Gregorian Chant 24/7

Listen to Gregorian chant online, 24/7. Great website. A link to this website may be found to the right and also below.

How Babies Were Left to Die: Nurse Recounts Horrors of Infanticide Practice Barack Obama Protected

The speaker's name is Jill Stanek. Her blog is here .

Jill was a registered nurse in the Labor & Delivery Department at Christ Hospital in Oak Lawn, IL. She discovered not only were abortions being committed there, but babies were being aborted alive to die without medical care. When hospital leaders said that they would not stop, Jill went public and has become a national figure in the effort to protect both born and pre-born infants. . . .

Read more here .

Also read article here on LifeSiteNews.com .

Saint Theresa's Prayer

May today there be peace within.
May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.
May you not forget the infinite possibiliti​es that are born of faith.
May you use those gifts that you have received,
and pass on the love that has been given to you.
May you be content knowing you are a child of God.
Let this presence settle into your bones,
and allow your soul the freedom to sing,
Dance​, praise and love.
It is there for each and every one of us.

They Mattered

By Richard Wilbur, from On Freedom's Ground, III (Like a Great Statue)

Mourn for the dead who died for this country,
Whose minds went dark at the edge of a field,
In the muck of a trench, on the beachhead sand,
In a blast amidships, a burst in the air.
What did they think of before they forgot us?
In the blink of time before they forgot us?
The glare and whiskey of Saturday evening?
The drone or lilt of their family voices?
The bend of a trout stream? A fresh-made bed?
The sound of a lathe, or the scent of sawdust?
The mouth of a woman? A prayer? Who knows?
Let us not force them to speak in chorus,
These men diverse in their names and faces
Who lived in a land where a life could be chosen.
Say that they mattered, alive and after;
That they gave us time to become what we could.

(Thanks to What Does This Prayer Really Say)

For All the Saints Who From Their Labours Rest

"For All the Saints" was written as a processional hymn by the Anglican Bishop William Walsham How. The hymn was first printed in Hymns for Saint's Days, and Other Hymns, by Earl Nelson, 1864. It has been described as "one of the finest hymn tunes of [the 20th] century."

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Humility of God

Franciscan Spirituality

The Crib

The Cross

The Eucharist

Saint Francis and A New Form of Life

By Ouida Tomlinson, SFO

Saint Francis created a new form of life, different from and more difficult than the monastic and canonical forms in favor during the early 1200’s. He was deeply convinced that the Lord Jesus Christ was guiding him.

Followers soon joined him in his new life, and they formed a fraternity based on the gospel, following in the footsteps of Our Lord Jesus Christ. They were both active and contemplative, preachers, living by the work of their hands, caring for the sick and the poor and begging when necessary. They spent time in daily prayer, together and in solitude. They prayed the Liturgy of the Hours and other prayers. Francis wrote their form of life “in a few simple words,” which the Lord inspired him to write.

The Lord inspired in Francis the desire to live as Jesus and his disciples had lived, to follow a life more closely resembling the life of Jesus during his early mission, shared with Mary and his disciples. Jesus was poor, a transient, living on alms, he, his mother and his disciples. The Lord inspired Francis to live the gospel life. This is in contrast to the religious communities of his day which sought to imitate the early Christian community in Jerusalem described in the book of Acts.

Saint Clare developed the “new form of life” in a women’s community, combining the elements of monastic life with the life of lay women penitents and characterized by sisterly communion, prayer and manual labor. There was no requirement for a dowry for entrance. The women relied on the work of their hands, and when that was not enough, they relied on begging, especially that done by the brothers. Clare’s Rule was the first of its kind, written by a woman for women.

Other groups, during the times before and around the time of Francis, had pointed to the Gospel as their rule also, but unlike these groups, Francis stayed in close communion with the Papacy, respecting the Pope and clergy.

The spirituality of Saint Francis and the Franciscan tradition is Christ-centered. Christocentric. There are several themes of this spirituality. Among them are poverty or living without grasping; being contemplative in places of solitude (Francis’ rule for the brothers living in hermitages); the suffering of Christ and the cross (suffering, death and glorification); the cross as the depths of charity; Francis in his physical mirroring of Christ’s suffering and Clare’s mystical identification with Christ, described in her writings; creation, nature, the world as a revelation of God; Canticle of the Creatures; and Francis’ unique relationship with animals, plants, and natural elements. Francis combined austerity of life with an infectious joy.

The incarnation is very important in Franciscan spirituality. From this Francis discovers that God is good, humble and generous. He does not hold onto anything, even divine status. All creation proceeds from the Son and this Son comes to us as a creature. Francis discovers what it means to be made in the image of God as he looks at Jesus. Thus he learns what it means to be himself, to know God, and the other (brothers and sisters which include human beings and all creation).

The story of Christmas at Greccio, with the simplicity, humility and poverty that are present, portray the marks of the life of Jesus. The Feast of Christmas, the Eucharist and the example of Mary pointed Francis toward the poverty and humility of God revealed in Jesus. This Jesus who born in a shelter for the animals, this Jesus who lived as a poor man and died for us on a cross, this Jesus who humbles himself to descend from his throne in heaven to become bread and wine for us, this poor Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. For Francis, poverty begins with the example of God as seen in Jesus.

"Have among yourselves the same attitude that is also yours in Christ Jesus Who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." Philippians 2:5-11.

"For you know the gracious act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that for your sake he became poor although he was rich, so that by his poverty you might become rich. 2 Corinthians 8:9.

The poverty of Francis was a response to Jesus who did not “grasp” or cling to divine status. He let go of it to be among us as a servant. Poverty must have this Christological understanding or else it becomes simply a penitential practice, a means of ascetical discipline or moral self-improvement whereby it is only a matter of having fewer of this or that, making a caricature out of the vision of Francis.

SUGGESTED READING AND INSPIRATION FOR MOST OF THIS WRITING
Poverty and Joy: The Franciscan Tradition by William J. Short, OFM, ISBN-10: 1570752958, ISBN-13: 978-1570752957.

Spanish cloistered nuns see surge in vocations

Read Article Here.

"Every day he humbles himself just as he did when he came from his heavenly throne (Wis. 18:15) into the Virgin's womb; every day he comes to us and lets us see him in abjection, when he descends from the bosom of the Father into the hands of the priest at the altar. He shows himself to us in this sacred bread just as he once appeared to his apostles in real flesh. With their own eyes they saw only his flesh, but they believed that he was God, because they contemplated him with the eyes of the spirit. We, too, with our own eyes, see only bread and wine, but we must see further and firmly believe that this is his most holy Body and Blood, living and true. In this way our Lord remains continually with his followers, as he promised, Behold, I am with you all days, even unto the consummation of the world (Mt. 28:20)." (St. Francis of Assisi.)

Our Lady of Guadalupe - Book Recommendation

Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on Anglicans Entering Catholic Church

NOTE OF THE CONGREGATION FOR THE DOCTRINE OF THE FAITH ABOUT PERSONAL ORDINARIATES FOR ANGLICANS ENTERING THE CATHOLIC CHURCH , 20.10.2009

NOTE OF THE CONGREGATION FOR THE DOCTRINE OF THE FAITH ABOUT PERSONAL ORDINARIATES FOR ANGLICANS ENTERING THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

With the preparation of an Apostolic Constitution, the Catholic Church is responding to the many requests that have been submitted to the Holy See from groups of Anglican clergy and faithful in different parts of the world who wish to enter into full visible communion.

In this Apostolic Constitution the Holy Father has introduced a canonical structure that provides for such corporate reunion by establishing Personal Ordinariates, which will allow former Anglicans to enter full communion with the Catholic Church while preserving elements of the distinctive Anglican spiritual and liturgical patrimony. Under the terms of the Apostolic Constitution, pastoral oversight and guidance will be provided for groups of former Anglicans through a Personal Ordinariate, whose Ordinary will usually be appointed from among former Anglican clergy.

The forthcoming Apostolic Constitution provides a reasonable and even necessary response to a world-wide phenomenon, by offering a single canonical model for the universal Church which is adaptable to various local situations and equitable to former Anglicans in its universal application. It provides for the ordination as Catholic priests of married former Anglican clergy. Historical and ecumenical reasons preclude the ordination of married men as bishops in both the Catholic and Orthodox Churches. The Constitution therefore stipulates that the Ordinary can be either a priest or an unmarried bishop. The seminarians in the Ordinariate are to be prepared alongside other Catholic seminarians, though the Ordinariate may establish a house of formation to address the particular needs of formation in the Anglican patrimony. In this way, the Apostolic Constitution seeks to balance on the one hand the concern to preserve the worthy Anglican liturgical and spiritual patrimony and, on the other hand, the concern that these groups and their clergy will be integrated into the Catholic Church.

Cardinal William Levada, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith which has prepared this provision, said: "We have been trying to meet the requests for full communion that have come to us from Anglicans in different parts of the world in recent years in a uniform and equitable way. With this proposal the Church wants to respond to the legitimate aspirations of these Anglican groups for full and visible unity with the Bishop of Rome, successor of St. Peter."

These Personal Ordinariates will be formed, as needed, in consultation with local Conferences of Bishops, and their structure will be similar in some ways to that of the Military Ordinariates which have been established in most countries to provide pastoral care for the members of the armed forces and their dependents throughout the world. "Those Anglicans who have approached the Holy See have made clear their desire for full, visible unity in the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. At the same time, they have told us of the importance of their Anglican traditions of spirituality and worship for their faith journey," Cardinal Levada said.

The provision of this new structure is consistent with the commitment to ecumenical dialogue, which continues to be a priority for the Catholic Church, particularly through the efforts of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity. "The initiative has come from a number of different groups of Anglicans," Cardinal Levada went on to say: "They have declared that they share the common Catholic faith as it is expressed in the Catechism of the Catholic Church and accept the Petrine ministry as something Christ willed for the Church. For them, the time has come to express this implicit unity in the visible form of full communion."

According to Levada: "It is the hope of the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, that the Anglican clergy and faithful who desire union with the Catholic Church will find in this canonical structure the opportunity to preserve those Anglican traditions precious to them and consistent with the Catholic faith. Insofar as these traditions express in a distinctive way the faith that is held in common, they are a gift to be shared in the wider Church. The unity of the Church does not require a uniformity that ignores cultural diversity, as the history of Christianity shows. Moreover, the many diverse traditions present in the Catholic Church today are all rooted in the principle articulated by St. Paul in his letter to the Ephesians: ‘There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism’ (4:5). Our communion is therefore strengthened by such legitimate diversity, and so we are happy that these men and women bring with them their particular contributions to our common life of faith."

Background information

Since the sixteenth century, when King Henry VIII declared the Church in England independent of Papal Authority, the Church of England has created its own doctrinal confessions, liturgical books, and pastoral practices, often incorporating ideas from the Reformation on the European continent. The expansion of the British Empire, together with Anglican missionary work, eventually gave rise to a world-wide Anglican Communion.

Throughout the more than 450 years of its history the question of the reunification of Anglicans and Catholics has never been far from mind. In the mid-nineteenth century the Oxford Movement (in England) saw a rekindling of interest in the Catholic aspects of Anglicanism. In the early twentieth century Cardinal Mercier of Belgium entered into well publicized conversations with Anglicans to explore the possibility of union with the Catholic Church under the banner of an Anglicanism "reunited but not absorbed".

At the Second Vatican Council hope for union was further nourished when the Decree on Ecumenism (n. 13), referring to communions separated from the Catholic Church at the time of the Reformation, stated that: "Among those in which Catholic traditions and institutions in part continue to exist, the Anglican Communion occupies a special place."

Since the Council, Anglican-Roman Catholic relations have created a much improved climate of mutual understanding and cooperation. The Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) produced a series of doctrinal statements over the years in the hope of creating the basis for full and visible unity. For many in both communions, the ARCIC statements provided a vehicle in which a common expression of faith could be recognized. It is in this framework that this new provision should be seen.

In the years since the Council, some Anglicans have abandoned the tradition of conferring Holy Orders only on men by calling women to the priesthood and the episcopacy. More recently, some segments of the Anglican Communion have departed from the common biblical teaching on human sexuality—already clearly stated in the ARCIC document "Life in Christ"—by the ordination of openly homosexual clergy and the blessing of homosexual partnerships. At the same time, as the Anglican Communion faces these new and difficult challenges, the Catholic Church remains fully committed to continuing ecumenical engagement with the Anglican Communion, particularly through the efforts of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity.

In the meantime, many individual Anglicans have entered into full communion with the Catholic Church. Sometimes there have been groups of Anglicans who have entered while preserving some "corporate" structure. Examples of this include, the Anglican diocese of Amritsar in India, and some individual parishes in the United States which maintained an Anglican identity when entering the Catholic Church under a "pastoral provision" adopted by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and approved by Pope John Paul II in 1982. In these cases, the Catholic Church has frequently dispensed from the requirement of celibacy to allow those married Anglican clergy who desire to continue ministerial service as Catholic priests to be ordained in the Catholic Church.

In the light of these developments, the Personal Ordinariates established by the Apostolic Constitution can be seen as another step toward the realization the aspiration for full, visible union in the Church of Christ, one of the principal goals of the ecumenical movement.

[01517-02.01]

SOURCE: VATICAN WEBSITE

New Regulations for Anglicans entering the Catholic Church

Bridge Over Troubled Tiber: Holy See Welcomes Anglican Christians into Catholic Church - Catholic Online

"In an absolutely stunning announcement on the morning of October 20, 2009, the Holy See has, by Apostolic Constitution, provided the canonical vehicle for Anglican Christians to be received into full communion with the Catholic Church. Throughout the evening expectations rose throughout the world along with the fervent prayers of millions who have longed to see this day. Many Catholics have watched in prayer with hopeful, heartfelt longing for their Christian brethren in the Anglican Communion. Many Anglican Christians have suffered from the ravages of their community from within brought about by moves away from Christian orthodoxy and orthopraxy. Now,there is a way to the safe harbor of the Catholic Church. . . ."

Read the rest of the article here:
Bridge Over Troubled Tiber: Holy See Welcomes Anglican Christians into Catholic Church - Catholic Online

I am a convert from the Episcopal Church. This news makes me very happy. It is the answer to many prayers.

Behold The Handmaid

This is a video by Ty Mam Duw, Poor Clare Colettines, Hawarden, WALES GB. Their website is here. Ty Mam Duw is Welsh and means The House of the Mother of God. Our Lady of the Pearl cherishes their friendship and their many kindnesses to us.

Feast Day of Saint Francis of Assisi - October 4th

"We adore you and we bless you, Lord Jesus Christ, here and in all the churches which are in the whole world, because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world" (St. Francis).

Saint Francis was born in 1182 in the Italian town of Assisi, 80 miles north of Rome. The story of his life is both fascinating and inspiring, a story that calls us to holiness and the gospel life. It is about a life that had a passion for the Gospel and Jesus Christ, so much so that he gave up his own self to become a "Mirror of Christ."

Saint Francis combined the contemplative life with an active one and took to the streets to bring the gospel to the people. He led a simple life and proclaimed a simple message: the love of God for us, through Jesus, and our response to love God through Jesus by loving others. Francis is a Saint of All Ages. His message is a timeless one, as relevant today as it was then. Second only to Jesus Christ, no other individual has ever made such a positive influence on the Church and the world we live in.

His father was an ambitious, wealthy businessman, a cloth merchant and part of the rising middle class. Francis led a carefree youth and dreamed of becoming a knight. While in pursuit of the glories of knighthood, one night he experienced another dream, this one given to him by the Lord. His life took a turn which led to his service as a knight for Lady Poverty. He renounced his paternal wealth and committed himself to God, leading a life of evangelical poverty. He became poor because Jesus was poor.

To My Jewish Friends on Yom Kippur

PEACE AND ALL GOOD

The Lord is my strength and my song,

and he has become my salvation;

this is my God, and I will praise him,

my father's God, and I will exalt him.

Exodus 15:2

History of Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur (Heb literally means Day of Atonement) is celebrated on the 10th day of Tishrei, 10 days after Rosh Hashanah. Yom Kippur is first mentioned in Leviticus 23:27 where it is described as a day of atonement when no work should be done. The text goes on to describe the special rites that the priests would do to expiate the sins of the people. One of these rites takes the people's sins and symbolically places them onto an animal which is then driven out into the wilderness. This rite is the origin of the term "scapegoat".

Over time, more and more importance was placed on Yom Kippur as it also became known as the Day of Judgment-the culmination of the 10 days of repentance. To the Rabbis, Yom Kippur marked the climax of the trial of the people; it was when God sealed names in the book of life, or in the book of death. The Rabbis added abstentions that must be followed on Yom Kippur which included eating, drinking, bathing, wearing leather shoes (the most comfortable at the time), and sexual relations. Because Jews go by the lunar calendar, Yom Kippur begins at sunset, and ends one hour after sunset of the following day totaling 25 hours.

Yom Kippur is so important to the Jews that it is sometimes referred to as "the Sabbath of Sabbaths" and is the only fast day that can fall on Saturday (the Jewish Sabbath). The day is spent in Synagogue praying and supplicating to God to be sealed in the book of Life. Yom Kippur is not a sad day; it is a day of reflection and atonement. Fasting is used not as a punishment, but as a cleansing of the body as well as the spirit.

Some Jews stay in the synagogue all day and only take one small break between prayers. Because the day is very important, there are 5 different prayer services instead of the 4 that appear on a regular Sabbath. Yom Kippur ends with a long resonating Shofar blast followed by the breaking of the fast; this marks the end of the 10 day long period of repentance and reflection.

Source: http://www.history.com/content/roshhashanah/yom-kippur

Ordination 2009

NYPRIEST.com

• What is the priesthood?
• What does a priest do?
• How does one become a priest?

For answers, go to NY Priest website.

Fishers of Men

This is a video made by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Vocations and Priestly Formation in order to give people a look in on the life of a Roman Catholic Priest and invite young men to open their hearts to the call.