteous redemption" we have confidence and stand before Him in peace. Perhaps during Lent we could pray for the humility to get down on our knees and beg for his mercy and forgiveness. Perhaps we can pray for the grace, like the Psalmist to trust in God's mercy! God cares so much for us, may we have the grace to see it and believe it! Amen.

Our Day of the Blessed Eucharist

2010-02-25T06:50:00.000-05:00

Last Sunday, the First Sunday of Lent, we heard about how Our Lord was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days and that there He was tempted by the devil (cf. Luke 4:1-13). One of the temptations that came to Our Lord, in fact the first from this account, involved Our Lord being tempted to turn a stone into bread. Our Lord was hungry because he had been fasting for forty days, and the devil knowing this, and knowing Our Lord's power over creation, tempted Him in this way: "The devil said to him,'If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.' Jesus answered him, 'It is written, One does not live on bread alone.'" A stone is a nonliving object. In the Old Testament, when the Israelites complained in the desert of their thirst, God through Moses brought water from a rock to quench their thirst (cf. Exodus 17:1-6), but when they were hungry, God who could have turned rocks into bread, instead gave them food from living sources. The Scriptures tell us that He gave them manna from heaven in the morning and that in the evening He made quail come to them (cf. Exodus 16). The point is this: the devil's temptation of Our Lord in the desert reveals something to us about what the Lord was planning to do. He did not want to make the stone into bread firstly because it was not the will of His Heavenly Father, and secondly because it was a temptation of the devil. But there seems to be a third reason: perhaps Our Lord did not want to make bread from a stone, but instead He wanted to make Himself into bread in the desert. How can we be fed from a nonliving object, when instead God wishes to feed us from Himself, a living (Divine) person. Do we not call the Eucharistic bread,"living bread"! Listen as Our Lord explains this truth: "Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world." (John 6:47-51) Dear friends, there is a great deal for reflection here, perhaps during our days of Lent, we can turn to the Lord with greater fervor in our hearts and open our hearts, allowing them to be fed by God Himself, who wishes not only to give us food, but to give us Himself as our food unto eternal life. Jesus is our bread in the desert. He is our life and our eternal salvation. He does not want us to seek food from the earth, but rather food from heaven. Let us open ourselves to the living bread that comes down from heaven, to satisfy us and feed us in the desert of this world. Amen.

Seeing Clearly

2010-02-24T05:42:00.000-05:00

+ (the above image is of Jonah leaving the belly of the Fish)

One day Our Blessed Lord was walking toward Jericho and He came to a blind man who was sitting by the roadside. The blind man called out,"Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!" "What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus replied. Then the blind said, "Lord, please let me see." While this story certainly speaks of physical sight, there seems to be an underlying message about spiritual sight. While physical sight is very important, there is a kind of "seeing with the heart" that seems to transcend physical sight and which arises naturally (or better yet- as the result of grace) within our hearts. We want to see! We want to know God's will and have the courage to follow it. We want to know, to understand and to see clearly what is our mission in this life, which comes from God. This is very difficult in our world. There are many distractions and many things which cloud our understanding and our spiritual vision. Perhaps during Lent we could ask the Good God to help us see more clearly His Holy Will. In the first reading from Mass today, it was the opening line that struck me deeply: "The word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time." The story of Jonah going to warn the Ninevites is certainly powerful enough, but what struck me during Mass was that this was the second time that the Lord came to Jonah. I would think if God came to us, once would certainly be good enough! The first time Jonah fled in fear, but God pursued Him! Dear friends, God is pursuing us. He is searching for us! And just like Jonah we sometimes run from Him. Perhaps during Lent we could let ourselves be caught, we could let ourselves be found. For only when we allow such things to happen in our lives will we be able to see clearly the Lord's will. God will certainly come after us "a second time," but just imagine what great things will happen if we give ourselves to Him as soon as He seeks us! Amen

Saint Polycarp

2010-02-23T06:31:00.001-05:00

Saint Polycarp

In the first reading from Mass today (Isaiah 55:10-11), we hear about the rain and the snow having a purpose. God is so interested in creation that He doesn't create the smallest thing without a purpose to fulfill. The Prophet tells us that the rain and snow come down from the heavens "and do not return there till they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, giving seed to the one who sows and bread to the one who eats." So it is with his word! It goes forth from His mouth and does not return to Him empty or void, it does His will and achieves the end for which he sent it. If this is the case for the little things in creation, how much more for us! For God loves us far more than the birds of the air and the fish of the sea, for all of these things have been placed under us. And what about us? Would God create us with no purpose? And yet, some believe that this is the case. How sad! You and I have been created by God and sent into this world only for a time, and we have been sent to do God's will and to achieve the end for which we were sent! And what is the end? Our end ought to be in God! Let us hope that we will achieve our end and not return to God empty, but return to Him full of life! Today we have a saint whose life is a wonderful example for us along this theme. Saint Polycarp was in the first generation of bishops after the Apostles. He was a disciple of Saint John the Beloved. He died in the year 155 AD at the age of 86. He gave an heroic witness throughout his life and even more so at his martyrdom. If you can read the account of his martyrdom, please do so, for it is truly amazing! His name means "many fruits." Let us ask Saint Polycarp to pray for us that our lives, like his, according to the will and providence of God, might also bear the many fruits that we were sent into this world to bear. Amen.

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Two wonderful websites that teach us about Saint Polycarp:

1. http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=99
2. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12219b.htm

The Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter

2010-02-22T06:04:00.002-05:00

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Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter

One day a question arose among the apostles about the identity of Jesus. The Scriptures tell us that on that day, Simon Peter said to Our Lord, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” And then Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Today the Church celebrates the truth that Our Lord made Saint Peter the visible leader of the Church. In the Catechism of the Council of Trent it teaches us this, “The Church has but one ruler and one governor, the invisible one, Christ, whom the eternal Father has made head over all the Church, which is his body (cf. Eph. 1:22, 23).” And so it is Christ who is the true leader of the Church, but the Lord has ascended into heaven, knowing that he would be going to His Father in heaven, and not wanting to leave us like sheep without a shepherd (cf. Matt 9:36b), He appointed Saint Peter to lead the Church on earth and to preserve her unity. And so, while Christ is the invisible head, he made the visible leader, and down through the centuries the Pope, Il Papa, the Holy Father, is considered to be the successor of Saint Peter, the Pope sits in the chair of Saint Peter. Every Bishop has his chair and from that chair he teaches and governs the Church. Today, on this feast of the Chair of Saint Peter, the Church calls us to reaffirm our faith in the hierarchy that Christ has established in His Church. Christ Himself built the Church on the rock on this man, Peter, so that the powers of hell would never prevail against it. He gave us a shepherd so that through him, Christ Himself would be caring for us. Let us cling to our shepherd and pray for our Pope, who together with the Lord, keeps us safe and leads us to through this valley tears to teh gerat happiness of heaven. Amen.

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Click here to learn more about this wonderful feast:

http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm

Sunday Catechesis - Year of the Priest

2010-02-21T08:26:00.003-05:00

Each Sunday I try to focus on some aspect of our Catholic Faith. And during this "Year of the Priest," it seems fitting to reflect on the priesthood, as it seems to relate to all in the Church in some way. While only certain men are taken from among the people and given back to them as priests, the priesthood is directly at the service of every vocation. Our Catechesis today comes from "The Priest is Not His Own," which is a beautiful book written by the Servant of God, Archbishop Fulton Sheen.

"The priesthood of Christ was different from that of all pagan priests and from the Levitical priesthood of the family of Aaron. In the Old Testament and in pagan religions, the priest and the victim were distinct and separate. In Our Lord, they were united inseparably." (pg. 11)

"When the Son of God became man, He introduced something entirely new to the priesthood. Our Lord differed from the priests of the Old Testament not simply because He came from a lineage other than that of Aaron but also because, unlike all others, He united in Himself both priesthood and victimhood. The consequences for all priests are tremendous, for if He did offer Himself for sins, then we must offer ourselves as victims. The conclusion is inescapable." (p. 14)

Blessed Virgin Mary on Saturday

2010-02-20T07:33:00.002-05:00

Our Lady offers us much to reflect on during Lent:

"The traditional image of the Crucifixion . . . portrays the Virgin Mary at the foot of the Cross, according to the description of the Evangelist John, the only one of the Apostles who stayed by the dying Jesus . . . The Evangelist recounts: Mary was standing by the Cross (cf.John 19:25-27). Her sorrow is united with that of her Son. It is a sorrow full of faith and love. The Virgin on Calvary participates in the saving power of the suffering of Christ, joining her "fiat," her "yes," to that of her Son."

-- Pope Benedict XVI, Angelus Address, 17 September 2006

2010-02-19T05:06:00.000-05:00

As you know during Lent there is an added emphasis placed on fasting as a means of spiritual growth. (See the link at left for the Church's requirements.) On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday we are required to fast, however throughout Lent, and on Fridays throughout the year as well, the Church considers these times/days to be of a penitential character, thus encouraging us to take on some penitential practice like fasting. Saint Francis DeSales says, "Fasting is a virtue only when it is accompanied by conditions which render it pleasing to God." These "conditions" could be things like works that flow from a greater openness to God's grace, or they could be a greater love for God and a greater love for one another. Fasting ought to be an impetus to being a better Christian. There should be good fruits from our fasting and not bad fruits! Fasting causes us some suffering and yet it has the goal of helping us to be more faithful to God, to be more disciplined in the face of temptation, but if it is not pleasing to God, if we do it for our own ends and desires apart from pleasing God, then we render fasting useless. Fasting should have good fruits! Fasting ought not to be focused on us at all, but on God. Listen carefully to the words of this reading (below) from today's Mass, which seems to need no explanation, for it clearly indicates that our fasting ought to end in God and in pleasing Him and that our fasting cannot be focused on ourselves alone, but that it ought to be focused on God and others, it ought to be accompanied by good works, which are signs that God's work is being done within our souls. May all of our fasting and penances lead us to love God more and to serve our brothers and sisters with greater reverence and kindness and generosity. Amen.

"On your fast day you carry out your own pursuits,
and drive all your laborers.
Yes, your fast ends in quarreling and fighting,
striking with wicked claw.
Would that today you might fast
so as to make your voice heard on high!
Is this the manner of fasting I wish,
of keeping a day of penance:
That a man bow his head like a reed
and lie in sackcloth and ashes?
Do you call this a fast,
a day acceptable to the LORD?
This, rather, is the fasting that I wish:
releasing those bound unjustly,
untying the thongs of the yoke;
Setting free the oppressed,
breaking every yoke;
Sharing your bread with the hungry,
sheltering the oppressed and the homeless;
Clothing the naked when you see them,
and not turning your back on your own.
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
Your vindication shall go before you,
and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer,
you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am!"

Isaiah 58:3-9a

The Eucharist in Lent

2010-02-18T05:14:00.000-05:00

Each Thursday is our little "Day of the Eucharist." During the 40 days of Lent one of the things that we should remember in our meditations is the 4o years that the Israelites wandered in the desert. The Book of Exodus records the details of that journey that are necessary for our salvation. In Chapter 16, it is revealed to us that the Israelites were hungry and in need of food to continue their journey. God provided for them manna, bread from heaven (see Exodus 13b-14). This manna in the desert comes to our attention again, this time in the New Testament, during Our Lord's discourse on the Bread of Life. In John 6, it says, "Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" So Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." So they said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always." Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst." During our journey of Lent, perhaps we can reflect on the Holy Eucharist, on the Blessed Sacrament, as our manna in the desert of the world, as our food needed to continue and to complete our journey here below. The Blessed Sacrament is our bread from heaven! Let us always seek fulfillment and strength in this Holy Sacrament of the Altar and not try to find it anywhere else. Let us turn to the Lord in our need and He will satisfy the desires of our hearts. Amen.

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"The Eucharist is source and pledge of blessedness and glory, not for the soul alone, but for the body also.... In the frail and perishable body that divine Host, which is the immortal body of Christ, implants a principle of resurrection, a seed of immortality, which one day must germinate,"

- Pope Leo XIII

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"Without the Holy Eucharist there would be no happiness in this world; life would be insupportable. When we receive Holy Communion, we receive our joy and our happiness. The good God, wishing to give Himself to us in the Sacrament of His Love, gave us a vast and great desire, which He alone can satisfy. In the presence of this beautiful Sacrament, we are like a person dying of thirst by the side of a river — he would only need to bend his head; like a person still remaining poor, close to a great treasure — he need only stretch out his hand. He who communicates loses himself in God like a drop of water in the ocean. They can no more be separated,"

- St. John Vianney

Ash Wednesday - 2010

2010-02-16T06:56:00.001-05:00

Memento, homo, quia pulvus est,

et in pulverem revertis!

Readings: Joel 2:12- 18; 2 Corinthians 5:20-6:2; Matthew 6:1-6,16-18.

Scripture: "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread till thous return to the earth, out of which thou wast taken: for dust thou art, and into dust thou shalt return." (Genesis 3:19)

Reflection: Today we receive ashes on our heads and we hear these words: "remember that you are dust and unto dust you shall return." We may also hear: "turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel." These words ought to be very sobering. These words ought to remind us of the finality of our days on earth. These words ought to spur us on to live our lives always remembering that our eternal destiny lies within our power. Those things which we do in life will lead us either to eternal life or to eternal death. The actions in this life echo into eternity. Saint Francis DeSales says, "Consider how uncertain is the day of your death. My soul, one day you will leave this body. When will it be? In winter or in summer? In the city or in the country? By day or at night? Suddenly or after due preparation? From sickness or by accident? Will you be assisted by your confessor and spiritual director? Unfortunately, we know nothing whatsoever about all this. Only one thing is certain: we will die and sooner than we think." Dear friends, let us live now in the Lord and remember that one day we shall stand before Him. Let us live now so that our lives be always be pleasing to Almighty God. Remember, that you are dust and unto dust you shall return! Turn away from sin, now! And be faithful to the Words of the Gospel! Amen.

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Ash Wednesday - Catholic Encyclopedia: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01775b.htm

A Short Hiatus

2010-02-11T09:46:00.002-05:00

Father Check is trying to update a few things on the blog. There will be a short break in posts. Posts will resume on Ash Wednesday!

That's this Wednesday, 17 February 2010.

Please check back on Wednesday!

God bless you!

Hundreds of thousands march for life in Washington

2010-01-27T12:37:00.002-05:00

The Following appeared in the Catholic Standard and Times, the Catholic Newspaper of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. I particularly like the beginning and the end of the article!

By Lou Baldwin
Special to The CS&T

According to much, if not most, of the secular press, it never happened.

News flash — hundreds of thousands of pro-life advocates were joyfully clogging the streets and jamming the subway lines in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 22 for the 37th annual Rally and March for Life, marking the anniversary of the 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion on demand throughout the country.

Included were more than 90 busloads of people from parishes and schools in the Philadelphia area.

Cardinal Justin Rigali got a jump on the proceedings by concelebrating the opening Mass of the annual event on the evening of Jan. 21 at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

The Mass, which this year featured Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston as the principal celebrant, had a number of cardinals and bishops and hundred of priests as concelebrants. It is annually the best attended Mass held at the Basilica, which is America’s largest church.

Other Philadelphians at the evening Mass were the regional vicars, Msgrs. Joseph R. Duncan, Joseph T. Marino, George A. Majoros, Arthur E. Rogers, Joseph L. Logrip and Kevin C. Lawrence.

Expressing the sentiment of the group, Msgr. Majoros said, “We are here to witness for life and remind everyone we march for those not yet born. All of the vicars are here joining our people as we stand up for life.”

The next morning Cardinal Rigali was principal celebrant at the 10 a.m. pre-rally Mass at the Basilica attended by many of the travelers from Philadelphia.

The large turnout for the annual event “represents the growing tide of public understanding of that unchanging truth that the right to life is sacred and inviolable from the first moment of conception until the moment of natural death,” the Cardinal said in his homily.

Among those at the Mass were 157 seminarians from St. Charles Borromeo Seminary and about 10 faculty members, according to seminary rector Msgr. Joseph G. Prior.

“We’ve been coming since the March started, and we are hoping some day when the law is overturned we won’t have to come,” he said.

Not everyone came by bus or train. Dave Altomare drove down with his wife, Ann-Marie, daughters Rose, Monica and Rita and a couple of other kids. “It’s our fourth time; we feel very strongly as a family for the sanctity of life,” he said.

Dr. Stuart Barbara, who has been attending “off and on for 20 years” was there with a bus from St. Albert the Great Parish in Huntingdon Valley, which was paid for by the local Knights of Columbus. “We’ve had some great days at this over the years,” he said.

The Philadelphia Chapter Knights of Columbus had 52 people on another bus. “I’ve been coming for 22 years, and it always gets better. There are a lot more young people,” said K. of C. chapter president Pat Corey.

“We came to be against abortion, we are trying to stop it and our whole school feels that way,” said Alaina Kopcko, one of 17 eighth-graders among the busload from St. Ignatius in Yardley.

At Devon Prep, school was closed for the day because 186 students, more than two-thirds of the school, signed up for the march, according to the headmaster Piarist Father James J. Shea. “We’ve been coming since 1993,” he said. “That first year we had 35 students and it’s been growing. We also collected baby items for distribution by archdiocesan Nutritional Development Services.”

There were some former Philadelphians in the throng too, for example Bishop Joseph Cistone who led seven busloads of people from his diocese of Saginaw, Mich.

“The fact that people come so far shows Saginaw is pro-life,” he said. “We got in last night and attended the Mass at the Verizon Center this morning which had 20,000 people. We will leave tomorrow, drive all night and get home Sunday morning.”

Oblate Sister of St. Francis John Marie was there with a busload from St. Bernadette Parish in Drexel Hill. “We come in support of life and we’ve been coming for many, many years,” she said.

A number of those who visited Washington took the opportunity to lobby their legislators. For example Edel Finnegan of the Pro-Life Union of Southeastern Pennsylvania visited Sen. Robert Casey, with mixed results. Although Casey told them he supported pro-life efforts he also told them he favored funding of contraception, “which is against Catholic teaching,” Finnegan said.

Mike McMonagle, also of the Pro-Life Union, has travel plans that will take him farther than Washington. This summer he will be with a group on a march from Dublin to Belfast, Ireland, to keep abortion out of Northern Ireland. “Locally, especially since the Massachusetts election, news on the abortion and health care is encouraging,” he said, “but we have to keep on it.”

While young people made up the majority of the marchers, they weren’t alone.

“I’ve been coming for 28 years,” said Jan Raubenstine. “About 10 years ago we thought there was a glimmer of hope, and we would be on our last march but it wasn’t to be. We just have to be persistent in our support for life.”

The St. Charles seminarians marched with the archdiocesan banner and among them were Matt Morrelli from Harrisburg and Patrick Muka from the Philadelphia Archdiocese. Morelli, who is in first college, said it was his fifth march but the first with the seminary.

“We come to pray that the judgment of Roe v. Wade is overturned and that God fulfills His work. It’s up to us to pray,” he said.

Muka, who is in second college, said it was his third march.

“We come to bear witness to the truth. Life starts in the womb and our country needs to support that with justice,” he said.

Cardinal Rigali joined the seminarians along the march and met with many other Philadelphia groups.

“We are so happy to have so large a delegation from Philadelphia,” he said. “So many people have been coming for so many years, and they never grow tired of doing good.”

Among those he met were seven students from St. Dominic School in Northeast Philadelphia.

“We come because we think life is precious and we should respect it,” said St. Dominic student Shane Flanagan.

Roman Catholic High School in Philadelphia, another school that always sends a bus, was there with Father Joseph Bongard, school president.

“I think abortion is wrong,” said Roman sophomore Mark Casasanto. “It is a human being and everyone has a right to life.”

Down with a group from St. Matthew Parish in Conshohocken were young adults Mark Pennington and Andrew Amrhein who came on a bus from St. Philip Neri Parish in Lafayette Hill.

“It’s amazing. The Holy Spirit is here,” Amrhein said.

“Last year was the first time I came,” Pennington said. I’d never heard about the March for Life, I guess I wasn’t paying attention. I’m paying attention now.”

Perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising Pennington hadn’t known about the march because it is seemingly so underreported.

Jim White, of St. Katherine of Siena Parish in Wayne, who has been going to the march for the past decade or so, estimated the crowd at half a million, “although I’m sure ABC, CBS and NBC will say there are only a hundred people here,” he said.

“It’s a great witness to life and good to see how many people come such a long way,” he added.

White’s estimate is probably high, but the crowd, including those who could not get into the rally itself, was easily a couple hundred thousand. He has a good point about the coverage.

That night, the Washington NBC affiliate didn’t even mention the march although it gave great coverage of the rescue of a dog from a river.

In Philadelphia, it didn’t fare well in the local press outside of the Philadelphia Bulletin. For the Philadelphia Inquirer, on Jan. 23 it was a non-event with zero coverage. The Philadelphia Daily News ran a very nice picture of Cardinal Rigali with the seminarians in Washington, but the local story was all about a Planned Parenthood rally at Philadelphia City Hall attended by 40 people, by the paper’s estimate. It entirely missed the City Hall rally on the same day attended by about 75 to 85 pro-lifers who hadn’t gone to Washington.

Do the local papers with their highly publicized “local ownership” give Catholic issues fair coverage?

“No,” said John Stanton of the Pro-Life Union. “I could go on forever about the coverage.”

Lou Baldwin is a member of St. Leo Parish and a freelance writer.

Source: http://cst-phl.com

Saints Timothy and Titus

2010-01-26T07:02:00.000-05:00

Saint Timothy

FIRST BISHOP OF EPHESUS, MISSIONARY, COMPANION OF ST. PAUL, MARTYR

A native of Lystra, he was the son of a Jewish woman named Eunice and a Greek Gentile. Converted to the faith by St. Paul, Timothy willingly received circumcision in order to assuage the Jews to whom he and Paul would be preaching, especially as it was known that his father was a Gentile. Paul found Timothy a very valuable assistant and companion, using him on several missions, such as those to the Corinthians (1 Cor 4:17) and the Thessalonians (1 Thes 3:2-3). According to tradition, he was the first bishop of Ephesus, the basis for this being his journey to the city at the command of Paul to act as his representative (1 Tm 1:3). He is mentioned with St. Paul in the salutations of seven epistles in the New Testament and was the addressee of two of three pastoral letters - 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus. His martyrdom on January 22, 97 by a mob of angry pagans came about through his opposition to the celebration of the feast of Diana; it was recorded in the fourth-century Acta S. Timothei.

(Taken from Our Sunday Visitor's Encyclopedia of Saints)

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Saint Titus

FIRST BISHOP OF CRETE, COMPANION OF ST. PAUL, MISSIONARY

Then, as regards the figure of Titus, whose name is of Latin origin, we know that he was Greek by birth, that is, a pagan (cf. Gal 2:3). Paul took Titus with him to Jerusalem for the so-called Apostolic Council, where the preaching of the Gospel to the Gentiles that freed them from the constraints of Mosaic Law was solemnly accepted. In the Letter addressed to Titus, the Apostle praised him and described him as his "true child in a common faith" (Ti 1:4). After Timothy's departure from Corinth, Paul sent Titus there with the task of bringing that unmanageable community to obedience. Titus restored peace between the Church of Corinth and the Apostle, who wrote to this Church in these terms: "But God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus, and not only by his coming but also by the comfort with which he was comforted in you, as he told us of your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me.... And besides our own comfort we rejoiced still more at the joy of Titus, because his mind has been set at rest by you all" (II Cor 7:6-7, 13). From Corinth, Titus was again sent out by Paul — who called him "my partner and fellow worker in your service" (II Cor 8:23) — to organize the final collections for the Christians of Jerusalem (cf. II Cor 8:6). Further information from the Pastoral Letters describes him as Bishop of Crete (cf. Ti 1:5), from which, at Paul's invitation, he joined the Apostle at Nicopolis in Epirus (cf. Ti 3:12). Later, he also went to Dalmatia (cf. II Tm 4:10). We lack any further information on the subsequent movements of Titus or on his death.

(Taken from www.ewtn.com)

Pope tells priests to use new media

2010-01-25T07:10:00.003-05:00

Today, some news to share with you!

Posted on Sun, Jan. 24, 2010

Obtained from The Philadelphia Inquirer
http://www.philly.com/

Pope tells priests to use new media
By Ariel David

Associated Press

VATICAN CITY - Pope Benedict XVI has a new commandment for priests struggling to get their message across: Go forth and blog.
The pope, whose own presence on the Web has heavily grown in recent years, urged priests yesterday to use all multimedia tools at their disposal to preach the gospel and engage in dialogue with people of other religions and cultures.

And just using e-mail or surfing the Web is often not enough: Priests should use cutting-edge technologies to express themselves and lead their communities, Benedict said in a message released by the Vatican.

"The spread of multimedia communications and its rich 'menu of options' might make us think it sufficient simply to be present on the Web," but priests are "challenged to proclaim the gospel by employing the latest generation of audiovisual resources," he said.

The message, prepared for the World Day of Communications, suggests such possibilities as images, videos, animated features, blogs, and Web sites.

Benedict said young priests should become familiar with new media while still in seminary, though he stressed that the use of new technologies must reflect theological and spiritual principles.

"Priests present in the world of digital communications should be less notable for their media savvy than for their priestly heart, their closeness to Christ," he said.

The 82-year-old pope has often been wary of new media, warning about what he has called the tendency of entertainment media, in particular, to trivialize sex and promote violence, while lamenting that the endless stream of news can make people insensitive to tragedies.

But Benedict has also praised new ways of communicating as a "gift to humanity" when used to foster friendship and understanding.

The Vatican has tried hard to keep up with the rapidly changing field.

Last year, it opened a YouTube channel as well as a portal dedicated to the pope. The Pope2You site gives news on the pontiff's trips and speeches and features a Facebook application that allows users to send postcards with photos of Benedict and excerpts from his messages to their friends.

Many priests and top prelates already interact with the faithful online. One of Benedict's advisers, Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, the archbishop of Naples, has his own Facebook profile, as does Cardinal Roger Mahony, archbishop of Los Angeles.

Msgr. Claudio Maria Celli, who heads the Vatican's social communications office, said that Benedict's words aimed to encourage reflection in the church on the positive uses of new media.

"That doesn't mean that [every priest] must open a blog or a Web site. It means that the church and the faithful must engage in this ministry in a digital world," Celli told reporters. "At some point, a balance will be found."

Celli, 68, said that young priests would have no trouble following the pope's message, but, he joked, "those who have a certain age will struggle a bit more."

March For Life 2010

2010-01-22T09:31:00.003-05:00

Today we are marching for Life in Washington, D.C. The Bishops of the United States of America have asked all Catholics observe today as a day of prayer and penance in reparation for all of the offenses against the dignity of human life, particularly through the horrors of abortion. May God have mercy on us!

Click here for information about the March For Life: http://www.marchforlife.org/

Act of Reparation

To the Sacred Heart of Jesus
(INDULGENCES: 5 years, each time - 2. Plenary, once a month, on the ordinary conditions, if the prayer is said every day for a month.An INDULGENCE of seven years, when it is recited conjointly with the Litany of the Sacred Heart and before the exposed Blessed Sacrament. - 2. Plenary, if added the usual conditions. - Pen., 18 March 1932.)

O Sweet Jesus,
Whose overflowing charity for men
is requited by so much forgetfulness,
negligence and contempt,
behold us prostrate before Thy altar
eager to repair by a special act of homage
the cruel indifference and injuries,
to which Thy loving Heart is everywhere subject.

Mindful alas!
that we ourselves have had a share in such great
indignities,
which we now deplore from the depths of our hearts,
we humbly ask Thy pardon
and declare our readiness
to atone by voluntary expiation
not only for our own personal offenses,
but also for the sins of those,
who, straying far from the path of salvation,
refuse in their obstinate infidelity to follow Thee,
their Shepherd and Leader, or,
renouncing the vows of their baptism,
have cast off the sweet yoke of Thy law.

We are now resolved to expiate such
and every deploreable outrage committed against Thee;
we are determined to make amends
for the manifold offenses against Christian modesty
in unbecoming dress and behaviour,
- for all the foul seductions laid
to ensnare the feet of the innocent,
- for the frequent violation of Sundays and holidays,
and the shocking blasphemies
uttered against Thee and Thy Saints.

We wish also to make amends
for the insults to which Thy Vicar earth
and Thy priests are subjected,
- for the profanation,
by conscious neglect
or terrible acts of sacrilege,
of the very Sacrament of Thy divine love;
and lastly for the public crimes of nations
who resist the rights
and the teaching authority of the Church
which Thou hast founded.

Would, O Divine Jesus,
we were able to wash away
such abominations with our blood!

We now offer,
in reparation for these violations
of Thy divine honour,
the satisfaction Thou didst once make
to Thine eternal Father on the cross
and which Thou does continue
to renew daily on our altars;
we offer it in union
with the acts of atonement
of Thy Virgin Mother
and all the Saints
and of the pious faithful on earth;
and we sincerely promise to make recompense,
as far as we can with the help of Thy grace,
for all neglect of Thy great love
and for the sins we and others
have committed in the past.

Henceforth we will live
a life of unwavering faith,
of purity of conduct,
of perfect observance
of the precepts of the gospel
and especially that of charity.

We promise to the best of our power
to prevent others from offending Thee
and to bring as many as possible to follow Thee.

O loving Jesus,
through the intercession of
the Blessed Virgin Mary
our model in reparation,
deign to receive the voluntary offering
we make of this act of expiation;
and by the crowning gift of perseverance
keep us faithful unto death
in our duty and the allegiance we owe to Thee,
so that we may all one day
come to that happy home,
where Thou with the Father
and the Holy Ghost
livest and reignest God,
world without end.

Amen.

Thursday - Our Day of the Eucharist

2010-01-21T06:31:00.001-05:00

"Jesus Christ finds means to console a soul that remains with a recollected spirit before the Most Blessed Sacrament, far beyond what the world can do with all its feasts and pastimes. Oh, how sweet a joy it is to remain with faith and tender devotion before an altar, and converse familiarly with Jesus Christ, who is there for the express purpose of listening to and graciously hearing those who pray to him; to ask his pardon for the displeasures which we have caused him; to represent our wants to him, as a friend does to a friend in whom he places all his confidence; to ask him for his graces, for his love, and for his kingdom; but above all, oh, what a heaven it is there to remain making acts of love towards that Lord who is on the very altar praying to the Eternal Father for us, and is there burning with love for us. Indeed that love it is which detains him there, thus hidden and unknown, and where he is even despised by ungrateful souls! But why should we say more? "Taste and see."

- St. Alphonsus Ligouri

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"Nothing can compare with the ardor and power of a soul as it seeks its Beloved and longs for Him; it finds its happiness in longing for Him and seeking Him. The God of the Eucharist conceals Himself in order to be desired, veils Himself in order to become an object of contemplation; He wraps Himself in mystery in order to spur on and perfect the soul's love. The Holy Eucharist thus becomes food ever new, ever powerful over the heart it inflames. Something akin to what happens in heaven then takes place: a hunger and thirst for God ever keen and ever satisfied; the loving soul penetrates the depths of divine love and never ceases discovering new riches therein; Jesus manifests Himself by degrees to the soul to draw it ever more purely and strongly to Himself."

- St. Peter Julian Eymard

Special Post

2010-01-19T11:00:00.004-05:00

Dear friends,

Today I have decided to post something that is not particularly religious, but is certianly inspiring. A beautiful story about a man who truly knows how to be a father and a son who has such a blessed outlook on life. It was given to me by one of our wonderful parishioners here at Saint Monica's and I am sharing it now with you.

Please enjoy this!

God bless you!
Father Check

Martin Luther King Holiday

2010-01-18T05:49:00.001-05:00

In honor of the late Martin Luther King, Jr, and his efforts to break the cycle of racism and hatred, there will be no post today. Only a link to his speech. Enjoy.

http://www.usconstitution.net/dream.html

Sunday Catechesis - Year of the Priest

2010-01-17T08:45:00.002-05:00

Some words from Our Late Holy Father, the Venerable John Paul II, on the Priesthood.

This comes from his Holy Thursday Letter of 2005 to the Priests of the World.

A life that is "given''

3. "Accipite et manducate. Accipite et bibite". Christ's self-giving, which has its origin in the Trinitarian life of the God who is Love, reaches its culmination in the sacrifice of the Cross, sacramentally anticipated in the Last Supper. It is impossible to repeat the words of consecration without feeling oneself caught up in this spiritual movement. In a certain sense, when he says the words: "take and eat", the priest must learn to apply them also to himself, and to speak them with truth and generosity. If he is able to offer himself as a gift, placing himself at the disposal of the community and at the service of anyone in need, his life takes on its true meaning.

This is exactly what Jesus expected of his apostles, as the Evangelist John emphasizes in his account of the washing of the feet. It is also what the People of God expect of a priest. If we think about it more fully, the priest's promise of obedience, which he made on the day of Ordination and is asked to renew at the Chrism Mass, is illuminated by this relationship with the Eucharist. Obeying out of love, sacrificing even a certain legitimate freedom when the authoritative discernment of the Bishop so requires, the priest lives out in his own flesh that "take and eat" with which Christ, in the Last Supper, gave himself to the Church.

A life that is "saved'' in order to save

4. "Hoc est enim corpus meum quod pro vobis tradetur." The body and the blood of Christ are given for the salvation of man, of the whole man and of all men. This salvation is integral and at the same time universal, because no one, unless he freely chooses, is excluded from the saving power of Christ's blood: "qui pro vobis et pro multis effundetur". It is a sacrifice offered for "many'', as the Biblical text says (Mk 14:24; Mt 26:28; cf. Is 53:11-12); this typical Semitic expression refers to the multitude who are saved by Christ, the one Redeemer, yet at the same time it implies the totality of human beings to whom salvation is offered: the Lord's blood is "shed for you and for all", as some translations legitimately make explicit. Christ's flesh is truly given "for the life of the world" (Jn 6:51; cf. 1 Jn 2:2).

Repeating Christ's venerable words in the recollected silence of the liturgical assembly, we priests become privileged heralds of this mystery of salvation. Yet unless we sense that we ourselves are saved, how can we be convincing heralds? We are the first to be touched inwardly by the grace which raises us from our frailty and makes us cry "Abba, Father" with the confidence of God's children (cf. Gal 4:6; Rom 8:15). This in turn commits us to advance along the path of perfection. Holiness, in fact, is the full expression of salvation. Only if our lives manifest the fact that we are saved do we become credible heralds of salvation. Moreover, a constant awareness of Christ's will to offer salvation to all cannot fail to inspire us with fresh missionary fervour, spurring each of us on to become "all things to all men, in order to save at least some of them" (1 Cor 9:22).

A life that "remembers''

5. "Hoc facite in meam commemorationem." These words of Jesus have been preserved for us not only by Luke (22:19) but also by Paul (1 Cor 11:24). We should keep in mind that they were spoken in the context of the Paschal meal, which for the Jews was indeed a "memorial" (in Hebrew, zikkarôn). On that occasion the Israelites relived the Exodus first and foremost, but also the other important events of their history: the call of Abraham, the sacrifice of Isaac, the Covenant of Sinai, the many acts of God in defence of his people. For Christians too, the Eucharist is a "memorial", but of a unique kind: it not only commemorates, but sacramentally makes present the death and resurrection of the Lord.

Jesus said: "Do this in memory of me". The Eucharist does not simply commemorate a fact; it commemorates Him! Through his daily repetition in persona Christi of the words of the "memorial", the priest is invited to develop a "spirituality of remembrance". At a time when rapid social and cultural changes are weakening the sense of tradition and leading the younger generation especially to risk losing touch with their roots, the priest is called to be, within the community entrusted to him, the man who faithfully remembers the entire mystery of Christ: prefigured in the Old Testament, fulfilled in the New, and understood ever more deeply, under the guidance of the Spirit, as Jesus explicitly promised: "He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you" (Jn 14:26).

Persistence

2010-01-15T08:47:00.001-05:00

In today's Gospel we have that beautiful story about the men trying to bring a paralytic to Jesus to heal him. the crowds were so great around Jesus that the men could not get the paralytic to Our Lord, so they go to great lengths by carrying him to the top of the house and lowering him down through the roof. There are several stories in the Scriptures about the persistence of people seeking cures or seeking to have their prayers answered. I am reminded also of our dear Saint Monica, who for 17 years prayed and offered sacrifices and many tears in order that her son, Augustine, would be brought back to God and might not be lost forever. How great is the mercy of God! He is so patient with us and so generous! You and I ought to follow those in the Scriptures, we ought to follow the example of the saints and we ought to follow Our Lord Himself! We are called to be persevering in prayer and patient in endurance. As long as we are alive there will be crosses and sufferings. We have them and what do we do with them? The faithful person uses them wisely to unite themselves to the Lord and whether we are cured or not, that doesn't matter! So long as we are in communion with God, whether we are suffering or not, then we will find true happiness. Should we pray for cures, of course, but let us pray above all that God's will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. For when God's will is done, we will be truly happy. There is so much to say about this little story: Very often you and I are like that paralytic, trapped and we need to be brought to the Lord, let us go to Mary, she will carry us to Him and when we arrive there we will find forgiveness and healing and peace! Amen

Thursday - Day of the Eucharist

2010-01-14T07:06:00.000-05:00

Two Beautiful Quotes from the Saints about Our Eucharistic Lord:

"Put your sins in the chalice for the precious blood to wash away. One drop is capable of washing away the sins of the world. "The Eucharist is connected with the Passion. If Jesus had not established the Eucharist we would have forgotten the crucifixion. It would have faded into the past and we would have forgotten that Jesus loved us. There is a saying that to be far away from the eyes is to be far away from the heart. To make sure that we do not forget, Jesus gave us the Eucharist as a memorial of his love,"

- Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (Mother Teresa)

"Our Redeemer ever present in the most Blessed Sacrament, extends His hands to everyone. He opens His heart and says, 'Come to Me, all of you.'"

- St. Raphael Kalinowski, O.C.D.

Saint Hilary

2010-01-13T06:25:00.000-05:00

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Saint Hilary of Poitiers

He was a native of Poitiers (http://www.sacred-destinations.com/france/poitiers). Saint Hilary became Bishop of that city in 353. Because of his fearless defense of the Catholic Faith, and his denunciation of the Arian heresy, which denied the divinity of Christ, he was banished from his See by the Emperor Constantius in 356, who was a follower of Arius. He was finally able to return to his native city and he died there in 368. The example of his life should encourage us all to imitate his adherence to the truth. He taught and professed the one, holy, catholic and apostolic faith, and always for love of God and the Church. He was unbending and uncompromising and yet always charitable, orthodox and faithful. Those of us today who profess to live and have the same faith as Saint Hilary should not miss the many opportunities that we have to defend our Catholic Faith, which is always under attack! We should seek to live and profess and present the truths of our faith to those whom we meet, always with gentleness and consideration, but with firmness and confidence. Through the intercession of Saint Hilary of Poitiers, may we have the courage to be true to Our Lord and to what we profess unto death. Let us never be afraid to bear hardships for the faith so as to preserve its sacred character in this secular world. Saint Hilary, pray for us! Amen.

Alter Christus

2010-01-11T06:32:00.000-05:00

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The Priest

is an Alter Christus

As many of you already know, Pope Benedict XVI has declared this year as a special “Year of the Priest.” It began on the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on June 19, 2009, thus showing a significant connection between the priesthood and the Sacred Heart of Our Lord. The year will conclude in Rome at an international gathering of priests with the Holy Father from June 9-11, 2010.

Recently, I have been receiving these wonderful postcards in the mail, not only with wonderful words of gratitude, but also with beautiful spiritual bouquets. I am deeply grateful for all of these wonderful expressions! It is always a joy to receive encouraging words, and it is especially edifying to know that people are praying for you. We priests know very well the value of prayer and are deeply grateful whenever people offer their prayers for us and for our works and apostolates. And so, thank you very much!

In an effort to highlight the Year of the Priest, I am now sharing with you the details about how you can send one or many of these postcards to a priest or to several priests that you know.

Below is a webpage for this wonderful mission. Please check it out! And, if possible, send one of these notes to a priest, who will be deeply appreciative.

http://alterchristi.com/

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"As an alter Christus, the priest is profoundly united to the Word of the Father who, in becoming incarnate took the form of a servant, he became a servant (Phil 2: 5-11). The priest is a servant of Christ, in the sense that his existence, configured to Christ ontologically, acquires an essentially relational character: he is in Christ, for Christ and with Christ, at the service of humankind. Because he belongs to Christ, the priest is radically at the service of all people: he is the minister of their salvation, their happiness and their authentic liberation, developing, in this gradual assumption of Christ's will, in prayer, in "being heart to heart" with him. Therefore this is the indispensable condition for every proclamation, which entails participation in the sacramental offering of the Eucharist and docile obedience to the Church."

Pope Benedict XVI

24 June 2009
http://www.annussacerdotalis.org/annus_sacerdotalis/annus_sacerdotalis___english/00002130_Alter_Christus.html

Sunday Catechesis - Year of the Priest

2010-01-10T09:27:00.002-05:00

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Year of the Priest

Photo of Pope Pius XII Offering the Mass

On the Dignity of the Priesthood

Why should Catholics show reverence and honor to the priest?
Catholics should show reverence and honor to the priest because he is a representative of Christ Himself, and the dispenser of His mysteries.

1. The dignity of the priest is higher than any earthly dignity, for he is the representative of God. He has power that the most powerful civil rulers do not possess. The humblest priest by his word can call down God upon the altar and convert bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. He can say to the sinner, "I absolve thee," and the sinners' soul is saved from hell. What earthly dignity can compare with this? Not even the Blessed Virgin possessed the power to forgive sins, to grant absolution that erases the very guilt of sin.

Even the pagan conqueror, Alexander the Great, respected the ministers of God, recognizing their dignity as His representatives. In one of his military expeditions he came to Jerusalem. the people were in a state of great fear, and offered prayers to obtain divine protection. The high priest with the rest of the clergy, clad in their ceremonial vestments, finally went to meet the king, to beg for mercy. When Alexander saw the high priest, he bowed down love before him, while all present were filled with surprise. Upon later being asked by one of his generals why he had so humbled himself before one whom he had conquered, the king replied, "I did not pay reverence to the man, but to God, Whose priest he is."

2. We owe the priest reverence due to his dignity as representative of Christ. Even if a priest's life does not correspond with the requirements of his office, we should give respect; this we offer to his office.

The priest is "alter Christus" - another Christ. Our Lord calls him "a city built upon a hill," the "salt of the earth." He is in the world, but not of it. Saint Francis DeSales said of priests: "I will close my eyes to their faults, and only see in them God's representatives."

The above reflection comes from: My Catholic Faith, by the Most Reverend Louis LaRoire Marrow, Bishop of Krishnagar. Originally published in 1949. Republished from the 1954 edition by Sarto House, January 2000.

First Friday Devotions

2010-01-08T07:34:00.000-05:00

Sacred Heart of Jesus

Have Mercy on us

Today is the First Friday of the month and is therefore dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Below is a short reflection written by Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, VHM. She is the visionary and mystic to whom Our Lord appeared.

She writes: "And He showed me that it was His great desire of being loved by men and of withdrawing them from the path of ruin into which Satan hurls such crowds of them, that made Him form the design of manifesting His Heart to men, with all the treasures of love, of mercy, of grace, of sanctification and salvation which it contains, in order that those who desire to render Him and procure for Him all the honor and love possible, might themselves be abundantly enriched with those divine treasures of which this Heart is the source.

He should be honored under the figure of this Heart of flesh, and its image should be exposed...He promised me that wherever this image should be exposed with a view to showing it special honor, He would pour forth His blessings and graces. This devotion was the last effort of His love that He would grant to men in these latter ages, in order to withdraw them from the empire of Satan which He desired to destroy, and thus to introduce them into the sweet liberty of the rule of His love, which He wished to restore in the hearts of all those who should embrace this devotion."..... "The devotion is so pleasing to Him that He can refuse nothing to those who practice it."

from Revelations of Our Lord to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque

Orthodox Christmas

2010-01-07T06:12:00.000-05:00

Christian Orthodox believers across the world are now celebrating Christmas. Following a 40-day fast, the festivities will start on the eve of January 7 and will continue for almost two weeks until the Orthodox celebration of the Epiphany.

Christmas is an annual Christian holiday commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ. It is celebrated by Latin or Roman Catholics and Protestant Christians on December 25, following the Gregorian Calendar. However, this date is not known to be Jesus' actual birthday, and may have initially been chosen to correspond with either the day exactly nine months after some early Christians believed Jesus had been conceived, the Feast of the Annunciation (March 25), or the date of the northern hemisphere's winter solstice.

While most countries and branches of Christianity celebrate Christmas on December 25 each year, some Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches, including those of Russia, Georgia, Egypt, Ukraine, the Macedonia, Serbia and the Greek Patriarchate of Jerusalem celebrate the Great Feast of the Nativity on January 7. This is because of their use of the traditional Julian Calendar.

In the secular world, Christmas ends on December 25. There is great build up for months and then all of the sudden, it ends. But in the Church, Christmas begins on December 25. Christmas Day is a central feast and in Christianity it marks the beginning of the larger season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days.

While there are many traditions that surround Christmas, what is important to note is not how we celebrate, but that we celebrate! And of course, what we are celebrating is the most important aspect of all of this: that is the birth of Our Lord. The moment when Almighty God, moved and urged by so much love, to leave the glory of heaven and the adoration of the angels to come among us and to be our light in the darkness.

To Our Dear Orthodox brother and sisters, Merry Christmas!

Saint Joseph in the Manger

2010-01-06T06:32:00.000-05:00

As I was looking at our manger scene here at Saint Monica's I realized that throughout the Christmas Season, there was one figure not given so much attention, Saint Joseph! Although I don't think he would mind much. In the Scriptures he was always serving and quietly (yet powerfully) following God's will. What was given to him in prayer or in dreams he never delayed in carrying it out. He is forever a model for all! What a beautiful sight to see him kneeling in the manger adoring the Christ-child. What amazement must have filled his heart as he saw the birth of his king and foster son, as he saw how Mary looked at the child and held him with love, as the watched the shepherds come and later on the three wise men. What awe and wonder must have captivated him! Perhaps you and I can let that same amazement fill our hearts, that same wonder and awe inspire us to greater love and adoration of Christ. Let us look to Christ and be amazed at his birth! Let look to Christ as be captivated by his love and the lengths that he is willing to go to in order to save us and to prove his love for us! As the Christmas season fades away, may the joy of Christmas never fade! May this great mystery fill us with so much joy that we will not be afraid to proclaim the love of God in our lives. Below is a beautiful quotation from our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI on Saint Joseph.

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St. Joseph, a Model of Recollection . . . . . . . . . . . Pope Benedict XVI

VATICAN CITY, DEC. 18, 2005 (Zenit.org).- With Christmas approaching, Benedict XVI exhorted the faithful to cultivate a spirit of interior recollection in an often noisy world that makes it hard to listen to God.

The Pope today presented St. Joseph, the adoptive father of Jesus, as a model of recollection. Joseph’s silence in the Gospel, the Holy Father said, "does not demonstrate an empty interior, but rather the fullness of faith that he carries in his heart. Let’s allow ourselves to be ‘infected’ by the silence of St. Joseph!"

Silence "is so lacking in this world which is often too noisy, which is not favorable to recollection and listening to the voice of God," Benedict XVI said. "In this time of preparation for Christmas, let us cultivate interior recollection so as to receive and keep Jesus in our lives."

He suggested that the faithful establish in these days "a kind of spiritual dialogue with St. Joseph so that he helps us live to the fullest this mystery of faith."

The Bishop of Rome recalled that his predecessor, Pope John Paul II, "who was very devoted to St. Joseph," dedicated the apostolic exhortation "Redemptoris Custos" (Custodian of the Redeemer) to the adoptive father of Jesus.

In that 1989 document, John Paul II gave "a particular importance to the silence of St. Joseph," observed Benedict XVI.

Such a silence was "permeated with the contemplation of the mystery of God, in an attitude of total availability to the divine will," Benedict XVI said. "A silence through which Joseph, together with Mary, guard the Word of God, known through sacred Scripture, comparing it continually to the events of the life of Jesus; a silence interwoven with constant prayer, a prayer of blessing of the Lord, of adoration of his holy will and of boundless confidence in his providence."

The Holy Father added: "It is not exaggerated to say that Jesus will learn—on a human level—precisely from ‘father’ Joseph this intense interior life, which is the condition of authentic righteousness, the ‘interior righteousness,’ which one day he will teach to his disciples."

Saint John Neumann

2010-01-05T06:49:00.000-05:00

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Our Saintly Bishop Neumann

John Nepomucene Neumann was born on March 28, 1811. He was the third of six children. His father was a stocking knitter and his mother took care of the home in the village of Prachatice, Bohemia (modern-day Czech Republic), and which was then part of the Austrian Empire. His mother was filled with a deep spirit of piety and through her encouragement he entered the Seminary at Budweis.

He attended school in České Budějovice before entering seminary there in 1831. Two years later he transferred to the University of Prague, where he studied theology. He was interested in astronomy and botany. He intended to be ordained, but his bishop, in 1835, decided there would be no ordinations that year, because Bohemia had a too many priests.

Neumann, who spoke 8 different languages, so he began writing to other bishops in Europe, but they all replied that they also had too many priests. He was always inspired by the missionary writings of a Bishop in America, and because he could speak English, he began writing to bishops in America, requesting to be ordained in the United States. In 1836, he arrived in the United States with very little money, and was there ordained to the priesthood in June of that year by Bishop John Dubois. He was assigned by the bishop to work with recent German immigrants in mission churches in the Niagara Falls area, where he visited the sick, taught catechism, and trained teachers. In 1840, after a desire for a more communal life, he applied to the Redemptorists. He was accepted, and entered the novitiate in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In January 1842, he took the vows to enter the order in Baltimore, Maryland, and became the first Redemptorist from the New World. After six years of difficult but fruitful work with the order, he was appointed the order's provincial superior in the United States. On 10 February 1848 he became a U.S. Citizen. By order of Pope Pius IX in 1852 he was consecrated the fourth Bishop of Philadelphia. Becuase of his greta linguistic skills and zeal for bringing CHrist to souls, his heroic life became legendary. He was also a pioneer in promoting the Parochial School System in America.

One of the highlights of Saint John Neumann's life was his participation, in Rome, in the Proclamation of the Dogma of our Blessed Mother's Immaculate Conception. Through his efforts, the Forty Hours Devotion was introduced in the Philadelphia Diocese. He founded the first church in America for Italian-speaking people. He also founded the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis of Philadelphia.

At 48 years of age, completely exhausted from all his apostolic endeavors, he collapsed in the street on January 5, 1860. He is buried beneath the altar of the lower Church in St. Peter's Church in Philadelphia.

Saint John Neumann, pray for us!

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To learn more about Saint John Neumann, follow one of these links:

http://www.stjohnneumann.org/life.html

http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=70

We have found the Messiah

2010-01-04T05:47:00.001-05:00

In the Gospel today Saint John the Baptist was standing with two of his disciples and when he sees Jesus walking by he says to them, "Behold, the Lamb of God." When the two disciples heard what he said they left him and followed after Jesus. When they came to Jesus he asked them, "What are you looking for?" Calling him Rabbi they asked him where he was staying and he simply replied, "Come, and you will see." One of the disciples was Andrew who ran to get his brother Simon, who followed Jesus with Andrew and the others. As soon as Simon came to Jesus, without saying a word to the Lord, the Scriptures tell us that "Jesus looked at him and said, 'You are Simon the son of John, you will be called Cephas,' which is translated Peter." During this Year of the Priest, the Holy Father has asked the whole Church to reflect on the gift of the Ministerial Priesthood and on its importance and value for the whole Church. The Priest cannot be seen in isolation from the rest of the Church. So often we seem to look at it as something set apart- and it is a life set apart for God- but everyone in the Church is called to be set apart for him, this is the very definition of holiness. We are in the world, but we are all called to be set apart from the world, and set apart for the Lord. The priesthood, while a distinct vocation, is one that is intimately bound up with every other vocation. We could go so far as to say that without the vocation to the Sacred Priesthood, no other vocation could exist or even survive. How can we say that the Priesthood cannot be understood in an isolated way? We can say this because of the call of Andrew and Peter, and the others, they came together and followed after the Lord. We do not have 12 separate people following the Lord, we have now the community of believers, the Church. Jesus called them and they formed a new communion. Hence the Priesthood is a vocation of communion, bringing others to Christ, while remaining with him themselves. Hence the motto of every Priest ought to be "Behold, the Lamb of God," thus drawing many to Him. Let us pray that all priests will be heralds of holy communion with the Lord and that we might all come to see that without the priesthood we cannot even hope to meet the Lord who is calling us all to follow him. Amen.

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Today is also the memorial of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton. Saint Elizabeth, pray for us!

Feast of the Epiphany

2010-01-03T06:32:00.003-05:00

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Family Holy Hour

All are welcome to a Family Holy Hour

Today, January 3, 2010

7:00 to 8:00 p.m.

Upper Church at Saint Monica's Roman Catholic Church,

Located at 17th & Ritner Sts. in Philadelphia.

There will be Exposition and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament and the Singing of the Divine Mercy Chaplet. We will gather around the Lord Jesus just as those three wise men, those three kings did, so many centuries ago. We will adore him and give him our gifts!

Remember...

The Family That Prays Together, Stays Together!

Please spread the word!

The Holy Name of Jesus

2010-01-02T06:44:00.002-05:00

In this icon: Saint Basil the Great

Today the Church celebrates a number of wonderful saints and in addition to this, she honors in a special way today the Holy Name of Jesus. Today is also the Memorial of Saint Basil the Great and Saint Gregory Nazianzen, bishops and doctors; and today is octave day of the feast of Saint Stephen, the first martyr.

St. Basil the Great was a wonderful student born into a Christian family in Caesarea, Cappadocia (Turkey). For many years he lived in the monastic life. He vigorously fought against the Arian heresy. In 370 he became Bishop of Caesarea. The monks of the Eastern Church today still follow the monastic rules which he set down, called the Rule of Saint Basil.

St. Gregory was also from Cappadocia. A friend of Saint Basil, he also lived the monastic life for a number of years. He was ordained priest and in 381 became Bishop of Constantinople. It was during this period when the Arian heresy was at its height. He was called "The Theologian" because of his great learning and talent for preaching and teaching against this heresy.

According to the 1962 Missal of Bl. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite St. Basil is celebrated on June 14 and St. Gregory on May 9.

The Holy Name of Jesus was always honored on the Sunday within the Octave of the Feast of the Circumcision of Jesus (formerly celebrated on January 1st). Saint Peter teaches us in the Scriptures that "there is no other name under heaven, given to men, whereby we must be saved," and we also hear in the Scriptures that at the name of Jesus "every knee shall bend, in heaven, on earth and under the earth." We should have a great respect for the name of Our Lord. Look how zealously the Muslims protect the name of Mohammad! At the name of Buddha, his followers bow their heads! And what of us Christians? We used to bow our heads and always speak in an honorable way of the name of Jesus, and zealously protect the name of Christ. Perhaps we all need to be reminded of our sacred duty to give due reverence to the name of Our Lord. In the end, when we stand before Him at the final judgment, better to have honored his name by good speech and by a good life, then to have disrespected it.

Oh Lord, our God, give us the grace always to honor your name, both in word and in deed, so that we may give to you and lead other to do the same. Amen.

January 1st, 2010

2010-01-01T08:10:00.004-05:00

Solemnity of Mary,

The Mother of God

"Do whatever he tells you." (Saint John 2:5)

A reflection by Our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI:
"As we listen to this Gospel passage, it is worth going a little deeper [into the wedding feast at Cana], not only to understand Jesus and Mary better, but also to learn from Mary the right way to pray. Mary does not really ask something of Jesus: she simply says to him: 'They have no wine' (John 2:3)... Mary leaves everything to the Lord's judgement. At Nazareth she gave over her will, immersing it in the will of God: 'Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word' (Luke 1:38). And this continues to be her fundamental attitude. This is how she teaches us to pray: not by seeking to assert before God our own will and our own desires, however important they may be, however reasonable they might appear to us, but rather to bring them before him and to let him decide what he intends to do. From Mary we learn graciousness and readiness to help, but we also learn humility and generosity in accepting God's will, in the confident conviction that, whatever it may be, it will be our, and my own, true good."

-- From a homily at Mass in Kappellplatz, Altotting. 11 September 2006.

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A Very Happy

~and~

Blessed New Year to All!

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Passing of Father Clement Kurowski

2009-12-27T09:23:00.007-05:00

Father Clement Kurowski, OFM

Born: 24 February 1926

Ordained: 11 June 1953

Death: 24 December 2009

Dear friends, my apologies for not keeping the posts up-to-date. Saint Monica's Parish is mourning the loss of Father Clement Kurowski, a Franciscan Priest who has served this parish since 1972. He passed Christmas Eve at 5:55 p.m. after a struggle with Bone Cancer. He died a peaceful and happy death. Please pray for the repose of his soul. Out of respect for the deceased, I will suspend posting until January 1st, 2010. Details about his funeral are below. All are welcome to participate in these services.

Wednesday, 30 December 2009

2:00 pm - 4:00 pm ~~ Viewing in the Rectory
4:00 pm ~~ Transfer of the Body to the Church with Procession of the Body
4:15 pm ~~ Vespers (Evening Prayer) in the Upper Church - Celebrant: Msgr. James Connelly, Homilist: Father Ronald Check
7:00 pm ~~ Parish Mass - Celebrant: Father Frank Berna, OFM, Homilist: Father Joseph Gallagher

Thursday, 31 December 2009

9:30 am- 11:00 am ~~ Viewing in the Upper Church
11:00 am ~~ Funeral Mass - Celebrant: Most Reverend Louis DeSimone (Pastor Emeritus of Saint Monica's Parish), Homilist: Father Joseph Kelley (Pastor of Saint Monica's Parish)

In lieu of flowers, the friars request that donations be made in Father Clement's honor and memory to Saint Monica's Parish or to the Franciscans: Order of the Friars Minor.

Saint Monica Rectory, 2422 South 17th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19145.
Franciscan Friars Retirement Fund, 9230 W. Highland Park Ave., Franklin, WI 53132.

Father will be buried at Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery, Springfield, PA.

Father Clement's Obituary: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/philly/obituary.aspx?n=clement-kurowski&pid=137880244

Click here to view and/or sign his online guest book: http://www.legacy.com/gb2/default.aspx?bookid=3706694656692&cid=full

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Eternal rest grant unto him O Lord.

And let perpetual shine upon him.

May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

Amen.

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Advent With Mary

2009-12-24T09:07:00.003-05:00

Advent

Christmas Eve: Morning

Quotation
"To transform the world, God chose a humble young girl from a village in Galilee, Mary of Nazareth, and challenged her with this greeting: 'Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.' In these words lies the secret of an authentic Christmas. God repeats them to the Church, to each one of us: Rejoice, the Lord is close! With Mary's help, let us offer ourselves with humility and courage so that the world may accept Christ, who is the source of true joy."
--Pope Benedict XVI, Angelus, 17 December 2006.

Reflection
Christmas is almost here! The last minute preparations are underway. The world has itself in a great hurry and our time is filled with many things. There seems to be so much to do: decorating, cooking, wrapping, shopping, et cetera, et cetera. But the Church is still, and as the evening approaches and the darkness covers the earth, the Church waits in silence and peace, and we will soon begin to the see the light of our Saviour's birth. The busy nature of this time reminds me of the journey that Saint Joseph had to make with Holy Mary as she was about to give birth to her Beloved Son. The world of our time creates a busyness that involves many things, the world of their time also created a certain busyness that came with the census. Both seem to cloud the time of Our Lord's birth and try to complicate things: this is not the work of God, for God is simple, but the busyness and complexities of this time seem to be the work of the evil one, who seeks to distract the world from the most important part, indeed the pivotal moment of the season, and that is the birth of Our Lord. The world makes itself so busy preparing for Christmas that it forgets the reason for this wonderful celebration. As compared to the time of Our Lord Himself, Mary and Joseph could find no room and in the Inn and they were frantically going from door to door to find a fitting place for his birth. Dear friends, if you are reading this, please make room for our Blessed Lord. It is true that the Son of Man has no place to rest his head in the world, for there is perpetually no room for him, so then let us make room within our hearts, so that Mary, Our Blessed Mother, can lay him down, to rest in the manger of our hearts.

Prayer
Come, Lord Jesus, do not delay; give new courage to your people who trust in your love. By your coming, raise us to the joy of your kingdom, where you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever. Amen

Advent With Mary

2009-12-23T07:26:00.004-05:00

Advent

Week 4: Wednesday

(The above picture: The Naming of John the Baptist, by Blessed Fra Angelico, 1434-1435)

Quotation
"Mary received her vocation from the lips of an angel. The Angel does not enter our room visibly, but the Lord has a plan for each of us, he calls each one of us by name. Our task is to learn how to listen, to perceive his call, to be courageous and faithful in following him and, when all is said and done, to be found trustworthy servants who have used well the gifts given us."
-- Pope Benedict XVI, Homily at Vespers with the religious and seminarians of Bavaria. 11 September, 2006.

Reflection
Today in the Gospel, Elizabeth brings her newborn son to the Temple, to be circumcised and consecrated to the Lord. And the others there encourage her to name the child Zechariah after his father, but Elizabeth insists that he be called John. They challenge her, saying that no one in her family has such a name, so they consult with the speechless Zechariah himself, who requests a tablet and writes upon it, "John will be his name." At this Zechariah's mouth is opened and he is able to speak. God called John the Baptist to be the herald of His Only-Begotten Son, from his birth John was called, and God gave him this name through the Angel. God calls each one of us to a particular mission in this life and He calls us each by name. It is important for us to see that He calls us by name, because it reminds us just how close Almighty God is to each one of us. He is always within us and about us! Why do we hide from Him? Dear friends, God is calling us to be faithful to our vocations, let us not hide from Him, but let us remain in Him, so that we can respond generously and courageously to the God who love us each personally.

Prayer
Oh Mary, Virgin Mother of God, as you are always faithful, keep us faithful as well in the mystery of our own vocations, so that we can be faithful God Himself. Amen.