Fr. Corapi and the Worldwise Consecration to Jesus Through Mary

Have you ever heard of the 33-Day Preparation for Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary according to St. Louis de Montfort?

It consists of a series of prayers to be recited daily for 33-days leading up to a Marian feast day…such as The Assumption of Our Blessed Mother on August 15^th. This preparation is followed by a prayer of consecration to Jesus through Mary on the feast day.

Fr. Corapi has agreed to lead all attending the upcoming Buffalo, NY conference on 8/15 in the final prayer of consecration.

If you are unable to attend the conference, fear not. A full list of all prayers, including that of Consecration Day are found HERE at the WLOF website and be sure to visit the Total Consecration to Mary website HERE.

Did you know?

Did you know that Pope Leo XIII (who happens to be one of my favorite pontiffs) awarded a Vatican gold medal to the creator of the cocaine spiked wine? Queen Victoria, Thomas Edison and Pope Pius X were also said to have carried a bottle with them. If I were forced to choose the Coca-Cola of the day or Coca-laced wine, I'd choose the wine as well. Perhaps that is why they had so much energy for the industrial revolution?

Diocese of Buffalo Dinner Lecture: Vatican Two at Fifty

"Vatican II at Fifty: Feuding over Meaning” will be the topic of a dinner lecture at Christ the King Seminary, 11 Knox Rd., East Aurora, on Wednesday, July 22. Father Gabriel Scarfia, OFM, a long-time faculty member at Christ the King, will speak.

The lecture, the third and final in the summer series, will cover such topics as:

· Did anything really new happen as a result of Vatican II?

· If a Church renewal did occur, was it in basic continuity with preceding Catholic tradition, or was it truly a new development?

· What might be the implications of this conflict of interpretation for the present and future life of the Church?

Father Scarfia, a professor in the seminary’s systematic theology department, will look back over the years since the announcement of the Council in January 1959 and will reflect on the debates in Europe and the United States.

The dinner lecture will be held seminary’s dining hall on the East Aurora campus. Dinner is at 5:45 p.m., and the lecture begins at 6:45 p.m. The cost for dinner and the lecture is $27.19 (including tax) or $15 for the lecture only. For more information or to register, call 716-655-7081.

Christ the King Seminary is a fully-accredited ecumenical school which offers graduate degrees and continuing education in theology and pastoral ministry.
Flocknote

ENCYCLICAL LETTER CARITAS IN VERITATE OF THE SUPREME PONTIFF BENEDICT XVI

It is finally available, and you may read it online HERE if you do not wish to purchase it. Very timely indeed and I look forward to studying it more in-depth.

Looking Back at 1962: Pre-Vatican Council

I have a stack of old Catholic periodicals and came across this fascinating issue of VIEW: Catholic Comment on the News which is buzzing with talk of a possible change to using the vernacular in the Mass and speculating about other things which may come from the upcoming Vatican Council. Much of what is discussed continues to be discussed nearly fifty years later. New translation of the Mass, hints at ecumenism, Latin v. English -- it is all there. Following are letters of opinion sent to VIEW: Catholic Comment on the News by individuals representing other Catholic publications:

THE MASS IN ENGLISH: A Digest of Catholic Opinion

The Holy See is being petitioned from many quarters to allow greater use of the vernacular in the Mass. The obvious advantage of such a change would be a better understanding of the Liturgy. the whole idea is strongly opposed by some authorities on practical grounds. But polls show that a majority would welcome the change. The question is sure to receive attention of the coming Vatican Council. What the Council decides will be the Council's best judgment of what is best for the faithful.

I'M FOR ENGLISH

What is the case for the use of the vernacular -- English for us -- in the sacred ceremonies and liturgy of the Church?
I feel that the main point in any discussion of replacing Latin with the common tongue of the country involved is this: God understands any language, but His people do not.
Prayer should be a lifting of the mind and heart to God, not a mechanical recitation. How can prayers said in a foreign language, learned by rote, be meaningful?
Our liturgy is not only the praise of God but out most important time of public worship and instruction. It is, moreover, a corporate action in which the people are to unite with the priest. This being true, the use of Latin in our parish liturgy is a considerable stumbling block. The blunt fact is that the overwhelming majority in the ordinary American parish do not know Latin and never will. Our Catholic family is not an educated elite. It is a vast number that includes millions of people who read very little -- certainly not Latin -- and whose principal contact with religion is the Sunday Mass.
Dare we close off that contact , dry up that instruction, make worship a difficult and remote business of fulfilling an obligation, instead of a vigorous, joyful experience, engaging the mind and heart and eye and ear -- the whole man caught up in the whole Christ, praising and adoring Father?

Rev. Joseph T. Nolan
Information
New York, N.Y.

FROM HEART AND MIND

Certainly the congregation no less than the altar boys can learn to make the responses. They could also learn to respond in Chinese in the same fashion and understand the responses no better. Granted that people can get 'some general notions' about what they say or sing, our prayer-life ought not to be something general or vague, something 'seen under water' as one man puts it. Every bit of it should flow from the heart and mind alike.

John L. Murphy
Homiletic and Pastoral Review
New York, N.Y.

UNITY AT MASS

Why all the pros and cons on changing our Latin Mass to English? Let's face the facts. The Church began to use the Latin language at a time when it was practically the only language spoken. They were a lot more reasonable than we are today. Now what language is spoken throughout America? English. I firmly believe every country should change their Mass to whatever language is spoken throughout that country.
Let's not think of ourselves -- born Catholics or converted Catholics. That is selfish. Let's think of our non-Catholic friends who attend Catholic weddings, funerals, dedications and Sunday Masses. They come away from the Church very confused. How many of us can actually come in contact with every one of these people to explain everything? The Mass can be a lesson or instruction to these non-Catholic friends who cannot come or do not want to come to instructions on Catholic religion.
To you who want to stick to the old Latin language: do you drive a chariot? Ninety-nine percent of you are driving new cars, keeping up with the latest styles, modern appliances.
How much unity do we have in our Church when the leader finishes the Gospel in English and the priest is still saying it in Latin? Often, when using the missal, seven or eight pages of silence pass by. For the ones without a missal, a million and one thoughts can go through a person's mind. Some of the time the priest is at the Lord's Prayer, and I've got a couple more pages to go, or some priests read slower, and I'm waiting for the Lord's Prayer. Is that praying in unity? Why have a leader who is the middle man between us and the priest. Let's only have the priest and us, worshipping God together.

Mrs. C. J. Ellsworth
The Oklahoma Courier
Oklahoma City, Okla.

LATIN NOT UNIVERSAL

Latin is the liturgical language of the Latin Rite of the Universal Church. It is not the liturgical language of the Greek Rite, or the Coptic Rite, or the Rumanian Rite.
There are about a dozen tongues used in the liturgy in the various rites of the Church. In every case, those tongues were selected, in the beginning, because they were the tongues of the people in one area or another.
The liturgy in the Western Church, originally Greek, was translated into Latin because the people spoke Latin. It remained in Latin long after the people had ceased to speak Latin and were speaking other tongues.

Catholic Universe Bulletin
Cleveland, Ohio

DISGRUNTLED?

A reader informs me that he will 'begin to have serious doubts about my intelligence' if I do not agree with an article opposing English in the dialog Mass written by Father R. F. Venti and published in the Northern Ontario Register.
Of course, I do not agree with Father Venti, because I think that more use of native tongues in the liturgy would help to bring millions back to the practice of the Faith, and to give the Faith to other millions.
As to having my intelligence doubted, I haven't the slightest objection to that. I hold it in low esteem myself. But my intelligence is not the point at issue; we are discussing English in the Mass.
I disagree with Father Venti on that; but I disagree much more with what he has to say about those who favor English, and with what he reads into what I have written on the subject.
He says that 'one gets the idea' from my columns that 'all Catholics are disgruntled, dissatisfied and disobedient, and that the Mass in Latin as we recite it in our churches is a batch of confusion.'
Never once have I said or suggested that anybody (much less "all Catholics") are disgruntled or disobedient. I have said that many Catholics would prefer English to Latin; if that is being 'dissatisfied,' then they are dissatisfied.
It is sometimes better to be dissatisfied than complacent. but I reject the terms 'disgruntled' and disobedient.' Nobody is disgruntled; and I assert that to ask for English in the Mass is not disobedience. It is obedience.
Pope John has urged us to ask for what we want. He went out of his way to tell lay people to voice their 'expectations and suggestions' for his coming world council, and 'not to doubt that they will find in us a benevolent hearing.'

Joseph Breig
Hawaii Catholic Herald
Honolulu

SPOOF

I know that a translation of our English Bible into Latin would exhilarate those who want to retain Latin in our Roman Catholic liturgy. Some of my priest friends who are Latinists have informed me that Latin is God's own language and, they are shocked if you suggest that the Apostles might have spoken Greek or Hebrew.
Let me tell you (with tongue securely in cheek) some of the wonderful ramifications that would develop from this project for the Bible in Latin. The daily missal for the laity would no longer be published in English but in Latin. The pamphlets on the rack in the rear of the church would be sold neatly packaged -- each pamphlet with its interliner trot in cellophane wrapper.
Latinists claim that Latin gives an air of mystery to the liturgy, so the Sunday sermon likewise, in Latin, could mystify the congregation. In some of our New York parishes it is said that Latin Americans feel ill at ease during the English sermons. So here we would have Latin sermons made-to-order for the latin Americans.
Buried forever would be the controversy over who first gave the Bible to the people in the vernacular -- the Catholics or Luther. The whole concept of a Bible in the vernacular would be a thing of the past. The Word of God would rest undisturbed by the prying eyes of readers who would dare to try to understand God's message to the world.

Rev. John B. Sheerin, C.S.P.
The Catholic Light
Scranton, Pa.

CONVERSATION PIECE

How would the Mass sound in English? You can find out if you live in the Cincinati area. Father Theodore H. Rolfes, S.J., an assistant at St. Xavier's Church, offers a demonstration of the Mass in English and he's looking for opportunities to bring it before parish societies and other Catholic organizations.
Father Rolfes doesn't present his program as a novelty, though it is novel. His primary interest is to stiumlate interest in the true meaning of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. He is convinced, moreover, that if the Holy See extends permission for use fo the language of the people in the Mass, their understanding will be enlarged considerably. But how will ordinary people form intelligent opinion of the worth of English in the liturgy without hearing it?
As Father Rolfes prepares the chalice and its coverings he outlines their uses. An acolyte, meanwhile, puts on cassock and surplice; on the occasion when I was present the acolyte was Charles Brosey, an A. T. and T. supervisor who resides in the St. Vivian's Parish.
Forth they went together, Father Rolfes and Mr. Brosey. After the priest made the sign of the cross in English he began the prayers at the foot of the 'altar.'
"I will go unto the alter of God."
"To God, who gives joy to my youth."
They spoke the words in loud clear tones, and it was something of a shock to hear them. The wrong notion that the language is essential to the Mass dies hard, even after you know it is wrong.
On through the Mass of the Feast of Corpus Christi they continued. (Father Rolfes should have referred to it as the Feast fo the Body of Christ, it occurred to me later.) All the words of the magnificent prayer, for example, came through in the beauty of their sense as well as of their sound -- O God, who has left us a memorial of Thy Passion...
Sure, you can read them in your Missal, but it is curious, isn't it, that we read when we're supposed to be listening? Why would the Church order the priest to say the prayer in an audible voice if no one were expected to listen to him?

Jim Shea
Catholic Telegraph-Register
Cincinnati, Ohio

PARTICIPATION

But one feels that it ought to be recognized now, after four centuries, that the 'rigor mortis' is at least beginning to pass off. A reform of rubrics in the light of subsequent liturgical research is urgently needed. For, as they are, they constitute of the major problems of the practical liturgist who is working to restore active participation of the people. These rubrics were made in the days of the deepest liturgical decadence when there were no participation of the people whatever. And as their purpose was to keep the Mass as it then was, they tend to keep it such that the people cannot participate actively. Any suggestion that the people should now do something is likely to run up against some rubrics.
Until Rome carries through a reform of the rubrics, we have to resort to all sorts of partial expedients which are liturgically unsatisfactory, such as making somebody read the epistle and the gospel in English while the priest reads them in Latin. These expedients are not 'the real thing'; they are efficacious activities in the nave which merely run parallel with the inefficacious activities in the sanctuary -- they are not integrated into the liturgy itself. It is not one thing which is going on, but two.
However, there is hope. the new Holy Saturday rubrics, for instance, do give us 'the real thing' in the congregational candle-lighting and in the vernacular renewal of the baptismal vows. We need many more such reforms. In time, please God, we shall have them. But until we do have them, we have to admit that there is plenty of excuse for the people behaving as 'silent and detached spectators.'

Clifford Howell, S.J.
Worship
Collegeville, Minn.

___________________________

Your comments and opinions are always appreciated at +Ponderings+, Dear Reader. I found it very helpful to read the views prior to the violent pendulum swing that came after the Vatican Council. I'll be pondering it for a while.

Rochester Diocesan Priest's Prayer: Year of the Female Priest

Cleansing Fire, a blog by a rightly concerned individual in the Diocese of Rochester brought this issue to light.

First, a fact: No female will ever, ever be ordained as priest with the blessing of the Roman Catholic Church. This is an infallible teaching of the Church. Period.

Now the fantasy of a priest in Pittsford as shared in the church bulletin where he is Pastor:

I know to raise the issue of women and married men to be considered as priests is unacceptable for some among us…not for me…I pray that wherever priests come from that we as God’s family would be open to allow people to serve…if you feel only male celibates should be ordained, fine, encourage and pray for that…if you feel women or married men should be considered, encourage and pray for that…wherever the vocations come from, let us just pray
pray and accept them to serve.

My prayer for this Year of the Priest is that all in our Church would be open to consider the many fine Deacons whocould be ordained to Ministerial Priesthood…that we would not be afraid to open ourselves to other Married Men becoming candidates…that our Church would use this year to study and examine whether women should be ordained as deacons…that we would consider the possibility that God has planted the vocation to Priesthood in women’s lives and
we would seriously try to discern that…that even for Bishops, we would return to the traditional process where the people of the Diocese had a say in offering candidates…I am sure that these ideas are not a part of Pope Benedict’s plan for this year, but as long as we are going to focus on Priests, let’s consider all the dimensions of Priesthood and the real need our Church has.

Please pray for Fr. Kevin Murphy and the parishioners in his care. Pray for the Diocese of Rochester. +

U2 - 'Magnificent': Spot the Magnificat?

Lyrics

Magnificent!
Magnificent!

I was born, I was born to be with you
In this Space and Time,
after that, the Ever-After—I haven’t had a clue
only to break rhyme
such foolishness
leaves the heart black and blue

Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love can heal such a scar

I was born, I was born to sing for you
I didn’t have a choice but to lift you up
And sing whatever song you wanted me to
I give you back my voice
From the womb my first cry, it was a joyful noise.

Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love can heal such a scar

Justified till we die, you and I will magnify
The Magnificent
Magnificent

Only love, only love can leave such a mark
But only love, only love unites our hearts

Justified till we die, you and I will magnify
The Magnificent
Magnificent
Magnificent

________________

Bono was quoted in Rolling Stone magazine, saying “Magnificent was inspired by the Magnificat, a passage from the Gospel of Luke in the voice of the Virgin Mary that was previously set to music by Bach. There’s this theme running through the album of surrender and devotion and all the things I find really difficult.”

Caritas In Veritate

POPE ANNOUNCES HIS NEW ENCYCLICAL "CARITAS IN VERITATE"

VATICAN CITY, 29 JUN 2009 (VIS) - At midday today, the Holy Father appeared at the window of his private study overlooking St. Peter's Square to pray the Angelus with thousands of pilgrims gathered below.

On this Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, Benedict XVI addressed a special greeting to faithful of his own diocese of Rome, assuring them of his constant prayers "that Rome may uphold its Christian vocation by maintaining unadulterated its immense spiritual and cultural heritage", and "that its inhabitants may translate the beauty of the faith they have received into concrete forms of thought and action, thus offering those who ... come to this city, an atmosphere charged with humanity and evangelical values".

"Today's Solemnity also has a universal aspect", he went on. "It expresses the unity and catholicity of the Church. That is why every year on this day, the new metropolitan archbishops come to Rome to receive the pallium, symbol of their communion with Peter's Successor".

"May the shared veneration of these martyrs [Peter and Paul] be a sign of an ever greater and more deeply felt communion among Christians all over the world".

Following the Angelus prayer, Benedict XVI indicated that "the publication of my third Encyclical, entitled 'Caritas in veritate', is now imminent. Returning to the social themes contained in 'Populorum progressio' written by Servant of God Paul VI in 1967, this document - dated today 29 June, Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, Apostles - aims to delve more deeply into certain aspects of the integral development of our age, in the light of charity and of truth.

"To your prayers I entrust this latest contribution made by the Church to mankind, in her commitment to sustainable development while fully respecting human dignity and the real needs of everyone", he concluded.
______________________________
Pre-order your copy HERE.

It's Official: Obama NOT Becoming Catholic ...

MR. GIBBS: Thanks, guys.

Just one quick announcement before we get going with questions. On his upcoming trip overseas, on Friday, July 10, the President will visit with the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI to discuss a range of issues, including their shared belief in the dignity of all people. That's on the upcoming trip.

Q Does he have a church --

MR. GIBBS: I can assure you, April, we're not joining a church in Italy. (Laughter.)

Q I didn't ask that.

MR. GIBBS: I know. But you know what I did? I just fast-forwarded right to the follow-up. (Laughter.) I'm going to do that -- that's actually what I'm going to do all today. So if I don't answer your question, I will presume your follow-up and answer that instead. (Laughter.)

Q That's very efficient.

MR. GIBBS: Right, this will be like a 10-minute deal.

Q Is Mrs. Obama going to the Vatican, as well?

MR. GIBBS: She will, as far as I know, be on the entire trip, yes.

Source

Fr. Corapi in Buffalo August 15, 2009

On August 15, 2009 Fr. John Corapi will be making his first and only public speaking appearance in two years at the HSBC Arena in Buffalo, New York. Joining him will be Raymond Arroyo of EWTN and master of ceremonies Jerry Usher. This event is sponsored by The Station of the Cross, Catholic radio. Get details and register at www.fathercorapilive.com or call 888-223-6000. Seats are selling out.

The agenda is as follows:

7:00 - 8:00 am	Doors open
8:00 - 9:00 am	Fr. Corapi: Theology of the Person and Power of the Holy Spirit
9:00 - 9:45 am	Break
9:45 - 10:45 am	Fr. Corapi: The Gift Who Contains All Gifts
10:45 - 11:30 am	Break
11:30 am - 1:00 pm	Holy Mass
1:00 - 1:45 pm	Lunch
1:45 - 2:30 pm	Raymond Arroyo
2:30 - 3:15 pm	Break
3:15 - 4:15 pm	Fr. Corapi: The Holy Spirit is Given to Those Who Obey: Acts 5:32
4:15 - 5:00 pm	Break
5:00 - 6:00 pm	Fr. Corapi: The Spirit We Have Been Given is No Cowardly Spirit: 2 Timothy 1:7
6:00 pm	Benediction, Conference ends

What I Am Watching...

Love is a Choice - The Life of St. Gianna Molla (DVD)

Review to follow and then the DVD will be added to the RCIA collection at our parish.

Excuse My Absence, Please

Over the past several months, I have been helping to care for my now eighty-eight year old grandmother. Most frequently, I had the morning through afternoon shift and either one of my aunts or my mother would be my replacement later in the day. It has been a very stressful time blended with many blessings. I am blessed that I have most of my days available to help a woman who would have gladly come to my aide if it were needed - and she did too many times to count over the forty years of my life.

I have been wanting to share so many things I have learned over the last season or two spending day after day with my grandmother but haven't really had the time or strength. It started with mild confusion slowly increasing in intensity. Then came horrible waves of anxiety as she felt the world as she knew it slipping from her grasp. I would get a call in the night because she pressed the medical alert button and was unresponsive. I entered her apartment only to find her sitting in a chair wondering what I was doing out so late at night. She began to see people who were clearly not there and insisted that she could not get them to awaken. Though still living 'on her own', she was alone only during the night and was accompanied by one of her daughters or myself during the day. That changed when I arrived an hour earlier than usual because I felt something was wrong. I found her walking the hallway of the apartment building emotionally distraught, trying to find her way out. Then her daughters began taking turns spending the night with her. She was accompanied 24 hours a day and it was clear that something more drastic had to be done. Everyone was growing weary and we began looking into local nursing homes.

Certainly a nursing home is no one's dream situation but it is one of necessity for so many people suffering with health problems due to advanced age. Some family members were reluctant to face the reality which was dawning, and I don't blame them. It has progressed over the past several months and finally, this past week, she didn't know I was her granddaughter. She recognized me and assured me that she "had heard good things about" me. The worst of it was really the increased emotional swings she was experiencing. As the anxiety and tearful bouts were becoming overwhelming for all of us, the call came that they had a room available at one of the local nursing homes. They could take her in just three days.

We did not tell her that they had a placement for her as it would have only caused more anxiety for her. She had known for several weeks that we were on two different waiting lists and that it was the only option left. Thankfully, she was in support of the move. I was to be with her in the morning and afternoon of her last day in her apartment and only my mother and I were emotionally able to take her to the nursing home.

We told her about an hour before we were to take her and she accepted the news quite well. She followed us into her bedroom and we asked for her help in choosing a few outfits to take. My mother and I packed some belongings for her and assured her that we would bring the rest up later for her. They had arranged for her to have a roommate familiar to her which helped to sweeten the bitter pill she had to swallow; the cross she knew she must carry as there was no alternative. Her eighty-eighth birthday had been the previous day so we packed a booklet of family pictures I had given her along with the many cards and boxes of chocolates she received. She left her apartment without hesitation as we took the long walk to the waiting car. I drove and she asked why I was going down the street I chose; she knew where she was going and also knew that we were not on the street the nursing home is located. I knew Jesus was with us that day because I had asked Him to please help us get through the day. None of us could get through it alone.

Not a week has passed since we moved my dear grandmother and there have been some big challenges for each of us in the family. I took a Crucifix up to her yesterday and hung it on the wall after letting her look it over. She was so appreciative. We spent a couple of hours with her, some of it in the present; some of it in an obscure world that doesn't exist; the rest in the past. We left as dinner time was approaching for her and she was sure to let us know that the food was really quite good. "Just like something you'd have at home," she said. She was sitting in her new recliner and wanted to catch a nap before they came to get her for dinner. I gave her a hug and kiss and promised to see her again real soon. She had a pretty good day yesterday, considering. +Deo gratias+

Book Review: 'Thank God Ahead of Time: The Life and Spirituality of Solanus Casey'

While trying to choose a book to order nearly a month ago, I kept going over and over the list of possibilities. One book, Thank God Ahead of Time: The Life and Spirituality of Solanus Casey continued to beckon my attention. Sadly, I had never heard of the man before and I sought my son's input. Though he is only in fifth grade at his Catholic grade school, he knew a great deal about Fr. Solanus Casey and was quite shocked that I did not. I placed the order and anxiously awaited its arrival in our mailbox.

It has been quite some time since I have been able to read a good book of any substance. In addition to finishing up the Mystagogy portion of our RCIA program, I am also helping to care for my elderly grandmother who is struggling with dementia. I have been trying to keep up with my Bible study group assignments but even that has had to be put aside for now. Determined to read the book, I carried it with me wherever I went, hoping that I could grab a scant few minutes of reading time. I am glad I did.

Though the book was entirely about Fr. Solanus Casey, the person I learned the most about was myself. Having spoken with Bible study groups and our RCIA candidates year after year about holiness, I have never been able to truly grasp the possibility of it for myself. It sounds lovely and very righteous to say that we must die to ourselves, yet I have scarcely been able to catch a whisper of the true meaning of such wonderful words. I have at times thought about how much easier it must be for those who are called to the religious life, since they can more fully commit their full lives to God without the daily responsibilities of family life. Picturing myself behind a wooden screen, closed off from the world and spending all of my days with Jesus has brought me much joy on occasion. That is how a person of this world may try to catch a glimpse of how one can become holy, yet we are not called to a mere glimpse.

Bernard (Barney) Casey, Jr. was born sixth of sixteen children and was raised in a very devout, modest home in the rural Midwest United States. Hearing the call to the ordained Priesthood, Barney attended seminary for a time. He did not earn good marks and gave up on the idea of being a diocesan priest – or perhaps the diocesan priesthood gave up on him. After reluctantly contacting a Capuchin ‘monastery’ in Michigan, he soon joined their order believing that the Blessed Mother sent him there. That the Capuchins spoke primarily German was another obstacle placed before Frater Solanus (upon entering the novitiate, he was named after St. Francis Solanus). Enrolled in the Capuchin seminary, Frater Solanus once again struggled with his studies. After years of hard work and grappling with German and Latin, it was decided that Frater Solanus would be ordained, but not with full rights of the priesthood. He would be forbidden to hear confessions for life because his superiors feared he did not have a good enough understanding of the Germanic tongue.

How would Fr. Solanus Casey deal with being assigned as Porter in their community and unable to hear confessions? He responded with total submission and thanksgiving. He was the perfect image of someone dying to himself and accepting completely whatever God or his superiors asked of him. Not only did he accept it; he thanked God for it. When his order had a triennial chapter meeting and it was decided that Fr. Solanus would be moved to another house within the order, he quietly packed his bags and moved the very same day.

Fr. Solanus became quickly known as 'the holy priest' by all in the locations where he served. People of all backgrounds - Jews, atheists, Protestants, Catholics - would line up outside of the rectory office to see him. His kindness and willingness to listen to anyone, any time they showed up at his door, sometimes even making him miss a meal -- did not go unnoticed. Word began to spread about healings taking place after people met with Fr. Solanus. People would go to him with various problems ranging from a relative who had strayed from the Church or someone with a grave illness, to a couple whose marriage was in trouble. One of his superiors told Fr. Solanus to begin documenting his visitors and the disposition of their troubles. What was created was a long list of miracles and prophesies fulfilled, which Fr. Solanus would have assured anyone that it was the work of God alone. Each person who sought out Fr. Solanus was told that they must do something - some good work - so that their prayer would be answered. For some, it would be to give alms. For many, they were to read a book The Mystical City of God - a book which made an enormous impact upon Fr. Solanus. Yet others were told to attend Mass more often or enroll their loved one in the Seraphic Mass Association, or SMA. This was all part of thanking God for prayers answered - before He even answered them.

There are many marvelous accounts shared from letters and interviews throughout the book which help the reader gain great insight into the many good deeds of Fr. Solanus Casey. In his later years, Fr. Solanus had become quite well known. He had a skin problem which, when it flared up, would leave nothing but raw tissue exposed on both legs and others portions of his body as well. He would be admitted to the hospital where they would try to hide his location to the public because visitors would appear at his bedside seeking his prayers and counsel. Occasionally, a person would sneak in and though in physical agony, he would quietly and lovingly minister to their needs. It is said by all accounts that he never once complained, and when asked about where his pain was, he would call out in reply "all over, thanks be to God!"

I do not recall another book which touched me at the end so deeply that I wept. I wept not because the holy Priest died in the end, but because of how he died. He fully embraced the cross without reservation and with great joy. I'll spare you the details so that you too may be as touched as I was while reading the book. Oh, how I long to set aside my own sinfulness and fully abide in Jesus! Since finishing this book only a few days ago, I have found myself quoting something that Fr. Solanus Casey said or did on a daily basis. 'Offering it up' has taken on an entirely new meaning for me. It is no longer about merely suffering silently, but accepting whatever comes to me with joy and a renewed sense of hope in the many blessings God sends to us. As Fr. Solanus would say, “Deo gratias!”

Venerable Solanus Casey, pray for us!

Thank God Ahead of Time: The Life and Spirituality of Solanus Casey was written by Michael H. Crosby, O.F.M. CAP, External Collaborator to the Relator for the cause of canonization of Capuchin Father Solanus Casey.

Read about the cause for canonization of Venerable Solanus Casey HERE.

This book and others about Venerable Solanus Casey may be purchased at Catholic Company.

Anglican 'Priest' is 'Swimming the Tiber' - Deo Gratias!

Please view the entire announcement on Jeffrey Steel's blog HERE.

"In my heart, I knew that I had grown to love and believe the Catholic faith as it was taught in the Catholic Catechism. On my final day in Rome on 17 April 2009 I went to the tomb of S. Peter and knelt and prayed for quite some time. I knew in my heart I was a Catholic and asked what it was that was keeping me from converting. All sorts of fears ran through my head and I felt very restless there and at times just knelt quietly asking S. Peter to pray for me because I didn’t know how or the way to go. At the end of this time I went over and knelt at JPII's tomb and asked him to please pray for me as I was scared to make a journey like this with a wife and six children not knowing how God would provide for us.

After praying with JPII, I got up and went to S. Peter’s tomb again and there with conviction of heart signed the Roman Catholic Catechism stating ‘This is the Faith of the Church and this is my Faith’, and signed my name with the day's date. Before leaving the Basilica I walked over to the statue of S. Peter with the key in his hand, rubbed his foot, and said, ‘I am going out to find the way, open the door and make this happen and pray for me as I make this journey.’"

New York State Catholics: Act Now to Stop the Markey Bill!

Act Now to Stop the Markey Bill!

Take Action Here

The New York State Assembly is scheduled to vote within the next several days on a bill that would suspend for one year the statute of limitations for civil lawsuits related to child sexual abuse. The bill would allow for lawsuits against the Catholic Church and other institutions dating back decades. It has now been amended to include public institutions as well. While this makes the application of the bill fairer, it is no less detrimental to the Church and will now also financially devastate public school districts and other public institutions.

The bill currently exists in two very similar forms. In either case, it would allow for new lawsuits against public school districts, cities, towns and municipalities, churches, not-for-profits and businesses for claims going back several decades. Such claims can be impossible to defend because the accused are often long dead, as are anyone who may have been in a supervisory capacity. As a result, it would encourage the filing of false claims against teachers, doctors, clergy and others from long ago.

Please contact your Assembly member immediately by sending the the prewritten message HERE and tell him or her to vote NO on A.8739 or A.2596 (as amended), both sponsored by Margaret Markey. The message is fully editable except for the required text in the first paragraph. If the link does not work, just go to www.nyscatholic.org and click Take Action Now.

Edited to add: 'Hat tip' to the Diocese of Buffalo

Following is a statement from Richard E. Barnes, executive director of the New York State Catholic Conference, regarding the amendments to a bill sponsored by Assembly Member Margaret Markey (D-Maspeth) that would suspend the civil statute of limitations for claims related to child sexual abuse in New York State :

“After several years of denying the fact that her bill would exempt public institutions, Mrs. Markey has now acknowledged that her original bill did just that. However, even this amended bill remains terrible public policy for the state.

“For several years, the Catholic Conference has opposed Mrs. Markey’s bill for several reasons, namely that statutes of limitation exist in law for a good reason and that it is impossible to defend decades-old claims; that the bill could seriously impact the ability of the Catholic Church and other not-for-profits to provide health care, social services and education programs to the citizens of the state; and, finally, that because the bill only applied to private institutions and not to public institutions where the majority of non-familial abuse occurs, it is inherently unfair.

“In our opposition, we have been very clear that a legitimate debate on the merits of this bill could not occur until all institutions, including public, were included. The Assemblywoman has now announced her intention to do just that. This amended proposal will therefore impact not only the Catholic Church and non-profit sector but also public school districts, public health care institutions, state agencies, counties, cities and towns, as well as their insurers.

“Mrs. Markey and her supporters have stated that Catholic clergy account for only 2 percent of sexual abuse cases. In California , a “window” bill aimed at the Church resulted in some $1.3 billion in settlements from Catholic entities. It is therefore likely that Mrs. Markey’s bill could easily result in hundreds of billions of dollars in settlements against all entities, public and private, in every corner of our state. Clearly, such staggering numbers make this legislation a matter of grave consequence and intense public interest.”