The Seed of Christians...

the seed of Christians is still found
on holy, sacred, ancient ground
the blood of martyrs' cries resound

but I wonder, do we hear

those whose knees n'ere did bow
to any man or golden cow
are martyred still and call us now

but I wonder, do we hear

martyrs for us still intercede
giving us all the strength we need
whether shunned by family or called to bleed

but I wonder, do we hear

their call to rise courageously
to defend our faith from heresy
to live the Truth so the blind may see

I pray we have ears to hear

susie
07.17.09

Painting - English martyrs TYBURN TREE
Holy Martyrs
Ugandan Marytyrs

Letter to artists, by Pope JPII...

LETTER

Brown v. Board of Education (1954) and Roe v. Wade (1973)...

Things we can all agree on, by Carl Anderson, Supreme Knight

(I'm a stickler about spelling/grammar 'n stuff like that, so I would rather have seen the title read as follows: "Things on which we can all agree" but that's just me. I'm not trying to be persnickety, but come on, where has all the grammar gone from? : ) An excellent article, none- the-less, Mr. Anderson.

Ain't it grand?

Miranda Rights for Terrorists.

As the leftist, Marxist Media tries to silent Talk RAYdio with their "Fairness Doctrine" I can only laugh at them. I've dubbed the "Fairness Doctrine" the "Nefarious Doctrine." I need to make it a shirt. This made me laugh.

Trying to counter the counter revolution at its own game. He looks 'hopeful' but I see through the facade.

THIS HOPE was not a Communist and Loved our TROOPS!

Meet your science czar...

Obama science czar Holdren called for forced abortions

Get your sticker for your car, fridge, file cabinet
here at WND

It's blowin' in the wind...

Someone asked me what I think of the Pope's new Encyclical...My reply...

I haven't read it yet, but Raymond Arroyo - The World Over- talked about it with Fr. ? (can't remember his name,we DVRd it last Fri).

I find Francis Beckwith's review about it very helpful and as I posted on FB just now, I agree with him wholeheartedly. The Catholic Church condemns Socialism. Captialism is the best system the world's ever had, but if God is removed from the individuals life, and then society at large, replaced by relativism, then of course, greed and avarice will all the more abound in corrupt souls, no matter what govt. system they adhere to, so that'a my 2 cents. Now for my nickle's worth:

Remove God and Govt. becomes "god" and that isn't good for the common good at all, but causes more harm, more destruction to people than any free market or private sector system would. In a free market, some men/women are bad, some aren't. Some are great, some aren't. But the people DO have choices. But natinoalized and regulated to death, (no pun intended) Companies forced to send jobs and work to places abroad means we all suffer,having to pay exhorbitant prices for our goods/services/food/ etc. Taxing the 'rich' to redistribute their wealth is evil. Jesus is not Robin Hood. He'd never say "Steal" to give to the poor. He said, "Give to the poor" for that is compassion. And there are many wealthy people who are good...and many middleclass like us who tithe and give to the poor. When Govt. demands and makes us 'give' by stealing from us...that is evil... and corrupt as hell. But beyond all economics is the Right to Life of every person, born or not born.

Remove the respect of that Right and be prepared for the judgment of God. No nation, no country can legally kill 4000 babies a day, 50 million to date, and think it's going to survive forever. Now that killing babies is deemed a "right" by law, well, the U.S. is in for one helluvaride in a handbasket to same, and we'd all better wake up and smell the sulphur. God wants more than ever to give us freedom, and a happy life, but when we've turned our backs on Him and made killing innocent life - inside the womb - to be legal, merely a "woman's right" then WOE to us. God's Mercy is deep and vast, but His patience and mercy will one day be exhausted...that's reality. Man-made Utopia on this planet, is not.

Judgment is coming soon. The thing is, it could be at any moment for any one us, not knowing when we're going to die. Hence the need to "live right and holy" as we are called to live. Once our last breath has left our lips, judgment isn't far off...but it is "now." A greedy, mean coporate CEO can be a badass, no doubt, and cause much pain to many, and his company will fail. The end. Then if those people who've lost their jobs have faith, or turn to God in their pain, they'll find a new job, or another calling, they'll have the freedom to do so. But a brutal dictator, despot, or tyrant is a helluva lot worse, bringing hoplessness and ruin to a whole country taking away our freedom and most especially our FREEDOM of RELIGION!

Ok, that was more like a dime's worth. : )

It's all about "my rights," not my responsibility to do what's right...

the Dictatorship of Relativism

Excerpt:

Simply put, the Dictatorship of Relativism is now demanding that when religious faith comes into conflict with non-faith, faith must give way. When belief comes into conflict with unbelief, belief must give way. When religion comes into conflict with anti-religion, religion must step down. The model expected by the authors of the Constitution that religion would inform consciences and consciences would form those who make the laws is being scrapped by some who insist—dictate—that personal conscience must play no part in public affairs. As when relativists insist “there are absolutely no absolutes,” this is an absurdity. Out of what conviction can anyone claim personal conscience must not come into play? Convictions usually reside in the conscience.

Three Amigos...

Obama, Chavez & Castro

When an American President is hanging out with our enemies and backslapping thug dictators,...something dire this way comes.

Excerpt from article above:

A Danish scholar who studied Chávez’s beliefs opined that for Chávez, the only values of Christianity and Christ were as vehicles for Marxist imagery. Chávez expelled the Christian missionary group New Tribes Mission from Venezuela, calling them “imperialists.” He also accused his country’s Roman Catholic prelate, Cardinal Rosario Castillo, a “coup-mongering bandit” and its Catholic leadership a “cancer.” Finally, Chávez described Pope John Paul II as a “potato,” making a crude Spanish play on words since both pope and potato in Spanish are written and pronounced the same.

THANK YOU SEN. JOHANNS!!!

Write Sen. Johanns and thank him for getting to the bottom of the health care lie being shoved upon us. Here's what is written in a small town paper here in Nebraska.

Johanns denounces abortion provision in health care proposal

Friday, July 10, 2009

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Mike Johanns today issued the following statement regarding a recent provision added to health care legislation. This provision would require health insurance companies to contract their services with community provider clinics, some of which offer abortion services. There is concern that the same requirement would be included in a government-run option funded by taxpayer dollars.

"If this bill's proponents think they can slip-in language that forces insurance companies to fund abortions and still claim to be seeking broad support, they have no idea how strongly some of us feel about the sanctity of life," Johanns said. "The same would hold true for a government-run option that uses taxpayer dollars to fund abortions. Beyond the moral argument, Americans are fed-up with the Administration and majority in Congress promising new laws and programs that will do one thing, while hiding ulterior motives that accomplish something very different. This attempt at social engineering is unacceptable."

© Copyright 2009, McCook Daily Gazette
Story URL: http://www.mccookgazette.com/story/1553880.html

Sidewalk protest...

I just went with a friend, (thanks Paula, my political pal) to a lunch-hour protest in front of Sen. Ben Nelson's office here in Omaha. We had a great, enthusiastic time, holding signs AGAINST Obama's nationalized health care coming down the pike at us all "full throttle!" My sign got some smiles, but unfortunately I didn' t have my camera, so don't have a picture to share.

My sign read:
SAY NO TO STATE-RUN HELLth CARE!!

I've always liked puns! :)

To my friends in Nebraska, please email, write a letter, or call his office. He needs to know we aren't going to take this lying down! I've had respect for Ben Nelson, and I don't hate the man at all, but he needs to "GO" - as do all the rest - who talk the talk and don't walk the walk when it comes to the really important issues. When he wrote me back about confirming Kathleen Sebelius, that was the last straw for me, the Gov. from Kansas who was most adamant of her support for Tiller, for 'abortion on demand' and partial birth abortions. Yes, Ben, sir...it's time to step down. Supporting Sebelius is where I draw the line, along with a few million others, so with all due respect, your time to GO is NOW! Canadian Care, ObamaCare doesn't fly here in Nebraska...SURELY you KNOW THAT, right?

The Kazan Icon...

The Russian faithful particularly treasure a special icon which embodies their national identity: Our Lady of Kazan. The devotion to Our Lady of Kazan is one of the most popular devotions to the Virgin Mary in Russia. The original icon was supposedly housed in Kazan until the thirteenth century when it was lost in the rubble and ashes following an invasion of the Tartars.
In 1579, in the same city, a little girl named Matrona had an apparition of the Virgin Mary who revealed to her where to unearth the icon. On July 8, the miraculous icon was found wrapped in a red cloth. Before long, the icon became well known for numerous miracles and cures and invoked as the "Protectress of Russia." Later, it was kept in the Basilica of Our Lady of Kazan in Moscow. On October 13, 1917, which, coincidentally, is also the day of the extraordinary Miracle of the Sun at Fatima, the Bolsheviks destroyed the basilica at the Red Square. But the icon was saved and immediately taken out of the country.
That icon or a replica of it was enshrined in a Marian shrine at Fatima, Portugal in the 1970s, and later given to Pope John Paul II, who, despite controversy, decided to return the precious icon to the Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow in 2005, where it was enshrined in the Annunciation Cathedral of Kazan Kremlin.
For all these reasons, the Kazan icon has special symbolic value for both the East and the West.

The above from: A Moment with Mary

OK, that may be so, and I don't doubt it, but looking for the icon to attach to this post, I came across this website, and now I am somewhat confused. Anyone out there with more knowledge of this, please comment. I love JPII and I pray for Russia and our Othodox brothers and sisters...but what about this? I know about schisms but not everything and who or what is such. What about Marian T. Horvat, PhD? What makes me so concerned and unhappy is that even good, faithful, orthodox, devout, Catholics are still split. I read things and when it's murky, I just say a prayer, a Hail Mary and move on, but I'd really like to know what anyone of my readers could offer at this time. What little I read of her, well, it 'sounds' fine. Then again I didn't read everything on the page. TJ? Anyone? Help. I am really a very new, baby Catholic, I really am. Some of this 'makes sense' but I know there's always some Truth in every falsehood, error, heresy. Again, HELP?

Charity in Truth

Meditated Rosary: Pope Benedict’s Encyclical, CARITAS IN VERITATE, #1
Special Intention: Conversion of mind and heart in preparation for the AO General Assembly 2009

FIRST MYSTERY: Charity in truth, to which Jesus Christ bore witness by his earthly life and especially by his death and resurrection, is the principal driving force behind the authentic development of every person and of all humanity.
· In this mystery we pray for awareness of the witness Charity in truth in Jesus Christ.

SECOND MYSTERY: Love — caritas — is an extraordinary force which leads people to opt for courageous and generous engagement in the field of justice and peace. It is a force that has its origin in God, Eternal Love and Absolute Truth. Each person finds his good by adherence to God's plan for him, in order to realize it fully: in this plan, he finds his truth, and through adherence to this truth he becomes free (cf. Jn 8:22).
· Let us pray to the Holy Spirit to enlighten us in the work living out God’s plan in love and truth.

THIRD MYSTERY: To defend the truth, to articulate it with humility and conviction, and to bear witness to it in life are therefore exacting and indispensable forms of charity. Charity, in fact, “rejoices in the truth” (1 Cor 13:6).
· Let us pray to the Holy Spirit to help us rejoice in the truth and live it!

FOURTH MYSTERY: All people feel the interior impulse to love authentically: love and truth never abandon them completely, because these are the vocation planted by God in the heart and mind of every human person. The search for love and truth is purified and liberated by Jesus Christ from the impoverishment that our humanity brings to it, and he reveals to us in all its fullness the initiative of love and the plan for true life that God has prepared for us
· .Let us continually meditate the movements of the Holy Spirit that lead us to live out the plan of love that God has for every human person.

FIFTH MYSTERY: In Christ, charity in truth becomes the Face of his Person, a vocation for us to love our brothers and sisters in the truth of his plan. Indeed, he himself is the Truth (cf. Jn 14:6).
· We are invited in this mystery to see in Christ our vocation to love our brothers and sisters in the truth.

“Give us the Spirit of Love to guide us in living out your message, form in us the image of your Son and grant us the courage to extend to all, your invitation to holiness” (G. Giaquinta)

Newly discovered image of St. Paul!!!...

Again, h/t Sr. Anne. What a wealth of information you have on your blog, Sister! Read about it the new archeological find of June 19, 2009 here.

h/t Sr. Anne This is great!...

Bloggin' Sister

A NUN's BLOG. h/t Sr. Anne

When I read her post, "Better late than..." About Maria Goretti, I was encouraged and found it so inspiring. I've thought of Maria while still pondering what to reply to my friend, G. about her misguided world view on martyrdom in this day and age. Should Maria have given in to her would-be rapist's demands and advances? Should she have bowed to the "idol?" Should she have done that and "not made her attacker attack her and kill her, as G. seems to think martyrs do? If Maria had appeased him, had she done so, would he NOT have killed her? Would he then have repented later in jail? She held to her convictions and her Catholic faith, and later, prayed for him and forgave him as she lay dying. She later appeared to him in jail, dressed in her glorious, pure white heavenly raiment, with flowers for him, and he was converted. If anyone out there thinks martyrdom is in need of 're-evalution' think again. That is NOT Catholic teaching and never will be! My post on G's view is in the June 2009 archives titled: "Shoud we still die for the faith?"

Fellowship of the Rings...

h/t SHW

Some REAL HOPE for you...

h/t Drew