BIG C CATHOLICS

Rome, Italy, Jun 6, 2010 / 06:35 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Italian singer Andrea Bocelli has told the story of his mother’s pregnancy, during which doctors suggested that she abort him because he would be born with a disability. In a new video he praises his mother for making “the right choice,” saying other mothers should take encouragement from the story.

Interesting trivia: From a heart for god: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1) He (Jesus) must increase; I must decrease. (John 3:30) Abstain from every form of evil. (1 Thessalonians 5:20) Do not quench the Spirit. (1 Thessalonians 5:19) Pray without ceasing. (1 Thessalonians 5:17) Rejoice always. (1 Thessalonians 5:16) Jesus wept. (John 11:35)

3. The Blessed Virgin Mary: As the mother of Jesus Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary has a central role in the life of the Catholic Church. The Catholic veneration of the Blessed Virgin has grown over time both in importance and manifestation. Popes have encouraged this veneration but from time to time have also taken steps to reform it. Catholic veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary is based on Holy Scripture: In the fullness of time, God sent his son, born of a woman. The mystery of the incarnation of the Son of God through Mary thus signifies her honor as Mother of God. From the Council of Ephesus in 431, which dogmatized this belief, to Vatican II and Pope John Paul II's Redemptoris Mater encyclical the Virgin Mary has come to be seen, not only as the Mother of God but also as the Mother of the Church.

Do I objectify members of the opposite sex in my thoughts words and actions? Am I convinced that every person is made in the image and likeness of God? Do I foster and nourish this conviction by reflecting often on the dignity of the people around me? Do I ever allow myself the thought that someone else's body/personhood is inferior to my own? Do I sometimes think that I have "more important" things to do than safeguard the dignity of others? Do I believe I am responsible for my dress, modesty, thoughts, words and actions and ultimately accountable to God for what I do? Do I have the courage to remind myself of this by dressing and acting in ways that dignify my body and the bodies of others? Do I pray daily and explicitly for an end to abortion? Do I see the link between abortion and other assaults on human life and dignity? Do I acknowledge that progress in any arena for the defense of life facilitates progress in all the other arenas? Do I have faith that God is the ...

In order to save the unborn child you must also save the mother. This can only be done by showing a woman unconditional love.

Mother Teresa was called from this world on September 5, 1997. As we approach the anniversary of her death, we invite you to say this special prayer each day. We would also like to hear from you about how Mother Teresa impacted your life with her example and teaching. Please share with us why you are grateful to God for Mother Teresa, and what you learned from her. If you had an opportunity to meet her or be in her presence, we also invite you to share what that was like. Father of Life, You always defend the poor and oppressed. In Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, You raised up a voice for the voiceless And a friend to the poorest of the poor, the unborn child. She brought women away from the despair of abortion clinics To the hope of a loving community That cared for her and her child. She spoke the truth to men and women of power, Asking them how we could tell people not to kill one another While allowing a mother to kill her own child. Father, as we honor this humble and faithful wo...

Thought of the Day If He who was without sin prayed, how much more ought sinners to pray? -- St. Cyprian

Fr. Frank Pavone Pro-abortion politicians will often say to us, “Legislators should not be practicing medicine.” Our response? We’re not asking you to practice medicine, but to prevent the abuse of medicine. Medicine is for the purpose of preserving life; abortion takes life. Surgery helps the body do what it is supposed to do; abortion stops the body from doing what it is supposed to do. There is no disease that abortion cures. Legislators are not called to practice medicine. But laws do prohibit doctors from carrying out procedures without the patient’s consent, from using certain types of medications, and from all kinds of malpractice. The practice of medicine is regulated by all kinds of laws that protect the lives of patients. All we ask is that the unborn be included in that protection.

O Blessed Trinity, we thank You for having graced the Church with Pope John Paul II and for allowing the tenderness of Your Fatherly care, the glory of the cross of Christ, and the splendor of the Holy Spirit, to Shine through him. Trusting fully in Your infinite mercy and in the maternal intercession of Mary, he has given us a living image of Jesus the Good Shepherd, and has shown us that holiness is the necessary measure of ordinary Christian life and is the way of achieving eternal communion with You. Grant us, by his intercession, and according to Your will, the graces we implore..., hoping that he will soon be numbered among Your saints. Amen.

To read Part 3 go here . The marriage vow is a vow of fidelity unto death. Its bond can never be broken except by death. Our Lord Jesus Christ proclaimed this in these solemn words: "What God has joined together let no man put asunder." The knowledge that you have freely and consciously accepted this life-long and unbreakable character of marriage, and are fully determined to maintain it, gives to each of you a deep trust in the quality of the love your partner feels for you. When people who believe in divorce get married, they can never have this assurance of an unconditional love on their partner's part. The very beginnings of their marriage rest on shaky foundations. In this Mass I pray with the Church that your marriage may be fruitful: that you may live to see your children's children to the third and fourth generation. Children are God's first gift and blessing to a married couple. Though many people today may seem to doubt this, may you never dou...

This is Part I of my series “Top Ten Reasons to be Catholic.” 1.) The Eucharist – Catholics believe that the Eucharist is the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ is present to us at every mass. This is the miracle of the Eucharist. In addition, the mass unites the Church, past present and future, in one time and place. This is because the souls of the faithfully departed who died in the friendship of God are present at the sacrifice of the mass. We who celebrate the mass here on earth represent the Church militant. Finally, the Church celebrates the reality of Christ’s second coming when the souls of all the faithful will live in Heaven with God forever. There is much more that could be said about the Eucharist and the mass. Let us conclude by acknowledging that the Eucharist is the Church’s greatest prayer; the source and summit of the Catholic faith. 2.) The Sacraments – In addition to the Eucharist are the other six sacraments; baptism, confessio...

In the previous post we talked about the challenge Descartes posed to Catholicism. We continue today with his "Cogito" "I think therefore I am." Descartes observes that sometimes our senses deceive us. When a straw is placed in a glass of water the water’s refractive properties make the straw appear bent. This optical illusion is precisely that, an illusion. How can we know what is real with certainty, Descartes asks, if we cannot always trust our senses? Because our senses are fallible in his search for certitude Descartes employs "hyperbolical doubt." In other words, for Descartes nothing is certain – not even reality itself. The fact that he can doubt, however, means something or someone exists to do the doubting. His mind thinks, in this case about doubt. Consequently, Descartes arrives at the first certainty, his famous "Cogito ergo sum," "I think therefore I am." Descartes goes on to prove that God exists and that He is...

By the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and by our own authority, we pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma: that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory

At the beginning of the twentieth century a new school of thought, phenomenology, would reestablish the link severed by Cartesian philosophy between man and the world at large. Phenomenologists use the subjective experiences of persons to understand reality. Two in particular, Edmund Husserl and Max Scheler, would influence later thinkers responding to totalitarianism, Marxist ideology, genocide, materialism, war on an unprecedented scale, and more. Broadly speaking, phenomenology (from the Greek phainómenon, "that which appears" and logos, “to study"), sees objects and events around us as understandable only through the person’s consciousness. By examining human consciousness (the collective experience of persons), an awareness of the world (objective reality), in which persons exist and act could emerge. The result is that things viewed subjectively can now be studied objectively. Descartes tears man out of objective reality, making moral absolutes impossible. Karo...

The Renaissance, Reformation, Enlightenment, and Scientific Revolution caused social upheaval, cataclysmic shifts in thinking, and the democratization of knowledge, making all that came before seem antiquated, authoritarian, incomplete, or irrelevant. The world and how people viewed it changed. Written in 1611, the words of poet John Donne could apply to all of the forementioned: (The) new Philosophy calls all in doubt, The Element of fire is quite put out; The Sun is lost, and th'earth, and no man's wit, Can well direct him where to look for it. Of particular note is French philosopher René Descartes. Published in 1637, his treatise, Discourse on the Method , attempts to establish a set of principles that are certain beyond doubt. The result would turn philosophy on its head. His famous statement: "I think therefore I am," marks a radical departure from the objective view of reality held by Augustine and Aquinas. This departure is so radical, Descartes’ philo...

Time Magazine and Rand McNally's Altlas of the Body states, "In fusing together, the male and female gametes produce a fertilised single cell, the zygote, which is the start of a new individual." The Official Senate report on Senate Bill 158, the "Human Life Bill", summarised the issue this way: "Physicians, biologists, and other scientists agree that conception marks the beginning of the life of a human being - a being that is alive and a member of the human species. There is overwhelming agreement on this point in countless medical, biological, and scientific writings."8 Everything that determines the individuality and originality of a person is established at conception. The first single cell contains the entire genetic blueprint in all its complexity. * The heart starts beating between 18 and 25 days. * Electrical brainwaves have been recorded at 43 days on an EEG. If the absence of a brainwave indicates death, why will pro-abortionists not a...

Archbishop Andrea Mugione of Benevento in Italy celebrated Mass Tuesday to mark the 100th anniversary of St. Pio de Pietrelcina's ordination to the priesthood. The prelate noted that Padre Pio's example of complete surrender to the Church of Christ and in service to others should encourage Catholics to “unconditionally respond to the will of God.” Speaking to Vatican Radio, the archbishop recalled that the anniversary is “truly a special moment of prayer, grace and reflection.” After recalling that Padre Pio felt he had a special vocation to “be a sacrificial victim of expiation for the sins of the world and for the conversion of all humanity,” the archbishop said the Italian saint was granted permission to be ordained at the age of 23 because of the various illnesses that afflicted him. Archbishop Mugione said Padre Pio practically “lived eternity” while on earth and learned to live out the Gospel in a life that was transformed in Christ and by Christ. Cou...

Lord Jesus, I believe that you came into this world to redeem sinners. I hope in you and in your power to transform my soul, by your grace, from sinfulness to holiness. Lord, I love you and offer you the longings of my heart to put you truly first in my life. I want to love you with all my mind, heart, soul and strength.

Here is the second pro-life ad rejected by NBC and CNN that was to run during the 2009 Super Bowl:

Continued from Part 2 ... I would suggest three conditions which, if you fulfill them, will make your marriage happy. * Prayer : The first condition is that you pray a lot ? "The family that prays together, stays together", so the saying goes. I feel certain that the couple married at Cana were a praying couple. Lay that sure foundation of prayer in your married life from the very start. The thought that your marriage is a sacrament, and therefore a source of grace, must be your mainstay. Not only do you want your marriage to be happy, but God wants it to be happy. If you learn to look to Him and pray to Him, your marriage will work out. But marriages do not work out without prayer. * Unconditional Love : The second condition is that you try to love each other always as God loves you. He loves each of you with your defects. This is the marvel of God's love. He doesn't love our defects, or love us because of our defects. He loves us because of our virtues, ...

They were stolen from their homes, locked in chains and taken across an ocean. And for more than 200 years, their blood and sweat would help to build the richest and most powerful nation the world has ever known. But when slavery ended, their welcome was over. America's wealthy elite had decided it was time for them to disappear and they were not particular about how it might be done. What you are about to see is that the plan these people set in motion 150 years ago is still being carried out today. So don't think that this is history. It is not. It is happening right here, and it's happening right now. H/T Life Dynamics  Special thanks to the commentor who pointed out this movie after reading the post Margaret Sanger - Disciple of Death .

Thought of the Day The Magi set out because of a deep desire which prompted them to leave everything and begin a journey. It was as though they had always been waiting for that star. -- Pope Benedict XVI

From August 7 to August 15, Priests for Life invites believers to pray the Novena in honor of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Lord Jesus Christ, You have conquered the power of death And opened for humanity The hope of eternal life in body and soul. You granted your Mother A share in heavenly glory, And did not allow decay to touch her body. As we prepare for the Feast of the Assumption, Grant us new confidence in the victory of life over death, And renewed reverence for the human body. As we honor Mary, Assumed into Heaven, May we proclaim the hope of Your Gospel: That you want every human life seated on your throne. May that hope strengthen us to protect every life here on earth. You live and reign forever and ever. Amen.

The natural structure of human sexuality makes man and woman complementary partners for the transmission of human life. Only a union of male and female can express the sexual complementarity willed by God for marriage. The permanent and exclusive commitment of marriage is the necessary context for the expression of sexual love intended by God both to serve the transmission of human life and to build up the bond between husband and wife (see CCC, nos. 1639-1640). In marriage, husband and wife give themselves totally to each other in their masculinity and femininity (see CCC, no. 1643). They are equal as human beings but different as man and woman, fulfilling each other through this natural difference. This unique complementarity makes possible the conjugal bond that is the core of marriage. Why is a same-sex union not equivalent to a marriage? For several reasons a same-sex union contradicts the nature of marriage: It is not based on the natural complementarity of male and female; it...

Margaret Higgins Sanger (September 14, 1879 – September 6, 1966) was an American birth control activist and the founder of the American Birth Control League. In 1942 the name of the American Birth Control League was changed to Planned Parenthood. Sanger remains a controversial figure. While she is widely viewed as a leader of the modern birth control movement, and remains a prominent figure for the American “reproductive rights movements,” pro-life groups condemn Sanger's views, attributing her efforts to promote birth control to a desire to "purify" the human race through eugenics, and even to eliminate minority races by placing birth control clinics in minority neighborhoods. Sanger called African Americans “human weeds” and “reckless breeders.” At a March 1925 international birth control gathering in New York City, a speaker warned of the menace posed by the "black" and "yellow" peril. The man was not a Nazi or Klansman; he was Dr. S. Adolphus Knop...

The numbers don't lie... Born alive Life is beautiful Now is the time.

Continued from Part 1 Water to wine is an evident miracle. God's deeper miracles are not always so evident. Wine to Blood is a miracle seen only by the eyes of faith. The appearance has not changed. But the reality has. The reality is divine. It is the Mystery of the Sacraments: God's hidden presence and action through human signs. The real miracle of Cana is our Lord's endowing human love with a new power: the power to be a sign and a cause of divine love. He wanted this couple, and all Christian couples, to be happy in loving one another. He wanted them to love him in loving one another. He wanted them to be saints, in loving one another. And so he raised their marriage to be a Sacrament. Christian teaching on marriage as a Sacrament means not only that husband and wife have God's help, to love each other more, and to love their children more. It also means that in loving each other and their children more, they are loving God more. Marriage is both...

Now in its sixth edition, the best-selling Believing in Jesus captures the Christian's continuing journey of faith, ever new, ever alive-yet always founded on God's steadfast love for us. In a lively style Leonard Foley covers the complete spectrum of the Catholic faith, leading the reader from early Old Testament times through a world starting over in Jesus, and looking ahead to the time when Jesus will come again and we will share fully in his life. The book has been updated to include the lastest Church documents and is cross referrenced to the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Foley has a scholarly style that lends itself to the subject at hand. With his insight and wisdom scripture comes alive. He intigrates Church teaching with the Church's lived experience as a living institution throughout history. The Church is truly where the human and the Divine meet. Foley does a masterful job in showing how, despite its human failings and shortcomings, the Church is sustaine...

In November 2003, the U.S. bishops approved a restatement of long-held Catholic beliefs about marriage. The statement is a response to a growing movement in U.S. society to recognize homosexual unions as legal, married unions. Within a month of the bishops' meeting, for example, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that same-sex unions can be equated with marriage. The U.S. bishops' statement, while it upholds marriage, does not condemn homosexual people. It points out, rather, the ancient and sacred character of marriage as the union of a man and a woman. In the news conference releasing the document, Bishop Kevin J. Boland of Savannah, head of the bishops' Committee on Marriage and Family Life, pointed out the reasons for the document. First and foremost, the bishops realize that we are in a social debate about marriage, he said, an area about which the Church has a "core belief." The statement is meant to "draw upon reason and faith in order to ...

Again we visit the Daily Office of the Catholic clergy. Their Morning prayer includes the resitation of the Canticle of Zachariah also known as the Benedictus, which is the Latin interpretation of the first word in the prayer. The history of this prayer is as follows: According to the Gospel of Luke, Zechariah was a Jewish priest and Pharisee during the reign of King Herod the Great, and the husband of Elizabeth the mother of John the Baptist. The Gospel states that both the parents were righteous before God, since they were blameless in observing the commandments and ordinances of the Lord. When the events related in Luke commenced, their marriage was still childless, because Elizabeth was barren and, like her husband, was advanced in years (Luke 1:5-7). The duties at the temple in Jerusalem alternated between each of the families that had descended from those appointed by King David (1 Cronicles 23:1-19). The offering of incense was one of the most solemn parts of the daily ...

The Court Jester  tagged me with this meme which calls for me to name my five favorite devotions. Rosary The Liturgy of the Hours Stations of the Cross Divine Mercy Chaplet Rosary of the Holy Wounds I tag A Catholic Mom in Hawaii In Spiritu et Veritate Catholic and Enjoying It! Love Undefiled Ask Sister Mary Martha

Dumb Ox On Suffering (continued) The logic behind the saying "Offer it up." We've all heard that expression "Offer it up." It is often the response when we or someone else lament life's difficulties. To the Dumb Ox it can seem like a flippant or dismissive reply to another person's suffering. But "offering it up" is sometimes the best thing we can do. It is really a very powerful form of prayer and personal sacrifice. Offering up our pains and suffering is in fact the most powerful form of atonement next to martyrdom.   Scripture testifies to the fact that Christ is the head and we are the body. As members of the Mystical Body of Christ we can offer up our suffering, whatever form it takes, in union with our Savior's Passion. As Pope John Paul II testified on a trip to Poland not long after assuming the papacy: "On His cross the Son of God accomplished the redemption of the world. It is through this mystery that every cross place...

Thought of the Day Another very good path of repentance is to put out of our minds the harm done us by our enemies, in order to master our anger, and to forgive our fellow servants' sins against us. The end our own sins against the Lord will be forgiven us. Thus you have another way to atone for sins. Forgive you forgive your debtors, your heavenly Father will forgive you. -- St. John Chrysostom

This is a pro-life music video about a couple who aren't ready to have the child they have conceved.

Have you ever wondered what life is all about? What's the point of it all? For Catholics the short answer is Heaven. We are all called to be saints. A saint is someone who resides in Heaven. At the end of time all those who live in the company of God for all eternity will be saints. This is what paradise is all about. In the meantime, we are pilgrims here on earth. After our earthly journey we will go to Heaven. Hell, or Purgatory. The souls in Hell are destined to be there for all time. The souls in Purgatory are destined to go to Heaven; their salvation is assured. We can pray for the souls in Purgatory. It is the earthly part of the journey that concerns us now. What must we do to go to Heaven? The answer is diseptively simple: live in the moment. This is what all saints did to perfection. They didn't concern themselves inordinately with the past. The past is in a very real way dead to us. The future is a mystery that has yet to be revealled. We must live in the moment bec...