Let Us Unite Ourselves With Christ

In the agony of the Garden of Gethsemane, Christ knew that He was to be mocked, tortured, beaten, deprived of friendship, and killed; yet His love remained. And in His agony, knowing His coming brutal death, He cried out in prayer. Read the 17th Chapter of the Gospel of John.

Let us pray with this prayer I found in a Catholic prayer book:

God our Father, it is your purpose to bring the whole of creation into unity with you. Give us the grace to further this aim and to live out your truth on earth. Bring all your people closer to one another and unite us in the sharing of your good news. Come, Holy Spirit, and help us to join into one community of believers. Amen

Image Source: Believed to be in the Public Domain

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Cardinal Clemens August von Galen

The process of sainthood is such: Servant of God - Venerable - Blessed - Saint (Read Roman Catholic sections) If you are unfamiliar with devotion to saints then please read further on the subject.

I just finished watching an EWTN special for the Beatification Mass of Cardinal Clemens August von Galen this evening. First, if you are unaware for the process of being declared a saint, someone in Heaven, then please read the Wikipedia article on sainthood.

Today I watched the Beatification Mass celebrated by Cardinal Saraiva Martins celebrated at Saint Peter's Basilica for the Beatification of Cardinal Clemens August Graf von Galen (1878 - 1946). And although Pope Benedict XVI did not celebrate the Mass since a beatification is more of a regional celebration than a declaration of sainthood, the Holy Father did arrive near the end to bless the crowd and speak. Although not spoken by Our Holy Father, I found these words spoken on the Eucharist very refreshing and brilliant. It was said that in receiving the Eucharist one's "...Heart becomes the throne of the Son of God." Is your heart worthy? After this life we will be seeing our God with our own eyes, touching Him with our own hands, but our you worthy? If not then seek His mercy in the Sacrament of Confession, the delight of souls where every single soul, by the power of God, is washed clean from sin. Thanks be to God for His immeasurable gift - His only Son, eternally begotten of the Father!

Cardinal Clemens August Graf von Galen was a huge critic of the Nazi regime. He lived the Truth in the midst of the darkness of World War II.

If you have information relevant to the canonization of Blessed Clemens, please contact:

Domkapitular Martin Hülskamp
Horsteberg 18, 48143
Münster, Germany

Image Source: Photo believed to be in the Public Domain

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Earthquake Victims

After seeing the US devestated by hurricanes, the world is again struck by a natural disaster in Asia with a 7.6 magnitude earthquake with a death toll near 20,000 now! Please start praying for these people. Let's start a Rosary network for these people praying our Rosary and leaving them in Mary's arms that she might take them to Christ, the Divine Healer, the Only Truth. Last Thurday was the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, a day commemorating a Christian naval victory attributed to the continuous prayer of the Rosary. With Mary's intercession in mind, let us walk together to Christ that we might not just save these people physically but in mind, body, and spirit. Let us pray completely for them that Christ might heal them and reign in their hearts.

Christ-Haunted, a reader of this site and a blogger, posted about the site, AsiaNews.it for more information to keep up on the subject. And if you can give monetary aid please do so through Catholic Charities (This link is for Catholic Charities USA).

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Catholic Tuner

This website, Catholic Tuner, looks like a good find with Holy Family Radio, Ave Maria Radio, Relevant Radio, EWTN, and more. And best of all, it's completely free to listen to it.

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What Goes Up Must Come Down

Image Source: Bartolomé Estéban Murillo. The Blessed Giles Levitating before Pope Gregory IX, about 1645-46 Oil on canvas, 65 1/2 x 73 1/4 in. (166.3 x 186.0 cm.)


"No man can attain to the knowledge of God but by humility. The way to mount high is to descend. "– Blessed Giles of Assisi

I just found this quotation today and wanted to share it with everyone before I will be going to Mass.

After all, we are all unworthy servants. We all sin and some are worse than others, but those truly repentant and loving are certainly in Christ's eternal heart. God knows we can't do anything by ourselves so He saves us continuously again. Some say they don't "see" God, they just can't say yes or no. And I tell you then to open your heart see the joy of the world, the complexity of the universe, the miracle of life, the joy of the Catholic faith, and the greatest source of all beauty - the Holy Eucharist. Why don't you get out of your house and look at the world and see it isn't something anyone on earth could possibly imagine. Sir Issac Newton in the preface to "Principia" translates as such, "...to lay forth the laws of nature with such clarity that no thinking man may deny the existence of God"

"Consequently, methodical research in all branches of knowledge, provided it is carried out in a truly scientific manner and does not override moral laws, can never conflict with the faith, because the things of the world and the things of faith derive from the same God. The humble and persevering investigator of the secrets of nature is being led, as it were, by the hand of God in spite of himself, for it is God, the conserver of all things, who made them what they are" (CCC 159)

Above all it comes down to the fact that God made science and therefore is still outside of it. His beauty and majesty can not be reached by a microscope or a telescope or by sitting in life waiting around. The greatest thing is that Christ died for everyone one of us and wants to know us all in such a personal way and the ONLY way to do this is the pray. Start out slow with vocal prayers and eventually move on. Throughout this whole life Christ is the source of Mercy. Come to Him as St. Faustina taught us to pray, "Jesus, I trust in you."

Remember our Lord's teachings in the Gospel, all that humble themselves will be exulted and all that exult themselves will be humbled. Do you think Christ is only in a book? No! He is in His Church preserved from the time of Our Lord's Resurrection of His teachings. The Holy Spirit is guiding us, but then again, we must humble ourselves. None of us are worthy of any grace of God, rather it is only through His mercy that we are healed.

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Calling All Apologists

I know that several of my readers are very good at apologetics (defending the Catholic faith), so I'm posting this hear to see if anyone wants to participate in a discussion on the faith. I am a member of the Catholic Community Forum. In the debate boards I have recently engaged in a few discussions on the Catholic Church's teachings.

If anyone here wants to help respond and defend the Church just join the Catholic Community Forum (My username there is Moneybags), and visit these two discussions. You don't have to join to just read the posts.

1. Indulgences
2. Blessed Virgin Mary

Image Source: Believed to be in the Public Domain

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We find Him in our hearts

"We need no wings to go in search of Him, but have only to look upon Him present within us."-- Saint Teresa of Avila

We don't need to search any further for Christ than first within us as it was through His divine will that He gave us light - a spark of His divine love. As Pope Benedict XVI said, "Each of us is the result of a thought of God," and before anything else we must find a personal relationship with Christ. We don't have to search for Christ over the Internet, in a book, or anything first. In reality, we must find Him first within us and respond by loving Him. Only if we love Him may we receive His Body and Blood in the Holy Eucharist the source of the greatest graces.

I said it before and will say it as much as necessary - our faith is completely on love because we will be judged on only one thing - how much did we love (St. John of the Cross). Every single day we are to love and give as much as possible. I know someone that even took in Hurricane Katrina evacuees. God knows how much you can give of time, talent, and treasure. Give what you can from each area and do it with love.

As Saint Teresa of Avila said, we don't have to make life more complex. Trust in God and find Him within yourself, in the Catholic Church and love Him "who humbled Himself to death even death on a cross."

Image Source: Believed to be in the Public Domain

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Choose Life License Plates

The "Choose Life" license plate that originated in Florida in 1999 has been approved in 13 states to date. Already, more than 60,000 motorists have raised over $5 million dollars to fund pregnancy resource centers and maternity homes by using these license plates.

On March 9, 2006, Choose Life License Plates succeeded in New York when an appelate court dismissed a lawsuit by pro-abortion groups seeking to stop them.

In Florida, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Hawaii, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Maryland, Tennessee, South Dakota, Montana, and now New York, Choose Life plates are onsale. These plates promote adoption and have certainly saved thousands of unborn lives. South Carolina's law was ruled unconstitutional. Most states donate the proceeds to adoption groups, but Alabama, Hawaii, Maryland and Montana donate some of the funds collected to pro-life organizations.

Updates:

• In June 2006, Indiana has approved Choose Life Plates
• New Jersey lawsuit against Choose Life Plates thrown out
• In November 2006, Georgia has approved Choose Life Plates
• In January 2007, Illinois has approved Choose Life Plates
• In Februrary 2007, Pennsylvania now sells Choose Life Plates

Unfortunately, Hawaii and Montana also have license plates supporting abortion.

If you live in the US and your state does not yet have Choose Life plates then please select your state and see what you can do to help. You may just need to sign a petition.

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What Does It Mean to Be A Catholic?

Does it mean putting another title next to my name? Does it mean getting up early ever Sunday? Is it the same as other Christian religions?

No. Our society is living in a culture of death where lies spread because some prefer the darkness to the light. These people hate the Truth - the Truth that Jesus Christ started the Catholic Church (Matthew 16:18) and the Seven Sacraments of that Church. Through the ages the manipulations by others have taken the teachings of Christ and not simplified them but changed them! They call Christ liars!

I, however, do not blame anyone today at all. Above all, being Catholic is to love Christ completely. When we enter the Church in baptism we have our sins forgiven by the power of Christ working through His priests. This command he gave to His disciples at the end of the Gospel of Matthew: "All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age."

In this great Sacrament of baptism, we literally enter the Catholic Church and in turn become part of the Mystical Body of Christ. We are baptized into Christ's body and therefore salvation is possible. Salvation outside of baptism is unrealistic because salvation outside of baptism is available only to those that truly didn't know of Christ - not those that refused Him.

We as Catholics are not hypocrites. We know the Mass - the form of worship started by Christ where at every single Catholic Mass Christ, the Good Lord - is the bloodless sacrifice of the Cross. We remember His death as in the words of the Gospels: "Do this in memory of Me." And through the Mass we reach a question: Can't I just stay at home and pray the same?

No! Is God physically present in your room? No, but at the Mass at the very most solemn moment, by the power of God and through His teachings in the Gospel of John 6, the Bread and Wine truly become the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ not by the priest's power but God's power working through the priest.

We as Catholics are not idolaters and pray to statues and we don't worship Mary at all. We are not liars and wrongdoers but followers of Christ and His teachings before those came to corrupt them so that these anti-Christs might bring others down with them.

Look to Christ. So many people spend YEARS looking for life and its purpose, and in truth it only has one word: God. Look to God alone and trust in Him. Love Him who died for you and rose again so that you might live in His glory. Is Heaven easy? Certainly not, look to the lives of the saints and martyrs who died for their beliefs. Look to those in everyday life standing against the majority to support Christ's teachings and not trying to reason around opinions against the Church. Heaven is the narrow road that few shall find (Matthew 7:13)

Trust in God. He is there, waiting...Patiently in the Holy Eucharist for us to adore Him. In this year of the Eucharist may we grow more in love for our Savior and God and serve Him alone. That His not our way may be done.

The Council of Nicea (325 AD) wrote the following Profession of Faith. This is what Catholics believe. It should be solemnly proclaimed each Sunday Mass:

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, one in being with the Father. Through Him all things were made. For us men and our salvation He came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit, He was born of the Virgin Mary , and became man. For our sake He was crucified under Pontius Pilate; He suffered, died, and was buried. On the third day He rose again in fulfillment of the scriptures: He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son, He is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets. We believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

Catholics also must never support abortion, embryonic stem cell research, homosexual marriage, human cloning, euthanasia, or artificial contraception. A Catholic must believe all dogmas of the Catholic Church declared over the past 2,000 years since.

For more information see Apologetic Posts. Are you, Interested in becoming Catholic?  If so, look at the online resources available through CatechismClass.com.

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A Travel Back to the Catholic Basics

I recently read of an incident at a Church where a group of people after Communion ran up to the altar and smashing it onto the ground and destroying it. Today, I read a follow-up where the vandals claimed that a vision from Heaven led them to do it. And this article also stated they did it because Catholics don't care at the Mass. They just say the words with no feeling; they worship the idol - the altar.

I was deeply saddened by this and for that reason I wanted to start a "Return to the Basics" this week and I would appreciate others bloggers doing the same. I'd like to post links to my articles on the true teachings of the Church as we are NOT idolaters.

Basics:

Praying to Saints? Is this wrong?
Prayer
The Mass
Purgatory
Indulgences
Sacraments
Eucharist
Confession
Prayer to Mary
Dogma of the Immaculate Conception

Image Source: Images in the Public Domain. If you are interested in obtaining all of the images of this series in high resolution, please click here to visit my post to obtain them.

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