BIG C CATHOLICS

By Msgr. Bernard Bourgeois Sirach 27:30 - 28:7; Psalm 103; Romans 14:7-9; Matthew 18:21-35 "Think of the commandments, hate not your neighbor; remember  the Most High’s covenant, and overlook faults."  (Sirach 28:7)  The third Sunday of September has been set aside by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops as Catechetical Sunday. In many parishes, it is the weekend that Catholic youth religious education programs, the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults and other adult education programs begin for another year. It is an exciting time in ministry. Parishes have the opportunity to form their people in the Catholic faith. Second to the celebrations of the sacraments, there is nothing more important. The quote above from the reading from Sirach sums up the goals of Catholic education: think of the commandments, hate not your neighbor, remember God’s sacred covenant and “overlook faults” or be patient with others. These are four great themes for Catholi

December 22, 2016 Today, we pray for all who are parents and godparents. They have an essential duty to help form a child born into the world. Just as Our Lord Jesus Christ was presented in the temple, our children are presented in the Church for Baptism. There, parents and godparents take on the responsibility for bringing up a child in the Faith. We pray also for those children who have no one to present them in the Church for Baptism. We ask that God present them to His family to be loved.  The Christmas Novena - Day 7  – Forgiveness O Lord, infant Jesus, move us to forgive others as you forgive us! Your Divine Mercy is unending! We pray for Your Divine Mercy on us and that we may participate in Your mercy by forgiving others this Christmas. (There are two versions of the novena prayer) The Presentation O most sweet infant Jesus, presented in the temple by the Virgin Mary, embraced by Simeon, and revealed to the Jews by Anna the prophetess. Have mercy on

The penitent and the priest begin with the sign of the Cross, saying:  In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. The priest urges the penitent to have confidence in God with these or similar words:  May the Lord be in your heart and help you to confess your sins with true sorrow. The priest may recite a passage from Sacred Scripture after which the penitent then states:  Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned. It has been (however many days, weeks, months or years) since my last confession. The penitent then states his sins. For the confession to be valid, the penitent must confess all of the mortal sins he is aware of having committed since the last confession, be sorry for them, and have a firm purpose of amendment to try not to commit the same sins in the future. After this, the priest will generally give some advice to the penitent and impose a penance. Then he will ask the penitent to make an Act of Contrition. The penitent may do so in his

By Msgr. Bernard Bourgeois Sirach 27:30 - 28:7; Psalm 103; Romans 14:7-9; Matthew 18:21-35 "Think of the commandments, hate not your neighbor; remember  the Most High’s covenant, and overlook faults."  (Sirach 28:7)  The third Sunday of September has been set aside by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops as Catechetical Sunday. In many parishes, it is the weekend that Catholic youth religious education programs, the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults and other adult education programs begin for another year. It is an exciting time in ministry. Parishes have the opportunity to form their people in the Catholic faith. Second to the celebrations of the sacraments, there is nothing more important. The quote above from the reading from Sirach sums up the goals of Catholic education: think of the commandments, hate not your neighbor, remember God’s sacred covenant and “overlook faults” or be patient with others. These are four great themes for Cat

Sin is not the worst thing in the world. The worst thing in the world is the denial of sin....  If I deny that there is any such thing as sin, how shall I ever be forgiven? The denial of sin is the unforgivable sin, for it makes redemption impossible. — Venerable Fulton Sheen ____________________________________________________ Prayer for the Canonization of Venerable Fulton Sheen Heavenly Father, source of all holiness, You raise up within the Church in every age men and women who serve with heroic virtue and love. You have blessed Your Church through the life and ministry of Your servant, Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen. He has written and spoken well of Your Divine Son, Jesus Christ, and was truly an instrument of the Holy Spirit in touching the hearts of countless people.  If it be according to Your Will, for the honor and glory of the Most Holy Trinity and for the salvation of souls, we ask You to move the Church to proclaim him a saint. We ask this through Jesus Chr

The instruction below is from a letter by Saint Francis of Paola, a 15th century Italian friar, miracle worker and mystic who founded the Order of Minims. "Brothers, I most strongly urge you to work for the salvation of your souls with prudence and diligence. Death is certain, and life is short and vanishes like smoke. Therefore, you must fix your minds on the passion of our Lord Jesus Christ who so burned with love for us that he came down from heaven to redeem us. For our sakes, he suffered all the agonies of body and mind, and did not shrink from any torment. He gave us a perfect example of patience and love. For our part, we too must be patient when things go against us. Put aside hatred and hostility. See to it that you refrain from harsh words. But if you do speak them, do not be ashamed to apply the remedy from the same lips that inflicted the wounds. In this way, you will show each other mercy and not keep alive the memories of past wrongs. Remembering grievances wo