At the end of an era...

Finances are never easy.  There are always some bill to pay, some thing to be fixed, some unexpected cost. Ostensibly, due to financial difficulty at the parish, I have been let go as of June 30, 2017.  May all the parishioners of Notre Dame, and friends of Notre Dame, find great blessings in their lives.  May the Lord be with you.

So as you may know....

Our Pastor, Fr. Michael Gass, has been granted retirement from Notre Dame parish.  As you can imagine, we are in for a little bit of a change.  If you were not aware, then you should be aware our new pastor, Msgr. Ed Buelt, is current pastor of Our Lady of Loreto in Foxfield, CO. 

Interesting, I, your humble Director of Religious Education, have known, then, Fr. Ed Buelt.  When St. Thomas Seminary closed in Denver, where the current St. John Vianney Seminary stands, and before the new seminaries opened, Fr. Ed held a young adults' Mass each Sunday evening.  It was a great community where we spent many hours together in prayer, but also in joyfully playing games and with food as well, if I remember correctly.

It remains to be seen what will change.

Give thanks for your Freedom... while we still have it...

This was posted yesterday, and I can not believe what our brothers and sisters in the Lord are suffering.  They are descending into what was once the experience of the early Christians in Rome, well watch the clip:


It is important that we pray for the strength and safety, and the assistance of the Guardian Angels for these our brothers and sisters in the Lord.  What if such a situation arose here in America? In Denver?  Would we have the courage and love to step forward to defend the Lord's people? 

And what now, while the world slides deeper into sin, will you do nothing?  Marijuana is now legal and contraception has become so addictive to many people who live a life of promiscuity?  Do we do anything for them now?   Guns can be fought very readily with other guns, but only virtue can combat sin in a nation without a prolific experience of guns. Do you and I have the courage to take up that virtue and to reject and fight sinfulness wherever we find it?  Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against sin and temptation.  Get in the fight....

We are blessed with Fr. Michael Gass!

As you may know, Fr. Michael Gass refocused our community on the Divine Eucaharistic presence of our Lord when he arrived here.  Be sure to thank him this week, as Bishop Poprocki, is now agreeing, and implicitly honoring, the actions of Fr. Michael when he restored Jesus to the center of our worship. 

Infiltration by well-meaning people?

I am currently going through a few videos that have been here in the Parish Religious Education Center for some time.  Interesting as there is a video series known as"The 3rd Millenium: Vatican II - The Civilization of Love."  As I watch these I am truly saddened at these videos which came out in the mid 1980s.

The video on "The Liturgy" actually tried to prove that the Church was trying to dissassemble to Traditional Latin Mass and the liturgical actions of centuries of Christian belief.  At one point, the commentator actually says (something to the effect of), "The question is not why have we turned the altars around, but why were they up against a wall in the first place."  This is an unfortunate and gravely mistaken reading of the Documents of Vatican II.  It is quite clear as one reads the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy or Sacrosanctum Concilium that this is not something which the Council sought to do.  It is not even mentioned.  In fact, recently a blogger known as Matt Fradd noted this in one of his columns.  Yet in this video the deceptively make it sound as if this were almost the expressed desire  of the Catholic Church.   Moreover, it goes on to basically make the case the Liturgy, and in particular the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, is reducible to a mere "meal which Jesus left us."  Lastly, it laments that we can be comfortable with a "human jesus, but a divine Jesus makes us uncomfortable."

These elements of the video make it clear that the Catholic Faith is not about receving the Gift of Faith from God, the objective revelation and teaching of Jesus handed on in the Church.  Rather, the producers of this video seek to have us only worship what we understand.  We should, it seem, not seek the mystery of God, the intimate life of God, but we should be happy enough with only that which we can handle.  What a sad version of Catholicism this creates.

Over and over again this same video admits that "the Mystery" of God is removed from the Liturgy.  Yet, this is the very nature of what Jesus came to reveal for us in the Mystery of the Holy Trinity.  The very interior and intimate life of God is what we are invited into in the Sacrament of Baptism.  Now, according to this video, with the New Order of Mass after Vatican II we seem to have no need of mystery in Liturgy. A more false notion could not be found.

As if this weren't bad enough, the next video I reviewed in this series is proposing to show Mary in a "new light."  There are many subtleties in this presentation that may be beyond most average Catholics, however for myself as a trained theologian there are many distinctions that must be made which are not and presumptions which are spoken that are not clear.  Beyond that, it should suffice to point out that the Nun who presents this presentation on Mary is the one about whom Cardinal Gerhard Mueller, the head of the Congregation of the Doctrine of Faith, criticized the LCWR (the Leadership Conference of Women Religious - which is a leadership group that heads the many of the congregations of nuns in America) because they honored this dissenting theologian. 

As I continue to review these videos, I can't help but notice it is for videos like this, which are published by a company called "Parish Video Library", that so many Catholics, either in leadership roles or in the pews, who heard and accepted these views were and are the reason that so many Catholics no longer believe the Catholic Faith or erroneously hold positions which are contrary to the Catholic Faith.  It is so much easier for us as human beings for us to convince ourselves that we understand the faith when it makes sense to us or is easier for us to follow, rather than understand that the gift of Catholic Faith and challenge which it offers us in our human lives.  Becoming a Saint is not possible by any other means than by the cross of faith and abandonment to God's teaching for mankind in the Holy Catholic Church.  May we not seek the way that is wide and easy, but the narrow way that is the way of sacrifice and obedience to Christ.

"My sheep know MY voice"

The writers of the following article are WRONG on the Catholic practice of praying the Rosary.  They also erroneously call the only Church Jesus established (the Catholic Church) "heretics".  As well, they mistakenly seem to implicate all of the successors of the apostles (the bishops of the Holy Catholic Church) as "false teachers" - which maybe the case in some rare instances, but not ALL.  Moreover, they refer to "the Catholic's angry God" - WHICH IS NOT THE CASE!  Nevertheless, with so many people considering going to see "The Son of God," one wonders if it should not be approached with more caution.

THIS IS HOLLYWOOD AFTER ALL!

The Bible is far more profound in its text than in any interpretation of man - this is precisely why we have Scripture reading as the secondary focus of EVERY MASS, the first being "the bread of life which came down from heaven (see Jn 6:1-66)." It is also the reason the Catholic Church approves translations for her children, so that we may get the most faithful texts - which any scholar of Greek or Hebrew could tell you. 

Nevertheless, consider the main point of this article: namely, the movie "The Son of God" may NOT be what you think it is.

http://thelasthiker.wordpress.com/2014/02/23/the-son-of-god-movie-is-not-what-we-think-do-you-know-the-voice-of-your-master/

For further witness, consider this article written by an apparently Protestant author (for the teaching about being covered over by Christ's grace at the end): http://blogs.christianpost.com/abandoned-to-christ/movie-review-son-of-god-is-most-certainly-not-the-son-of-god-20297/

As Catholics, we must be leery of following false Christs. Many have come, and many more will before the end.  Be attentive!

Your life will change...

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I want to announce and encourage you to mark you calendar now for Notre Dame's Parish Lenten Mission.  After so many centuries of wisdom and great Saints who came from the Dominican Order, Notre Dame has asked the Order to send us a priest who would come to share the Wisdom and Love of God for us.

Fr. Chris Saliga currently serves as assistant novice master for the Dominican Province of St. Joseph.  He has previously served in campus ministry at Aquinas House at Dartmouth College and as university chaplain at Walsh University; he has served as postulant director and assistant novice master for the Dominican Vicariate of Eastern African; and he has served as health care chaplain and ethicist with the Dominican Friars Health Care Ministry of New York, Saint Catherine of Siena Priory.

He has taught philosophical bioethics at Walsh University; he has taught courses on human freedom and human happiness for the Waterman Institute at Dartmouth College; he has facilitated ethical reflections grounded in natural law for interested Medical Students at Dartmouth College; he has taught various clinical rotations for Franciscan University of Steubenville Department of Nursing; he has served on the Hospital for Special Surgery Ethics Committee; and he has served on the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee at the University of Akron.

He has presented on a variety of topics in health care ethics and spirituality at various hospitals, universities, and churches; he has written on select topics in health care ethics and spirituality; and he has led numerous retreats, days of recollection, and missions in schools, religious communities, and parishes.

Father Chris is a military veteran having served as a United States Army combat medic and a paratrooper, and later as a United States Navy nurse corps officer with both active Naval and reserve Marine Corps branches.   

Fr. Chris comes very highly recommended, and I pray that you will join the Parish in looking forward to  hearing his message of God love in a Mission that will be focused on the theme:

The Cross: Our Lenten Journey to Eternal Life.  This will take place from Saturday March 22nd until Wednesday March 26th.  Fr. Saliga will preach all Sunday Masses (including the Sat. evening mass), he will preach each morning at the morning masses, and then offer a reflection each night beginning on Sunday Mar. 23rd until Wednesday Mar. 26th at 7pm.  Come and consider the love and mercy of God for each of our human souls and bodies! 

To learn a little more about Fr. Chris, here is an explanation of some of the things he has done:

VIEW DISCRETION ADVISED & prayers for True Men of Christ.

This post has ADULT CONTENT! PLEASE BE ADVISED! VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED.

Do you know a true man of God?  What does he look like?  Certainly he serves Christ above all else, in his family, in his relationships, in his priesthood (whether as an ordained priest or as a lay man who offers spiritual sacrifices to God), but how would know.  A few months back a horrific display of the lusts and rebelliousness of mankind against God took place when self-proclaimed Feminists took to the streets of Argentina to attack the Cathedral there.  While the Bishop prayed with others for these people, some men took up arms (literally) to defend the Church and the Holy Eucharist inside.  Pray for these men of Argentina, pray for the women in this video, pray for Holy Mother Church who now is being beset on all sides from the vicious and bold attacks of mankind that has forgotten the Love of God:




Before you read further, please watch the above video, if you have not.

Michael Voris over at ChurchMilitant.TV had this to say:


We must ask ourselves: could we have done this as well?  Could we defend the Holy Eucharist from those who would seek to desecrate it.  And, perhaps more necessarily, do we know others and associate with others who are able to do this as well?  For our parish, the Men's Group meets on the First Wednesday of each month at 8:30pm.  The Daughters of Jerusalem Women's Group meets on the 4th Wednesday of most every month.  The Militia Immaculata meets on the 1st Wednesday from 7pm-8pm.  Consider joining others as we learn, encourage and live our Holy Catholic Faith.  The time may be coming when we will need each other to fight and endure persecution.

To all the Married "Peeps", and those on the way...

Are you married?  Are you looking to be?  For your consideration:

Why bother with a Catholic University!?!?!

Because you get amazing creativity and hilariousness like this:



My alma mater, Franciscan University of the Steubenville!  I would recommend it for any young Catholic seeking to be serious in their Faith!

Before logging on to the internet

Found here: http://wdtprs.com/blog/a-prayer-before-connecting-to-the-internet/, Fr. Z has done a great service to all of us at his blog, by offering this prayer before you log onto the internet:

A prayer before logging onto the internet:
Almighty and eternal God, who created us in Thine image and bade us to seek after all that is good, true and beautiful, especially in the divine person of Thine Only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, grant, we beseech Thee, that, through the intercession of Saint Isidore, Bishop and Doctor, during our journeys through the internet we will direct our hands and eyes only to that which is pleasing to Thee and treat with charity and patience all those souls whom we encounter. Through Christ our Lord.   Amen.

Not much more can be said about this....

Other than, please God may it be so:

Do you understand the historic significance of this?

Dear Fellow Parishioners and fellow Catholics everywhere, Pray. Pray for our country. Pray for our president. You may be a person who believes that "gay marriage" should be legal; heck, you may even be for abortion. But understand this: our country has been hijacked from the Christian principles it once stood on. This can be seen in this article posted a few days ago. If you don't have the time, then the jist is this: recently Satanists have unveiled their plans for a Satanic Monument in Oklahoma.

And this comes from society where the mindset is no longer concerned with the only Living and True God who has sent His only begotten Son for the sake of our salvation. This can be seen particularly in our president who holds a syncretistic view of America. And particularly, that our current American President proclaimed these amazing words:

In the American Imagination, the hallmark of our nation has been its Christian underpinnings, which quickly were established as NOT CATHOLIC by society as a whole. Then, and thus where we are now, the Protestant mindset is now waning. Certainly, this is of a piece with Protestant Christianity: If one does not like or agree with something, then they should reject it and change it to what makes them more comfortable. I have heard this from various Catholics who have been told strange things from clergy members - including that HELL no longer exists or that no one is likely there. This kind of erosion is what Satan loves. Yes, Satan and the Hell which he directs are very much real. Satan knows that we Catholics can not be outright changed once we have accepted and decided to serve Christ. But he also knows that if we slowly begin to slack on the grandeur and demands of the Christian Life, then he already has a claw on us. Even WORSE, that we lead one of Christ's little ones astray, "for it would be better if we had a millstone tied to our neck and we were thrown in the sea (Lk 17:2)." To quote G.K. Chesterton, "The Christian life [and here read Catholic, as ONLY it is the fulness of Christianity] has not been tried and found wanting; it has been tried and found difficult." Yes, to claim the title of "Catholic" today and to live up to its demands is NOT for the weak, it is only for those of great courage and faith. Thanks be to God that all of us who are weak will be granted the grace of courage and faith to do this, if we accept it, and become the Saints God intends for us to be!

Consider,as well, our own nearby Christian sisters, dedicated to Christ our Lord and to his service. The Little Sisters of the Poor will NOT (PLEASE GOD) give up the fight against the imposition of so-called "Obamacare" because it violates the basic teaching of what the suffering and wounded Christ died for so that mankind might know him and the way for our Salvation from Sin. In case, you have not heard (or don't have time to read the link): the Little Sisters of the Poor have been wantonly attacked by our own American Government. Thank God for the Becketfund.org that is defending them and proving that Catholics, true Catholics, do NOT back down from the encroachment of this world on our belief in Christ. These Little Sisters of the Poor have been told by the current Administration that it is "no big deal" to sign a waiver which allows them to let another company provide their employees with access to abortion and contraception. This, my dear brothers and sisters, IS the new "PINCH OF INCENSE" that so many of our early Christian brothers and sisters would NOT put on a fire before a statue of the Emperor (seen by the Romans to be a God). They understand well that to do so would be to violate their belief in Jesus Christ as the only true Lord of Life. Their Trinitarian Faith, belief in the Holy Trinity that Jesus came to reveal (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), allowed them to endure what seemed like "no big deal" - the pinch of incense before the idol - and to be faithful to Christ even in what seemed like a small thing. Though, in fact, it was an immense rejection of the Only Living and True God.

Mark these words: the Church is now sinking into persecution. Are you ready to prepare for fidelity to Christ, for as he himself taught us, "he who is faithful in small things, will be faithful in big things." Pray for me, as I pray for all of you, that we ALL may be faithful to him who has given us New Life in the waters of Baptism. I pray persecution is not upon us, but I don't think it can be avoided now - mind you, this is only ONE man's opinion (namely mine!). A showdown seems to be coming in the life of every Faithful Catholic. Pray that we might have an Elijah to help us be faithful against Baal!

Would you know?

Our Blessed Lord Jesus, the only Living and True Second Person of the Holy Trinity, came to deliver mankind from sin. He does not allow us to be comfortable; he is not always allowing us to be in sorrow and pain, and he is often calling us to overcome our human understanding by learning and understanding God's Holy Will for our lives. We need to know that we may learn this Holy Will by learning through the means that Jesus established for us: namely, the Holy Catholic Church.

Certainly, many will object asking "how can this be since Jesus' Church with so many sinners in it?" And yet, when we understand that salvation from sin, each of our salvation, depends on our Freewill, then we can begin to realize how this makes sense. We each have the freewill to accept or reject the Truth, the only Truth, established by Jesus Christ. Nevertheless, that Truth is One, whole and complete. It is not dependent on the people who have been given stewardship of the Catholic Church. How do we know that? Bl. John Henry Cardinal Newman once said, "To be deep in history is to cease to be Protestant." In other words, when you look at the history of the Church, and every Catholic should, then we should see quite clearly that their have always been scandals, sinners, and Saints all wrapped up in Holy Mother Church. And yet, in spite of it all, Official Church teaching has never changed. It has never faltered on matters of belief and morals. Certainly, there have been some imprudent and sometimes scandalous policies enacted by Church leaders, and even the Popes. Nevertheless, the official body of teaching has never changed or been added to from what was understood and lived even in the earliest centuries.

Some of our unbelieving contemporaries would perhaps put this up to coincidence or iron-fisted popes or whatever. For us as believing Catholics, we must understand that this is through the promise of what Jesus himself noted when He Sent the Holy Spirit, with the Father, upon the Apostles in order to establish His Holy Church.

Last week at Mass we had a very shocking reading, in which Jesus taught us:

"See that you not be deceived,for many will come in my name, saying,'I am he,’ and 'The time has come.’ Do not follow them! "

Jesus understood well our human nature, after all he created it! Nevertheless, there are various people, even today, who continue to make the claim that they have become or are, the "Lord Jesus Christ" who has returned. Take for example this guy (its a half hour video, so you might keep reading then come back):



Sadly, this is not the only pretender out there. Consider this dude:

And finally, there is another dude who is now claiming "Jesus status", though it seems he has been doing so since "aliens" apparently came to visit him (back when he was known as "Rael?"). This man is named "Lord Rayel", and he is claiming the ability "judge the nations" and, of course, he must have an outrageous "british like accent". I won't give you a link beyond the one to his Youtube channel, as I find his claims too ridiculous. (Remember, we are told already in the bible that a Demon can appear as an Angel of light (see 2Cor 11:14)."

The point here is that many people have and are still making claims to have the power of God, and to even be our Blessed Lord Jesus Christ. Nevertheless, when he returns, the world of this age will close. Life will not be the same as we are living now, with its struggle with sin - AND YES THERE IS STILL SIN, JUST AS MUCH AS THERE IS STILL HELL! We must consider where do we put our personal faith. Can we believe, in spite of humanity's sinfulness, that Jesus would be faithful to never allow the "the gates of hell (Mt. 16:19)" to prevail against his Holy Catholic Church which he established and promised to be with until the end of time (see Mt 28:19-20). Or is any human's claim a reason to believe in his own claim. Even if his teaching "tickles one's ears," does that mean that man bears the Truth? Even St. Paul warned against this: "But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach [to you] a gospel other than the one that we preached to you, let that one be accursed!"

As we come to the end of the Liturgical Year this week, remember that we celebrate the Solemn Feast of Christ the King. Why? Because God is not God of the dead, but of the Living. Jesus Christ, our King, reigns even now. We must allow him, by our spiritual choice and service, to undo what our first parents Adam & Eve did by disobeying God. Nevertheless, He will not force us in his Mercy & Love. Many will likely still come before the end of this world to claim by their humanity the divinity which they will not be able to stand before when the Just Judge finally reveals himself. As servants of Jesus Christ, the Only and True King not just of Israel, or the Church, but of the Universe, let each of us not lose hope, but stand firm, for our salvation is coming - whether in our lives or in the life of the world. May we wait joyfully and in hope for the True Return of Jesus Christ.

Which one is yours?

Consider this: Where is Notre Dame's? Where is your Faith?

Seriously... SERIOUSLY!?!?! Is this what we have forgotten...

There are a great many things wrong with the world. However, what is wrong in the world should not be in the Holy Catholic Church. Nevertheless, the Catholic Church is a divine institution entrusted to humanity. It is comprised of people who are fallible, though she herself is without defect because of the promise of the Holy Spirit. That being said, we as Catholics must be informed. "Informed?" you say, "About the sinfulness in the Church???" No!!! My point here is that we must be informed about why the Church is important in our lives. Only then can we understand the humanity in which the Church acts, and in which the Holy Spirit seeks to work - including you and I.

And, unfortunately, we must understand when men choose to work against the mission and teachings of the Church, and the destruction they cause in doing this. Only when we come to know how vital is the Catholic Church to the mission of Christ in the world, that all of his disciples "may be one, as [He] and the Father are one," then - and only then - will we have the love for God to help reform His Holy Bride. Faithful Catholics, it seems to me, are in one of two positions as the Bride of Christ - either 1) continuing to exercise and beautify ourselves for His return, or 2) making a destructive mess of ourselves (as a Church) so that we can fashion ourselves to be beautiful as we see beauty, and not as Christ has revealed how we can beautiful for him. Yes, humanity can be beautiful in the way we respond to God. But, at times, one wonders whether the "destroyers" within the Church even know what they are doing to the Mystical Body of Christ. Every baptized Christian is called to act in the Mercy and Mind of Christ. Yet, how can we come to reports like this:



This is very much along the lines of the report done by Michael Voris for Churchmilitant.TV about the CCHD, which can be found here. I am not one to leave the Church, nor to whine about such things (nor I hope are you, dear reader), rather, as this post aims to demonstrate, I hope to love the Church enough to help educate about the errors that go on, which ought not to.

It is love that compels us as Catholics, or at least it should. Nevertheless, there seems to be a rebellious and anti-catholic spirit that continues to manifest itself in various events and actions around the world. For example: sadly, one should be informed that, for one Diocese, public opinion seems to outweigh the need to Pray AND ACT for the Defense of Human Life:
For discussion's sake, can anyone else come to another conclusion?!? Read this document linked to that video and PLEASE inform me.

Jesus left two final tasks for the Church, well really four sub-tasks: 1) Go forth & Baptize all nations. 2) Teach them to observe all that i have commanded you. Notice, 1) Go, 2) Baptize, 3) Teach & 4) Observe. Inherent in the fourth sub-mission is to be faithful to both the Baptism we receive and, when we make that Apostolic Mission our own, AS WE SHOULD, to be observant of all that we have learned ourselves. This is where things like ignoring the Church's constant teaching on Hell, or Contraception, or Abortion, or the necessity of utilizing the Sacrament of Confession does not help to beautify the Church, but seeks to destroy the "veil" and "dress" which the Lord has left for us, as His bride. In my humble (yet educated) opinion, ignoring these teachings is tantamount to stomping on the ring which he has placed on the finger of the Church. Yes, it is that serious!

The point of this post is not to "destroy", but to inspire awareness that all is not well "Right here in River City!" We Catholics need to be informed of the things going wrong in the Church, and when we are, then the love we have for Him who has established this beautiful bride should encourage and challenge us to do our best to mend her "accoutrements" and her "actions" by what we do in our lives. We can not be those that destroy the faith and love of others for the Church. We must be the Saints that are the face of the Church in the world! As St Teresa of Avila pleaded for us to understand:

Christ has no body but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks with
Compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.
Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are his body.

The question, then, that we are left with is: Will we allow ourselves not just to be placed in his service, but rather will we SEEK OUT how to help in EVERY way possible that we can?

Nevertheless, we can not utilize evil or deceptive means to make the Church more beautiful. And to demonstrate that, as well as for a little "entertaining deceptiveness" (which may arguably be the only place where it can be acceptable), I leave you with the Music Man (one of my favorite musicals):

Character.....its not as hard as it looks...

Its interesting in a world where Syria has almost blown up into war that many argue it began with our President's comments regarding what would happen if Syria used chemical weapons. He said this:

On the one hand, I think it is interesting that President Obama saw necessary to give an ultimatum to Asad and his opponents, which could and may draw America into the conflict. On the other hand, and since this is not meant to be a political post, I do find it interesting that President Obama was consistent in his comments once those weapons had been utilized.

If nothing else, and here is the point of my post, one can say that at least he was consistent in what he said. Often times in our world it is very easy to give up on being consistent with what one has said. I think that often as modern people we think, "Well, who cares, really?" Thankfully, there are some who continue to understand that our integrity as human beings is what makes us distinctly more human.

For us Christians, this is particularly what we call "virtue." In virtue, we become more real and more who we are supposed to be in God's grace. Of course, it is not always easy, but in love many things are possible. Which leads me to a new advertisement by Guinness - yes, Guinness the Brewery. In a new ad, they are extolling what used to be known as manhood. Today, for many modern men, sexual conquest or a pragmatic approach to people seems to be prevalent. We know this from the number of abortions that overflow in our world today. Something like 11 every hour in the world!? Thankfully, the human spirit yearns to find real humanity, to become what we are supposed to be in this life. And I think I, and you if you are fan and of age, can certainly enjoy a Guinness with more gusto knowing that they are also promoting men to become virtuous, even if inadvertently:

Is there realy a Crisis in the Church?

There is so much to discuss in this program. There are two hours of material, there is a very real consideration of the state of the Church in America that is worth the time, if you are a serious Catholic who loves and is concerned for the Church.

Discussion in the comments would be VERY VERY welcomed.

An Important Distinction!!!

I kind of expected it...

Sickness.  Its not all it is cracked up to be.

I know people who enjoy the time of being at home in bed... "languishing" under the covers while they recuperate.  I, unfortunately, have been numbered among such poor souls for the last few days... except that I have been at work here at the parish. I contracted some kind of low grade headache that has been hanging around for almost a week now. 

Not that I am complaining, mind you.  Especially when people are getting into head on car crashes in Missouri!  If you haven't heard that has been a big manhunt for a priest who mysteriously appeared "out of nowhere" to offer the Anointing of the Sick for a young lady who had been in a car accident.  Initial reports made it sound more mysterious than real:
Check it out the video here, because I couldn't get it to stop auto-playing on my page :(

But it turns out that this may have not have been as mysterious as some had hoped!  In fact, over at the National Catholic Register website, people were hoping it was a Saintly priest from heaven who appeared to reveal God's mercy (see the comments at this link).  It turns out, the answer is much move obvious than some had hoped, and that in fact it was an average ordinary priest of God. 

What i find so interesting, though, is that even in that article one finds a very strange reaction: 

While some had hoped for supernatural intervention, it seems an entirely human conclusion has come to fruition. Still, the faithful would argue that God’s hand was in this gesture, regardless of the channel that was used to help usher in calm at the scene.

Really?  An "entirely human conclusion"?  One the one hand they are right in their meaning of the channel of God's grace, but on the other GOD'S GRACE has come into the world!!!  It is quite interesting to me that the Catholic Church is so common place to people that no one thinks it is strange that a man walks around in black clothes and dabs people with oil!  REALLY??  There is a reason this human being has done this!  He is not merely imagining that he is doing good deeds.  In fact, the news reports noted that the young lady was strengthened when the Holy Oils were administered.  The Emergency responders also noted that they were more at peace. 

What I am getting at here is that if you are a Catholic, we SHOULD NOT be comfortable with God's grace which is so generously offered to world.  We can not be complacent at the amazing hands of a Priest, who though he is only a "channel" of God's grace, it is GOD'S GRACE that we want to remember is entering into the world.  A real and direct power and reminder of His Truth and Strength that we can receive in the Sacraments.  The world and the media are happy enough to have found the "mystery priest" but they completely ignore that the power of the priesthood of Jesus Christ has and continues to act in the world!  AND THAT IS STILL NEWS!!!