Friday, July 02, 2010
The history of the Legion of Christ, a congregation that seeks to convey...
Pray for the Legionaries of Christ. They are fine men and do good work for the Lord and the Catholic Church.
Thursday, July 01, 2010
ACN News - Uganda celebrates its martyrs
ACN-USA News
7/1/2010
Uganda celebrates its martyrs
Walking up to 250 miles on foot for days, over 500,000 pilgrims in Uganda sang and prayed as they celebrated their country’s martyrs in an event supported by Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).
The celebrations on June 3rd occurred at the national shrine in Namugongo, close to the capital Kampala, in the Diocese of Moroto. Pilgrims included participants from Sudan, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and some from as far away as Malawi and Nigeria.
"We are standing on soil that is soaked with the blood of the martyrs," declared Bishop Henry Ssentongo of Moroto in his homily.
Between 1885 and 1887, 22 young men who served as pages at the Court of King Mwanga in Namugongo were put to death for refusing demands from their ruler that went against their faith. They were among the first Christian converts in their country.
Today over 12.6 million of the country's 28 million inhabitants are Catholics, and every year some 400,000 more are baptized.
Each year more and more have come to take part in the great feast, and estimates for the throng have gone as high as one million. Among the pilgrims were hundreds of priests, all the bishops of Uganda and a handful of foreign bishops, along with thousands more watching on television.
The northeast of Uganda is the most underdeveloped region of the country, one that continues to be so sorely marked by violence. One of the organizers was shot dead on the eve of the departure of the pilgrims from Moroto for the festival.
Father Andrzej Halemba, who heads the Africa desk of ACN, commented on the celebrations, "I am proud that we were able to help for this!"
"At last the people of the Karamoja region have been able to show that they have something really precious to offer their country and their Church!"
Bishop Ssentongo went on to emphasize in his homily, "This pilgrimage should mark a turning point in our lives... it is not enough to celebrate the fact that Uganda is a country of martyrs; instead we must follow in their footsteps and imitate Christ right up to the end!"
With pictures from the celebration of Ugandan martyrs in Namugongo (Photo: ACN)
From Editor's Notes:
Directly under the Holy Father, Aid to the Church in Need supports the faithful wherever they are persecuted, oppressed or in pastoral need. ACN is a Catholic charity - helping to bring Christ to the world through prayer, information and action.
Founded in 1947 by Father Werenfried van Straaten, whom Pope John Paul II named “An Outstanding Apostle of Charity,” the organization is now at work in over 145 countries throughout the world.
The charity undertakes thousands of projects every year including providing transport for clergy and lay Church workers, construction of church buildings, funding for priests and nuns and help to train seminarians. Since the initiative’s launch in 1979, 43 million Aid to the Church in Need Child’s Bibles have been distributed worldwide.
For more information contact Michael Varenne at michael@churchinneed.org or call 718-609-0939 or fax718-609-0938. Aid to the Church in Need, 725 Leonard Street, PO Box 220384, Brooklyn, NY 11222-0384. www.churchinneed.org
7/1/2010
Uganda celebrates its martyrs
Walking up to 250 miles on foot for days, over 500,000 pilgrims in Uganda sang and prayed as they celebrated their country’s martyrs in an event supported by Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).
The celebrations on June 3rd occurred at the national shrine in Namugongo, close to the capital Kampala, in the Diocese of Moroto. Pilgrims included participants from Sudan, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and some from as far away as Malawi and Nigeria.
"We are standing on soil that is soaked with the blood of the martyrs," declared Bishop Henry Ssentongo of Moroto in his homily.
Between 1885 and 1887, 22 young men who served as pages at the Court of King Mwanga in Namugongo were put to death for refusing demands from their ruler that went against their faith. They were among the first Christian converts in their country.
Today over 12.6 million of the country's 28 million inhabitants are Catholics, and every year some 400,000 more are baptized.
Each year more and more have come to take part in the great feast, and estimates for the throng have gone as high as one million. Among the pilgrims were hundreds of priests, all the bishops of Uganda and a handful of foreign bishops, along with thousands more watching on television.
The northeast of Uganda is the most underdeveloped region of the country, one that continues to be so sorely marked by violence. One of the organizers was shot dead on the eve of the departure of the pilgrims from Moroto for the festival.
Father Andrzej Halemba, who heads the Africa desk of ACN, commented on the celebrations, "I am proud that we were able to help for this!"
"At last the people of the Karamoja region have been able to show that they have something really precious to offer their country and their Church!"
Bishop Ssentongo went on to emphasize in his homily, "This pilgrimage should mark a turning point in our lives... it is not enough to celebrate the fact that Uganda is a country of martyrs; instead we must follow in their footsteps and imitate Christ right up to the end!"
With pictures from the celebration of Ugandan martyrs in Namugongo (Photo: ACN)
From Editor's Notes:
Directly under the Holy Father, Aid to the Church in Need supports the faithful wherever they are persecuted, oppressed or in pastoral need. ACN is a Catholic charity - helping to bring Christ to the world through prayer, information and action.
Founded in 1947 by Father Werenfried van Straaten, whom Pope John Paul II named “An Outstanding Apostle of Charity,” the organization is now at work in over 145 countries throughout the world.
The charity undertakes thousands of projects every year including providing transport for clergy and lay Church workers, construction of church buildings, funding for priests and nuns and help to train seminarians. Since the initiative’s launch in 1979, 43 million Aid to the Church in Need Child’s Bibles have been distributed worldwide.
For more information contact Michael Varenne at michael@churchinneed.org or call 718-609-0939 or fax718-609-0938. Aid to the Church in Need, 725 Leonard Street, PO Box 220384, Brooklyn, NY 11222-0384. www.churchinneed.org
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
The Catholic Priest in the Modern World: A Living Martyr for His Faith in the Priesthood
...Consequently, as a society becomes more secularized and materially preoccupied, there will be a corresponding lack of interest in the priesthood. Once flourishing Catholic cultures that have become materially wealthy, become proportionally de-Catholicized and, to coin a term, desacerdotalized. Vocations to the priesthood decrease, as departures from the active priesthood increase. As we might add, naturally.You can read Father John Hardon's article in its entirety here.
The modern media in societies like our own are, with rare exception, not friendly to the Catholic priesthood. Or, more accurately, the media are friendly in so far as Catholic bishops and priests do not challenge the secular values of a society—like contraception, sodomy or adultery. But once these values are challenged, the opposition is a plain fact of contemporary history.
However, this is not, in my judgment, the main grounds for claiming that a Catholic priest must expect to live a martyr’s life in the modern world. I believe the main reason is the spread of alien ideas in nominally Catholic circles about what exactly is a priest...
Thanks Sue Cifelli.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Pontifical Approval of Home of the Mother
Three Missions in the Church:Home of the Mother
- The Defense of the Eucharist.
- The Defense of the Honor of Our Mother,
especially in the privilege of her virginity.
- The Conquest of the Youth for Christ.
Monday, June 28, 2010
ACN-USA News: Crisis at the Crossroads of faith
6/28/2010
Crisis at the Crossroads of faith
The impact of extremism on Christians in the Middle East was laid bare by a leading Vatican expert on Islam who appealed for action to safe-guard the Church’s continued presence in a region where its survival is under threat.
Speaking to Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), Fr. Samir Khalil Samir spelled out the problem of extremism – both in the Middle East and the West.
Focusing mostly on the Middle East, the Egyptian-born Jesuit based in Lebanon categorized countries in the region according to a sliding scale of anti-Christian oppression, with Saudi Arabia being the worst.
Fr. Samir, who is coordinating preparations for this autumn’s Middle East Synod of Bishops, in Rome, said, “Christians in Saudi Arabia cannot even gather in their houses to pray. This is the worst situation, where human rights are practically unknown.”
Underlining how in many parts of the Middle East Christians have dwindled to a tiny minority, he went on, “For many, the only solution is emigration – proselytism, announcing Christ to everybody, is forbidden. There is no equality.”
Fr. Samir described how starting at the end of the 1960s some Middle East countries, especially Saudi Arabia, took advantage of new-found oil wealth to bankroll militant Wahabi Islam, which, he said, has been spread far and wide, including to the West.
“They built mosques, mostly paid by Saudi Arabia but also Teheran, sending with the mosques preachers and imams, and they gave them this very narrow vision of Islam.”
Underlining a dramatic move towards Christian oppression dating back to the 1970s, Fr. Samir went on to stress the need for dialogue with Islam, underlining that the Middle East faithful played an indispensible role in this area.
He said, “The question is: ‘Who is able to dialogue with Islam?’ In fact, although the situation is hard for Arab Christians, the main people dialoguing with Muslims and bringing change are precisely the Arab Christians.
“We are involved in dialogue every day. We work together, we go to school together.”
The priest, who has established 20 schools and authored at least 40 books, underlined the need for joint projects with Muslims, aimed at breaking down ignorance and mistrust and promoting education.
Stating that Islam “is in crisis” amid growing insecurity among Muslims about the
relationship between faith and modernity, he nonetheless made clear that theological discussion was extremely difficult because of differing views on Jesus Christ and the Bible, as well as the Prophet Mohammed and the Qur’an.
Fr. Samir, who is a university professor in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, Paris, as well as the Gregorian, in Rome, said, “We need your help – we need your spiritual help, your prayer to support people in a region where there is oppression. We need your support for projects which promote education and peace.”
With picture of Fr. Samir Khalil Samir, SJ
Directly under the Holy Father, Aid to the Church in Need supports the faithful wherever they are persecuted, oppressed or in pastoral need. ACN is a Catholic charity - helping to bring Christ to the world through prayer, information and action.
Founded in 1947 by Father Werenfried van Straaten, whom Pope John Paul II named “An Outstanding Apostle of Charity,” the organization is now at work in over 145 countries throughout the world.
The charity undertakes thousands of projects every year including providing transport for clergy and lay Church workers, construction of church buildings, funding for priests and nuns and help to train seminarians. Since the initiative’s launch in 1979, 43 million Aid to the Church in Need Child’s Bibles have been distributed worldwide.
For more information contact Michael Varenne at michael@churchinneed.org or call 718-609-0939 or fax718-609-0938. Aid to the Church in Need, 725 Leonard Street, PO Box 220384, Brooklyn, NY 11222-0384. www.churchinneed.org
Saturday, June 26, 2010
On this the Feast Day of St. Josemaria Escrivá: Thoughts on Fr Willie Doyle, by Saint Josemaria Escriva
I recently was directed to this wonderful blog Remembering Father William Doyle, S.J. by the blog's owner. Please check out today's post regarding our saint of the day and Father Doyle.
SOUND DEVOTIONS ARE EXTENSIONS OF THE LITURGY
Devotions: Touchstones of Faith
by Brother John M. Samaha, S.M. Reprinted with permission
How many popular songs in recent decades have extolled memories? In addition, how often do we find ourselves and others recalling important incidents and persons of the recent or distant past?
When we stop to think about it, we are following the same human pattern when we celebrate some aspect of the official liturgy of the Church or a popular devotion. This is part of our Christian heritage.
Memories, stories, family customs and practices, and significant persons and events in our lives are a very important part of each of us. Recalling special persons and events, and continuing time-honored rituals with family and friends nourish the human spirit. This stimulates us to imitate and to continue what our predecessors have achieved.
Thus it is with Jesus and his faithful followers. We look to Mary and the saints for models and examples of how to continue in the footsteps of our Redeemer. Therefore, we call on their help in a variety of ways.
The mystery of God becoming human and our role in this mystery is communicated to the Church not only in its official teaching, but also in its liturgy, piety, art, music, and in the religious experience of its members.
Our devotional heritage provides us with many patterns for approaching God and worshiping Jesus Christ outside of the Church’s official worship, the sacred liturgy. We insert ourselves into the ongoing plan of redemption as we make the way of the Cross, pray the rosary, follow a novena, fast, offer particular prayers, and perform charitable actions. However, from earliest times, devotion existed in the framework of the liturgy. For example, devotion to Mary has always existed in the Eucharistic Liturgy and in the Liturgy of the Hours. Mary’s close association in all the mysteries of Jesus is explicitly mentioned in those liturgical prayers.
However, as time progressed, new forms of honoring Mary and the saints, our heroes and models in the faith, were developed and practiced without the need of an ordained priest. The Bible, the liturgy, and the teachings of the Church have been the wellsprings for popular devotions that are celebrated in public or in private. From those sources, we develop other forms of celebrating God’s love for us in company with Mary and the saints.
It is imperative to keep in mind that when we call Mary and the saints we are communicating also with Jesus for they lead us to him. In honoring the saints and asking for their assistance, we honor Jesus Christ. Christ is always our focal point.
Devotions are not meant to displace the liturgy but to extend it for special occasions and circumstances. They complement our liturgical prayer life with other forms of expressing our dedication to God.
If we honor or seek the help of Mary and the saints, it is because they are human mirrors reflecting the goodness of God. All this is borne out in the creed, code, and cult of our Christian faith. What is said and believed of Jesus applies also to Mary and the saints in appropriate, lesser degrees.
Alone or in a group, in public or in private, with approved prayers or using a prayer which is spontaneous or has no special authorization, we celebrate the life and love of our Savior in many ways, most of which carry the respect of centuries: the Way of the Cross, Eucharistic adoration, honoring the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, praying the mysteries of the Rosary, special hymns and practices which highlight Mary and the saints and their attachment to God, novenas, pilgrimages to shrines, applying particular titles of holiness and protection, and similar practices. Most of us have some familiarity with such devotions.
Important to our appreciation and use of devotions is the understanding that they complement our life and further enrich our personal relationship with Jesus, sometimes directly and sometimes through the saints.
Since the second century devotion to Mary and the saints originated as a need arose, or when a priest was not available, or when a special occasion was to be marked, or when someone was inspired.
Devotions are based on faith and need a doctrinal underpinning. However, ordinary Christians at prayer are not concerned with theological nuance. Theological inquiry has produced a high Christology which tended to distance Jesus from ordinary people. He, like the Father, was king and judge. Jesus Christ was much too threatening to approach directly. Enter Mary and the saints. It made much better sense to cultivate the attention of his mother and most faithful disciple, and that of the saints. They seemed much closer to our human condition and were kindhearted enough to bend God’s ear in our favor. The Marian apparitions, even of the twentieth century, have reinforced this attitude. Mary and the saints lead to Jesus. At all approved shrines, for example, Mary directs us to her Son in the Eucharist and in the sacraments.
In terms of devotion to Mary, every age tends to shape her image according to its own needs and desires. Yet, there are certain constants in her image -- healer, intercessor, prophet and social critic, gentlewoman who is mother, comforter, nurturer, counselor, and friend. Mary is the perfect friend and mother for us.
The Gospel continues in Mary and the saints -- and in us. We, the Church, are the continuation of Jesus Christ in our time, place and circumstances. Consequently, we need these saints and heroes as our models. Christian life without the saints is unthinkable. The saints are for the ages, ours no less than others, because they proclaim by their lives that life is worth living, that a provident God cares for us. Mary and the saints personify this hope.
However, the accolade that “never enough honor can be given to Mary” (De Maria nunquam satis) must be placed in proper perspective and understood accordingly, The Second Vatican Council moved in this direction by adapting Catholicism to the modern world, re-emphasizing the Biblical foundations of faith and worship, and directing us to the call of the social gospel.
Vatican II moved to correct abuses and excesses in liturgical worship and in popular devotions. The Council undertook a theological re-shaping of the image of Mary and the popular impulses of devotion to her and to the saints. It should be noted that in every age Mary’s image tells us as much about ourselves as it does about Mary.
Balance is what we seek. Blessed Pope John XXIII once remarked: “The Madonna is not pleased when she is put above her Son.” We must not over-humanize or over-divinize the cult of Mary and the saints. Devotion should rest on a sure theological and historical footing without neglecting the needs of our affective piety for images of Mary and the saints, who are healers, intercessors, prophets, and friends. The saints and Mary do for the faithful what friends do for friends. Mary does for us what mothers do for children. What theologians may sometimes overlook, we ordinary Christians will provide.
Participating in and continuing honored practices of devotion are an important part of our faith-life. Devotions are touchstones of faith. They are part of our Christian heritage.
Remember, and be faithful.
The above article, "Devotions: Touchstones of Faith," was published in THE FAMILY DIGEST, Spring 2010.
Friday, June 25, 2010
The Wife Advertisment
Back in 1920, a 43 year old German policeman was getting concerned that he had not met the right woman to marry. In desperation, he placed the following advertisement in the newspapers.Source
"Middle-ranking civil servant, single, Catholic, 43, immaculate past, from the country, is looking for a good Catholic, pure girl who can cook well, tackle all household chores, with a talent for sewing and homemaking, with a view to marriage as soon as possible. Fortune desirable, but not a precondition."
A woman named Maria Peintner answered the ad. She was 36 years old, a trained cook, and had been born "out of wedlock". While carrying her, her mother, whom it is suggested was also born "out of wedlock", spent some time in a home for pregnant girls. The mother later married a baker with whom she had five more daughters.
Maria did not have a fortune, but she herself was a treasure, and they married four months later. In spite of their somewhat advanced years, they had three children: two boys and a girl. The youngest child received the same name as his father: Joseph Ratzinger, better known today as Pope Benedict XVI.
After his election, someone dug up the "wife-wanted" advertisement and showed it to the Pope, who, of course, smiled. They were the best of parents to their children.
The important thing is that he knew his parents really loved each other, and the children, very much. Pope Benedict often speaks about that love. In fact, his first encyclical is entitled, "God is Love," and it describes marriage as the preeminent figure of God's love for us.
Thus, know that, even being illegitimate, every child is a gift.
from Curate's Diary, 3/10 by Fr. T. Doyle
Thanks to Sue Cifelli
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