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February 19, 2013 Tuesday of the First Week of Lent   Reading 1 Is 55:10-11 Thus says the LORD:Just as from the heavensthe rain and snow come downAnd do not return theretill they have watered the earth,making it fertile and fruitful,Giving seed to the one who sowsand bread to the one who eats,So shall my word bethat goes forth from my mouth;It shall not return to me void,but shall do my will,achieving the end for which I sent it. Responsorial Psalm Ps 34:4-5, 6-7, 16-17, 18-19 R. (18b) From all their distress God rescues the just.Glorify the LORD with...

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem A New Journey…The Names of God in The Scriptures YHVH Chereb - The LORD... the Sword(Deuteronomy 33:29) Blessed are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD? He is your shield and helper and your glorious sword.

Day six's list of cardinal electors is as follows: PIACENZA Mauro [English, Italian]POLETTO Severino [English, Italian] POLICARPO José da CRUZ [English, Italian] PULJIĆ Vinko [English, Italian] RAÏ Béchara Boutros, O.M.M.  [English, Italian]RAVASI Gianfranco [English, Italian]RE Giovanni Battista [English, Italian]RICARD Jean-Pierre [English, Italian] RIGALI Justin Francis [English, Italian] RIVERA CARRERA Norberto [English, Italian]ROBLES ORTEGA Francisco [English, Italian]RODÉ Franc, C.M. [English, Italian] RODRÍGUEZ MARADIAGA Oscar Andrés, S.D.B. [English, Italian]ROMEO Paolo [English, Italian]ROUCO VARELA Antonio María [English, Italian] Eliminated due to being outside the age of 60-71: POLETTO SeverinoPOLICARPO José da CRUZRAÏ Béchara Boutros, O.M.M.RE Giovanni BattistaRIGALI Justin FrancisRODÉ Franc, C.M.ROMEO PaoloROUCO VARELA Antonio MaríaSurvivors from day six (7 of 15): PIACENZA MauroPULJIĆ VinkoRAVASI GianfrancoRICARD Jean-PierreRIVERA CARRERA NorbertoROBLES ORTEGA FranciscoRODRÍGUEZ MARADIAGA Oscar Andrés, S.D.B.Total Survivors thus far (36 of 90):ALENCHERRY GeorgeAVIZ João BRAZ deBARBARIN PhilippeBERTELLO GiuseppeBETORI GiuseppeBOZANIĆ JosipBURKE Raymond...

Exodus 14:13 . . . “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. . . 14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

Pope Benedict XVI has experienced dangerous spikes in his blood pressure and has been advised by his doctor to avoid air travel, according to a report by veteran Vatican journalist Marco Tosatti. Tosatti said that the Pope’s medical condition shows “a progressive deterioration of his health and his energy” that explains the Pontiff’s decision to resign. The Italian journalist said that the Pope has suffered from insomnia, has almost completely lost vision in his left eye, and has fallen out of bed several times. Tosatti said that the Pope had been specifically advised by his doctor against making the overseas...

With Free Republic being down Monday thru part of Thursday, some may not have seen this latest wave regarding the recent struggle calling for Mormons to either reform their church -- or leave it. Some internal Mormon critics -- like John Dehlin -- favors Mormons staying, but realizes that's NOT an option for all disafffected Lds. (Three of the links below are from PowerPoint presentations by Dehlin) Along these lines, these articles/presentations were all posted on FR last Sunday...feel free to either comment here...or go to one or more of these links below and comment there...Also...the first, second, and sixth...

Q1: Can you please explain for us how the papal conclave will work? And are there any major aspects of it that will be different this time, because Pope Benedict is still living? –Leah Q2: Who can, and cannot, be elected Pope? –Joseph The Catholic world is still reeling from Pope Benedict’s astounding announcement last week, but the secular media has already been busily declaiming about the possible reasons for the decision, Pope Benedict’s legacy, possible contenders for the job, etc. etc. ad infinitum. In the process, the amount of misinformation that is being disseminated is staggering!

A priest holds a placard in St Peter's Square during yesterday's Angelus (AP) Benedict XVI urged an estimated 50,000 people gathered in St Peter’s Square for yesterday’s Angelus to “continue to pray for me and the next pope” (video).German journalist and papal confidant Peter Seewald has said that Pope Benedict is suffering from sight and hearing problems and has lost so much weight that “tailors had difficulty in keeping up with newly fitted clothes“.Senior cardinals are reportedly opposed to suggestions that the conclave could begin sooner than March 15.John Allen profiles Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, preacher of this year’s Lenten spiritual...

Day six's list of cardinal electors is as follows: PIACENZA Mauro [English, Italian]POLETTO Severino [English, Italian] POLICARPO José da CRUZ [English, Italian] PULJIĆ Vinko [English, Italian] RAÏ Béchara Boutros, O.M.M.  [English, Italian]RAVASI Gianfranco [English, Italian]RE Giovanni Battista [English, Italian]RICARD Jean-Pierre [English, Italian] RIGALI Justin Francis [English, Italian] RIVERA CARRERA Norberto [English, Italian]ROBLES ORTEGA Francisco [English, Italian]RODÉ Franc, C.M. [English, Italian] RODRÍGUEZ MARADIAGA Oscar Andrés, S.D.B. [English, Italian]ROMEO Paolo [English, Italian]ROUCO VARELA Antonio María [English, Italian] Eliminated due to being outside the age of 60-71: POLETTO SeverinoPOLICARPO José da CRUZRAÏ Béchara Boutros, O.M.M.RE Giovanni BattistaRIGALI Justin FrancisRODÉ Franc, C.M.ROMEO PaoloROUCO VARELA Antonio MaríaSurvivors from day six (7 of 15): PIACENZA MauroPULJIĆ VinkoRAVASI GianfrancoRICARD Jean-PierreRIVERA CARRERA NorbertoROBLES ORTEGA FranciscoRODRÍGUEZ MARADIAGA Oscar Andrés, S.D.B.Total Survivors thus far (36 of 90):ALENCHERRY GeorgeAVIZ João BRAZ deBARBARIN PhilippeBERTELLO GiuseppeBETORI GiuseppeBOZANIĆ JosipBURKE Raymond...

"By consensus, there's no slam-dunk, take-it-to-the-bank favorite heading into the next papal election, but the closest to thing to someone in pole position is probably 71-year-old Cardinal Angelo Scola of Milan."

Featured Term (selected at random):OUR LADY The most popular title for the Blessed Virgin in Catholic piety and literature. Its first recorded use in English is in the Anglo-Saxon poet Cynewulf (c. A.D. 750) and is commonly associated with some special prerogative or office of the Blessed Virgin, e.g., Our Lady of Ransom, Our Lady of Divine Providence, Our Lady of the Way. It is equivalent to Madonna in Italian, and Domina in Latin. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

Pope Evades Criminal Charges by Hiding in Vatican February 16, 2013 Feb. 16, 2013 Late breaking news on the real reason why Pope Benedict XVI quit the job as Pope is centered around the fact that he was going to be charged for crimes against humanity by shielding pedophile priests in the RC church. A statement given to Reuters reveals that the Church has decided to grant Joseph Ratzinger immunity against any and all charges involving his protection of known sex offenders. As a high ranking member of the Catholic Church, Ratzinger knew priests who habitually were reported as sex...

Pope Gregory XIV once said that “a lifetime is not enough” to see all of Rome. Similarly, the contributions of Pope Benedict XVI will last far beyond our lifetimes—yet their most lasting impact might be barely visible today. Take his “Regensburg Lecture,” delivered in 2006. The media huffed that the address offended Muslims, and wrote off the rest. It should not be surprising that their postmodern mentality chose to ignore the lecture’s fundamental theme: that rationality is required of all men—not just of Muslims but also of those who are deconstructing the dessicated remains of Western Civilization from within. In...

Even though a large majority of Italian Catholics don't regularly attend Sunday Mass, the Vatican traditionally wields influence on politics in Italy, a country where Christian Democrats held sway for decades. Just about anything the pope does or says is big news. And Pope Benedict XVI has made no secret of his preference for Monti, a practicing Catholic, whom he greeted warmly on Saturday in one of his last private audiences with an Italian political leader. [SNIP] But a photo op with the pope is Italian candidate heaven, and Monti, because he is premier, got the providential tete-a-tete with Benedict...

Christian registrars will not be able to opt out of performing gay marriages if they object on grounds of belief, the Government’s human rights watchdog has said.In guidance to MPs, the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) said marriage registrars were public officials and so should expect to be “required” to carry out the ceremonies. The document makes clear that employees, including teachers and chaplains working in the public sector, should be free to express their views on marriage without being disciplined. But it says that religious protection is “a qualified right” which “the state can interfere with” in some...

This animated video of a US Northwestern rough legged hawk and it’s cry, brook fish, farm pig, Galapagos tortoise and bullfrogs singing the chorus to the hymn, "Revive Us Again", are to inspire faith in Jesus our Lord. The voices of this video are myself and grandchildren; Elijah, Megan, Taylor and Jamee.

Moscow, February 18, Interfax - The inaugural congress of the Russian Ten Commandments Party took place in Moscow. The total of 134 delegates from 45 Russian subjects, including Christians of different confessions, Muslims, and Jews, participated in the inaugural congress on February 17. The political council, the decision making body of the party, was headed by Sergey Mezentsev, Ph.D. "I hope that your activity will help to restore moral values, God's Ten Commandments in the everyday political life, in the life of our society. I hope that you will stay faithful to these God's Commandments, that you'll be able to...

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem A New Journey…The Names of God in The Scriptures YHVH El Emeth - LORD GOD of Truth(Psalms 31:5) Into thine hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O LORD God of truth.

Saying WhatDavid Said Today's Scripture “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” (Psalm 139:14, NIV) Today's Word from Joel and Victoria “I’m God’s masterpiece. I’m wonderfully made. I’m talented. I’m original. God has given me everything that I need.” That’s what David was saying in Psalm 139. He praised God for making him in an amazing way and declared that what God had done was wonderful. Is that how you started your day? Most people think they are being humble by putting themselves down. They say, “Oh,...

Taking the Initiative Against Despair "Rise, let us be going" —Matthew 26:46 In the Garden of Gethsemane, the disciples went to sleep when they should have stayed awake, and once they realized what they had done it produced despair. The sense of having done something irreversible tends to make us despair. We say, “Well, it’s all over and ruined now; what’s the point in trying anymore.” If we think this kind of despair is an exception, we are mistaken. It is a very ordinary human experience. Whenever we realize we have not taken advantage of a magnificent opportunity, we...