Susan Tassone is Alive

This morning I received an email concerning this post of mine: Susan Tassone on Purgatory. I received my information for this post from an email from the Yahoo Group that prays for the Holy Souls.

I wrote in that post: "Before she died, an interview was conducted with her about her work to help the souls of those in purgatory. I highly recommend this interview." Today I received an email entitled "Susan Tassone is very much alive!" It was from someone that attends Mass with her. Right now, Susan Tassone is working hard to get donations for poor third world parishes who in turn offer up Masses for your intentions (family members who may be in purgatory).

Please say a prayer for Susan's wonderful work for Christ and for her health!

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Words of Inspiration: June 28, 2006

Blessed Mother Teresa:

"I serve Jesus twenty-four hours a day. Whatever I do is for Him. And He gives me strength."

Padre Pio:

"Each holy Mass heard with devotion, produces marvelous effects in our souls, spiritual and material graces, that we ourselves do not know. For such purposes do not spend your money uselessly, make a sacrifice of it and come here to hear holy Mass."

"It would be easier for the earth to exist without the sun than without the holy sacrifice of the Mass."

Image Source: Believed to be in the Public Domain

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St. Irenaeus of Lyons

Double (1955 Calendar): June 28
III Class (1962 Calendar): July 3
Memorial (1969 Calendar): June 28

St Irenaeus of Lyons, martyr, was born around c. 130 AD in Asia Minor and raised as a Christian. He was a student of St. Saint Polycarp of Smyrna. In 177 AD, St. Irenaeus became a priest and eventually became the second Bishop of Lyons following the martyrdom of Saint Pothinus.

St. Irenaeus worked intensely to counter to claims of Gnosticism by basing his arguments on the Gospel of St. John. He also emphasized the unity of the Old and New Testaments, and of Christ's human and divine nature. His most well-known work is "Against Heresies". For his work, St. Irenaeus was murdered for the faith in 202 AD in Lyons, France. In 1562, Calvinists destroyed his relics and tomb. He is a Father of the Church.

Prayer by St. Irenaeus:

Father, give perfection to beginners, understanding to the little ones, and help to those who are running their course. Give sorrow to the negligent, fervor to the lukewarm, and a good consummation to the perfect.

Writing:

"For this is why the Word became man, and the Son of God became the Son of man: so that man, by entering into communion with the Word and thus receiving divine sonship, might become a son of God."

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Protestant numbers are down; Catholics steady

For the first time since the foundation of our country, the United States may have less than 50% of its population as Protestants. From 1993 to 2002, Protestants dropped from 63% of the population to 52% of the population. According to the researchers, it will drop below 50% in the next two years. Catholics remained steady at 25% of the population.

Unfortunately, the number of people claiming no religion has climbed from 9% to 14%. We desperately need to pray that these people see Jesus Christ and see the full truth of the Catholic faith! The number of people adhering to Islam, Orthodox Christians, interdenominational Christians and native-American faiths rose from 3% to 7%. The number of people claiming the Jewish faith remains just below 2%.

Note: Protestants are defined as "all post-Reformation Christian churches, such as Baptist, Methodist and Episcopalian, including Mormons and New Age Spirituality adherents."

Source: NORC at the University of Chicago
Image Source: Believed to be in the Public Domain

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Update on "The Collar"

I have posted before about the new book, The Collar, which is about several men in the seminary. Well, I received this message from the author yesterday:

Hi everyone:

The Collar book tour continued this past weekend with an excellent event in Colorado hosted by one of the five main characters in the book, Father Don Malin.

Today's Washington D.C reading at the C.I.C. (1501 K Street, NW - 202-783-2062) has been postponed by the heavy rains that have deluged the capitol and will be rescheduled for mid-July. I will keep you posted as to the new date.

As always, please keep me posted with any comments you may have about the book especially thoughts about getting the word out there. If you have enjoyed The Collar and think that it's a book others should read --please tell people about it and the website!

Thanks so much!

Jonathan

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Our Lady of Perpetual Help

Memorial (1969 Calendar): June 27
(1955 Calendar): June 27

Today is June 27 and on this day the Church honors Mary under the title of "Our Lady of Perpetual Help". Catholic Fire posted this to describe the icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help:

The child Jesus has just seen the angels who have shown him the instruments of his passion. St. Michael the Archangel holds the lance and gall-sop. St. Gabriel the Archangel holds the Cross and the nails. Frightened by the sight, Jesus has run to his mother’s arms so quickly that he almost lost one of His tiny sandals. It dangles from his foot. Mary holds Him lovingly but her eyes look at us - pleading with us to avoid sin and love Her Son.

His hands are in hers to show that, as a child, Jesus placed Himself in Mary’s hands for protection and to remind us that He now has placed into Her hands all graces, to be given to those who turn to His mother and ask.

The star on Mary’s veil shows her to be the one who brought the light of Christ to the darkened world - the beacon that leads the way to Heaven.

The falling sandal symbolizes a soul clinging to Christ by one last thread--devotion to Mary.

The golden background is symbolic of Heaven and shines to show the heavenly joy Jesus and His mother can bring to tired human hearts.

Prayer to Our Lady of Perpetual Help

Almighty and merciful God, Who hast given us a picture of Thy most blessed Mother to venerate under the special title of Perpetual Succor, mercifully grant us to be so fortified, among all the vicissitudes of this wayfaring life, by the protection of the same immaculate, ever-virgin Mary, that we may deserve to attain the rewards of Thine everlasting redemption. Who livest and reignest, with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, Forever and ever. R.Amen.

Prayer Source: 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal

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Microsoft, Warren Buffet, and Gates Foundation on Abortion

According to today's LifeNews Report, Warren Buffett, the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway and the second richest man in the world, will donate 80% of his fortune to the pro-abortion foundation set up by Microsoft founder Bill Gates and his wife. Buffett plans to give them 12,050,000 in Class B shares of Berkshire Hathaway. One share sells for $3,000, and this would give the Gates foundation another $37 billion.

The Gates Foundation has given the Planned Parenthood Federation of America almost $12.5 million since 1998. These funds are used to persuade teenagers to support abortion as well as advance abortion in the United Nations. The International Planned Parenthood abortion business has received almost $21 million from the Gates foundation over the last seven years. These funds were used to kill unborn babies in third world countries.

This is horrible, horrible news. I ask you to contact the Gates Foundation and urge it to stop supporting Planned Parenthood and abortion.

Contact:

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
PO Box 23350
Seattle, WA 98102
(206) 709-3140
info@gatesfoundation.org

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The end of trouble at Northern Kentucky University by Sally Jacobsen

Earlier this year, Sally Jacobsen, a British literature professor at Northern Kentucky University, led a group of students in destroying 400 crosses set up on campus to be a memorial for the 43 million unborn children that have been murdered from abortion. She was charged with theft, criminal mischief and criminal solicitation. However, the charges have been dropped!

She has just apologized for her actions and plans to make a donation to a local maternity home that helps pregnant women. Jacobsen is also paying the Northern Right to Life, the student pro-life group, for the costs of the Cross display that was destroyed.

"I apologize to [the group and its members] for dismantling [the display]," Jacobsen wrote. "I did not realize I was interfering with Northern Right to Life's freedom of speech and I deeply regret having done so."

Source: LifeNews

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Join in Prayers for the Elections!

Fr. Frank Pavone is asking people all around the country to join him in prayer. He is asking voters to pray the Rosary from July 4th all the way to Election Day in November. We must pray for the successful election of pro-life candidates.

Please read more about it here: http://www.prayercampaign.org/

Image Source: Fish Eaters Website

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Confession by Phone? by Internet?

I've heard a question asked recently whether or not Confession by telephone or Internet is permitted. The answer is of course no. As we see in the Gospels, it is about a personal encounter with Jesus Christ that matters. In Confession we not only confess our sins but we humble ourselves by kneeling down and begging for mercy. The Prodigal Son did not call from across the field: "Forgive me." Rather, the Gospel says, the Son got up and went back to his father. While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him (Luke 15:20).

In Confession Jesus Christ runs back to us and pours grace into our souls. It is this personal encounter that matters.

The Catholic Church has also condemned Confession through the Internet:

The Pontifical Council on Social Communications on the Church and the Internet published a document in 2002 that states, “virtual reality cannot substitute for the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, nor the sacramental reality of the other sacraments, nor the worship shared in a human community of flesh and bones....Sacraments on the internet do not exist....Even religious experiences that are possible there through the grace of God are insufficient if they are separated from interaction in the real world with other persons of faith.”

Image Source: Unknown

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