PathToHoliness

Today we remember all those who have died. While we mourn for the dead, we also have hope for though, “all have sinned and are deprived of the glory of God.” They are now

“justified freely by his grace through the redemption in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as an expiation, through faith, by his blood, to prove his righteousness because of the forgiveness of sins previously committed, through the forbearance of God – to prove his righteousness in the present time, that he might be righteous and justify the one who has faith in Jesus.” Rom. 3:23-25

But in order to stand in the presence of God, one must “be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt. 5:48). That is why we believe in the, what I call, “cleansing fire” of purgatory. Though one may be justified by faith on earth, there may still be attachments that one must be purged from in order to see the glory of God, though some souls may have experienced this cleansing here on earth.

Here is a song that I have dedicated to a girl I knew in high school who died in a car accident (just 11 months before my own accident) – she was just 14 years old. I did not know her very well, but had a few classes with her. One of those was a speech class in which she gave a speech on Lynard Skynard. It didn’t hit me until I had a dream about her after my accident and started really thinking about her and praying for her, that she played this song, the lyrics of which sound prophetic to me now, during that presentation (probably a month or so before she died).

O Lord, we beg of you, through your loving kindness, have mercy on the soul of your servant (N…), and now that he/she is set free from the defilements of this mortal flesh, restore him/her to her heritage of everlasting salvation. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord. And let perpetual light shine upon them. May their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Today’s readings are beautiful to reflect on when we think about the dead.

Be sure to thank the special saints in your life for all their inspiration and intercession. My patron saints are St. Anne (Anne is my middle name) and St. Mary Magdalene (my Confirmation saint).

Besides Our Lady I also am inspired by, and often call on St. Joseph, St. Therese, St. Anthony, St. Bernadette and Padre Pio. My dad, who hasn’t had much time to post on here recently, enjoys the patronage of St. Charles Boremmeo and St. Francis of Assisi. As a cooperator of Ospus Dei he is also very close to St. Josemaria Escriva, naturally. Who are some of your favorites?

Oh I am also very close to our late Holy Father, JP II, who our whole family had the wonderful privilege of greeting in 2001. Read my post on the two year anniversary of his death: JP II and the Culture of Life:

She has been making quite a name for herself lately, in not so flattering ways. Now she’s jumping on the Catholic mockery bandwagon with religious themed photos in a booklet for her new album. The photos involve a scantily clad Brit, wearing a rosary, in suggestive positions with a “priest” in a confessional.

Her particular form of Catholic mockery is in the same style of fellow recording artist, with whom she shared a very famous lip lock at the VMAs, Madonna. Madonna is famous for using Catholic imagery in very irreverent ways, such as her 1989 video for “Like a Prayer” in which she danced amid burning crosses, developed a stigmata and made love to St. Martin de Porres. More recently, Madonna came under fire for a mock crucifixion during one of her concerts.

The Catholic League’s director of communications, Kiera McCaffrey told MTV News that they consider the photos a

“cheap publicity stunt that is a way to get people to talk about Britney Spears’ album without talking about her music, which is what they should be focusing on. All we see is how troubled this girl is now, especially with her family, losing her kids, with her career on a downward slide. And now she’s put out this album and this is her tactic to promote it? She should be focusing on singing and dancing and trying to be an entertainer without mocking a Catholic sacrament.”

What she should be focusing on is getting serious about her own faith (instead of mocking other people’s), straightening up her life and taking care of her kids, whom she is in danger of losing custody of all together. Early reviews give this album Britney’s highest ratings yet and some predict it will knock Springsteen of the top of the charts. But what is that worth if she loses her children, and her soul, in the meantime. It has been said that one of her idols is the late Marilyn Monroe, and, from the looks of it, she is running hard and fast toward the same tragic end. Mocking the sacredness of the confessional will not help matters. This woman, and her young children, needs prayers, and lots of them.

H/T: Pro Ecclesia

See my latest blog entry at Reflections of a Paralytic: Reclaiming the Truth and Meaning of Human Sexuality

Regarding the WHO abortion study that I mentioned in Wednesday’s post another conclusion that many come to upon seeing the numbers of abortions carried out world wide is that something must be done to prevent so many “unwanted pregnancies” in the first place. Now that is a rational conclusion. What is irrational, however, is the promotion of contraception as a solution when the underlying problem is immoral sexual behavior to begin with. Now they want to offer birth control to 11 year olds?! We are really failing our children if this is the best we can do. How about teaching them to love and respect their bodies and live out their sexuality in the manner in which God intended? We must reclaim the truth and meaning of human sexuality (which does not include condoms or birth control) if we are to ever dream of having an impact on abortion numbers.

Christopher West boldly asserts that, in the final analysis, the abortion debate is not really about when life begins, but the meaning of sex. Naturally, people don’t advocate abortion because they believe they have a right to kill their own offspring, but because they want to have the right to have sex without limit or consequence. In his encyclical Evangelium Vitae, JPII says,

It is an illusion to think that we can build a true culture of human life if we do not help the young to accept and experience sexuality and love and the whole of life according to their true meaning and in their close interconnection (n. 97)

So what is this “true meaning” of sexuality? Here’s what I told a group of Confirmation students a few weeks ago…

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Thou whose glory above the heavens is chanted by the mouth of babes and injacts, thou hast founded a bulwark because of thy foes, to still the enemy and the avenger (Psalm 8:1-2).

See my post on Reflections of a Paralytic about the JK Rowling’s “outing” of Professor Albus Dumbledore: To Rowling’s Credit:

Keeping in mind the fact that this is a fictional character and, the way the story is written, one does not have to believe that Dumbledore is gay, despite the author’s intention (in literature there are multiple viewpoints or interpretations, two of which are the author’s and the reader’s and they don’t have to match) – think about this. If he was actually homosexual, as Rowling has now told us, it is not impossible for us to interpret in the novels that, after never fully recovering from a decades (centuries?) old heartbreak, he had been living a chaste and even virtuous life – protecting students from, and helping Harry to defeat the forces of darkness.

Read more on how this can relate to how Catholic’s encourage those with serious homosexual attractions to live out their Christian vocation.

H/T: Alive and Young – I have seen this a number of times and it always makes me smile.

BTW, for some good, clean, Catholic humor check out Paul’s site regularly.

I haven’t been contributing much here lately but I have been making it to Mass most every day on the road. Like last week in Washington, DC.

I attended at the Cathedral of St. Matthews. This is a beautiful church very near the Capitol.

Established in 1840, St. Matthew’s originally was located at 15th and H Streets, NW. Construction of the present church began in 1893 under the direction of Monsignor Thomas Sim Lee. The first Mass was celebrated on June 2, 1895. The church was dedicated in 1913 and designated a cathedral in 1939 when the Archdiocese of Washington was established.

The Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle, which honors the patron saint of civil servants, plays a major role in the Catholic life of the nation’s capital. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Washington.

You can purchase a book about the restoration of the Cathedral called, “A Landmark Restored.” The book contains 31 pages of historical information and beautiful photographs of the Cathedral’s restoration process.

A wonderful prayer from St. Theresa of Avila:

Let nothing disturb you,
Let nothing frighten you,
All things are passing away:
God never changes.
Patience obtains all things.
Whoever has God lacks nothing;
God alone suffices.

Jennifer at Et tu? has a wonderful post reflecting on the beauty of the Mass, not only seen in the breaking of the bread, but in the faithfulness of all those participating:

As I watched and listened to the now-familiar rituals of the Mass, I noticed the the serious, loving intensity with which our priest does his job; I saw people cross themselves in prayer every now and then, even when it wasn’t part of the ritual; I heard the deacon speak of people in great need, and every voice in the building echo his words, “the Lord hear our prayers”; I saw hundreds of people, almost everyone in the building, stand up out of respect for hearing the words of the Gospel; on the way out I walked past people who remained kneeling at their pews, whispering quietly to God.
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It is easy, especially for those of us attending Mass on a daily basis, to get too comfortable with the weekly routine and take for granted the awesome experience of the Holy Mass which is literally heaven on earth. I needed this post today…

This is why it is important for voters, Republicans especially, to hold fast to their conservative, Christian values in the next election. If we don’t, nothing will stop “Republicans” like Gov. Schwarzenegger from becoming the mainstream of the party that traditionally protected the sanctity of life and marriage (H/T Regular Guy Paul):

“Mom and Dad” as well as “husband and wife” have been banned from California schools under a bill signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who with his signature also ordered public schools to allow boys to use girls restrooms and locker rooms, and vice versa, if they choose…

The bills signed by Schwarzenegger include SB777, which bans anything in public schools that could be interpreted as negative toward homosexuality, bisexuality and other alternative lifestyle choices.

There are no similar protections for students with traditional or conservative lifestyles and beliefs, however…

Also signed was AB394, which targets parents and teachers for such indoctrination through “anti-harassment” training, CCF said…

Thomasson said SB777 prohibits any “instruction” or school-sponsored “activity” that “promotes a discriminatory bias” against “gender” – the bill’s definition includes cross-dressing and sex changes – as well as “sexual orientation.”…

Offenders will face the wrath of the state Department of Education, up to and including lawsuits.

CCF noted that now on a banned list will be any text, reference or teaching aid that portrays marriage as only between a man and woman, materials that say people are born male or female (and not in between), sources that fail to include a variety of transsexual, bisexual and homosexual historical figures, and sex education materials that fail to offer the option of sex changes.

Further, homecoming kings now can be either male or female – as can homecoming queens, and students, whether male or female, must be allowed to use the restroom and locker room corresponding to the sex with which they choose to identify.

AB394 promotes the same issues through state-funded publications, postings, curricula and handouts to students, parents and teachers.

It also creates the circumstances where a parent who says marriage is only for a man and a woman in the presence of a lesbian teacher could be convicted of “harassment,” and a student who believes people are born either male or female could be reported as a “harasser” by a male teacher who wears women’s clothes, CCF said.

Thomasson said Schwarzenegger also signed AB14, which prohibits state funding for any program that does not support a range of alternative sexual practices, including state-funded social services run by churches.

Affected will be day cares, preschool or after-school programs, food and housing programs, senior services, anti-gang efforts, jobs programs and others.

If this isn’t a case for homeschooling, I don’t know what is. If you can stomach more religious discrimination, here is an article about condo owners who have been told to remove all religious statues from gardens and other common areas in the community.

We just got some disappointing news concerning our efforts against human cloning in Missouri. The Secretary of State, yesterday, approved the ballot language for a constitutional amendment to ban human cloning submitted by the Missouri Coalition for Cures Without Cloning. The language completely misrepresents the intention of the amendment and is unacceptable, falsely claiming that the amendment will

repeal the current ban on human cloning or attempted cloning and to limit Missouri patients’ access to stem cell research, therapies and cures approved by voters in November 2006

Meanwhile the actual amendment says nothing about repealing anything, but only seeks to accurately define and prohibit the creation of human embryos from the one-cell stage onward. The language approved by the SOS is just a bunch of pro-cloning talking points designed, no doubt, to discourage us from moving forward with this cloning ban. I don’t know what we’re going to do about it, but there is no way we can go to voters with this awful language. After all, who would want to sign a petition for an amendment with this name:

Constitutional Amendment to Add Article III, Section 38(e), Relating to Limiting Stem Cell Research, 2008-014

Perhaps it’s time to renew the Rosary Crusade to Safeguard Embryonic Human Life which was started last year by the archdiocese of St. Louis to defeat Amendment 2. It looks like we will be facing an even tougher battle than we did last year.

Our Sunday Visitor has an article this week about the late actress Jane Wyman and her “role as faithful Catholic.” She is also well known for being the first wife of Pres. Ronald Reagan and the mother to his children Maureen (died in 2001 from melanoma), adopted Michael an author and talk show host, and Christina (died 1947 from premature birth). According to OSV, her movie, The Blue Veil, for which she won the Golden Globe and received an Oscar nomination, was the source of her conversion:

Filmed in and around St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City, “The Blue Veil” “hit her in the face” regarding all she had learned about the Catholic faith from her good friend and fellow A-list actress Loretta Young, Zamboni said. Wyman had been attending Mass at Good Shepherd Church in Beverly Hills with Loretta in the wake of her 1948 divorce, as well as the death, the year before, of her second baby, Christina, with then husband and future president Ronald Reagan…

A couple of years later — on Dec. 8, 1954 — she was received into the Catholic Church, along with her children, Maureen and Michael.

After her conversion, Wyman spent much of her life giving back what she had been blessed with. Her two main charities were the Catholic Church and the Arthritis Foundation, but she also supported Hollywood’s Covenant House and the Dominican run Our Lady of the Angels Monastery.

A Third Order Dominican, she was buried wearing the habit in a simple pine coffin. Upon her death, her son, Michael said:

“I have lost a loving mother, my children Cameron and Ashley have lost a loving grandmother, my wife Colleen has lost a loving friend she called Mom and Hollywood has lost the classiest lady to ever grace the silver screen.”

Also starring Jane Wyman:
The Yearling
Johnny Belinda
The Glass Menagerie
Pollyanna
Falcon Crest
among many many others…

Have you thanked God for your guardian angel today? The angels that God has given us are meant to guide, protect and intercede for us, but they can also become our best companions! One is never too old to speak to one’s guardian angel as one would an old and dear friend. For that matter, one is also never too old for this timeless prayer:

Angel of God my guardian dear,
To whom God’s love commits me here,
Ever this day be at my side
To light, to guard
To rule and to guide.
Amen.

As I was just watching EWTN, I was reminded by Fr. Mitch Pacwa that we can also pray to other peoples’ guardian angels. Every single person has a guardian angel, even our worst enemies, and we can also pray to these angels for the salvation of souls.

Besides Our Lady, I think St. Therese, whose feast day was today, has had the biggest impact on my spiritual life. Early on in my spiritual journey I was encouraged to read her biography, Story of a Soul, and I fell in love. Never before had the spiritual life been shown, or explained, in such a real way. If you have not read it yet, I HIGHLY recommend it! I have read it twice now, and I’m sure will pick it up again.

This little saint is best known for articulating what she called her “Little Way” of spiritual childhood, which is what made her a Doctor of the Church. Here is an excerpt from her autobiography that I think gives a beautiful vision of this little way.

I look upon myself as a weak little bird, with only a light down as covering. I am not an eagle, but I have only an eagle’s EYES AND HEART. In spite of my extreme littleness I still dare to gaze upon the Diving Sun, the Sun of Love, and my heart feels within it all the aspirations of an Eagle.

The little bird wills to fly toward the bright Sun that attracts its eye, imitating its brothers, the eagles, whom it sees climbing up toward the Divine Furnace of the Holy Trinity. But alas! the only thing it can do is raise its little wings; to fly is not within its little power!

What then will become of it? Will it die of sorrow at seeing itself so weak? Oh no! the little bird will not even be troubled. With bold surrender, it wishes to remain gazing upon its Diving Sun. Nothing will frighten it, neither wind nor rain, and if dark clouds come and hide the Star of Love, the little bird will not change its place because it knows that beyond the clouds its bright Sun still shines on and that its brightness is not eclipsed for a single instant…

Jesus, I am too little to perform great actions, and my own folly is this: to trust that Your Love will accept me as a victim. My folly consists in begging the eagles, my brothers, to obtain for me the favor of flying toward the Sun of Love with the Divine Eagle’s own wings!

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As our Father, God wants to do everything for us and we must rely on Him for absolutely everything. Even our good works are not our own. The best thing we can do is offer our Lord our empty hands so that He may fill them with good works. My favorite quote from Therese: “Sanctity consists in suffering.” I also wrote about Therese on my post about darkness and the spiritual life.

Books you should read:
Story of a Soul
St. Therese of Lisieux, Her Last Conversations