In this e-weekly:

- Saving on Gas and being More Safe on the Road ("Helpful Hints of Life")
- Sunday Mass Readings and Questions for Reflection 
- MOTHER'S PRAYER TO THE GUARDIAN ANGEL OF HER CHILDREN (Praying Hands at end of e-weekly) 

​

Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
        We are currently in Ordinary Time, that is ORDERED time.  It is not 'ordinary' in that there is nothing special about it; it is 'ordered' so that we can grow in love of God and neighbor, and true love of self.
        We are going through the big green section of the Church's Liturgical calendar.  You hear and will hear, read and will read, Sunday after Sunday, "30th Sunday of Ordinary Time, 31st Sunday of Ordinary Time, 32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time," etc.  This in a sense is asking you the same questions each week: Are you loving God and your neighbor more?  Are you working on those faults and sins in your life?  Do you truly desire Heaven, your true home?  Green is for growing and that is what we are meant to do in this season.
         Put God first this Sunday, put everyone else second, and then you will love yourself, not because you put yourself last, but because it is in the right place ORDERED to true love and happiness.
 
Peace and prayers in Jesus through Mary, loved by Saint Joseph,
Father Robert
​
P.S.  This coming Sunday is 31st Sunday of Ordinary Time.  The readings can be found at:  https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/103121.cfm

​

[For those traveling and needing to get to the Holy Mass.]

MASS TIMES AND CATHOLIC CHURCHES throughout the US

http://www.MassTimes.org/dotNet/default.aspx
​
Simply type in the town you will be in.
 ​

Tortosa, Spain, Oct 31, 2021 / 08:00 am
A Vatican cardinal beatified four martyrs of the Spanish Civil War on Saturday.
Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, declared Francesco Cástor Sojo López and three companions blessed at a Mass on Oct. 30 in Tortosa Cathedral, Catalonia.
In his homily, Semeraro said: “They did not seek martyrdom, because one does not seek martyrdom, but suffers it. However, when the time came to bear their witness to Christ in blood, they did not shrink from it and embraced their cross with love.”
“Thus it is that three of them, like the leader Bl. Francisco Cástor Sojo López, suffered death by killing and one, Bl. Millán Garde Serrano, endured torture with an attitude of forgiveness towards the perpetrators and with trust in the Lord.”

An estimated half a million people died in Spain’s civil war, fought between Republicans and Nationalists from 1936 to 1939.
Among the victims of a wave of anticlerical violence were 13 bishops, 4,172 diocesan priests and seminarians, 2,364 male religious, and 283 female religious.
More than 2,000 martyrs of the Spanish Civil War have been beatified and 11 canonized. The causes of a further 2,000 candidates are under consideration.
According to his official Vatican biography, Francesco Cástor Sojo López was born in Madrigalejo, Extremadura, on March 28, 1881.
He was ordained a priest on Dec. 19, 1903. While training for the priesthood, he joined the Fraternity of Diocesan Worker Priests of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, founded in 1883 by Bl. Manuel Domingo y Sol.
He served in seminaries and colleges in Toledo, Plasencia, Badajoz, Segovia, Astorga, and finally Ciudad Real, a city in central Spain.
On Sept. 12, 1936, he was arrested, held prisoner, and then killed that night outside Ciudad Real.
Manuel Galcerá Videllet was born in Caseras, Andalucia, on July 6, 1877. Ordained in 1901, he joined the Fraternity of Diocesan Worker Priests in 1906.
He served in Zaragoza, Tarragona, Cuernavaca (Mexico), Badajoz, Ciudad Real, Rome, Valladolid, and Baeza.
He was arrested on July 20, 1936, and held captive in Baeza, southern Spain. He was killed on Sept. 3, 1936.
Aquilino Pastor Cambero was born on Jan. 4, 1911, in Zarza de Granadilla, Extremadura. He joined the Fraternity of Diocesan Worker Priests in 1934 and was ordained to the priesthood on Aug. 25, 1935.
He served in Baeza as a prefect of students. As the civil war raged, he hid with Manuel Galcerá Videllet at a residence in Baeza, but was captured with him and taken to the city’s jail. He was taken out of the city on Aug. 28, 1936, and killed.
Millán Garde Serrano was born on Dec. 21, 1876, in Vara del Rey, Castilla–La Mancha. He was ordained on Dec. 21, 1901, and joined the Fraternity of Diocesan Worker priests in 1903.

 ​

By Christine RousselleHartford, Conn., Oct 31 (CNA).-  
Fr. Michael McGivney, founder of the Knights of Columbus, was beatified October 31, at the Cathedral of St. Joseph in Hartford, Connecticut. He will now be known as “Blessed Michael McGivney” and his feast day will be observed August 13 in the Archdiocese of Hartford.
Fr. McGivney was formally beatified through an apostolic letter from Pope Francis that was read on Saturday by Cardinal Joseph Tobin of Newark, the appointed representative of Pope Francis. Tobin was the principal celebrant of the beatification Mass at Hartford’s cathedral.
“Fr. McGivney’s life is an illustration of how a holy priest can provide the necessary and intimate connection, so crucial in the life and mission of a parish,” Tobin said. He described McGivney as a priest who loved his flock, and was happy to see them work together as a community.
“The signature accomplishment for which he is remembered, founding the Knights of Columbus, grew out of his ministry as a parish priest,” Tobin added.
“This great brotherhood of 2 million now spanning the globe was born from the pastoral ingenuity of a parish priest to respond to the twin challenges faced by the people he served. Because he knew his people well, so well.”


“We accept that like him, God calls each one of us in our own day and our own way, to be vessels of mercy, and so, enter into our heavenly inheritance.”
Cardinals Sean O’Malley of Boston and Timothy Dolan of New York were cardinal concelebrators of the Mass. Several other archbishops and bishops, including representatives from the Ukrainian Catholic Church, were also present.
Pope Francis said that McGivney’s “zeal for the proclamation of the Gospel and generous concern for his brothers and sisters,” that “made him an outstanding witness of Christian solidarity and fraternal assistance.”
The pope concluded that the Connecticut priest “henceforth be given the title blessed.”  The letter was dated September 13, 2020.
The date selected for McGivney’s feast, August 13, is the day between his birth, which was August 12, 1852, and his death, which was August 14, 1890.
Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore read an English translation of the letter. McGivney was ordained a priest in the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s cathedral in 1877.
A tapestry of Father McGivney’s portrait was unveiled in the cathedral’s sanctuary immediately after the letter was read.
Before the letter was read, Supreme Knight Carl Anderson read a biographical letter of McGivney’s life, and detailed his earthly ministry.
After the portrait was unveiled, Michael “Mikey” McGivney Schachle, accompanied by his parents and many of his siblings, presented a monstrance containing a relic of McGivney to Cardinal Tobin. Mikey Schaecle’s live birth after a prenatal diagnosis of fetal hydrops, a rare, typically fatal, condition, was confirmed by the Vatican to be a miracle attributed to the intercession of Bl. McGivney.
Archbishop Leonard Blair of Hartford read a letter of thanks to Tobin for presiding over the beatification Mass, and requested that Tobin relay his thanks to Pope Francis.


“I believe that Fr. McGivney is truly Pope Francis’ kind of priest,” said Blair. “A model of his time of closeness to Christ Jesus on the peripheries of life and society.”
In his homily, Tobin said that early Christians, weary due to the demands of a Christian life, were consoled that there was a “cloud of witnesses who would give them courage to go on” and reminding them that their fidelity would be rewarded in heaven.  
 
“In his beautiful reflection on holiness Pope Francis dares to name some of those witnesses. Abraham, Sarah, Moses, gideon, and others,” said Tobin.
“Today, in the name of the Church, Pope Francis recognizes one more face among those witnesses: the serene and youthful countenance of Fr. Michael Joseph McGivney.”
Today, explained Tobin, is a celebration of the faithfulness of God to the body of His Son, the Church. He said that the beatification of McGivney coincided with “timely signs of God’s providential care that can speak in a personal way to each one of us, especially in this moment of our history.”
McGivney, said Tobin, was someone who “worked to keep families united in dignity, and security,” and took special care for members of his flock who were immigrants to the United States.
“We are in the presence of an apostle, who cared for victims of an epidemic, before he himself would die of the disease,” said Tobin. “We acknowledge gratefully the providence of God by confirming in the holiness of this witness by the miraculous cure of an unborn child, healed in utero of a fatal, multi-organ failure, after prayer by his family to Fr. McGivney.”
“We praise God for the timeliness of the celebration, because 130 years after his death, the brief life of this holy man speaks eloquently to our own path to holiness. We should listen to his testimony,” said Tobin.
While August 13 is the date of McGivney’s feast in the Archdiocese of Hartford, priests outside the archdiocese will be permitted to celebrate votive Masses for Knights of Columbus gatherings on this date with permission of their bishops.
 
Blair closed the Mass by thanking those who had assisted with the beatification process and the logistics of planning and broadcasting the Mass amid a pandemic. He requested that people pray daily for McGivney’s continued intercession in the world.
 
“First, that with Bl. Michael McGivney as our model, and with his intercession, that many more men will heed God’s call to serve as priests,” said Blair.
 
“And second, that at Bl.Michael McGivney’s intercession, we may be blessed with a further miracle leading to his canonization as a saint for the whole Church.”

Mexico City, Mexico, Sep 21,  (EWTN News/CNA) - 
Sister Crucita has been a member of the Josephine Sisters in Mexico for 70 years. At nearly 100 years old, she says she is happy with her vocation and would not change her decision to give her life to God.

In an interview with EWTN News, Sister Crucita – whose full religious name is Sister Maria of the Royal Cross – said that the secret of her perseverance has always been her trust in the mercy of God and the support of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

“I say to the Blessed Virgin Mary, 'Take care of me, you already know I'm yours. Deliver me from the snares of the devil.' The Blessed Virgin has taken great care of me,” she said.

Through the Holy Rosary she was able to persevere in face of the temptation to abandon the religious life on many occasions, she said.

“One of the strongest temptations was to want to leave the religious life, because there were a lot of difficulties at the hospital where I was. The doctors encouraged me to leave, but I trusted in God and the Blessed Virgin. And here I am, thanks to them,” she said.

Sister Crucita was born Nov. 23, 1917 in the El Oro municipality in Mexico State. From a very young age, she had a love for Christ and the Church, thanks to the devotion of her parents who took her to Mass.

“I always liked going to Mass. I had an uncle who was a sacristan and I liked to spend time with him. So I was always drawn to the things of the Lord,” she said.

She began thinking about a religious vocation after a group of religious sisters came to her home town. She even discerned with a cloistered convent, but was forced to return home after two years, due to an illness.  

Sister Crucita was introduced to the Josephine Sisters by a priest. She worked alongside the sisters at a local hospital for a few months, and then entered the novitiate.

On Aug. 15, 1947, Sister Crucita made her final vows as a Josephine sister, at 30 years of age. Currently she goes to confession about every two weeks, prays the Holy Rosary three or four times a day, and attends Mass daily.

She said her religious vocation was always tied to her profession as a nurse.

At the start of the 1950s, Sister Crucita was sent to her congregation's hospital in Cuba. Later, in 1952, she arrived in Guadalajara and was assigned as a nurse to the Civil Hospital. For many years she was the supervisor of the pediatrics department.

“I see how the sick suffer and there are many who offer everything to God, they don't complain or anything. So then I think, if they who are sick and are always thinking about God, then what can I complain about. Anything on my part is something passing and I offer it to the Lord,” she emphasized.

Sister María de la Cruz said that one of her secrets to keep on going has always been to feel welcomed by the mercy of God: “I know that He loves me much more than I love him. I have always thought that He seeks me, he calls me, that he is always with me. If something happens to me, He watches over me.”

She encouraged young people to trust “completely in God, in the love that He has for us” because “He helps us and gives us peace.”

On Nov. 23, at Our Lady of Bethlehem and Saint Michael the Archangel church, a Mass of Thanksgiving will be celebrated for Sister Crucita’s 100th birthday.

Sister Beatriz Escamilla, a 44-year-old Josephine sister, said that at nearly 100 years old, Sister Crucita is still very independent.

“She begins her routine at 5:00 am, because she moves at a slower pace, and then she comes to the chapel at 7:00 am. She is one of the most punctual sisters, and sometimes she beats us all there. Sometimes she's the one who opens up the chapel,” Sister Beatriz said.  

She also highlighted Sister Crucita's fervent prayer for “vocations and for those of us still working in the apostolate.”

“She has an hour dedicated to prayer in front of the Blessed Sacrament to especially ask for these needs,” she said.

Whenever things at the hospital get difficult, Sister Beatriz said, she can always count on Sister Crucita for encouragement.

“She's a person you're drawn to, through the peace she conveys. She offers a lesson in joy, perseverance, dedication and sacrifice,” she concluded.
​

Homeless Persons Find a Spiritual Father in Pope Francis
By Hannah Brockhaus
Vatican City, Nov 14, 2016 / 02:06 pm (EWTN News/CNA) - 
​
Always close to his heart, around 3,600 homeless men and women were given the chance to be also physically near the Pope this weekend – and near the heart of the Church – as they participated in the Jubilee of Mercy.

From 22 countries around Europe, the men and women came at the invitation of Pope Francis, who has called the poor the “treasures of the Church,” to participate in the European Festival of Joy and Mercy held in Rome Nov. 11-13.

From the UK, Josephine Kandeba said meeting Pope Francis was like “a daughter talking with her father.”

“He is very humble,” she told EWTN News. “He listened to me. When I stopped him, I said, 'Holy Father, if you don’t mind, I want to say something'. He stopped, while I was holding his hand and while he was holding mine, and I said what I wanted to say to him.”

Having been on the streets for years, Josephine now lives at a shelter in London. She said she never thought that one day she “could see the Pope.”

Other pilgrims attending the event said they were struck by Francis’ great love for the poor, and the attention he showed to all of them.

“Do you know why we’re here?” asked Terence, another pilgrim from the UK. We’ve come “from all over the world at the Holy Father’s invitation; that’s why we’re here.”

Terence also pointed out that Pope Francis said “he’s the Pope of the poor, and that has really stuck in my mind. Never before has a Pope said he’s the pope of the poor. He’s an exceptional man.”

Organized by the French organization Fratello, the event brought in groups of pilgrims from around Europe and the UK, including a large number from France and Poland, and Rome itself. It was organized as a way to help the homeless participate more fully in the Church and in the Jubilee of Mercy.

Organizations from five cities in the UK – Father Hudson’s Care, Cornerstone, the Church of Scotland and The Passage – together brought a group of around 50 pilgrims. The Passage, located in London, does street outreach in addition to having two hostels and a resource center for homeless.

The weekend’s schedule for pilgrims included an audience and catechesis with Pope Francis on Friday, a vigil of Mercy at the basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls on Saturday evening, and concluded with Mass celebrated by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Basilica on Sunday.

In between these, the schedule included Morning Prayer, faith sharing, and of course, some free time to tour Rome and to walk through the Holy Doors for the Jubilee.

Charlie Egan, another pilgrim, told EWTN News he found it very moving when an older homeless man from France spoke to the Pope on Friday, with “tears in his eyes.”

“And the Pope, he showed so much love,” even giving the Frenchman a hug, Charlie said. “And then the Pope didn’t go away, he had a chat as if they were in a restaurant.”

“The Pope talked about every person, homeless or not, looking for that dream and that goal, talking about peace and love and charity.”

Charlie said that before going on the pilgrimage, he had four days to “look back” at his life. He said that he had “messed up” his life by drinking and had practiced no religion for years, only coming back to the faith a few years ago.

But at the vigil at St. Paul Outside the Walls, Charlie said he had the chance to speak with a priest “about everything,” and he came out afterward “with a bit of emotion.”

One of the messages he said he received that weekend was that even if you’ve lived a “bad life,” there is still the sacrament of confession.

“Everything that Pope Francis said was brilliant,” said Jacob Mensah, a young man, also from London. What struck him was what Pope Francis said about dreams being for everyone, and that they all “have dignity.”

Fr. Padraig Regan, a chaplain at The Passage, said the weekend was a huge “sign of respect” for everyone who participated. It was incredibly important for each of them to be “taken seriously” by the Church.

One of the organizers of the group from the UK, Bénédicte Miolane, is a member of Fratello who now lives in London. She said that Fratello is already talking about how they can include even more people from around the world in the future.

The goal, she said, would be to make it like a World Youth Day, but a version specifically for the poor and homeless.

Terence said that another major thing that struck him “and changed his view” was the love he witnessed between “rough sleepers” (what they call those who sleep on the street) and the “ordinary” people also participating in the event.

“It was the love between them that I noticed,” he said. “They have something about them, they show each other affection.”

Speaking to pilgrims at the event’s concluding Mass Nov. 13, Pope Francis said: “Let us look with trust to the God of mercy, with the certainty that ‘love never ends.’”

“And let us open our eyes to our neighbor, especially to our brothers and sisters who are forgotten and excluded. That is where the Church’s magnifying glass is pointed.”  

"From the time of the Mosaic law, the People of God have observed fixed feasts, beginning with Passover, to commemorate the astonishing actions of the Savior God, to give him thanks for them, to perpetuate their remembrance, and to teach new generations to conform their conduct to them. In the age of the Church, between the Passover of Christ already accomplished once for all, and its consummation in the kingdom of God, the liturgy celebrated on fixed days bears the imprint of the newness of the mystery of Christ."   -Catechism of the Catholic Church #1164
​​

A bit of humor…


Some Thoughts:
-I intend to live forever… or die trying.
-At what age is it appropriate to tell my dog that he’s adopted?
-I used to be in a band, we were called ‘lost dog’. You probably saw our posters.






Unique Gift
Every year on my birthday, I looked forward to my aunt’s gift—a scarf, hat, or sweater knitted by hand. One year, she must have had better things to do because I received a ball of yarn, knitting needles, and a how-to-knit book. Her card read "Scarf, some assembly required."





From the Mouths of Infants and Babes:


Little Angel!
Little Johnny's new baby brother was screaming up a storm.
Johnny asked his mom, "Where'd he come from?"
 "He came from heaven, Johnny."
Johnny responded: "Wow! I can see why they threw him out!"


On the first day of school, a first-grader handed his teacher a note from his mother. The note read, 'The opinions expressed by this child are not necessarily those of his parents.'


A woman was trying hard to get the ketchup out of the jar. During her struggle the phone rang so she asked her 4-year-old daughter to answer the phone. 'Mommy can't come to the phone to talk to you right now. She's hitting the bottle.'
 
While taking a routine vandalism report at an elementary school, I was interrupted by a little girl about 6 years old. Looking up and down at my uniform, she asked, 'Are you a cop? Yes,' I answered and continued writing the report. My mother said if I ever needed help I should ask the police. Is that right?' 'Yes, that's right,' I told her. 'Well, then,' she said as she extended her foot toward me, 'would you please tie my shoe?'


A little girl had just finished her first week of school. 'I'm just wasting my time,' she said to her mother. 'I can't read, I can't write, and they won't let me talk!'
 
​

MOTHER'S PRAYER TO THE GUARDIAN ANGEL OF HER CHILDREN
I humbly salute you, O you faithful, heavenly Friends of my children!  I give you heartfelt thanks for all the love and goodness you show them.  At some future day I shall, with thanks more worthy than I can now give, repay your care for them, and before the whole heavenly court acknowledge their indebtedness to your guidance and protection.  Continue to watch over them.  Provide for all their needs of body and soul.  Pray, likewise, for me, for my husband, and my whole family, that we may all one day rejoice in your blessed company. Amen.
 ​

"From the time of the apostles, becoming a Christian has been accomplished by a journey and initiation in several stages. This journey can be covered rapidly or slowly, but certain essential elements will always have to be present: proclamation of the Word, acceptance of the Gospel entailing conversion, profession of faith, Baptism itself, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and admission to Eucharistic communion."  
-Catechism of the Catholic Church #1229



+JMJ+
SUNDAY MASS READINGS AND QUESTIONS
for Self-Reflection, Couples or Family Discussion
31st Sunday in Ordinary Time – Sunday, October 31st, 2021
The First Reading- Deuteronomy 6:2-6
Moses spoke to the people, saying: "Fear the LORD, your God, and keep, throughout the days of your lives, all his statutes and commandments which I enjoin on you, and thus have long life. Hear then, Israel, and be careful to observe them, that you may grow and prosper the more, in keeping with the promise of the LORD, the God of your fathers, to give you a land flowing with milk and honey. "Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone! Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. Take to heart these words which I enjoin on you today."
Reflection
Throughout divine revelation there is a consistency of message regarding the connection between our love for God and our love for neighbor that we see clearly in today’s readings. The first reading is from Deuteronomy, a book of the Jewish Scriptures, our Old Testament. These are not Jewish recommendations, but required, binding law that governed people’s ability to be in right relationship with God. It says that if I am going to love God, it has to be with my whole self — not just a chunk of my heart, or a corner of my intellect — but with my whole being. It has to be everything that I am, and everything that I do. And what shall I do? Justice. And what is justice? According to the entire law and prophets, it’s to care for the widows, orphans and aliens: to love my neighbor. And not just he neighbor that I deem worthy of my love, but whatever neighbor God is currently putting in my path. And what does it mean to love? To will the good of the other. It’s not (just) a feeling, or emotion. It is an act of the will.
Adults - How can we take the words Moses spoke to the Israelites to heart today?
Teens - Do you love God with your whole being? What do you hold back, if anything?
Kids - What does it mean to love Jesus with your whole heart?
Responsorial- Psalm 18: 2-3, 3-4, 47, 51
R. I love you, Lord, my strength.
I love you, O LORD, my strength,
O LORD, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer.
R. I love you, Lord, my strength.
My God, my rock of refuge,
my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold!
Praised be the LORD, I exclaim,
and I am safe from my enemies.
R. I love you, Lord, my strength.
The LORD lives! And blessed be my rock!
Extolled be God my savior.
You who gave great victories to your king
and showed kindness to your anointed.
R. I love you, Lord, my strength.
Reflection
-What area of your life do you need to ask God for strength in?

The Second Reading- Hebrews 7:23-28
Brothers and sisters: The levitical priests were many because they were prevented by death from remaining in office, but Jesus, because he remains forever, has a priesthood that does not pass away. Therefore, he is always able to save those who approach God through him, since he lives forever to make intercession for them. It was fitting that we should have such a high priest: holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners, higher than the heavens. He has no need, as did the high priests, to offer sacrifice day after day, first for his own sins and then for those of the people; he did that once for all when he offered himself.  For the law appoints men subject to weakness to be high priests, but the word of the oath, which was taken after the law, appoints a son, who has been made perfect forever.
Reflection
Our second reading is a follow up of last week’s second reading, and illustrates the difference between what we heard of the human priesthood (the Old Testament Levitical priesthood in this reading) and Jesus’ priesthood. It can also invite us to reflect on what happens when our priests act, through the power of God, “in persona Christi,” which means that the man is put aside, and Jesus, working through him, offers the sacrifice of the Mass himself. What we celebrate and what we receive is perfection, because Jesus, our high priest, does it himself through His ministers.
Reflect, as it says above, on what it means for the priest to act “in persona Christi,” and take some time to pray for priests this week.

The Holy Gospel according to Mark 12:28B-34
One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him, "Which is the first of all the commandments?" Jesus replied, "The first is this: Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these." The scribe said to him, "Well said, teacher. You are right in saying, 'He is One and there is no other than he.' And 'to love him with all your heart, with all your understanding, with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself' is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices." And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And no one dared to ask him any more questions.
Reflection
Jesus quotes our first reading in the Gospel story when a scribe asks him what the greatest commandment is. Jesus adds, and the scribe agrees, that the way to live out that commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. The scribe, in a very rare moment, praises Jesus for his wisdom — often they are trying to trap him. But this man answers with understanding — not just information like the others. The law is in this man’s heart. Therefore, Jesus declares him “not far from the kingdom of God.”
Adults - What is the difference between having information and having understanding? Why do you think Jesus said that the scribe had understanding? The next step after understanding is wisdom - applying that understanding to our lives; lived knowledge. How can we grow in wisdom?
Teens  - What does loving our neighbor have to do with loving God?
Kids -Jesus tells us to love our neighbors. Who are your neighbors?

LIVING THE WORD OF GOD THIS WEEK! – “Loving our neighbor—and in the Christian code this means all men no matter what may be their color, race or religion—is, according to our divine Lord, another most effective way of proving to God that we love him.  Because of our common humanity we should be inclined to help our fellowmen, our neighbors, but the Christian law spiritualizes this natural inclination, by commanding us to help our neighbor because he is God's child.  We are all fellow-children of God, members of the one family.  Our heavenly Father loves each one of us and wants our salvation.  If we love our common Father we will do all we can to help his other children also to attain salvation.  It will earn for us God's favor.  If we observe these two commandments we are "fulfilling the whole law and the prophets,"; we are serving God and showing our gratitude to him for all his goodness to us.  The Christian who is following Christ in love is already active in the earthly kingdom of God and traveling safely toward God's eternal kingdom of peace and happiness.  --Excerpted from The Sunday Readings by Fr. Kevin O'Sullivan, O.F.M.





588. What does “Hallowed be thy Name” mean? c) a prayer of praise that acknowledges God as holy 
To hallow or make holy the Name of God is above all a prayer of praise that acknowledges God as holy. In fact, God revealed his holy Name to Moses and wanted his people to be consecrated for him as a holy nation in which he would dwell. 


589. How is the Name of God made holy in us and in the world?d) all of the above 
To make holy the Name of God, who calls us “to holiness” (1 Thessalonians 4:7) is to desire that our baptismal consecration animate our whole life. In addition, it is to ask –with our lives and our prayers – that the Name of God be known and blessed by every man. 


590. What does the Church ask for when she prays “Thy Kingdom come”?a) the Church prays for the final coming of the Kingdom of the God 
The Church prays for the final coming of the Kingdom of God through Christ’s return in glory. The Church prays also that the Kingdom of God increase from now on through people’s sanctification in the Spirit and through their commitment to the service of justice and peace in keeping with the Beatitudes. This petition is the cry of the Spirit and the Bride: “Come, Lord Jesus” (Revelation 22:20). 


591. Why pray “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”?d) all of the above 
The will of the Father is that “all men be saved” (1 Timothy 2:4). For this Jesus came: to perfectly fulfill the saving will of his Father. We pray God our Father to unite our will to that of his Son after the example of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints. We ask that this loving plan be fully realized on earth as it is already in heaven. It is through prayer that we can discern “what is the will of God” (Romans 12:2) and have the “steadfastness to do it” (Hebrews 10:36). 


ReplyForward

Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
 
                The solemn month of November always begins with Solemnity of All Saints followed by the Commemoration of All of the Faithful Departed (All Soul's Day).  On Nov. 1, we honor and imitate all our brothers and sisters who await us and help us from heaven, the next day, Nov. 2, and especially the rest of the entire month we pray for those who are being purified in purgatory so that they will be with God forever.
 
       There are about 4,000-5,000 canonized saints in the Church.  Those who the Church has said with absolute certainty are in heaven.  A ‘saint’ can mean to be anyone redeemed by Jesus Christ, but is almost always used in the Catholic Church to refer to someone who is with God.
        The seventh Spiritual Work of Mercy is “To pray for the living and the dead.”  A priest has special permission to offer 3 Masses on All Soul’s Day, and Catholics are strongly encouraged to attend the Holy Mass on November 2nd.  ALL the souls of purgatory cannot help themselves because their time on earth, their time of merit is over, so while slowing being purified, they await our prayers to help them.


        Our world needs saints today perhaps more than ever.  A saint is simply ‘a sinner who perfectly accepts the mercy of God.’  You and I can do that!  God and those we love NEED us to do that.  From now on, do the simple things of your life with great love, and you will be saint!


       Honor, love, and receive help from the saints as they give it to the souls of purgatory.  Fight the good fight here on earth, pray for the souls of purgatory, and ask for their prayers for you.  Then one day, if you and I are faithful, we will join ALL Saints and ALL souls of purgatory in heaven!  Thank you Jesus for the Communion of Saints!!


Peace and prayers in Jesus through Mary, loved by Saint Joseph,
Father Robert
 
P.S.  Please check out the term and website section for more information and for a history of All Saints Day and All Soul’s Day.

P.S.S.  This Sunday is the Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time.  >> Readings 
​

“A saint is simply a sinner who perfectly accepts the Mercy of God.”

​

protodulia (from the Latin word proto”first”)
-first veneration or honor given to St. Joseph after Blessed Mary but before any other saints or angels
 
 term review
latria (from the Greek latreia “service, worship”)
- Latin word used in English meaning worship due to God alone
 
 dulia (Latin word used in English)
-veneration or honor given to saints as servants of God
 
 hyperdulia (Latin word used in English)
-higher veneration or honor given to Mary as the most exalted of all creatures
 
 purgatory (from Late Latin purgatorius “purging”)
- A temporary state in which the souls of those who have died in grace must be made perfect by being fully conformed to Christ Jesus.  (All souls in purgatory will eventually go to heaven.)  [Read more in the Website section.]
 ​

SAINT Angela Merici (1474-1540)
“Disorder in society is the result of disorder in the family.”

​

October 15 : The Catholic News Service featured a review of CATHOLICISM on their website.  Read the review below. 

A visually splendid and intellectually satisfying introduction to Catholic Christianity is provided by the 10-part video series “Catholicism.” Written and hosted by Father Robert E. Barron, the complete documentary is available for purchase on DVD at Word on Fire.

A priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago, Father Barron is certainly not lacking in academic credentials. He holds a doctorate in sacred theology from France’s Institut Catholique de Paris and serves as the Francis Cardinal George professor of faith and culture at the University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary. He’s also been a visiting professor at the University of Notre Dame and Rome’s Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, colloquially known as the Angelicum.

Like his august – and equally well educated — forerunner Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, however, Father Barron displays a knack for conveying complex ideas in easily grasped, television-friendly terms. His enthusiasm as a narrator also serves to keep the pace pleasingly rapid.

As he explores the identity of Jesus, the main topic of “Amazed and Afraid: The Revelation of God Become Man,” the first episode screened, the globetrotting Father Barron visits lushly photographed holy sites in Bethlehem, Galilee and Jerusalem before traveling on to various sacred locales around Rome. Classical religious artwork – smoothly panned and zoomed in the style justly known among broadcasters as the Ken Burns effect — provides further engaging imagery.

The substantive discussion carried on behind these visuals introduces viewers to the messianic expectations laid down in the prophecies of the Old Testament and to the surprising, sometimes paradoxical, manner in which Jesus — by his life, death and resurrection — fulfilled them.

A first-rate DVD resource for teen and adult religious education, whether in a parish setting or at home – and must-watch public television programming for all old enough to profit from it – “Catholicism” enlists sophisticated production values
and an elegantly crafted script in the service of explaining — and celebrating — the faith.
                                                                                                                                                                             ​

All Saints’ DayThis Tells of the Day:
http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2015-11-01
 
Here is a History of All Saints’ Day in the Catholic Church:
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01315a.htm

All Souls’ Day
 
This Tells of the Day:
http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2015-11-02
 
Here is a History of All Souls' Day in the Catholic Church:
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01315b.htm

 
Catholic Biblical Apologetics for Purgatory
 http://www.catholicapologetics.org/ap090400.htm
 

SAINT Francis of Assisi

“Man should tremble, the world should vibrate,

all Heaven should be deeply moved

when the Son of God appears on the alter

in the hands of the priest.”
 ​

Peter Jesserer Smith NationOctober 20, 2021PARADISE, Calif. — The Camp Fire wildfire burned Paradise to the ground. Greg and Yvonne Kidder’s home, along with 14,000 other residences in this working-class and retiree community in California, went up in smoke as 20,000 people fled before an inferno fed by 50 mph winds.
“That fire basically just chased us down the hill,” Greg Kidder told the Register, recalling the Nov. 8, 2018, catastrophe that struck their town that early morning. The fire moved so fast, 85 residents of Paradise could not escape fast enough and perished in the blaze.
St. Thomas More parish’s church and school incredibly survived the conflagration. Brave firefighters from a nearby station did their best to hold back the rushing flames, but the fight came down to one glass window that cracked but held under the heat to protect the interior. 
“A single pane of glass is all that prevented us from losing the church,” Greg said. However, the parish rectory, the parish hall and other parish community buildings were destroyed.
More than 700 families called St. Thomas More parish their church home, and while most escaped, three beloved parishioners lost their lives. Everyone else was homeless.
“We were still quite in a daze when all that happened,” Greg Kidder said. But in that hour of crisis, Kidder and a core group went into action, working the phones to check up on each parishioner, see what they needed, or try to find out the whereabouts of loved ones. “We concentrated on getting the parish back together.”
Three years later, St. Thomas More parish, like Paradise itself, is rising to new life from the ashes. But parishioners are very much focused on renewal, doing outreach and evangelization to become the “church on the ridge” that God has called them to be. 
Kidder is today the parish steward of St. Thomas More, an appointment made by Sacramento Bishop Jaime Soto, to oversee the day-to-day care of the parish. Since the parish no longer has a priest in residence, the bishop appointed Father Martin Ramat, pastor of Divine Savior Catholic Church in Chico, California, as St. Thomas More’s supervising priest. He comes by on Wednesdays to offer confession and offers the noon Sunday Mass. While the title is new, the dynamic is centuries-old for the Catholic Church in the Americas. Lay catechists, such as Servant of God Nicholas Black Elk, who is up for sainthood, would work collaboratively with priests in providing pastoral care. The catechists provided stable community leadership to keep the church going, while the priests would form the catechists and provide the sacraments to multiple churches.
 Kidder said that while the dynamic has taken some time to work out, he believes the diocese is studying this model for its potential to be replicated for other parishes.
“The Catholic Church needs to be here on the ridge, to have a presence as a people of faith,” he said.
This collaborative process keeps the St. Thomas More parish functioning, and growing, as the town rebuilds. Three years ago, 75 families attended Mass. Now, the parish has 130 registered families, with 150 people regularly worshipping on Sunday. And they have 15 youth preparing for the sacrament of confirmation.
“We’re not just going to survive,” Kidder said. “We’re going to thrive.”
But Paradise’s rebuilding has been slow: Only 1,000 new homes are being rebuilt each year. Right now, 3,000 homes are built, meaning the town is at least a decade away from reaching its former housing capacity.
“It’s going to be a very slow process,” Kidder said. “But we’re in it for the long haul.”


Spiritual RenewalThe sudden destruction of Paradise by fire was spiritually traumatic. Yvonne Kidder, Greg’s wife, told the Register that after the destruction of her home, and all that death, she “never wanted to see Paradise again.” Yvonne felt angry with God at the time. 
“I said, ‘If nothing is impossible with our God, why did he do that to all of us?’” she said.
However, since then, Yvonne said her faith has become much “different and deeper than before.”
“The grace of God is so much bigger than I ever imagined,” she said. Their new home is much simpler, her neighbors are kind, and she does not miss the old life.
“I’ll live out my life in Paradise with peace and love,” she said. “I love my life like never before.”
Yvonne and 24 other women of St. Thomas More have formed a Ladies Guild, with a special emphasis on living out the charism of hospitality.
“It is more successful every time we meet,” she said. “I’m so happy the church is here, and the community is bonding greatly.”
St. Thomas More parish has had relationships both with Catholic Charities and the Order of Malta Western Association during the rebuilding process.
“The order has had a special emphasis on going into places that have been devastated and helping those affected to rebuild,” explained Msgr. James Kidder, chaplain of the Order of Malta, whose members have been providing assistance for the rebuilding of Paradise.
The community was comprised of both working-class residents and retirees, Msgr. Kidder said. He said Social Security was, for many, their main source of income; and many residents lost half the value of their land with the fire. But more young families are moving in to give it a go.
And the priest has seen the people come a long way since their first Mass after the 2018 blaze. 
“There’s a persistent spirit of renewal,” said Msgr. Kidder, who is also Greg’s eighth cousin. 
He admired the “marvelous spirit of the people” as they worked to rebuild their parish.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity to design and execute their dreams as a community,” he said. 

Journey of Faith
Jim Collins, grand knights for the local Knights of Columbus, told the Register that the experience has been a “roller-coaster ride” on the journey of faith.
“This is something different for us, but we’ve been undeterred.”
The Knights of Columbus purchased three large tents to help the community gather outside. Collins said the parish has established a “Table of Plenty” to cook meals for the community and as needed for gatherings. They have held parish community events like Cinco de Mayo and are building a unified community between their Anglo and Hispanic parish members. 
Collins has taken over responsibility for the parish website after the original webmaster relocated after the fire, and he has been involved in fundraising for the new memorial wall. The wall will remember the three parishioners and 85 victims who died in the Camp Fire blaze and also honor parishioners who have given sacrificially to rebuild their parish.

Father Tom Hagan holds the missal as Msgr. James Kidder reads a prayer then blesses the memorial plaque in honor of the St. Thomas More Camp Fire victims.

Collins pointed to two ways the parish is embracing the call of evangelization. He said, for the parish community, they obtained the Augustine Institute’s Formed series.
“That’s one of the best [catechetical] resources the entire parish can get,” he said.
The parish is also reaching out to people moving back into Paradise as each home is approved for occupancy. Groups go out to deliver a crape myrtle, a drought-resistant tree. They meet the occupants, pray with them, and either welcome them back or invite them to come over and visit St. Thomas More.
“This is just another part of the faith journey,” Collins said. “I look forward most to the community being better than ever.”

Joseph Pronechen FeaturesOctober 24When Matt and Elizabeth Doucette were students at Franciscan University of Steubenville and first dating, she wanted to get him a rosary for a Christmas gift. Shopping for one, she couldn’t locate “the” rosary she wanted, so she ended up gathering beads for a rosary and other parts, including the crucifix and medal, and making the special rosary she really had in mind but couldn’t find.

“That was the little seed all the way back,” Matt said, because at that time neither realized that six years after they would marry in 2006, they would launch Design My Rosary (DesignMyRosary.com), their family business run from home. Elizabeth already had experience making rosaries with her mother for the Fathers of Mercy in Kentucky. “My mom was making rosaries for them. That’s how I learned,” she said. Then Matt presented the inspiration to start Design My Rosary. With his experience, Matt designed their website and worked with his wife to make rosaries. 

The family is always happy to hear the stories behind the unique rosary creations. As Matt shared, “We find we often make them for children being baptized.” The Doucettes share this family tradition, he said: “We make a rosary for each of the children and have it blessed at their baptism.”

“And lots of people tell us about one for a convert entering the Church,” he added. The Doucettes feel honored and privileged “to be included in those stories and those moments. We feel we’re part of it when they ask us to make that rosary.”

There are the sad stories, too, whether for funerals or the loss of a child. These stories stick out for Elizabeth. “As a mother we’ve done several memorial rosaries for infants that have passed away. I’ve always been touched by that. We had a close friend who we did that for as well.” 

Many happy occasions include making rosaries for weddings. Often people buy rosaries to go in the bride’s bouquet. “One of the most fun things is when we have made rosaries for the entire wedding party,” Elizabeth said.

In fact, it might be said the Rosary led to the Doucettes’ marriage. The time-honored devotion brought Matt and Elizabeth together in 2002, when they were students at Franciscan University. “We met because of the Rosary,” Matt explained. “We happened to be in a similar random collection of students that began praying the Rosary at the grotto,” Elizabeth added, referring to a popular devotional site on campus. 

“Over time we’d hang around talking, then developed a friendship and started dating.”
Naturally, the Rosary has always continued to be a big part of their lives, including as Matt transitioned to working full time with Elizabeth.

“One of the first things I did when I left teaching and Elizabeth was making the rosaries was to produce a Rosary DVD,” he said. “Our children inspired us to create ‘Pray the Rosary,’ a DVD that has helped us as a family pray the Rosary together, which can be a challenge with children.”

An animated Rosary is seen below each decade, each illustrated with beautiful artwork through all four mysteries, helping even the youngest pray-ers to keep their place.

The Rosary anchors their family life with eight children — Maximilian, 14; Isabella Clare, 12; Olivia Irene, 10; Benjamin Joseph, 8; Dominic, 7; Samuel, 5; Gabriel, 3; and Violet, who is going on 2 months — amid home schooling. As Elizabeth explained, “We’ve had times where we’ve really struggled to sit together and pray the Rosary as a family. We make a recommitment to pray it each day. I feel like the grace that comes from God and knowing I’m helping my children develop this prayer life and carry it into adulthood is wonderful. We struggle like any family. The baby will throw things across the room, and that gets giggles. That’s all part of the beauty of it.”

As she also shared, “I enjoy how as the kids have gotten older they can help lead each one of the decades, and it feels more like praying it as a family.”

In terms of the family business, the children assist with packing the rosaries into the gift boxes in which they’re shipped, labeling packages and mailing them. The two older girls learned how to make rosaries from their mother. Of the scores of different beads, Bella said, “There’s Cats Eye I really like working with.” Another favorite is a Christmas-themed one “that’s really pretty.” Livy has her favorites, too. “My favorite kind of bead is called tree agate.”
​
They may make rosaries as a family, but praying the Rosary is the most important legacy. As Elizabeth said, “We make a recommitment to pray it each day.”  

​

Twenty-year-old Gonzáles has watched her story go viral over the last week on social media over a post on the “Miss Mexico” Facebook page.


Gonzáles was born April 12, 1997, in Valle de Guadalupe, Jalisco State, to a Catholic family. She currently resides at the convent of the Poor Clare Missionaries of the Blessed Sacrament of Cuernavaca in Morelos State, after leaving her career as a nutritionist.


“You really don’t know what religious life is until you’re within it. So far, I have been able to see from another perspective what the world is and what it offers you,” the young novice told CNA.


“I was very happy with everything I had, but it does not compare with the happiness that God now places in my heart.”


The young postulant met the Poor Clare Missionaries five years ago, at the age of 14, when her concern for a religious vocation “was awakening” through “vocational days, missions and camps.”


In addition, she pointed out how it was hardly a month after this process of discernment concluded, when on March 2017, she gave her first Yes to her vocation on the Solemnity of the Annunciation.


“God’s timing is perfect. During this time [of discernment] he allowed me to have some experiences, such as being a beauty queen and other experiences, which forever left their mark and which allowed me to learn a lot for what was to come later.”


The discovery of the vocation to which she had been called was always present in her life like a “little thorn,” she said.


“I realized that I had to make room in my life to know what it was that God had planned for me. In the process of discerning my vocation, there was also fear and doubts, but the love that Our Lord was showing every day made me overcome any feeling of discouragement,” she said.


She said she had discovered that God was calling her “to serve him in a radical way,” that is, changing her “life to embrace the cross of Christ and live it more closely.”
“I have been in religious life very little time, but I truly have been very happy,” she said.


In order to discover her vocation, she spent a lot of time in prayer and charity, “knowing from the outside or from the world” what this change would involve.
“Change is hard for the family because it involves detachment, but I have always had the support of my parents, siblings and true friends. Even though I could have developed myself in some other setting, I feel that if the Lord needs me, then I can bear fruit in a different way,” she told CNA.


Offering advice for young people, she said that in any vocation there will be difficulties, “but if you go and take God’s hand, you'll always be able to take the next step.”
“In religious life every new day is a new beginning and a new opportunity to extend the Kingdom of God. This involves making a lot of sacrifices, but they are always rewarded with happiness,” she said.


The young novice also said that it is true that “the reality and the supposed happiness that the world sells is very attractive,” but “it is necessary to fix your eyes on what lasts.”
The Poor Clare Missionaries of the Blessed Sacrament are a Religious Institute of Pontifical Right founded by Blessed María Inés Teresa Arias in 1945 in Cuernavaca, Mexico.
The spirit of the order is Eucharistic, Marian, priestly and missionary and is centered on Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.


The missionaries work in clinics, youth groups, preschools and schools, university dorms, centers for the spiritual exercises and missions, among others. They are present in Mexico, Costa Rica, Argentina, the United States, Spain, Italy, Ireland, Russia, Japan, Korea, Indonesia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Vietnam and India.


“You mustn’t be afraid,” the young novice encouraged her peers. “If God is calling you, he’ll take care of everything. All you need to do is receive him with a lot of peace, joy and confidence. I believe fear is a big excuse that is responsible for truncating the true happiness that only God can offer.”

  SAINT Faustina Kowalska (1905-1938)
“Great love can change small things into great ones,
and it is only love which lends value to our actions.”

​

Prayer for All the Faithfully Departed


V. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
R. and let perpetual light shine upon them.
V. May they rest in peace.
R. Amen.
V. May all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.
R. Amen


 ​

+JMJ+
SUNDAY MASS READINGS AND QUESTIONS
for Self-Reflection, Couples or Family Discussion
30th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Sunday, October 24th, 2021
The First Reading- Jeremiah 31:7-9
Thus says the LORD: Shout with joy for Jacob, exult at the head of the nations; proclaim your praise and say: The LORD has delivered his people, the remnant of Israel. Behold, I will bring them back from the land of the north; I will gather them from the ends of the world, with the blind and the lame in their midst, the mothers and those with child; they shall return as an immense throng. They departed in tears, but I will console them and guide them; I will lead them to brooks of water, on a level road, so that none shall stumble. For I am a father to Israel, Ephraim is my first-born.
Reflection
Jeremiah was writing to the people of God during a time of horrendous religious corruption in the Temple, political corruption, assault against his country, and then occupation and exile. In the midst of all this, he preached reform and hope. Today’s first reading is an expression of Jeremiah’s belief that God would restore Israel; that those who were suffering would eventually come out the other side and experience true joy. His message for Israel, unfortunately, wasn’t something he himself would see come to fruition, as he was murdered by the people for whom he tried to bring hope. His hope was rooted in God’s salvation of the remnant—the faithful few—but also in reform of the leaders and the people. Sadly, most folks wanted everything fixed without having to change themselves.
Adults - Have you ever been the bringer of a message of hope and have been rejected? Why did the person (or people) refuse to listen? Have you ever rejected someone else’s message of hope? What prevented you from receiving it?
Teens - Have you ever been in a very dark place in need of a message of hope? Who brought you that hope?
Kids - What does the word hope mean to you?
Responsorial- Psalm 126: 1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 6
R. The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.
When the LORD brought back the captives of Zion,
we were like men dreaming.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with rejoicing.
R. The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.
Then they said among the nations,
"The LORD has done great things for them."
The LORD has done great things for us;
we are glad indeed.
R. The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.
Restore our fortunes, O LORD,
like the torrents in the southern desert.
Those that sow in tears
shall reap rejoicing.
R. The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.
Although they go forth weeping,
carrying the seed to be sown,
They shall come back rejoicing,
carrying their sheaves.
R. The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.
Reflection Question
-What brings you true joy?
The Second Reading- Hebrews 5:1-6
Brothers and sisters: Every high priest is taken from among men and made their representative before God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal patiently with the ignorant and erring, for he himself is beset by weakness and so, for this reason, must make sin offerings for himself as well as for the people. No one takes this honor upon himself but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. In the same way, it was not Christ who glorified himself in becoming high priest, but rather the one who said to him: You are my son: this day I have begotten you; just as he says in another place:
You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.
Reflection
The second reading is a reminder that the high priest, the one who would make the sacrifices in the Temple for the forgiveness of the people, is a flawed person just like the rest of us. Priests, human as they are, are chosen by God for service and so need understanding and compassion when they mess up just as they too are to be vessels of mercy.  Nobody’s perfect. We’re all broken people helping one another to heal.
Are you overly critical of others? Or, do you know people who are? If so, what do you think the cause is?
The Holy Gospel according to Mark 10:46-52
As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus,
sat by the roadside begging. On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, son of David, have pity on me." And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he kept calling out all the more, "Son of David, have pity on me." Jesus stopped and said, "Call him." So they called the blind man, saying to him, "Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you." He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. Jesus said to him in reply, "What do you want me to do for you?" The blind man replied to him, "Master, I want to see." Jesus told him, "Go your way; your faith has saved you." Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way.
Reflection
Bartimaeus, the blind man in today’s Gospel, is healed because of his faith. If we look closely at the story, he heard that Jesus was passing by and yelled until he got Jesus’ attention — despite people telling him to be quiet. He calls Jesus “son of David,” a messianic title in that time. In his persistence, he received an answer, a healing and a new life. Jesus didn’t require anything of him; he even told him that he could “go your way,” but Bartimaeus followed Jesus on his way.
Adults - What does it tell you about Jesus that Bartimaeus chose to follow Him on His way, even though Jesus did not require him to do so?
Teens  - What can Bartimaeus tell us about persistence in prayer?
Kids -How do you think Bartimaeus felt when Jesus healed him?
LIVING THE WORD OF GOD THIS WEEK! – “The rediscovery of the value of one's baptism is the basis of the missionary commitment of every Christian, because we see in the Gospel that he who lets himself be fascinated by Christ cannot do without witnessing the joy of following in his footsteps. In this month of October, especially dedicated to the mission, we understand even more that, in virtue of baptism, we have an inherent missionary vocation.  We invoke the intercession of the Virgin Mary so that missionaries of the Gospel will multiply. Intimately united to the Lord, may every baptized person hear that he is called to proclaim the love of God to all, with the testimony of his own life.”
--Angelus Address, Pope Benedict XVI, October 29, 2006

585. With what spirit of communion and mission do we pray to God as “our” Father? d) all of the above
Since praying to “our” Father is a common blessing for the baptized, we feel an urgent summons to join in Jesus’ prayer for the unity of his disciples. To pray the “Our Father” is to pray with all people and for all people that they may know the one true God and be gathered into unity.


586. What does the phrase “Who art in heaven” mean? c) with Christ we already live there
This biblical expression does not indicate a place but a way of being: God transcends everything. The expression refers to the majesty, the holiness of God, and also to his presence in the hearts of the just. Heaven, or the Father’s house, constitutes our true homeland toward which we are moving in hope while we are still on earth. “Hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3), we live already in this homeland.


587. What is the structure of the Lord’s Prayer? d) God-centered petitions with our poverty and expectations
It contains seven petitions made to God the Father. The first three, more God-centered, draw us toward him for his glory; it is characteristic of love to think first of the beloved. These petitions suggest in particular what we ought to ask of him: the sanctification of his Name, the coming of his Kingdom, and the fulfillment of his will. The last four petitions present to the Father of mercies our wretchedness and our expectations. They ask him to feed us, to forgive us, to sustain us in temptations, and to free us from the Evil One.

​

Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
 
         When one is at the Holy Mass, they kneel from the conclusion of the Holy, Holy, Holy to the conclusion of the Great Amen and after the Lamb of God.  This has been given by the Pope and received by the U.S. Bishops in the 2007 directives for the Mass (IGRM [GIRM] #43).
 
         Why do we do this and why do we sometimes kneel when we privately pray?  Let Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI explain it:
“Kneeling does not come from any culture — it comes from the Bible and its knowledge of God. The central importance of kneeling in the Bible can be seen in a very concrete way. The word proskynein alone occurs fifty-nine times in the New Testament, twenty-four of which are in the Apocalypse, the book of the heavenly Liturgy, which is presented to the Church as the standard for her own Liturgy.”  - The Spirit of the Liturgy
 
So kneeling comes to us from God by way of revelation in the Sacred Scripures (Holy Bible).  But why is it so important?  The Pope Emeritus continues:
“The two aspects are united in the one word, because in a very profound way they belong together. When kneeling becomes merely external, a merely physical act, it becomes meaningless. On the other hand, when someone tries to take worship back into the purely spiritual realm and refuses to give it embodied form, the act of worship evaporates, for what is purely spiritual is inappropriate to the nature of man. Worship is one of those fundamental acts that affect the whole man. That is why bending the knee before the presence of the living God is something we cannot abandon.”  - The Spirit of the Liturgy
 
So he highlights that for worship to be real it must be on our hearts spiritually AND reflected in our bodies physically, in this case, by kneeling.
         Jesus Himself prayed kneeling before His Father:
 
After withdrawing about a stone's throw from them and kneeling, he prayed, saying, "Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me; still, not my will but yours be done."   -Luke 22:41-42
 
          May these truths and realities make our next time of prayer on our knees more real and more life-changing!
 
Peace and prayers in Jesus through Mary, loved by Saint Joseph,
Father Robert
 
P.S.  This Sunday is the 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time.  Readings >> Here
​

582. Why can we dare to draw near to God in full confidence? (Catechism of the Catholic Church, CCC 2777-2778, 2797)
a) because Jesus brings us to the Father
b) because of the beauty of our prayer
c) we cannot because the distance between God and us, the creature, is infinite
d) we cannot because we do not have the power or authority to do so
 
583. How is it possible to address God as “Father”? (CCC 2779-2785, 2789, 2798-2800)
a) because Jesus reveals the Father to us
b) because the Holy Spirit makes Him known to us
c) because it awakens in us the desire to act as His children
d) all of the above
 
584. Why do we say “our” Father? (CCC 2786-2790, 2801)
a) because He is our own possession
b) because it expresses a totally new relationship with God
c) because we can have God any way we want Him
d) none of the above

Some Articles and Church References for Kneeling

 
The Theology Of Kneeling - More from Pope Benedict XVI


Stand Up For Kneeling


"Why don't they want us to kneel at Mass?"
 (Reference for kneeling from the Holy Bible and more)

Credit: The John Cardinal O’Connor School.
​
​Share

“One of his teachers in eighth grade told him there was a word for him, and that was ‘unemployed,’” his mother Laura Aponte recalls. 
​
Christopher struggled to keep pace with his classmates and fell behind the curriculum. A week before eighth grade graduation, Laura says middle school officials told her and her husband that Christopher would not be passed to ninth grade.

“I went into warrior mom mode,” Laura says. She wanted to find a school that could better address Christopher’s learning needs. While searching for learning resources for Christopher, she learned about the John Cardinal O’Connor School.
The John Cardinal O’Connor School is a rarity in the Catholic school landscape — the Irvington, New York school serves exclusively second to eighth grade students with learning disabilities.

A 2002 study showed that 7% of children enrolled in Catholic schools had disabilities as defined by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Comparatively, 11.4% of public school students at the time had disabilities. 

Officials with the Archdiocese of New York, which oversees the school, say the John Cardinal O’Connor School is the “gold standard” of special education among Catholic schools in the country. With small student-to-teacher ratios, multisensory teaching methods and individualized curriculums, the archdiocese hopes it can replicate the school’s model, and better serve more students with learning disabilities. 

Personalized instructionAfter Laura Aponte sent in Christopher’s application paperwork, the school’s principal interviewed him. In their conversation, she picked up on a processing issue that impacts Christopher’s ability to study, and he was admitted to the school as a student.

“I wasn’t necessarily looking for a Catholic school, but I was looking for something that had heart and would be considerate to my son’s needs,” Laura told The Pillar. 

Christopher remembers his time at the John Cardinal O’Connor School fondly. 

“It was other-worldly. I had a great teacher,” he says. “There were maybe 12 kids in my class, maybe. She would spend time with every kid and have us explain the content to her to make sure we understood it.”

It was time and attention he does not remember getting from any previous teacher. Kristen O’Leary, who’s been principal at the school for eight years, says she strives to create a welcoming and inclusive environment. 

“Often these kids have been bullied or made fun of for not being able to read or whatever they are going through,” O’Leary says. “It’s a safe place. They’re happy to come to school every day and find that they finally fit in.” 

There are about 70 children in the building, and class sizes never go above 15 students per teacher. The class size limit for younger kids is 12. Younger students have a classroom assistant in addition to a teacher.

“As kids get older, we don’t want them to have that assistant anymore,” O’Leary told The Pillar. “We want them to be prepared for a normal high school environment that doesn’t have that much support.” 

Although the school serves students in second to eighth grades, they are not grouped by grade level in the building. Students are arranged in cohorts based on instructional level, and their groupings are referred to as “teams” rather than “grades.”

“We use the Orton-Gillingham approach to instruction, which includes reading. Under that umbrella there’s a program called PAF, Preventing Academic Failure, so we use that program here for teaching students how to read and spell,” assistant principal Kimberly Cinguina says. “We use the Judith Hochman writing program, teaching basic writing skills. And that’s also called The Writing Revolution, a highly systemic and direct instructional approach for teaching students how to write.”

Cinguina says parents who are attracted to the school are often looking for one or more of particular instructional methods. Every student at the school has either an IEP, Individualized Education Plan, or IESP, Individualized Education Services Plan. 

IEPs and IESPs detail how a student is performing, modifications needed for their successful learning and ways to measure a student’s outcomes. Public schools are legally required to offer IEPs for children who qualify for special education under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Private schools are not required to offer IEPs and often offer service plans instead. 

The John Cardinal O’Connor School runs its own special education program with its own teachers. The Irvington Union Free School District provides other required services like speech therapists and occupational therapists. That partnership is critical to the school’s offerings — and is not always offered by public school districts.

Instilling Catholic Identity
​

​O’Leary says the John Cardinal O’Connor School strives to maintain a solid Catholic identity while remaining open to and welcoming of students who are not Catholic.
About 70% of the student body is Catholic. Some of the non-Catholic students are Protestant, and others are not Christian at all. 
“That actually becomes part of the curriculum at some point,” Cinguina says. “If we’re talking about a particular Catholic value or doctrine, a student who is a non-Catholic may say, ‘Well, in my religion we do this!’ So it’s really a learning experience for the children as well.”
Everyone in the school engages in daily prayer together. During non-pandemic times, the school’s students attend Mass together once a month and on holy days of obligation. 
Like other schools around the country, the John Cardinal O'Connor School's instructional methods were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic — school was online five days a week from the end of March 2020 through the end of June 2020. For the 2020-2021 school year, students were back in the classroom five days a week. In-person instruction continues today. 
Many students complete their sacraments of initiation while enrolled at the school.
“Many of our students who were in public school may not have been able to participate in religious education,” Cinguina says. “Maybe because they have special needs and there wasn’t a good program for them. Maybe because they were overwhelmed by their school work, and the thought of going to after-school religious ed was overwhelming.”
The school uses service projects like toiletries collections to teach students about ways they can personally, positively impact the world around them. 

The John Cardinal O’Connor School gets a large part of its operating budget through fundraisers, according to O’Leary. 
“I’m not sure whether there are other schools that embody all of the components of this school,” Archdiocese of New York superintendent of Catholic schools Michael Deegan says. “Is it worthy of replicating? Absolutely. Can it be replicated? Completely. What we’re really looking for are funding opportunities in the community and metropolitan area so we can duplicate it in other locations in the archdiocese.” 
The John Cardinal O’Connor School is not the only educational opportunity for children with disabilities in the Archdiocese of New York.
Of the archdiocese’s 171 Catholic schools, seven offer programs for kids with special education needs. The Alfred E. Smith Foundation and Cabrini Health Foundation help fund those programs, according to Deegan. He says the archdiocese is actively seeking funding opportunities to grow its special education offerings.
“We’re looking to secure other grants from other organizations to help us expand from seven to 14 to 21 in the near future,” Deegan says. “We want all children to have access to a Catholic education regardless of their learning challenges.”
Deegan believes both models of schooling — settings that provide exclusively for students with disabilities and settings where children with disabilities learn along those without disabilities — are worth pursuing.
“We serve a multiplicity of children with many differentiated needs. So having the setting the John Cardinal O'Connor School provides is important for the children who need that setting. But some students' needs can be met in other schools, so it is also good to invest in the programs in those schools,” he said.
Sister Dale McDonald, vice president of public policy for the National Catholic Educational Association, told The Pillar that while it is beneficial for students with intellectual disabilities to interact daily with other kids, she could not offer a blanket assessment of whether an inclusive classroom, or a specialized environment like the John Cardinal O'Connor School, is a preferable approach.
Ultimately, she said, it depends on the particular student's learning needs. She noted that under federal “least restrictive environment” regulations, students with disabilities must be educated alongside peers without disabilities to the maximum extent possible.
“Prior to the ‘60s, children with any type of disability were totally isolated, totally separated from...‘normal’ kids. But some of them didn’t need to be. People started to realize it’s a civil right not to discriminate against kids with disabilities.”
Deegan said the different choices in the archdiocese allow families to select an option that works best for their child.
“I'd like to be able to replicate JCOS and at the same time expand services to the programs that currently exist at other schools,” he said. “Given the need, I think that it is possible to do both...The sky's the limit, but it's really all about funding. The will is there. The only thing holding us back is funding.”
Funding is an issue. Tuition at the John Cardinal O’Connor School costs $16,000 per year — more than most Catholic high schools in the archdiocese. The Archdiocese of New York offers income-based financial aid to students. 
“We’ve seen families get anywhere from 25% to 75% depending on the level of need,” O’Leary said. “This school year was actually the first that it was available.”  
Historically, funding special education in Catholic schools has been a challenge nationwide. In 1996, a group of parents in Kansas City founded an organization called FIRE Foundation. The non-profit aims to provide children with special needs the opportunity for an inclusive education in their respective Catholic schools. A different group of parents in Washington D.C. and Baltimore started the Catholic Coalition for Special Education in 2005. Both organizations provide grants to help schools hire special educators, certify existing teachers and help families navigate the world of special education. 
“[W]hen it comes to education many Catholic children with disabilities are unable to attend their parish schools due to limited resources,” coalition president Francesca Pellegrino says on the coalition’s About Us page. “This is where CCSE steps in to help parishes and their schools access the resources they need to welcome all God’s children.” 
Sister McDonald says at the end of the day, most parents of children with learning disability want to see their kids treated normally at school — welcomed and well-educated. 
“Hopefully another diocese or two will get together a school like (the John Cardinal O’Connor School),” McDonald said. 

​

​Pope Francis beatified 15-year-old Carlo Acutis on Sat., Oct. 10, 2020 in Assisi, Italy.
Born on May 3, 1991, Bl. Carlo is best known for his incredible computer programming skills and his website dedicated to Eucharistic miracles. The Italian teen also deeply loved the Eucharist and Our Lady. He prayed the Rosary and went to Mass every day.
Bl. Carlo died of leukemia on Oct. 12, 2006. He offered his sufferings for “the pains of the Pope and the Church.” His tomb remains on display in Assisi, due to the vast number of pilgrims visiting before and following his beatification.
He is also the first millennial to be named “blessed.”
Here’s 15 quotes from this new blessed to inspire you in your daily living:
1) “The Eucharist is the highway to heaven.”
2) “Our soul is like a hot air balloon. If by chance there is a mortal sin, the soul falls to the ground. Confession is like the fire underneath the balloon enabling the soul to rise again. . . It is important to go to confession often.”
3) “Continuously ask your guardian angel for help. Your guardian angel has to become your best friend.”
4)  “All people are born as originals but many die as photocopies.”
5) “I am happy to die because I lived my life without wasting even a minute of it on anything unpleasing to God.”
6) “The Virgin Mary is the only woman in my life.”
7) “I offer all the suffering I will have to suffer for the Lord, for the Pope, and the Church.”
8) “Do not be afraid because with the Incarnation of Jesus, death becomes life, and there’s no need to escape: in eternal life, something extraordinary awaits us.”
9) “The more Eucharist we receive, the more we will become like Jesus, so that on this earth we will have a foretaste of heaven”.
10) “When we face the sun we get a tan… but when we stand before Jesus in the Eucharist we become saints.”
11)  “By standing before the Eucharistic Christ, we become holy.”
12) “Our goal must be infinite, not the finite. The infinite is our homeland. Heaven has been waiting for us forever.”
13) “Sadness is looking at ourselves, happiness is looking towards God.”
14) “The only thing we have to ask God for, in prayer, is the desire to be holy.”
15) “What does it matter if you can win a thousand battles if you cannot win against your own corrupt passions? It doesn’t matter. The real battle is with ourselves.”
Bl. Carlo Acutis, pray for us!

The Saint and the Synod – Pope St. John Paul II’s Legacy Still Seen in Church TeachingBy Angela AmbrogettiVatican City, Oct 22 / 04:55 pm (EWTN News/CNA)  -  Though it has been more than 10 years since the death of Pope John Paul II, the saint’s impact can still be seen in those working to uphold Church teaching at the Synod on the Family, said his former secretary.

“The teaching of the magisterium of the Church and of John Paul II is always current,” said Archbishop Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki of Lviv.

He told CNA that the words and writings of St. John Paul II are being frequently invoked by bishops at the synod who are defending the Church’s teachings on marriage.

Responding to calls for the Church to permit the divorced-and-remarried to receive Communion, he said, “many bishops have recalled the great teaching of Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI which they expressed clearly, that it would be against the doctrine of the Church, against the sacrament of the Eucharist, the sacrament of Penance, against grace.”

Archbishop Mokrzycki, who is the president of the Ukrainian Bishops Conference, is among the synod fathers gathered in Rome for the Oct. 4-25 Synod on the Family, which gathers bishops from around the world to discuss issues relating to families in the Church today.

But many remember Archbishop Mokrzycki for another role – one of John Paul II’s two personal secretaries during the last nine years of his life.

Archbishop Mokrzycki spoke to CNA’s sister agency, ACI Stampa Oct. 22, the feast day of St. John Paul II. He discussed the Pope’s legacy, relevance to the synod, and what it was like to live beside a saint. The full transcript of the interview is below:


Q: Your Excellency, today – Oct. 22, the feast of St. John Paul II – is a special day for you personally and for the universal Church. It might be difficult for you to explain how you feel, but maybe we can try?

It is a great joy for us, and I don't only mean the Polish people, but for the entire Church, to think about the day of the election of John Paul II, who after his election won over the whole world, particularly the Italians, because he said those beautiful and famous words: “I don't know if I can explain myself well in your – in our – Italian language. If I make a mistake, correct me.” And from then on, all the children of Italy when they met him said: you asked us to correct you, so say it right!

It was a special day for the entire Church, and we saw it for the entirety of his long pontificate, he was an extraordinary man.

Q: What was it like to live with a saint? Was it more joy, or work?

Both – joy and fatigue, because John Paul II was a very strong man with himself and with others. We worked a lot and made others work a lot. And this is also why we saw that his pontificate was very interesting and very rich. 

Q: What has he taught you as a bishop and as a pastor that is useful for your mission today?

The Holy Father was not only the head of the universal Church, not only the head of the Vatican State, but was above all a pastor, the bishop of the diocese of Rome, and he underlined this a lot during his pontificate. He wanted to visit all the parishes of the diocese. And at the end when we saw that he had so much fatigue and couldn’t visit the parishes anymore, about 20 parishes remained and he wanted to meet them just them same, and so he invited all the parishes that he still hadn’t visited to the Paul VI Hall. And we saw that the Romans were very grateful for this great gesture of love, because they saw that the Pope didn’t neglect them, he didn’t forget them, and even if he couldn’t go, he invited them to his house. And so also for me.

He was a great pastor. I was able to learn from him a vision of pastoral life, of concern for all levels, of love for one’s neighbor, of charity and of bringing people to salvation. The great ones, the poor, the little ones; I saw how with great love he embraced each and every one.

Q: Of the magisterium of John Paul II, a large part was dedicated to the family. Right now you are busy with the synod on the family. How does this magisterium enter into the synodal debate?

During the pontificate of John Paul II, above all in the years in which I was with him, the Pope didn’t speak a lot about his family. He sometimes spoke about his father, sometimes about his sister that he lost as a child and his brother who was a doctor that died young. But he made it visible that around him was a great family of friends, a great family of the Church. And then I saw that in the years I was with him many families came to find him from different parts of the world: from Poland, from Italy, from the United States. He had the capacity of maintaining contact with many people, with many families and not only Christians. Also and above all with many Jewish families. And in this I saw the importance of contact with the family, and as the Pope he underlined the role of the family in the life of the Church and in the life of society.

From the beginning of his pontificate, he placed a lot of focus on the great role of the family. He dedicated a cycle of catechesis in the Wednesday audiences to the passage in Genesis which says: male and female I created them. And then there is the apostolic letter to the family, Familiaris Consortio. He was very committed in the development of this theme and was close to the family, to emphasize the great importance of the family in daily life, and the necessity of being close to the family in order to live better the vocation of each one. Because every person has a vocation, to be a religious sister, a priest, a doctor. But to be a family is a great beauty, but also a committed vocation that requires responsibility, and is also difficult to live. Because of this, John Paul II wanted to help this vocation to grow. 

Q: Now 10 years after John Paul II’s death, what is his legacy today?

The teaching of the magisterium of the Church and of John Paul II is always current. Of course society has changed a bit, because culture changes, circumstances change. Also during this synod the bishops have brought different problems and family difficulties. Some wanted to be a little bit “progressive” and offer Communion to the divorced-and-remarried, but many bishops have recalled the great teaching of Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI which they expressed clearly, that it would be against the doctrine of the Church, against the sacrament of the Eucharist, the sacrament of Penance, against grace. Certainly the teaching of John Paul II was perhaps very demanding, but real. If we want our faith to have value, we must bear some sort of difficulty, because only then are we faithful to the teaching of Jesus Christ.

Q: What does your diocese bring to the synod?

For me, it was a great experience, because I was able to hear testimonies and the vision of life and of the Church throughout the world on the different continents. But I want to say above all that we bishops are very close to families, we want to help people grow in the vocation of being in a marriage, a family. And we know that this vocation is very beautiful, very important, but we also want to help families realize their vocation and their commitment. 
​

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 
Elderly Priests, Sisters are 'true shrines of holiness,' Pope Says
 
VATICAN CITY, October 18 (CNA/EWTN News) .- During his daily Mass homily Pope Francis reflected on various biblical figures who experienced difficulty in their old age, and encouraged those present not to forget the elderly. 
The Pope directed his reflections to those gathered in the Santa Marta guesthouse of the Vatican on Oct. 18 for his daily Mass, centering his thoughts upon the latter lives of Moses, John the Baptist and Saint Paul. 
These three figures, he noted, remind him of "the shrines of holiness which are the nursing homes of elderly priests and religious sisters."
 
Pope Francis recalled the excitement and enthusiasm displayed by all three men in their youth, and contrasted it to isolation and pain they suffered at the end of their lives, stressing that although none of them were spared suffering in their old age, the Lord never abandoned them.
 
Noting that the apostle Paul "has a joyful and enthusiastic beginning," the Pope recalled that he experienced a decline in the latter years of his life, and both Moses and John the Baptist shared a similar experience.
 
"Moses, when young," stressed the pontiff, was "the courageous leader of the People of God who fought against his enemies" in order to save his people, however at the end of his life "he is alone on Mount Nebo, looking at the promised land" but is unable to enter it.
 
Saint John the Baptist, noted the Pope, in his later life was tormented by anguish, and "finished under the power of a weak, corrupt and drunken ruler who in turn was under the power of an adulteress' jealousy and the capricious wishes of a dancer."
 
Turning his thoughts back to Saint Paul, Pope Francis stressed that the apostle endured a similar experience, speaking in his letters of those who abandoned him and rejected his teachings.
 
However, the Pope clarified that although Paul wrote about his great sufferings, he also wrote that "the Lord was close to him and gave him the strength to complete his mission of announcing the Gospel."
 
Pope Francis concluded his reflections by stressing that the situations of the three biblical characters in their old age reminded him of those elderly priests and religious sisters in nursing homes.
 
Referring to them as a "shrine of holiness," he urged the guests present not to forget the elderly, and to visit them, because "bearing the burden of solitude, these priests and sisters are waiting for the Lord to knock at the door of their hearts." 

 
In the liturgy of the New Covenant every liturgical action, especially the celebration of the Eucharist and the sacraments, is an encounter between Christ and the Church. The liturgical assembly derives its unity from the "communion of the Holy Spirit" who gathers the children of God into the one Body of Christ. This assembly transcends racial, cultural, social - indeed, all human affinities. -Catechism of the Catholic Church #1097

 ​

A bit of humor…
Teacher: "Why are you praying in class little Johnny?” Little Johnny: “My mom taught me to always pray before going to sleep."  


Little Johnny, why does your little sister cry?  Because I helped her.  But that is a good thing! What did you help her with?  I helped her eat her gummy bears.  


Pronunciation
Wife: “Oh the weather is lovely today. Shall we go out for a quick jog?“ - Husband: “Hahaha, I love the way you pronounce ‘Shall we go out and have a cake’!”
Optimist: The glass is half full.  Pessimist: The glass is half empty.  Mother: Why didn’t you use a coaster!

Friendly Competition…
My girlfriend and I often laugh about how competitive we are. But I laugh more.
Dating a Hoarder
I used to date a hoarder, and she broke up with me. That stings extra hard—I’m like the one thing she can get rid of.

A Teacher Tries
 
There was a teacher who was helping one of her kindergarten students put his boots on.  He asked for help and she could see why.  With her pulling and him pushing, the boots still didn't want to go on. 

When the second boot was finally on, she had worked up a sweat.  She almost whimpered when the little boy said, "Teacher, they're on the wrong feet."  She looked, and sure enough, they were.  It wasn't any easier pulling the boots off than it was putting them on.  She managed to keep her cool as together they worked to get the boots back on -- this time on the right feet. 

He then announced, "These aren't my boots."  She bit her tongue rather than get right in his face and scream, "Why didn't you say so?" like she wanted to. Once again, she struggled to help him pull the ill-fitting boots off. 

He then said, "They're my brother's boots.  My Mom made me wear them."  The teacher didn't know if she should laugh or cry.  She mustered up the grace to wrestle the boots on his feet again. 

She said, "Now, where are your mittens?"  He said, "I stuffed them in the toes of my boots." 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 
Jesus and Satan were having an argument as to who was the better programmer. This went on for a few hours until they agreed to hold a contest with God the Father as the judge. They sat at their computers and began. They typed furiously for several hours, lines of code streaming up on the screen. Seconds before the end of the competition, a bolt of lightning struck, taking out the electricity. Moments later, the power was restored, and God the Father announced that the contest was over. He asked Satan to show what he had come up with. Satan was visibly upset and cried, "I have nothing. I lost it all when the power went out." "Very well, then," God the Father said, "Let us see if Jesus did any better." Jesus entered a command and the screen came to life in vivid display, the voice of an angelic choir poured forth from the speakers. Satan was astonished. "But how? I lost everything, yet Jesus' program was intact. How did he do it?" God chuckled, "Jesus saves!"
 
________________________________
TIME TO PRAY
 A pastor asked a little boy if he said his prayers every night.  'Yes, sir.' the boy replied.
 
'And, do you always say them in the morning, too?' the pastor asked..
'No sir,' the boy replied. 'I ain't scared in the daytime.'
________________________________


WHY GO TO CHURCH? 
One Sunday morning, a mother went in to wake her son and tell him it was time to get ready for church,
to which he replied, "I'm not going." 
"Why not?" she asked.  
I'll give you two good reasons," he said. "(1), I'm tired, and (2), I don't fell like it."  
His mother replied, "I'll give you two good reasons why you SHOULD go to church: 
(1) You're 59 years old, and (2) you're the pastor!" 
​

Act of Contrition

​

O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended You.  I detest all my sins because I dread the loss of Heaven and the pains of hell.  But most of all because they offend You, my God, Who are all good and deserving of all my love.  I firmly resolve, with the help of Your grace to sin no more and to avoid the near occasions of sin.  Amen.

The Eucharistic presence of Christ begins at the moment of the consecration and endures as long as the Eucharistic species subsist. Christ is present whole and entire in each of the species and whole and entire in each of their parts, in such a way that the breaking of the bread does not divide Christ.
-Catechism of the Catholic Church #1377

+JMJ+
SUNDAY MASS READINGS AND QUESTIONS
for Self-Reflection, Couples or Family Discussion
29th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Sunday, October 17th, 2021

The First Reading- Isaiah 53:10-11
The LORD was pleased to crush him in infirmity. If he gives his life as an offering for sin, he shall see his descendants in a long life, and the will of the LORD shall be accomplished through him. Because of his affliction he shall see the light in fullness of days; through his suffering, my servant shall justify many, and their guilt he shall bear.
Reflection
The first reading is a prophecy of what Jesus would go through for us in his passion. He gave everything and experienced true suffering for our salvation. In His Passion, he fulfilled the prophecy of the Suffering Servant, given in this chapter of the book of Isaiah.
Adults - Take time to consider the immense love God has for you, that He would send His Son to suffer for your salvation.
Teens - How can we show the love Jesus has for us to others in our lives?
Kids - Say a prayer thanking God for His incredible love for you.

Responsorial- Psalm 33: 4-5, 18-19, 20, 22
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
Upright is the word of the LORD,
and all his works are trustworthy.
He loves justice and right;
of the kindness of the LORD the earth is full.
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
See, the eyes of the LORD are upon those who fear him,
upon those who hope for his kindness,
To deliver them from death
and preserve them in spite of famine.
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
Our soul waits for the LORD,
who is our help and our shield.
May your kindness, O LORD, be upon us
who have put our hope in you.
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
Reflection
-Be merciful to someone this week, as God is merciful to you.

The Second Reading- Hebrews 4:14-16
Brothers and sisters: Since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has similarly been tested in every way, yet without sin. So let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace for timely help.
Reflection
The second reading reminds us that because of his suffering, when we approach Jesus in prayer when we are suffering, we approach someone who knows what we are feeling — who can “sympathize with our weakness.” We’re not asked to make sacrifices that God hasn’t felt, and we’re not asked to do it alone. When we unite our suffering to Jesus’, he takes ours and, like his, makes it into life-giving change.
Do you know that Jesus understands all that we go through? Can that comfort you when you’re sad?

The Holy Gospel according to Mark 10:35-45
James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Jesus and said to him, "Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you." He replied, "What do you wish me to do for you?" They answered him, "Grant that in your glory we may sit one at your right and the other at your left." Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you are asking.  Can you drink the cup that I drink or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?" They said to him, "We can." Jesus said to them, "The cup that I drink, you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right or at my left is not mine to give but is for those for whom it has been prepared." When the ten heard this, they became indignant at James and John.  Jesus summoned them and said to them, "You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all.  For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many."
Reflection
Our Gospel makes it very clear that it’s a baptism of service; one of sacrifice — possibly even the sacrifice of our lives. Jesus asks James and John if they are prepared to accept that baptism, a baptism of danger, when they ask him to give them places of honor in heaven. He tells them that they will, in fact, experience what Jesus will experience. (Eventually, they were martyred for the faith, too.) Jesus reminds them, and us, that authority in Christianity isn’t supposed to be like civil authority which is often abused. For us, authority means service like Jesus served. In fact, the authority of our teaching and preaching is rooted in service — if the world doesn’t see us serving others, living as Jesus lived, our words have no authority with them.
Adults - What implications or consequences does your baptism have for your life? What have you had to sacrifice in order to live your baptism fully? How does your baptism challenge you to serve others, especially the poor and vulnerable?
Teens  - Jesus connects authority with service. How does it make you feel to see people in authority not serving others? How do you think of those who have authority and abuse it? Who is the best leader you know? What makes them so?
Kids -What does it mean to serve others as a Christian?

LIVING THE WORD OF GOD THIS WEEK! – “With James and John, let us tell our divine Lord that we are ready to follow him on the path to Calvary; that we are ready to drink the cup of sufferings which he drank and to be immersed in the sorrows which he endured. He went through all of this for us; we are doing it for our own sakes. He carried the real cross—ours is light when compared with his; furthermore, he will help us to bear our daily trial and struggles. How could any Christian become weary and fainthearted when he has Christ helping him on the road?”  
--Excerpted from The Sunday Readings by Fr. Kevin O'Sullivan, O.F.M.


582. Why can we dare to draw near to God in full confidence? a) because Jesus brings us to the Father: Because Jesus, our Redeemer, brings us into the Father’s presence and his Spirit makes us his children. We are thus able to pray the Our Father with simple and filial trust, with joyful assurance and humble boldness, with the certainty of being loved and heard.
583. How is it possible to address God as “Father”? d) all of the above:We can invoke the “Father” because the Son of God made man has revealed him to us and because his Spirit makes him known to us. The invocation, Father, lets us enter into his mystery with an ever new sense of wonder and awakens in us the desire to act as his children. When we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we are therefore aware of our being sons of the Father in the Son.
584. Why do we say “our” Father? b) because it expresses a totally new relationship with God: “Our” expresses a totally new relationship with God. When we pray to the Father, we adore and glorify him with the Son and the Holy Spirit. In Christ we are “his” people and he is “our” God now and for eternity. In fact, we also say “our” Father because the Church of Christ is the communion of a multitude of brothers and sisters who have but “one heart and mind” (Acts 4:32).

Dear friends in Christ Jesus,

        We are often deceived that we can do little to nothing to change the world or situation of life that we find ourselves in.  But the truth is that if we do the little that God gives us to the best of our ability, the big stuff will take care of itself.

         And so what are the little things that God gives us?  It is being faithful to our families, it is doing our schoolwork well and playing kindly in the school yard, it is putting in a full day's work to the best of our ability and reaching out to co-workers, it is doing household duties and yes even cleaning the toilet until it sparkles. :o)

       Whether it is getting up, eating, cleaning, picking up a piece of trash, smiling, saying, "I love you," or whatever the next moment of life brings you, do it with great love FOR GOD, and for your neighbor, and in this you do it for yourself and change the world!

 Peace and prayers in Jesus through Mary, loved by Saint Joseph,
 Father Robert
P.S.  This coming Sunday is 28th Sunday of Ordinary Time.  
The readings can be found at:  https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/101021.cfm
​

578. What is the origin of the Our Father? (Catechism of the Catholic Church, CCC 2759-2760, 2773)
a) Jesus taught it to us
b) it dropped out of the sky from heaven
c) an angel taught it to the apostles
d) its organ’s ultimately come from a prophet of the Old Testament


579. What is the place of the Our Father in the Scriptures? (CCC 2761-2764, 2774)
a) it is found in the middle of the Sermon on the Mount
b) it is the perfect prayer
c) it is the summary of the whole Gospel
d) all of the above


580. Why is it called the “Lord’s Prayer”? (CCC 2765-2766, 2775)
a) it is the shortest title we could give it
b) it is a prayer Jesus said
c) it is a prayer Jesus taught us
d) all of the above


581. What place does the Our Father have in the prayer of the Church? (CCC 2767-2772, 2776)
a) it is optional, and not that important
b) it is secondary behind many other prayers
c) it is very important and is required to be said everyday
d) it is integral and the prayer of the Church par excellence
(Answers below)

​

A Small White Cross in the Front Yard
(Truth of story is unknown, but idea for action is sound.)​
​

by NEWS DESK / October 7, 2021 / in WORLD NEWS

Ibarra is the author of the book “Emilia, the Basket Maker, Martyr of the Rosary,” which tells of her life and death. He said that Emilia’s devotion to the rosary led her to love Jesus Christ more.
According to the historian, Emilia “died from her sufferings, for being faithful to her faith, for bringing a life into the world and did not give in to her jailer’s desire that she apostatize.”
For Ibarra, Emilia “teaches us with her life that God is at our side, especially in the midst of difficulties. Emilia went to prison hardly knowing the faith and when she died, she did so as a friend of God and a martyr of the rosary. That is beautiful.”
She was beatified in a group of martyrs from Almeria, Spain on March 25, 2017. The group included cathedral dean Father Jose Alvarez-Benavides y de la Torre and 114 companion martyrs: 95 priests, 20 laymen and two women, including Emilia.
Emilia is the first Romani woman to be beatified. The first male Gypsy blessed, Ceferino Giménez Malla, known as El Pelé, was beatified by Saint John Paul II in 1997. He died in the religious persecution of the Spanish Civil War for protecting a priest. Before his persecutors shot him, he held a rosary in his hand and cried out “Long live Christ the King!”
Ibarra characterized both Emilia and Ceferino as “martyrs of the rosary” because both of them refused to stop praying it.
“This demonstrates that the Virgin leads us to God. For those two martyrs, she was the Gate of Heaven,” he said.

​

​By Courtney Mares
Assisi, Italy, Oct 10 (CNA).-  

With the beatification of Carlo Acutis in Assisi Saturday, the Catholic Church now has its first “Blessed” who loved Super Mario and Pokémon, but not as much as he loved the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist.
“To be always united with Jesus, this is my life program,” Carlo Acutis wrote at the age of seven.
The young Italian computer whiz, who died of leukemia at 15 offering his suffering for the pope and the Church, was beatified Oct. 10 in a Mass at the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi.
Born in 1991, Acutis is the first millennial to be beatified by the Catholic Church. The teen who had an aptitude for computer programming is now one step away from canonization. 
“Since he was a child … he had his gaze turned to Jesus. Love for the Eucharist was the foundation that kept alive his relationship with God. He often said ‘The Eucharist is my highway to heaven,” Cardinal Agostino Vallini said in his homily for the beatification.
“Carlo felt a strong need to help people discover that God is close to us and that it is beautiful to be with him to enjoy his friendship and his grace,” Vallini said.


During the beatification Mass, Acutis’ parents processed behind a relic of their son's heart which was placed near the altar. An apostolic letter from Pope Francis was read aloud in which the pope declared that Carlo Acutis’ feast will take place each year on Oct. 12, the anniversary of his death in Milan in 2006.
Masked pilgrims spread out in front of the Basilica of St. Francis and throughout the different piazzas in Assisi to watch the Mass on large screens as only a limited number of people were allowed inside.

Acutis’ beatification drew an estimated 3,000 people to Assisi, including people who personally knew Acutis and many other young people inspired by his witness.
Mattia Pastorelli, 28, was a childhood friend of Acutis, who first met him when they were both around the age of five. He remembers playing video games, including Halo, with Carlo. (Acutis’ mother also told CNA that Super Mario and Pokémon were Carlo’s favorites.)
“Having a friend who is about to become a saint is a very strange emotion,” Pastorelli told CNA Oct. 10. “I knew he was different from others, but now I realize just how special he was.”
“I watched him while he was programming websites … He was truly an incredible talent,” he added.
In his homily, Cardinal Vallini, the pontifical legate for the Basilica of St. Francis, hailed Acutis as a model of how young people can use technology at the service of the Gospel to “reach as many people as possible and help them know the beauty of friendship with the Lord.”
For Carlo, Jesus was “the strength of his life and the purpose of everything he did,” the cardinal said.
“He was convinced that to love people and do them good you need to draw energy from the Lord. In this spirit he was very devoted to Our Lady,” he added.
“His ardent desire was also that of attracting as many people to Jesus, making himself herald of the Gospel above all with the example of life.”
At a young age, Acutis taught himself how to program and went on to create websites cataloguing the world’s Eucharistic miracles and Marian apparitions.


“The Church rejoices, because in this very young Blessed the Lord's words are fulfilled: ‘I have chosen you and appointed you to go and bear much fruit.’ And Carlo ‘went’ and brought the fruit of holiness, showing it as a goal reachable by all and not as something abstract and reserved for a few,” the cardinal said.
“He was an ordinary boy, simple, spontaneous, likeable … he loved nature and animals, he played football, he had many friends of his age, he was attracted by modern means of social communication, passionate about computer science and, self-taught, he built websites to transmit the Gospel, to communicate values and beauty,” he said.
Assisi is celebrating the beatification of Carlo Acutis with more than two weeks of liturgies and events Oct. 1-17. During this time images of a young Acutis standing with a giant monstrance containing the Eucharist can be seen in front of churches all around the city of St. Francis and St. Clare.
People stood in line to pray before the tomb of Carlo Acutis, located in Assisi’s Sanctuary of the Spoliation in the Church of St. Mary Major. The church extended its hours until midnight throughout the beatification weekend to allow as many people as possible to venerate Acutis, with the social distancing measures in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Fr. Boniface Lopez, a Franciscan Capuchin based at the church, told CNA that he noted that many people who visited Acutis’ tomb also took advantage of the opportunity to go to confession, which is being offered in many languages throughout the 17 days when Acutis’ body is visible for venation.
“Many people are coming to see Carlo to ask for his blessing … also many young people; they come for confessions, they come because they want to change their lives and they want to come near God and really experience God,” Fr. Lopez said.
At a youth vigil the evening before the beatification, pilgrims gathered outside of the Assisi’s Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels while priests heard confessions inside.
Churches throughout Assisi also offered additional hours of Eucharistic Adoration to mark Acutis’ beatification.
Lopez said that he had also encountered many religious sisters and priests coming on pilgrimage to see Actutis. “Religious come here to ask his blessing to help them to cultivate a greater love for the Eucharist.”
As Acutis once said: “When we face the sun we get a tan ... but when we stand before Jesus in the Eucharist we become saints.”

​

Chicago, Ill., Oct 12, (CNA).- Melissa Villalobos spoke to CNA Newsroom for the Cardinal Newman episode, which can be found here. This article is an adaptation of that conversation.
When Melissa Villalobos first heard about Cardinal John Henry Newman, she had no idea the pivotal role he would play in her life, nor the pivotal role she would play in his cause for sainthood. The Catholic wife and mother from Chicago stumbled into a show about Newman on EWTN “just by accident” in 2000, while she was getting ready for work and ironing her clothes. She was struck by what the show had to say about him.
“These priests and scholars were talking about him and his life and what a holy man he was, and what a tremendous influence he had on the church and on other people in his life,” Villalobos told CNA.
“I was really taken by it and I thought, ‘This man is so amazing,’” she said. But it wasn’t until a year later, when her husband brought home two holy cards of Cardinal Newman, that Villalobos’ devotion to him really began.


She displayed one of the cards in the living room, the other in her bedroom, and “I would pass by his image every day, and I would look into his eyes and I would pray to him and I would just talk to him as a mother,” she said. “And I felt like his expression was matching my emotions at the time. If I felt sad for some reason he looked sympathetic, if I felt joy, he looked pleased, and I just felt like we were really living life together,” Villalobos recalled. She invoked Cardinal Newman often, and considered him one of her closes spiritual friends. Eventually she started looking up his writings online, and described the experience like “finding gold in the backyard.”
“He was every bit as holy and loving as I had suspected he was by looking at his face. He had such a tremendous affection for ordinary people, which I discovered by reading his letters, and I felt like I could be one of those ordinary people in his life.”
Born in 1801 in London, John Henry Newman was originally an Anglican priest before his conversion to Catholicism in 1845 at the age of 44. He would soon become a renowned Catholic priest, theologian, poet, homilist, and, in 1879, a cardinal. His works are considered among the most important contributions to the thought of the Church in recent centuries.
His conversion to Catholicism was controversial in the birthplace of Anglicanism, and he lost many friends as a result, including his own sister, who refused to speak to him again. Newman was also a devoted educator and founded the Oratory of St. Philip Neri in England in two locations. He died in Birmingham in 1890 at the age of 89. The Vatican announced his Oct. 13 canonization date in July. The more Villalobos learned about Newman, the closer she felt to him, and she would eventually come to rely on his intercession in a major way. In 2013, more than a decade after first hearing about Newman on EWTN, Villalobos was pregnant with her fifth child and was experiencing serious complications. In her first trimester, Villalobos started bleeding continuously, and she learned she had a condition called subchorionic hematoma, a blood clot between the placenta and the uterine wall that causes the placenta to be “partially ripped and detached from the uterine wall.” “It was a life-threatening problem because I could hemorrhage to death,” Villalobos recalled. 
The prognosis was grim. There was no cure to be found in medicine or surgery. Villalobos was ordered to be on strict bed rest to give her baby the best possible chance. She did the best she could, but Villalobos was still caring for her other four young children in the meantime. On the morning of May 15, less than a week after being diagnosed with the condition, Villalobos woke up in a pool of her own blood.
With her husband away on a work trip, Villalobos debated when she should call 9-1-1. She decided to give her kids some breakfast first, and then she locked herself in the bathroom to figure out what to do. But by then, Villalobos had lost so much blood that she collapsed on the floor.
“Unfortunately though, somehow I did not have my cellphone with me,” she recalled. “I couldn’t believe it.”
She considered shouting for one of her kids to bring her phone, but worried that the shouting would cause more bleeding or a miscarriage. Desperate, she called out to her old friend, Cardinal Newman. “I said, ‘Please Cardinal Newman, make the bleeding stop.’ And just then, immediately it stopped. And I stood up and I smelled roses that filled the bathroom air.”
The smell of roses is often considered the “scent of holiness”, with many stories of saints leaving a rosy scent in places where they have intervened in prayer. “And I said, ‘Oh Cardinal Newman, did you just make the bleeding stop? Thank you!’ And then there was this second burst of roses. And I knew I was cured, and I knew Gemma my daughter was ok,” Villalobos said. Villalobos had an ultrasound scheduled for that afternoon, and the doctor found what Villalobos attributes to Cardinal Newman’s intercession: the bleeding had completely stopped.
“The doctor saw that there was no more bleeding and he was amazed, and he said, ‘the baby looks perfect.’”
It was vastly different than Villalobos’ previous experience in the pregnancy. 


“The doctors (had) said you will probably miscarry if you’re lucky, the placenta could barely hold up to the third trimester, and she’ll be born but she’ll be really small and she’ll have medical problems,” Villalobos recalled. “Thanks be to Cardinal Newman and to God that I was cured and Gemma was born completely healthy.”
Villalobos said she waited until after Gemma was born to report the miracle to Fr. Ignatius Harrison, the postulator for Newman’s cause for canonization. After receiving her letter, Fr. Harrison came to Chicago to meet with Villalobos, her husband, Gemma, and the doctors. He examined medical records and conducted interviews, and told Villalobos to keep the potential miracle a secret until it could be investigated by the Vatican. She got brief updates about twice a year, she said, but for the most part, she did not really know how the cause was advancing, she just prayed with her family that Newman would soon be canonized.
“There was really no one to ask to say, ‘Well how does this usually work?’ You know sometimes if you’re going through something in your life you say ‘Oh, well how did it work for you?’ But there was no one to ask to say ‘Well, when you were miraculously cured, how long did it take to hear from the postulator?’” she said.
Then in February 2019, Villalobos received the news that Pope Francis signed the degree recognizing the miracle.
“I’m surprised at how many people tell me that they’re happy to know that God still performs miracles,” Villalobos said, “I’m glad they know that. I feel like I’ve known that, and I want other people to know that God has never abandoned us. I know it’s hard to believe in miracles because we don’t always get what we want, but we know that God the Father in his love always gives us what’s best for us.” Villalobos, Gemma, and the rest of the family traveled to Rome to be there for Newman’s canonization, which will take place this Sunday.
“I just love him dearly and I hope that anybody who needs help, whether you’re a mother, or a student...or a convert, he can really touch the lives of so many people. I just hope they’ll reach out to him and see a friend in him. He’s so loving and amazing.”
Kate Veik contributed to this report.

'Miracle of the sun' broke darkness of Portugal's atheist regimes
By Elise Harris
Fatima, Portugal, Oct 12 (EWTN News/CNA)
​
On “the day the sun danced,” thousands of people bore witness to a miracle that not only proved the validity of the Fatima Marian apparitions, but also shattered the prevalent belief at the time that God was no longer relevant, according to one theologian.


What crowds witnessed the day of the miracle was “the news that God, in the end, contrary to what was said in the philosophy books at that time, was alive and acting in the midst of men,” Dr. Marco Daniel Duarte told EWTN News.


If one were to open philosophy books during that period, they would likely read something akin to the concept conceived by German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, who boldly asserted in the late 1800s that “God is dead.”


Yet as this and other philosophies like it were gaining steam in the life and thought of society, the Virgin Mary appears and tells three small shepherds that “God is alive and still attentive to humanity, even though humanity is waging war with one another.”


Duarte, a theologian and director of the Fatima shrine museums, spoke about the cultural significance of the Miracle of the Sun given the atheistic thought prevalent in Portuguese society at the time.


In 1917, Portugal, like the majority of the world, was embroiled in war. As World War I raged throughout Europe, Portugal found itself unable to maintain its initial neutrality and joined forces with the Allies, in order to protect colonies in Africa and to defend their trade with Britain. About 220,000 Portuguese civilians died during the war; thousands due to food shortages, thousands more from the Spanish flu.


Compounding the problem, government stability in the country had been rocky at best following the revolution and coup d’état that led to the overthrow of the monarchy and subsequent establishment of the First Portuguese Republic in 1910.


A new liberal constitution separating Church and state was drafted under the influence of Freemasonry, which sought to omit the faith – which for many was the backbone of Portuguese culture and society – from public life.


Anti-Catholicism in Portugal had initially begun in the 18th century during the term of statesman Marquês de Pombal, and flared up again after the drafting of the new constitution.


Catholic churches and schools were seized by the government, and the wearing of clerics in public, the ringing of church bells, and the celebrating of popular religious festivals were banned. Between 1911-1916, nearly 2,000 priests, monks and nuns were killed by anti-Christian groups.


This was the backdrop against which Mary, in 1917, appeared to three shepherd children – Lucia dos Santos, 10, and her cousins Francisco and Jacinta Marto, 9 and 7 – in a field in Fatima, Portugal, bringing with her requests for the recitation of the rosary, for sacrifices on behalf of sinners, and a secret regarding the fate of the world.


To prove that the apparitions were true, Mary promised the children that during the last of her six appearances she would provide a “sign” so people would believe in the apparitions and in her message.


What happened on that day – Oct. 13, 1917 – has come to be known as the “Miracle of the Sun,” or “the day the sun danced.”


According to various accounts, a crowd of some 70,000 people – believers and skeptics alike – gathered to see the miracle that Mary had promised. After appearing and speaking to the children for some time, Mary then “cast her own light upon the sun.”


The previously rainy sky cleared up, the clouds dispersed and the ground, which had been wet and muddy from the rain, was dried. A transparent veil came over the sun, making it easy to look at, and multi-colored lights were strewn across the landscape.


The sun then began to spin, twirling in the sky, and at one point appeared to veer toward earth before jumping back to its place in the sky.


Duarte said the miracle was a direct, and very convincing contradiction to the atheistic regimes at the time, which is evidenced by the fact that the first newspaper to report on the miracle was an anti-Catholic, Masonic newspaper in Lisbon called O Seculo.


The Miracle of the Sun, he said, was understood by the people to be “the seal, the guarantee that in fact those three children were telling the truth.”


Even today, “Fatima makes people change their perception of God,” he said, explaining that for him, one of the most important messages of the apparitions is that “even if man has separated God from his existence, God is present in human history and doesn’t abandon humanity.”


With World War I raging, a war the likes of which the world had never seen, Mary appeared to tell the children that “that story can have another ending, when the power of prayer is stronger than the power of bullets.”


The Miracle of the Sun is also the heart of a special exhibition called “The Colors of the Sun” the shrine is offering for the duration of the centenary year of the apparitions, which focuses on the symbolic nature of the miracle and its cultural significance.


Displayed are “various objects, some older, others more contemporary, some more modern, some made of textile, others of organic materials, paintings, sculptures,” but which are all “placed with a narrative,” he said.


Beginning with a set of black umbrellas used by people who had gathered at the Cova de Iria (Cave of Iria) where Mary appeared Oct. 13, the exhibit aims to build a narrative of what people saw that day, and is supplemented with different works that express the various elements of Mary’s message to the children.


It also shows developments of how the shrine developed over the years, showing the transformation of what used to be a small, simple chapel into what is now two basilicas: the Basilica of Nossa Senhora do Rosario (Our Lady of the Rosary) and Basilica da Santissima Trindade (Basilica of the Holy Trinity), with an open chapel in between where the statue of Our Lady of Fatima resides.
Pieces come from all over the world – some from the Fatima shrine, some from the State of Portugal, and some even hail from Germany and France.


One of the highlight pieces is a giant heart made by Joana Vasconcelos, a well-known Portuguese artist who crafted the piece entirely out of red plastic ware, such as spoons and forks.
“It’s material that isn’t important for anyone, but which after everything is united, forms the image of a heart and can be the image of reparation,” Duarte said.


The exhibit closes with white parasols, rather than umbrellas, in order to show the fruit of the miracle, Duarte said, adding that it can also signify “the presence of God, the Eucharistic Christ.”
In this sense, the parasols “can be for us a symbol that also we can be God’s tabernacles and can be the place where God dwells,” he said. “This is the true shrine that God wants. The shrine of Fatima is precisely the image of what God wants: to dwell among men.”
 The Eastern churches that are not in full communion with the Catholic Church celebrate the Eucharist with great love. "These Churches, although separated from us, yet possess true sacraments, above all - by apostolic succession - the priesthood and the Eucharist, whereby they are still joined to us in closest intimacy." A certain communion in sacris, and so in the Eucharist, "given suitable circumstances and the approval of Church authority, is not merely possible but is encouraged."
Catechism of the Catholic Church #1399

Some Observations 
--Little Johnny complains to mom at home, “Mom, our teacher really doesn’t know anything. He keeps asking us!” 
--"And, Johnny? How did your school report turn out?” asks mother. “Come on mom, the most important thing is that I’m healthy!”  
--I hope the children will never find out why I say ‘oooops….” so often when I vacuum their rooms.  
--What an amazing, clever dog we have, darling. - He brings in the newspaper every day, and we’ve never even subscribed to any!


THE OUR FATHER


A mother was teaching her 3-year-old the Our Father.  For several evenings at bedtime she repeated it after her mother.  One night she said she was ready to solo.  The mother listened with pride as she carefully enunciated each word, right up to the end of the prayer.
 
"Lead us not into temptation," she prayed, "but deliver us some e-mail, Amen."
 
Baptism
After the Baptism of his baby brother in church, little Johnny sobbed all the way home in the back seat of the car.  His father asked him three times what was wrong.  Finally, the boy replied, "That priest said he wanted us brought up in a Christian home, but I want to stay with you guys." 


Love Your Sibling As You Love Yourself.A PSR teacher was discussing the Ten Commandments with her five and six year olds.  After explaining the commandment to 'honor thy father and thy mother', she asked, "Is there a commandment that teaches us how to treat our brothers and sisters?" Without missing a beat, one little boy answered, "Thou shall not kill."
 ​

Irish Fisherman... 

It was raining hard and a big puddle had formed in front of an Irish pub. 
An old man stood beside the puddle holding a stick with a string on the end and jiggled it up and down in the water. 
A curious gentleman asked what he was doing. 
'Fishing,' replied the old man. 
'Poor old fool' thought the gentleman, so he invited the old man to have a drink in the pub. 
Feeling he should start some conversation while they were sipping their whisky, the gentleman asked, And how many have you caught?' 
'You're the eighth". 
Some Observations 
I hope the children will never find out why I say ‘oooops….” so often when I vacuum their rooms.
What an amazing, clever dog we have, darling. 
He brings in the newspaper every day, and we’ve never even subscribed to any!

Prayer to St. Theresa of Avila
Lord, grant that I may always allow myself 
to be guided by You, 
always follow Your plans, 
and perfectly accomplish Your Holy Will. 
Grant that in all things, 
great and small, 
today and all the days of my life, 
I may do whatever You require of me. 
Help me respond to the slightest prompting of Your Grace,
so that I may be Your trustworthy instrument for Your honour.
May Your Will be done in time 
and in eternity by me, in me, and through me.  Amen.
 ​

+JMJ+
SUNDAY MASS READINGS AND QUESTIONS
for Self-Reflection, Couples or Family Discussion
28th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Sunday, October 10th, 2021

First Reading- Wisdom 7:7-11 
I prayed, and prudence was given me; I pleaded, and the spirit of wisdom came to me. I preferred her to scepter and throne, and deemed riches nothing in comparison with her, nor did I liken any priceless gem to her; because all gold, in view of her, is a little sand, and before her, silver is to be accounted mire. Beyond health and comeliness I loved her, and I chose to have her rather than the light, because the splendor of her never yields to sleep. Yet all good things together came to me in her company, and countless riches at her hands.
Reflection 
Our first two readings today set the stage for the story we hear in the Gospel. Wisdom, which is also often a name given to the Holy Spirit, is the most valuable gift God can give us. If we have wisdom — if we allow ourselves to be guided by the Holy Spirit — our lives will always be in union with God’s plan for us.
Adults - What are some concrete ways to grow in wisdom?
Teens -What qualities tell you that someone is wise?
Kids - Who is the wisest person you know? Why do you think they are wise?

Responsorial- Psalm 90: 12-13, 14-15, 16-17
R.Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we will sing for joy!
Teach us to number our days aright,
that we may gain wisdom of heart.
Return, O LORD! How long?
Have pity on your servants!
R. Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we will sing for joy!
Fill us at daybreak with your kindness,
that we may shout for joy and gladness all our days.
Make us glad, for the days when you afflicted us,
for the years when we saw evil.
R. Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we will sing for joy!
Let your work be seen by your servants
and your glory by their children;
and may the gracious care of the LORD our God be ours;
prosper the work of our hands for us!
Prosper the work of our hands!
R. Fill us with your love, O Lord, and we will sing for joy!
Reflection 
-Do an extra act of kindness this week in honor of God’s love.

Second Reading- Hebrews 4:12-13
Brothers and sisters: Indeed the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart. No creature is concealed from him, but everything is naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must render an account.
Reflection
The letter to the Hebrews tells us that the word of God, also a title for Jesus, is “living and effective.” God’s word works its way into the tiniest places in our hearts and can fill the gaps in our lives. It knows us intimately and spurs us on to be whole.
How do you experience God’s word as living and effective?

The Holy Gospel according to Mark 10:17-30
As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus answered him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honor your father and your mother." He replied and said to him, "Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth." Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, "You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." At that statement his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!" The disciples were amazed at his words. So Jesus again said to them in reply, "Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God." They were exceedingly astonished and said among themselves, "Then who can be saved?" Jesus looked at them and said, "For human beings it is impossible, but not for God.  All things are possible for God." Peter began to say to him, "We have given up everything and followed you." Jesus said, "Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the gospel who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come."
Reflection
The Gospel warns us (as our second reading two weeks ago did) against the comfort of material wealth. Comfort can make us apathetic, and like the young man in the story, we want an easy way to be “good enough” for God. We can get the sense that the young man was disingenuous in his question — it seems he was expecting to be told that he was doing just fine and to go about his business as usual. But, with Jesus, it’s never business as usual. God calls us to more. God calls us to make sacrifices, to be detached from material wealth. People who aren’t attached to material wealth have no trouble giving it up and won’t be burdened with it when it’s time to leave it behind. And, of course, we have the promise that whatever we give up, we’ll receive a hundredfold. It’s important to remember that, even if we’re doing everything right, and have the best attitude, bad stuff can still happen. We must have faith that God can do good, even when bad things happen.
Adults - In what ways can wealth have a negative effect in our lives? In what ways can it do good?
Teens - How hard is it for you to let go of material things? What are you willing to give up? What aren’t you willing to give up?
Kids -Why do you think the young man was sad when he left?

LIVING THE WORD OF GOD THIS WEEK! – “The price to pay for this privilege, however, seemed too high to this "good man." "He had great possessions" and he was too attached to them so he could not accept Christ's offer, "his countenance fell and he went away sorrowful." Although his case was exceptional, Christ saw in him the makings of a saint and he asked him to make an exceptional sacrifice, one which he did not and does not ask of all his followers; his remark to the disciples later: "how hard it will be for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God" holds for all time and for all mankind… Remember that Christ praised the widow who put a mite (a cent) into the collection-box for the poor in the temple area, and he also said that a cup of cold water given in his name would not go without reward. We need not be rich in order to be charitable; often our own exaggerated sense of our poverty can make us hard-hearted and mean toward our fellowmen who look to us for help. The true Christian, whose principal purpose in life is to serve God, will not overburden himself with unnecessary pieces of luggage; instead he will travel light and be ever ready to help others also to carry their burdens.”  --Excerpted from The Sunday Readings by Fr. Kevin O'Sullivan, O.F.M.



 

578. What is the origin of the Our Father? a) Jesus taught it to us;  Jesus taught us this Christian prayer for which there is no substitute, the Our Father, on the day on which one of his disciples saw him praying and asked him, “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1). The Church’s liturgical tradition has always used the text of Saint Matthew (6:9-13).


579. What is the place of the Our Father in the Scriptures? d) all of the above;  The Our Father is the “summary of the whole Gospel” (Tertullian), “the perfect prayer” (Saint Thomas Aquinas). Found in the middle of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), it presents in the form of prayer the essential content of the Gospel.  
580. Why is it called the “Lord’s Prayer”? c) it is a prayer Jesus taught us;  The Our Father is called the “Oratio Dominica”, that is, the Lord’s Prayer because it was taught to us by the Lord Jesus himself.  
581. What place does the Our Father have in the prayer of the Church? d) it is integral and the prayer of the Church par excellence; The Lord’s Prayer is the prayer of the Church par excellence. It is “handed on” in Baptism to signify the new birth of the children of God into the divine life. The full meaning of the Our Father is revealed in the eucharist since its petitions are based on the mystery of salvation already accomplished, petitions that will be fully heard at the coming of the Lord. The Our Father is an integral part of the Liturgy of the Hours.

​