BIG C CATHOLICS

According to John Paul II holiness isn’t simply one option among many; it is the essence of being Catholic. To be Catholic is to be called to holiness. Holiness can be summed up in one word – love. Christ calls his disciples to authentic love – love of God and love of neighbor. Saying this is one thing. Living it is another. We might think that holiness is the stuff of priests and nuns. We might think of living a holier life as something we will do tomorrow or sometime in the future. This is wrong. Sacred Scripture tells us the time to be holy is now! 1.The spiritual journey is entirely dependent on God. It is a gift God gives us. It is a grace. Going to Mass doesn’t make us holy. Neither does saying a million rosaries. God sustains us in life – in everything we do. We are entirely dependent on his mercy. 2. Our effort is necessary. What we can do to place ourselves in the presence of Christ we should do. Daily prayer is essential. Reading the scriptures is another key that unloc

A friend of mine has taken an interest in Medjugorje. If you are not aware, Medjugorje is the Yugoslavian village where the Blessed Virgin Mary is reported to have first appeared to six young people in June of 1981. By all accounts the Virgin Mary continues to appear daily to the visionaries who are no longer children. My friend attended a talk by a seminarian, now a priest, a few years ago. The seminarian had earlier read a book about Medjugorje and then visited Medjugorje where he was met with conversion. My friend more recently happened upon a book titled Medjugorje The Message published in 1989 by Wayne Weible that has increased his interest. I am skeptical of the Medjugorje events and the Church has yet to recognize or officially approve of the events at Medjugorje. I would be interest to hear whether you have had a personal experience with Medjugorje or have a particular opinion of the events there. If you would write a brief description of your experience including your f

Ye souls of the faithful! who sleep in the Lord; But as yet are shut out, from your final reward! Oh! would I could lend you, assistance to fly; From your prison below, to your palace on high. O Father of mercies! Thine anger withhold; These works of Thy hand in Thy mercy behold; Too oft from Thy path, they have wandered aside: But Thee, their Creator, they never denied. O tender Redeemer! Their misery see; Deliver those souls that were ransomed by Thee; Behold how they love Thee, despite of their pain: Restore them, restore them to favour again. O Spirit of grace! O Consoler divine! See how for Thy presence they longingly pine; Ah, then, to enliven their sadness, descend; And fill them with peace, and with joy in the end. O Mother of mercy! Dear soother in grief! Lend thou to their torments a balmy relief; And temper the rigour of justice severe; And soften their flames with a pitying tear. All ye who would honour the Saints and their Head, Remember, remembe

The Catholic bishops of the United States have designated January 22 as a special day of prayer and penance in reparation for the massive killing that has resulted from the Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision (handed down January 22, 1973) which permitted abortion throughout pregnancy. Therefore, I invite you to prepare spiritually for that day by joining a Novena that starts on January 14th and concludes on January 22nd. Please say the prayer below each of those days... Prayer of Reparation God and Father of Life, You have created every human person, And have opened the way for each to have eternal life. We live in the shadow of death. Tens of millions of your children have been killed because of the Roe vs. Wade decision legalizing abortion. Father, have mercy on us. Heal our land And accept our offering of prayer and penance. In your love for us, Turn back the scourge of abortion. May each of us exult in hearts full of hope And hands full of mercy

Why pray the Rosary today? Certainly, to grow in holiness and in one's prayer life. The following are a few others reasons why the rosary should be prayed often, even daily: "Among all the devotions approved by the Church none has been so favored by so many miracles as the devotion of the Most Holy Rosary" (Pope Pius IX). "Say the Rosary every day to obtain peace for the world" (Our Lady of Fátima). "There is no surer means of calling down God's blessings upon the family . . . than the daily recitation of the Rosary" (Pope Pius XII). "We do not hesitate to affirm again publicly that we put great confidence in the Holy Rosary for the healing of evils of our times" (Pope Pius XII). "No one can live continually in sin and continue to say the Rosary: either they will give up sin or they will give up the Rosary" (Bishop Hugh Doyle). "The Rosary is a magnificent and universal prayer for the needs of the Church, the

Eternal Father, You led John Henry Newman to follow the kindly light of Truth, and he obediently responded to your heavenly calls at any cost. As writer, preacher, counsellor and educator, as pastor, Oratorian, and servant of the poor he laboured to build up your Kingdom. Grant that through your Vicar on Earth we may hear the words, ‘Well done, thou good and faithful servant, enter into the company of the canonized saints.’ May you manifest your Servant’s (Blessed John Henry Newman) power of intercession by even extraordinary answers to the prayers of the faithful throughout the world. We pray particularly for our intentions in his name and in the name of Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. Amen H/T A Catholic Mom In Hawaii

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – God's mind was behind complex scientific theories such as the Big Bang, and Christians should reject the idea that the universe came into being by accident, Pope Benedict said on Thursday. "The universe is not the result of chance, as some would want to make us believe," Benedict said on the day Christians mark the Epiphany, the day the Bible says the three kings reached the site where Jesus was born by following a star. "Contemplating it (the universe) we are invited to read something profound into it: the wisdom of the creator, the inexhaustible creativity of God," he said in a sermon to some 10,000 people in St Peter's Basilica on the feast day. While the pope has spoken before about evolution, he has rarely delved back in time to discuss specific concepts such as the Big Bang, which scientists believe led to the formation of the universe some 13.7 billion years ago. Researchers at CERN, the nuclear research center in Geneva,