Articles of Interest

Picture of my parent's Infant of Prague Statue.

The following were shared by Sue Cifelli:

Long Lost Jesus Icon in Kremlin Restored to View

My Brother, the Priest

The Stranger

Shared by Lloyd.

A few years after I was born, my Dad met a stranger who was new to our
small Michigan town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer and soon invited him to live with our family. The stranger was quickly accepted and was around from then on.

As I grew up, I never questioned his place in my family. In my young mind, he had a special niche. My parents were complementary instructors: Mom taught me good from evil, and Dad taught me to obey. But the stranger...he was our storyteller. He would keep us spellbound for hours on end with Adventures, mysteries and comedies.

If I wanted to know anything about politics, history or science, he always knew the answers about the past, understood the present and even seemed able to predict the future! He took my family to the first major league ball game. He made me laugh, and he made me cry. The stranger never stopped Talking, but Dad didn't seem to mind.

Sometimes, Mom would get up quietly while the rest of us were shushing each other to listen to what he had to say, and she would go to the kitchen for peace and quiet. (I wonder now if she ever prayed for the stranger to leave.)

Dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions, but the stranger never felt obligated to honor them. Profanity, for example, was not allowed in our home... Not from us, our friends or any visitors. Our longtime visitor, however, got away with four-letter words that burned my ears and made my dad squirm and my mother blush. My Dad didn't permit the liberal use of alcohol. But the stranger encouraged us to try it on a regular Basis. He made cigarettes look cool, cigars manly and pipes distinguished.

He talked freely (much too freely!) about sex. His comments were sometimes blatant, sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing.

I now know that my early concepts about relationships were influenced strongly by the stranger. Time after time, he opposed the values of my parents, yet he was seldom rebuked... And NEVER asked to leave.

More than fifty years have passed since the stranger moved in with our family. He has blended right in and is not nearly as fascinating as he was at first. Still, if you could walk into my parents' den today, you would still find him sitting over in his corner, waiting for someone to listen to him talk and watch him draw his pictures.

His name?.... .. .



We just call him 'TV.'

He has a wife now...We call her 'Computer.'

Back in Union With Rome

Margaret Mary has a very interesting post about a community of sedevacantist sisters who have returned to the Church, thanks to John Paul II and Benedict XVI.

She, and other teachers at the Mount with internet access, began to follow the story of Pope Benedict XVI, Pope John Paul II’s successor.

“I noticed the good that he was doing,” she said. “I sat up and paid attention: We had a good man, a good pope.” That idea was almost impossible, according to the strictures of the sedevacantist position, she said. “But he seemed to be doing what a good pope would do.”

Article in the Diocese Paper of Spokane.

This particular community of sisters' return is very personal to Margaret Mary. You can read her reflection HERE