A very cute song sent to me in the email. Well worth the 2.5 minutes necessary for listening. Enjoy.

http://www.box.net/shared/3tauj7564u

The Wonderful Magisterium

I have recently been reading a book entitled, The Empty Church written by Thomas C. Reeves. It describes in great detail the decline of the mainline Protestant churches in America. It is full of statistics and insightful quotes as to the cause of this decline. As a recent convert to Catholicism from a mainstream Protestant denomination, Southern Baptist, I was very interested to read his analysis.

As I read the book, I found myself quite often pausing to give thanks for the teaching authority of the Magisterium. It truly is a great blessing from God. It is also the reason the Catholic Church is able to withstand all the vicious attacks that come against it on a daily basis. Many of the same attacks that are destroying the mainline Protestant churches are actually making the Catholic Church stronger and more vibrant. There is no overarching authority in most mainline Protestant denominations. This results in repeated schism, adoption of doctrinal errors and loss of distinction between the churches and the secular world. In other words, the salt loses its flavor.

As each attack is rebuffed, the clergy and the Magisterium speak louder and with greater clarity. The laity become more aware of the teachings of the church and are better able to assimilate these teachings into their lives. A recent example of this process is the continuous attack upon the Church over her stand to defend the right to life of the unborn. This public debate has been raging between the Church and those that call themselves Catholic but refuse to follow the teachings of the Church. The recent announcement by Fr. Jenkins that Notre Dame University would be honoring the most vicious Pro-Death public official ever, President Obama, has given this disagreement a national audience and put it center stage.

The overwhelming response of the public-- over 350,000 signatures on a petition of protest against this decision-- has stunned many. The number of Bishops who have spoken out against this scandalous behavior has grown to over sixty-five. This has even encouraged a former US ambassador and Presidential candidate, Dr. Alan Keyes, to participate in a peaceful protest at Notre Dame, during which he was arrested for trespassing.

The point is that the Magisterium gives the church strength and authority especially in moments of crisis and scandal. Down through the ages, the church has been attacked, both from without and from within. The teaching authority of the Magisterium is the fulfillment of the promise of Christ that the gates of hell will not prevail against it. It is the authority of the Magisterium that allows the Catholic Church to remain true to the faith as taught by Jesus and His Disciples.

This current scandal has given our Bishops a chance to teach us and the world what it means to be Catholic in today's world. (Too bad Fr. Jenkins doesn't seem to be able to get the idea.) I challenge my fellow Catholics and my separated brothers and sisters to look more closely at this most wonderful and precious gift from heaven. There is much grace in embracing the Magisterium of the Church.

Eternal Vigilance

Eternal Vigilance. That is the price we must pay if we wish to maintain our freedom and pass it onto our posterity. Our enemy is old and ancient, far surpassing us in wisdom and guile. He is an ancient demon who does not rest but "Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour." 1 Pet.5:8
 

Eternal Vigilance. We must guard our hearts, our minds and our souls. We have been given much as a people and much is required of us. Much freedom requires much vigilance. Unfortunately, judging from the current state of affairs, we American Christians, especially we Catholics have not been vigilant.

We have failed to guard our minds. We have allowed our educational institutions to exchange truth for a lie. We have allowed the enemy into the camp in the name of academic honesty when there is nothing honest about the enemy. We have exalted phrases like "dialogue" and "exchange of ideas", over the words of truth, logic and fidelity. We thought somehow that it made us stronger or more enlightened to allow the enemy to have unfettered access to our children. We agreed with the serpent, that the fruit does indeed look good.

We have failed to guard our hearts. We allowed our spiritual leaders to constantly feed us milk without demanding the meat necessary for growth. We wanted our ears tickled instead of our hearts challenged. We must pray for our spiritual leaders, and prepare ourselves to be spiritual followers. We must guard our hearts by praying the Rosary and the Liturgy of the Hours daily. We must truly commit ourselves to be "soldiers of the Cross" and stand our post spiritually.

We have failed to guard our souls. Have we traded our souls for the Madison Avenue version of the American dream; a big 4 bedroom, 2 bath house with 2 car garage, and 2.5 kids? The current state of materialism within the Christian community is a telltale sign that the answer to that question is yes. From the Protestant "prosperity gospel", (the belief that God really wants you to be rich, only your lack of faith prevents Him from blessing you with wealth), to the lack of charitable giving, (both in time and money) to the use of contraceptives by Protestants and Catholic couples alike (which really is a selfish and faithless act), the evidence is overwhelming. Our social standing has too often become more important than our spiritual standing.

We must be eternally vigilant in guarding our hearts, minds, bodies and souls because they do not belong to us. They belong to God. We are His creation, the works of His hands. We should "render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's." But we should also render unto God that which is God's. Unfortunately I believe we as Christians have rendered unto Caesar that which is God's.

We cannot save America from its downward spiral into tyranny until we as Christians return to our place of eternal vigilance. We must return to honoring God above honoring Caesar, fearing God more than fearing persecution and valuing human life above material possessions.

May God bless us, protect us and give us courage.

St. Michael, be our defense in the battle.

Teach us to pray…(part two)

The most effective tool I have found for developing an attitude of prayer is the Rosary. It was given by Our Lady to us, for us. Please remember I am speaking as a former Protestant who did not even know what a "Hail Mary" was much less ever prayed one before. I just knew it was a type of play in football. I was 41 before I prayed my first Hail Mary.

The first Rosary I prayed lasted forever or so it seemed, but I muddled through it. Then I started praying the Rosary with Mother Angelica and the nuns at Our Lady of the Angels Monastery on EWTN radio. This really helped me as I could just follow along and become familiar with the new prayers I was learning.

As I prayed, I began to notice something. I could see and feel more of God's grace in my life. I began to have clearer understandings of Catholic teachings and the Holy Scriptures that I had read many times before, were now filled with new life and meaning. I began to realize the power of the Rosary. It released the Grace of God into my life to act according to His Will and to accomplish His Purpose.

The request to "teach us to pray" is a request to enter into the heart and mind of our Savior. The Rosary is an answer to that request by allowing the heart and mind of our Savior to enter into us.

 

 

Teach Us to Pray…(part one)

It never ceases to amaze me how often I forget to pray. Prayer is without a doubt the best thing a believer can do. It is our best and most powerful weapon. Yet, it is often the last thing that we do. We remember to pray only when all else fails or when we feel totally overwhelmed.

Prayer should be our FIRST response to everything, good or bad. If it is a good thing then prayers of thanksgivings and joy should flow from our hearts and our lips. In difficult times we should utter the same prayers of joy with the additions of our supplications and intercessions. How do we move from a prayer "last" lifestyle to a prayer "first" lifestyle? We must develop an "attitude" of prayer.

The best example of this attitude of prayer is Our Blessed Mother. Her attitude of prayer is best demonstrated in her answer, "Let it be with me according to your word" (LK 1:38). This is a prayer that should ever be on our lips. She demonstrates this "attitude of prayer" at the wedding at Canaan. After letting Jesus know of the need, (they had run out of wine), she simply turns to the servants and instructs then to do as He (Jesus) tells them. Her attitude was that He would do the right thing for everybody involved; we just need to be obedient? He knows our needs, and loves us with perfect love, and will never leave us or forsake us. So we pray without ceasing, always with prayers of joy, thanksgivings and supplications, in full agreement with Our Blessed Mother, saying "let it be with me according to your word." …

 

“A child shall lead them…”

    I have learned more about God from my children than from all the theology books, commentaries, magazine articles, and spiritual devotions I have ever read, put together. I have learned more about God from my children than from all time I spent at seminary and college studying theology and religion.

I have learned more about God from my children than from all the CDs, videos, and television preachers and teachers that I have watched and listened to all these years. How can this be, you ask? Let me explain.

    I had always heard about the love of God. As a child we are taught "Jesus loves me this I know." And as a child we accept that and understand it. But as we get older we often lose that child like acceptance that God loves us. At least that was the case for me. (Reference Rev 2:4)

    Then one day as I was watching my children play, and enjoying their laughter and innocence, God gently spoke to me. He pointed to the immense love that was filling my heart. He said to me, "That love in your heart that you have for your children, is the same love I have for you."

    I was stunned to say the least. I silently mediated on that love. I began to examine it and consciously allowed myself to sink deeper into it, suddenly aware that I was very close to the presence of the Divine.

    It was here that the great truth of God's infinite love became real for me. Just as I loved each one of my children completely, unconditionally, and without end or limitations, so I realized that this was the way the Most Blessed Holy Trinity loved me. Just as my heart takes delight in the presence of my children, especially when I know they want to be with me and do things together with me, so I realized that God's heart takes great delight when we come to Him just to be in His presence, not wanting anything other than to sit on His lap and rest in His love.

    My children can do nothing to separate themselves from my love. They can leave my presence but my love is always there. It is the same with God. Through our sin we can deny ourselves the awareness of God's presence, but His love is always there drawing us back to Him.

    As I kneel during mass, at the foot of the Cross with my children next to me, I see my Beloved Savior smiling down at me. My heart can barely contain the joy and love that easily overwhelms a sinner such as I. As I prayed this past Easter Vigil, when my children were baptized and received their First Communion, "May God strike me dead if I ever forget the Great Love He has for me."

Time for Christians to Fight

Christians missed a great opportunity to make a stand for Christ in 1962 and 1963. These are the years when the Supreme Court handed down their rulings abolishing prayer in public schools. Now I am not going to argue the legal merits of this issue. I am not even going to talk about the Constitutional issues involved. Instead I want to take an entirely different approach to the issue; one that I feel fits in with the nature of true Americans and devout Christians.

The day these decisions were handed down, all Christians should have immediately pulled their children out of the public school system. They should have either sent them to private schools, parochial schools, or home schooled them. They should have immediately followed this with a refusal to pay any taxes in support of the now "godless" system of public education, which is nothing more than indoctrination into the "religion" of secular humanism.

It should be known that I do not make these comments lightly. I understand what I am advocating. I also am putting my money where my mouth, and faith, is. I send all four of my children to private school. Is this something I can afford? The answer is no. It is only the provision of God which allows this to happen. I also know that it requires a great sacrifice by my wife, my family, and me. I am not tooting my own horn, I just want to let you know where I am coming from.

The time has come when we as Catholic and all Christians must be willing to take our place alongside the great witness of the martyrs. We must be willing to sacrifice our place in society for the message of the Gospel. If Caesar wants a "godless" school system then let him have one, but not with my children and not with my money.

The same goes with the issue of abortion. Since the government has decided to use tax payer monies to pay for abortions as well as embryonic stem cell research, at home and abroad, I feel a tremendous conflict is being pressed upon all Christians. I understand the Catechism's teachings concerning taxes and citizenship (CCC paragraph 2240). I also understand that immoral and unjust laws do not and should not be obeyed and in fact should be opposed.

The United States is unique in history in many ways. Unlike all other civilizations in the past and most in the present, we do not have a dictator, emperor, oligarchy, or theocracy which passes decrees that we must follow. We have a freedom to protest. We have the duty to peacefully assemble and petition our government for a redress of grievances. We have the right as American citizens and the duty as Christians to protest, but do we have the courage to suffer for protesting? The answer to that question will be the legacy of this generation of Christians.

Think about the poem attributed to Pastor Martin Niemöller;

"When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

Then they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews,
I did not speak out;
I was not a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out for me."

We had best speak out now while there is still someone to hear.