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August 13, 2013 Tuesday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time    Reading 1 Dt 31:1-8 When Moses had finished speaking to all Israel, he said to them,“I am now one hundred and twenty years oldand am no longer able to move about freely;besides, the LORD has told me that I shall not cross this Jordan.It is the LORD, your God, who will cross before you;he will destroy these nations before you,that you may supplant them.It is Joshua who will cross before you, as the LORD promised.The LORD will deal with them just as he dealt with Sihon and Og,the...

Traditionally Catholic Ireland has allowed an atheist group to perform weddings this year for the first time, and the few people certified to celebrate them are overwhelmed by hundreds of couples seeking their services. Demand for the Humanist Association of Ireland’s secular weddings has surged as the moral authority of the once almighty Catholic Church collapsed in recent decades amid sex abuse scandals and Irish society's rapid secularization. Until now, those who did not want a religious wedding could have only civil ceremonies. Outside of the registrar’s office, only clergy were permitted to perform weddings. But statistics show rising demand...

Featured Term (selected at random):OLIVE BRANCHA universal symbol of peace. It is the sign of reconciliation between God and humans, shown when it was brought by the dove returning to Noah's ark after the Deluge. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

Chanting "sí se puede!" – "Yes we can!" – with their fists and hands raised high, 1,000 people packed Our Lady of Guadalupe Church on Sunday to cheer 11 pilgrims who will march 285 miles from Sacramento to Bakersfield calling for a change to immigration law.

August 12, 2013Monday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time    Reading 1 Dt 10:12-22 Moses said to the people:“And now, Israel, what does the LORD, your God, ask of youbut to fear the LORD, your God, and follow his ways exactly,to love and serve the LORD, your God,with all your heart and all your soul,to keep the commandments and statutes of the LORDwhich I enjoin on you today for your own good?Think! The heavens, even the highest heavens,belong to the LORD, your God,as well as the earth and everything on it.Yet in his love for your fathers the...

Most U.S. Catholic bishops stand "in solidarity with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and its many statements of the past decade in support of comprehensive immigration reform." Perhaps the bishops hope that whatever influence they have among Catholics, they can use it to further another law that runs more than 1,200 pages. Evidently, the bishops did not have enough betrayal with health care reform. Here are five reasons why the U.S. bishops ought to change their mind about support for immigration reform. ONE: The bishops have misled Catholics scripturally about immigration. There are many passages in the Bible...

As a child, L.A. Archbishop Jose Horacio Gomez traveled back and forth across the border from his home in Monterrey, Mexico, to his uncle's in San Antonio, Texas. He made the trip so often that he hardly distinguished between Mexico and the United States. "It was easy to cross in those times," said Gomez, now 61, who became a citizen in his mid-40s. "I guess my first impression was that people could live in both countries at the same time." When he talks about the border, he slips into the Spanish slang of his childhood. He uses migra for U.S....

William P. Clark, a former national security adviser to President Ronald Reagan and Interior secretary, has died after a battle with Parkinson’s disease. He was 81. Clark, a former California Supreme Court judge, became one of Reagan’s most trusted confidants, serving as deputy secretary of state (1981-1982), national security adviser (1982-1983), and Interior secretary (1983-1985)... Added Faith Whittlesey, former Reagan adviser and ambassador to Switzerland: “Bill Clark was Ronald Reagan’s best friend and was the great unsung hero of the Cold War. He faithfully and effectively carried out Ronald Reagan’s policies within the government in the face of constant opposition...

August 11, 2013 Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time    Reading 1 Wis 18:6-9 The night of the passover was known beforehand to our fathers,that, with sure knowledge of the oaths in which they put their faith,they might have courage.Your people awaited the salvation of the justand the destruction of their foes.For when you punished our adversaries,in this you glorified us whom you had summoned.For in secret the holy children of the good were offering sacrificeand putting into effect with one accord the divine institution. Responsorial Psalm Ps 33:1, 12, 18-19, 20-22 R. (12b) Blessed the people the Lord has chosen...

n artist has created a sketch of the mysterious "angel priest" who witnesses say appeared at the scene of a Missouri car accident Sunday, anointed and prayed with the teenage victim and then vanished without a trace. Fox4KC reports Tucson-based artist Randall Sands created the sketch using online face sketch software at facesid.com based on media reports, hoping someone would be able to identify the cleric. Officials are still scratching their heads over the priest, who they say appeared out of nowhere. Perhaps more mysteriously, the local fire chief said he does not appear in any of 80 photos from...

Featured Term (selected at random):PREDESTINATIONIn the widest sense it is every eternal decision of God; in a narrower sense it is the supernatural final destination of rational creatures; and in the strictest sense it is God's eternal decision to assume certain rational creatures into heavenly glory. Predestination implies an act of the divine intellect and of the divine will. The first is foreknowledge, the second is predestination. According to its efficacy in time, predestination is distinguished as incomplete or complete depending on whether it is to grace only or also to glory. Complete predestination is the divine preparation of...

August 10, 2013 Feast of Saint Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr   Reading 1 2 Cor 9:6-10 Brothers and sisters:Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly,and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.Each must do as already determined, without sadness or compulsion,for God loves a cheerful giver.Moreover, God is able to make every grace abundant for you,so that in all things, always having all you need,you may have an abundance for every good work.As it is written: He scatters abroad, he gives to the poor;his righteousness endures forever. The one who supplies seed to the sower and bread for foodwill supply...

FULL TITLE: Was the angel of Highway 19 the saint Padre Pio? Catholics suggest that the priest who's been dead for 45 years appeared at crash scene to bless and save life of teen victim Five days on, the identity of the guardian angel priest of Missouri's Highway 19 remains as mysterious as his appearance on the roadside was miraculous. Friends and family of Katie Lentz, along with rescue workers still want to thank the unidentified man whose prayers they credit with bestowing a supernatural calm as EMT's battled to cut the Illinois teen from her mangled car wreck. But...

via YouTube A traffic accident and subsequent rescue mission in Missouri is getting international attention this week, not because the emergency crew was successful in saving a woman's life -- but because a mysterious priest allegedly appeared seemingly out of nowhere to calmly offer a prayer. And then he disappeared. The New London Fire Department is calling it the "Highway 19 Miracle." The case of this "mysterious priest" is already going viral, with USA Today referencing the appearance of an "angel" and the Daily Mail referring to the "riddle of the angel priest." "God's Country?" says the New York...

Featured Term (selected at random):SHROVETIDEThe few days before Ash Wednesday, particularly the day before, Shrove Tuesday. It is associated with confessing one's sins and has in many places become a time for holding carnivals, as the last time for festivity before the Lenten season of penance. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

ALTOONA, WI, August 8, 2013 (LifeSiteNews.com) – A Catholic parish in Wisconsin has told the Boy Scout troop it has sponsored for the last 20 years that it will have to find a new home in response to the troop’s decision to allow practicing homosexuals to join. The Boy Scouts of America voted in May to overturn its longstanding policy barring openly gay scouts, and instead allowed troops to include gay scouts if they choose. Boy Scout Troop 90, which meets at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Altoona, revised its membership policy to state that no boy could be denied...

From National Catholic Reporter: Pope Francis has not mentioned traditional hot-button Catholic issues like abortion because he prefers to emphasize that Catholics “love people� and are not “mean or old-fashioned,� Boston Cardinal Sean O’Malley has said.O’Malley, the only North American Francis asked to serve on a group of eight cardinals advising him on reforming the church, made the comments during a keynote address Tuesday in San Antonio at the annual convention of the Knights of Columbus.“Some people think that the Holy Father should talk more about abortion,� O’Malley told approximately 2,000 attendees, according to a copy of the remarks posted...

  Jesus: Prophet, Priest, and King At your baptism you were marked with oil as a sign that you are consecrated to God and anointed by the Holy Spirit. Your anointing also was a sign that you are joined to Christ and share in his threefold mission as prophet, priest, and king. The Israelites anointed their priests and kings with oil. They spoke of their prophets as being anointed with the spirit. Jesus, known as the Christ, the anointed one, fills all three roles. According to Luke, at the outset of his public ministry, Jesus read from Isaiah and...

August 9, 2013 Friday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time    Reading 1 Dt 4:32-40 Moses said to the people:“Ask now of the days of old, before your time,ever since God created man upon the earth;ask from one end of the sky to the other:Did anything so great ever happen before?Was it ever heard of? Did a people ever hear the voice of Godspeaking from the midst of fire, as you did, and live?Or did any god venture to go and take a nation for himselffrom the midst of another nation,by testings, by signs and wonders, by war,with his...

Romania is in the middle of a church-building boom, with some 10 new places of worship completed every month, and one vast cathedral slowly taking shape. But some Romanians take issue with the expense, in one of Europe's poorest countries - and particularly the use of funds from the public purse. The church is restored, while a statue of Lenin is trampled underfoot (Mogosoaia Palace, 2009) To travel across the north of Romania from Suceava in Moldavia to Maramures is to be bamboozled by exquisite religious eye candy. Everywhere you look there are churches - big, small, medieval, brand new,...

A psychologist who advised the Catholic Church committee that deals with sexual abuse says the church's insurance company dictated how victims should be treated under the Towards Healing protocol. [SNIP] ...he was disturbed by how much influence Catholic Church Insurance had in formulating the church's protocol. "When I came into the process somewhere in 1996/97, CCI was at every meeting," he said. "They either had one or two of their senior representatives, and/or a lawyer at each of the meetings I attended. "They would object to any language that was used in the Towards Healing document that would put the...

Featured Term (selected at random):SACRISTYA room attached to a church, usually near the altar, where the clergy vest for ecclesiastical functions. The sacristy affords storage for sacred vessels, vestments, and other articles needed for liturgical use. The sacrarium is usually located there. (Etym. Latin sacristia, from sacrum, holy, sacred.) See Also: PISCINA All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

August 8, 2013 Memorial of Saint Dominic, Priest    Reading 1 Nm 20:1-13 The whole congregation of the children of Israelarrived in the desert of Zin in the first month, and the people settled at Kadesh.It was here that Miriam died, and here that she was buried. As the community had no water,they held a council against Moses and Aaron. The people contended with Moses, exclaiming,“Would that we too had perished with our kinsmen in the LORD’s presence!Why have you brought the LORD’s assembly into this desertwhere we and our livestock are dying?Why did you lead us out of Egypt,only...

Question: Does the OPC use the crucifix in the church? If not, are they opposed to it? Answer: Thank you for your question. The answer is, so far as I know, the crucifix is not used in OPC churches, and here is why: 1.The Second Commandment (Ex. 20:4-6 and Deut. 5:8-10) forbids any picture or image of God, and that would include the Son of God, even as man. At any rate we do not know what Jesus looked like as there is no physical description of him. 2.The crucifix will always end up being an object of worship—regarded as...

(RNS) For more than three decades, the Vatican of Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI operated on a version of the conservative maxim, “No enemies to the right.” While left-wing theologians were silenced and liberal-to-moderate bishops were shunted aside in favor of hard-liners, liturgical traditionalists and cultural conservatives were diligently courted and given direct access to the apostolic palace. But in a few short months, Pope Francis has upended that dynamic, alienating many on the Catholic right by refusing to play favorites and ignoring their preferred agenda items even as he stressed the kind of social justice issues that...

LOWELL — Last November, police watched a driver cruise through a neighborhood for some 20 minutes, passing a prostitute several times to get her attention. When officers pulled the man over, he initially said he was “just driving around,” according to a police report. But when police pressed him and suggested he was not being truthful, the man told officers he “wanted to just go home,” the report stated. On Sunday afternoon, police had another encounter with Monsignor Arthur M. Coyle, a high-ranking official with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston, this time arresting him and accusing him of soliciting...

Featured Term (selected at random):PATRON SAINTA saint or blessed who, since early Christian times, has been chosen as a special intercessor with God for a for a particular person, place, community, or organization. The custom arose from the biblical fact that a change of personal name indicated a change in the person, e.g., Abram, to Abraham, Simon to Peter, Saul to Paul; and from the practice of having churches built over the tombs of martyrs. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

August 7, 2013 Wednesday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time    Reading 1 Nm 13:1-2, 25–14:1, 26a-29a, 34-35 The LORD said to Moses [in the desert of Paran,]“Send men to reconnoiter the land of Canaan,which I am giving the children of Israel.You shall send one man from each ancestral tribe,all of them princes.� After reconnoitering the land for forty days they returned,met Moses and Aaron and the whole congregation of the children of Israelin the desert of Paran at Kadesh,made a report to them all,and showed the fruit of the countryto the whole congregation.They told Moses: “We went into...

Tuesday, August 6, 2013 The Lord in a Plastic Cup -- Giving Communion at WYD in Rio (Rio de Janeiro) scurrilous, thoughtless, horrifying forms of an unworthy giving of Communion and a similar reception are customary to Catholics. At World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro the poor understanding of the Eucharist has reached a new high point of slovenliness. Pope Benedict XVI. went with his example and gave Holy Communion only to those faithful who knelt and received on the tongue. It was a contribution to the restoration of reverence and comprehension for the Holy. The priests employed were...

Of all the challenging things Francis has said since becoming pope, none has been more quoted than this line: “How I would like a Church which is poor, and for the poor!” Simple and direct, it perfectly captures the spirit of Francis’ new pontificate. And what gives it such power and meaning is the personal witness behind it. Francis’ sparse and austere lifestyle is well-known: As archbishop of Buenos Aires, he shunned limousines and chauffeurs, opting instead for public transportation. Rather than live in the bishop’s residence, he chose a modest apartment. After becoming cardinal, he continued his own grocery...

A new masonic Pope imbued with Italian and humanitarian principles to corrupt the Church from within? Michael Brown over at Spirit Daily is carrying a link to a National Catholic Reporter article suggesting that a revolution has quietly begun at the Vatican. See here. For centuries the Freemasons have been working to infiltrate the Vatican and to install their own Pope while emphasizing a "social gospel." What is the "Social Gospel"? Venerable Anne Catherine Emmerich was shown this secular humanism which would disguise itself as Christianity: "...this church was born without a Saviour, good works without faith, the communion of...

Featured Term (selected at random):CAUSALITYThe influence of a cause in the production or modification of a being. An efficient cause exercises efficacy on the effect produced; the final cause gives purpose or attraction; an exemplary cause gives guidance; and both material and formal causes communicate their being to the effect, the material supplying that from which a thing is produced and the formal giving it the specific nature it acquired. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission. 

August 6, 2013 Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord    Reading 1 Dn 7:9-10, 13-14 As I watched: Thrones were set upand the Ancient One took his throne.His clothing was bright as snow,and the hair on his head as white as wool;his throne was flames of fire,with wheels of burning fire.A surging stream of fireflowed out from where he sat;Thousands upon thousands were ministering to him,and myriads upon myriads attended him.The court was convened and the books were opened. As the visions during the night continued, I saw: One like a Son of man coming,on the clouds of heaven;When...

I think this analysis suggests a positive case, in the American context at least, for a papacy that simultaneously calls U.S. Catholics away from a too-close entanglement with the fortunes and platform of the Republican Party, and that consistently reminds non-Catholics and non-Christians that there is more to Christianity than the particular set of issues that have (understandably) kept many American believers in a right-of-center political orbit. This is, again, something that the last two popes did as well — but if Pope Francis’s public profile continues to come across as more “liberal” than theirs, it might actually play a...

Featured Term (selected at random):ENDOMETRIOSISA gynecological illness caused by the abnormal presence of tissue that more or less perfectly resembles the lining of the uterus (endometrium) but growing outside of the uterus itself and distributed in other pelvic areas. Since this aberrant endometrial tissue responds to the hormone-induced changes of the woman's menstrual cycle but, unlike the true endometrial lining of the uterus, is entrapped in other tissue such as bone and muscle, its cyclic changes of menstruation, causes the problem to repress, and even after the pregnancy improvement is sometimes sustained for a period up to three or...

The Pope is soft on Islam. "It is true that the Muslim world is not totally mistaken when it reproaches the West of Christian tradition of moral decadence and the manipulation of human life." Encourages Homosexuality. "It is deplorable that homosexual persons have been and are the object of violent malice in speech or in action. Such treatment deserves condemnation from the church's pastors wherever it occurs." [SNIP] He is overtly humble and does not embrace his office: "The authority of the pope is not unlimited;" "The cardinals have elected me, a simple and humble worker in the Lord's vineyard....

August 5, 2013Monday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time    Reading 1 Nm 11:4b-15 The children of Israel lamented,“Would that we had meat for food!We remember the fish we used to eat without cost in Egypt,and the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks,the onions, and the garlic.But now we are famished;we see nothing before us but this manna.� Manna was like coriander seed and had the color of resin.When they had gone about and gathered it up,the people would grind it between millstones or pound it in a mortar,then cook it in a pot and make it into loaves,which...

<p>FORT COLLINS, COLO. – Police in Fort Collins, Colo., are alerting religious organizations to a self-described "Islamist jihadist" who is threatening the demise of Mormons and Catholics at sites across Arizona and Colorado.</p>

A Catholic Archbishop is savaged in Belgium; protestors at a Catholic Church in Spain block exits and doors; in Chile demonstrators interrupt Mass, demolish confessionals, rip out pews and paint profane sacrilegious graffiti throughout the church. Pro-abortion feminists under the guise of promoting “choice” carried out these and other attacks in the last few months. Their actions make it seem that they have declared war on the Catholic Church with no regard for parishioners, common decency or law. Welcome to the pro-choice Jihad. Many of these radical extremists are enabled, if not directly funded, by an international cabal of pro-abortion...

The very first bit of anti-libertarian humor I ever posted was this clever video about the anarcho-capitalist paradise of Somalia.I then shared two cartoons, one on libertarian ice fishing and the other showinglibertarian lifeguards.That was followed by a very funny list of the 24 types of libertarians.But I haven’t shared anything making fun of people like me since this “think I do” montage last year.Thanks to Buzzfeed, however, we now have something new for our collection. They came up with “23 Libertarian Problems” and here are two of my favorites from the list.

August 4, 2013 Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time    Reading 1 Ecc 1:2; 2:21-23 Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth,vanity of vanities! All things are vanity! Here is one who has labored with wisdom and knowledge and skill,and yet to another who has not labored over it,he must leave property. This also is vanity and a great misfortune. For what profit comes to man from all the toil and anxiety of heartwith which he has labored under the sun? All his days sorrow and grief are his occupation;even at night his mind is not at rest. This also is vanity. Responsorial...

Which Pope Said What? Take The New York Times Challenge August 2, 2013 By Frank Weathers The Gray Lady wants to test your knowledge of the Pope’s unique voice. So they put together a little multiple choice quiz asking readers to differentiate between the sayings of Popes John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis.Give it a try below.How Recent Popes Differ on Key Issues. Choose the Pope who said each quote on seven critical issues. 

Featured Term (selected at random):SOLEMN BAPTISMThe sacrament of baptism, administered by a priest or deacon who performs all the ceremonies prescribed by the Church's ritual. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

August 3, 2013Saturday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time    Reading 1 Lv 25:1, 8-17 The LORD said to Moses on Mount Sinai,“Seven weeks of years shall you count–seven times seven years–so that the seven cycles amount to forty-nine years.Then, on the tenth day of the seventh month, let the trumpet resound;on this, the Day of Atonement, the trumpet blast shall re-echothroughout your land.This fiftieth year you shall make sacredby proclaiming liberty in the land for all its inhabitants.It shall be a jubilee for you,when every one of you shall return to his own property,every one to his...

Most Rev. Alexander SampleArchbishop of Portland As most readers are surely aware, Pope Francis has issued already his first papal encyclical letter to the whole Church. It is entitled Lumen Fidei (The Light of Faith). Our Holy Father openly acknowledges in the first paragraphs that the work on the encyclical was largely that of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI. Pope Francis humbly adds that he took up the work of Pope Benedict’s almost completed draft of the letter and “added a few contributions of [his] own.� But make no mistake; this encyclical is that of Pope Francis.The encyclical is...

Father Uriel Ojeda pleaded no contest to molesting a 13-year-old girl after sneaking into her bedroom as she and her family were asleep.  Not all Catholic priests who abuse minors escape justice. A California superior court judge sentenced Father Uriel Ojeda, 33, to eight years in state prison on Friday for molesting a teenage girl multiple times. "My actions were those of a weak and sinful man," Ojeda said in court. Ojeda pleaded no contest to sneaking into the young girl’s bedroom at her parents’ Sacramento home on the night he was ordained and climbing into bed with her as...

Featured Term (selected at random):MASS FOR THE PEOPLEThis is a Mass that pastors and others must celebrate, applying it for the intention of the people entrusted to their care. This Mass is to be offered on all Sundays and holy days celebrated as feasts of obligation in a country. Among those bound by the obligation are resident bishops, abbots, and administrators of a diocese or parish when vacant. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

August 2, 2013Friday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time    Reading 1 Lv 23:1, 4-11, 15-16, 27, 34b-37 The LORD said to Moses,“These are the festivals of the LORD which you shall celebrateat their proper time with a sacred assembly.The Passover of the LORD falls on the fourteenth day of the first month,at the evening twilight.The fifteenth day of this month is the LORD’s feast of Unleavened Bread.For seven days you shall eat unleavened bread.On the first of these days you shall hold a sacred assemblyand do no sort of work.On each of the seven days you shall...

St. Francis de Sales: How to make the Sign of the Cross by Stuart Dunn on July 31, 2013 ·    “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.� These words roll off every Catholic’s tongue so frequently that we often forget the significance of what we are saying. Sometimes we make the Sign of the Cross at Mass so haphazardly that we look like a coach on the first base line at a Major League Baseball game. Worst of all, sometimes we don’t even make the Sign of the Cross because...

Mercy and Confession: 10 Tips on How to Confess Well by Fr. Ed Broom on July 23, 2013 ·   In the context of an Ignatian retreat it is always beneficial to prepare oneself to make an excellent Confession. To make a good confession demands prior preparation!  The better the prior preparation, the more abundant the graces and the more overflowing the river of peace in your soul! Following are ten short helps to make the best confession in your life!1.    IMPROVEMENT/UPGRADING THE RECEPTION.  As Catholics two of the most important actions we can accomplish are to go to Confession and to...