Category Archives: Charity

Open Doors Podcast

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The leaders of our local Patchogue Prayer Meeting produce a PODCAST each week. I would like to recommend it to you. They talk about real life issues of living out our Catholic faith by sharing stories and experiences as well as teaching moments. To me, the thing that makes them stand out is the range in ages from teenage to Grown Adults. I asked them to write a short description and to give links to their podcast. Please find that here:

The Open Doors Podcast is a local Long Island–based, Catholic faith-centered podcast rooted in Christian testimony, reflection, and honest conversation. Through real-life stories of trials and triumphs, the podcast creates space for listeners to encounter God’s presence in everyday moments—especially when faith feels messy, uncertain, or difficult to articulate. Its mission is to encourage deeper trust in Christ and remind listeners that they are not alone on their spiritual journey.

The podcast is hosted by four voices from different seasons of life: Marissa (36), Janine (49), her son James (15), and Ivette (25), from Spain. Together, they offer an intergenerational perspective on faith, family, doubt, perseverance, and grace. Their conversations are intentionally relatable and welcoming, with a special heart for those who may feel disconnected, overlooked, or unsure if they truly belong within the Church.

At its core, The Open Doors Podcast exists to support evangelization by welcoming all—especially those searching for meaning, healing, and belonging. Select episodes are also available in Spanish, helping to reach listeners who feel more comfortable engaging in their native language. Wherever someone finds themselves on their faith journey, the podcast seeks to remind them that God meets them exactly where they are—and that the door is always open.

YouTube: https://youtube.com/@theopendoors.podcast?si=oqPxmoYtER9wyoIT

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1ry05GnYAhYbIJ9eweZ60D?si=_lDnii6KQ9KLXsZHoP5ffw

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-open-doors/id1777095076

SUFFERING: A Catholic Perspective by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Agony and Difficulty, Anxiety and Worry, Blessed Virgin Mary, Charity, Church, Cross to Bear, Crucifixion, Death and Dying, Divine Mercy, Early Church Fathers, Forgiveness, Holiness, Holy Spirit, How to be Catholic, Penance and Reconciliation, Prayer, Relationships, Religious Life, Saints, Scripture, Sin, Suffering

Most of us desire true happiness and true peace and true joy in our lives. It is only right to desire it.. I also think that God desires the same for us; afterall, we are His children. But truthfully, often life is filled with a great deal of suffering. Also, some people have more suffering than others and we can’t help but to wonder why. The Church tells us that suffering is a consequence of Original Sin. I think that the Catholic Church is one of the few, if not only, religious body to have significant answers as to why we suffer, and more importantly, how we deal with suffering.

The Catholic Faith teaches us that there are two main attitudes towards suffering. First of all it says that we must do all that we can to try to prevent and alleviate the suffering of others. We are called by Jesus to reach out to those who suffer by feeding the poor, giving drink to the thirsty, welcoming the stranger (or those who feel alone), clothing the poor, caring for the sick and visiting those in prison (Matthew 25: 31-46). He also tells us to bring the Good News to those who haven’t heard it. The scriptures are filled with examples of Jesus taking away the suffering of others.

The second attitude toward suffering relates to our own suffering and how we are called to handle it. As much as the scriptures are filled with how Jesus alleviates the suffering of others, it is also filled with how He Himself has suffered. Jesus was often mistreated, humiliated, and given terrible physical suffering. If Jesus endured suffering, why should we think that we won’t? This article is based upon dealing with the sufferings that may befall us.

All of the suffering that we endure must also consider the suffering that Jesus endured. It is in His suffering, that we can make sense of our own suffering. As a matter of fact, the Church invites us to unite our suffering to the suffering of Jesus, and in doing so see how we participate in making a change to this world and to ourselves. The suffering of Jesus on the cross, can show us how to endure our own suffering and turn it towards the redemption of the world. Jesus was the redeemer and source of all redemption, but we can join our suffering to His to continue His redemption for all peoples. St. Paul even goes so far as to say that, “Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of His body, which is the Church”. (Corinthians 1:24) It should be noted that St. Paul suffered greatly, He was beaten, stoned, imprisoned, shipwrecked and came close to dying several times. He also had is own “thorn in the flesh”. We do not know what that was, but we do know that he cried out to God several times to remove it due to the pain it caused him.

St. Paul tells us that God allows us to endure suffering and causes us to benefit from that suffering. He says in Romans 5: 3-1 that suffering produces endurance which builds character which leads us in to HOPE. This combination of enduring suffering while embracing hope helps us realize that our source of strength is God Himself. It helps us to acknowledge our total dependance upon God. Paul goes on to tell us that his suffering has him “boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses” and to see that in his own weaknesses, the strength of God shines forth. In Galations St. Paul says, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ… Let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus”. The “marks of Jesus” were probably scars from all his own beatings but some wonder if St. Paul was the first to receive the stigmata.

St. Paul wasn’t the only one who talked about suffering. St. James tells us, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything” (James 1: 2-4). St, Peter says, “However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear this name”.(1Peter 4:16). He again adds, “Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will and continue to do good, entrust their souls to a faithful Creator” (1Peter 4:19). St. Peter also tells us, “And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, and strengthen you” (1 Peter 5:10). St. Timothy says, “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12). St. John, in his Gospel has Jesus saying, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world”. There is no doubt that suffering is a part of the Christian life in this world.

Many of the early Christians suffered greatly, some to the point of dying for the faith.. Those that did die for the faith, the martys, have always been seen by the Church to be special people to God. Many of the Saints suffered and I thought that it would be good to include some quotes from them.

St. Elizabeth of the Trinity says, “For my heart is always with Him, day and night it thinks unceasingly of its heavenly and divine Friend, to whom it wants to prove its affection. Also within it arises this desire: not to die, but to suffer long, to suffer for God, to give Him its life while praying for poor sinners.”

St, Ignatius of Loyola adds, “If God sends you many sufferings, it is a sign that He has great plans for you and certainly wants to make you a saint.”

St. John of the Cross tells us, “The road is narrow. He who wishes to travel it more easily must cast off all things and use the cross as his cane. In other words, he must be truly resolved to suffer willingly for the love of God in all things.”

St. Faustina, who gave us the devotion to the Divine Mercy says, “In order to purify a soul, Jesus uses whatever instruments he likes. My soul underwent a complete abandonment on the part of creatures; often my best intentions were misinterpreted by the sisters, a type of suffering which is most painful; but God allows it, and we must accept it because in this way we become more like Jesus.”

St. Madeline (Sophie Barat) says, “As iron is fashioned by fire and on the anvil, so in the fire of suffering and under the weight of trials, our souls receive that form which our Lord desires them to have.”

St. Ignatius of Loyola again adds, “ If God gives you an abundant harvest of trials, it is a sign of great holiness which He desires you to attain. Do you want to become a great saint? Ask God to send you many sufferings. The flame of Divine Love never rises higher than when fed with the wood of the Cross, which the infinite charity of the Savior used to finish His sacrifice. All the pleasures of the world are nothing compared with the sweetness found in the gall and vinegar offered to Jesus Christ. That is, hard and painful things endured for Jesus Christ and with Jesus Christ.”

St, Theresa of Avila tells us, “Suffering is a great favor. Remember that everything soon comes to an end . . . and take courage. Think of how our gain is eternal.”

St. Faustina again says, “Suffering is a great grace; through suffering the soul becomes like the Saviour; in suffering love becomes crystallised; the greater the suffering, the purer the love.”

St. Therese of Lisieux told her novices, “I always want to see you behaving like a brave soldier who does not complain about his own suffering but takes his comrades’ wounds seriously and treats his own as nothing but scratches.”

St. Francis de Sales tells us, “All the science of the Saints is included in these two things: To do, and to suffer. And whoever had done these two things best, has made himself most saintly.”

Even Mary, the Mother of Our Lord, suffered. The prophet Simeon foretold Mary’s Suffering when he said to her, “a sword will pierce through your own soul” (Luke 2:35).

The list of quotes could go on and on.

It is so important for us to see that suffering, as much as we don’t necessarily desire it, can cause many good things to happen.

1 – It joins us to the redemptive suffering of Jesus when offered up to Him.

2 – It is a means for us to grow spiritually.

3 – It can allow us to bring about a greater good.

4 – It can reveal God’s presence to us.

5 – It can help us gain courage and endurance.

6 – It helps us appreciate the suffering that Jesus did for us.

7 – It can help us to have greater love and compassion for others.

Our Catholic faith tells us that Suffering is a Consequence of Original Sin. It isn’t something that God gives us. HOWEVER, God can use it to better us and to bring us closer to Him. All that we have to do is let Him.

The Church is Alive with Young People; two new Saints, Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati – by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Agony and Difficulty, Blessed Virgin Mary, Charity, Church, Communication, Community, Eucharist, Evangelism, Family, Holiness, How to be Catholic, Liturgy, Prayer, Rosary, Saints, Scripture, Spirituality, Suffering, ,

There is something very special happening to the Church today. I am seeing more and more young people coming to mass and attending spiritual gatherings. The Church invited youth and young adults to celebrate the Jubilee of Young People for 2025 in Rome in late July and early August. To the surprise of many, 500,000 participated during the week and over 1 million attended the final mass with His Holiness Pope Leo XIV. It was certainly a sight to see. The young people and the Pope reflected so much joy and holiness. They showed that the Church was truly alive and also quite relevant to young people.

This weekend the Church will be canonizing two young men; Pier Giorgio Frassati and Carlo Acutis. Pier was only 24 when he died and Carlo was only 15. Both of them were young men who loved Jesus and His Church and who served as an example to others of what the Christian Life was all about. They also enjoyed the fullness of life as so many young people do. I fully believe that these two Saints (soon to be) will continue to serve the world by being examples to young people about how to enjoy youth as well as how to be a good Christian. I would like to take a brief look at both of their lives. Pier lived in the beginning of the 1900’s and Carlo lived in the beginning of the 2000’s. Pier is known as the “Man of the Beatitudes” and Carlo is know as the “First Millenial Saint”. May they continue to inspire us all, especially the young men and women in today’s world.

CARLO ACUTIS was born on May 3, 1991 in London England. Shortly after his birth, his family moved back to Italy and lived a life like so many others do. Carlo’s parents worked, and Carlo attended school. Carlo had several pets, played soccer, loved movies, went snow skiing and loved to play video games. Ever since he was little, Carlo had a devotion to Jesus in the Eucharist. His mother tells how he could not pass a church without going inside to say hello to Jesus in the tabernacle. Carlo’s parents had stopped going to Church and because of the devotion that Carlo had, they started attending again. Finally, after much anticipation, Carlo received first communion in 1998. Carlo just naturally seemed to know the significance of the Eucharist. To Carlo, that was his fuel for living. Carlo attended mass, and went to Adoration to continually be refueled. His Eucharistic zeal was contagious. Although Carlo did many of the other normal things youth do, like school, homework, sports practices, social events, games, music, the internet and absolutely loving to eat gelato, he stood out from the crowd by managing his time towards the Eucharist and helping others. He once talked about his friends by saying, “They’ll stand in line for hours to go to a concert, but won’t stay even a minute before the tabernacle.” He couldn’t understand this.

In the early 2000’s the Internet was becoming quite available and Carlo dove right in. He learned coding and how to build websites and saw the Internet as a new tool to draw attention to the Church and the Eucharist. He developed websites for his parish and school. He even helped to develop the Vatican website. He began to become known as a technology protege around the world because of his work in the Vatican. He used the Internet to find out more and more about Eucharistic miracles He decided that he wanted to create a website just for that (and you can still use it today). He talked his parents in to taking him around to many sites of the Eucharistic miracles and took pictures and copious notes. He even walked to many and gathered information from 17 countries and made up 142 panels for helping others see the miracles.

In the fall of 2006, this faith filled young man started feeling ill. His parents took him to the doctor with flu-like symptoms. Testing came back showing that he had advanced stages of Leukemia. Despite this bad diagnosis, Carlo kept up his spirit and kept Christ as his top priority, offering up his sickness for the Pope and the Church and for his direct entry in to heaven. Carlo suffered gently and always thanked the people around him and kept a positive spirit. Fr. Sandro Villa, the hospital chaplain tells of the last time Carlo received the Eucharist. He says, “I was amazed by the composure and devotion with which, albeit with difficulty, he received the two sacraments. He seemed to have been waiting for them and felt the need for them.” He continued by saying, “I discovered that he was in love with the real presence of Jesus in the eucharist.” Carlo also said earlier to his mom, “I am happy to die because I have lived my life without wasting a minute on those things that do not please God.” Carlo died on October 12, 2006 at 15 years old.

Rejoice when you see a Statue of a teenage Saint, dressed in blue jeans and sneakers. Check out his website at https://www.miracolieucaristici.org/en/liste/list.html

PIER GIORGIO FRASSATI was born in 1901 in Turin, Italy and died in 1924. Saint John Paul II declared him a patron of World Youth Days and named him the “Man of the Beatitudes”. John Paul II also said he “was a young man filled with a joy that swept everything along with it, a joy that overcame the difficulties in his life”. Pier was known for his regular worship and adoration, as well as his service to the poor and the marginalized. He was a great advocate for Social justice and religious liberty. He was an avid mountain climber and saw many parallels between that and Catholic Life. On the back of a picture taken during his final climb, he wrote, “Verso L’Alto” which means “to the heights”.

Like Carlo Acutis, Frassati was enamored by the Eucharist. He once said to young people, “Prayer is the noble supplication which we lift up to the throne of God. It is the most efficient means to obtain from God the graces which we need, and especially the strength of persevering in these times, in which the hatred of the sons of the devil is breaking out violently against the sheep who are faithful to the fold. In recommending heartfelt prayer to you, I am including all the practices of piety, first of all the most Holy Eucharist. And remembering that apostle of the Holy Eucharist, the Holy Father Pius X of venerable memory, I urge you with all the strength of my soul to approach the Eucharistic Table as often as possible. Feed on this Bread of the Angels from which you will draw the strength to fight inner struggles, the struggles against passions and against all adversities, because Jesus Christ has promised to those who feed themselves with the most Holy Eucharist, eternal life and the necessary graces to obtain it. “And when you become totally consumed by this Eucharistic Fire, then you will be able to thank with greater awareness the Lord God who has called you to be part of his flock and you will enjoy that peace which those who are happy, according to the world, have never tasted. Because true happiness, young people, does not consist in the pleasures of the world and in earthly things, but in peace of conscience which we can have only if we are pure in heart and in mind.”

Frassati love to minister to the poor. He spent much of his time doing so. He was known to use his bus fare to give to the poor, and then run home to his parents to be home in time for meals. He not only gave his money to the poor, he also gave of his time. Besides receiving the Eucharist daily, he meditated on St. Paul’s “Hymn of Charity” (I Corinthians 13), and put that in to action. He loved mountain climbing and outings to the mountains. He invited friends to these as well as to his apostolic work, He brought his friends to Mass, to the reading of Scripture, and to praying the rosary. He also did worldly things like going to the theater, to the opera, and to museums. He was a young man who really enjoyed life.

Just before receiving his university degree, Pier Giorgio contracted poliomyelitis. Doctors later speculated he caught it from the sick whom he tended. After six days of terrible suffering Pier Giorgio died at the age of 24 on July 4, 1925. Even on his death bed, he wrote notes to help people that he had cared for. For his funeral, the streets of the city were filled with mourners. His family did not know them. They were the poor and the needy whom he had cared for. They, in turn, were surprised to find out that the Pier Giorgio was the heir of the influential Frassati family. He loved the poor, loved Jesus, loved Mary, loved the Eucharist, loved Adoration, loved the scriptures and loved the rosary. May he inspire us all, especially the young.

The THIRD GLORIOUS Mystery of the Rosary – The Descent of the Holy Spirit – by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Anxiety and Worry, Blessed Virgin Mary, Charity, Church, Conversion, Discernment, Evangelism, Healing, Holiness, Holy Orders, Holy Spirit, How to be Catholic, Jewish roots, Life in the Spirit, Miracles, Morality, Mystics, Peace and Justice, Prayer, Preaching, Priesthood, Resurrection, Rosary, Scripture, Spirituality, Suffering, Teaching, The Holy Land

It must be mentioned that the third Glorious Mystery tells us about the Descent of the Holy Spirit, primarily at Pentecost. This account is found in scripture at Acts 2: 1-41. However, as important as that descent of Pentecost is, we must realize that the Holy Spirit has descended many times upon the earth, and its people. In Genesis 1: 2 we hear about the Holy Spirit coming at the dawn of creation and hovering over the waters. We recall this during the blessing of the baptismal waters. The Hebrew Scripture, the Old Testament, often talks about the work of God’s Spirit. The psalmist in Psalm 51:11 says, “Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. “ The Prophets and Kings and Judges often talk about the presence of the Holy Spirit and its work among them. There are over 100 mentions of the Holy Spirit at work in the Old Testament.

The New Testament writing often mentions the Holy Spirit at work even before Pentecost. Many times the Holy Spirit is seen descending and at work in Jesus and His miniistry. Don’t forget that during the Annunciation, the angel told Mary that the Holy Spirit would come upon her and because of this she would have a miraculous conception. Because of this, Mary is often known as the Spouse of the Holy Spirit. When Jesus first began His ministry, John the Baptist poured water on Jesus and the Holy Spirit descended on Him in the form of a dove. Even during His ministry we see the Holy Spirit at work, leading Jesus, and empowering Jesus. After His resurrection, John 20:22 tells us, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the holy Spirit.” The Holy Spirit is at work in all the scriptures, but, something quite different happened at Pentecost.

The Descent of the Holy Spirit is seen in so much power at Pentecost. This is after Jesus died, and after He spent 40 days instructing His people and building His Church. He knew that He was ready to ascend to the Father and He also knew that the Church needed a special presence to help them. He had told the disciples that they needed to pray for The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, to come upon them. The Apostles, Mary and many disciples, went to the Upper Room and prayed for nine days and the Spirit descended upon them in POWER. Acts tells us, “And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” The disciples were now quite changed men and women. They left their shyness and worry to become bold proclaimers of the Good News. The Church was now born. As a matter of fact, some consider Pentecost, with its coming of the Holy Spirit, to be the Birthday of the Church. Just as Jesus received the Descent of the Holy Spirit at the beginning of His ministry, His followers now received it as the beginning of their ministry of spreading the Good News.

But what does the Holy Spirit do for us? It leads us and guides us and empowers us to do what God wants us to do. The Church (and scripture) have identified many gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit. The gifts are identified as wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of of the Lord. The fruits are identified as charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, and chastity. The Charismatic gifts of the Holy Spirit include, healing, tongues, interpretation of tongues, prophecy and the discernment of spirits. No matter what gift or fruit you look at, it is given to empower us as Christians in the building up of the Church and in doing whatever God asks of us. The Holy Spirit IS at work in His people.

Questions to Ponder:

1 – Am I aware of the Holy Spirit at work in me?

2 – Am I aware of the Holy Spirit at work within the Church?

3 – Do I ask the Holy Spirit to lead and guide me?

4 – Do I ask the Holy Spirit to empower me to do God’s will?

5 – Do I pray to the Holy Spirit?

6 – Does the way I live my life reflect the fruits of the Holy Spirit?

7 – Do I use the gifts of the Spirit in what I do?

8 – Have I ever experienced the Charismatic gifts of the Spirit?

9 – Do I recognize the close link between the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Spirit?

10 – Do I believe in the Power of God at work through the Holy Spirit?

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful
and kindle in them the fire of your love.

Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created,
and you shall renew the face of the earth.

The Fourth Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary – THE CARRYING OF THE CROSS by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Agony and Difficulty, Anxiety and Worry, Apologetics, Blessed Virgin Mary, Charity, Church, Cross to Bear, Death and Dying, Divine Mercy, Evangelism, Forgiveness, Holy Week, Morality, Penance and Reconciliation, Preaching, Resurrection, Rosary, Service, Sin, Spirituality, Suffering

All four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John tell us about Jesus carrying the cross. The Synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke tell us that Simon of Cyrene was chosen to help Jesus carry the cross. John does not mention Simon. Mark alone tells us that Simon was the father of Alexander and Rufus. This detail would make us think that the early Church knew who Alexander and Rufus were, and indeed later scripture does mention Rufus. Simon was from northern Africa in what is today Libya. You can’t help but to consider that his being selected, out of the blue, made a total change in his life. This experience must have made him become a follower of Jesus. Undoubtedly he brought his children in to the WAY too.

John, in his Gospel, tells us that Jesus carried His own cross, but the witness of the Synoptic writers can’t help us but to consider that Jesus had reached the point of pure exhaustion when carrying His cross and could not do it by himself. The Roman soldiers wanted to do what they were ordered to do; to Crucify Jesus. They knew that He needed help to get to Golgotha and thus they ordered Simon of Cyrene to help Him. One can only imagine what Jesus suffered in this ordeal. Remember that he had been beaten and whipped and thus in great pain. Now He had to carry a heavy large beam that was to be His cross, His instrument of torture. Along with the physical pain, He had to endure the mockery of the crowds. He had to also see His Mother Mary, and his disciples and friends, watching Him suffer so much. It must have been such a long and hard road for Him to travel to Golgotha.

I can’t help but to wonder if His friends and disciples remembered how Jesus had earlier told them how they had to pick up their own cross to follow Him. All of them would be used to seeing the crucifixions that were too often used by the Romans to show their power. They knew that a crucifixion was a very painful sacrifice that led to death. Now they had to watch their own leader, their Jesus, walk to His own crucifixion. Did they think that the same thing might happen to them? Did they know that following Jesus would mean that they had to endure hardship, suffering and perhaps even death? Did they have any idea that this terrible sacrifice and suffering would lead to eternal life?

Jesus himself, in His humanity, must have wondered this too. Did the human side of Jesus know that someday His followers would see the cross as the instrument of their salvation? Did he, and His followers know that they would sign themselves with the cross? Did they know that they would have the cross mounted on their walls of their homes and made in to jewelry to wear around their necks? Soon St. Paul would, be saying, “I PREACH CHRIST CRUCIFIED, a stumbling block to many but THE POWER AND WISDOM OF GOD”. To this day, on Good Friday, when we recognize the day when Jesus was crucified, we kiss the cross and say, Behold the Wood of the Cross, on Which was Hung Our Salvation. Truly, this instrument of torture has become the instrument of our salvation.

Questions to Ponder:

1 – Have I really considered how much Jesus suffered for me?

2 – Have I thanked Him for all that He has done for me?

3 – Do I have my own personal cross in my life?

4 – Have I been able to unite my own suffering with the suffering of Jesus?

5 – Do I truly believe that my own cross will lead me to something quite beneficial?

6 – Have I ever been like Simon of Cyrene and helped someone carry their own cross?

7 – Have I ever suffered because of my love of Jesus or for preaching His Good News?

8 – Do I have the cross placed in several prominent places in my home?

9 – Am I ever ashamed to wear a cross?

10 – Do I honor the cross not only on Good Friday, but on every Friday?

.

MYSTERIES of the ROSARY the First Joyful Mystery the ANNUNCIATION – by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Anxiety and Worry, Blessed Virgin Mary, Charity, Church, Conversion, Discernment, Fasting, Holiness, How to be Catholic, Lent, Miracles, Relationships, Rosary, Scripture, Trust, Uncategorized, Women

THE MYSTERIES OF THE ROSARY – PRAYING THE ROSARY WITH FULL MEANING

Introduction Paragraph (repeated each session)

As we begin the Lenten Season, the Church asks us to use this time, in a very special way. to grow closer to Jesus and to all that He has for us. It tells us that there are three main “Pillars” to help us accomplish this; Prayer, Fasting and Almsgiving. After considerable reflection, I believe that the Lord wants me to write during this Lent about PRAYER, and one specific form of prayer, the ROSARY. Now there are many types and forms of prayer, but I truthfully believe that the ROSARY, when properly done, is one of the most powerful forms of prayer that we have. In my own walk with God within the Church, I have grown in my love of the rosary and in my knowledge of the power of the rosary prayer. One of the problems with people praying the rosary is that they do not always meditate on the mystery itself. This takes so much away from the prayer. It is not just enough to go through the hail marys and our fathers, we also must look at the specific mystery and reflect on that while we pray. The mysteries are very bibical and go through the life of Jesus. For that reason, during Lent, I am going to take one mystery at a time and talk about it so you can use it more when you pray the rosary. There are four separate mysteries of the rosary and each one has five parts. I will do them in the order of the life of Jesus, starting with the JOYFUL, then the LUMINOUS and the SORROWFUL, ending with the GLORIOUS. It has been a tradition to do the Joyful on Monday and Saturday; the Luminous on Thursday; the Sorrowful on Tuesday and Friday; and the Glorious on Wednesday and Sunday. I would suggest that you read each scriptural reference for each mystery and meditate on what was accomplished. I will also include ten (corresponding to the ten hail Marys of each mystery) points to ponder and pray about. These points are used to think not only about what the mystery celebrates, but also what it means to you in your life.

THE JOYFUL MYSTERIES – The First Mystery, THE ANNUNCIATION

This mystery recalls when the Angel Gabriel visited Mary and announced to her that she would be the mother of Jesus. It is based upon Luke 1: 26-38. and John 1: 14

In this mystery, we are called to reflect upon how the Word was made flesh. Luke tells us that during the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, an angel appeared to Mary. When the angel appeared to this young girl ,she was a virgin waiting to be married to Joseph of the House of David. The Angel Gabriel greeted her by saying, “Hail, favored one” (or blessed one) and this caused Mary to be “greatly troubled”. I can’t imagine what it must have been like for a very young woman to have an angel appear to her, let alone be told that she was highly favored by God. It must have caused considerable confusion and astonishment to Mary. She had no idea what this appearance and greeting might mean. The Angel Gabriel told her not to be afraid and then said to her something quite remarkable. He told her that because of her favor with God, she would conceive and bear a son to be called, Jesus. Mary quickly repsonded by saying that she had not yet been with a man, and how could this be possible? The angel then said to her, “the Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.” Even though this must have been so much for Mary, she responded with her big YES to the Lord, “be it done to me according to your word”. With that, the angel left her.

Questions to ponder:

1 – How would I respond to a “call” from God to do something?

2 – Do I even listen to God enough to perceive a call?

3 – Would I be willing to do something God asks of me, even if it interferes with my plans?

4 – Do I consider myself too young, or too old, or too uneducated to be able to do God’s request?

5 – Do I truly apprecitate what Mary’s YES means to me and to world salvation?

6 – Do I really believe that Jesus was truly human and truly divine?

7 – Am I trying to learn more about the Incarnation (God becomes man)?

8 – Do I believe that angels are still ar work in the world today?

9 – Do I honor and respect marriage and family life?

10 – Do I understand that a baby, any baby can grow up and can change the world?

CONVERSION and LENT – by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Charity, Church, Communication, Community, Conversion, Discernment, Eucharist, Forgiveness, Holy Spirit, How to be Catholic, Lent, Liturgy, Penance and Reconciliation, Prayer, Relationships, Rosary, Sacraments, Scripture, Service, Spirituality

On January 25th I wrote about the conversion of St. Paul and how he went from being a good Jew who persecuted Christians to being a Christian himself. This was a major change and a significant conversion experience. For most of us, our conversion is not as dramatic as St. Paul’s. However, I do believe that we are all in need of continual conversion and Lent is the perfect time to do this. By continual conversion (or ongoing conversion) I mean that we recognize that conversion is an ongoing process where we hear the call of Jesus to be more like him. We don’t do this all at once, it takes time and effort to even try to be more like him. As Christians, we have the responsibility to follow our Lord Jesus and to try, to the best we can, to be Christ-like. I cannot think of any better time than Lent to try to accomplish this.

The last three weeks we have looked at the three pillars (or disciplines) of Lent; Prayer, Fasting and Almsgiving. Keeping in mind that these are essential to our growing close to the Lord, and thus being more like Him, we must keep these as our base. There are many other things that we can do to become more like Jesus. I would suggest that we take a look at these and try to put them in to practice also. Lent is definitely a time for us to turn away from sin and to be faithful to the Gospel message of Jesus. The Lenten season is filled with many graces, or gifts from God, to help us accomplish our goal. Here is a partial list of ways to obtain these gifts, or graces, from God. By doing these, we can’t help but to draw closer to God and to become more like Jesus.

1 – Read the scriptures: I would suggest using the Church’s readings of the day. This is easy to do, especially if you have access to a computer or smart phone. There are many smart phone apps to bring you the daily readings, and some that offer a commentary. Even an easy Google search for readings of the day can be done. Try to start with ones from Catholic sources like the USCCB (US Conference of Catholic Bishops); EWTN (Eternal Word Television Network) founded by Mother Angelica; Vatican News; Catholic Online and others. Reading the scriptures and reading their Catholic commentaries will give you a familiarity with Jesus, so you can get to know Him and follow Him.

2 – Attend Mass as often as you can. The mass has two parts: The Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist. In the liturgy of the Word we concentrate on the scriptures and in the Liturgy of the Eucharist we concentrate on the Pascal sacrifice and actually receive the Body and Blood of Jesus. We partake of His very presence and He leads and guides us to grow closer to Him. There was a famous nutritional quote from a nineteenth century Frenchman made popular in the US by author Adele Davis, “You are what you eat”. I personally think that this fits so well to the Eucharist. It helps us to become Jesus present to others.

3 – Attend a retreat. I you have the time and money to go to a retreat house for a week or more, that would be tremendous. However, if you do not, most parishes offer some kind of local 2 or 4 day retreat. If your parish doesn’t, don’t be afraid to attend a nearby parish that does. A retreat gives us the time to get away from distractions and to concentrate on Jesus and what He is asking of us.

4 – Spiritual reading. There are so many good Catholic books out there that can help you to grow more in your faith and to grow closer to Jesus.

5 – Do something Christ-like. Great examples of this are to help out in a Parish Outreach or some other organization that helps the poor. You can also visit people who are in nursing homes, hospitals, prisons, or shut ins within their own home. If you are an Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist, bring hosts with you to give to them (Catholics).

6 – Spend time alone in prayer. Jesus tells us to go to a place of quiet and to pray. The more we do that, the closer we get to him. Prayer can be anything from complete silent meditation to praying the rosary or chaplet of diving mercy.

7 – Spend time with other people who you know are living out the faith. The role of community, where like minded people of faith gather, is of extreme importance. This could be anything form having coffee with a friend, to attending a large prayer group.

8 – Be fillled with gratitude for all that God has given you. So ofter Jesus started His prayers by thanking the Father. The more we are filled with a sense of Gratitude, the more we will be like Jesus.

9 – Repent. Take a good look at your life and see the things that are not of God and determine to turn away from these things. Jesus started His ministry with the word Repent. The Sacrament of Reconciliation can be a big help with this, especially when there is serious sin in your life.

10 – Follow God. Make it a point to try to do what God wants you to do. Hopefully the more you are in prayer and follow the above steps, you will see what God wants from you. When you do find out, do it.

11 – Practice Humility. Jesus makes it pretty clear that He does not like people who think of themselves too highly. He loves people who are humble. His very life is all about humility. Think about how the Almighty, Powerful God humbled himself to become a man. We need to embrace this humility.

12 – Play religious, worship music. Music lifts the soul to new heights. When we play religious music, it lifts us up and helps us to embrace all that God has for us. Try it, you will like it.

Certainly there are many other ways to grow closer to God and to be more Christ-like, but since the scriptures love the number 12, I will stop there. Remember that God wants us to be His presence to others. Our call is to be more like Him. Our conversion needs to be ongoing.

The Joy of Giving – by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Charity, Church, Community, Discernment, Holiness, Holy Spirit, How to be Catholic, Morality, Peace and Justice, Relationships, Service, Spirituality, , ,

There is a popular Christian song that says, “They will know we are Christians by our love”. This is such a true statement. One of the best signs of being a Christian is being charitable. It doesn’t matter how many crosses you may be wearing or how many holy medals you may be wearing; the most important sign to others that you are a Christian is your love (charity). We show our love in our actions towards others. Jesus is continually calling us to recognize that we are supposed to be people who put love for others (especially the poor) in to all that we do. Mathew 5:25 tells us, “So don’t hide your light! Let it shine brightly before others, so that the commendable things you do will shine as light upon them, and then they will give their praise to your Father in heaven.” Also in Matthew (25:40) Jesus tells us that at the Judgment Day He will say to us, “When you cared for one of the least important of these my little ones, my true brothers and sisters, you demonstrated love for me” and “When you refused to help one of the least important among these my little ones, my true brothers and sisters, you refused to help and honor me. (25:45)” It couldn’t be much clearer, when we do for others, we do for Jesus and when we refuse to do for others, we refuse to do for Jesus. He will someday judge us on this.

But giving to others, especially the needy, isn’t just about the judgment that we receive. It is also about our life right now. Jesus tells us in Luke 6:38, “Give generously, and generous gifts will be given back to you, shaken down to make room for more. Abundant gifts will pour out upon you with such an overflowing measure that it will run over the top! Your measurement of generosity becomes the measurement of your return.” I am not trying to preach a prosperity gospel like many do, because I know that so many of the Saints who did good works lived in poverty and extreme hardship. Rather, I believe that the gifts given back to us in generous measure are not necessarily monetary gifts or earthly gifts. They are gifts that transcend the everyday life here and lift our inner being up to heavenly places. We can, through giving to the needy, experience a sort of heavenly bliss. The goodness that we feel when we give to the needy can be absolutely amazing. Also, the closer we are to Jesus, the more grateful we become aware of His love for us and the more we want to do for others. St. John, in his first letter chapter 4 verse 19 tells us, “Our love for others is our grateful response to the love God first demonstrated to us.” We give to others because God has given so much to us.

Giving to others can be done in so many ways. Personally I think that treating all people with respect, even if you don’t agree with them or even dislike them, is a true form of Christian giving. Also, helping others to get ahead in life, even if it means going over you, is a form of Christian giving. Jesus gave us the “golden rule” in Matthew 7:12, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”. When we really follow this rule we can find great peace and satisfaction. In doing this we can also help change the world for the better. Because of our human nature, being charitable isn’t always easy to do. However, God has given us both the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the fruits of the Holy Spirit so that we can. We need to rely upon these gifts, and pray earnestly, so that we can be a people of love and charity.

Unfortunately there are many people in this world who are living lives of extreme poverty. There are many homeless people in our communities and many households that cannot afford to put a decent meal on the table for their family. In our current COVID pandemic many people have lost their jobs or had their wages reduced. Many businesses have failed and we have a new form of poverty in our communities. We have people who own their own homes and have nice cars, but because of income loss they cannot pay their bills or buy decent food. For those of us who can, we can’t just stand back and do nothing. We are called by God to help others, and the first place to do this is in our own communities. It is important to try to find ways to help others. If you pray for guidance in this, God will put you in to the right places to help others. Start first with what you are familiar with, your own parishes and their outreach ministries. Then look to local community organizations that are helping the needy. Giving money and giving time to them is essential. One of the best ways to give is by volunteering to serve in these outreaches and community organizations. Not only do you help them to do what they are trying to do to help the needy, but because you are a volunteer you usually get a chance to interact with the people you are helping. Believe me, this is something that can be very good for you.

As an example, I have found several forms of charitable service in my community. Our own parish has an outreach ministry and I support that by giving both money and non perishable goods and special gifts for Christmas and Thanksgiving and the beginning of school. I also work with two local charities, Angels of Long Island and Carroll’s Kitchen to help bring food and necessities to those in need. I also work with several Veteran’s agencies to help veterans in need. Working with these charities brings me immense satisfaction and joy and peace. We are called to support charities by giving money, but more importantly, we are called to support them by giving volunteer time. Personally, I would have to say that I get a tremendous satisfaction from giving volunteer service to them. There is no doubt that I better appreciate the gifts that God has given me, but even more than that, the actual act of giving brings me such good feelings, that it is hard to describe. In ending, I would encourage you to seek out, through prayer, what God wants you to be doing. He wants you to love and serve others, but you and He will have to decide who those others are. Once you do this, you will be more fully living the Christian vocation and you will experience a new sense of purpose and fulfillment and peace. Truly, giving to others is also giving to yourself. Author Leo Buscaglia tells us, “It’s not enough to have lived. We should be determined to live for something. May I suggest that it be creating joy for others, sharing what we have for the betterment of personkind, bringing hope to the lost and love to the lonely.” St. Paul tells us, “Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” 2Corinthians 9:7

THE GIFT OF RELIGIOUS LIFE: FOR ALL PEOPLE – by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Charity, Church, Community, Diaconate, Holiness, Holy Orders, Marriage, Religious Life, Saints, Service, Spirituality, Vocation

From its very beginnings, the Catholic Church has always followed the command of Jesus to go out in to all of the world and preach the Good News.   That is the Church’s primary mission, evangelization.   In order to do that the Church also has to maintain a community of believers who are continually learning more about the faith and their relationship to God and are continually receiving the gifts that God gives them to grow and complete their purpose.   The Church, by its very nature, is communal.   It is a body of people who work together to learn more about the faith, grow in the faith and then spread the faith.  Jesus himself relied upon a group of believers, the 12 apostles, and  the many followers and “the women” to start His Church and to spread the Good News.  The need for community is strong and the benefits of community bring about strength.

The Church has had many different forms of community over the ages.   For many years religious orders grew in large numbers and helped to accomplish the Church mission.   Recently, especially in the Americas and in Europe, the number of people entering religious orders has decreased, but at the same time there has been an increase in lay people becoming involved with the traditional religious orders to work with them.  I really believe that this has been a fresh wind of the Holy Spirit at work.  I know of so many good Catholics who are part of “secular” or “third order” movements working with the traditional Franciscan, Dominican, Carmelite (etc) orders where they experience the gift of this community and continue the work of this community without giving up marriage or jobs or family.  They continue the order’s mission right in the midst of today’s culture.   They become like monks or sisters right within the workplace of everyday living.  They also bring with them the fruits of these orders.

I have been fortunate to be one of the people to do this.   I have been a member of the Franciscan Deacons of Rockville Centre and I would like to share with you some of the experience I have had there with this community.  To do this, I would like to share a little history of our group.

The Society of Franciscan Deacons of Rockville Centre started over a dozen years ago by three deacons of my diocese who had originally started in formation to become brothers in Franciscan orders.   After some discernment during their formation, they felt the call to marriage and to work within the normal workplace.   After many years of marriage and secular work, they then felt the call of the Holy Spirit to become Catholic Permanent Deacons.  God’s Spirit later put upon their hearts the original call to Franciscan spirituality and they began meeting to discern how to answer that call within the life that God had called them to.   After meeting for some time, they felt called by the Lord to make a decision to follow Franciscan Spirituality and meet together as a group.   One of the members is a Canon lawyer and Judge in our Diocesan tribunal.   He was able to use his canon law skills to develop a way to form a legal society of deacons who follow Franciscan spirituality.   He then approached our diocesan Bishop who thought the idea was a good one and the Society of Franciscan Deacons of Rockville Centre was formed.  It started with the three original founders and has grown to over a dozen members.   I am so blessed to be one of them.

We meet together as a group once per month where we pray together the liturgy of the hours, talk about our journey with the Lord, plan charitable actions for the group and do a study together as a group.   Sometimes we study a book, and sometimes we study a movies series such as Fr. Dave Pavonka’s Wild Goose series.   We also go together on retreat every summer for 5 to 6 days.  In the midst of all of this we try to grow in our Franciscan spirituality to strengthen our work as parish deacons and evangelizer’s of God’s Word.

All of us have to take the vows of the Third Order Regular Franciscans and have gone through the normal stages of community life, Aspirant (someone thinking of joining), Postulant (praying with the group and learning about the group), Novitiate (continued training and beginning of temporary vows, Solemn Profession (taking perpetual vow to be a full member).  The vows for the Franciscan Deacons are centered on poverty, chastity and obedience.   Since Permanent Deacons are usually married men who own homes and have jobs, these three vows are further explained.   Poverty for us is embracing a simple lifestyle, especially regarding possessions.  Chastity for us is being true to our marriage commitment.  And obedience to us is continued obedience to our Bishop and to our faith.  Part of our foundational training and additional training is learning more about St. Francis and Franciscan Spirituality.  We have read and studied together several books on both Francis and Claire.  The gifts that these two people brought to the Church are both simple and profound.  Studying these two great people and their relationship to God has most certainly helped my spiritual life and desire to serve God’s people.

All of the religious orders emphasize prayer and community and we certainly do that in our meetings.   We often have dinner together in a restaurant before our meetings and that helps the sense of community grow among us.   Most orders also emphasize work of some sort.   Now in our Society, we are all diocesan deacons who are assigned work within our own parishes (and the diocese) and this is seen as our main form of work.  However, we also keep a tie with the Franciscan Society of the Atonement in Graymoor, NY.    Several of the men in our group actually attended their formation there when they were thinking about becoming friars and brothers.   We have a very close bond with the Friars of the Atonement and part of our “work” is with them.  We often go up to Graymoor for weekends to help with the retreats and special days that we run.   Several members of our community have advanced that by becoming Tertiary’s of the Atonement order.   They still meet with us in our group but have expanded their connection with the Society of the Atonement.

I am so glad that the Lord drew me in to the Society of Franciscan Deacons of Rockville Centre.  I have always loved St. Francis, even when I was a Methodist.   I was actually ordained a deacon on October 4th, the Feast day of St. Francis.   Our society has helped me form closer relations with my brother deacons and has helped me grow in my own spirituality and in my service to the Church.  Yes, I am saddened by the lack of vocations that many of our orders are experiencing, but I am also thrilled with what the Lord is doing with “third order/secular” groups today in the Church.  If you are feeling a need for more community especially as lived out by a particular Saint, I would suggest you seek out a “third order or secular” group near you.   I know that my involvement in our group has greatly helped me in my walk with the Lord and has helped me to grow in my service to Him and His people.

Epic Saints: Wild, Wonderful and Weird Stories of God’s Heroes by Shaun McAfee – Review by Steven R. McEvoy

Anxiety and Worry, Apologetics, Book Review, Charity, Church, Communication, Community, Converts, Death and Dying, Demons, Ethics, Eucharist, Evangelism, Forgiveness, Heresy, Holiness, Holy Orders, Holy Spirit, Life in the Spirit, Liturgy, Marriage, Miracles, Morality, Mystics, Penance and Reconciliation, Prayer, Priesthood, Pro-Life, Purgatory, Relationships, Relics, Resurrection, Rosary, Sacraments, Saints, Scripture, Service, Sin, Soldiers, Spirituality, Teaching, Trust, Vocation, Women,

I enjoy writing book reviews of books that I have read and then posting them on my website.  However, I didn’t feel comfortable writing a book review for this book since I am one of the contributors to it.  I did read the book and really enjoyed it and would recommend it to my readers.  For the review, I turned to my friend, Steven R. McEvoy and obtained his permission to post the review that he had written and originally appeared on his website:  www.bookreviewsandmore.ca  .  Steven does a great job of reviewing books and you should check out his website.  Here is his review of Epic Saints.

Epic Saints 
Wild, Wonderful, and Weird Stories of God’s Heroes

by
Shaun McAfee 


TAN Books
ISBN 9781505115123
ASIN B083Y67LD7

I love books like this one. I love reading about saints and am currently reading books from 4 different series about saints. But what a book like this does is introduce me to a few new saints, it gives me some more information and examples from saints that I am more familiar with. This was an EPIC READ that I could hardly put down. It is mostly eBook about specific saints and But there is also a lot of great information about the process of saint making, and the canon and calendar of saints. But the volume is not just the work of Shaun McAfee there are several contributors. Those contributors are:

Alex R. Hey
Sarah Spittler
Jessica Mcafee
Theresa Zoe Williams
Brooke Gregory
Deacon Marty Mcindoe
Shaun Mcafee
Laura Hensley
Mike Panlilio
Maggie Van Sciver

The essays interspersed through the biographies are:

Have Saints Always Been Canonized The Same Way?
What Is The General Roman Calendar?
Can These Stories Be Allegorical?
Are We Really Expected To Believe These Stories?
Why Are Some Saints Not On The Calendar?
What Is The Process For Canonization?
What Should We Do With Saint Narratives That Contain Errors Or Inconsistencies?
Why Are Some Canonized Quickly While Others Have Been In The Process For Centuries?
Can I Become A Saint?

And on top of that are profiles of 74 saints. Shaun and the other contributors do an amazing job or highlighting so many saints in such a short space. There are almost a dozen saints I need to go find further readings on. And my son is already looking forward to my rereading this book with him. 

In this volume there are a few tales about dragons. Saints pulling practical jokes and pranks. A bilocating death and many, many more stories of saints, of Martyrs and holy men and women. 

Though I will be honest with you, the pieces in this volume are so well written you might have a hard time picking a favorite. And you will definitely want to read more on at least some of the saints. An excellent read that I highly recommend. 

MYSTAGOGY – AN EXPERIENCE FOR ALL OF US – by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Apologetics, Blessed Virgin Mary, Charity, Church, Community, Converts, Easter, Eucharist, Evangelism, Holiness, Holy Spirit, Holy Week, Internet Resources, Life in the Spirit, Liturgy, Miracles, Mystagogy, Mystics, Penance and Reconciliation, Prayer, Resurrection, Rosary, Sacraments, Saints, Scripture, Service, Spirituality, Uncategorized

MYSTAGOGY – EXPERIENCING THE MYSTERIES

In the RCIA program, the period following the reception in to the Church is known as a period of Mystagogy.  Mystagogy is a time where the mysteries of the Church are revealed to the new Catholics.  It is revealed through their experience of the Sacraments and through all that the Church offers them.  Although teaching is involved, experience and sharing about that experience is the way the mysteries are revealed.  The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (Chicago, 1988) manual states: “. The purpose of the mystagogy is to enable the newly baptized to draw from their sacramental experience a new sense of the faith, the Church, and the world”.  As a leader in the RCIA program in my parish, I try to encourage our Neophytes to experience as much as they can, the resources that the Church offers them.  Truly, I believe that this is good for all the people of the Church as well.

Those who have gone through the RCIA program have experienced at Easter NEW LIFE.  They are, in a spiritual sense, born anew.  I have truly seen, throughout the years, a big change in them.  They are more alive in the faith.   We established Catholics have also been enlivened by experiencing all that Lent and Easter has given us.  Our faith should truly be renewed.  I believe that a period of mystagogy is appropriate for us too.  We need to experience all that the Church offers us, and there is so much.  We are constantly called to grow in our faith by using the sacraments and other tools that the Church gives us.  When we grow in our faith we become more of who God wants us to be.  When we do that, we become happier, more fulfilled and more at peace.   We can grow in our experience of all that the Holy Spirit gives us by receiving the Spirit’s gifts and fruits.  Literally, we can set the world on fire.

I would like to share some of my thoughts on how to do this.  I thought that I would do this in a list format.  Sometimes it is good to have a list of some of the things that the Church can offer to us so that we can grow in our faith.  Here is a list (certainly not a full one) of things that will help us to grow in our faith:

TWELVE STEPS TO HELP US GROW IN OUR FAITH

1 – Go to mass at least every Sunday.  The mass is the Summit and Source of our faith.  In the mass we hear God’s Word proclaimed and explained and we receive the most precious gift of His Body and Blood.   We pray together and experience community and are sent forth.  I attend daily mass because I believe it can do more for me than anything else.

2 – Pray.  When you are in Love with someone, communication is a natural expression of that Love and a way that Love can grow.  Prayer is communication with God.  There are so many ways to pray.  I love praying the Liturgy of the Hours.  It is now so easy to do and so available by placing an app on your smart phone.   I use the ibreviary app.  It is a no cost app.   Try it out, you will be glad that you do.  I would suggest at least praying Morning prayer and Evening prayer.

I also like to use what I call “gut” prayer.  This is totally spontaneous and can be done at any time.  It comes from deep within us, our “gut”.   Sometimes my gut prayer is filled with praise and thanksgiving.  Often it is filled with “why me God?”  And “why are you allowing this to happen?”   It is a prayer of honesty and truth and feelings.

3 – Eucharistic Adoration.  This is also a form of prayer, but it goes beyond regular prayer.  It is a time to adore the Lord as he is present to us in His Risen Body in the Eucharist.  It is certainly a time for prayers of thanksgiving and praise but can also be a time for prayers of supplication.  I go to Eucharistic Adoration at least once a week.

4 – The Sacrament of Reconciliation.   St. Paul tells us that we have all sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  All means all.  Christians too sin.  Even the Pope goes to confession.  There is no doubt that when I do something that I know is wrong, or more often, fail to do something I know that I should have done, I immediately ask for God’s forgiveness.  However, it is very freeing to regularly confess our sins to a priest and to hear him give us God’s forgiveness.

5 – The Rosary.  I love praying the rosary.  I try to do it every day.  In the rosary you can meditate on the mysteries of God’s touch to mankind.  The rosary is meant to be a meditative prayer where we literally focus on many of the stories from the scriptures about our salvation.  I look at it as a mini-course on God’s love and action.

6 – The Bible.  The Bible is a special gift that the Church has given to the world.  In it we hear God’s Word and receive direction and support for our lives.  Every liturgy that the Church does has at least one reading from the Bible.  We should listen closely to it at every liturgy but it also should have a special place in our homes.  The Catholic Church has given us the Bible and it is up to the Catholic Church to help us understand it.  I highly recommend using a Catholic study guide; My favorite is The Word Among us.   Going to a good Catholic Bible study is great (stay away from Protestant ones as they can misinterpret the Bible).  There are many online resources to help us (see last page).

7 – Charity and Service.  Every Christian is called to be a person of action.  We are called to feed the poor, heal the sick, visit the lonely and those in prisons etc.  Every parish has some sort of ministry to help us do that.  Check it out and become involved.  Put your faith in to action.

8 – The Blessed Virgin Mary.  The Lord literally gave His mother to us to help us in our journey towards Him.  Since the very beginnings of the Church Mary has been held in high esteem and has helped the Church and all Christians in many ways.  It is good to learn about Mary and to ask her intercession in your life.  She loves you as her own son or daughter.

9 – The Saints.  The Saints were all ordinary people just like you and me.  They struggled with the same things we struggled with and they were able to grow so close to Jesus and follow Him that the Church assures us that they are in heaven.  They intercede for us in prayer and they love it when we ask them to do so.  Try to learn as much as you can about the Saints and learn from them how to follow the Lord.

10 – Go on a Retreat.  A retreat is simply a time set aside for you to get away from the normal distractions in life and to draw closer to the Love that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit have for you.   Some retreats have themes, and some are simply quiet time with the Lord.  Try one, you will love it.

11 – Visit Holy Sites.  Throughout the world there are places that one would consider a Holy Site.  It might be one because of its history and what happened there, or it could be just an ordinary place that has been set aside for people to visit and grow closer to God.  I have been fortunate to visit many Holy Sites throughout the world, including the Holy Land, Rome and several places where Mary has appeared.  I have one Holy Site nearby, The Shrine of Our Lady of the Island that I love to visit and spend time with the Lord.

12 – Be Proud to be Catholic.  The more you learn about the Church, the prouder you will be.  Yes, the Church is not perfect (the priest sex scandal shows us that), but it is something that Jesus Himself started and maintains.  No other organization on this planet has lasted as long as the Church has.  It is an instrument of God’s grace.  Let your pride in the Church show.  Tell others about it.

There are so many other resources that the Church offers us that we should take advantage of.  I have compiled a partial list of some important Internet Resources and include that here.  There are also so many great books out there that you could (should) read.  Perhaps another time I will look in to that.  May our good Lord bless you in your walk with Him.

CATHOLIC    INTERNET    RESOURCES

CATHOLIC WEB SITES

SITES EVERY CATHOLIC SHOULD USE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THEIR FAITH:

The Vatican:                                       www.vatican.va    (choose English in the menu at top right)

EWTN:                                                 www.ewtn.com

New Advent:                                       www.newadvent.org

Catechism of the Catholic Church:   www.scborromeo.org/ccc.htm

US Conference of Bishops:                www.usccb.org

Catholic Answers:                              www.catholic.com

News Vatican:                                     www.news.va

Catholic News Service:                       www.catholicnews.com

Rome Reports:  (video news)                        www.romereports.com    Choose English at top right

Jimmy Akin:                                        www.jimmyakin.com

Life Teen:  (for Youth, but….)                        www.lifeteen.com

Amazing Catechists:                           www.amazingcatechists.com

Cardinal Newman Society:                www.cardinalnewmansociety.org

Strange Notions:                                www.strangenotions.com

uCatholic                                            www.ucatholic.com

Catholic Lane:                                     www.catholiclane.com

Institute of Catholic Culture:            www.instituteofcatholicculture.org  FREE Catholic Courses

Word on Fire:                                     www.wordonfire.org

Dynamic Catholic:                              www.dynamiccatholic.org

CATHOLIC APPS FOR YOUR SMART PHONE:

Search your play store for these apps

Liturgy of the Hours:                          ibreviary

Catholic prayers and readings etc.   laudate

Novena prayers etc                            pray

Catholic radio                                     Relevant Radio

The Bible                                            Bible

Eternal Word Network                      EWTN

Mass times                                         Catholic Mass times

Catholic Dating                                   Ckiss

10 Quotes from Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton by Tom Perna

Abortion, Charity, Church, Converts, Family, Marriage, Miracles, Saints, Spirituality, Uncategorized

Today (originally published Jan 4th) is the memorial of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, the first Native born American saint of the Catholic Church. She was born in New York in the year 1774 to a wealthy and prosperous Episcopalian family. In 1794, she married a young successful man by the name of William Magee Seton. They would have 5 children together. Due to unforeseen circumstances, he lost his fortune and eventually his health. They traveled to Italy to find a cure for his physical ailments, but in the end, he died while living in Italy.

During her time in Italy, she became familiar with Catholicism through some friends and eventually made a Profession of Faith in the Catholic Church on March 14, 1805. Her family and friends back home were completely opposed to her becoming Catholic, but she persevered through it all. After returning home, she found herself in financial ruin because her family and friends shunned her decision to become Catholic.

After receiving an invitation from a priest, she established the first Catholic school in Baltimore in 1808. In 1809, she created a small community of religious sisters in Emmitsburg, Maryland. At first, they were known as the Sisters of St. Joseph, but eventually changed their name to the Daughters of Charity. From the moment, she became known as Mother Seton. Her small religious community grew exceptionally in 100 years going from Baltimore to New York, then to Cincinnati, Halifax, New Jersey, Greensburg, and St. Louis. From there, the community continued to spread West. They have been in my diocese, Phoenix, since 1933.

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton died on January 21, 1821 in Emmitsburg, Maryland.  She was beatified in 1963 by Pope St. John XXIII. On September 14, 1975, she was canonized by Pope St. Paul VI.

Below are 10 Quotes from the great American Catholic Saint known as Mother Seton –

1. Devotional Reading: “Give some time, if it is only half an hour in every day, to devotional reading, which is as necessary to the well ordering of the mind as the hand of the gardener is to prevent weeds destroying your favorite flowers.”

2. Faith, Hope, and Love: “Faith lifts the staggering soul on one side, Hope supports it on the other. Experience says it must be, and Love says let it be.”

3. Going to the Catholic Church: “I will go peaceably and firmly to the Catholic Church: for if Faith is so important to our salvation, I will seek it where true Faith first began, seek it among those who received it from God Himself.”

4. Heaven: “The gate of heaven is very low; only the humble can enter it.”

5. God’s will before our will: “’Thy will be done’ – What a comfort and support those four little words are to my soul. I have repeated them until they are softened to the sweetest harmony.”

6. Parental Advice: “If I had to advise parents, I should tell them to take great care about the people with whom their children associate…Much harm can result from bad company, and we are inclined by nature to follow what is worse than what is better.”

7. Penance: “Penance is the purifier of the soul.”

8. Suffering: “This is not a country for solitude and silence, but for warfare and crucifixion. You are not to stay in his silent agonies of the Garden at night, but go from post to pillar, to the very fastening of the Cross. If you suffer so much the better for our high journey above.”

9. Illness/Suffering: “I never experienced so keenly the presence of this beloved Lord as I have since I have been ill. It is as if I were seeing the good Jesus, Him, and His holy Mother, here, continually seated at my side, under a visible form, to console me, cheer me, and to encourage me throughout all the hours of my long and painful suffering.”

10. Serving God: “This union of my soul with God is my wealth in poverty and joy in deepest afflictions.

Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton…Pray for Us 

To read how St. Elizabeth Ann Seton gave my wife and I our miracle daughter, click here:  http://deaconmarty.com/saint-elizabeth-ann-seton-and-how-she-personally-brought-a-miracle-to-my-family-by-deacon-marty-mcindoe/

No Birthday to Celebrate by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Abortion, Anxiety and Worry, Charity, Ethics, Forgiveness, Pro-Life, Relationships

Recently I saw a Gary Varvel cartoon depicting a multitude of children floating on a heavenly cloud with one saying to the other “I wish I could have celebrated a birthday”. In the cartoon there is another “cloud-baby” reading a newspaper with the headline ROE VS WADE now 35 (it is an old cartoon). The message was quite clear, the souls of all the aborted babies are in heaven, but they wish they had been given the opportunity to be born and enjoy all that our earthly lives enjoy, including birthday celebrations. This really hit me, especially with Right to Life Sunday coming this weekend. I find it difficult to comprehend how our Nation, whose Declaration of Independence says, “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Our government is supposed to protect these rights for all of us. Yet, the current law of the land allows us to kill unborn babies. We kill almost 2,000 per day. This is a true holocaust whose numbers far exceed any holocaust that man has done in history. We don’t use the term “kill”, we use “abort”. It sounds better but is truly the same thing. Many abortions are pure torture for the “baby” but we use the term “fetus” or “grouping of cells” to sound better. Look at any ultrasound picture; you can see that it is a baby. The torture consists of pulling off arms and legs and crushing heads. So much for the unalienable right to LIFE.
I know that abortion is a complicated topic today. I also know that too often women are in a very sad situation in life and they feel compelled to do this. However, I also know that any good human being must know that killing a defenseless child is bad, and that is what we are doing. Yes a woman does have the right to her own body, but what about the right the unborn baby has to live? No one should have a right to kill another living human being, especially the most vulnerable. It used to be that the Democratic Party prided itself on caring for the poorest and most defenseless but now they are the champions of Abortion. What happened? Certainly it seems that finances come in to play. USA today published an article on Feb 26, 2018 entitled, If the NRA owns Republicans, Planned Parenthood owns Democrats. There is no doubt that Planned Parenthood gives incredible financial aid to the Democratic Party and to Democratic candidates. It gives none to Republican candidates but spends considerable money to stop Republican candidates. Planned Parenthood receives about 587 million (2014 figures) in tax money and in the last three election cycles Planned Parenthood advocacy and political arms, employees, and their families have spent over $38 million to elect or defeat candidates for federal office who decide how much taxpayers subsidize the nation’s largest abortion provider. They appear now to be spending about $30 million for this year’s midterm elections to support democrats. Matt Walsh of the Daily Wire even goes so far to say that Planned Parenthood launders money for the Democratic Party “The abortion conglomerate has been giving millions to Democrat campaigns and Democrat causes for decades. Meanwhile, they are given millions — 500 million, to be exact — in taxpayer dollars annually.” It would appear that money trumps over care for the poor and defenseless babies in the womb. I find this very sad.
To be perfectly frank, I do not like Planned Parenthood. I look to some of the things that its founder, Margaret Sanger has said about the workings of Planned Parenthood. She referred to blacks and other minorities as “…human weeds,’ ‘reckless breeders,’ ‘spawning… human beings who never should have been born.” Margaret Sanger, Pivot of Civilization. She also said, “We do not want word to go out that we want to exterminate the Negro population,” Woman’s Body, Woman’s Right: A Social History of Birth Control in America, by Linda Gordon. Planned Parenthood seems to be doing that now through abortion and birth control measures. Our society seems to be ignoring this terrible race discrimination. As Christians, we recognize that all people are equal in the eyes of God. We are all His children. Planned Parenthood is quickly eliminating God’s children, both black and white, but with a very unequal rate against blacks. This has to stop.
We have lost over 56,000,000 lives to abortion since the Supreme Court decision (compare this to 1,354,664 total deaths in ALL the wars we have fought since we became a nation). I can’t help but to wonder if we killed off the person who would have found a cure to cancer, or other terrible diseases. What if we lost another Beethoven, or Tolkien or……. We really do not know. In 1994 Mother Theresa was invited to speak at the National Prayer Breakfast at the White House. She said, “The greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself. And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another? How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As always, we must persuade her with love and we remind ourselves that love means to be willing to give until it hurts. Jesus gave even His life to love us. So, the mother who is thinking of abortion, should be helped to love, that is, to give until it hurts her plans, or her free time, to respect the life of her child. The father of that child, whoever he is, must also give until it hurts.
By abortion, the mother does not learn to love, but kills even her own child to solve her problems. And, by abortion, that father is told that he does not have to take any responsibility at all for the child he has brought into the world. The father is likely to put other women into the same trouble. So abortion just leads to more abortion. Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love, but to use any violence to get what they want. This is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion.” It is also said that Hillary Clinton asked her why there hasn’t been a woman President yet and Mother Teresa said that is probably because she was aborted.
I have a great deal of compassion for the woman who finds herself pregnant and feels that she just cannot give birth to the child. So often she is led, not always freely, to choose abortion. Once she chooses this she is often filled with guilt and remorse. In my ministry as a deacon, I have dealt with a considerable number of women in this situation. I will share one story that I shared in a previous article. One time, a woman that I knew, come up to me and asked me why I was always smiling and always so happy. I told her that it was because I believed in a God who loved me, gave me hope and forgave me. She said that she found it hard to believe in a God like that. She had lived a very difficult life and it was only recently that she had been able to come out of those difficulties. A few days after our initial encounter, she asked to speak to me in private. We talked for a while and she told me that she didn’t think that God could forgive her. I asked her why she thought that. She told me that she had an abortion when she was quite young and that it had plagued her with guilt ever since. She told me that she couldn’t forgive herself, so how could God forgive her? I felt really bad for this woman, and the pain that she had held on to for over twenty years. She had been away from the Church for quite some time, but was just now thinking of coming back. I asked her to speak to a priest about forgiveness and receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I also hooked her up with a local organization that gave counseling to women who have had abortions. Fortunately, she took me up on my advice and responded well and the change in her gives new meaning to the phrase, “born again”. Unfortunately she is not the only woman who has come to me with the same guilt and remorse that having an abortion brings.
Too often woman are coerced in to abortion by boyfriends, husbands, fathers and mothers, friends etc. Too often this coercion is through threats of violence and black mail. I feel so bad for these women. They should be given other choices. For me, adoption is one that helps all involved. We have one daughter who we adopted. Her birth mother was only 17 and a senior in High School but because she had the support of her family, she chose to give birth to her child and give her up for adoption. I thank God for that because now I have a daughter (and three grandsons) who have brought me so much joy. It is imperative that our government and churches and social agencies work to help women who are pregnant and do not have the ability to keep their children. What seems like a quick and easy out, abortion, often leads to much pain and guilt for all of their lives.
Lastly, we really need to consider the unborn baby. The life that is there should have the right to live and experience all that life has to offer us, including celebrating birthdays. Abortion totally takes that away from them. Even in life situations where poverty and disease and handicaps seem to indicate that life will not be good, so many examples exist to show that children can excel no matter what. It is the mandate of society and its government to make sure that we all have that inalienable right to life. God has brought forth life and we should not take that away. We need to create a society where life is respected and we all work together to ensure that.

Hierarchy by A.J. Avila

Charity, Communication, Family, Marriage, Morality, Scripture

When you read the Bible, you can sometimes see a hierarchy in the way things are listed. For example, each list of the twelve apostles shows Peter first and Judas last.
There’s another hierarchy you can find in the Old Testament: the Ten Commandments. The initial three, often depicted by themselves on one stone tablet, deal with our relationship with God. And the very first one is the most important: “I am the Lord thy God; Thou shalt not have other gods before me.”
Further down the list, we see the hierarchy still in play. “Thou shalt not kill” is obviously more important than the prohibition against adultery, which is greater than the one against stealing, which in turn is more important than not lying. And you can see how those are of more concern than coveting, whether of your neighbor’s spouse or goods.
But then there’s this one Commandment that seems—at least by today’s standards–to throw a monkey wrench into the whole idea of such a hierarchy.
“Honor thy father and thy mother.”
It’s the fourth Commandment, right after keeping the Lord’s day holy and right above “Thou shalt not kill.”
Really? Honoring one’s parents is more important than not committing murder?
Yet that’s where God chose to place that Commandment. And God doesn’t make mistakes.
You’d never know, by watching any current television program, that God gives it such weight. When, for example, is the last time you saw a TV show in which a child honored his parents?
Instead, parents, it seems, are supposed to honor their kids, bending over backwards to win their children’s affection. Nowadays parents—especially conservative ones—are portrayed as idiots who need to learn how to love. A parent is supposed to not only accept but honor his child’s life choices, even if he is constantly breaking the sixth Commandment by having sex without the benefit of marriage. Anybody who doesn’t is portrayed as a cruel, doddering old fool standing in the way of true love.
Of course we should all show respect for each other, but I honestly don’t think parents honoring their kids’ sinfulness is what God had in mind when He wrote that Commandment, and especially when he chose to place it where He did.
But I digress. What I should really be looking at is how well I myself have kept that Commandment.
I have to admit I went through those ridiculous teenage years in which I thought my parents weren’t terribly bright–as if my life experience was so much greater that I knew better than they did. Mom and Dad, whom, when I was little, I had accepted as almost God-like, suddenly didn’t know their right from their left. How lucky for them that they had a teenage daughter who could set them straight.
Of course, as I got older, I realized I was the one who hadn’t been so bright.
As Mark Twain once put it, “When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years.”
Both of my parents are gone now. Dad died in 2001, and Mom followed him five years later. Sometimes I wish I could go back and show them the honor and respect I should have.
After all, God seems to think such honor is very important indeed.

You can visit A.J. Avila’s blog (Reflections on My Catholic Journey) at Reflections on My Catholic Journey

Proud to be Catholic – by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Charity, Church, Demons, Eucharist, Evangelism, Healing, Holy Orders, Holy Spirit, Sacraments, Scripture, Teaching

On the back of my car I have a sticker that says, “Proud to be Catholic”. With all that has happened in the recent sex abuse scandal some people might wonder how I could be proud to be Catholic and continue to publically acknowledge that. Nonetheless, I am proud to be Catholic and I am also ashamed at what some of our Catholic priests and bishops have done or even failed to do. It is so sad that those Catholic priests, who performed all sorts of atrocious acts on Children, failed to live by their calling. They are very sick men. I think that it is even sadder that some of our Bishops hid what had been happening thus perpetuating more abuse. St. Luke, in Acts 20:28 talks to the bishops of the early Church saying “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.” Some day these bishops will be held accountable before the Lord. But even though these priests and bishops are a big part of the Catholic Church, they do not account for the whole of the Catholic Church. The Church itself is Holy. St. Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians Chapter 2, verses 20 through 22 says “Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.” The Church is Holy, but these men are human and are sinners.
We have to remember that for 2,000 years, the Church has been the presence of Jesus to the world. The Catholic Church put together the bible that we use. It is God’s word and we deliver it to a world that needs it so badly. Every day, in just about every area in the world, the Church brings forth the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist and continually offers to the sick (and dying) the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick as well as the other Sacraments. Besides all those things that you would expect the Church to do, it “has been the means of reducing more languages to writing than have all other factors combined. It has created more schools, more theories of education, and more systems than has any other one force. More than any other power in history it has impelled men to fight suffering, whether that suffering has come from disease, war or natural disasters. It has built thousands of hospitals, inspired the emergence of the nursing and medical professions, and furthered movement for public health and the relief and prevention of famine.” – Kenneth Scott Latourette, Sterling Professor at Yale University: A History of Christianity, Vol. II, originally published by HarperCollins Publishers 1953, revised 1975, pp.1470,14.
In Saint John’s Gospel (13:35) we read, “By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one for another.” For me, the Catholic Church excels at showing the love of Jesus to all people (not just its own). Matthew Kelly tells us, “Every day the Catholic Church feeds more people, clothes more people, houses more people, and educates more people than any other organization in the world…” That is something to really be proud of. Statistics provided by both Forbes Magazine and Business Week confirm this statement. They state that, “The Catholic Church is indeed the largest charitable organization on the planet BY FAR.” Some of the statistics are quite interesting. Charity and healthcare centers run in the world by the Church include: 5,391 hospitals, most of them in America (1,627) and Africa (1,295); 16,610 dispensaries, mainly in Africa (5,181); America (4,731) and Asia (3,520); 604 Care Homes for people with Leprosy, mainly in Asia (296) and Africa (187); 16,270 Homes for the elderly, or the chronically ill or people with a disability, mainly in Europe (8,348) and America (4,086); 9,924 orphanages, mainly in Asia (3,934); 12,376 nurseries, mainly in Asia (3,247) and America (3,435); 14,551 marriage counseling centers, mainly in America (5,546) and Europe (5,666); 3,776 social rehabilitation centers and 38,484 other kinds of institutions.
To me the Catholic Church is the very presence of Jesus in the world. It continues to bring His healing and compassion and teaching and presence to those who need it so badly. It is made of human beings who often fail at being what God calls them to be, but it is empowered by the Holy Spirit and will continue the mission God has given it. I have no doubt that Satan loves to try to pull apart the Church. Satan knows how to use human weakness to harm the Church, but, as Jesus says, “the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). I am proud to be a Catholic. I will continue to love my Church and do whatever I can to build it up. I will support all those many good priests and bishops that we have who have been so hurt by this scandal. I will also pray for all of the victims of the abuse and for all who have been affected by it. I will be vigilant in fighting the evils that are attacking and are within the Church. St. Paul tells us in Ephesians 6:12 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” Our Church is the Body of Christ, the Victor!

THE SHADOW OF HIS WINGS – FR. GEREON GOLDMANN, OFM – Review by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Angels, Anxiety and Worry, Blessed Virgin Mary, Books, Charity, Church, Eucharist, Evangelism, Healing, Holy Orders, Holy Spirit, Miracles, Sacraments


After reading this book, I now have a new hero: Fr. Gereon Goldmann. Fr. Goldman was an ordinary yet exceptional man who was filled with love for his God and for all of God’s people. He continually put this love in to action in the midst of one of the darkest times in human history. Father Goldmann was a proud German man who quite early in his life felt the call to the priesthood. In 1939, while he was a seminarian, he was drafted in to the German Army under the Nazi Regime. He despised the Nazis but served his country the best way that he could while still keeping his faith. His draft brought him in to the dreaded Nazi SS headed by Heinrich Himmler, but even in the midst of this darkness he was able to bring forth the light of God. The darkness continued even after his capture when he was taken to a French prisoner of war camp in North Africa. The French hated the Germans and treated them very poorly. In spite of all of this, Goldmann kept his faith and stood up to the darkness and prevailed.
I really do not want to give a further synopsis of this book. My hope is that you will read it yourself. This is a book that should be read by every Christian, especially Catholics. It is filled with suspense and harrowing war stories. It certainly shows the evil of war and most certainly shows the evil of the Nazis. What really shines out through this book is the faith of this one man and the faith of many associated with him. Faith can give us the strength to not only handle the difficulties thrown at us, but to rise above these difficulties and to shine. Fr. Goldmann certainly does this. I quite literally had a hard time putting this book down. This book surprises you over and over again and you can’t help but to want more.
The book deals not only with the experiences that Fr. Goldmann had during the war and during his imprisonment, it also shows those civilians left behind and how they dealt with the horrors of war. Over and over again a common thread of Faith and Prayer weaves together to form a blanket of protection over Fr. Goldmann. He should have been killed so many times, but wasn’t. He was also able to maintain his desire of not hurting or killing anyone during the war. As a matter of fact, the only time he seemed to use his gun was while threatening a Bishop and a Priest on two separate occasions. You need to read the book to learn about that. The Lord, often against apparently resolute Nazi orders, seems to take Fr. Goldmann all over Europe (even to meet the Pope) and Northern Africa. The Epilogue and Appendix show his post war work in Japan and in India. It is absolutely amazing how God has used this man in so many different places.
Fr. Goldmann had so many miracles happen around him that you will be totally astonished. To say that God worked through Fr. Goldmann would be an understatement. God empowered Fr. Goldmann to be able to do what would normally be impossible. There is no doubt that the angels were with him. This is true not only during the war and prisoner sections of this book but also in what happened after the war. Fr. Goldmann dreamt of being a missionary to Japan and his dream came true. He was so much more than a missionary. He was a beacon of light within the darkness of evil.
Central to Fr. Goldmann’s ministry was to bring physical healing (he was eventually a medic) and spiritual healing. His love of the Eucharist and Confession brought so much spiritual healing to those around him. Through this work he became quite an evangelist causing large numbers of people to come back to the Church or to be welcomed anew in to the Church. He stood up to the Nazi propaganda against the Church and people saw through its falsehood because of him.
This book has challenged me to be more of the man that Fr. Goldmann was. It challenged me to deeper prayer and deeper appreciation of the Sacraments, especially the Eucharist and Confession. It opened my eyes to see how God works through any situation, even those that seem so dark. The book challenged me to deeper trust in God and His call to me no matter where I am. It challenged me to believe more in the power of intercessory prayer. My challenge to you is to read this book. I am certain that you will be glad that you did. The book was originally published in 1964 and later in 2000 and then 2008 by IGNATIUS PRESS. I purchased it on Amazon. Go for it, you will be happy you did. What are you waiting for?

On Trust and Forgiveness by A. J. Avila

Charity, Family, Forgiveness, Trust

On Trust and Forgiveness

Posted on December 16, 2017 by ajavilanovels

Growing up, I heard a lot of stories about World War II. The most bizarre one I ever heard, however, took place on our own shores.
It involved the man who would one day become my father-in-law. Jake (not his real name), was drafted into the army and sent to fight in Europe. Before he left, he arranged for his salary to be deposited into his brother’s bank account. His brother agreed that when he came back, the cash would be waiting for him. But if he didn’t return, there would be no question where the money was supposed to go, and there wouldn’t be any problems about a will and probate.
When he came back from the war, Jake asked his brother for his money.
And it was gone. His brother had spent every penny.
Maybe the brother was betting that Jake would die in action, so he figured he would get an early start on his inheritance.
Now, I don’t know about you, but if one of my siblings stole just one day’s wages from me, I’d be more than a little miffed.
This guy stole years of salary.
Amazingly, Jake forgave him, even though it meant he came back to the States totally broke.
Wait. It gets worse. You’d think the brother would do whatever he could to make it up to Jake, right? You’d think he’d work out a plan to repay him.
Nope. He never repaid a cent. He didn’t even attempt to repay any of it.
Years later, speaking about this, Jake just shrugged and said, “I guess he really needed the money.”
That’s the kind of man Jake was.
It reminds me of our debt to God. We’re supposed to do penance to make up for our sins. The problem, of course, is that no penance can totally make up to an infinitely good God for even the slightest of our sins. Yet, if we at least do what we can, He’s willing to wipe the slate clean by giving us indulgences.
I shudder to think what would happen if we didn’t at the very least try to do penance.
I was fortunate enough to marry the son of a man who was so Christ-like that he wiped out his brother’s entire debt.
I can always keep before me Jake’s example of love and forgiveness.

The Real First Thanksgiving – by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Apologetics, Blessed Virgin Mary, Charity, Church, Converts, Eucharist, Evangelism, Liturgy, Sacraments, Spirituality

The Great Cross marks the spot where the Spanish first landed in St. Augustine, Florida on September 8, 1565.  The statue of  Father Francisco Lopez marks the spot where the first THANKSGIVING mass was celebrated.

We always think that the first Thanksgiving happened in 1621 with the Pilgrims who settled in Massachusetts. In this Thanksgiving the local Indians came to the Pilgrims and brought them native food. There is no doubt that this really happened, but was it really the first Thanksgiving in the Americas? History says no. The first Thanksgiving occurred about 56 years before that in 1565. This one, like the Pilgrim Thanksgiving also involved European settlers and American Indians.
On September 8th, 1565 (the day the Church celebrates the birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary), Spanish settlers landed at what is now St. Augustine, Florida. The first person to come on land was Father Francisco Lopez, the chaplain of the expedition. He came on land holding a cross. The leader of the exposition, Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, then came on land while Father Francisco was holding the cross. The leader then kneeled down in front of the cross and kissed it. The rest of the exposition came on land and did some preliminary set up and then gathered to celebrate mass in thanksgiving for the safe passage they had been given. Catholic’s know the mass as the celebration of the Eucharist. Eucharist in Greek means Thanksgiving.
Immediately following the mass, Father Francisco, now the first pastor of the first settlement in the Americas, declared that they would celebrate a fraternal meal by inviting the Timucua Indians to dine with the settlers. The landing site of the Spanish was right next to a large Timucua village. The two peoples celebrated a Thanksgiving feast together. This was certainly the first Thanksgiving meal celebrated in the Americas.
Our traditional Thanksgiving dinner usually consists of roasted turkey, potatoes and vegetables that were probably used at the Pilgrim’s Thanksgiving in Massachusetts. The Indians provided these foods to be shared with the settlers. The Spanish Thanksgiving in St. Augustine, Florida was quite different. Historical records show that it consisted of food brought by the Spanish settlers. This food was salted pork, garbanzo beans, ship’s bread and red wine. It also, most likely, consisted of some foods gathered by the Spanish settlers when they stopped in the Caribbean Islands. The Timucua Indians probably provided corn, fresh fish, berries, or beans.
The two Thanksgiving dinners had much in common. They both included the European Settlers and the Native Americans. They both were done in Thanksgiving to God for all that He had done. They both included food that was shared by all. They both had a sense of Thanksgiving to God as well as a sense of fraternal gathering. The main difference is that the Catholic Thanksgiving began with a Thanksgiving meal that goes all the way back to the Apostles and the early Church and has been celebrated every day since then by the Church.
The Pilgrims came to the America to escape from governmental persecution of their Puritan religion. The Spanish came to America with direction from their government and with a twofold mission; first to bring the message of Jesus’ salvation, and second to gain new lands for Spain. It is interesting that the first thing done is to have the Chaplain of the exposition bring a cross on to the new land and then, almost immediately after, to celebrate the Eucharist. The fraternal dinner with the Native Americans was to follow the mass. This is very much like the early Church which first had the celebration of the Eucharist followed by the Agape fraternal meal. Even today, in many families, we go first to mass on Sunday and then have a family Sunday dinner. The real first Thanksgiving gets the order right: first give thanks to God and then celebrate our fraternal love with each other. This is something we should do every day, not just once per year.

On Being Bullied – by A.J. Avila (PLUS a new novel)

Anxiety and Worry, Books, Charity, Communication, Morality, Peace and Justice, Relationships, Teaching


Not too long ago, I published a blog post about how I was spurned in church during the Sign of Peace (see https://reflections911.wordpress.com/2017/07/07/spurned-at-church and also shared on this blog).  Then I made a huge mistake. I mentioned the post on a forum.
You would not believe the negativity I got. I was told what a horrible person I am, how being spurned was my own fault, and how I should have been more sympathetic to the woman who had treated me so poorly.
Silly me. I thought it was a teachable moment. I thought I made it clear this was something I needed to work on, that since St. Paul had rejoiced in his sufferings, I should learn to do that too.
I guess I should have known better than to mention what happened since you would not believe the reactions I’ve gotten when I disclose that I used to be bullied as a kid. I’ve grouped those responses into seven categories:
1. “I Don’t Believe You”
You’re told you’re either delusional or making a mountain out of a molehill. Like Holocaust deniers, some folk find it impossible to believe others, especially children, could be so cruel. Therefore, you must be making the whole thing up, probably to gain unwarranted sympathy for yourself.
2. “You Must Have Done Something to Deserve It”
Folks who tell you this also believe others wouldn’t be so cruel—unless, of course, you’ve given them a reason. You must have been a bully first and the treatment you received was simple retaliation. When you protest that you didn’t do anything, you’re not believed.
3. “Why Can’t You Just Shrug It Off?”
People who tell you this have probably experienced some bullying themselves. I agree that most likely few kids get through childhood without such a confrontation or two happening to them. What this fails to consider is that you’re not talking about a couple of isolated incidents. You’re talking about daily bullying, and not just by other children but by those—like teachers—in authority over you. A person who tells you to just shrug it off has no idea how much shrugging this would take.
4. “Grow a Backbone!” You should have a stiff upper lip and let the insults slide off you like water off a duck. After all, sticks and stones may break your bones, but names can never harm you. What the person telling you this fails to understand is that you were only a child and that names can harm your self-image, especially if it’s chronic name-calling.
5. “You Should Have Fought Back!”
This one seems to envision two little boys slugging it out on the school playground, and the bully, once thoroughly whooped, stops antagonizing his victim. Well, golly gee willikers, why didn’t I think of that? Oh wait. I did—with disastrous results. The problem here is that you’re not bullied by just other kids but by those in authority. So if you call your bully a name, she goes whining to the teacher, and then—behold!—now you’re the bully! It doesn’t matter if you do only a tenth of what the bully did to you. In everyone’s eyes, you are automatically wrong. In fact, you’ve just demonstrated that you deserve everything you’re getting.
6. “You Were the Victim of Bullying? Oh, Goody! I’ve Been Looking for One of Those!”
Amazingly, when you mention that you were bullied as a child, adult bullies, like a shark smelling a drop of blood in the ocean, come out in droves. I’ve been told by people who don’t know me at all that I’m a terrible, horrible person who has all kinds of physical and psychological problems.
7. “It Happened to Me Too”
Every once in a while, I come across a soul I can commiserate with. Unless you’ve been a victim of this yourself, you can only imagine what it’s like. Dealing with daily badgering isn’t easy, and I entirely disagree with the extremes of either jumping off a building or shooting up a classroom. So . . . just what do you do to survive this? My own tactic was to retreat into a world of books. When my nose was in a book, I was less likely to be accosted, and each novel I read allowed me to share an adventure in another world where I wasn’t bullied. I ended up reading a book a day—and if anything good came out of this, it helped prepare me for when I myself would be the novelist creating other worlds.

A.J. Avila has a brand new novel.  Take a look below.

My third Christian novel, Amaranth, is now available in paperback.
Here’s the story:
Would you take an elixir that made you perpetually young and physically immortal?
What if the price for it was your eternal soul?
Billionaire Desmond Sceller acquires such a wonder drug. But when eighty-year-old Marie Long is rejuvenated by it against her will, she quickly discovers unending beauty and youth is not the paradise it seems. Sceller, however, intends on using the elixir to entice all mankind into submitting to his tyrannical control. When Marie and her grandson Peter unearth this evil scheme, they soon discover that only an extraordinary sacrifice on their part can free humanity from Sceller’s nefarious plan.

Click here to purchase Amaranth on Amazon
Also, right now the Kindle version is on sale for just 99¢.

 

One Remarkable Man: Brother Joseph Dutton by Deacon Marty McIndoe

Charity, Church, Evangelism, Godly Patriotism, Peace and Justice, Relationships, Sacraments, Saints, Service, Spirituality

Brother Joseph with some of his leper friends  More pictures at the end.

God gives us the gift of remarkable people to remind us that mankind can be so much more than it often is. One of these remarkable people is Brother Joseph Dutton. Brother Dutton was born Ira Dutton on April 27, 1847 on a family farm in Stowe, Vermont. When he was only four years old, his family moved to Janesville, Wisconsin. Ira was an intelligent boy and industrious student. He worked hard to be able to attend college. After college the Civil War began and he joined the Army on the side of the North. He was assigned duties as a quartermaster. This not only kept him out of battle, but also provided training for what God would call him to do. At the end of the war he met a woman that he fell in love with. They were married, but sadly she left him after a year and asked for a divorce. This really upset Ira because he loved his wife and took his marriage vows very seriously.

Ira took a job where he disinterred the bodies of Civil War soldiers from the battlefield graves to be able to move them to the new National Cemeteries. Ira knew this was an important job, but it was also gruesome and depressing. To deal with his depressing job, and the separation from his wife, Ira began drinking heavily. He was able to remain sober for the day job, but was usually drunk for the rest of the time. He did this for about ten years. Ira saw that alcohol was destroying him, so when our Nation was celebrating the 100th year of the Declaration of Independence in 1876, Ira declared independence from alcohol. At this time he made a decision to get right with God and he began searching out different religions. Ira decided to become a Roman Catholic. When he was baptized, he took on the new name of Joseph. He then moved to a Trappist Monastery in Gethsemane, Kentucky to live and pray and work with the monks. Joseph never took formal vows. He left after almost two years knowing that God was calling him to a life of serving others.

When Joseph attended a religious conference he heard about the work that Father Damian was doing with the Lepers in Hawaii. Joseph immediately felt called to go to Hawaii and help Father Damian. Joseph felt this was a way that he could lead a life of penance and also help others. He immediately began making preparations to go to Molokai. He contacted both Church and Civil authorities to obtain permission to go. He never thought to contact Father Damian. Joseph was set and headed for the long journey to Molokai. The day that he arrived on Molokai, July 19, 1886, a very surprised Father Damian greeted this man. Joseph told Father Damian that he had come to devote the rest of his life to serving the lepers and helping Father Damian. One can only imagine how pleased Father Damian was. Father Damian had made numerous requests to both Church and Civil leaders to send him help. None of them seemed to be able to. Now, Joseph appears and becomes Father Damian’s right hand man (and later successor). Even though Joseph was not part of a religious community, from that day on Father Damian called Joseph, Brother Joseph. He has been known as that ever since.

The day after his arrival, Brother Joseph learned how to clean and care for the lepers wounds. This was quite a hard thing for most people to do since lepers are very contagious and at that time it was a disease that ended in death after grueling suffering. Brother Joseph found that the time he had spent disinterring Civil War bodied had prepared him to be able to deal with seeing and treating the lepers wounds. Brother Joseph proved to be a hard and tireless worker. Even though he and Father Damian had quite different personalities, they became very close. They both shared the same desire to serve God’s people who suffered from leprosy. They also both shared a strong love of God. Father Damian once said of Brother Joseph, “..a middle aged, well educated man. He resides here with me and as a true brother helps me caring for the sick. He too, though not a priest, finds his comfort in the Blessed Sacrament. You will admire with me the almighty power of Grace in favor of my new companion.”

Even though Father Damian knew he was dying from leprosy himself, his new friend brought him new hope that the colony would continue. Both of them worked hard together to make the leper colony as good as it could become. On April 15, 1889, Father Damian died from the disease. They had a funeral mass of celebration (something that they did very often with each death in the colony). After his death, the full responsibility of the Leper Colony fell upon Brother Joseph. He was thankful for his training as an Army quartermaster. It helped him in making sure the Colony had all the supplies that it needed. Brother Joseph was also responsible for significant building projects in the community. Finally another priest was sent to the colony, Father Lambert Carmardy to help.

In 1898 the United States formally annexed Hawaii as a U.S. territory. This made Brother Joseph very happy. Brother Joseph was a true Patriot and from the moment he came to Molokai, he hoisted the US Flag every morning and brought it down every evening. He gave the lepers in the colony a sense of his own patriotism. Now this land was US soil and they all rejoiced. The annexation also brought more help to the colony. The government sent funds and help to improve life in the Colony.

In 1908, Brother Dutton heard that the US White Fleet would be coming past Hawaii. Brother Dutton wished that somehow the Fleet would sail past his Colony. President Theodore Roosevelt heard of this wish and sent a Presidential Order to Admiral Charles Stillman Perry to go by Molokai and give a military salute to the Colony. The ships came in battle formation and each ship dipped their colors in salute and Brother Joseph and the Colony dipped their flag in salute for each ship. It was a huge moment for Brother Joseph and the Colony to receive such an honor from the President and the US government.

Even though Brother Joseph was living a life of isolation from the world, he corresponded with many friends. Word of Father Damian’s death and all that Brother Joseph was doing reached out to the world with great interest. Brother Joseph received many letters (and donations) and requests for pictures of him. Brother Joseph was never interested in making himself a hero. He responded to his popularity by saying, “All these writers make me out a hero, while I don’t feel a bit like one. I don’t claim to have done any great things; I am merely trying in a small way to help my neighbor and my own soul”.

After serving almost forty five years at the Colony, Brother Joseph Dutton died in 1931. He was mourned and missed by all in the Colony. World leaders paid tribute to him but one of the best is by President Calvin Coolidge. He said. “Whenever his story is told, men will pause to worship. His faith, his work, his self sacrifice appeal to people because there is always something of the same spirit in them. Therein lies the moral power of the world. He realized a vision that we all have.”

In 1949, Blessed Sacrament Church was built on the land that Brother Joseph’s family farm occupied in Stowe Vermont. It has beautiful Murals painted by Andre Girard on the outside walls of the Church. These murals tell the story of Brother Joseph and the Leper Colony on Molokai. The people of Stowe wanted to tell the story of their remarkable native, Brother Joseph Dutton and to give him honor. I believe that we all should tell the story and give honor to Brother Joseph by the way we live our lives. As President Coolidge said, “he realized a vision that we all have”.

Note: On June 23rd, 2015 the Diocese of Honolulu took the first of many steps to Sainthood for Brother Joseph. They created the Brother Joseph Dutton Guild to gather information for the cause.

St Philomena Church in the leper colony.

Blessed Sacrament Church in Stowe Vermont on the farmland where Brother Joseph was born

Some of the murals depicting Brother Joseph on Molokai located on the outside of the Church in Stowe Vermont.

A close up of the mural depicting Brother Joseph meeting Father Damian