BIG C CATHOLICS

June 1, 2017 The Pentecost novena is the original novena prayer. After Christ's Ascension, the disciples prayed for nine consecutive days for the Spirit to descend. On the tenth day, Pentecost Sunday, they received the Advocate promised by our Lord. According to Father Michael Woolley, this period of prayer is a "little Advent": The Disciples of Jesus waited those 9 days for the Holy Spirit with the blazing light of the Gospel to see by – while they waited in the Upper Room they reflected and prayed on the teachings and mighty deeds of Jesus, on His Passion and Death, on His Resurrection and Ascension, all of which enlightened their hearts and flooded the Old Testament Scriptures with light, revealing the hidden meaning of the Old Testament. (This is why during this "little Advent" we’re now in, we don’t wear dark Purple but bright White Vestments.) Dearest Holy Spirit, confiding in Your deep, personal love for me, I am making this novena for the follow

It is ironic, perhaps, that it was the witness of the martyrs that helped inspire the conversion of St. Justin from paganism to the Christian faith; it was because he clung to and defended that faith that his own life would end in martyrdom in 165. Though his exact birthdate is unknown, scholars surmise that he was born into a pagan family sometime around the year 100. As a young man, he was drawn to the study of philosophy as a way of discovering truth, and he spent a great deal of time reading and contemplating the works of Plato. Still, those works did not satisfy his desire to understand the basic questions he was asking about life. It was a chance meeting on a beach that led him to the answers he was seeking. There he fell into conversation with an old man who shared with him the message of Jesus Christ. This, coupled with the witness of the Christian martyrs, convinced him that the truths he sought could be found, not in the ethereal speculations of philosophy alone, but i

May 31, 2017 The Pentecost novena is the original novena prayer. After Christ's Ascension, the disciples prayed for nine consecutive days for the Spirit to descend. On the tenth day, Pentecost Sunday, they received the Advocate promised by our Lord. According to Father Michael Woolley, this period of prayer is a "little Advent": The Disciples of Jesus waited those 9 days for the Holy Spirit with the blazing light of the Gospel to see by – while they waited in the Upper Room they reflected and prayed on the teachings and mighty deeds of Jesus, on His Passion and Death, on His Resurrection and Ascension, all of which enlightened their hearts and flooded the Old Testament Scriptures with light, revealing the hidden meaning of the Old Testament. (This is why during this "little Advent" we’re now in, we don’t wear dark Purple but bright White Vestments.) Dearest Holy Spirit, confiding in Your deep, personal love for me, I am making this novena for the follow

Through the Holy Spirit we are restored to paradise, led back to the Kingdom of heaven, and adopted as children, given confidence to call God "Father" and to share in Christ's grace, called children of light and given a share in eternal glory. — St. Basil the Great  _______________________________________________ Almighty ever-living God, who willed the Paschal Mystery to be encompassed as a sign in fifty days, grant that from out of the scattered nations the confusion of many tongues may be gathered by heavenly grace into one great confession of your name. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

May 31st Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled." — Luke 1:39-45 Almighty ever-living God, who, while the Blessed Virgin Mary was carrying your Son in her womb, inspired her to visit Elizabeth, grant us, we pray, that, faithful to the promptings of the Spirit, we may magnify your greatness with the Virgin Mary at all times. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and

The Visitation of Our Lady, May 31, 2017  By Msgr. Bernard Bourgeois “Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.” (Lk 1:45)  In Catholic tradition, May is reserved as a month in which the faithful honor Mary, the Mother of God. As a student at Sacred Heart School in Bennington, each May we took part in the “May Crowning,” a ceremony in which a statue of Mary would be crowned with a wreath of flowers. It was a way to honor her presence and remember our devotion to her. The ceremony was followed by a “Living Rosary,” in which each student would take one prayer of the Rosary. In my sixth-grade year, I was designated by Sister of St. Joseph Mary Ancilla, our teacher, to carry the cross into the Church, and then to start the Rosary in praying the Apostles’ Creed. I was nervous! While the event began with me, thankfully Sister Ancilla was right there directing our efforts. The final day of May is the feast of the Visitation, t

May 30, 2017 The Pentecost novena is the original novena prayer. After Christ's Ascension, the disciples prayed for nine consecutive days for the Spirit to descend. On the tenth day, Pentecost Sunday, they received the Advocate promised by our Lord. According to Father Michael Woolley, this period of prayer is a "little Advent": The Disciples of Jesus waited those 9 days for the Holy Spirit with the blazing light of the Gospel to see by – while they waited in the Upper Room they reflected and prayed on the teachings and mighty deeds of Jesus, on His Passion and Death, on His Resurrection and Ascension, all of which enlightened their hearts and flooded the Old Testament Scriptures with light, revealing the hidden meaning of the Old Testament. (This is why during this "little Advent" we’re now in, we don’t wear dark Purple but bright White Vestments.) Dearest Holy Spirit, confiding in Your deep, personal love for me, I am making this novena for the follow

Both the world and the Church have changed so much in the past 600 hundred years that many parts of the story of Joan of Arc sound very foreign to us today. Yet, despite the obvious differences in culture, two things regarding this saint remain constant. The first is her willingness to respond to God, and the second is her commitment to persevere in that response no matter how high the cost. Joan was the youngest of five children, born into a comfortable peasant family in the region of Domremy-Greux, France, in 1412. Until the age of 13, there was nothing that set her apart from her peers, nor hinted at the life she would be called to lead. However, it was at this time that Joan began to experience visions and hear the voices of angels and saints, in particular Saint Michael, Saint Catherine of Alexandria, and Saint Margaret. Though at first personal and general, their messages became specific and unexpected: Joan was to drive the English from France, and see to it that the French

May 29, 2017 "No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life  for one’s friends." (John 15:13) In Memory of the Fallen [ Source ] Heavenly Father, On this Memorial Day, we pray for those who courageously laid down their lives for the cause of freedom. May the examples of their sacrifice inspire in us the selfless love of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Bless the families of our fallen troops. Fill their homes and their lives with Your strength and peace. In union with people of goodwill of every nation, embolden us to answer the call to work for peace and justice, and thus, seek an end to violence and conflict around the globe. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. God of power and mercy, you detest war and the hubris of earthly pride. Banish violence from our midst and wipe away our tears, that we may all deserve to be called your sons and daughters. Keep in your mercy those men and women who have died in th

By Msgr. Bernard Bourgeois Pentecost is one of the most joyful feasts on the Christian liturgical calendar. For fifty days the Church has been celebrating the great mysteries of Easter, most notably the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Pentecost is the conclusion of the Easter season. Today, the familiar story of Pentecost will be the first reading. The Spirit blows through the upper room where the disciples are hiding and, according to tradition, resides over each of them as tongues of fire. The disciples burst forth from that upper room to preach, teach, baptize, and celebrate the Eucharist. Most of them were martyred for their faith. Courage, strength, love, resolve, faith, and conviction were the marks of the apostles as they began their ministry to the known world after that experience of the Holy Spirit in the upper room. Each Pentecost the Church prays that the same Spirit will make his appearance once again. The wind and fire of the first Pentecost is needed today as much

May 29, 2017 The Pentecost novena is the original novena prayer. After Christ's Ascension, the disciples prayed for nine consecutive days for the Spirit to descend. On the tenth day, Pentecost Sunday, they received the Advocate promised by our Lord. According to Father Michael Woolley, this period of prayer is a "little Advent": The Disciples of Jesus waited those 9 days for the Holy Spirit with the blazing light of the Gospel to see by – while they waited in the Upper Room they reflected and prayed on the teachings and mighty deeds of Jesus, on His Passion and Death, on His Resurrection and Ascension, all of which enlightened their hearts and flooded the Old Testament Scriptures with light, revealing the hidden meaning of the Old Testament. (This is why during this "little Advent" we’re now in, we don’t wear dark Purple but bright White Vestments.) Dearest Holy Spirit, confiding in Your deep, personal love for me, I am making this novena for the follow

Optional Memorial, May 29th  St. Madeleine Sophie Barat (1779 – 1865) was born a child of privilege in Joigny, France. She received an exemplary education, then went to Paris in 1795, at the height of the French Revolution, to enter the Carmelite Order. Her experience of Revolutionary violence in Joigny and Paris, however, caused a change of heart. In 1800, she founded the Society of the Sacred Heart whose mission was to make known the love of God revealed in the Heart of Christ, and to restore Catholicism in France through the education and catechesis of young women of every class. Madeleine was baptized on the Feast of Saint Lucia (whose name means light), on December 13th, 1779. Her godfather was her older brother Louis. According to her family, she had been born prematurely when her mother was frightened by a fire. Subsequently, when asked as a little girl what it was that brought her into the world, the future saint and foundress would invariably answer: "Fire."

Fr. Charles Irvin Senior Priest Diocese of Lansing ( Click here for today’s readings ) In speaking with you about Pentecost I must speak of what cannot be fully explained. All we can do is reverently gaze into the mystery of God’s final movement toward us, the alienated and distant men and women who, with Adam and Eve, have broken off relations with God. Words cannot capture the enormity God’s merciful love for us; they buckle under the weight of it. So Scripture and the Church employ symbols to try to carry Pentecost’s meaning to us. Sometimes symbols are more effective than words in conveying the truth of stupendous events. Essentially Pentecost is the final movement of God’s journey toward us. The initial movement begins in Genesis with God in the Garden of Eden. Note that it is God who makes the move. It is God who initiates; God who offers; God who loves us first. He chooses us. We do not choose him. He chooses us first because He is the superior. If it were other

Fr. René J. Butler, M.S. Provincial Superior, La Salette Missionaries of North America Hartford, Connecticut (In many dioceses the Solemnity of the Ascension  was celebrated on Thursday. This homily is based on the readings for the Seventh Sunday of Easter.) ( Click here for today’s readings ) There is a saying you may have heard, which goes, “If you were accused of being a Christian, would they find enough evidence to convict you?” I don’t much like it, actually, because of its accusatory tone, but it certainly fits the context of today’s second reading from 1 Peter, which reflects a time when believers were in fact being punished for the crime of being Christians. There are not a lot of reliable statistics about the persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire, but there is ample evidence of the fact. For example, Pliny the Younger, a Roman governor in what is now northern Turkey, wrote the following to the Emperor Trajan around the year 111 AD: “In the case of th

"The desire for peace is certainly harbored in every breast, and there is no one who does not ardently invoke it. But to want peace without God is an absurdity, seeing that where God is absent thence too justice flies, and when justice is taken away it is vain to cherish the hope of peace. "Peace is the work of justice" (Is. xxii., 17). There are many, We are well aware, who, in their yearning for peace, that is for the tranquillity of order, band themselves into societies and parties, which they style parties of order. Hope and labor lost. For there is but one party of order capable of restoring peace in the midst of all this turmoil, and that is the party of God. It is this party, therefore, that we must advance, and to it attract as many as possible, if we are really urged by the love of peace." — St. Pius X _______________________________________________ Prayer for St. Pius X's Intercession Almighty ever-living God, who to safeguard the C

May 28, 2017 The Pentecost novena is the original novena prayer. After Christ's Ascension, the disciples prayed for nine consecutive days for the Spirit to descend. On the tenth day, Pentecost Sunday, they received the Advocate promised by our Lord. According to Father Michael Woolley, this period of prayer is a "little Advent": The Disciples of Jesus waited those 9 days for the Holy Spirit with the blazing light of the Gospel to see by – while they waited in the Upper Room they reflected and prayed on the teachings and mighty deeds of Jesus, on His Passion and Death, on His Resurrection and Ascension, all of which enlightened their hearts and flooded the Old Testament Scriptures with light, revealing the hidden meaning of the Old Testament. (This is why during this "little Advent" we’re now in, we don’t wear dark Purple but bright White Vestments.) Dearest Holy Spirit, confiding in Your deep, personal love for me, I am making this novena for the follow

May 27th, is the optional memorial of St. Augustine of Canterbury. He was born in Rome and died in Canterbury, England. An Italian Benedictine monk, at the behest of Pope Saint Gregory the Great, he founded the See of Canterbury and preached the Catholic faith to Britain’s Anglo-Saxon pagans during the late 6th and early 7th centuries. St. Augustine was the first Archbishop of Canterbury. _______________________________________________ St. Augustine of Canterbury, "Apostle of the English" (534 – 604) St. Augustine was the agent of a greater man than himself, Pope St. Gregory the Great. In Gregory's time, except for the Irish monks, missionary activity was unknown in the western Church, and it is Gregory's glory to have revived it. He decided to begin with a mission to the pagan English, for they had cut off the Christian Celts from the rest of Christendom. The time was favorable for a mission since the ruler of the whole of southern England, Ethelbert of Ke

May 27, 2017 The Pentecost novena is the original novena prayer. After Christ's Ascension, the disciples prayed for nine consecutive days for the Spirit to descend. On the tenth day, Pentecost Sunday, they received the Advocate promised by our Lord. According to Father Michael Woolley, this period of prayer is a "little Advent": The Disciples of Jesus waited those 9 days for the Holy Spirit with the blazing light of the Gospel to see by – while they waited in the Upper Room they reflected and prayed on the teachings and mighty deeds of Jesus, on His Passion and Death, on His Resurrection and Ascension, all of which enlightened their hearts and flooded the Old Testament Scriptures with light, revealing the hidden meaning of the Old Testament. (This is why during this "little Advent" we’re now in, we don’t wear dark Purple but bright White Vestments.) Dearest Holy Spirit, confiding in Your deep, personal love for me, I am making this novena for the follow

N.B.: It was brought to our attention that Canon 212 does not meet requirement #1. (Thank you Sister S.) Nonetheless, our readership's support and our staff's appreciation of the site was so strong, we are honoring Canon 212  just the same (the 3 year requirement is tabled now and forever). JMJ Br. Bartholomew Joseph We are pleased to announce the winners of the 3rd annual New Evangelization Award for Catholic bloggers and websites. The Catholic blogosphere is home to thousands of sites. These Catholic websites uniquely contribute to evangelizing and engaging a society which is hostile toward Judeo-Christian ideals and the "culture of life" of which St. John Paul II spoke. In order to qualify, a blog must: 1.) Have been in existence for at least 3 years 2.) Publish or feature content faithful to the Magisterium of the Church 3.) Evangelize and inform Catholics, and all who seek the fullness of truth This year's recipients are: Canon 212 Spirit

Saint Philip Neri was a 16th century Italian priest who was much beloved among the citizens of Rome for his compassion, humor and holiness. His devotion to God in serving others reminds us that living as a disciple of Christ is the source of joy. He was a great light of the Counter-Reformation, winning many souls for God. There is nothing the devil fears so much, or so much tries to hinder, as prayer. *** A joyful heart is more easily made perfect than a downcast one. *** To preserve our cheerfulness amid sicknesses and troubles, is a sign of a right and good spirit. *** The best way to prepare for death is to spend every day of life as though it were the last. *** First let a little love find entrance into their hearts, and the rest will follow. *** The greatness of our love of God must be tested by the desire we have of suffering for His love. *** The Lord grants in a moment what we may have been unable to obtain in dozens of years. *** The cross is

May 26, 2017 The Pentecost novena is the original novena prayer. After Christ's Ascension, the disciples prayed for nine consecutive days for the Spirit to descend. On the tenth day, Pentecost Sunday, they received the Advocate promised by our Lord. According to Father Michael Woolley, this period of prayer is a "little Advent": The Disciples of Jesus waited those 9 days for the Holy Spirit with the blazing light of the Gospel to see by – while they waited in the Upper Room they reflected and prayed on the teachings and mighty deeds of Jesus, on His Passion and Death, on His Resurrection and Ascension, all of which enlightened their hearts and flooded the Old Testament Scriptures with light, revealing the hidden meaning of the Old Testament. (This is why during this "little Advent" we’re now in, we don’t wear dark Purple but bright White Vestments.) Dearest Holy Spirit, confiding in Your deep, personal love for me, I am making this novena for the follow

Saint Teresa of Avila was reported to have said, “From silly devotions and sour-faced saints, Lord deliver us.” Though he probably never heard those words, one of her contemporaries, Saint Philip Neri, lived as if he had. This delightful man, known as “the cheerful saint,” believed that a life of humility and piety did not exclude a person from having a sense of lightheartedness. If anything, he had a profound appreciation of humor as a Godly gift, to be used for spiritual renewal. St. Philip Neri was born in Florence, Italy, in 1515. As a young man, he was sent away to live with an older cousin to learn the family business. It was soon evident that this was not the vocation God had in mind for him. Philip became a tutor, eking out a living while studying theology and philosophy. Three years later, he decided, out of humility, not to pursue ordination to the priesthood. Instead, he would spend the next thirteen years of his life actively engaged in contemplation, prayer and servic

The Ascension of Jesus When they had gathered together they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?" He answered them, "It is not for you to know the times or seasons that the Father has established by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."  When he had said this, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him from their sight. While they were looking intently at the sky as he was going, suddenly two men dressed in white garments stood beside them.  They said, "Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky? This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will return in the same way as you have seen him going into heaven." — Acts 1; 6-11 ____________________________________________________ Forty days after his R

Please remember the Holy Father Pope Francis' intentions in prayer throughout the month of June: National Leaders That national leaders may firmly commit themselves to ending the arms trade, which victimizes so many innocent people. Urgent Intention - Peace and Healing May the Holy Spirit grant peace to the entire world. May He heal the wounds of war and terrorism, which most recently struck innocent civilians in London. Let us pray for the victims and their families.

May 25th, is the optional memorial of Pope Saint Gregory VII. In the late 10th and early 11th centuries, kings influenced the selection of Church leaders, often appropriating that responsibility completely. Monarchs installed the bishops, and occasionally, even the popes, they wanted in office. The practice, known as “lay investiture”, severely limited the Church's ability to assert Her spiritual authority. The pope who abolished this practice was Pope St. Gregory VII. Born in 1020 in Tuscany, by 1049, he was making his influence felt as a chief advisor to Pope Nicholas II (who had brought the young monk, then known as Hildebrand, to Rome). The future Pope Gregory VII helped write the "Decree of 1059", placing the election of the pontiff in the hands of the cardinals, not temporal leaders. The decree was not enforced in earnest until 1073, when Hildebrand was elected pope. Within a year, he initiated the “Gregorian Reform,” stopping simony (the buying and selling o

There is very little that we know about this medieval scholar and saint. What information we have comes from the very end of the work for which he is best known, the Ecclesiastical History of the English People.  In its closing paragraphs he notes that, at the age of seven, his family gave him into the care of the Benedictine monastery at Jarrow, England, where he remained for virtually the rest of his life. There, with “great delight,” he lived the life of one of the most extraordinary and devout scholars of his day. Though the study of Scripture was his priority, he also chronicled a history of Christianity in England from its beginnings until his own time.  Not only is his history an important ecclesiastical work, it is also highly prized by prized by scholars of many disciplines, as it is the foundation for much of our knowledge of that period of English history. Bede was also quite well versed in all the sciences of his day, including what was then referred to as natural ph

May 25th, is also the optional memorial of Saint Mary Magdalen of Pazzi. A highly gifted mystic, she made a vow of chastity at the age of ten. She entered the convent of the Discalced Carmelite nuns in Florence, because the practice of receiving holy Communion almost daily was observed there. For five years her only food was bread and water. She practiced the most austere penances and for long periods endured complete spiritual aridity. Her favorite phrase was: "Suffer, not die!" Her body has remained incorrupt to the present day; it is preserved in a glass coffin in the church of the Carmelite nuns at Florence. Purity of soul and love of Christ are the chief virtues which the Church admires in St. Mary Magdalen of Pazzi. These virtues matured her spiritually and enabled her to take as a motto, "Suffer, not die!" Purity and love are also the virtues which the Church today exhorts us to practice in imitation of the saint. We may never attain her high degree of

The Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of Mary Help of Christians on May 24th. Today, like centuries before, Christians facing persecution, violence and death, have invoked Mary’s protection under this designation. Concerning it, Saint John Bosco wrote of his order, the Salesians' primary mission: "The principal objective is to promote veneration of the Blessed Sacrament and devotion to Mary Help of Christians. This title seems to please the august Queen of Heaven very much." The tradition of this devotion goes back to 1571, when the whole of Christendom was saved by Mary Help of Christians as Catholics throughout Europe prayed the Rosary. The battle of Lepanto defeating the Ottoman Empire occurred on October 7th 1571 . The date was chosen as the Feast of the Holy Rosary. In 1573, Pope Pius V instituted it in thanksgiving for the victory of Christianity over Islamism. Near the end of the 17th century, Emperor Leopold I of Austria took refuge in the Shrine of Mary