Dear Mary, Star of the Sea, take greetings of this holy season to all my friends in Gibraltar, Malta, Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, and France. May all my dear friends feel the peace of this special, holy time.
Monday, 23 December 2013
Mary, Star of the Sea
Dear Mary, Star of the Sea, take greetings of this holy season to all my friends in Gibraltar, Malta, Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, and France. May all my dear friends feel the peace of this special, holy time.
Running in The Desert
We do not have much time before hate laws stop the Catholic press and Catholic blogging world.
We do not have much time to evangelize and to solidify our own position with God in grace.
We do not. If the most popular man on television can be silenced, what do you think will happen to us little people?
Do not kid yourselves. I write in haste.
I write in haste because I want as many souls to go to heaven as possible.
Evangelization and spreading the Truth is my baptismal duty, not a luxury.
Same with you, dear reader, same with you....but speak to the open, and walk away from the closed.
Time is short. Pray, think, reflect, act...
Prayers Needed
For the past month, I have requested the prayers of readers because of my very uncertain and dire housing and financial situation here. Nothing has changed, so keep praying. I know it is hard to keep praying for a person for a long time. Thank you for your perseverance.
STM
Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.
and for private devotion....
O God, merciful Father, you granted your servant Álvaro, Bishop, the grace of being an exemplary pastor in the service of the Church, and a most faithful son and successor of Saint Josemaría, the founder of Opus Dei. Grant that I too may respond faithfully to the demands of the Christian vocation, turning all the circumstances and events of my life into opportunities to love you and serve the kingdom of Jesus Christ. Deign to glorify your servant Álvaro, and through his intercession grant me the favor I request ... (here make your petition). Amen.
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory be to the Father.
STM
Prayer for Saint Josemaría's intercession.
O God, through the mediation of Mary our Mother, you granted your priest St. Josemaría countless graces, choosing him as a most faithful instrument to found Opus Dei, a way of sanctification in daily work and in the fulfillment of the Christian's ordinary duties. Grant that I too may learn to turn all the circumstances and events of my life into occasions of loving You and serving the Church, the Pope and all souls with joy and simplicity, lighting up the pathways of this earth with faith and love. Deign to grant me, through the intercession of St. Josemaría, the favor of ... (make your request). Amen.Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be to the Father.
and for private devotion....
O God, merciful Father, you granted your servant Álvaro, Bishop, the grace of being an exemplary pastor in the service of the Church, and a most faithful son and successor of Saint Josemaría, the founder of Opus Dei. Grant that I too may respond faithfully to the demands of the Christian vocation, turning all the circumstances and events of my life into opportunities to love you and serve the kingdom of Jesus Christ. Deign to glorify your servant Álvaro, and through his intercession grant me the favor I request ... (here make your petition). Amen.
Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory be to the Father.
More this is getting more interesting and more fun
http://www.redstate.com/2013/12/23/mordor-up-close/
Hey, I think some Americans are waking up!
Phil Robertson did nothing wrong. He just did not shy away from the parts of accepting Christ that make people uncomfortable. He loves people so much, he is not willing to give people the fast pass to Hell by telling them they are not sinners.
Hey, I think some Americans are waking up!
Phil Robertson did nothing wrong. He just did not shy away from the parts of accepting Christ that make people uncomfortable. He loves people so much, he is not willing to give people the fast pass to Hell by telling them they are not sinners.
This discussion gets better and better...
http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/12/the-genuine-conflict-being-ignored-in-the-i-duck-dynasty-i-debate/282587/
Tolerance is not the same thing as acceptance, and acceptance is not the same thing as an endorsement. The message A&E’s decision sends is that there is zero tolerance on television for Christians who are conscientious objectors to homosexuality. More than that, it implicitly suggests that the campaign for tolerance has advanced to a campaign to pressure 45 percent of Americans to recant their beliefs and endorse a lifestyle to which they are opposed, conscience be damned.
We stand at a crossroads. The country must decide. Is the endgame here to be that orthodox Christians will henceforth have no voice within their own culture? If so, does this mean we have become a nation of bullies, forcing conformity while calling it tolerance?
The Sins of Christmas Time-Pride
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| Masks of Agamemnon from Wiki |
I love Greek drama and this genre shows us over and over the wheel of fortune flipping around from worldly success to abject failure. The Greek idea of hubris, gross pride, is that it is the primal sin, causing disease in the soul and in the community. Shakespeare picked up on this theme that when a leader falls into pride, the entire community falls into decline. Most of his monster antagonists are full of pride-the list is long.
Hubris, or pride, involves believing that one is greater than one is, that one's talents are more important than other peoples', that one feels superior to others.
Pride relies on an excessive view of one's self. Pride makes one the center of one's life. God is no longer God but the self is. Narcissism is an example of pride.
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| Electra |
Dante puts those who are proud in hell, and links treachery and betrayal with pride. Pride creates a false world in which one puts one's needs, morals, goals, desires and passions at the center.
In the depths of hell is Lucifer, with Judas, Cassius, and Brutus, those who rebelled against authority, placing their own treachery in the same category as the rebellion of Satan. Pride dictates that one is above the law, all laws.
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| The Last Supper, Bloch, Wiki |
I am pointing out one aspect of pride, that of betrayal. Why I am emphasizing this aspect in Advent may be puzzling for some.
Ask yourself, "Who am I betraying this Christmas?"
The answer may well be Christ Himself, Who came into the world to Love us all.
Are you betraying a spouse, a friend?
Are you betraying the Truth? Are you betraying children in the womb?
Are you betraying yourself through compromise and habitual sin?
Have you chosen money and status over your soul?
Betrayal is rebellion.
Betrayal is rooted in pride. Lucifer's sin happened in the blink of an eye. But, Judas' sin festered over a long period of time. He did not just decide to turn against Christ in a few weeks. We practice pride until it become natural, deadly so.
Pride is betrayal of ourselves as to who we are, and to what we have been called.
Ask the Lady Mary, Our Mother to make you humble, in imitation of her. This entire season is one of humility-a young woman, an unknown faithful man, a Little Baby all forced into the lowest place of rest-a stable.
