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May 19, 2013 Pentecost Sunday - Mass during the Day   Reading 1 Acts 2:1-11 When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled,they were all in one place together.And suddenly there came from the skya noise like a strong driving wind,and it filled the entire house in which they were.Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire,which parted and came to rest on each one of them.And they were all filled with the Holy Spiritand began to speak in different tongues,as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim. Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heavenstaying in Jerusalem.At...

May 19, 2013 Pentecost Sunday - At the Vigil Mass   Reading 1 Gn 11:1-9 The whole world spoke the same language, using the same words.While the people were migrating in the east,they came upon a valley in the land of Shinar and settled there.They said to one another,“Come, let us mold bricks and harden them with fire.”They used bricks for stone, and bitumen for mortar.Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a cityand a tower with its top in the sky,and so make a name for ourselves;otherwise we shall be scattered all over the earth.” The LORD...

Living Simply— Yet Focused "Look at the birds of the air . . . . Consider the lilies of the field . . ." —Matthew 6:26, 28 Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin�— they simply are! Think of the sea, the air, the sun, the stars, and the moon— all of these simply are as well— yet what a ministry and service they render on our behalf! So often we impair God’s designed influence, which He desires to exhibit through us, because of our own conscious efforts to be consistent and...

May 18, 2013   Saturday of the Seventh Week of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 28:16-20, 30-31 When he entered Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself,with the soldier who was guarding him. Three days later he called together the leaders of the Jews.When they had gathered he said to them, “My brothers,although I had done nothing against our peopleor our ancestral customs,I was handed over to the Romans as a prisoner from Jerusalem.After trying my case the Romans wanted to release me,because they found nothing against me deserving the death penalty.But when the Jews objected, I was...

Secret Petitions Today's Scripture “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He will give you the desires and secret petitions of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4, AMP) Today's Word from Joel and Victoria In the Psalms, it talks about the secret petitions of our heart. These are the hidden dreams that you haven’t told anybody about. One way you know they’re from God is that they’re so big you cannot accomplish them on your own. God does this on purpose so that it will take faith. Faith is what pleases God. Faith is what allows Him to do the impossible....

His Ascension and Our Access "It came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven" —Luke 24:51 We have no experiences in our lives that correspond to the events in our Lord’s life after the transfiguration. From that moment forward His life was altogether substitutionary. Up to the time of the transfiguration, He had exhibited the normal, perfect life of a man. But from the transfiguration forward— Gethsemane, the Cross, the resurrection— everything is unfamiliar to us. His Cross is the door by which every member of the human race...

May 17, 2013 Friday of the Seventh Week of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 25:13b-21 King Agrippa and Bernice arrived in Caesareaon a visit to Festus.Since they spent several days there,Festus referred Paul’s case to the king, saying,“There is a man here left in custody by Felix.When I was in Jerusalem the chief priests and the elders of the Jewsbrought charges against him and demanded his condemnation.I answered them that it was not Roman practiceto hand over an accused person before he has faced his accusersand had the opportunity to defend himself against their charge.So when they came together...

Ask Big Today's Scripture …you do not have because you do not ask. James 4:2, NKJV. Today's Word from Joel and Victoria I wonder today how many people have been disappointed simply because they didn’t pray and ask God for the big things in their hearts. You might say, “Well, Joel, God is God. If He wants to bless me, He will bless me.” But no, it says in James 4:2, “You have not because you ask not.” If you’re not asking big, you are shortchanging yourself. You will never reach the fullness of your potential if you only...

The Habit of Recognizing God’s Provision ". . . you may be partakers of the divine nature . . ." —2 Peter 1:4 We are made “partakers of the divine nature,� receiving and sharing God’s own nature through His promises. Then we have to work that divine nature into our human nature by developing godly habits. The first habit to develop is the habit of recognizing God’s provision for us. We say, however, “Oh, I can’t afford it.� One of the worst lies is wrapped up in that statement. We talk as if our heavenly Father has cut us...

May 16, 2013   Thursday of the Seventh Week of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 22:30; 23:6-11 Wishing to determine the truthabout why Paul was being accused by the Jews,the commander freed himand ordered the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin to convene.Then he brought Paul down and made him stand before them. Paul was aware that some were Sadducees and some Pharisees,so he called out before the Sanhedrin,“My brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees;I am on trial for hope in the resurrection of the dead.”When he said this,a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and...

The problem with much Christian worship in the contemporary world, Catholic and Protestant alike, is not that it is too entertaining but that it is not entertaining enough. Worship characterized by upbeat rock music, stand-up comedy, beautiful people taking center stage, and a certain amount of Hallmark Channel sentimentality neglects one classic form of entertainment, the one that tells us, to quote the Book of Common Prayer, that “in the midst of life we are in death.” It neglects tragedy. Tragedy as a form of art and of entertainment highlighted death, and death is central to true Christian worship. The...

Dare to Ask Today's Scripture “Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.” (Ephesians 3:20, NLT) Today's Word from Joel and Victoria When was the last time you asked God to do something impossible, something out of the ordinary? I believe that one reason we don’t see God do great things is because we only ask Him for small things. Most people pray over their food, pray for protection, or pray for wisdom. That’s all good, but don’t limit what God...

The Habit of Rising to the Occasion ". . . that you may know what is the hope of His calling . . ." —Ephesians 1:18 Remember that you have been saved so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in your body (see 2 Corinthians 4:10). Direct the total energy of your powers so that you may achieve everything your election as a child of God provides; rise every time to whatever occasion may come your way.You did not do anything to achieve your salvation, but you must do something to exhibit it. You must “work out...

POETRY I always long to compose poetry to condense my love into most beautiful expressions for God, but time after time, I threw my poem and writing away right after I finished. It is impossible to describe how I love Him because He only knows, already knows, and knows more than myself. How can I describe my beating heart of which all motions are only magical vibrations from its Maker’s. I love Him because He first loves me with unconditional and boundless love. I truly believe my poetry, even never materially written, is constantly recited by Him, Him alone, for...

From a reader: Can my Bishop refuse to allow a priest from another diocese to say the TLM in our parish? Our priest needs someone to cover the Latin Mass during the summer and a priest from an another diocese volunteered to assist. Quite generous and magnanimous!However, apparently the bishop denied permission. Can he do that and if so why would he? Are some clerics that intimidated by the TLM? If so, why??? Are some clerics “intimidated� by the Traditional Latin Mass? Of course they are! What a question. And you know why.But that is not of the essence here.The...

He’ll Make Up for Lost Time Today's Scripture “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten...” (Joel 2:25, NIV) Today's Word from Joel and Victoria Friend, God knows how to make up for years you’ve lost in your life. No, you can’t relive your childhood, but God can make the rest of your life so rewarding, so fulfilling that you don’t even miss what didn’t happen in the past. You may feel like you wasted years in a relationship that didn’t work out. But God can bring somebody into your life so great, so fun, so...

The Habit of Enjoying Adversity ". . . that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body" —2 Corinthians 4:10 We have to develop godly habits to express what God’s grace has done in us. It is not just a question of being saved from hell, but of being saved so that “the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.� And it is adversity that makes us exhibit His life in our mortal flesh. Is my life exhibiting the essence of the sweetness of the Son of God, or just the basic irritation...

May 14, 2013 Feast of Saint Matthias, Apostle   Reading 1 Acts 1:15-17, 20-26 Peter stood up in the midst of the brothers and sisters(there was a group of about one hundred and twenty personsin the one place).He said, “My brothers and sisters,the Scripture had to be fulfilledwhich the Holy Spirit spoke beforehandthrough the mouth of David, concerning Judas,who was the guide for those who arrested Jesus.Judas was numbered among usand was allotted a share in this ministry.For it is written in the Book of Psalms: Let his encampment become desolate,and may no one dwell in it.and:May another take...

WATERVLIET -- Parts of the bell tower of Saint Patrick's church in Watervliet came crashing down late Friday morning. But most of the structure remained standing. Moments later, a few more columns were ripped out. The bell tower itself didn't go anywhere. Then all eyes were fixated on the structure when several cranes started pulling on steel cables hooked up to the top corners of the tower. Some residents who fought to stop the demolition, prayed for the cables to snap. Their prayers were answered. The steel cables and cranes were no match. The bell tower remains. "It doesn't...

May procession at Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Littleton, CO.

Today is the anniversary of the Dedication of the Roman church Santa Maria “ad Martyres“, which took place in 609. This church is also called the Pantheon.Since on upcoming Pentecost, Roman firefighters will be dropping red rose petals through the oculus of the mighty building, I figured we could review what I have posted in the past.In Rome on Pentecost, in the Pantheon, now a minor basilica called S. Maria ad martyres there is a beautiful custom.Rose petals are dropped through the circular oculus opening at the top of the dome, which is the widest is all of Rome, for...

One for the Brick by Brick file.I had a note from a friend in the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, where the great Bishop Robert Finn presides.At St. Andrew the Apostle on the north side of KC, Fr. Vince Rogers has installed a new brand new Communion rail!My friend wrote: He has installed altar rails in most of not all of the parishes in which he has served over the past 15-20 years.He noted in his homily this morning, “So, why do I do this everywhere I go? It started when I was a seminarian at the NAC. Mother Teresa...

Hope in the Lord Today's Scripture “So Moses told the people of Israel what the LORD had said, but they refused to listen anymore. They had become too discouraged by the brutality of their slavery.” (Exodus 6:9, NLT) Today's Word from Joel and Victoria When you hear that “God wants to bring you out better,” does something come alive in your spirit? Something that says, “Yes, this is for me. I have not seen my best days. God has greater things in my future”? Maybe you want to believe, but like the Israelites, you’ve been burdened down by adversity,...

The Habit of Keeping a Clear Conscience ". . . strive to have a conscience without offense toward God and men" —Acts 24:16 God’s commands to us are actually given to the life of His Son in us. Consequently, to our human nature in which God’s Son has been formed (see Galatians 4:19), His commands are difficult. But they become divinely easy once we obey.Conscience is that ability within me that attaches itself to the highest standard I know, and then continually reminds me of what that standard demands that I do. It is the eye of the soul...

May 13, 2013 Monday of the Seventh Week of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 19:1-8 While Apollos was in Corinth,Paul traveled through the interior of the countryand down to Ephesus where he found some disciples. He said to them,“Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?”They answered him,“We have never even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”He said, “How were you baptized?”They replied, “With the baptism of John.”Paul then said, “John baptized with a baptism of repentance,telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him,that is, in Jesus.”When they heard this,they...

Father Artysiewicz Every Sunday, Father Theodore Nnabugo is likely to spend as much time behind the wheel of his car as at the altar of a church.Father Nnabugo, pastor of Holy Redeemer Parish in La Pine, Ore., also serves three mission parishes spread across a 10,000-square-mile region in the Diocese of Baker, Ore. On Sunday mornings he first heads to Holy Trinity in Sunriver for 8 a.m. Mass, then returns to Holy Redeemer for Mass at 10 a.m. Next up are Masses in two other mission churches, Our Lady of the Snows in Gilchrist at 12:30 p.m. and Holy...

Read aloud this desperate and heartfelt prayer with me; As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my meat day and night, while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God? When I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me: for I had gone with the multitude, I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that...

The Habit of Having No Habits "If these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful . . ." —2 Peter 1:8 When we first begin to form a habit, we are fully aware of it. There are times when we are aware of becoming virtuous and godly, but this awareness should only be a stage we quickly pass through as we grow spiritually. If we stop at this stage, we will develop a sense of spiritual pride. The right thing to do with godly habits is to immerse them in the life of the...

May 12, 2013 Seventh Sunday of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 7:55-60 Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit,looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of Godand Jesus standing at the right hand of God,and Stephen said, “Behold, I see the heavens openedand the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”But they cried out in a loud voice,covered their ears, and rushed upon him together.They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him.The witnesses laid down their cloaksat the feet of a young man named Saul.As they were stoning Stephen, he called...

And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter. And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face...

No genius is needed to figure out that Pope Francis is not a liturgist the way Pope Benedict was. But the fear that Francis’ papacy may mark the “end of the reform of the reform” of the liturgical changes that were introduced after the Second Vatican Council is, frankly, unfounded. [snip] ... Buenos Aires is probably the Latin-American city with the largest number of Masses celebrated in the extraordinary form....[Yet Bergoglio] was concentrating on a far more daunting task: making sure that all of the faithful in his archdiocese had access to a decent Mass. In Latin America, beside...

Bogotá, Colombia, May 9, 2013 / 12:00 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- A three-year-old Colombian boy has garnered attention across the internet for a video in which he dons priestly garments and “celebrates� Mass, reciting the liturgy from memory. Samuel Jaramillo, who is an orphan, lives with his grandmother and an aunt in the city of Medellin. When family members posted a video of the boy pretending to celebrate Mass on YouTube, it gained rapid popularity, attracting nearly 300,000 views in just over a week. His relatives told reporters that last Christmas, Jaramillo did not ask for toys like most kids...

“Love One Another” ". . . add to your . . . brotherly kindness love" —2 Peter 1:5, 7 Love is an indefinite thing to most of us; we don’t know what we mean when we talk about love. Love is the loftiest preference of one person for another, and spiritually Jesus demands that this sovereign preference be for Himself (see Luke 14:26). Initially, when “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit� (Romans 5:5), it is easy to put Jesus first. But then we must practice the things mentioned in 2...

May 11, 2013   Saturday of the Sixth Week of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 18:23-28 After staying in Antioch some time,Paul left and traveled in orderly sequencethrough the Galatian country and Phrygia,bringing strength to all the disciples. A Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria,an eloquent speaker, arrived in Ephesus.He was an authority on the Scriptures.He had been instructed in the Way of the Lord and,with ardent spirit, spoke and taught accurately about Jesus,although he knew only the baptism of John.He began to speak boldly in the synagogue;but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him,they took him asideand explained...

May 10, 2013   Friday of the Sixth Week of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 18:9-18 One night while Paul was in Corinth, the Lord said to him in a vision,“Do not be afraid.Go on speaking, and do not be silent, for I am with you.No one will attack and harm you,for I have many people in this city.”He settled there for a year and a halfand taught the word of God among them. But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia,the Jews rose up together against Pauland brought him to the tribunal, saying,“This man is inducing people to worship...

Gregorian Chant. Credit: Carl Bunderson/CNA. Denver, Colo., May 9, 2013 / 04:03 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Gregorian chant is freely available and a music of the people – not the domain of a stuffy, Catholic elite as it is often perceived, says a music scholar from Alabama. “You can listen to it, download perfect editions, you can make your own editions, it's freely shared with the world,� said Jeffrey Tucker, managing editor of “Sacred Music� and founder of “The Chant Café� blog. Chant is “distributed on an open source platform� and “available to everybody – just like the Gospel, and...

Because, he says, unrepentant public sinners could slip in among the faithful, and he does not want to back up their hypocrisy. The case of Catholic politicians who support abortion. ROME, May 9, 2013 – There is one particular in the Masses celebrated by Pope Francis that raises questions that have so far gone unanswered. At the moment of communion, pope Jorge Mario Bergoglio does not administer it himself, but allows others to give the consecrated host to the faithful. He sits down and waits for the distribution of the sacrament to be completed. The exceptions are very few. At...

May 9, 2013    Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord   Reading 1 Acts 1:1-11 In the first book, Theophilus,I dealt with all that Jesus did and taughtuntil the day he was taken up,after giving instructions through the Holy Spiritto the apostles whom he had chosen.He presented himself alive to themby many proofs after he had suffered,appearing to them during forty daysand speaking about the kingdom of God.While meeting with them,he enjoined them not to depart from Jerusalem,but to wait for “the promise of the Fatherabout which you have heard me speak;for John baptized with water,but in a...

May 8, 2013   Wednesday of the Sixth Week of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 17:15, 22—18:1 After Paul’s escorts had taken him to Athens,they came away with instructions for Silas and Timothyto join him as soon as possible. Then Paul stood up at the Areopagus and said:“You Athenians, I see that in every respectyou are very religious.For as I walked around looking carefully at your shrines,I even discovered an altar inscribed, ‘To an Unknown God.’What therefore you unknowingly worship, I proclaim to you.The God who made the world and all that is in it,the Lord of heaven and...

A letter Pope Francis sent to the bishops of Argentina in late March is encouraging pro-life advocates because it says pro-abortion politicians should not be eligible for communion in the Catholic Church.Pope Francis directed the Argentinean bishops to govern the Church there following the Aparecida Document.The text states, in part, “[people] cannot receive Holy Communion and at the same time act with deeds or words against the commandments, particularly when abortion, euthanasia, and other grave crimes against life and family are encouraged. This responsibility weighs particularly over legislators, heads of governments, and health professionals.�“These are the guidelines we need for...

Bishop John Michael Botean. Courtesy of the Eparchy of St. George in Canton. Columbus, Ohio, May 7, 2013 / 02:04 am (CNA).- The bishop of the Eparchy of Saint George in Canton is thankful that the area now extends across both Canada and the U.S., enabling him to serve all Romanian Catholics in North America. On April 23, Pope Francis extended the eparchy's jurisdiction, which was throughout the U.S., to cover all of Canada as well. The eparchy – which is equivalent to a diocese in the Latin Church – had already, in 2010, been given jurisdiction over the...

May 7, 2013 Tuesday of the Sixth Week of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 16:22-34 The crowd in Philippi joined in the attack on Paul and Silas,and the magistrates had them strippedand ordered them to be beaten with rods.After inflicting many blows on them,they threw them into prisonand instructed the jailer to guard them securely.When he received these instructions, he put them in the innermost celland secured their feet to a stake. About midnight, while Paul and Silas were prayingand singing hymns to God as the prisoners listened,there was suddenly such a severe earthquakethat the foundations of the jail...

See that headline? It is the disingenuous creation of self-important anti-Catholic protestors. Joseph Amodeo writes at the Huffington Post about the "raw emotions" about being "denied a seat at Christ's table" and how as a result he feels "disowned, abandoned, and lost. " Oh the melodrama of it all. See, Joey and nine of his pals protested at St. Patrick's Cathedral in favor of gay rights. Their protest signs were their dirty hands. This junior high tactic was in response to Cardinal Dolan's column last week in which he said that LGBT people were welcome in the church so long...

The Women of the Wall would have us believe that they are defending the Western Wall for everyone. Considering that after 25 years and massive public relations efforts the group can hardly gather 100 women on a good month, the assertion sounds ludicrous. Can you imagine so small a fringe group demanding to do as it pleases at the Vatican? Westminster Abbey? St.Patrick’s Cathedral in New York? Mecca? At any place of worship in the world? That’s not freedom of religion, that’s anarchy! The Women of the Wall can argue all they want that the Kotel is not a synagogue...

May 6, 2013   Monday of the Sixth Week of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 16:11-15 We set sail from Troas, making a straight run for Samothrace,and on the next day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi,a leading city in that district of Macedonia and a Roman colony.We spent some time in that city.On the sabbath we went outside the city gate along the riverwhere we thought there would be a place of prayer.We sat and spoke with the women who had gathered there.One of them, a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth,from the city of...

As Orthodox Christians held Easter masses Saturday in the Middle East, North Africa and around the world, President Obama greeted the faithful saying Jesus' sacrifice "so that we might have eternal life" is an apt reminder this year with the region facing violent persecution. "For millions of Orthodox Christians, this is a joyful time," Obama said in a statement issued by the White House on Saturday. "But it's also a reminder of the sacrifice Christ made so that we might have eternal life. His decision to choose love in the face of hate; hope in the face of despair is...

May 5, 2013   Sixth Sunday of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 15:1-2, 22-29 Some who had come down from Judea were instructing the brothers,“Unless you are circumcised according to the Mosaic practice,you cannot be saved.”Because there arose no little dissension and debateby Paul and Barnabas with them,it was decided that Paul, Barnabas, and some of the othersshould go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and eldersabout this question. The apostles and elders, in agreement with the whole church,decided to choose representativesand to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas.The ones chosen were Judas, who was called Barsabbas,and...

I normally spent first hour of day in office with the Lord and write down something my heart expresses at that moment, the loving dialogue like the ones I now send you. The ideas are not original in the sense that they are all originated from divine inspiration. Empty yourself completely of all thoughts especially on self to be filled with Christ. The last couple weeks of my life have been divine to the point I no longer consider this current life as significant. While living in it, I try to preserve my heart to the Lord only because I...

May 4, 2013 Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 16:1-10 Paul reached also Derbe and Lystrawhere there was a disciple named Timothy,the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer,but his father was a Greek.The brothers in Lystra and Iconium spoke highly of him,and Paul wanted him to come along with him.On account of the Jews of that region, Paul had him circumcised,for they all knew that his father was a Greek.As they traveled from city to city,they handed on to the people for observance the decisionsreached by the Apostles and presbyters in...

Abp. Piero Marini Analysis ROME, April 23, 2013 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The man in charge of the widely criticized public liturgies of the late Pope John Paul II has told an interviewer that there should be legal recognition of same-sex unions as a matter of justice. As the pope’s chief liturgist for 18 years of John Paul’s reign, Archbishop Piero Marini, was one of the most influential men in the Church. “There are many couples that suffer because their civil rights aren’t recognized,� Marini said in an interview with the newspaper La Nación in Costa Rica this weekend. Asked what he...