PathToHoliness

What does praying really mean? This short video clip is a new addition to the St. Josemaria Escriva YouTube channel. In it a young woman talks about what she has learned about praying from St. Josemaria. It is becoming friends with Christ. In The Way, St. Josmaria says, “Prayer is the foundation of the spiritual edifice.”

If you don’t know how to pray then he recommends, “Put yourself in the presence of God, and once you have said, “Lord, I don’t know how to pray!” rest assured that you have begun to do so.” This is advice that I love because it is so simple and easy to understand. But it means taking time for prayer, something that has to be a priority of our day no matter what is going on in our life.

Today is the feast of Mary, Mother of God. Our Holy Father prayed for peace in his homily according to Vatican Radio

“On this day, too, we pray especially for peace throughout the world, and I invite all of you to join in heartfelt prayer to Christ the Prince of Peace for an end to violence and conflict wherever they are found.”

You can listen to a full report from Vatican Radio here: Vatican Radio Report

Is it just me or does the news today read like a fiction novel? The stories we’re seeing are surrealistic. What kind of stories? How about the stories about the billions and billions of dollars being “given” away, right here at home, overseas, just about any where you look. No matter what source you look at it’s clear there is no money to be given away by our government. So where is it coming from? I have no idea and no one I know does either. By some estimates I’ve read, just the stimulus money can never be repaid much less items like the $500 million just announced as U.S. aid to Pakistan from a $7.5 billion package approved by Congress last year. Sounds to me like there will be 500 new millionaires in Pakistan.

Are people so far removed from personal responsibility and common sense that they can’t function without the government supplying them with money for everything? How about health care? Why should our government supply health care to anyone? Why does it become government’s responsibility?

I could make a long list of stories that defy reason but all you have to do is look at the news to see stories for yourself. From ideas like animals having rights to sue humans (they actually voted on this in Switzerland) to the idea that we should tax people for creating carbon emissions due to global warming, it seems like we’re living in a world dominated by insane people. I think the reality is we’re living in a world with a growing number of people who have no grounding in faith in God. You don’t see God and faith mentioned in news today unless it’s just to point out what church someone belongs to as a side note to a story or in a negative way like blame for something.

Besides these things it seems like people today are constantly feeling panic. Of course if you listen to the news much you’ll hear the word “crisis” applied to just about everything. We don’t have a crisis except a crisis of loss of faith. With true faith in God there is no need to worry or feel threatened by anything and that includes where your next meal is coming from or whether the Gulf of Mexico will still have fish living in it tomorrow.

Well it’s not quite Father’s Day but I thought I’d make sure I mentioned it.

This father will be doing some “work” at the Iowa Corn Indy 250 on Sunday. Fortunately, IRL Ministry makes sure we’ll have a Mass here in the Driver’s Room at 10:30am. I’ll be there since I’ve got to attend a photographer’s mtg. at 8am.

So, I’ll get more active after this weekend. I’ve been road blogging most of the last 2 weeks (7 events, 7 cities, 7 states). You can check out my photos from this event here: Iowa Corn Indy 250 Photo Album

I hate to even bring this subject up but the hysteria over the myth called global warming really reached a fever pitch with the complete waste of time/money in Copenhagen recently foisted by the United Nations. The problem with this issue is that even though anyone with a brain and common sense who looks into it finds that it’s a myth, we’re still being bombarded by advertising and constant media pressure to “do something.” Hence, the U.S. House climate change bill for example. Fortunately our Senate has put it on a back burner and maybe will just let it die. The legislation is called Cap and Trade and would be a horrendous disaster for our country (like the pending health care legislation that no one wants).

Man made global warming does not exist as far as I can tell. There is huge disagreement in the scientific community on the whole subject of climate change. But we’re still being fed a very inconvenient lie. Why?

Well, I think it’s because global warming is a religion to many activists. This means they are forming their belief via faith and in the process turning a blind eye to fact. But they are really a minority. The masses that show up in polls as supporting the religion of global warming are for the most part very clueless. They hear a few emotional messages and think, “we’ve got to save the planet.” That seems to me to be the height of arrogance. Our time here on Earth has been a little blip on its history. It has managed quite well without us and will continue to regardless of what we do. Many of these activists have a vested interest in creating a public that fear’s for its future. Take Al Gore as probably the biggest example. The reality is that many of these folks are just plain evil and have evil plans. One of the biggest is a guy named Paul Ehrlich. These folks just want to get rid of people and don’t care if it’s done by abortions, forced sterilization or starving people on purpose.

Maybe you’re one of the people who has been mislead by global warming hysteria. Here’s a resource you can check to find out some scientific information on the myths of global warming. Another great source is the Hudson Institute and Dennis Avery. Read his latest column here.

A new theme has been developed for Path To Holiness which I hope to have live this week. With it I hope to start posting more frequently.

I mentioned patience in my last post. Ive had to be patient in waiting for a new look for the website since my web developer has been so busy with business related websites. But in todays economy thats been a blessing.

So I hope you enjoy our new look when we get it finished and I welcome comments, ideas and suggestions.

My prayers have been answered! Last month I did a post about the image in the sidebar of Mary that I have looked for but never found. There is one in our adoration chapel at the Cathedral. The print is signed by Charles Bosseron Chambers and titled, “Most Gracious Advocate.” It’s one of my favorite images of our Blessed Lady.

Lo and behold, we got an email and phone call from North Carolina that John and Renee had seen my post and they had a print for sale. So I bought it and now the print is on the wall in our home.

Holy Mary, our hope and seat of wisdom, please pray for us.

Its been a while since Ive used the WordPress app on my iPhone to post with. I ought to do this more often.

I got my holiday started with Mass at our local Carmelite Monastary. Msgr. Weiderholt always hears confession beforehand which is nice.

So Im enjoying coffee and wishing you a nice weekend.

I am a power Twitter user in my business and have never had as many problems with the service as I have in creating and using an account for PathToHoliness.com. My Twitter profile is twitter.com/PathToHoliness. Today it says my account has been suspended for too many login attempts. I’ve got a support ticket going and am keeping my fingers crossed.

Since I don’t have these problems on other accounts I manage it makes me wonder is someone is trying to shut the account down. I know that sounds paranoid but stranger things have happened.

This morning when you go to my profile you get one for someone with an ID of kakoui. Maybe Twitter is just having some serious problems. However, I’ve checked all my other accounts and they seem to be working fine.

So, I just thought I’d let you know. Very irritating to say the least.

Here’s some more ignorance gone to seed as a good friend of mine like to put it. This group, Catholic Climate Covenant, has bought into the notion that man is creating climate change on such a vast scale that the poor people of the world are being “hit hardest.” Their slogan, “What’s Under Your Carbon Footprint?” is a sick joke. This full page ad in Our Sunday Visitor shows a dark colored foot print showing a couple of supposedly poor African? people. So they’re resorting to emotional images to try to get you to feel sorry and donate. I say don’t on the donate thing.

They’re also making liberal use of quotes from our Pope and St. Francis. I find that disturbing. I’m all for the responsible use of our natural resources but there’s too much evidence that scientists are in wide disagreement on this issue. In fact, there’s ample evidence that instead of global warming, the opposite is true.

Nothing I’m saying suggest we shouldn’t support the poor. But we have plenty of opportunities and avenues to do that. This shouldn’t be one of them.

Very funny:

As Pope Benedict continues his trip in Africa he has attracted huge crowds that have included lots of children and young adults. I don’t thinks it’s any surprise that they love him. Unlike so many we hear of in the news today, the Pope speaks words of real hope. Take this excerpt from his homily during Mass at Amadou Ahidjo Stadium of Yaoundé, Thursday.

Finally, to all the young people present, I offer words of friendship and encouragement: as you face the challenges of life, take courage! Your life is priceless in the eyes of God! Let Christ take hold of you, agree to pledge your love to him, and – why not? – maybe even do so in the priesthood or in the consecrated life! This is the supreme service. To the children who no longer have a father, or who live abandoned in the poverty of the streets, to those forcibly separated from their parents, to the maltreated and abused, to those constrained to join paramilitary forces that are terrorizing some countries, I would like to say: God loves you, he has not forgotten you, and Saint Joseph protects you! Invoke him with confidence.

It’s too bad our politicians can’t utter words like that.

Congratulations, Barack Obama. You were not my choice, but you will be my President. My prayers are with you. Good luck and Godspeed.

May the most just, the most lovable, and the most high Will of God be done, be fulfilled, be praised and exalted in all things forever. Amen!

Yesterday was the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi. I chose him as my confirmation saint a long, long time ago. The picture is the statue of St. Francis under the deck to my house. I can look out my office door to see him when I need some inspiration.

Here’s some details about him from Wikipedia:

Francis of Assisi (Giovanni Francesco Bernardone; born 1181/1182 – October 3, 1226) was a friar and the founder of the Order of Friars Minor, more commonly known as the Franciscans. He is known as the patron saint of animals, the environment and Italy.

Here’s an excerpt from the homily by Br. José Rodríguez Carballo, OFM, Minister General of the Order of Friars Minor, the order founded by St. Francis. He gave this during Mass yesterday:

This is the path which Francis points out to us, the path which he also travelled, because it was that chosen by the Son of God in order to become man. Christ Jesus, though “His state was divine, yet he did not cling to his equality with God, but emptied himself to assume the condition of a slave, and became as men are” (Phil 2,6f). This unlimited love of God for humanity, which led Him to strip Himself of His divinity in order to participate in the fate of man, even to die naked on the cross for us, is the love which Francis sought to live throughout his existence, up to the final instant when, right here, he wished to die, like his Lord, naked on the ground. Francis made himself little because he wished to imitate his Lord, who, to love him, had become so little as to be born as a defenceless child from the womb of the Virgin.

You can learn a lot more about St. Francis on this website.

Today we celebrated the feast of the mother of one of the Church’s most celebrated saints. St. Monica, mother of St. Augustine (whose feast day is tomorrow), prayed unceasingly for the conversion of her famous son, and, as we all know, was happily obliged by Our Lord. Not only that, but her husband, Patricius, a pagan with a terrible temper, converted to Christianity and was baptized a year before his death thanks to her prayers as well. She is a wonderful example for married couples and parents who are called to care above all for the spiritual well being of their spouse and children. I believe that it was not only her prayers, but also her example as a pious Christian woman that also won over her husband and son. This passage from 1 Peter makes me think of St. Monica and the example that all married women should give:

Likewise, you wives should be subordinate to your husbands so that, even if some disobey the word, they may be won over without a word by their wives’ conduct when they observe your reverent and chaste behavior. Your adornment should not be an external one: braiding the hair, wearing gold jewelry, or dressing in fine clothes, but rather the hidden character of the heart, expressed in the imperishable beauty of a gentle and calm disposition, which is precious in the sight of God.
1 Peter 3:1-5

She is also an example to all of us of our call to persevere in prayer. The conversion of St. Augustine did not happen overnight. It was a long, turbulent journey (20 years or more) during which the reluctant saint fell in and out of serious sin and his mother deeper and deeper into a conversation with Christ on behalf of her son, storming the gates of heaven with her constant tears and prayer. In the end this great mother witnessed the baptism of one of our greatest saints and spent the last days of her life reflecting with him and longing for the joys of heaven:

“Son, as far as I am concerned, nothing in this life now gives me any pleasure. I do not know why I am still here, since I have no further hopes in this world. I did have one reason for wanting to live a little longer: to see you become a Catholic Christian before I died. God has lavished his gifts on me in that respect, for I know that you have renounced earthly happiness to be his servant. So what am I doing here?”
from St. Augustine’s Confessions

Her final request was that her son, who became a priest and bishop, remember her “at the altar of the Lord wherever you may be.”