Ordination of 8 Men at Econe, Switzerland Seminary for the Society of St. Piux X (SSPX)

These ordinations occur after similar ordinations around the world including the ordination of several men in Winona, Minnesota (USA) and in Germany.
















Image Sources: REUTERS/Denis Balibouse (SWITZERLAND RELIGION)
Image Source for last two images: Getty Images

The names of the newly ordained:

Source: La Porte Latine

Also, in addition to these seven, a man was also ordained for the Capuchins, making the total eight.

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Pallium Presented by Pope Benedict XVI during Solemn Mass

Archbishop of Detroit, Allen Henry Vigneron (above two images)

Algerian Archbishop Ghaleb Moussa Abdalla

Archbishop of St. Louis, Robert James Carlson

Archbishop of New Orleans, Gregory Michael Aymond

Archbishop Philip Naameh of Ghana

Spanish Archbishop Braulio Rodriguez Plaza

Image Sources: REUTERS/Tony Gentile (VATICAN) & (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

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Double of the I Class of Sts. Peter and Paul

Today is the Double of the I Class Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul! Alleluia! Let us pray the Hymn from Lauds of the 1962 Breviary for this Feast. In addition, please see my previous post in honor of Sts. Peter and Paul.

1. Peter, blest Shepherd, hearken to our cry,
And with a word unloose our guilty chain;
Thou! who hast power to ope the gates on high
To men below, and power to shut them fast again.

2. Lead us, great teacher Paul, in wisdom’s ways,
And lift our hearts with thine to heaven’s high throne;
Till faith beholds the clear meridian blaze;
And sunlike in the soul reigns charity alone.

3. Praise, blessing, majesty, through endless days,
Be to the Trinity immortal given;
Who in pure unity profoundly sways
Eternally alike all things in earth and heaven.

Source: Copyright Benziger Brothers, 1922. Online Edition Copyright David M. Cheney, 2006.

Prayer:

O God, Who hast made this day holy by the martyrdom of Thine Apostles Peter and Paul: grant that Thy Church may in all things follow the precepts of those through whom she received the beginnings of the Faith. Through our Lord.

Prayer Source: 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal

Image Source: Unknown, Believed to be in the Public Domain

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SSPX Rosary Crusade

The Society of St. Pius X has decided to undertake its greatest rosary crusade of 12 million rosaries for the consecration of Russia to Our Lady's Immaculate Heart. This bouquet will be presented to the Holy Father in March 2010. The superior of the Society: Bishop Fellay, also encourages the Faithful to make many sacrifices during this time.

To enter the amount of rosaries you wish to offer for the SSPX Rosary Crusade, please visit: http://www.sspx.org

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Pope Benedict XVI Leads Vespers for the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul at the Basilica of St. Paul's Outside the Walls

Image Sources:

Getty Images (1st, 2nd, 3rd)
(AP Photo/Andrew Medichini) (4th, 5th, 6th)
REUTERS/Alessandro Bianchi (7th, 8th)
REUTERS/Stringer (ITALY RELIGION) (Last)

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Priests Ordained in Zaitzkofen near Regensburg, southern Germany for the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX)

The newly ordained priests are Lukasz Sydlowski from Poland (L-R), Thomas Suter from Switzerland and Hakan Erik Lindstroem from Sweden.






Above are photos from the beautiful (and valid!) Ordination Mass for the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX). His Excellency Bishop Alfonso de Galaretta ordained the young men to the priesthood.

Image Source: REUTERS/Michaela Rehle (GERMANY RELIGION)

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Russian Orthodox Priests to Shame Debtors

June 24, 2009

MOSCOW - THE Russian Orthodox Church has agreed to send priests to help bailiffs 'shame' debtors and men dodging their alimony payments, the Kommersant newspaper reported on Wednesday.

'Representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church will exercise spiritual influence over the debtors to teach them about the unacceptability of living in debt,' Russia's chief bailiff, Artur Parfenchikov, was quoted as saying.

A deal signed on Sunday between the Church and the federal bailiffs service came after a test programme in the northern city of Saint Petersburg saw 'fabulous' results, a spokesperson for the service told the daily.

'One of the men due to pay alimony ran to get money right after speaking with the priest. Another two decided to return to their families. The rest promised to pay their debts at the first opportunity,' the spokesperson said.

Under the agreement, the priest's official role will be 'to remonstrate with and to shame' debtors, Kommersant reported.

The Orthodox Church has also agreed to preach that 'not paying back debt, according to the precepts of the Church, is equivalent to taking what is not yours - that is theft,' it said.

Religion is kept separate from the state under Russia's constitution but the historically dominant Orthodox Church has emerged as a powerful political force since the collapse of the officially atheist Soviet Union.

Russian bailiffs have not stopped at recruiting help from the Orthodox Church. In regions where Buddhism or Islam are the dominant faiths, bailiffs are working with representatives of those religions, the paper reported. -- AFP

Source: The Straits Times

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Michael Jackson Dies at 50 Years Old

I usually do not blog about popular, secular culture, but I couldn't resist after just recently hearing that Michael Jackson has died at 50 years of age. Famous for his influence in the 1980s, Jackson suffered in recent years under scrutiny from lawsuits and scandal involving sexual allegations. Jackson's ordeal of dangling his child over a railing in Germany also attracted international attention a few years ago.

And, despite his influence with "Thriller" and other similar songs, I think that he did the best while with the Jackson 5.








MP3 Downloads of Michael Jackson

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Pope Pius XI Encyclicals Added to Past Posts

His Holiness Pope Pius XI wrote 31 encyclicals, and A Catholic Life would like to encourage the readings of these documents. Therefore, I have edited the following posts to include information about encyclicals. Many of my posts are written so as to benefit users who find the site through search engines and bookmarked visits. And, I feel that these edits will help those visitors find even more spiritually useful information.

• St. Francis de Sales
• St. Thomas Aquinas
  
• Christ the King
• Pledge Against Indecent Motion Pictures
• Let Them Be One
  

Image Source: Believed to be in the Public Domain

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Pope St. Pius X Encyclicals Added to Past Posts

His Holiness Pope St. Pius X wrote 17 encyclicals, and A Catholic Life would like to encourage the readings of these documents. Therefore, I have edited the following posts to include information about encyclicals. Many of my posts are written so as to benefit users who find the site through search engines and bookmarked visits. And, I feel that these edits will help those visitors find even more spiritually useful information.

• Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• St. Charles Borromeo

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Pope Benedict XV Encyclicals Added to Past Posts

His Holiness Pope Benedict XV wrote 12 encyclicals, and A Catholic Life would like to encourage the readings of these documents. Therefore, I have edited the following posts to include information about encyclicals. Many of my posts are written so as to benefit users who find the site through search engines and bookmarked visits. And, I feel that these edits will help those visitors find even more spiritually useful information.

And, below are some of the posts which now include information about his encyclicals.

• St. Boniface
• St. Jerome
• St. Dominic de Guzman
  

Image Source: Believed to be in the Public Domain

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Pope Leo XIII Encyclicals Added to Past Posts

His Holiness Pope Leo XIII wrote 85 encyclicals, and A Catholic Life would like to encourage the readings of these documents. Therefore, I have edited the following posts to include information about encyclicals. Many of my posts are written so as to benefit users who find the site through search engines and bookmarked visits. And, I feel that these edits will help those visitors find even more spiritually useful information.

• St. Francis of Assisi
• Devotion to the Rosary (6 Encyclicals Added)
  
• Abolition of Slavery
• Devotion to St. Joseph
• Eucharist
  

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Double of the I Class of St. John the Baptist

Alleluia! Today is the Double of the I Class Feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist. See my post from 2006 for information concerning today's feastday.

Image Source: Wilson's Almanac

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Pope Pius XII Encyclicals

His Holiness Pope Pius XII wrote 41 encyclicals, and A Catholic Life would like to encourage the readings of these documents. Therefore, I have edited the following posts to include information about encyclicals. Many of my posts are written so as to benefit users who find the site through search engines and bookmarked visits. And, I feel that these edits will help those visitors find even more spiritually useful information. 

So, I encourage you to read the 41 encyclicals of His Holiness Pope Pius XII. And, below are some of the posts which now include information about his encyclicals.

• St. Benedict
• St. Bernard of Clairvaux
• St. Boniface
• Devotions to the Sacred Heart
• Assumption of Mary
• Our Lady of Lourdes
• Queenship of Mary

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In Chicago for the Summer

This summer, as stated in my Blogger profile, I am living in the Chicago area. Last Saturday I had the privilege of traveling into Downtown Chicago and visiting Loyola University of Chicago, the site of the the Sacred Music Colloquium, which is currently taking place. It was there that I had the opportunity to visit and spend several hours with a long-time reader of my blog who is in attendance. Two other friends of mine are also in attendance at this Colloquium.

If any other readers of my blog are also in the Chicago area this summer, please send me an email so that we can attempt to meet, preferably over lunch.



Image Source: Wikipedia

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Vigil of St. John the Baptist

As June 24th approaches, the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, the last of the prophets, similarly advances. Along with solely the sinless Blessed Virgin Mary and our Lord Jesus Christ, the Church remembers the birth of St. John the Baptist. Together, the Church only liturgically celebrates these three holy births.

In the Traditional Catholic Calendar, June 23 is the Vigil of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist. From the propers of the Mass for June 23, the Introit occupies a place of importance, expressing comfort and hope:

Fear not, Zachary; thy prayer is heard, and thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John; and he shall be great before the Lord, and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost even from his mother's womb; and many shall rejoice at his birth. V. (Ps. 20: 2) In Thy strength, O Lord, the king shall joy; and in Thy salvation he shall rejoice exceedingly. v. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Fear not, Zachary...

Please see my post from last year and attempt to participate in the ancient tradition of a Bonfire this evening.

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Website of the Confraternity of the Sacred Heart

I have added a link to the Confraternity of the Sacred Heart to the sidebar, as this organization seems to be part of the goal of A Catholic Life, namely the Restoration of Traditionalism.

Image Source: Pictures of the Pontifical Low Mass on June 18, 2009 at the Church of the Holy Innocents celebrated by Bishop Fernando Rifan.

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Pope Benedict XVI Celebrates Mass Before the Relics of St. Padre Pio

His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI leads a Mass during a visit to Padre Pio at Santa Maria delle Grazie in San Giovanni Rotondo. He prayed before the exhumed body of St. Padre Pio and the Mass was said in the presence of his sacred relics.

Image Source (1): Getty Images
Image Source (2): AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito
Image Source (3, 4, 5): (AP Photo/Andreas Solaro, Pool)

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Feastday of St. Aloysius Gonzaga

Today the Church remembers the holy saint, St. Aloysius Gonzaga. See my previous post dedicated in honor to this saint for a brief biography, an appropriate read for his feastday.

"Well done, good servant, faithful in little things, enter into the joy of your Lord" (Antiphon 2, Lauds, Common of a Confessor not a Bishop, 1962 Breviary)

Prayer:

O God, The Giver of heavenly gifts, Who in the angelic youth Aloysius dist unite a wonderful innocence of life with an equal spirit of penance: grant through his merits and prayers, that we, who have not followed his innocence, may imitate his penance. Through our Lord.

Prayer Source: 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal

Image Source: Believed to be in the Public Domain

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Pope Benedict XVI Celebrates the Mass in Honor of the Sacred Heart, Vespers

Image Source (Images 1, 2): AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito
Image Source (Images 3, 4, 5): REUTERS/Giampiero Sposito (VATICAN RELIGION)
Image Source (Images 6, 7): Getty Images

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