Monday, February 20, 2006
Adoration is a Moment of Joy

"When you approach the tabernacle remember that He has been waiting for you for twenty centuries."- St. Josemaría Escriva

"Of all devotions, that of adoring Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is the greatest after the sacraments, the one dearest to God and the one most helpful to us." - St. Alphonsus Liguori

(More information on Eucharistic Adoration)

Image Source: Believed to be in the Public Domain
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Sunday, February 19, 2006
Governor Blagojevich Funds Embryonic Stem Cell Research

Governor Blagojevich of Illinois just announced in his 2006 budget proposal to take $100 million in funds from tobacco lawsuit settlement funds to fund embryonic stem cell research. This money deserves to be spent to on finding cures for diseases like lung cancer and not wasted on immoral research.

He calls for spending $15 million next year and increasing it by $2.5 million annually for each of the next five years. Last year he diverted $10 million to embryonic stem cell research and $4-6 million of those have already been spent. And what has embryonic stem cell research amounted to? Nothing other than the destruction of human embryos. This research is a waste of taxpayer's dollars and completely immoral.

For more information on this, visit Life News. I strongly recommend you contact the Governor and voice your disapproval.

At the same time please voice your disapproval on his contraception mandate.

In April 2005, Governor Rod Blagojevich of Illinois instituted a mandate requiring all pharmacists to distribute the morning after pill and other emergency contraceptives. Before this, pharmacists with conscience objections could refer the client to another near-by pharmacy. Not only do contraceptives fail, cause serious health side effects, and induce abortions, but now the Governor is forcing all pharmacists to distribute them. There is now no exception for pharmacists who know it's wrong!

One pharmacist was John Menges, an Illinois pharmacist, fired for refusing to sell the morning after pill. He stood up for the firm belief of our faith - artificial contraception and abortion are morally wrong. John Menges said, "Life begins at conception, and anything done to interfere with that is wrong." And for that he was fired from his $100,000 job and forced onto unemployment. How sad...
"Now, I understand that several bills have been introduced that would overturn my executive order," he said in his State of the State address last week. "So let me make something else very clear -- if any of those bills reach my desk, they are dead on arrival." Source: Life News
Those bills in question that would overturn his mandate did not get scheduled for a vote and therefore are gone. It is morally wrong for him to refuse conscience rights to pharmacists, the same rights given to doctors who refuse to perform abortions.

Please speak out against this. Even if you are not from Illinois, please just write Governor Blagojevich and tell him you are displeased with his mandate. Let him know that pharmacists are entitled to conscience rights. Please spread this message on so that others can contact him.

Image Source: Photo believed to be in the Public Domain
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The Miracles of Fatima

Where is Fatima?

In Fatima, Portugal, beginning on May 13, 1917, the Blessed Mother appeared to three shepherd children: Lucia Santos (age 10), Francisco Marto (age 9) and Jacinta Marto (age 7). She showed them a vision of hell while reassuring them that they would go to heaven. She called for the conversion of Russia by consecrating that nation to her Immaculate Heart. She told the children secrets that predicted the end of World War I and the beginning of World War II. One of those secrets was that “a Bishop in white”, would be shot and killed along with other believers who were climbing a mountain. She emphasized the importance for all Catholics to pray the Rosary every day.

The Apparitions:

On the 13th of each month at roughly the same hour from May till October, Mary appeared to the three children.

On May 13, 1917, the children saw "a lady, clothed in white, brighter than the sun, radiating a light clearer and more intense than a crystal cup filled with sparkling water, lit by burning sunlight." Mary's request was clear, "I have come to ask you to come here for six months on the 13th day of the month, at this same hour. Later I shall say who I am and what I desire. And I shall return here yet a seventh time."

Her final request that day was thus: "Say the Rosary every day, to bring peace to the world and the end of the war." The children went about in penance receiving little support from the community - they suffered much for the truth like Mary told them.

On June 13, 1917, Mary appeared and Lucia asked her to take her to heaven. Mary said, "I will take Jacinta and Francisco shortly, but you will stay here for some time to come. Jesus wants to use you to make Me known and loved. He wishes to establish the devotion to My Immaculate Heart throughout the world. I promise salvation to whoever embraces it; these souls will be dear to God, like flowers put by Me to adorn his throne."

She also revealed to them the Fatima Prayer and implored them to continue praying the Rosary. The children then saw a vision of a heart in the palm of Mary's right hand, with thorns piercing it. The three children understood it to be the Immaculate Heart of Mary, so offended by the sins of mankind, desiring reparation.

Roughly fifty people say this apparition and they spread the news to many others.

On July 13, 1917, Mary appeared again as promised and asked for the Rosary to continue to be said each day. Lucia asked for her name and a miracle and Mary answered, "Continue to come here every month. In October, I will tell you who I am and what I want, and I will perform a miracle for all to see and believe."

Mary presented three secrets to the children called the Three Secrets of Fatima. The first was of a vision of hell, where she said sinners would go. She asked for continued prayer and sacrifice to save souls.

The first vision:
"She opened Her hands once more, as She had done the two previous months. The rays [of light] appeared to penetrate the earth, and we saw, as it were, a vast sea of fire. Plunged in this fire, we saw the demons and the souls [of the damned]. The latter were like transparent burning embers, all blackened or burnished bronze, having human forms. They were floating about in that conflagration, now raised into the air by the flames which issued from within themselves, together with great clouds of smoke. Now they fell back on every side like sparks in huge fires, without weight or equilibrium, amid shrieks and groans of pain and despair, which horrified us and made us tremble with fright (it must have been this sight which caused me to cry out, as people say they heard me). The demons were distinguished [from the souls of the damned] by their terrifying and repellent likeness to frightful and unknown animals, black and transparent like burning coals. That vision only lasted for a moment, thanks to our good Heavenly Mother, Who at the first apparition had promised to take us to Heaven. Without that, I think that we would have died of terror and fear." (From Sister Lucia's Memoirs)
Mary said, "...The war is going to end; but if people do not cease offending God, a worse one will break out during the pontificate of Pius XI. When you see a night illumined by an unknown light, know that this is the great sign given you by God that he is about to punish the world for its crimes, by means of war, famine, and persecutions of the Church and of the Holy Father."

The second vision was a prophecy of World War II and came with her request to consecration Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary:
"After the two parts which I have already explained, at the left of Our Lady and a little above, we saw an Angel with a flaming sword in his left hand; flashing, it gave out flames that looked as though they would set the world on fire; but they died out in contact with the splendour that Our Lady radiated towards him from her right hand: pointing to the earth with his right hand, the Angel cried out in a loud voice: ‘Penance, Penance, Penance!'. And we saw in an immense light that is God: ‘something similar to how people appear in a mirror when they pass in front of it' a Bishop dressed in White ‘we had the impression that it was the Holy Father'. Other Bishops, Priests, men and women Religious going up a steep mountain, at the top of which there was a big Cross of rough-hewn trunks as of a cork-tree with the bark; before reaching there the Holy Father passed through a big city half in ruins and half trembling with halting step, afflicted with pain and sorrow, he prayed for the souls of the corpses he met on his way; having reached the top of the mountain, on his knees at the foot of the big Cross he was killed by a group of soldiers who fired bullets and arrows at him, and in the same way there died one after another the other Bishops, Priests, men and women Religious, and various lay people of different ranks and positions. Beneath the two arms of the Cross there were two Angels each with a crystal aspersorium in his hand, in which they gathered up the blood of the Martyrs and with it sprinkled the souls that were making their way to God." (Source: The Vatican)
Then Mary asked for another prayer added to the Rosary, which we pray, "O my Jesus..." The details of the third secret have never been fully revealed by the Vatican, even though they were supposed to be released in the year 1960 as requested by our Lady.

In August 1917, the three children were kidnapped and threatened with death if they did not reveal the secrets of Mary. The children refused. Mary appeared and told them to come to the spot again on the 13th.

She also said, "Pray, pray very much, and make sacrifices for sinners; for many souls go to hell, because there are none to sacrifice themselves and pray for them." The children frequently rejected food and drink and remained faithful to Our Lord through Mary's requests.

On September 13, 1917, Mary appeared again and said, "Continue to pray the Rosary in order to obtain the end of the war. In October Our Lord will come, as well as Our Lady of Dolours and Our Lady of Carmel. Saint Joseph will appear with the Child Jesus to bless the world. God is pleased with your sacrifices. He does not want you to sleep with the rope on [a rope they wore for mortification and penance], but only to wear it during the daytime."

Lucia presented requests for cures for people that were ill and Mary said something that all of us can keep to heart: "Yes, I will cure some, but not others. In October I will perform a miracle so that all may believe."

The Last Apparition and the Miracle:



On October 13, 1917, Mary appeared again to the three children and said, "I want to tell you that a chapel is to be built here in my honor. I am the Lady of the Rosary. Continue always to pray the Rosary every day. The war is going to end, and the soldiers will soon return to their homes." By then there were thousands of witnesses despite the fact that immediately before the apparition a storm had drenched the ground and the crowds.

Mary also said, "Do not offend the Lord our God any more, because He is already so much offended."

At that, the Miracle of the Sun was witnessed by 70,000 people as it danced in the sky, changed colors, and was hurled towards earth as if to destroy it.

The Blessed Virgin Mary appeared later on in 1929 to Sister Lucia where we requested the First Saturday Devotion to her Immaculate Heart.

Our Response

We have a responsibility to live the message of Fatima. Pray the Rosary every single day. Make the First Saturdays Devotion. Make reparation for sins - our sins, those of our family, and those of anyone else. The message of Fatima is one of prayer and penance. These must encapsulate our lives.
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The 16 Graces for Assisting at Holy Mass


What graces are derived from assisting (assisting means attending) at Mass?
  1. The Mass is Calvary continued.
  2. Every Mass is worth as much as the sacrifice of Our Lord's life, sufferings and death.
  3. Holy Mass is the most powerful atonement for your sins.
  4. At the hour of death the Masses you have heard will be your greatest consolement.
  5. Every Mass will go with you to judgement and plead for pardon.
  6. At Mass you can diminish more or less temporal punishment due to your sins, according to your fervor.
  7. Assisting devoutly at Holy Mass you render to the humanity of Our Lord the greates homage.
  8. He supplies for many of your negligences and omissions.
  9. He forgives the venial sins which you have not confessed. The power of Satan over you is diminished.
  10. You afford the souls in Purgatory the greates possible relief.
  11. One Mass heard during life will be of more benefit to you than many heard for you after your death.
  12. You are preserved from dangers and misfortunes which otherwise might have befallen you. You shorten your Purgatory.
  13. Every Mass wins you a higher degree of glory in Heaven.
  14. You receive the Priest's blessing which Our Lord ratifies in Heaven.
  15. You kneel amidst a multitude of Holy Angels, who are present at the adorable Sacrifice with reverential awe.
  16. You are blessed in your temporal goods and affairs.
St. Padre Pio - "While assisting at Holy Mass renew your faith. Have your mind elevated to the mystery that is happening before your eyes."
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Saturday, February 18, 2006
Boycott the DaVinci Code Movie

 
This book is filled with numerous lies and slanders on the truth of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. He was not married to Mary Magdalene! He did not have children! These lies are blasphemy, and I have boycotted the book and will also boycott the movie.

Father John Trigilio, of EWTN, has released a statement calling for Catholics to boycott the movie. Will you join in the boycott?
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A Win/Loss in Australia

I posted last week on an Australian bill in the House of Representatives that would pave the way for the abortion drug, RU-486 to become legalized. Unfortunately, it passed.

The story:

After being stripped of his authority to prohibit the use of the dangerous abortion drug RU 486, pro-life Australia Health Minister Tony Abbott has announced a plan to spend $60 million over five years to provide women counseling and assistance in finding abortion alternatives. He is expected to take the proposal soon to the government cabinet and is calling for funds for a national pregnant support hotline and additional counseling for women with unplanned pregnancies. The 24 hour a day hotline would be funded with $12 million over four years. A second part would consist of a Medicare rebate to provide women three counseling sessions with psychologists or other medical professionals. (Source: Life News)
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Do you have Questions on Mary?


Audrey from My Journey has been posting parts of a Q&A on Mary. If you are not a Catholic and ask yourself "Why do Catholics belief that about Mary," then take a look at her posts.

  1. Installment 1
  2. Installment 2
Image Source: Image believed to be in the Public Domain, Title Unknown
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Prayer request for Father Vittorio Mazzucchelli

I was asked by a reader of my blog to ask for prayers for Father Vittorio Mazzucchelli from the Institute of Christ the King. He suffered a tragic car accident on January 16th, 2006, and he despertately needs our prayers.

His story is recorded on the website of the Institute of Christ the King.

Please pray for this priest! We need our priests.
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Friday, February 17, 2006
Requesting Apologetists to Help

I was just visiting Salt of the Earth, a blog by Adam, and I read this:

"I'm not going to go into why the pope is the Antichrist right now"
How horrible! Our Holy Father is not the Antichrist! The pope is the successor of St. Peter, who was the first pope founded on the Catholic Church in Matthew 16:18. Please go over there and present the truth of the Catholic faith and counter this saddening lie.

Other Related Posts:

Image Source: Image believed to be in the Public Domain, Image of Pope Pius XII
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Mark your calendars for Sunday!

This Sunday is another episode of "Sunday Night Live" with Fr. Benedict Groeschel, one of my favorite TV programs. And this week at 7 PM EST, Fr. Benedict's Program is entitled "How the Church Leads us to God".

If you have ever asked yourself that question see his program; I have a feeling it will be an excellent program.
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