Fr Z at WDTPRS has sent a call to take action about those who are attacking the Church in Denver. The issue is whether the Church has the right to choose disallow into her schools those whose parents take a public stand against Church teaching.
Read what Fr. Z has to say at the link below, and then follow up with his action items.
ACTION ITEMS
1. Right now… now… stop and pray the St. Michael Prayer for Fr. Breslin and Archbp. Chaput.
2. Immediately after pray the Memorare for the conversion of the couple of that child.
3. VOTE in that poll from the denverpost.com .
4. Then vote in the second poll farther down on the right side.
Clarification, the parish preschool in dispute is in Boulder Colorado, which is in the Archdiocese of Denver.
Rolled up to my neighborhood Catholic pharmacy this week only to be greeted with this ominous sign.
“Divine Mercy Care, the parent organization of the DMC Pharmacy announces that the DMC Pharmacy will close permanently effective 6:00 p.m. March 4, 2010 due to financial difficulties.”
So Divine Mercy Care and Tepeyac will continue to exist and care for OB/GYN needs, but the only 1-of-7 pro-life pharmacies in the U.S. will close permanently. I have become personally acquainted with Robert Semler and his wife, Pam over DMC Pharmacy’s too-short run. They are top-notch caring people and their service to our community will be sorely missed — by me and my family in the immediate future.
The larger Catholic and pro-life community will miss them as well, but not until much later (perhaps when all their real choices have dried up). I believe that DMC Pharmacy did not succeed at this time because people — and specifically Catholics — failed to care.
A number of people were excited at the inception of the pharmacy and gave time, talent, and treasure. However, the ordinary pew-sitter failed to patronize the store, failed to transfer their prescriptions, failed to see the extra-ordinary chance at building a sustained Catholic culture and presence in the shadow of our nation’s capital.
With who-knows-what on the verge of passing in the health care reform legislation (mandatory subsidization of abortion, absence of conscience clauses, government “management” of costs and procedures) this is particularly bitter.
Surely the recession played a part, even though the prices were very competitive. But the “it’s too far” or “not convenient enough” or “that’s nice, but” excuses are the real culprits. The business was growing, but not fast enough to make it. Dr. John Bruchalski said in his letter
Recently, our seven-year old daughter Teresa — our firstborn child — learned to knit.
In itself, this is really no big deal, I suppose, given that it’s hardly unheard of for a child to know how to knit. But for me, as her dad, the thing that struck me about her newfound ability is that this is the first time I can recall that one of our children has acquired a skill that I don’t have.
From the time our kids are very young, we teach them to crawl, walk, talk, tie their shoes, read, etc., but these are all things that we ourselves know how to do. And still, to be sure, when our children have developed (or will develop) any of these basic skills, as their dad it has brought me great joy to behold each of these milestones, and will continue to do so.
But now that our children are beginning to learn skills that I myself don’t have, it has brought me even greater joy, and it has reminded me of the importance of our job as parents to instill in them a desire to discover and nurture their own God-given talents.
You knew it was coming. You hoped it wasn’t, but in a society as debauched as ours, it is hardly surprising.
[ABCNews] Angie Jackson says nothing is off-limits on Twitter, not even the details of her abortion [to] chronicle her experience taking RU-486, commonly known as the abortion pill, in an attempt to “demystify” abortion for other women.
Already the mother of a 4-year-old son with special needs, Jackson, who lives in Tampa, Fla., with her boyfriend, said that after a difficult and life-threatening first pregnancy her doctors advised her to not get pregnant again.
“I had made a decision when my son was born to try to not get pregnant again, and if that failed I’d planned that I would get an abortion if I needed one,” Jackson said.
“It’s not that bad. It’s not killing a child.” she says in her YouTube post.
I’m not sure what is mystifying about the abortion drug, unless it’s the idea that it’s either safe, painless, or doesn’t kill a child. One has to be willfully ignorant to gloss over the basic science and purpose of RU-486.
Jackson adds, “I’m not trying to ignite a culture war, I’m just offering one person’s personal experience and true story.”
Here is where the story starts to unravel. Jackson’s Twitter handle is “AntiTheistAngie” — not atheist, anti-theist. She signs off her posts, “Hope everyone has a Godless day”. People who are “not trying to ignite a culture war” don’t throw grenades. I don’t believe in little green men, but I don’t spend much time and energy trying to debunk those who do.
How does one know if he (or she, and yes – there are female addicts) has a problem? Well, lets start with a very good definition from Sexaholic’s Anonymous, which happens to be the 12-Step program I am achieving sobriety in.
“We can only speak for ourselves. The specialized nature of Sexaholics Anonymous can best be understood in terms of what we call the sexaholic. The sexaholic has taken himself or herself out of the whole context of what is right or wrong. He or she has lost control, no longer has the power of choice, and is not free to stop. Lust has become an addiction. Our situation is like that of the alcoholic who can no longer tolerate alcohol and must stop drinking altogether but is hooked and cannot stop. So it is with the sexaholic, or sex drunk, who can no longer tolerate lust but cannot stop.
Thus, for the sexaholic, any form of sex with one’s self or with partners other than the spouse is progressively addictive and destructive. We also see that lust is the driving force behind our sexual acting out, and true sobriety includes progressive victory over lust. These conclusions were forced upon us in the crucible of our experiences and recovery; we have no other options.”
Here is the catch, family members, friends, and spouses can see these characteristics (bold) in a addict way before the addict can. The addict, for the most part, can not. The key phrases bolded above our beyond what the porn addict can see while in the throws of the addiction. What makes an addict move forward, of his own accord, is usually exhaustion and pain. If he is deep in his or her addiction, and is lucky, he may start to see he has lost control, no longer
We pray the Stations of the Cross on Fridays. We light a candle for each station and turn out all the lights. The kids take turns blowing out a candle for each station prayed. For the last station the last candle is blown out and it signfies Jesus’ death. There is complete silence and the kids quietly go to bed.
To help with the praying of the stations, each child has their own shoebox wrapped in purple paper with the following items (a symbol for each station)
1st station: rope (Jesus condemned to death)
2nd station: small wooden cross
3rd station: band aid (Jesus falls 1st time)
4th station: plastic rosary (Jesus meets Mary)
5th station: saint card of Simon helping Jesus (I print these)
6th station: small piece of fabric w/ iron on image of Jesus’ face
7th station: band aid (falls 2nd time)
8th station: kleenex tissue (women crying)
9th station: band aid (falls 3rd time)
10th station: small piece of purple felt (clothes stripped)
11th station: VERY large galvanized nail about 6 inches long (Home depot for $.20)
12th station: crucufix (Catholic store, plastic about $.50)
13th station: holy card of Michaelangelo’s Pieta
14th station: stone (big one from backyard or park)
I also include Fr. Lovasik’s Station of the cross book in their Boxes. My girls made theirs about 4 years ago. Last week I had moms come over and they all brought some of the items and we made boxes for our kids. I made two more for my son and 3 yo dd.
This tradition is one of the simplest. I keep the boxes and only bring them down for prayer time. They LOVE praying the stations because they get to rummage through their boxes. Free boxes available at
I happened upon this passage in Magnificat for the 2/18/10 readings. It was written by St. Catherine of Siena.
Oh blessed gentle Mary! She gave us the gentle Jesus as a blossom. And when did that blessed blossom produce fruit? When he was engrafted onto the wood of the most holy cross— then we received perfect life. And when we say that the seed’s husk remained in the earth, what do we mean? This husk was the will of God’s only-begotten Son. In so far as he was human, he was clothed in this will, in his desire for the Father’s honor and our salvation. So strong was this boundless desire that he ran like one in love, enduring pain, disgrace, and abuse, all the way to his shameful death on the cross. Mary did exactly the same, venerable father, for she could desire nothing but God’s honor and the salvation of his creatures. This is why the doctors tell us, referring to Mary’s immense love, that she would have made a ladder of her very self to put her Son on the cross if there had been no other way. All this was because her Son’s will remained within her.
I am the average guy you see in the pew each week. I am married, I have two young daughters, my career is established, I am very active in my church and community. As matter of fact, I am an upcoming leader within my church.
I seem normal, except that I am addicted to pornography.
The usual response to this statement? Well, the response runs the gambit but is usually followed by a snicker. Most people don’t believe it is an addiction. Some argue it is a natural instinct to look at the opposite sex in a sexual way and that masturbation is a God given right.
So how do you get addicted to porn? There are many reasons which we may cover in more detail later. However, many people don’t realize that addiction often switches or morphs from one fixated object to another. It is not uncommon for an alcoholic that has successfully gained sobriety to accidently become addicted to drugs or vice versa. You would be surprised what addiction can encompass – alcohol, drugs, overeating, compulsive computer gaming, and even pornography or sex. I have heard many relate it to a giant “Whack a Mole” game from one of our childhood arcades. You lick the addictive action and it pops up somewhere else.
So, why have many not heard of this problem?
Well, this particular addiction is shamed based and recovery is not embraced by many. Unlike someone recovering from drugs or alcohol, I have to keep my recovery a secret for the addiction is greatly misunderstood. If my addiction ever was made public, my friendships, position in the church, and even my livelihood could be at risk.
My pastor put it best when he explained this to me…
“When you mention sex or pornography addiction, the first thing that comes to mind
Leon Suprenant, Catholic author and Catholic Dad member, is blogging at Catholic Hour – a blog for the e-learning company My Catholic Faith Delivered. The blog is only a couple months old, and I have become aware of it only recently. While all of the posts look exceptional, I know I will be checking in frequently for Leon’s Lenten postings. He already has two up:
Give it Up – a discussion of some of the pitfalls we can fall into during Lent
Today begins another Lent. Lent is a time of turning to God, a time of repentance, and sacrifice. Lent has figured prominently in my own spiritual life. Through the Lenten experience, and my cooperation with God, I was granted grace to overcome certain sins. Other times I was drawn closer to our Lord through prayer and spiritual discipline. Sometimes, I must admit, I squandered the call by merely checking the Lenten requirement box without entering into the grace God offers through really living this season.
With this in mind, I call all Catholic Dads to enter into this season seeking to move forward in their own spiritual journey. We do this through surrender and repentance. It is only when we give up control and realize that God alone satisfies all we need; that God alone can lead us out of our wilderness; that all our struggles are empty without God that we can truly move in the direction of our call.
As part of this, I ask that you share with us some of your journey as well as any advice you can give to one another.
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Today begins another Lent. Lent is a time of turning to God, a time of repentance, and sacrifice. Lent has figured prominently in my own spiritual life. Through the Lenten experience, and my cooperation with God, I was granted grace to overcome certain sins. Other times I was drawn closer to our Lord through prayer and spiritual discipline. Sometimes, I must admit, I squandered the call by merely checking the Lenten requirement box without entering into the grace God offers through really living this season.
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