BIG C CATHOLICS

A faint faith is better than a strong heresy. — St. Thomas More 

The love of husband and wife is the force that welds society together. —  St. John Chrysostom

Moral principles do not depend on a majority vote. Wrong is wrong, even if everybody is wrong. Right is right, even if nobody is right. — Venerable Bishop Fulton J. Sheen Let nothing disturb you; Let nothing frighten you, All things pass away. God never changes. Patience obtains all things. He who has God, finds he lacks nothing. God alone suffices. — St. Teresa of Avila … all manner of thing shall be well — Julian of Norwich Peace I bequeath to you, my own peace I give you, a peace which the world cannot give, this is my gift to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid. Christ reassuring His disciples before His departure. (Jn. 14:27) You judge a medicine by those who take it, not by those who pour it down the sink.  — Frank Sheed Though an army encamp against me, my heart does not fear; Though war be waged against me, even then do I trust. — Psalm 27 I command you: be firm and steadfast!  Do not fear nor be dismayed, for the Lord, your God, is w

Fr. René J. Butler, M.S. Director, La Salette Shrine Enfield, NH  Raising of Jairus' Daughter , James Tissot , c.1871 ( Click here for today's readings ) In today’s Responsorial Psalm we have the splendid verse: “At nightfall, weeping enters in, but with the dawn, rejoicing.” This reminds me of a book I encountered as a high school seminarian. The title was But with the Dawn Rejoicing . It was the autobiography of a woman named Mary Ellen Kelly. In her teens she had begun to develop rheumatoid arthritis. By the age of 20 she was almost totally immobile. On a train she couldn’t use the sleeper car, but had to travel in the baggage car, strapped to a board. She had the use of only two fingers on one hand; it once took her over two hours to write a note just twenty-five words long. She had plenty of reason to feel sorry for herself, and indeed she did. In due time, however, she met Fr. Joseph Higgins, a Missionary of Our Lady of La Salette. One day he “read her the

The Supreme Court's 5-4 decision on marriage is not a surprise. The surprise will come as ordinary people begin to experience, firsthand and painfully, the impact of today's action on everything they thought they knew about marriage, family life, our laws and our social institutions. The mistakes of the court change nothing about the nature of men and women, and the truth of God's Word. The task now for believers is to form our own families even more deeply in the love of God, and to rebuild a healthy marriage culture, one marriage at a time, from the debris of today's decision.    +Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap.,  Archbishop of Philadelphia Truer words were never spoken. Because of today's ruling Christian businesses will have to choose between their most deeply held beliefs and their livelihoods. The faithful will be harassed. Expressions of Christian orthodoxy will be mocked and ridiculed. Houses of worship that oppose gay "marriage" will l

Image a World Were Catholic Social Services Do Not Exist. It is Perilously Close to Reality. In 2012, Cardinal Francis George predicted that faithful Catholics would close down nonprofits rather than violate Church teaching under the HHS contraceptive mandate. That prediction is closer to reality after the Supreme Court's decision upholding federal subsidies under the Affordable Care Act. Court observers acknowledge the King v. Burwell case gave opponents of Obamacare the best chance to derail it. Among the remaining challenges to the law is a class action lawsuit brought by The Becket Fund on behalf of the Little Sisters of the Poor, seeking to uphold their right to carry out their vows of obedience in their service to the poor. The suit seeks protection not only for the Little Sisters, but for other Catholic organizations that provide health benefits consistent with their religious faith. What has happened to our vaunted American liberties? Except for property rights, th

All life has inestimable value even the weakest and most vulnerable, the sick, the old, the unborn and the poor, are masterpieces of God’s creation, made in his own image, destined to live forever, and deserving of the utmost reverence and respect. — Pope Francis

St. Joseph the Worker, Andre Prevost , 2013   Today is Father's Day. This post is dedicated to my father and to fathers everywhere. St. Joseph is the patron saint of fathers. As the stepfather of Jesus and the husband of Mary – it was an indescribable honor for him to bring up the Son of God. Fathers who want to live their vocation well should look to him for guidance and inspiration. Prayer to St. Joseph  Dear St. Joseph, the Creator of the universe entrusted his Only-Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, and the Virgin Mary, the Mother of his Son, to your loving care and watchful protection. Your humble labor in the workshop of Nazareth, reflected the creative work of God the Father and his provident guidance of all things. Intercede now for God’s Holy Church. May we hear the word of God in faith, respond with hopeful hearts to God’s plan for us, and work and pray in loving communion. Help us to make our homes into a new Nazareth, the Church into a Holy Fa

Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee , Rembrandt , 1633 Fr. Butler is away on retreat. I submit to you Fr. Charles Irvin's homily on Jesus calming the storms in our lives and the value of suffering: Fr. Charles Irvin ( Click here for today's readings ) Your doctor informs you that you have cancer. Your wife tells you she has been seeing another man. Your husband tells you he’s found a younger woman and is going to marry her. You son announces that he has AIDS. Your employer tells you that your job as been outsourced and your services will no longer be needed. Any number of events can bring your life crashing down. People of faith do not necessarily have trouble free and painless lives and people with little or no faith at all can be found living wonderful, prosperous, and problem free lives, or so it seems on the surface. Life’s blows come to us all no matter what things may seem like on the surface.If you look deeply into the lives of the rich and famous

Aleteia has a symposium online which you should consult for an even handed consideration of the pontiff's second encyclical. From Aleteia: Reaction to Pope Francis’s encyclical letter Laudato Si’ (Praised Be) , on care for our common home, is anything but "monolithic." The encyclical, dated May 24 (Pentecost Sunday) and released June 18, has 246 paragraphs and six chapters, with themes such as “The human roots of the ecological crisis” and “Integral ecology.” It is giving critics much fodder for commentary and environmentalists much to rejoice about. Aleteia solicited comment from several experts in academia, think tanks and the mission field. They will be adding to the symposium  as more comments are made.

St. James the Greater James, son of Zebedee : Killed by Herod (Acts 12:2). The Acts of the Apostles records that "Herod the king" (traditionally identified with Herod Agrippa) had James executed by sword. He is the only apostle whose martyrdom is recorded in the New Testament.  Eusebius says James’ calm demeanor at trial so sufficiently impressed that one of his accusers converted. St. Peter Peter (Simon Peter) : Crucifixion, as implied by Jesus in John 21:18-19 in Rome, as mentioned by second-century sources such as Tertullian. According to Christian tradition, Peter was crucified in Rome under Emperor Nero Augustus Caesar.  It is traditionally held that he was crucified upside down at his own request, since he saw himself unworthy to be crucified in the same way as Jesus. Tradition holds that he was crucified at the site of the Clementine Chapel. His mortal remains are said to be those contained in the underground Confessio of St. Peter's Basilica, where

Vatican officials have revealed that the nation of Mexico received a rarely used special rite of exorcism, an Exorcismo Magno , last month in the cathedral of San Luis Potosí. High levels of violence, drug cartels and abortions in the country precipitated the rite. Courtesy of CNA/ EWTN News : Cardinal Juan Sandoval Íñiguez, the archbishop emeritus of Guadalajara, presided at the closed doors ceremony, the first ever in the history of Mexico. Also participating were Archbishop Jesús Carlos Cabrero of San Luis Potosí, Spanish demonologist and exorcist Father José Antonio Fortea, and a smaller group of priests and lay people. The event was not made known to the general public beforehand. According to Archbishop Cabrero, the reserved character of the May 20 ceremony was intended to avoid any misguided interpretations of the ritual. But how can an entire country become infested by demons to the point that it’s necessary to resort to an Exorcismo Magno? “To the extent sin increas

Fr. René J. Butler, M.S. Director, La Salette Shrine Enfield, NH  Christ preaching to his disciples and others , Willian Brassey Hole , c. 1900's ( Click here for today’s readings ) When a child asks you what an unfamiliar word or expression means, you may well find yourself beginning the explanation with, “Well, it’s something like...” You start with something the child already knows, in hopes of providing the appropriate insight. This is a natural and quite universal teaching method; recognizable images and interesting stories have always sparked understanding. It should not amaze us, therefore, that Jesus used this approach so often, thirty-two times that we know of, in three Gospels. Surprisingly, there are no parables in John, and only four of Jesus’ parables occur in all three of the other Gospels. Some of the parables have a moral, such as, “So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives his brother from his heart,” at the end of the par

Saint Thomas Aquinas To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible. — St. Thomas Aquinas

June’s blog of note emanates from the mind of noted Catholic blogger Julie Davis. Julie has contemplated Art, Literature, popular culture and all things Catholic on her blog Happy Catholic since 2004. Her other noble ventures (listed at the end of this post), are well worth your time. Her book, Happy Catholic – Glimpses of God in Everyday Life , is a consideration of quotes from The Simpsons to Saint John Paul II, wherein she discerns how everyday people and events reveal God. I interviewed Ms. Davis about her blog, her latest pursuits, her faith journey and the role of Providence in her life. In your conversion story you mention how the Lord changed your heart without any reading or influence from outsiders; it was just between God and you. What do you tell others who are considering or curious about Catholicism? I tell them to honestly ask God for a sign. And then to wait with an open mind. I didn't dwell much on my "bet" with God since I really put no constr

Father Gabriele Amorth In an interview for the Italian blog  Stanze Vaticane , the Vatican's Chief Exorcist, Father Gabriele Amorth, answered questions about his soon to be beatified mentor, the persecution of Christians by ISIS, and why a loving God would allow the existence of Hell. (I have highlighted in red Fr. Amorth’s most profound observations about the devil and the nature of evil.) Father Amorth we are going through a time of violence and persecution against Christians by ISIS: Is the hand of the devil behind it? Ah, to be sure! Where there is evil there is always the devil. He always is, where there is evil, any evil, great or small, it is always at the suggestion of the devil. These people are manipulated by Satan  then ? ISIS, Sure, I am convinced of it. Where there are wars and destruction, behind these, there is always the devil laughing. God would never allow it. God wants only good things. And these people would also shoot the Pope without qualms... [

René J. Butler, M.S. Director, La Salette Shrine Enfield, NH "Take it; this is my body." (Mark 14:22) Image from Juanes' The Last Supper , 1562 ( Click here for today’s readings ) I presume all the adults reading this have made a will, your “last will and testament.” Perhaps you made it a long time ago and it is no longer serves the purpose you had in mind. Nothing prevents you from changing it if you so choose. And if you do, you will then have your very own “old testament” and “new testament.” For many years now, the word formerly translated as “testament” in the Bible is more often given as “covenant.” The meaning, in English at least, is actually quite different. When you write a will, you can do that on your own, with or without the help of a lawyer, but you are not required to involve the persons to whom you will be leaving that jewelry or that moose head or your millions. There is no covenant, no contract with them. A contract or covenant, on the

Today, June 5, 2015, the United States Postal Service is issuing a commemorative stamp honoring Flannery O'Conner. It is the 30th stamp in the Literary Arts series. O’Connor penned unsettling, darkly comic stories, in a Southern Gothic style, about how the potential for enlightenment and grace are available to both saint and sinner. She wrote two novels, "The Violent Bear It Away" and "Wise Blood," 32 short stories, a number of reviews and commentaries. O’Connor was a three-time winner of the O. Henry Award and posthumous winner of the 1972 National Book Award for Fiction for "The Complete Stories." She relied heavily on regional settings and grotesque characters. Her writing reflected her deeply held Catholic faith, and frequently examined questions of belief and morality. The stamp shows O’Connor surrounded by peacock feathers—in  homage to O’Connor’s love for the birds that she tended on her mother’s farm. She wrote about them in a 1961 essay en

Flannery O'Connor Christ was crucified on earth and the Church is crucified by all of us, by her members most particularly, because she is a church of sinners. Christ never said that the Church would be operated in a sinless or intelligent way, but that it would not teach error. This does not mean that each and every priest won’t teach error, but that the whole Church speaking through the Pope will not teach error in matters of faith. The Church is founded on Peter who denied Christ three times and couldn’t walk on the water by himself. You are expecting his successors to walk on the water. From a letter by Flannery O'Connor in response to a friend's criticism of the Catholic Church's shortcomings.