Happy 21st Birthday, Esther!

My "baby" is turning 21 today. Oh my! This is my beautiful daughter, Esther and my Grandson, Isaac returning from a trip to the pool. Isaac was the first to sing Happy Birthday to Esther last night.

To Be Catholic

"To be Catholic is to live one's whole life 'in' the gospel, to rest one's case in the pierced hands of Jesus Christ the Savior; to think of oneself as having been adopted into 'the whole family in heaven and earth' as St. Paul teaches, to be profoundly conscious of one's place in an immensely ancient tradition...that stretches back to the beginning (Archbishop Christoph Schonborn, Archbishop of Vienna, Austria)."

Rev. William J. McCarthy, M.S.A.
The Joy and Splendor of Being Catholic, My Father's House

A Word To The Wise

"You will receive mercy from the same cup with which you give it."

For Cat Lovers Only

Welcome Home!

I found this on Dr. Beckwith's blog. What a beautiful thing it is to see a whole family come home to the Church Christ established and has guarded by His own power ever since. I've always found it curious that some believe in irresistable grace and the perserverance of the saints- all an act of God and not man - but struggle to see that the same powerful, soverign God can preserve His Church in all truth. Makes no sense to me. Anyway, that is just my little aside. Here is the letter David from "New Christendom" blog wrote to his former protestant church.

A Weekend I Don't Want To Repeat

Well, the crew and I moved starting Wednesday and finishing Saturday evening. We now live in a wonderland of boxes and disarray which threatens to send me screaming into the night when I stop and really think about how much work we have ahead of us.

I have discovered new muscles I never knew I had. Not because they aided in all the heavy labor, but because they have since risen up to smite me by aching in the aftermath. I am now firmly resolved to live as a nomad. I need a Kindle for my library. Beats two ton of books in boxes. I've already picked up pieces of furniture that will never be moved by anyone but St. Vincent de Paul or Goodwill. I've donated bags and bags of clothes and am going to do the same with shoes. If I'm going to live in apartments, I've simply got to live like a MASH unit and be ready to pack it in and move quickly and easily.

I see my chiropractor at 3. That means if I have any other damage I need to do, I better get to it. I know he's going to give me that over the glasses look and shake his head like he does when I over do it. He's going to explain for the zillionth time that I'm fragile and I'm going to break something some day. Yada yada yada.

Meanwhile, I simply must find a nail strong enough to hold up the crucifix that graces my room. I need to find the other two electrical outlets in my room that have been covered by bookshelves. I have to unload my two ton of books. Then I think I'll take a nap.

I thought you might enjoy a picture of my daughter Esther and he dad moving Gabriel's car bed. I know, at first glance it looks like Fred and Wilma, but then the late model car clears up the confusion.

If You Want To Win Souls . . .

“If you want to win souls for Christ, you must willingly endure the anguish for sins that sinners do not experience, in order to win at least ultimately the grace of repentance for them. You may have to go through the agonies of delayed hopes for many hearts, and even seeming failure at the end, for someone whose soul has been your deep concern. But your sincere devotion to bring a soul to Christ will not be in vain. God knows the secret workings of His grace in souls.”

Lawrence G. Lovasik
The Hidden Power of Kindness, Sofia Institute Press

Of Mosques and Men: Reflections on the Ground Zero Mosque

This video was produced by a protestant group, but for the most part it is right on. My only gripe with it is the guys subtle poke at Catholicism and sacramental Holy Water. But the facts he presents and the subtle take over that the Muslim world is carrying out are absolutely right on. In a little book called "Seven Days With Mary" I read that Mary uses a similar approach when she assists in the evangelization of a new place. No, she doesn't blow thousands of people into eternity; but she plants a Church right in the heart of some pagan site and claims it for her Divine Son.

I pray against this take over every time I pass the "Islamic center" that is being built along the freeway that I drive every work day. Like this guy says, wake up America! They didn't stop with the WTC. They are still on the offensive. And now that we are quaking in our boots and afraid to yank their building permit and say no to them, they are spreading like wild fire.

Oh, and this guy is also wrong about us not having Spiritual centers in America. They are in the Tabernacle of every Catholic Church in the land. It's sad he does not know that.

Simply Precious . . .

My baby, Sarah, and her baby, Jacob. He's 3.5 months. What a doll baby.

Taking Up Our Cross

"“Now we have a good idea of what Jesus meant when he told us to take up our crosses. He wasn’t just talking about physical pain or even death. He meant that we have to be prepared to lose everything we hold most dear…and still trust that God’s plan, no matter how incomprehensible it may seem to us, is still working.”

Mike Aquilina
Why Me? When Bad Things Happen, Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division"

Bishop Padovese canceled Cyprus trip to avoid assassination of Pope :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Bishop Padovese canceled Cyprus trip to avoid assassination of Pope :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Reckless Abandon

"“Our response to Christ’s call — and we each have a call — must be total, and it must be radical. We have to be willing to offer everything we are to God. Invite him to strip you of everything so that you may follow him with reckless abandon.”

Fr. Dave Pivonka, TOR
Hiking the Camino: 500 Miles with Jesus, Servant Books"

Justin Martyr on The Eucharist

This is one of my Favorite Feasts. Corpus Christi, the Body and Blood of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. This particular quote was so shocking to me when I discovered it ten years ago this summer. Having loved the Lord Jesus and longed for his Presence, I was shocked and thrilled to find that he was as close as the nearest Catholic Church.

Justin Martyr on Christian worship: "And this food is called among us Eucharist, of which no one is allowed to partake but the man who believes that the things which we teach are true, and who has been washed with the washing that is for the remission of sins, and unto regeneration, and who is so living as Christ has enjoined. For not as common bread and common drink do we receive these; but in like manner as Jesus Christ our Saviour, having been made flesh by the Word of God, had both flesh and blood for our salvation, so likewise have we been taught that the food which is blessed by the prayer of His word, and from which our blood and flesh by transmutation are nourished, is the flesh and blood of that Jesus who was made flesh. For the apostles, in the memoirs composed by them, which are called Gospels, have thus delivered unto us what was enjoined upon them; that Jesus took bread, and when He had given thanks, said, 'This do ye in remembrance of Me, this is My body;' and that, after the same manner, having taken the cup and given thanks, He said, 'This is My blood;' and gave it to them alone. Which the wicked devils have imitated in the mysteries of Mithras, commanding the same thing to be done. For, that bread and a cup of water are placed with certain incantations in the mystic rites of one who is being initiated, you either know or can learn."

Maricopa County Sheriffs Office: Mayor Gordon, You're ignorant! Shut up!

This issue tears me up. I know and love some illegal immigrants w, ho have been here for years working, raising a family, minding their own business. I would hate to see anything happen to them. But I also find the tsunami of illegals coming over the border, especially now that crime seems to be the culture they are bringing with them, very frightening. Once upon a time, those who came over the border came in order to help their family survive. But after years of leniency, those coming over are often unethical and presumptuous. This is a tough issue and I have very mixed emotions about it, but it's time to stop the tidal wave and secure our borders.

I find Mayor Gordon's attitude annoying and terribly dramatic. He presumes an awful lot and judges those who protect us far more than he does those who break the laws and threaten his security. But then, that's the "PC", criminalphobic attitude of most liberals.

I'm Not Certain . . .

But I think I may have packed myself.

Just For Fun

Have I Mentioned How Much I Hate Moving?

I think I'm allergic to cardboard boxes. At least I hate the sight of them. But here we are again, packing my bizillion books into boxes (always the hardest part of a move). Thank God for my daughters since I'm not able to lift any more. This has me thinking about a Kindle.

I won't be posting much between now and the end of June, but I am reading "The Hermitage Within" right now and it is an amazing book. I think this is another one of those that I have to read every few years. It also has me thinking about a new series, but . . .

Meanwhile, summer has hit in Arizona. You would have to have lived in Arizona to know what that means. It's going to hit 100 before the week is out if it didn't do so yesterday. In Minnesota, where I grew up, people got depressed when the first heavy snow came because they would be confined to their houses so much of the winter. The reverse is true here. I get really crabby when the first hot day hits. We have to hibernate in our houses and air conditioned cars for about eight months of the year. Just as folks can freeze to death if they are out in the elements too long in the cold country; we have to carry water and think in terms of survival in the outdoors here from June to November.