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THE TRIB TIMES WILL RETURN AFTER A BRIEF SUMMER RECESS, GOD WILLING (James 4:15).

(1Pe 1:15-16) But according to him that hath called you, who is holy, be you also in all manner of conversation holy: Because it is written: You shall be holy, for I am holy.

LINK: The Call to Holiness

IN THE NEWS: No profession has monopoly on holiness, says bishop

FROM THE MAILBAG 
VIA Nadine: Reaching holiness by abandoning one's Soul to God 
From Abandonment to Divine Providence, by Jean-Pierre de Caussade, Doubleday, 1966

"In reality, holiness consists of one thing only: complete loyalty to God's will."

God considers not so much what we suffer as how we suffer. To suffer much, yet badly, is to suffer like reprobates. To suffer much, even bravely, but for a wicked cause, is to suffer as a martyr of the devil. To suffer much or little for the sake of God is to suffer like saints.

"If it be right to say that we can choose our crosses, this is particularly true of the little and obscure ones as compared with the huge, conspicuous ones,for proud human nature would likely ask and seek for the huge, conspicuous crosses even to the point of preferring them and embracing them. But to choose small, unnoticeable crosses and to carry them cheerfully requires the power of a special grace and unshakable fidelity to God. Do then as the storekeeper does with his merchandise: make a profit on every article; suffer not the loss of the tiniest fragment of the true Cross. It may be only the sting of a fly or the point of a pin that annoys you, it may be the little restlessness of soul, a slight physical weakness, a light pain in your limbs. Make a profit on every article as the grocer does, and you will soon become wealthy in God, as the grocer does in money, by adding penny to penny in his till. When you meet with the least contradiction, simply say: 'Blessed be God! My God I thank you.' 

Then treasure up in the till of God's memory the cross which has just given you profit. Think no more of it, except to say: 'Many thanks!' or, 'Be merciful!'

-St. Louis De Montfort

June 21, 2007 

Anointing of the Sick
Obtaining First Class Relics (includes information on how to obtain a second class relic of a cassock worn by Pope John Paul II)

FROM THE MAILBAG
Reflection by Father Ted – June 19, 2007

My dearest Lord Jesus, during this past week You have reminded me of the reality of death. Not only did my brother die last Wednesday morning, but I have been involved with several parlor services and have had to deal with several people who have experienced the death of a loved one recently.

I was able to visit my brother and various members of his family two weeks ago. He was dying then, but still alert enough to communicate a little.

While with him I had the privilege to anoint him and also to offer to him the apostolic blessing and to pray the prayers for the dying.

Since then I prayed for a holy death for him and for a merciful judgment.

You allowed him to die of the great feast of Saint Anthony of Padua – which is also the day when Your Mother appeared to the children of Fatima for the second time.

Thank You, Jesus.

I do believe that he received from You a most merciful judgment.

Now it is up to me and to others to pray for him while he is being purified in Purgatory.

To me this is one of the great signs of Your Mercy.

For You allow us to help our deceased brothers and sisters who need purification before they can experience the tremendous love of Your Presence in heaven which is our ultimate home.

Since his death You have allowed me to help my brother by the offering of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for him on five different occasions.

I know that this prayer has benefited him.

How many more prayers does he need, I do not know.

But through the offering of the Mass for him, he has experienced Your tremendous love and mercy.

During my priesthood You have taught me how valuable the Mass is for the healing of a deceased person.

But You have also taught me how valuable the Mass is for the healing of those who are living.

The graces that come from the offering of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for the living are incredible.

Not only do You desire us to offer Masses and to pray for our deceased friends and relatives, You desire us to offer Masses and to pray for our friends, relatives, and even enemies who have not yet died.

Thank You Jesus, for allowing me to offer Masses for the Holy Souls in Purgatory.

And thank You Jesus, for allowing me to offer Masses for the living.

The Desert Fathers: sayings of the Early Christian Monks: Humility

32. Poemen said, 'We ought always to be absorbing humility and the fear of God, as our nostrils breathe air in and out.'

June 20, 2007 

(John 17:20-22) And not for them only do I pray, but for them also who through their word shall believe in me. That they all may be one, as thou, Father, in me, and I in thee; that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou hast given me, I have given to them: that, they may be one, as we also are one.

CATHOLICS, ORTHODOX MUST JOINTLY PROTECT CHRISTIAN VALUES

The Vatican believes that contemporary challenges compel the Orthodox and Catholic churches to seek rapprochement in order to jointly protect Christian values.

"The Christian memory of Europe bears the wound of the split between the East and the West, as well as the Reformation. However, today we are rediscovering the unity of our common spiritual roots," President of the Pontifical Council for Culture Cardinal Paul Poupard said at the international conference "Christianity, Culture and Moral Values" on Tuesday in Moscow.

The cardinal is certain that "we are capable of aligning our efforts and to jointly propose responses to present day challenges to Europe," while all Christians have common concerns about the future of European society, which is living through a surge in material values, religious dissent and cultural decadence.

These negative events have been developing once again, including thanks to mass media, "which selfishly strives for its own interests at the expense of humanistic interests," the cardinal said.

MORE:  The Vatican sees the Orthodox church as a logical partner in its efforts to push its conservative agenda on bioethical, social and moral issues, including opposition to embryonic stem cell research, abortion, euthanasia and same-sex marriage.

Pope Benedict and Archbishop Chrysostomos II of Cyprus signed a joint statement indicating such collaboration was desired. The statement said the two "reflected on a new opportunity that is opening up for more intense contacts and more concrete collaboration between our Churches."

"We need to enliven the Christian roots of Europe," they said. "Catholics and Orthodox in Europe are called to offer renewed common witness on ethical values," the two men declared.

They expressed "serious worry" about bioethical issues, saying: "There is in fact the risk that certain techniques applied to genetics .... will end up harming the dignity of man," they said. The statement also expressed concern that humankind, by "putting itself at the center of the universe," endangers the environment.

RELATED HEADLINES

Catholic, Orthodox churches could be united
Vatican cardinal says pope and Russian Orthodox patriarch could meet within a year
Vatican has no plans to convert Russia to Catholicism

June 19, 2007 

(Mat 5:9-10) Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

POPE URGES END TO MIDEAST WARS, TERROR

Pope Benedict made one of his strongest peace appeals on Sunday, calling for an end to all wars and saying the people of the Middle East have had enough of "the horrors of combat, terrorism and blind violence."

The Pope made his appeal at the birthplace of Saint Francis of Assisi, the medieval playboy who abandoned a life of luxury to embrace poverty, peacemaking and preaching.

"I consider it my duty to launch from here a pressing and heartfelt appeal for a stop to all armed conflicts that bloody the earth," he said after celebrating an outdoor mass in front of the pink and white stone basilica where the saint is buried.

"May weapons be silenced and may hate give way to love everywhere. May offence give way to forgiveness and discord to unity," he said at the mid-point of a day-long visit to one of Christianity's most visited and venerated places.

"Our thoughts turn in a particular way to the Holy Land, so loved by Francis, to Iraq, Lebanon and the whole Middle East," Benedict said.

"The populations of those countries have known for too long the horrors of combat, of terrorism, of blind violence, of the illusion that force can resolve conflicts, of the refusal to listen to the reasons of other people and grant them justice," he said.

RELATED: Roman Catholic school, convent desecrated, looted in Gaza Strip during last week's violence

IRAQI CHRISTIANS SUFFER BIGGEST PERSECUTION OF OUR TIME

While Iraq is constantly in world news reports the plight of Iraqi Christians goes mostly unnoticed. According to the Society for Threatened People in Goettingen, Germany, Iraq currently experiences the biggest persecution of Christians of our time.

In fear of murders, bomb-attacks, kidnappings, and torture Chaldo-Assyrian Christians have been fleeing the country by the thousands.

Approximately 75 percent of the 650,000 Christians in Iraq have been driven from their homes. They have fled mainly to neighboring Syria or Lebanon.

A Christian community with a history of 2,000 years is in danger of becoming extinct, according to the human rights organization.

According to some estimates, Chaldean Christians in Iraq numbered about 1.5 million in the year 2000 but now account for fewer than 500,000 Iraqis. Syrian Catholics inside Iraq currently number about 80,000 according to Archbishop Jules Mikhael Al-Jamil, the Rome representative of the Syrian Catholic Church, but their numbers are diminishing every day.

MORE: Iraqi Vicar Denounces Persecution of Christians

June 16, 2007 

THE TRIB TIMES WILL RETURN NEXT WEEK, GOD WILLING (James 4:15).

RECENT FATHER CORAPI EXCERPTS: "Poor leadership is the kiss of death,'' said Corapi, a wealthy CEO who became an ordained priest after struggling with drug addiction and homelessness. Leading by example, not by words alone, being willing to do first what you ask others to do, and standing your ground even in the face of death are attributes of real leadership, he said. 

"Without a moral spinal column, you cannot stand for anything. Without it, you will fall for everything,'' Corapi said. "Being a Catholic is not easy.'' 

Sacrifice. It's a word Corapi mentioned in his speech. It's the "the essence of Christianity,'' Corapi told the assemblage. "No pain, no gain. No cross, no crown.''

FRUIT OF FATHER CORAPI'S PREACHING: It wasn't until his freshman year of college when Andrew received God's grace to accept the sacrifice of celibacy when he listened to a tape of Father John Corapi's conversion story. "Through Father's talk," Andrew explains, "I realized that it was only in following my vocation that I would be truly happy. Marriage is a tremendous gift: a wife and children. For those called to the priesthood, the priesthood is an even greater gift that will bring even greater happiness!"

He recognized celibacy as a gift, and that, in a way, he would be trading in the treasure of wife and children for an even greater treasure: "giving myself to the spotless Bride of Christ and having countless spiritual children!"

FROM THE MAILBAG
VIA "[email protected]": For those with a broadband connection, Fr. John Corapi's teaching sessions are presented daily on Relevant Radio at 11 AM Eastern.

For anyone who has ever wondered if the hardened heart of a loved one might be converted, familiarizing yourself with his conversion story will be a source of great encouragement.

Since his reversion, Fr. Corapi has received the supernatural gift of the charism for teaching. If you have not heard of him previously, his programs are broadcast on Saturday nights at 10PM and Sunday night at 8 PM (Eastern) on EWTN, and at other times on EWTN radio.

Here are some links for your reference:

EWTN streaming media for Windows Media Player:
http://play.rbn.com/play.asx?url=ewtn/g2ewtn/wmlive/wmtvssen.asf&proto=mms?mswmext=.asx 

EWTN TV Schedule: http://www.ewtn.com/tv/schedule_index.asp 

Relevant Radio:
http://relevantradio-wm.streamguys.us/relevantradio/Listener%20Supported%20Relevant%20Radio%C2%AE 

Home page www.relevantradio.com 

EWTN Radio:
http://play.rbn.com/play.asx?url=ewtn/g2ewtn/wmlive/wmradioen.asf&proto=mms?mswmext=.asx 

EWTN Radio Schedule http://www.ewtn.com/radio/schedule.htm 

The Desert Fathers: sayings of the Early Christian Monks: Humility

22. He also said, 'Humility and the fear of God surpass all the other virtues.' 'The gateway is humility: our predecessors suffered much and therefore entered heaven joyfully.'

MIDEAST IN CRISIS

EXCERPT- Pope John Paul II Focuses on the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Sunday, June 24, 2002,:

"Today I would like to entrust in a special way to the merciful heart of Jesus all those who live in the Holy Land: Jews, Christians and Muslims. That Heart that, burdened with insult, never nourished sentiments of hatred and vengeance, but asked for forgiveness for his executioners, that Heart shows the only way to emerge from the spiral of violence: the way of pacification of spirits, of reciprocal understanding and reconciliation".

PRESIDENT MAHMOUD ABBAS DISSOLVES PALESTINIAN GOVERNMENT

MORE MIDEAST VIOLENCE IN THE HEADINES

Six Sunni Mosques Attacked in Wake of Samarra Bombing in Iraq
Lebanese mourn anti-Syrian legislator
Mideast 'may see full-scale war'

LINK: PRAYERS IN TIME OF WAR

PRAYER FOR MILITARY CHAPLAINS: O God, Who hast appointed Thine only-begotten Son to be the eternal High Priest for the glory of Thy Majesty and the salvation of mankind; grant that they whom He hath chosen to be His chaplains and the stewards of His mysteries, maybe found faithful in the fulfilment of the ministry which they have received.

Grant, O Holy and Mighty Trinity, that they may never lose that purity of heart with which they were ordained, though all around them lie terrors and the uncertainty of war. Give them an abundance of wise counsel, fortitude, temperance and justice and supernatural charity. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

ANSWER TO A PRAYER: PRIEST PREPARES FOR MILITARY DUTY

For more than 20 years, the Rev. David Daigle has wanted to serve God and country.

He could get his wish by the end of the year, when the Stamford priest is expected to be deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan as a Navy chaplain.

Advertisement "I'm ready to go," said Daigle, a parochial vicar at St. Leo's Church who was previously at St. Mary parish in Greenwich. "I'm prepared to do what's necessary to fulfill my role as a chaplain."

But first Daigle must complete training at the Navy Chaplains School in Newport, R.I., which begins in September, when he turns 42. By then, Daigle is expected to have his application approved by the Navy and be commissioned as a lieutenant, junior grade.

Daigle's deployment would be a boost to the Chaplain Corps, which has a severe shortage of Catholic priests serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Of the 343 chaplains in the war zone, only 34 are Catholic priests. The shortage is more pronounced in the Navy Chaplain Corps, which also serves the Marine Corps and the Coast Guard. Ten of the 61 Navy chaplains are Catholic priests.

The Rev. Frank Foley, a Navy chaplain recruiter, said that, over the past three years, about 30 Catholic priests have left the Navy Chaplain Corps to retire or return to their religious communities. Two, including Daigle, have signed up. Foley said he expects to lose another 12 this year without taking in more.

It is critical for more Catholic chaplains to be sent to war zones, Foley said.

"For Catholics, the only one who can provide for their spiritual needs - Holy Communion, absolution, last rites - is a Catholic priest," he said. "And you have young men and women every day who are in danger of losing their limbs or their lives. They want, many times, to see a Catholic priest."

Some, he said, die without receiving sacraments.

"It's a tragic reality," he said. "There is no alternative."

Daigle contacted Foley in January to say he was interested in becoming a Navy chaplain. Foley said Daigle is "an answer to a prayer."

"Thank God he's a generous, relatively young, healthy priest willing to share his vocation, his calling to young heroes in uniform," he said.

RELATED

A Chicago priest tends his flock in war-torn Iraq
Chaplain shortage strains military ministry

PATRON SAINT OF MILITARY CHAPLAINS: JOHN of Capistrano

June 13, 2007 

POPE DENOUNCES 'ABOMINABLE' KIDNAPPERS OF PEOPLE, PRIESTS WORLDWIDE

Pope Benedict XVI condemned the "abominable" kidnapping of priests and other people around the world on Sunday and demanded the kidnappers free their hostages.

Benedict made the appeal hours after gunmen abducted an Italian Roman Catholic priest, the Rev. Giancarlo Bossi, in the southern Philippines as he was heading to a remote village to celebrate Mass. On Wednesday, a Chaldean Catholic priest and five youths were kidnapped while visiting a seminary in Baghdad.

Benedict directed his appeal at kidnappers around the globe, although he mentioned those in Colombia in particular.

"Unfortunately, I receive many requests to intervene on behalf of people, among them Catholic priests, held as hostage for various reasons in various parts of the world," Benedict said during his traditional Sunday blessing.

Speaking from his studio window overlooking St. Peter's Square, the pontiff said he was praying for all those who were being held hostage.

"I direct my appeal to the authors of these abominable acts, so that they realize the wrong they have done and quickly return their prisoners to their loved ones," Benedict said.

UPDATE: Search continues for kidnapped Catholic priest Fr. Bossi

The Desert Fathers: sayings of the Early Christian Monks: Humility

June 8, 2007 

THE TRIB TIMES WILL RETURN NEXT WEEK, GOD WILLING (James 4:15).

(Luke 18:8) I say to you that he will quickly revenge them. But yet the Son of man, when he cometh, shall he find, think you, faith on earth?

CATHOLIC APOLOGETICS by Ron Smith

CHRISTIANITY ALIVE BUT 'CONFUSED AND CONFLICTED'

The Rev. Richard John Neuhaus has one word for the state of U.S. Catholic religious education. "Dismal."

"And I think most people who have thought about this carefully would agree that the last generation or two (of Catholics) has been largely uncatechized," said the priest who will be a primary speaker at the Catholic Diocese of Peoria's 2007 Summer Institute to be held June 15-16.

Whether Christians' efforts to influence the culture are bearing fruit is hard to tell right now, he said.

"If you look at our historical moment within the larger context of the centuries, the degree of Christian fidelity and its influence on its surround has varied radically from generation to generation," Neuhaus said. "But certainly in the United States, Christian faith and devotion is vibrantly alive."

He added, though, that it's also "confused and conflicted."

Asked whether Christianity is having an influence on American culture, Neuhaus pointed out that the United States is a "culture composed of many cultures, some would say subcultures."

"We have no reason to despair, and we certainly have not the right to despair," the priest said. "Jesus said we're called to be light in the darkness and the salt of the Earth. Sometimes that light and that salt seem to be giving the primary definition to the world around us and sometimes they seem to be very much under siege. At any time in history, the church is always failing and succeeding, rising and dying at the same time.

"Authentic, faithful, vibrant, courageous Christian witness - that will always be rare in the history of the world," he said.

What also has been rare in English-speaking culture over the past few decades has been a sound Catholic catechetical effort, according to Neuhaus.

"A calamitous abandonment of inculcating basic knowledge of the Catholic faith and practice" occurred after Vatican II, he said.

"I think today there is an increasingly almost unanimous recognition of this and we're involved in an enormous project of rebuilding."

RELATED: Closing signals 'final nail' for Catholic tradition of the preparatory seminary

OPINION: Tradition still has the power to awe

June 6, 2007 

A Michigan law enacted after a petition drive in 2004 to ban some late-term abortions was declared unconstitutional Monday by the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, the latest in a series of confusing court decisions on the issue.

Although intended to prohibit the procedure commonly called partial-birth abortion by its foes, the Michigan law is more sweeping than a ban passed by Congress and upheld in April by the U.S. Supreme Court, the appeals court ruled.

The appeals court found that Michigan's Legal Birth Definition Act could apply to abortions using other methods earlier in pregnancy and places an undue burden on a woman's right to choose an abortion.

The appeals panel affirmed a federal judge's opinion. The three-judge panel said the Michigan Legislature would have been virtually guaranteed a favorable result on appeal, had it copied an Ohio law on partial-birth abortions that the 6th Circuit has upheld.

It instead opted to use language that pushed almost every boundary that the Supreme Court has imposed for these types of laws, the judges said. Monday's ruling marked the third time a Michigan law intended to ban such abortions has been struck down before it could take effect.

Michigan Catholic Conference Statement Regarding U.S. Sixth Circuit Court's Partial-Birth Abortion Ruling

"Today's ruling, which protects an ideology that has imposed upon our state and nation one of the must inhumane, sadistic and brutal acts of aggression that history will witness, is disappointing not only for women but also for the protection of innocent human life. Those who share a common interest in banning the unjust practice of partial-birth abortion will continue to work diligently until Michigan law reflects the will of the people."

CATHOLIC CHURCH AND ABORTION IN THE NEWS

The Pope on Abortion, Politicians, and Communion By George Weigel
U.S. Catholic Bishop criticizes Giuliani for his statements on abortion
Scottish Cardinal attacks abortion 'massacres'

Father Frank Pavone of the Priests for Life: ‘A Dozen Reasons Life Is Winning’

Archbishop Raymond L. Burke: "For a bishop or any pastor to exclude someone from Communion is always a source of great sorrow....What would be profoundly more sorrowful would be the failure of a bishop to call a soul to conversion, the failure to protect the flock from scandal and the failure to safeguard the worthy reception of Communion."

The Desert Fathers: sayings of the Early Christian Monks: Humility

15. Evagrius said, 'To go against self is the beginning of salvation.'

June 5, 2007 

HEADLINES

Iran president sees "countdown" to Israel's end
Assad advocates diplomatic talks, yet evidence shows he is preparing for war
Catholic priest shot dead in Iraq

FROM THE MAILBAG
VIA Jim Bramlett: Jesus said, "It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones" (Luke 17:2).
 
From IsraelNationalNews.com: Palestinian Authority kindergarten children demonstrated in a graduation ceremony how well they had learned their lessons this year.

A video clip of the ceremony, televised on Hamas' Al-Aksa TV, was distributed Friday by the Middle East Media Research Institute.

The little boys in the video march in formation and then drop to the floor, crawl on their bellies and vow to become terrorists when they grow up.

In the last minute of the clip, the boys in the televised ceremony shout "Allah Hu Akbar!" (Allah is great!).

"Who is your role model?" they are asked. "The Prophet," they chant.

"What is your path?" demands the leader. "Jihad!" they cry, in their little camouflage uniforms and black masks, brandishing toy guns and waving green Hamas flags.

"What is your most lofty aspiration?

"Death for the sake of Allah!"

The kindergarten is run by the same group that spawned the Hamas terrorist organization  -- the Islamic Association in Gaza.
______________________________

The Desert Fathers: sayings of the Early Christian Monks: Humility

6. They said of Arsenius that while he was in the Emperor's palace he was the best-dressed person there and while he was leading the life of a monk, no one was clothed in worse rags.'

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