In God's Company 2: Amazing news given by a priest at the Marian Confe...

In God's Company 2: Amazing news given by a priest at the Marian Confe...: A Croatian priest Fr. Joseph Grbes gave everyone a little update at a Medjugorje Peace conference in Irvine, CA in the U.S. Throughout the...

St. Raphael

According to the old Roman Catholic liturgical calendar today is the Feast Day of the Archangel Raphael.
Even during my old 'progressive' days I secretly kept track of feast days that occurred on the old calendar--those mystical connections certainly weren't wiped away in 1969.
Prior to moving St. Raphael to September 29--he had is own day--and a pretty neat history.  Take a moment and read a little on him (yeh I used a gender specific pronoun to describe--)

In many ways our descriptions and stories and cultural manifestations of angels describe a spiritual reality denied in today's world.


St. Raphael is depicted either standing on a fish or holding a line with a fish at the end.
My kind of angel.  The fish has to do with the story of Tobit and his healing from blindness.  Prior to laser surgery God's approved method of healing involved the guts and gallbladder of a fish.
Because of Raphael's relationship with Tobit and his son--he is also consider the patron of travelers.

So we have an angel who sits at the Throne of God and directly intervenes in our lives.

Do you want that?
Then simply ask.
Somewhere along the line (no fishing pun intended)--Tobit asked for it.  He was healed, fed, and didn't have to travel alone.

Who couldn't use some healing and a companion on the journey?
God provides--He always does.
May the saints and angels intercede.

Politically Correct Crap vs Nicene Creed

Council of Nicea Sistine Chapel

Okay, the short of it is this.
Went to Holy Mass today.
The priest shared a pretty good homily on the upcoming changes to the liturgy, focusing today on the Nicene Creed.

So far so good--he even described some of the heresies the Creed addressed.

Then came the kicker--He shared that the phrase  "For us men and for our salvation..." will be recited by himself as "For us and for our salvation..."
With an authoritative voice he urged the congregation to join him or not--but he leaves it up to 'our conscience'  Gee, thanks.

Okay--no problem I've been around enough of this liberal crap and I can turn a numb ear.  It would have been better if he never said anything--just preach the Creed.  The pulpit became a soap box.
Bad form.

Here's the deal--if the bishops said "let's take the word 'men' out"  (which they have in other parts of the liturgy)  no problem.  It is the teaching authority of the church that decided that--the inspired teaching authority.

But they didn't.  "Men" was left in.  If they take it out tomorrow--still no problem.  But until that day comes--stop it.

Stop confusing personal agenda's with pastoral authority.

So afterwards my wife approached this priest--
You can guess the response.  In the name of oppressed women--he became the standard bearer.  His was a weak argument--the very essence of his homily about the Creed was one of unity of expression of the faith and with one personal opinion he dissolved,
-----no he obliterated it.

So sit at the top of the slippery slope-- change the names, change the genders, meld the genders, --it's all relative right?  I've been around, excommunicated and back---i've seen what changing and omitting words in Creeds can do----DON'T DO IT--even if it is just one little word--just leave it alone until the Magisterium changes it.
Satan is banking on it--and he's cashing in a lot of chips as of late.

Occupy Parish

I'm thinking about piggy backing on the Occupy Wall Street movements---

OCCUPY PARISH.

thoughts?

Staying Honest

For about two weeks the battery in our bathroom scale was dead.
I knew we had a replacement--but just couldn't seem to remember to put it in.

Maybe.

I kind of liked not having a scale.
It sat dead in the corner.  Yeh.

I ate more ice cream.
and cookies
and a burger here and there
and a beer
..maybe two.

Each day the scale sat there---dead.
Ha.

Then I bent over to tie my shoes and felt my gut pushing back.
Crap.

We need scales in the spiritual life.
We need to stay honest.
We can't delude ourselves into thinking everything is okay while we fill our senses and souls with crap.

I can do what I want--cause Jesus died for me and I'm already saved.
Yeh, right. Bank on your soul making it to purgatory (which is pretty good...) while your free will satiates itself.  Really?
No scale.

Last evening at a youth ministry meeting I went out on a limb and shared with the few members present--"You're not praying enough."  I continued "I'm not lining up missions and retreats and overnights if you guys don't start taking prayer more serious."
At first I had a couple looks like I was being judgmental--until someone said "How'd you know?"

Spiritual scales help keep us honest in our quest.
It is so easy to get spiritually sidetracked--in fact satan is banking on sloth and laziness and gluttony and lust and anger and greed and all those things that take our focus away.
Stay away from the spiritual scale and you can grow fat on paganized sugar.

During the month of October we have the tradition in our family of erecting and decorating The Saint Tree.  
Everyone in the family takes a day and makes an ornament depicting some aspect or picture of the Saint of the Day--using old and new calendars.
Saints are not only our intercessors but our spiritual scales--they give us their lives to measure ourselves with.  Of course I'm no saint (please don't crash the site with comments on that statement)--but I can try and try again to unite myself with Christ--after all isn't that what they did?

So don't be afraid to get spiritually weighed today--examine your conscience--be honest--ask a saint to help.