Tuesday, December 11, 2012

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like....

CHRISTMAS!


**
Well, it has for a while, and my family has already gotten our tree. Today, however, I am going to help my brother-in-law get theirs. Hmmmm.....that's some inspiration! I generally like to write scholarly sounding papers on useless subjects; it's great practice, as a matter of fact. I think I shall write one about helping him....


Wow. Random. *?*

So anyways I think he should get the soft needled trees; the poky ones are no fun even if they do look a bit better. I'm heading off to Mass and then work now, but when I get back expect a full report. :D

Sunday, December 9, 2012

Stow the Rifles Away...

Until January, at least.

But no bucks! Unless I go out with a bow; which I most certainly will.

On my way out to the treestand I said my usual prayer to Bl. Francis Xavier Seelos; he didn't think today was a good day, I guess.

But let's just say that if anyone else's hunting season was as successful as mine then better luck next year! :D

Saturday, December 8, 2012

The Immaculate Conception - The Negative and the Positive

So this morning an interesting thought hit me; the negative aspect of the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady. No, no, I'm not talking about negative as in "bad" - I am talking about the negative sin in the Blessed Virgin!

So basically, we have a Virgin conceived without sin. Put that thought away.

Now, let's define grace.


    What is sanctifying grace? --Sanctifying grace is that grace which confers on our souls a new life, that is, a sharing in the life of God Himself.


  1. By sanctifying grace, our souls are made holy and pleasing to God. It is an abiding or permanent grace, which we gain by baptism, and lose only by mortal sin. (My Catholic Faith)
So grace is none other than the life of God. What does that make sin? Sin is nothing other than the absence of grace, the absence of God's love. It is that simple!

So it necessarily follows that if Our Lady was conceived without sin, then she was conceived with grace. It is like an inverse proportion; the less one has sin the more one has grace. Or, the less one has hatred of God the more they must have love of God.

But not only was Our Lady conceived with grace, she was conceived full of grace! 

And the angel being come in, said unto her: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. (Luke 1: 28)

This is an interesting mystery to ponder here. She is full of grace already, yet she continues to gain more. How mysterious are the ways of God! 

The Immaculate Conception

"I am the Immaculate Conception"

Happy Feast Day! On December 8, 1854, Pope Pius IX proclaimed this great dogma which stated that Our Blessed Mother was conceived without the stain of original sin. It is interesting to note that this was nothing new; it had always been held to be true by Church tradition. The Pope was simply elevating the pious thought to a required belief. 


 "And indeed it was wholly fitting that so wonderful a mother should be ever resplendent with the glory of most sublime holiness and so completely free from all taint of original sin that she would triumph utterly over the ancient serpent. To her did the Father will to give his only-begotten Son -- the Son whom, equal to the Father and begotten by him, the Father loves from his heart -- and to give this Son in such a way that he would be the one and the same common Son of God the Father and of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It was she whom the Son himself chose to make his Mother and it was from her that the Holy Spirit willed and brought it about that he should be conceived and born from whom he himself proceeds." (Ineffabilis Deus)

So the Holy Father makes clear his reason for pronouncing this doctrine. She is God's own mother! God deserves a perfect mother; not only does He deserve it but He requires it by His very nature. 

The Holy Father then goes on to list various traditions in the Church which implicitly affirm this truth, like the Council of Trent, and explicitly, such as the Fathers of the Church. 

Finally, he closes with what he hopes his message will inspire:

"Let all the children of the Catholic Church, who are so very dear to us, hear these words of ours. With a still more ardent zeal for piety, religion and love, let them continue to venerate, invoke and pray to the most Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, conceived without original sin. Let them fly with utter confidence to this most sweet Mother of mercy and grace in all dangers, difficulties, needs, doubts and fears. Under her guidance, under her patronage, under her kindness and protection, nothing is to be feared; nothing is hopeless. Because, while bearing toward us a truly motherly affection and having in her care the work of our salvation, she is solicitous about the whole human race. And since she has been appointed by God to be the Queen of heaven and earth, and is exalted above all the choirs of angels and saints, and even stands at the right hand of her only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, she presents our petitions in a most efficacious manner. What she asks, she obtains. Her pleas can never be unheard." (ibid)

So what is he saying; what was the point of the encyclical? It is this: to affirm and explicitly state that Our Lady was conceived without Original Sin by a singular act of God's Will, and that this should inspire in us yet a deeper love and understanding of her great love for us! 

 "What she asks, she obtains. Her pleas can never be unheard." (ibid)

Go save a soul.


Friday, December 7, 2012

Made of Ƿ

So....I was directed by a friend to an awesome site called Made of Ƿ. Pronounced Made of Wynn. It's an Medievalist site and it is AWESOME!

I especially like her Old English/Latin posts; they are quite enjoyable. Go check it out if you are into that kind of thing.

Friday, November 23, 2012

Lone Survivor

So I was informed that the awesome book Lone Survivor is now being turned into a movie! Check out the info here.

Might I point out in the book there are some awesome references to Catholicism and the Rosary in particular. ;)

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

How Time Flies!

So I haven't posted in what, three days? Wow! I think I have a good enough excuse, but since everyone says that I won't bother you with details.

Oh!

Word of the day!

farctate:

The state of being stuffed with food (overeating)


I challenge every reader to use this word at least once this day! Good luck, in our culture it should be quite easy. :)

Sunday, November 18, 2012

New Word of the Day

I've been trying to improve my vocabulary and as such have decided to use learn a new word and use it that day. Why don't you join me? The new word for today is:

ABLIGURITION

Relevant for today's society, meaning: "excessive spending on food or drink". I will find some way to use it today.....

Ups and Downs

Blogging has its ups and downs. The biggest struggle for me is finding something to write about. I have written for several other ones and for me that is the hardest part.

Inspiration for a post usually comes when I am farthest from paper, pen, or keyboard. While trying to retain the thoughts I had I succeed in losing them. Then when I sit down to the computer to write them I draw a blank.

I always rectify this issue by writing about it! And in case you couldn't tell already, I always turn to poetry for inspiration in moments like these too.

Wow, I'm writing about not knowing what to write about and look how far I've gotten already!

I think Tennyson describes my feeling best:

Break, break, break,
On thy cold gray stones, O Sea!
And I would that my tongue could utter
The thoughts that arise in me.

He was speaking of speaking, I am writing of writing. I think that makes sense. :) But like he said, I can't explain what I mean so whether or not it makes sense, I can't explain that either!

I often get grand posts all drafted in my mind. But when I get them on the computer, they look like junk! I believe that's what St. John of the Cross meant when he said something to the effect of: "When a soul looks all around and sees nothing worth living for, and still goes on, that is one who loves God" (sorry, can't find the exact quote now) 

Writing is like that. When one looks all around and can't find anything worth it, yet persists, that is what makes them worthy to be a writer. Have you ever wondered how the greatest writers of all time came to be?It is because they persisted through their down times. 

This is a strange ramble but it is the only way I can express myself succinctly. I shall leave it at this. 

God Bless! 


Saturday, November 17, 2012

Home Safe

We made it home from Ordinations to the Diaconate in Denton just fine. It was great to see the brothers and I finally got to meet Fr. Michael Mary! Please keep them in your continued prayers.

Friday, November 16, 2012

Tomorrow!

Tomorrow my family will be going to Lincoln, NE, to the ordinations to the Diaconate of Brs. Magdala and Yousef of the Transalpine Redemptorists. 

We have a friend who is a member there at Papa Stronsay; we have also met these Brothers on multiple occasions. It will be good to see them again.

Prayers for them please, as well as for a safe trip home for them (and us!).

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Gone Fish-......Hunting

Hey y'all! I'll be up at 4:30 AM tomorrow to get get me some deer jerky! If I get anything I'll put up some pictures. In the meantime, say a prayer to St. Hubert and Bl. Francis Xavier Seelos that I see one. Shoot it. Kill it. Find it. Gut it. Freeze it. Eat it. And don't get food poisoning.


I've learned the hard way that when you say "Dear Lord, let me shoot a deer", He'll pull out His sense of humor and let you shoot as many deer as you want. You still have to kill them- and then find them ;)

God is specific. Be specific in your prayers and He will listen. He might say no but He still wants us to be specific.

Before I get off on another unrelated (even if it is a wholesome and holy) topic I'll bid you good night and get some sleep. God Bless. :)

Better for man to avenge a friend....

Beowulf spoke, the son of Ecgthoew:
"Sorrowful not, brave one! Better for man
To avenge a friend than to much mourn.
All men must die; Let him who may
Win glory ere death. That guerdon is best
For a noble man when his name survives him
Then let us rise up, O ward of the realm,
And haste us forth to behold the track
Of Grendel's dame.

(Bewoulf)

These lines struck me as being very appropriate concerning the events of last week. Instead of moping, let's admit we've failed our job, and once more throw ourselves into the fray.

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

The Somme


The Battle of the Somme ended 96 years ago today. This bloodbath was a great inspiration for Tolkien, the creator of Middle-Earth. In honor of him, here is his work Mar Vanwa Tyalieva (The Cottage of Lost Play)

We knew that land once, You and I,


and once we wandered there
in the long days now long gone by,
a dark child and a fair.
Was it on the paths of firelight thought
in winter cold and white,
or in the blue-spun twilit hours
of little early tucked-up beds
in drowsy summer night,
that you and I in Sleep went down
to meet each other there,
your dark hair on your white nightgown
and mine was tangled fair?



We wandered shyly hand in hand,
small footprints in the golden sand,
and gathered pearls and shells in pails,
while all about the nightingales
were singing in the trees.
We dug for silver with our spades,
and caught the sparkle of the seas,
then ran ashore to greenlit glades,
and found the warm and winding lane
that now we cannot find again,
between tall whispering trees.



There was neither night nor day,
an ever-eve of gloaming light,
when first there glimmered into sight
the Little House of Play.
New-built it was, yet very old,
white, and thatched with straws of gold,
and pierced with peeping lattices
that looked toward the sea;
and our own children's garden-plots
were there: our own forget-me-nots,
red daisies, cress and mustard,
and radishes for tea.
There all the borders, trimmed with box,
were filled with favourite flowers, with phlox,
with lupins, pinks, and hollyhocks,
beneath a red may-tree;
and all the gardens full of folk
that their own little language spoke,
but not to You and Me.



For some had silver watering-cans
and watered all their gowns,
or sprayed each other; some laid plans
to build their houses, little towns
and dwellings in the trees.
And some were clambering on the roof;
some crooning lonely and aloof;
some dancing round the fairy-rings
all garlanded in daisy-strings,
while some upon their knees
before a little white-robed king
crowned with marigold would sing
their rhymes of long ago.
But side by side a little pair
with heads together, mingled hair,
went walking to and fro
still hand in hand; and what they said,
ere Waking far apart them led,
that only we now know.

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Papa John's Appreciation Day

Why is it the best restaurants have appreciations days? Chick-Fil-A's food is awesome. PJ's pizza is awesome. They deserve appreciation days! Set aside any cultural meanings.

That being said, Fox reports about the boy from CA who is getting this grassroots movement going. Let's all join in. We have to remember two things.

We will buy pizza:

1. Because John Schnatter built Papa John's (not Obama) and he makes good pizza. Let's celebrate his accomplishment as an American success story.

2. Because John Schnatter should be able to explain that certain legislation will hurt his business, his employees, and consequently, the entire economy. That's free speech. He's not hurting anyone.



This is NOT about racism, about telling the left and Obama they are wrong, etc.

This is to show that free speech is alive and well.

I rememeber an episode of Andy Griffith where Aunt Bee asks Andy why he doesn't like her white beans.

He responds: "I only ate four bowls full."

Actions speak louder than words. Eating a pizza this Friday, November 16, will do more for free speech than any blog or bully pulpit and news service combined. We can show those who stand against our Constitution we have the backbone to carry through with our rights.

To read more about how Obamacare will impact the organization, this explains Schnatter's views pretty well.

Monday, November 12, 2012

Veteran's Day

Happy Veteran's Day to all military personnel and vets out there! Remembering my experience from yesterday I find it very fitting to post this:


St. Crispen's Day Speech
William Shakespeare, 1599
                              Enter the KINGWESTMORELAND. O that we now had here
        But one ten thousand of those men in England
        That do no work to-day!
     
    KING. What's he that wishes so?
        My cousin Westmoreland? No, my fair cousin;
        If we are mark'd to die, we are enow
        To do our country loss; and if to live,
        The fewer men, the greater share of honour.
        God's will! I pray thee, wish not one man more.
        By Jove, I am not covetous for gold,
        Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost;
        It yearns me not if men my garments wear;
        Such outward things dwell not in my desires.
        But if it be a sin to covet honour,
        I am the most offending soul alive.
        No, faith, my coz, wish not a man from England.
        God's peace! I would not lose so great an honour
        As one man more methinks would share from me
        For the best hope I have. O, do not wish one more!
        Rather proclaim it, Westmoreland, through my host,
        That he which hath no stomach to this fight,
        Let him depart; his passport shall be made,
        And crowns for convoy put into his purse;
        We would not die in that man's company
        That fears his fellowship to die with us.
        This day is call'd the feast of Crispian.
        He that outlives this day, and comes safe home,
        Will stand a tip-toe when this day is nam'd,
        And rouse him at the name of Crispian.
        He that shall live this day, and see old age,
        Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbours,
        And say 'To-morrow is Saint Crispian.'
        Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars,
        And say 'These wounds I had on Crispian's day.'
        Old men forget; yet all shall be forgot,
        But he'll remember, with advantages,
        What feats he did that day. Then shall our names,
        Familiar in his mouth as household words-
        Harry the King, Bedford and Exeter,
        Warwick and Talbot, Salisbury and Gloucester-
        Be in their flowing cups freshly rememb'red.
        This story shall the good man teach his son;
        And Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by,
        From this day to the ending of the world,
        But we in it shall be remembered-
        We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
        For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
        Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,
        This day shall gentle his condition;
        And gentlemen in England now-a-bed
        Shall think themselves accurs'd they were not here,
        And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
        That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day.


    This reminds me of all vets, of those who were forced to leave their beloved ones behind, both at home and on the battlefield. You truly are heroes. You are a happy group who fights together; if Catholics had the same spirit!

    We are all grateful to you men and women. God Bless you. Words cannot express the feelings and thoughts I have. All I can say is: thank you. 

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Today

So I did ok. A few tiny slipups here and there but overall pretty good.

But I saw something absolutely IMPRESSIVE here today. I saw a seven year old act out the entire St. Crispin's Day soliloquy from Shakespeare's Henry V. Amazing.

I also saw Scott Joplin's The Entertainer played in it's entirety on a harmonica. Amazing as well.

There was a whole lot more of course, but those were some of the coolest ones.

Saturday, November 10, 2012

Saturday's Slipups!

Here's four tips which I've learned the hard way on this Saturday.

1. Check the air!

When loading up cattle and driving them to auction make sure the tire on the trailer has air before you put the cattle in it. :)

I came home from work to hear that my Dad had to change the tire and put a new tire on it. Thankfully it happened on our driveway!

2. Leave on Time.

Even if it is a Saturday, you still need to leave on time. There won't be traffic.....but it still takes time to get there! Silly me was....reading blogs, can you imagine that?....when I realized I would be five minutes late.

It turns out some generous acceleration always works. My point remains however.

3. Don't break the OJ.

Not that I broke the orange juice, but our truck driver did when unloading it. He ripped out the bottom of it and juice was all over our backroom.

Needless to say our Asst. Store Director was not happy. We in the dairy were thankfully not to blame though! (Still learned a lesson though!)

4. Practice....but well in advance.

Tomorrow we are having a "parlor entertainment" at our home. I am going to be playing guitar and singing a Johnny Cash song. The problem is I haven't practiced in about two months. :( The good news is I am sounding pretty good right now.

To my credit I had something else planned with two friends - a skit - but one of them will be visiting Clear Creek Monastery and didn't know till last night. Oh well. Good for him! I'll make it.

So that's what I've learned today! Has anybody learned anything useful/new today?



Friday, November 9, 2012

It's Great to Be Catholic...


Cause we have the best jokes!

That St. Ignatius one is pure awesomeness though. :)

A New Threat

There is a new threat to the sacred institution which is the foundation of education. Parenting.

The UN is vigorously trying to pass their rabid anti-parent and anti-religion treaties and laws. If these come to pass in the United States the rights of tens of thousands of homeschoolers will be dictated away by foreigners who don't care about us.


They will also take away the rights of parents to make decisions for their disabled children. This is even scarier; remember what happened to Terri Schiavo?

Let's all fight to stop this. You can call your Senators and reps if you want. It all helps. But the best thing to do is to change the culture.

One person at a time, change their perception of things. Show that parenting is a positive thing and that disabled kids are a blessing. Show them that homeschooling is not only possible and necessary, but it works better than public school.

One person at a time. Drop a comment. Give some support. But most of all, lead by example.


Thursday, November 8, 2012

One more....

Just have to share this one. :)


True, true....


Irrelevant?

I've talked to a few people who think the time of Daylight Savings is over.



I drive to work at 6:30 AM and the sun is almost up now. And it sets at 5:30 PM now. With all our electricity, power, culture, and technology, do we really need to throw everything off'?

Let's Be Happy!

We should all be crying now. By human standards, at least. But we have more than that. Read this article at The Remnant. It will say everything that needs to be said and leave you with hope. Let's go convert the world! That's the only way to win.

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

You Wanna Have Some Fun? UPDATED

I'll give you some! No more doom and gloom. Obama's president now, (again) [still], so that means we'll go get us a new shotgun! Times are good!

Remington 870 Tactical, 12ga., seven shot, synthetic stock, blued barrel, 18". Short and sweet.

The bad news?

The phone I took some nice pictures on has locked up so it may be a while before I get some up. Stay tuned for some eye candy!

Fixed!






What color should I dye the water in the jugs I will blow up? Blue and red sound good to me!


Back to Work

No point in going on long tirades about breaking down demographics and such. No percentages and exit polls. A lot of other people have already discussed that. A good post I'll send you to for that is Tom Peter's. It's all good to know, but I'm concerned with one thing right now:

The next steps.

Here it is.

1. Spiritual Jobs to be done
a) Pray
b) Fast
c) Sacrifice

2. Public Participation/ Contributions
a) Time - volunteering, talking to neighbors, etc.
b) Money

I knew we weren't going to defeat the scourge of liberalism. I had no disappointment.

I actually am happy about one thing; since Obama was elected, I am going with a friend buy a gun tonight. That's always fun. :)

All kidding aside, we can't always win.

We're Catholics. We're used to being the underdogs. It isn't as bad as it could be. After all, there was:

~Rome
~The Barbarians
~The Muslims
~The Elizabethan Persecution
~ 17th and 18th century Japan
~Revolutionary France
~etc, etc,

A country can only go so long without martyrs.

Martyrs don't have to die. They just have to witness.

Let's witness.

Let's be joyful in our suffering Savior.

Let's trust in our Mother.

Let's not just practice, but love and live our Faith.


More to come.....



Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Sackcloth and Ashes....


"The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter."

~Winston Churchill 

Alas, this is only too true. Sean Hannity made a very enlightening comment yesterday; this country will elect the leaders it deserves.

God help the rest!

(that means start praying)

Monday, November 5, 2012

And If He Doesn't?

Romney, that is.

Win, that is.

What next? That is the real question.

I'll tell you what is next. A long list of saints. It will only get worse from here on out. America has been safe and free for too long. A country can only go so long without martyring some of its own....

I am ready.



I know you are ready.

Let's make our blood mean something.

Sunday, November 4, 2012

Witchcraft

Halloween's come and gone, but I want to share a great post on Witchcraft by Fr. Longenecker.


Alright, I couldn't resist that. Being a native Kansan. You know.

But seriously, they're out there. Make sure you've got your St. Benedict's Medal on.

Food For Thought

Another of my school projects:
If you haven't read it before I highly recommend it.

Robinson spends 20 some odd years on an abandoned island, thanking God for allowing him to live! I won't spoil it here; but it's basic theme is to be grateful for what you have now by contrasting yourself with those have less than you, rather than by wanting more and comparing yourself to those who seem to be better off.

Written by a Puritan. Us Catholics can do better. Go save some souls!


Paradise Lost

I am currently working on a project for school with the epic "Paradise Lost". It is very chilling, and might I dare to say creepy. (Emphasis mine)

"To do aught good never will be our task,
But ever to do ill our ole delight,
As being contrary to his high will
Whom we resist. If then his providence
Out of our evil seek to bring forth good,
Our labor must pervert that end,
And out of good still to find means of evil" 
(lines 159-65)


Also:

"Consult how we may henceforth most offend 
Our Enemy, our own loss how repair,
How overcome this dire calamity,
What re-inforcement we may gain from hope;
If not, what resolution from despair. 
(lines 187-91)



Some reflections: this is scary! The devil knows he can't win; he knows God has won; he knows he has now chance to get back into heaven. He turns to hate, the greatest weapon evil has.

Hate is the opposite, or the absence if you will, of love; God is love, hate is the absence of God. It is completely opposed to God. 

Satan knows this. 

He decides that he will be powered by his own despair at his loss, and use his hatred. Against whom? Well, God if course, but he can't win against Him. But how can he try to even use this hatred?

By bringing it to us! Hatred = Absence of God. He is out to get us. 

How can we fight him? For the ten second answer:


HER!

"Who is she, that cometh forth as the morning rising, fair as the moon, bright as the Sun, terrible as an army set in battle array?"

Such are the words of Satan. She is our greatest hope for salvation.








Friday, November 2, 2012

What Can I do?

There's only so much a high-schooler can do for this poor, broken world. On a natural level, of course.

But then there's the Communion of Saints.


It is so consoling to know that someone has your back. To know that no matter what you do, someone's got you covered. 

If every Catholic had this mindset, what good could be accomplished! The network of grace would be filled up, so far as it is possible! 

So don't worry about the upcoming election. Whoever gets in the White House, it will be because God allows it. 

I didn't say He wants it, but He allows it. It'll all be for the best.



Sunday, October 28, 2012

We All Do It....

Take blogging breaks, that is. I believe I have three good (enough) excuses.

1. Work's been a little crazy.
2. I've been hunting. There's a lot more to it, but that's another post....
3. I'm working election polls on Nov. 6th, and had to go to a training. For one day.


Are those good enough? How about I have a lot of school? Hmmm?


Speaking of which......maybe I should do some right now. I'm currently doing a book analysis on Ivanhoe, and I am seeing a very strong connection between it and some of Tolkien's works. I'll probably end up writing a paper on that for fun.  I write random papers a lot. Maybe they'll get published.





Maybe.

Maybe not.

That doesn't matter. Ferthu hal, mon freondere!

Monday, October 8, 2012

Well, I "meant" to....

I meant to write bout St. Francis but it utterly escaped my mind at the time. Despite my tardiness let's look at the REAL St. Francis:

St Francis confronting the sultan.

Often times people use St. Francis as an example for animal rights. 


St. Francis loved the animals - that is a very valid point. I love 'em too, in they yard, fields, or ovens. 

I see no need to go into details about it; it suffices to say that if eating animals is a sin, then fine. Animal "souls" ("live giving spirit" ? I forget the proper term) are less than human souls. Human souls are eternal. Take care of human life first, and then move on to the animals. Anyone seen PETA demonstrating outside Planned Parenthood? The ecology where I live cannot sustain the deer population - if they wanna talk population control let's start with Bambi.

Anyways....
St. Francis also received the stigmata.

 That's one of those things I always forget, and it's amazing to contemplate that, and add to his other accomplishments. He truly was an alter Christus.

St. Francis, pray for us!


Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Little Things



So when I was younger, I admit, I was not a fan of St. Therese. I thought her and St. Francis were overrated. No, seriously, I did!

I didn't see what was so fascinating about a Carmelite nun and a friar who loved animals. (I am an avid yet unlucky hunter so when I hear people say St. Francis loves animals and we can't kill them it works me up!)

I never denied her sanctity or anything - but I always thought, why doesn't St. Louis de Montfort, or St. Dominic, or St. Margaret Mary have as much of a "fan base"?

Because, as I grew older I realized that she did what all saints do; little things. But unlike most saints, she left us a very clear and simple path. We must do little things for God- and only what he wants. That's it! So easy! As for St. Francis....I'll get to him tomorrow! Though it will probably enrage PETA. Haha.


St Therese, pray for us! 

Friday, September 28, 2012

Motivation

Being a senior in high school, I often get this look of shock - everyone knows about it, but most people don't know how it really works. I explained to a guy at work last night, and he said, "Well, I would love to have been homeschooled, but I'm just not motivated enough."

The flaw in that reasoning should be evident: motivation is not inherent - it is externally influenced.

That doesn't mean that everything around you decides your "motivational status" - but it certainly influences it.

But motivation is not intrinsically externally influenced. The intrinsicness, or as a priest friend would say, the whatness of motivation is attitude. Attitudes are decisions. Decide to do your job. It's that easy.

This motivation, the decision to do your job, should be carried out everywhere in our lives. Our spiritual lives are the most important.

Just because I wake up and don't "feel" like making my morning  mental prayer does NOT mean I am not motivated. It means I am influenced to be unmotivated, or let's be honest, lazy (and in this case slothful), but I am not unmotivated.

The point that I decide, "You know, I don't feel like praying so I won't" is when I become demotivated. It's sort of like the idea of aridity - just because I am experiencing aridity in prayer does not mean I am not praying.

Which brings me to my point:

Always make your daily meditation - and the days you don't feel like doing it are the days you absolutely have to!

St. Francis de Sales would always make an hour of prayer every day, except for when he was pretty busy. On those days, he always spent at least two hours in prayer.It's kind of like a gas tank, if you'll excuse the crudeness of the metaphor. On the days you drive 100 miles you'll need eight gallons of gas, but on the days you drive 200 you'll need sixteen.

If you're "feeling" demotivated, don't be discouraged! You are not demotivated until the moment you decide to be demotivated. It's as simple as that.

Archdiocese of the Internet

His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI, on this 28th day of September, Anno Domini 2012, formally erects the Diocese of Internet. The seat of the Diocese is established at the site known as What Does the Prayer Really Say?

His Excellency, Archbishop of the Diocese of Internet - Fr. John Zuhlsdorf
Vicar General of the Diocese of Internet - Fr. Tim Finigan
Chancellor of the Diocese of Internet - Fr. Ray Blake


Secretary to the Bishop - (who should I put here? Supertradmum?)
Secretary to the Vicar General - Mac McLernon
Secretary to the Chancellor - Laurence England

Archdiocesan Spokesperson - Thomas Peters
Archdiocesan Canon Lawyer - Dr. Ed Peters
Archdiocesan Commentator/Comedian - The Curt Jester.
Archdiocesan Liturgist - Deacon John Giglio

Religious Vocations Contact - Fr. Michael Mary, FSSR (Redemptorists)

Archdiocesan Newspapers  -

Rorate Caeli
New Liturgical Movement

May God Bless the new diocese and may it bring many souls into the harbor of salvation.

*this is not intended to be serious*




Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Exploring the Blogosphere: Laurence England

There are many bloggers in the Catholic blogosphere; very, very many. It's always great to read other Catholic blogs - I make it a rule that if I have spare time I will check out one new one every day.


But there's still many more; I would love to read them all and generally try to drop a comment by when I do. It's impossible to read them all of course, so I have a small list of blogs that I check daily. One of them happens to be That The Bones You Have Crushed May Thrill.


I have always looked up to The Bones; he is a great Catholic role-model for youths everywhere. I contacted him and he very graciously agreed to allow me to interview him. Without further ado....


    Tell us a little bit about yourself. What made you start your blog, That the Bones You Have Crushed May Thrill?



At the time I started my blog, my flatmate was another Catholic who read blogs and had started one of her own. I started to read my parish priest's blog and also I started commenting on Damian Thompson's Holy Smoke blog. I could see that Catholics were really making an effort to evangelise through the new media and I found it very inspiring. So, I decided to start my own blog. I named it after a penitential psalm, psalm 51, one of my favourites. 

     From reading your blog, it is clear you have a lot of compassion for the homeless and really try to live out your Catholic life. How long have been doing this and what caused you start your ministry?

My favourite Saints, like Francis, Anthony of Padua, Blessed Teresa of Calcutta spent a great deal of time preaching repentance and showed that following Christ meant going really in the opposite direction to what the World expects of us and saw in the poor a very special presence of Christ.  To me these Saints are heroes and their lives are very inspiring. I think it is hard for us to offer an authentic vision of the Gospel if we are indifferent to the poor. I worked for some time at ATD Fourth World, a charity in London working with people in poverty and that was started by a Catholic priest in France. In Brighton my parish priest urged people to join the soup run so I got involved with that. I think as Blessed Teresa of Calcutta said, the poor give more to us than we give to them. There is spiritual joy to be found in serving the poor because we are serving Christ. Really, service to the poor is a commandment given us by the Lord. We'd be silly to ignore that.

    What can other Catholics do to help those who suffer from material hardship?

There are always local initiatives run by the Catholic Church such as the SVP. The main thing is that we try to give of ourselves and to be generous as the Lord is so generous to us. He holds nothing back from us of Himself. We should give of ourselves to the poor - in doing this we ourselves experience some kind of liberation from our self-centredness. We should try to be brave and reach out to others, with love and a measure of prudence of course.

   It is also clear music plays a large role in your blog. How important is music to you?


I used to be in a band but gave it up. I didn't like performing, really, in front of an audience. I think it brings out the worst in me. I feel more comfortable now writing songs about the Faith and posting them on YouTube. It's less direct. I like to busk every now and then, but even then, prefer to do it with others. I have a gift for lyrics and try to turn lyrics about matters to do with the Faith into songs. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. I'd like to think that he who sings his blogposts blogs twice, but I'm unsure that others see it that way! On a more general note about music, I'd like to sing Gregorian Chant more, but I struggle to find the time and place for this.

     You also are a strong supporter of traditional marriage. What do you think of the situation in Britain right now?

I think it is not scaremongering to say we are on the cusp of another dramatic and damaging upheaval in society - another cultural revolution that could be the fatal blow to the family. The main problem, as I see it, is that such legislation for same sex marriage will have so many consequences beyond those couples who wish to marry who are of the same sex. What does this mean for religious freedom? What does this mean for democracy? How can the State redefine something that doesn't belong to it? What does this mean for a child's education and moral formation? Are parents unable to give a child a moral formation that doesn't involve destroying their innocence of a very adult subject? There are so many questions but few answers are given. I fear the worst for the future of the UK and for the family. We have to uphold the dignity of marriage because on it rests the future of society and even peace.

    What would you tell your fellow Catholics they can do to aid in the fight?


The main thing is that we must pray and find time to pray the Rosary. We can do nothing without the help of God and Our Lady's prayers. Our main weapon against the culture of death is prayer - hopefully prayer will lead to action on our part. The blogs are a good way to keep informed of the Faith. We should be familiar with the Church's teachings and accept them as from God. We should familiarise ourselves with the Catechism. We need to rediscover a deep love for the Faith and to share it with others. 

    Do you find that other people in the blogosphere are an important influence on your blog; that is, do you find the online community to be a good ally in fighting the good fight or do you feel like you are all alone?


I don't feel alone in blogging because it is obvious that there are so many people out there fighting the same fight to present the Faith to the World. I'm always reading other people's blogs and its a community that works in union with the Church to evangelise. It is one very positive aspect of the internet revolution - it has opened a door to Catholic opinion that is no longer confined to certain Catholic magazines or newspapers with a limited view or limited number of writers. 

     What blogs do you usually read; who would you recommend for further reading to your readers?


I avidly read my parish priest's blog, Fr Ray Blake. I also read A Reluctant Sinner and Fr Tim Finegan. I would certainly recommend these blogs but also a lot of the other blogs that appear in my sidebar. 

     What do you find the biggest challenge facing you as a blogger?


Knowing when to stop. It can become obsessive and a little unhealthy. It's important that blogging doesn't take over our lives entirely and that we still have time to pray and be human and interact with other people in a truly human setting. It is important we don't inhabit a fantasy world.   

  If you could only make one last blog post, what would it be?


There you go, there's your third miracle. (After my death) It's unlikely, but hope springs eternal!

Thank you so much, Mr. England! It was really a pleasure and I look forward to communicating with you again!





No Coincidences...

Libya's President says.

This was not about a YouTube video. When I first heard that it happened on 9/11 I had my suspicions. His statement that they used RPG'S and mortars confirms this.....mobs don't just spontaneously use those on the anniversary of the worst attack on US history in years. That was no coincidence.

Every terrorist's dream.



People often says something like "We shouldn't be in the Middle-East because blah bleh blue blah blah". OK, forget the rest of the Arab countries for a minute. This is Libya. Libya! Remember, the country that Obama sent aid to without Congressional approval? Whether or not that was a good decision is irrelevant in my case- why did they attack us since we pretty much saved them? That would be like us killing the French Ambassador to the US after the Revolutionary War! There are no words to describe this other than: ingratitude.

A planned terror attack on the country who was primarily responsible for their freedom. Especially after the country's leader broke laws to help them!

So it doesn't even matter whether or not we should be there in the first place- what matters is that we helped them at their request and now they're just paying us back. Hmm.

And this is an embassy, this is a diplomatic center- no violence about it's presence. What would happen if an American mob stormed into the Libyan Embassy in D.C.? Hmm? At least we'd call out our military to protect them or something.

This only proves what I have been saying for years: there is no such thing as radical Islam. This is normal Islam!

And if you don'r believe me, I highly recommend a book: Islam at the Gates by Diane Moczar.




St Francis of Assisi and St Charbel Markhouf, pray for us!



Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Adieu, pauvre France!

From Fox News comes disturbing reports....

France is set to ban the words "mother" and "father" from all official documents under new plans to legalize gay marriage and give equal adoption rights to homosexual and heterosexual couples.
Under the proposed law, only the word "parents" would be used in marriage ceremonies for all heterosexual and same-sex couples, a move that has sparked widespread outrage, The Telegraph reports.
                                    .....
Pope Benedict XVI urged French bishops to fight against the law, The Telegraph reports.
French Catholics also have published a 'Prayer for France,' which says, "Children should not be subjected to adults' desires and conflicts, so they can fully benefit from the love of their mother and father," according to the report.
So now Gaga's comments have been explained! 

I will simply say this:

1. Most gay folks would say that animals have the right to be left alone. 
2. This includes taking away one parent or the other.
3. So if humans are animals too, then why are they different?
4. And if humans are not animals but sentient creatures then don't they deserve a mother and a father all the more?

Lord, have mercy on us....and France!

Lady Who?

LADY GAGA? To start with that is no name that will immediately equate with talent in my mind.



 But regardless, she seems to be a sensation all over the world. But since the world is our enemy, there's that much more of a chance she's no good. So I would ordinarily ignore her until Fox reported her as saying...
“I think that gay marriage is going to happen. It must." she said.  "We are not actually equal—humanity—if we are not allowed to freely love one another."
“What the Pope thinks of being gay does not matter to the world. It matters to the people who like the Pope and follow the Pope. It is not a reflection of all religious people.”
So first of all, she is not even qualified to speak about the Pope. Gay "marriage" is a moral issue. She can not deny that, since her own "morals" uphold it's defense.

That said, it is in the Pope's job description to define "faith and morals". Not a pop singer's. Point made.

So now that we've seen that it's not even Lady Gaga's job to point out that somebody else is doing their job wrong [(that would be like me telling computer tech he's doing something wrong even though I know almost nothing about programming) that example makes it even funnier because Lady Gaga seems to know almost nothing about morals!], let's look at what she actually said:

"We are not actually equal—humanity—if we are not allowed to freely love one another."
That's not love. It will get you to Hell. 'Nuff said.

“What the Pope thinks of being gay does not matter to the world."
In a way, she is right. But in another sense, she is completely wrong.

She is right, because what the Pope says doesn't matter to the world. That may sound strange, but there are different ways of interpreting this. The world doesn't care what the Pope says, so in that sense she is right that it doesn't matter to the world.

But she is wrong in the implication of that statement. Why does what President Obama thinks of gay marriage matter, but not what Pope Benedict thinks? From a totally secular view, he is a head of state. Come on! Double standard, if I ever saw one.

And from a spiritual view, what he says does matter, because he is our spiritual Father. We have to listen to him. She also said....

“This is not what Christians believe, those who believe in something, that have a religion,” she clarified. “It is the point of view of one person.”
But what person is this? This is the Pope, the Vicar of Christ. He IS Christ.  It is the point of view of Jesus Christ. So if "Christians", as she says, don't even believe in the teachings of one whom they profess to believe....what have we? A personality cult following or something - "the guy is just awesome, but I don't agree with what he says" type religion. It is stupid.

Christians must believe in what Christ teaches. Christ teaches that gay "marriage" is wrong. A Christian who believes in gay "marriage" is wrong. Lady Gaga is wrong, whether she is a Christian or not.

If behavior shows anything, she is most certainly not. So much for convent schools.

Monday, September 24, 2012

The Collapse of the Platform

From the Democratic Party Platform:

We must keep moving forward and doing the hard work of rebuilding a strong economy by betting on the American worker and investing in a growing middle class. We need a government that stands up for the hopes, values, and interests of working people, and gives everyone willing to work hard the chance to make the most of their God-given potential.

From the Republican Party Platform:

May God continue to shed his grace on the United States of America.

Now, I didn't read the entire GOP Platform.....so there may be more references to God in it than this, but I know for certain that in the Dem's platform this is the only reference. Let's take a look.


make the most of their God-given potential.

The Democrats here admit that inherent abilities and talents are God-given. Whatever the implications of that, we know they at least believe in God. Yeah....so did Hitler, George Tiller, and Jim Jones, as does Fred Phelps. I am not comparing them to Democrats; I am merely proving that belief in God is not a qualification for being good enough to be elected. Lucifer would be the first to tell you that he sure does believe in God. 

May God continue to shed his grace on the United States of America.

In this statement, we not only have acknowledgment of God, but we also have acknowledgment of his greatness. He is greater than us; why else would we ask Him for grace? 

That brings u to point two: while the Democrats do not ask God for grace, the Republicans do. Are the Democrats too good for grace, did they forget, or did they just plain not want it? I mean, even Satan would say potential is God-given, because what else could he say? 

But the Republicans: a) acknowledge God, b) ask Him for grace, c) and necessarily put themselves under him.

I would rather be with the folks who are under God than with those who aren't clear one way or the other. 

And that's just from one statement. If the parties were exactly alike on all issues, and if they were both in complete accord with reason, natural law, and the Catholic Church, but their platforms were the same as they are now, my conscience would compel me to vote for the Republican.

If I was old enough to vote, of course. 

And I didn't even get into the fiasco of how the Democrats changed their platform, and then unchanged it! That'll have to be a topic for another day. :)