This is another holy saint to admire, pray for him to intercede for the young men in your life!
"My life experience has been that only the practice of religion can assure concord in families and the happiness of those who live in this valley of tears."
"Be brave and try to detach your heart from worldly things. Do your utmost to banish darkness from your mind and come to understand what true, selfless piety is. Through confession, endeavor to purify your heart of anything which may still taint it. Enliven your faith, which is essential to understand and achieve piety."
"All past persecutors of the Church are now no more, but the Church still lives on. The same fate awaits modern persecutors; they, too, will pass on, but the Church of Jesus Christ will always remain, for God has pledged His Word to protect Her and be with Her forever, until the end of time."
"Willingly suffer a bit for God Who suffered so much for you."
"[To teenagers] Look, you will soon face a dangerous crisis; the devil will try to ensnare you. To start with, he will tell you that frequent Communion is good for children, not for adults, and that once in a great while is quite enough for you. Then he will do his best to keep you from sermons by making you feel bored by God’s words. He will convince you that certain things are not sinful. Then you’ll have to tussle with friends and what they might say, with [dangerous] readings, with your own passions, and so on. Be on your guard. Do not let the devil rob you of that peace of mind and purity of soul which makes you God’s friends!"
"[To the directors of the houses] Your mortification should be your diligence in doing your duties and in putting up with the annoyances of others."
"Guard your eyes since they are the windows through which sin enters the soul."
"There are plenty of ways to practice mortification! Just patiently endure cold, heat, sickness, troubles, people, happenings, and so forth."
"My dear sons, assist at Mass as true and devout Christians, with such modesty and recollection that nothing may distract you. Let your mind and heart be intent solely on honoring God."
"If we want to have a good society, we must concentrate all our forces on the Christian education of the young. Experience has taught me that if we wish to sustain civil society then we should take good care of the young."
"Remember that good confessions and good Communions are the first steps to a sound education."
"If young people are educated properly, we have moral order; if not, vice and disorder prevail. Religion alone can initiate and achieve a true education."
Oooo so cold Friday night and wanting something warm and meatless.
This just hit the spot!
QUESADILLAS
Flour Tortillas (whole wheat)
Shredded Cheddar Cheese (protein...you could add some beans, too)
Salsa (veggies)
Adobo sauce (gotta kick it up)
Guacamole (loaded with vitamin c)
I warmed the Tortilla in a saute pan. Sparingly spread some spicy Adobo sauce around it. Then another swirl of salsa and sprinkled cheese to cover. Topped that with another Tortilla and flipped it a couple of times as it melted and toasted.
Out of the pan and on to the plate, I cut it up in pizza type slices and dolloped with guacamole.
Arriba!
Yum. A warming, meatless dinner to cut the chill from the rink for me and Hockey son.
Have you ever heard the Church teaching on Contraception in a homily at your parish, from your pastor?
You may be lucky to hear about abortion from the pulpit in a defense of life...but God bless the brave priests who speaks the truth about the topic at the route of it, birth control.
I never learned this church teaching until I was in my mid 30's! It was not part of my pre-cana before my marriage in a Catholic Basilica. Thankfully, I heard about Natural Family Planning as I was re-verting and learning my faith and it led to investigating and reading. Those who shepherd us need to address this.
Here's an informative clip from Catholic.com and there are other links (at the end) to read as well to fulfill our Catholic obligation to know our faith.
In 1968, Pope Paul VI issued his landmark encyclical letter Humanae Vitae (Latin, "Human Life"), which reemphasized the Church’s constant teaching that it is always intrinsically wrong to use contraception to prevent new human beings from coming into existence.
Contraception is "any action which, either in anticipation of the conjugal act [sexual intercourse], or in its accomplishment, or in the development of its natural consequences, proposes, whether as an end or as a means, to render procreation impossible" (Humanae Vitae 14). This includes sterilization, condoms and other barrier methods, spermicides, coitus interruptus (withdrawal method), the Pill, and all other such methods.
+The Historic Christian Teaching+
Few realize that up until 1930, all Protestant denominations agreed with the Catholic Church’s teaching condemning contraception as sinful. At its 1930 Lambeth Conference, the Anglican church, swayed by growing social pressure, announced that contraception would be allowed in some circumstances. Soon the Anglican church completely caved in, allowing contraception across the board. Since then, all other Protestant denominations have followed suit. Today, the Catholic Church alone proclaims the historic Christian position on contraception.
Evidence that contraception is in conflict with God’s laws comes from a variety of sources that will be examined in this tract.
+Nature+
Contraception is wrong because it’s a deliberate violation of the design God built into the human race, often referred to as "natural law." The natural law purpose of sex is procreation. The pleasure that sexual intercourse provides is an additional blessing from God, intended to offer the possibility of new life while strengthening the bond of intimacy, respect, and love between husband and wife. The loving environment this bond creates is the perfect setting for nurturing children.
But sexual pleasure within marriage becomes unnatural, and even harmful to the spouses, when it is used in a way that deliberately excludes the basic purpose of sex, which is procreation. God’s gift of the sex act, along with its pleasure and intimacy, must not be abused by deliberately frustrating its natural end—procreation. (It's not a total gift of self to one another as it should be, as it was designed to be. Birth control closes us off to our spouse in mistrust of what the union will bring.)
+Scripture+
Is contraception a modern invention? Hardly! Birth control has been around for millennia. Scrolls found in Egypt, dating to 1900 B.C., describe ancient methods of birth control that were later practiced in the Roman empire during the apostolic age. Wool that absorbed sperm, poisons that fumigated the uterus, potions, and other methods were used to prevent conception. In some centuries, even condoms were used (though made out of animal skin rather than latex).
The Bible mentions at least one form of contraception specifically and condemns it. Coitus interruptus, was used by Onan to avoid fulfilling his duty according to the ancient Jewish law of fathering children for one’s dead brother. "Judah said to Onan, ‘Go in to your brother’s wife, and perform the duty of a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother.’ But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his; so when he went in to his brother’s wife he spilled the semen on the ground, lest he should give offspring to his brother. And what he did was displeasing in the sight of the Lord, and he slew him also" (Gen. 38:8–10).
The biblical penalty for not giving your brother’s widow children was public humiliation, not death (Deut. 25:7–10). But Onan received death as punishment for his crime. This means his crime was more than simply not fulfilling the duty of a brother-in-law. He lost his life because he violated natural law, as Jewish and Christian commentators have always understood. For this reason, certain forms of contraception have historically been known as "Onanism," after the man who practiced it, just as homosexuality has historically been known as "Sodomy," after the men of Sodom, who practiced that vice (cf. Gen. 19).
Contraception was so far outside the biblical mindset and so obviously wrong that it did not need the frequent condemnations other sins did. Scripture condemns the practice when it mentions it. Once a moral principle has been established in the Bible, every possible application of it need not be mentioned. For example, the general principle that theft is wrong was clearly established in Scripture; but there’s no need to provide an exhaustive list of every kind of theft. Similarly, since the principle that contraception is wrong has been established by being condemned when it’s mentioned in the Bible, every particular form of contraception does not need to be dealt with in Scripture in order for us to see that it is condemned.
+Apostolic Tradition+
The biblical teaching that birth control is wrong is found even more explicitly among the Church Fathers, who recognized the biblical and natural law principles underlying the condemnation.
In A.D. 195, Clement of Alexandria wrote, "Because of its divine institution for the propagation of man, the seed is not to be vainly ejaculated, nor is it to be damaged, nor is it to be wasted" (The Instructor of Children 2:10:91:2).
Hippolytus of Rome wrote in 255 that "on account of their prominent ancestry and great property, the so-called faithful [certain Christian women who had affairs with male servants] want no children from slaves or lowborn commoners, [so] they use drugs of sterility or bind themselves tightly in order to expel a fetus which has already been engendered" (Refutation of All Heresies 9:12).
Around 307 Lactantius explained that some "complain of the scantiness of their means, and allege that they have not enough for bringing up more children, as though, in truth, their means were in [their] power . . . or God did not daily make the rich poor and the poor rich. Wherefore, if any one on any account of poverty shall be unable to bring up children, it is better to abstain from relations with his wife" (Divine Institutes 6:20).
The First Council of Nicaea, the first ecumenical council and the one that defined Christ’s divinity, declared in 325, "If anyone in sound health has castrated himself, it behooves that such a one, if enrolled among the clergy, should cease [from his ministry], and that from henceforth no such person should be promoted. But, as it is evident that this is said of those who willfully do the thing and presume to castrate themselves, so if any have been made eunuchs by barbarians, or by their masters, and should otherwise be found worthy, such men this canon admits to the clergy" (Canon 1).
Augustine wrote in 419, "I am supposing, then, although you are not lying [with your wife] for the sake of procreating offspring, you are not for the sake of lust obstructing their procreation by an evil prayer or an evil deed. Those who do this, although they are called husband and wife, are not; nor do they retain any reality of marriage, but with a respectable name cover a shame. Sometimes this lustful cruelty, or cruel lust, comes to this, that they even procure poisons of sterility [oral contraceptives]" (Marriage and Concupiscence 1:15:17).
The apostolic tradition’s condemnation of contraception is so great that it was followed by Protestants until 1930 and was upheld by all key Protestant Reformers. Martin Luther said, "[T]he exceedingly foul deed of Onan, the basest of wretches . . . is a most disgraceful sin. It is far more atrocious than incest and adultery. We call it unchastity, yes, a sodomitic sin. For Onan goes in to her; that is, he lies with her and copulates, and when it comes to the point of insemination, spills the semen, lest the woman conceive. Surely at such a time the order of nature established by God in procreation should be followed. Accordingly, it was a most disgraceful crime. . . . Consequently, he deserved to be killed by God. He committed an evil deed. Therefore, God punished him."
John Calvin said, "The voluntary spilling of semen outside of intercourse between man and woman is a monstrous thing. Deliberately to withdraw from coitus in order that semen may fall on the ground is doubly monstrous. For this is to extinguish the hope of the race and to kill before he is born the hoped-for offspring."
John Wesley warned, "Those sins that dishonor the body are very displeasing to God, and the evidence of vile affections. Observe, the thing which he [Onan] did displeased the Lord—and it is to be feared; thousands, especially of single persons, by this very thing, still displease the Lord, and destroy their own souls." (These passages are quoted in Charles D. Provan, The Bible and Birth Control, which contains many quotes by historic Protestant figures who recognize contraception’s evils.)
+The Magisterium+
The Church also, fulfilling the role given it by Christ as the identifier and interpreter of apostolic Scripture and apostolic tradition, has constantly condemned contraception as gravely sinful.
In Humanae Vitae, Pope Paul VI stated, "[W]e must once again declare that the direct interruption of the generative process already begun, and, above all, directly willed and procured abortion, even if for therapeutic reasons, are to be absolutely excluded as licit means of regulating birth. Equally to be excluded, as the teaching authority of the Church has frequently declared, is direct sterilization, whether perpetual or temporary, whether of the man or of the woman. Similarly excluded is every action which, either in anticipation of the conjugal act, or in its accomplishment, or in the development of its natural consequences, proposes, whether as an end or as a means, to render procreation impossible" (HV 14).
This was reiterated in the Catechism of the Catholic Church: "[E]very action which, whether in anticipation of the conjugal act, or in its accomplishment, or in the development of its natural consequences, proposes, whether as an end or as a means, to render procreation impossible is intrinsically evil" (CCC 2370). "Legitimate intentions on the part of the spouses do not justify recourse to morally unacceptable means . . . for example, direct sterilization or contraception" (CCC 2399).
The Church also has affirmed that the illicitness of contraception is an infallible doctrine: "The Church has always taught the intrinsic evil of contraception, that is, of every marital act intentionally rendered unfruitful. This teaching is to be held as definitive and irreformable. Contraception is gravely opposed to marital chastity, it is contrary to the good of the transmission of life (the procreative.aspect of matrimony), and to the reciprocal self-giving of the spouses (the unitive.aspect of matrimony); it harms true love and denies the sovereign role of God in the transmission of human life" (Vademecum for Confessors 2:4, Feb. 12, 1997).
+Human Experience+
Pope Paul VI predicted grave consequences that would arise from the widespread and unrestrained use of contraception. He warned, "Upright men can even better convince themselves of the solid grounds on which the teaching of the Church in this field is based if they care to reflect upon the consequences of methods of artificially limiting the increase of children. Let them consider, first of all, how wide and easy a road would thus be opened up towards conjugal infidelity and the general lowering of morality. Not much experience is needed in order to know human weakness, and to understand that men—especially the young, who are so vulnerable on this point—have need of encouragement to be faithful to the moral law, so that they must not be offered some easy means of eluding its observance. It is also to be feared that the man, growing used to the employment of anti-conceptive practices, may finally lose respect for the woman and, no longer caring for her physical and psychological equilibrium, may come to the point of considering her as a mere instrument of selfish enjoyment, and no longer as his respected and beloved companion" (HV 17).
No one can doubt the fulfillment of these prophetic words. They have all been more than fulfilled in this country as a result of the widespread availability of contraceptives, the "free love" movement that started in the 1960s, and the loose sexual morality that it spawned and that continues to pervade Western culture.
Indeed, recent studies reveal a far greater divorce rate in marriages in which contraception is regularly practiced than in those marriages where it is not. Experience, natural law, Scripture, Tradition, and the magisterium, all testify to the moral evil of contraception.
+Wishful Thinking+
Ignoring the mountain of evidence, some maintain that the Church considers the use of contraception a matter for each married couple to decide according to their "individual conscience." Yet, nothing could be further from the truth. The Church has always maintained the historic Christian teaching that deliberate acts of contraception are always gravely sinful, which means that it is mortally sinful if done with full knowledge and deliberate consent (CCC 1857). This teaching cannot be changed and has been taught by the Church infallibly.
There is no way to deny the fact that the Church has always and everywhere condemned artificial contraception. The matter has already been infallibly decided. The so-called "individual conscience" argument amounts to "individual disobedience."
NIHIL OBSTAT: I have concluded that the materials presented in this work are free of doctrinal or moral errors. Bernadeane Carr, STL, Censor Librorum, August 10, 2004
IMPRIMATUR: In accord with 1983 CIC 827 permission to publish this work is hereby granted. +Robert H. Brom, Bishop of San Diego, August 10, 2004
Joining Barbara in 52 weeks of daily life in pictures: trials and celebrations, the extraordinary and mundane -- whatever is unique to the week.
Remembering....
Stratego lunches, where siblings strategize flags and bombs and armies over a sandwich.
White roses, a traditional gift from my mother on my birthday.
A bloom of floral color from my kids and husband to brighten my birthday.
The wet, heavy snow looked as if it would snap my tall, leeland firs that give our home privacy. I begged my long-armed sons and husband to get right out and relieve them of their white blanket to save them.
The snow fell all day on my birthday. To me, it seemed prettier than ever before and I loved that it kept my husband working from home. We were all able to be cozy and safe together, watching a winter wonderland come about.
It was truly unlike any other storm. Snow, then pelting ice accompanied by LIGHTENING and then snow again.
But it was perfect snow for building a snowman and forts and tunnels the next day....
Additionally, I took some photos of the light eyes of my 2nd son. The only one who has the eyes of his father in this house of brown-eyed people. They are a dreamy, planet earth color that sometimes seems green and other times even a little blue...just one part of what makes him special. I think they illuminate his goodness, the gentle part of him...
Then, there's the toothless grin of my daughter. As time keeps fast forwarding, soon big, grown-up teeth will alter her childish face and bring it into an older season....sigh...my baby....
Grateful for my presents - good reading that a few of my online friends contributed to....
...and because it truly is a part of us...the best TV series of all time, which my youngest son made sure I got for my birthday. He is quite aware that I miss this show, how we looked forward to it weekly! His father played the message this little boy left on his office phone trying to orchestrate this present for his mommy. He is not allowed to erase that message!
...And I shall wear horn-rimmed readers studded with diamonds!
Thank you Lord for this day and your gift of the blanket of white that keeps my darling husband home. We're all cozy and safe together and there's mexican food for dinner.
It's 9-11 every day...53 million lives lost to abortion...the #1 killer in the world, more than all the wars put together.
"Abraham Lincoln recognized that we could not survive as a free land when some men could decide that others were not fit to be free and should therefore be slaves. Likewise, we cannot survive as a free nation when some men decide that others are not fit to live and should be abandoned to abortion or infanticide." ~ Ronald Reagan – Abortion and the Conscience of the Nation ~
"The undeniable fact is that those who defend the destruction of innocent human life in the form of abortion and euthanasia cannot confront the moral issues, nor can they confront the history that proves beyond a doubt the similarity between their reasoning and that of the most heinous murderers of history." ~ Msgr. Ignacio Barreiro-Carámbula, HLI Interim President, Human Life International
"Abortion kills not only unborn children; it destroys constitutional order and the common good, which is assured only when the life of every human being is legally protected. Aggressively pro-abortion policies, legislation and executive orders will permanently alienate tens of millions of Americans, and would be seen by many as an attack on the free exercise of their religion." ~ Cardinal Francis George, Statement at the USCCB Fall Assembly, November 12, 2008 ~
The so-called right to abortion has pitted mothers against their children and women against men. It has sown violence and discord at the heart of the most intimate human relationships. It has aggravated the derogation of the father's role in an increasingly fatherless society. It has portrayed the greatest of gifts--a child--as a competitor, an intrusion and an inconvenience. - Mother Theresa
"Abortion kills an unborn, developing human life. It is always gravely evil, and so are the evasions employed to justify it. Catholics who make excuses for it - whether they’re famous or not - fool only themselves and abuse the fidelity of... those Catholics who do sincerely seek to follow the Gospel and live their Catholic faith. The duty of the Church and other religious communities is moral witness. The duty of the state and its officials is to serve the common good, which is always rooted in moral truth. A proper understanding of the "separation of Church and state" does not imply a separation of faith from political life. But of course, it’s always important to know what our faith actually teaches." ~ Archbishop Charles Chaput, "On the Separation of Sense and State...", August 25, 2008 ~
Christ was born in Bethlehem which translates to House of Bread. He was placed in a manger, which was a feeding trough...the symbolism is rich. But there's more to it than symbolism!
John 6:51-52- then Jesus says that the bread He is referring to is His flesh. The Jews take Him literally and immediately question such a teaching. How can this man give us His flesh to eat?
John 6:53 - 58 - Jesus does not correct their literal interpretation. Instead, Jesus eliminates any metaphorical interpretations by swearing an oath and being even more literal about eating His flesh. In fact, Jesus says four times we must eat His flesh and drink His blood. Catholics thus believe that Jesus makes present His body and blood in the sacrifice of the Mass. Protestants, if they are not going to become Catholic, can only argue that Jesus was somehow speaking symbolically.
John 6:23-53 - however, a symbolic interpretation is not plausible. Throughout these verses, the Greek text uses the word "phago" nine times. "Phago" literally means "to eat" or "physically consume." Like the Protestants of our day, the disciples take issue with Jesus' literal usage of "eat." So Jesus does what?
John 6:54, 56, 57, 58 - He uses an even more literal verb, translated as "trogo," which means to gnaw or chew or crunch. He increases the literalness and drives his message home. Jesus will literally give us His flesh and blood to eat. The word “trogo” is only used two other times in the New Testament (in Matt. 24:38 and John 13:18) and it always means to literally gnaw or chew meat. While “phago” might also have a spiritual application, "trogo" is never used metaphorically in Greek. So Protestants cannot find one verse in Scripture where "trogo" is used symbolically, and yet this must be their argument if they are going to deny the Catholic understanding of Jesus' words. Moreover, the Jews already knew Jesus was speaking literally even before Jesus used the word “trogo” when they said “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?” (John 6:52).
John 6:55 - to clarify further, Jesus says "For My Flesh is food indeed, and My Blood is drink indeed." This phrase can only be understood as being responsive to those who do not believe that Jesus' flesh is food indeed, and His blood is drink indeed. Further, Jesus uses the word which is translated as "sarx." "Sarx" means flesh (not "soma" which means body). See, for example, John 1:13,14; 3:6; 8:15; 17:2; Matt. 16:17; 19:5; 24:22; 26:41; Mark 10:8; 13:20; 14:38; and Luke 3:6; 24:39 which provides other examples in Scripture where "sarx" means flesh. It is always literal.
John 6:55 - further, the phrases "real" food and "real" drink use the word "alethes." "Alethes" means "really" or "truly," and would only be used if there were doubts concerning the reality of Jesus' flesh and blood as being food and drink. Thus, Jesus is emphasizing the miracle of His body and blood being actual food and drink.
John 6:60 - as are many anti-Catholics today, Jesus' disciples are scandalized by these words. They even ask, "Who can 'listen' to it (much less understand it)?" To the unillumined mind, it seems grotesque.
John 6:61-63 - Jesus acknowledges their disgust. Jesus' use of the phrase "the spirit gives life" means the disciples need supernatural faith, not logic, to understand His words.
John 3:6 - Jesus often used the comparison of "spirit versus flesh" to teach about the necessity of possessing supernatural faith versus a natural understanding. In Mark 14:38 Jesus also uses the "spirit/flesh" comparison. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. We must go beyond the natural to understand the supernatural. In 1 Cor. 2:14,3:3; Rom 8:5; and Gal. 5:17, Paul also uses the "spirit/flesh" comparison to teach that unspiritual people are not receiving the gift of faith. They are still "in the flesh."
John 6:63 - Protestants often argue that Jesus' use of the phrase "the spirit gives life" shows that Jesus was only speaking symbolically. However, Protestants must explain why there is not one place in Scripture where "spirit" means "symbolic." As we have seen, the use of "spirit" relates to supernatural faith. What words are spirit and life? The words that we must eat Jesus' flesh and drink His blood, or we have no life in us.
John 6:66-67 - many disciples leave Jesus, rejecting this literal interpretation that we must eat His flesh and drink His blood. At this point, these disciples really thought Jesus had lost His mind. If they were wrong about the literal interpretation, why wouldn't Jesus, the Great Teacher, have corrected them? Why didn't Jesus say, "Hey, come back here, I was only speaking symbolically!"? Because they understood correctly.
Mark 4:34 - Jesus always explained to His disciples the real meanings of His teachings. He never would have let them go away with a false impression, most especially in regard to a question about eternal salvation.
John 6:37 - Jesus says He would not drive those away from Him. They understood Him correctly but would not believe.
John 3:5,11; Matt. 16:11-12 - here are some examples of Jesus correcting wrong impressions of His teaching. In the Eucharistic discourse, Jesus does not correct the scandalized disciples.
In Matthew 26, Mark 14, and Luke 22, Jesus says of the bread, "This is my body." He says of the wine, "This is my blood." Not "this is symbolic of," or "this represents," He says "this IS." In John 6, He repeats Himself, like He does nowhere else in Scripture, to emphasize the fact that He expects us to eat His flesh and drink His blood and that His flesh is real food and that His blood is real drink.
Anyone who says He is speaking symbolically, and not literally, simply is refusing to look at all of the facts. Fact #1: The Jews took him literally, verse 52. Fact #2: His disciples took him literally, verse 60. Fact #3, the Apostles took him literally, verses 67-69. If everyone who heard him speak at the time took Him literally, then my question is: Why does anyone today, 2000 years after the fact, take him symbolically?
Also, in verse 51, Jesus says that the bread which He will give for the life of the world is His flesh. When did He give His flesh for the life of the world? On the cross. Was that symbolic? If you think Jesus is speaking symbolically here when He says that we must eat His flesh and drink His blood, then you must also conclude that Jesus' death on the cross was symbolic...it wasn't really Jesus hanging up there...it was symbolic flesh and symbolic blood.
Jesus is clearly talking about the flesh that He gave for the life of the world...He did that on the cross. Those who believe He is talking symbolically here in John 6, have a real problem when it comes to John 6:51. Did Jesus give His real flesh and blood for the life of the world, or was it only His symbolic flesh and blood?
Anti-Catholics also claim the early Church took this chapter symbolically. Is that so? Let’s see what some early Christians thought, keeping in mind that we can learn much about how Scripture should be interpreted by examining the writings of early Christians.
Ignatius of Antioch, who had been a disciple of the apostle John and who wrote a letter to the Smyrnaeans about A.D. 110, said, referring to "those who hold heterodox opinions," that "they abstain from the Eucharist and from prayer, because they do not confess that the Eucharist is the flesh of our Savior Jesus Christ, flesh which suffered for our sins and which the Father, in his goodness, raised up again" (6:2, 7:1).
Forty years later, Justin Martyr, wrote, "Not as common bread or common drink do we receive these; but since Jesus Christ our Savior was made incarnate by the word of God and had both flesh and blood for our salvation, so too, as we have been taught, the food which has been made into the Eucharist by the Eucharistic prayer set down by him, and by the change of which our blood and flesh is nourished, . . . is both the flesh and the blood of that incarnated Jesus" (First Apology 66:1–20).
Origen, in a homily written about A.D. 244, attested to belief in the Real Presence. "I wish to admonish you with examples from your religion. You are accustomed to take part in the divine mysteries, so you know how, when you have received the Body of the Lord, you reverently exercise every care lest a particle of it fall and lest anything of the consecrated gift perish. You account yourselves guilty, and rightly do you so believe, if any of it be lost through negligence" (Homilies on Exodus 13:3).
Cyril of Jerusalem, in a catechetical lecture presented in the mid-300s, said, "Do not, therefore, regard the bread and wine as simply that, for they are, according to the Master’s declaration, the body and blood of Christ. Even though the senses suggest to you the other, let faith make you firm. Do not judge in this matter by taste, but be fully assured by faith, not doubting that you have been deemed worthy of the body and blood of Christ" (Catechetical Discourses: Mystagogic 4:22:9).
In a fifth-century homily, Theodore of Mopsuestia seemed to be speaking to today’s Evangelicals and Fundamentalists: "When [Christ] gave the bread he did not say, ‘This is the symbol of my body,’ but, ‘This is my body.’ In the same way, when he gave the cup of his blood he did not say, ‘This is the symbol of my blood,’ but, ‘This is my blood,’ for he wanted us to look upon the [Eucharistic elements], after their reception of grace and the coming of the Holy Spirit, not according to their nature, but to receive them as they are, the body and blood of our Lord" (Catechetical Homilies 5:1).
There are Eucharistic Miracles, here scientists have proven that the bread and wine did turn into Flesh and Blood...
He said he would never leave us and He is with us, TRULY PRESENT in the Eucharist, the Bread of Life!
My mother and my mother-in-law are both watchers of Wheel of Fortune, the game show. If we're in either of their company when it's on, it can draw you in. Fun for the whole family, as they say.
I've been thinking about how it's become more a favorite here. When we're at the shore during the summer it's become an expected sound. In fact, walking in the door coming home from the beach to shower and get dinner ready is intrinsically related to the sound of Pat Sajak's wheel spinning and clicking through the posts and clapping applause and letters being called out. It's part of the Soundtrack Of Our Life.
For Christmas, my mother gave the children the Wii Wheel of Fortune version and it's been a tremendous hit. The whole family enjoys playing, but most especially my 9yo fourth grader. Sometimes he has to ask us for help in spelling, but I can't complain! He's working on words and spelling in his free time...and that's why I am posting. That's a good thing! The game is learning disguised as fun, for him.
And because the Wii and TV isn't always available to him, I looked online yesterday for an online game version and found this free online game. Wii also makes a Jeopardy and that has educational benefits as well.
Tips that make learning fun are always interesting to me and so I am sharing all this thinking they will be for you, too. Have any tips to share?
Most of youI don't know in-real-life, and yet you bless my day with your kindness!
Your good manners and generosity came to mind today, especially after I read this in my email. "Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. -- Romans 12:10" I am thankful for the FB and Blog friends who embody this with their supportive comments and "likes." Who doesn't like it when their friends take a moment for them?
And so I prayed the prayer that goes with this scripture quote...
"Shepherd of my soul, thank you for making me part of your family. Thank you for the wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ who have blessed my life over the years. Thank you for their support and encouragement. Please use me to bless others in your family as these precious people have blessed and honored me. In the name of Jesus, your Son and my older brother, I pray. Amen."
For all of you who take the time to comment, bless and encourage me on this blog please know how much it means to me....and may God reward you for your thoughtfulness!
I place it in the toaster oven for just a little time to melt it and she devours her "homemade pizza." She's the SemiHomemade 6 year old chef!
Being able to "cook" something is the beginning of a skill I hope she develops as she grows with the same enthusiasm she has for it now. I've watched all 4 of my children grow to make their own lunches (when they want to) and it certainly gives them a sense of pride and even creativity!
Cooking - a confidence builder and a part of our homeschool day.
I think some of these are "popular" because of the title searched or the photo found.
And so, I now list my favorites, in the order they were posted throughout 2010. That's easy. Posting my favorite posts from the truly excellent bloggers out there would be too many to list...
Homeschooling Can Be a Prayer - where I relate how the very act of trying and sometimes failing in homeschooling can serve as a prayer.
Life Giving Love - Children are a gift from God, they are His reward the Bible tells us. His Love is life giving love and Mother's Day is a reminder of that love.
A Good Spot - Four bird eggs in a safe nest...like my 4 and where we are....
Joining Barbara in 52 weeks of daily life in pictures: trials and celebrations, the extraordinary and mundane -- whatever is unique to the week.
Remembering, this week, the kindness of my husband.
Knowing that Monday, the first day back to school after Christmas vacation, would be tough on the teacher (me) he brought me a dozen white roses! My favorite!
Where I prayerfully ask God to guide my hand in choosing for you a Saint Companion to guide your 2011....
FOR OUR 7th YEAR....it is time to pick a new saint to guide each of us this year, as we have done in years before. Did you get a saint last year? Blog about it...encourage this tradition.
It is said that the Saint picks YOU.
In our family, we post our Saints of the Year on our refrigerator so that we are constantly reminded of them... of our journey with them... to be inspired by what their life can teach us in our faith journey.
With solemnity, we each fervently pray as our hand reaches into the basket. We ask that the saint God intends to "teach and journey " with us this year will choose us.
And they have been so meaningful to us. Sometimes a certain saint likes to stay and share themselves with other members of our family....like Padre Pio, St. Therese's family and Mother Cabrini. We are growing in love for our saints. Some might say we are Saint Junkies!
Would you like to have a companion saint this year? CAN I PICK A SAINT FOR YOU?
Leave me a comment and I will leave you one back with a Saint Companion for 2011. Then, google them...read all you can about them. Get a medal and post their prayer card on your mirror...learn from them and their struggles. Make it a New Year's resolution to let them transform you in some way!
On New Year's Eve, I found myself playing with my new camera. I found an old Minolta lens that will work on it until I figure out what lens to get for it.
My dear husband cooked a surf and turf dinner for our stay-at-home festivities.
There was hockey playing and hockey watching.
The boys and I stayed up to watch the ball drop.
Look who lost her 2 front teeth!
(The following was sent to me in an email. Wish I could attribute who wrote it.)
And TODAY...."is also the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, in the Liturgical year. The New Year always begins by celebrating the beginning of the new covenant which came forth from the womb of the young woman, whose "fiat" changed the very history of all mankind.
In 431 A.D. the Third Ecumenical Council, which was held at Ephesus, declared that the Blessed Virgin Mary was indeed the Theotokos, the Mother of God. While the Church had always believed this, it was officially declared by the Council primarily because of a heresy initiated by Nestorius, Patriarch of Constantinople.
He and his followers, called Nestorians for obvious reasons, taught that Mary was the mother of the humanity of Jesus and not his divinity. They wanted to divide His natures. As with everything about the blessed Mother, her very life as well as her titles, had everything to do with her son, our Savior Jesus Christ.
In declaring her "Theotokos," the Fathers were declaring once and for all that Christ was truly the union of God and man, fully human and fully divine, which theologians call the "hypostatic union."
As St. Cyril of Jerusalem declared, "A mother does not give birth to a nature, she gives birth to a person".
John Henry Cardinal Newman also reminds us that it was through her that the Lord received His human nature. He wrote, "Mary was no mere instrument of God's dispensation. The Word of God did not merely pass through her as He may pass through us in Holy Communion.
"It was no heavenly body which the Eternal Son assumed. No, he imbibed; he sucked up her blood and her substance into His Divine person. He became man from her and received her lineaments and her features as the appearance and character under which He should manifest Himself to the world.
"He was known, doubtless, by His likeness to her, to be her Son."
Mary, as the Mother of God, carried our Lord in her womb for nine months. I love the way the Byzantine Catholic Liturgy declares this in the Great Compline of the Annunciation. "God is come among men; he who cannot be contained is contained in a womb. The timeless enters time."
The Mother of God also carried Him in her heart always, as a true mother would. Her life would be consumed for her son alone. This is shown by St. Luke's conclusion to the account of the nativity when he states, "Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart."
We must remember that her role as the Mother of God was not that of a surrogate mother. Unfortunately, many Christians today leave her at the manger. She was His mother always and continues to be even now in heaven.
The Mother of God - what a marvelous yet serious responsibility she carried. Indeed, this was an incredible trust given to her by God.
She had to be the fountain of God's grace and virtues for she was the Mother of God! Only His Sanctifying Grace which kept her from the stain of sin could prepare her for this. And, revealing the mystery of human freedom, her "Yes" participated in His loving plan.
Concerning her immaculate state, the West had traditionally place more emphasis on what is absent - her sinlessness. The East, on the other hand, has focused more on what is present - her holiness. This state of grace is so critical in her position.
Mary was his first comforter, first nurturer, first nurse, first counselor, first teacher, first friend and first disciple.
She was the one who cared for Him as an infant, helped him take His first steps, bathed Him, combed His hair, put Him to bed each night and provided love and comfort as He grew.
Can you imagine what it would have been like if the Mother of God was "dealing with issues" in her life? Can you imagine, "I'm sorry, Son, but mommy is just not in a good place right now! "All of the impediments that decorate our daily lives through concupiscence would have marred her motherhood.
We know very little about the life of our Lord prior to His ministry. We have a couple of snippets including the account at the Temple at age 12.
Again, St. Luke summarizes His early life in one simple yet significant verse. In chapter 2, verse 52 of his gospel, Luke writes, "Jesus increased in wisdom and strength and in favor with God and man."
This overview describes how Jesus grew into manhood, maturing mentally, physically, spiritually and socially. In His divinity, He was fully God; in His humanity, he still was being formed and the Blessed Virgin Mary was a part of that.
Mary was always a part of our Lord's life. She was there to participate in His first miracle at the wedding in Cana. She followed Him even when the crowds were so large that she sometimes had to wait to talk to Him and have someone tell Him that she was there. She would not relent in following Him, refusing to leave even during the scourging and crucifixion when almost all the others had fled.
Her role as the Mother of God continues today as Queen and Mother of the Church. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, "The Virgin Mary . . . is acknowledged and honored as being truly the Mother of God and of the redeemer.... She is 'clearly the mother of the members of Christ' . . . since she has by her charity joined in bringing about the birth of believers in the Church, who are members of its head. Mary, Mother of Christ, Mother of the Church."
Let us not pass by this day without spending time in thanksgiving for God's gift to us of the Blessed Virgin Mary or in meditating upon her most significant place in salvation history.
Pope John Paul II once wrote, "From Mary we learn to surrender to God's will in all things. From Mary we learn to trust when all hope is gone. From Mary we learn to trust her Son and Christ the Son of God."
This is truly the role of a mother - the Mother of God."
