St. John Cantius on EWTN

This Saturday at 11AM and 11PM (Central Times) EWTN is airing Mass from St. John Cantius, with Mozart's Coronation Mass with choir and orchestra.

I encourage everyone to tune in, especially people who aren't fortunate enough to see such a Mass very often, and I would encourage positive feedback to EWTN, so they'll broadcast more! You can see photos of the amazing church from Chicago through their website.

The EWTN Mass at St. John Cantius this Saturday (Feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary), broadcast live at 11AM CST/Noon EST, is the Missa Normativa, the 'Novus Ordo Mass', the 'Mass of Vatican II'. I assume that, just like our normal 11AM Sunday Mass, this one will be offered in Latin. (When Mass is said in English at SJC, the unchangeable parts of the Mass are still said or chanted in Latin, in compliance with the documents of Vatican II. ("Particular law remaining in force, the use of the Latin language is to be preserved in the Latin rites" - Sacrosanctum Concilium 36).

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St. Francis of Assisi

 

Today is the feastday of St. Francis of Assisi. Please read my post on him from last year.

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Prayers for Mark B.

A fellow Catholic has asked for prayers for Mark B. Please say a prayer for him; God knows exactly what he needs.

Thank you.

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Prayer of Devotion to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal

Virgin Mother of God, Mary Immaculate, I unite myself to you under your title of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal. May this medal be for me a sure sign of your motherly affection and a constant reminder of my devotion to you. While wearing it, may I be blessed by your loving protection and preserved in the grace of your Son. Most powerful virgin, Mother of our Savior, keep me close to you every moment of my life so that like you I may live and act according to the teaching and example of Jesus. Keep me as your faithful child that I may follow your example throughout life and enjoy heaven forever with you. Amen.

Click here to read Fr. John Hardon's testimony of a miracle brought about in front of him because of the Miraculous Medal. 

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Plan B Will NOT Stop Abortions

From LifeNews:

A Utah doctor who was a member of a Food and Drug Administration's advisory panel says the morning after pill will not reduce the number of abortions and pregnancies that its supports claim it will do. He also indicated that the Plan B drug can work as an abortion agent in certain circumstances.

Dr. Joseph Stanford, associate professor of family and preventative medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine, said the morning after pill won't be as effective as its maker claims.

He told the Deseret News that studies he and fellow researchers have done show a lower effectiveness rate than the 89 percent Barr Laboratories claims.

"We did more a precise meta-analysis that shows it's effective only 72 percent of the time, and even that number is optimistic," he indicated.

Stanford explained that earlier studies, which gave Barr its 89 percent figure, did not take into account normal variations in the timing of ovulation.

He also told the newspaper that studies from Europe, China and the United States show that the morning after pill does not reduce abortions. In fact, new abortion figures in England and Scotland show that abortions have reached their highest point ever despite over the counter sales of Plan B.

Let us pray AND work towards the end of artificial contraception and abortion! It can be done through peaceful activism.  Remember, the Pill Causes Cancer!  Let us work to save lives!

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Feastday of the Guardian Angels

Today is the feastday of the Guardian Angels. See my post on them from last year.

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October Rosary Intentions

I have just posted the Rosary Intentions for October for the Catholic Community Forum (CCF). Please read them and pray for them.

Also, please pray for Pope Benedict XVI's intentions for the Month of October:

General: That all those who are baptized may mature in their faith and manifest it through clear, coherent and courageous choices in life.

Missionary: That the celebration of World Missionary Day may everywhere increase the spirit of missionary animation and cooperation.

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Respect Life Sunday!

Today is Respect Life Sunday! Please join me in a pro-life Blogburst.

The purpose of this blogburst is to raise awareness of the evils of abortion and the need for legal protection of the unborn child. I ask all of you fellow bloggers to please join me in posting 2-3 paragraphs on a pro-life theme on your blog. I would ask that you do it as early as possible on Sunday. This way, it’ll give more time for word about your post to spread.


My Contribution:

Abortion is murder! It is evil! It is the greatest form of genocide and terrorism because it murders children from every race and creed. No one is protected from the murder of abortion. We must come together in peace, under the banner of Heaven's Kingship, to proclaim the worth of all children. I ask that you say a special prayer today for all of those children that have already been condemned to death this year. I ask you to say a prayer for their little souls, that they, although unbaptized, may enter God's mercy and peace in Heaven.

We can work together and peacefully end abortion. Just as the Holocaust in World War II ended, so too can the Holocaust of the unborn end through peaceful means. Already this year, numerous abortion clinics have closed including one in Florida, Wichita, Kansas, Buffalo, NY, Missouri, and one in Omaha.

From the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

2271. "Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law: You shall not kill the embryo by abortion and shall not cause the newborn to perish. [Didache 2, 2: SCh 248, 148; cf. Ep. Barnabae 19, 5: PG 2, 777; Ad Diognetum 5, 6: PG 2, 1173; Tertullian, Apol. 9: PL 1, 319-320.] God, the Lord of life, has entrusted to men the noble mission of safeguarding life, and men must carry it out in a manner worthy of themselves. Life must be protected with the utmost care from the moment of conception: abortion and infanticide are abominable crimes. [GS 51 # 3.]"

2272. "Formal cooperation in an abortion constitutes a grave offense. The Church attaches the canonical penalty of excommunication to this crime against human life. 'A person who procures a completed abortion incurs excommunication latae sententiae,' [CIC, can. 1398.] 'by the very commission of the offense,' [CIC, can. 1314.] and subject to the conditions provided by Canon Law. [Cf. CIC, cann. 1323-1324.] The Church does not thereby intend to restrict the scope of mercy. Rather, she makes clear the gravity of the crime committed, the irreparable harm done to the innocent who is put to death, as well as to the parents and the whole of society."

2274. "Since it must be treated from conception as a person, the embryo must be defended in its integrity, cared for, and healed, as far as possible, like any other human being. Prenatal diagnosis is morally licit, 'if it respects the life and integrity of the embryo and the human fetus and is directed toward its safe guarding or healing as an individual.... It is gravely opposed to the moral law when this is done with the thought of possibly inducing an abortion, depending upon the results: a diagnosis must not be the equivalent of a death sentence.' [CDF, Donum vitae I, 2.]"

2322. "From its conception, the child has the right to life. Direct abortion, that is, abortion willed as an end or as a means, is a 'criminal' practice (GS 27 # 3), gravely contrary to the moral law. The Church imposes the canonical penalty of excommunication for this crime against human life."

ABORTION STOPS A BEATING HEART!

Prayer to End Abortion

Lord God, I thank you today for the gift of my life, And for the lives of all my brothers and sisters.I know there is nothing that destroys more life than abortion, Yet I rejoice that you have conquered death by the Resurrection of Your Son.I am ready to do my part in ending abortion. Today I commit myself Never to be silent, Never to be passive, Never to be forgetful of the unborn.I commit myself to be active in the pro-life movement, And never to stop defending life Until all my brothers and sisters are protected, And our nation once again becomes A nation with liberty and justice Not just for some, but for all.Through Christ our Lord. Amen!

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St. Jerome

Today is the Memorial of St. Jerome, who taught us to love Scripture. Please read my post on him.

Prayer:

"Father, you gave St. Jerome delight in his study of holy scripture. May your people find in your word the food of salvation and the fountain of life. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen."

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Pope St. Pius I

Simple (1954 Calendar): July 11

Commemoration (1962 Calendar): July 11

Pope St. Pius I was the tenth pope of the Holy Catholic Church from c. 140 - 154 AD. His feastday is traditionally observed on July 11th. Unfortunately, it was removed from the Novus Ordo calendar like far too many other saints after the Second Vatican Council.

St. Pius I is remembered as the pope that helped build the Church of St. Pudenziana in Rome. He is rumored to have been the brother of the author of The Shepard of Hermas, which was considered canonical (on the same level as Scripture although it was not part of the Bible).

He died in c. 154 AD and is considered a martyr, which is an unproven assertion. The papacy of Pope St. Pius I also saw the rise of one of the greatest heretics in human history - Marcion of Sinope, who said that the Old Testament God was not the same as the New Testament God. He also formed his own Bible consisting of the Gospel of St. Luke and some of St. Paul's letters, but he modified them to exclude all references to Jesus fulfilling Old Testament prophecy. The Catholic Encyclopedia says of the Marcionites: "they were perhaps the most dangerous foe Christianity has ever known."

Traditional Matins Reading:

Pius, the first of this name, a citizen of Aquileia, and son of Rufinus, was priest of the holy Roman Church. During the reign of Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius he was chosen Sovereign Pontiff. In five ordinations which he held in the month of December, he ordained twelve bishops and eighteen priests. Several admirable decrees of his are still extant; in particular that which ordains that the Resurrection of our Lord is always to be celebrated on a Sunday. He changed the house of Pudens into a church, and because it surpassed the other titles in dignity, inasmuch as the Roman Pontiffs had made it their dwelling-place, he dedicated it under the title of Pastor. Here he often celebrated the holy mysteries, baptized many who had been converted to the faith, and enrolled them in the ranks of the faithful. While he was thus fulfilling the duties of a good shepherd, he shed his blood for his sheep and for Christ the Supreme Pastor, being crowned with martyrdom on the fifth of the Ides of July. He was buried in the Vatican.

Collect:

O Eternal Shepherd, who appointed blessed Pius I shepherd of the whole Church, let the prayers of this martyr and supreme pontiff move You to look with favor upon Your flock and to keep it under Your continual protection. Through our Lord . . .

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