BIG C CATHOLICS

June 22nd is the feast day of English Saints John Fisher (1469 – 1535) and Thomas More (1478 – 1535). Fisher, a priest and bishop, and More, a statesman, were martyred within nine days of each other for the cause of religious freedom after defending the sanctity of marriage and papal authority against King Henry VIII's usurpation of the Church. Both were convicted of treason, imprisoned and beheaded. They were beatified together by Pope Leo XIII in 1886. Pope Pius XI canonized them on May 19, 1935. In October 2000, Saint John Paul II issued his apostolic letter on St.Thomas More , proclaiming him patron saint of statesman and politicians. Five centuries after their martyrdom, the lives of Sts. John Fisher and Thomas More speak to people everywhere of the innate dignity of the human conscience. The Life of St. Thomas More His belief that no lay ruler has jurisdiction over the church of Christ cost Thomas More his life. Beheaded on Tower Hill, London, July 6, 1535, he stea

June 21, 2016 On this final day of the Novena for the Persecuted Church and Religious Freedom, we give thanks to God. If you have not been greatly persecuted for your faith in Jesus, then give thanks to God for the blessing of not having that cross. If you have been persecuted for your faith in Jesus, then give thanks to God for allowing you to partake in His cross. In both cases, if we continue to follow Him faithfully, we will be able to partake in His resurrection. Day 9 - The Novena for the Persecuted Church O great cloud of witnesses! O host of Angels and Saints worshiping God for all eternity! O holy ones in heaven above, Pray for us! You who were once part of the Church on earth, you who were faithful servants of the Church Militant, you who suffered for the love of God, Pray for us! In all ages, the Church is persecuted and hated. We pray, oh Lord, through your holy Saints, that we may be blessed with the freedom to worship and adore you at all times! We pray th

June 20, 2016 Today we remember those parts of the world most hostile to Christianity. Let us pray for Christians in the Middle East and Asia where the Church is persecuted. May those forced to live their faith underground not be martyred. Day 8 - The Novena for the Persecuted Church O great cloud of witnesses! O host of Angels and Saints worshiping God for all eternity! O holy ones in heaven above, Pray for us! You who were once part of the Church on earth, you who were faithful servants of the Church Militant, you who suffered for the love of God, Pray for us! In all ages, the Church is persecuted and hated. We pray, oh Lord, through your holy Saints, that we may be blessed with the freedom to worship and adore you at all times! We pray that you may bless your Church throughout the world and me, personally, with your grace to persevere with love in the face of persecution just as You did on the Cross. (Mention your personal intentions here) St. Lucy – Pray for us!

June 19, 2016 In a homily given October 14, 2012, at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington on the occasion of the Marian Pilgrimage for Life and Liberty, Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore said in part: Our "right to choose" — our right to choose to practice the faith we profess — a right guaranteed by the First Amendment — seems to mean little or nothing to many who wield power. [ ... ]  Indeed, many of the secularist threats to religious liberty seem to hinge on the Church's teaching with regard to the sanctity of human life — whether it's the Church's teaching on the immorality of abortion, or the obligation of couples to be open to the gift of new human life, or marriage as between one man and one woman as the unique relationship that begets new human life and is meant to be the matrix in which it is nurtured. Today we pray for the Church's freedom in the face of threats by secularism. As society be

There are many places in the world where the Church is not welcomed or wanted by other religions. There are many places where our churches are burned and our brothers and sisters are killed by those who do not understand Christ. Today we remember those who persecute the Church. Pray that we as Christians may never persecute other faiths. Day 6 - The Novena for the Persecuted Church O great cloud of witnesses! O host of Angels and Saints worshiping God for all eternity! O holy ones in heaven above, Pray for us! You who were once part of the Church on earth, you who were faithful servants of the Church Militant, you who suffered for the love of God, Pray for us! In all ages, the Church is persecuted and hated. We pray, oh Lord, through your holy Saints, that we may be blessed with the freedom to worship and adore you at all times! We pray that you may bless your Church throughout the world and me, personally, with your grace to persevere with love in the face of persecution

June 17, 2016 Remarks from a homily by Pope Francis reflecting on martyrdom: "The prayer at the beginning of the Mass recalls that 'the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.' We speak of the growth of a plant and this makes us think of what Jesus used to say: 'The kingdom of heaven is like a seed. Someone took the seed and planted it in the ground and then went home – and whether he slept or was awake – the seed grew and blossomed.' This seed is the Word of God that grows and becomes the Kingdom of Heaven; it becomes Church thanks to the strength of the Holy Spirit and to the witness of Christians. We know that there is no growth without the Spirit: it is He who is Church, it is He who makes the Church grow, it is He who convokes the Church’s community. But the witness of Christians is necessary too. And when historical situations require a strong witness, there are martyrs, the greatest witnesses. And the Church grows thanks to the blood of the

Today, June 16, 2016, the fourth day of the novena, we recall our brothers and sisters in faith living in the Middle East who are persecuted for the faith, as well as the universal Church around the world. The most persecuted and victimized people in the world today are Christians in the Middle East. The perpetrators of the widespread destruction of that region's Christian community? Islamists. Middle East expert Raymond Ibrahim lays out the grim details. Visit the  Nasarean.org page for information about helping Christians in the Middle East. Day 4 - The Novena for the Persecuted Church O great cloud of witnesses! O host of Angels and Saints worshiping God for all eternity! O holy ones in heaven above, Pray for us! You who were once part of the Church on earth, you who were faithful servants of the Church Militant, you who suffered for the love of God, Pray for us! In all ages, the Church is persecuted and hated. We pray, oh Lord, through your holy Saints, that we

June 15, 2016 In many societies today, the mere utterance, "I am a Christian," is a crime punishable by death. So widespread is such persecution that Pope Francis called it a "third world war, waged piecemeal... a form of genocide." Day 3 - The Novena for the Persecuted Church O great cloud of witnesses! O host of Angels and Saints worshiping God for all eternity! O holy ones in heaven above, Pray for us! You who were once part of the Church on earth, you who were faithful servants of the Church Militant, you who suffered for the love of God, Pray for us! In all ages, the Church is persecuted and hated. We pray, oh Lord, through your holy Saints, that we may be blessed with the freedom to worship and adore you at all times! We pray that you may bless your Church throughout the world and me, personally, with your grace to persevere with love in the face of persecution just as You did on the Cross. (Mention your personal intentions here) St. Edith S

June 14, 2016 O great cloud of witnesses! O host of Angels and Saints worshiping God for all eternity! O holy ones in heaven above, Pray for us! You who were once part of the Church on earth, you who were faithful servants of the Church Militant, you who suffered for the love of God, Pray for us! In all ages, the Church is persecuted and hated. We pray, oh Lord, through your holy Saints, that we may be blessed with the freedom to worship and adore you at all times! We pray that you may bless your Church throughout the world and me personally with your grace to persevere with love in the face of persecution just as You did on the Cross. Amen. Day 2 - Novena for the Persecuted Church O great cloud of witnesses! O host of Angels and Saints worshiping God for all eternity! O holy ones in heaven above, Pray for us! You who were once part of the Church on earth, you who were faithful servants of the Church Militant, you who suffered for the love of God, Pray for us!

June 13, 2016 Day 1 - Novena for the Persecuted Church O great cloud of witnesses! O host of Angels and Saints worshiping God for all eternity! O holy ones in heaven above, Pray for us! You who were once part of the Church on earth, you who were faithful servants of the Church Militant, you who suffered for the love of God, Pray for us! In all ages, the Church is persecuted and hated. We pray, oh Lord, through your holy Saints, that we may be blessed with the freedom to worship and adore you at all times! We pray that you may bless your Church throughout the world and me, personally, with your grace to persevere with love in the face of persecution just as You did on the Cross. (Mention your personal intentions here) St. Joan of Arc – Pray for us! St. Valentine – Pray for us! St. Carmen Moreno and St. Ampara Caronell – Pray for us! St. Sebastian – Pray for us! St. Peter – Pray for us! St. Stephen – Pray for us! St. Denis – Pray for us! Amen. For more on the No

With threats to religious liberty increasing, at home around the world, this novena is dedicated to the struggle for religious freedom. We will pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ. The saints have always been the source and origin of renewal in the most difficult moments in the Church’s history. – St. John Paul II In all ages, the Church is persecuted and hated. We pray, O' Lord, through your holy Saints, that we may be blessed with the freedom to worship and adore you at all times! We pray that you bless your Church throughout the world and me personally with your grace to persevere with love in the face of persecution just as You did on the Cross.  This novena was written to be a prayer to all Saints and particularly to Martyrs. Go here to get these novena prayers delivered daily to your inbox and to join the community of prayer.

Given the rise in popularity of the occult and satanic worship, the following is intended as a cautionary illustration of the inherent danger in opening a pathway for evil to enter the world. The individuals mentioned are not responsible for the actions of the Third Reich. Kristallnacht, the Holocaust and World War II had numerous antecedents. Nonetheless, did a séance the day of Kristallnacht make Nazi atrocities even worse? In the sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation we renounce Satan and all his works, and profess our faith in Christ and in the Church. Sacred Scripture speaks of God’s protection and power over Satan. The first letter of John testifies that as children of God, in whom the Holy Spirit dwells, the evil one cannot touch us. But it also states that "the whole world is under the power of the evil one" (1 John 5:18-20). Chapter 12 in the Book of Revelation tells how the angel Lucifer rebelled against God. In the ensuing battle, one third of the angels in

We have all heard the Christmas song, "The Twelve Days of Christmas". To most it's a delightful nonsense rhyme set to music. However, it had a serious purpose when it was written. It is much more than a repetitious melody with memorable phrases and a list of strange gifts. Catholics in England during the period 1558 to 1829, [when Parliament finally emancipated them] were not permitted to practice their faith in public or in private because being Catholic was a crime. "The Twelve Days of Christmas" was composed to be a "catechism song." It's purpose was to help young Catholics learn their faith when to be caught with anything showing adherence to Catholicism could get one imprisoned, hanged or drawn and quartered. The latter was a particularly gruesome punishment. It involved disembowelling a person [while still alive] after which the accused's limbs were tied to four large horses, and the victim was literally torn apart. The song

Excellent post on Epicpew about " 10 Historical Periods in the Church Worse Than Today " An excerpt: It is very easy for us to fall into the trap of believing that our age is some how special or much worse compared to previous ages. From the standpoint of world history, the last Century was the bloodiest on record, that seems to be undeniably true. But what about in Church History? The Synod on the Family has people up in arms about information and misinformation that is coming out of Rome. This cycle of misinformation will ramp up again next month when the Synod resumes. The reality is, however, that open discussion is how the Church conducts her affairs and then she makes pronouncements or clarifies doctrine after the discussion has closed. Far too many people are arguing that the Church is “doomed”, she’s filled with heretics (what’s new?!), and major changes are coming to the Church. It is frequently claimed that we are witnessing the worst period in the Church’s h

Blessed Flavianus Michael Malke On Saturday, August 29, Pope Francis declared the first Syrian Catholic bishop, Flavianos Melke who was killed in Turkey one hundred years ago to the day, a martyr. Three weeks earlier, Pope Francis approved Melke's beatification after it was determined that the bishop was killed in hatred of the faith. The Pope noted that Melke's example is especially salient for Christians facing persecution now: Even today, dear brothers and sisters, in the Middle East and other parts of the world, Christians are persecuted. There are more martyrs than in the first centuries. The beatification of this martyr should instill in us consolation, courage, and hope, but it is also a stimulus to legislators and government leaders to ensure that religious freedom is guaranteed everywhere... A beatification Mass was celebrated in Lebanon, and brought together numerous patriarchs from the Eastern churches of Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq. Flavianos Michael Melke wa