Saturday, February 12, 2022


Sirach, Chapter 40, Verse 7

As he reaches safety, he wakes up, astonished that there was nothing to FEAR.

 

Our loving God wants us free; He speaks to us at times through our dreams and reassures us of His assistance. Rest is an important part of God’s care for us and the world.

 

In the Jewish calendar God specified that we are to rest one out of seven days, but it goes further with a rest after seven weeks ending in a year of Jubilee after the 49th year called a Shemitah (9/2014-9/2015).


 

The Shemitah Year is the seventh year of the seven-year agricultural cycle mandated by the Torah for the Land of Israel and still observed in contemporary Judaism. When Moses received the Levitical law, God gave the commandment to rest on the seventh day… the Sabbath. Moses also applied the cycles of "seven" to weeks and years. A cycle of seven weeks points to the 50th day, called Pentecost. And a cycle of seven sets of seven years points to the 50th year, the year of Jubilee. The year of Jubilee (9/2015-9/2016) is based on letting the land rest every seventh year as follows; "For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops. But in the seventh year the land is to have a Sabbath of rest, a Sabbath to the Lord." (Leviticus 25:3-4)

 

Before the Exodus, the Israelites had been slaves in the land of Egypt, without freedom and without possessions. When they reached the land of Canaan, Joshua divided the land among their tribes and their families… so that each had his own inheritance. Every adult male among them became a landowner. This land was a permanent possession that could never depart from his family. If a man became poor he could sell part or all of his land… but only temporarily. It would always revert to him or his descendants at the “Year of Jubilee.” If he became even poorer and was unable to pay his debts, he could sell himself into slavery, and work to pay off his debts. Again, that slavery could only ever be temporary. When the great “Day of Atonement” in the “Year of Jubilee” came he became a free man once again and repossessed his inheritance. The most unusual observance that God commanded the Israelites through Moses was… the keeping of the Year of Jubilee. For most people this celebration occurred only once in their lifetime and for many not even that, as it occurred …only once every 50 years. At this year of jubilee all Israelites who had sold themselves into slavery were set free… and all land that had been sold reverted to its original owner. This meant that the Israelites could not ever be in permanent slavery; nor could any Israelite permanently lose his inheritance![1] 

God’s purpose for the jubilee is to set men free from slavery. Are there people and things you are enslaved too? Now is the time to break free from them. If you are indebted do what you can to satisfy the debt during this Jubilee year. If others happen to be enslaved to you; now is the time to release them and god’s mercy will shine on you! If you are enslaved to alcohol, drugs, pornography, food or any other thing or person. Free yourself to be able to give yourself to God on this the Shemitah year. ________________________________________

 

Today we fight

 

fight the Devil in Scottsdale[2]



The Satanic Temple has announced that Scottsdale has been selected as the site for the group’s first religious convention. They call it “SatanCon.com” a three-day event that will take place February 11-13, 2022. Scottsdale officials made clear that they are, in fact, accepting and inclusive regarding Satanists. Lucien Greaves (co-founder of the Satanic Temple) stated: “We heard you, Scottsdale, and we accepted that as an invitation to turn Scottsdale into the Happy Satanic Fun Capital of the World.” Satanic Temple To Host Satanic Convention, “We’re To Bring Satan To Scottsdale – Arizona Daily Independent

What Is the Catholic Response from the Laity?

·        February 11th (Friday) Noon to 3 pm Rosary and Prayer in front of hotel.

·        February 12th (Saturday) Noon to 3 pm Rosary and Prayer in front of hotel.

·        February 13th (Sunday) Noon to 3 pm Rosary and Prayer in front of hotel.

Why Is the Rosary So Powerful Against Satan?

The Secret of the Rosary, Saint Louis de Montfort said: “Public prayer is far more powerful than private prayer to appease the anger of God and call down His Mercy, and Holy Mother Church, guided by the Holy Ghost, has always advocated public prayer in times of public tragedy and suffering.” Through our prayers we will call the grace of God down upon us and the city of Scottsdale. We will have a Marian consecration done for the city of Scottsdale. Catholics must confront this evil cult in every city they seek to consecrate to satan. Every square inch on planet earth belongs to Our Lord Jesus Christ, He purchased it with his blood. This is a rallying cry for Catholic men to stand up and non-Catholic men of good will.

Click the button below to view the prayers we will pray during the protest

Prayer Sheet For Protest

“Why Protest”? Below are the FAQs that will help you understand why we should take a stand in this fight

Why Are We Protesting? Click Here FAQs

PREPARATION for the Protest

It is important to be SPIRTUALLY PREPARED for this event. We STRONGLY recommend that you are in a STATE of GRACE:

·        Go to CONFESSION within 7-Days before the event and receive the Holy Eucharist as often as possible

·        Start a 9-Day Rosary Novena to Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Patron Saint of the Diocese of Phoenix, AZ on Wednesday, 02-02-22

·        PRAY:  at least 3 times-a-DAY as Daniel did in Daniel 6:10-11

·        PENANCE: (Rosary & Divine Mercy on your knees) and fasting on Wednesdays and Fridays

·        BRING: your Rosary, Sacramentals, and Holy Images 

Our Church is under attack! It is the laity’s time to rise up and “step into the breach.” We need “boots on the ground” and show the strength of our Catholic Faith. Make a prayerful discernment on how YOU are going to participate in this battle for Mother Church! 

“I begin this letter with a clarion call and clear charge to you, my sons and brothers in Christ: Men, do not hesitate to engage in the battle that is raging around you, the battle that is wounding our children and families, the battle that is distorting the dignity of both women and men.” – First words of Bishop Thomas J Olmsted’s 2015 Apostolic Exhortation, ‘Into the Breach’

National Marriage Week-Marriage Retreat[3]

Here is a virtual Marriage Retreat. Join us by taking a few moments each day, together with your spouse, to reflect and pray. This retreat will help you further reflect on what makes marriage unique as established by God, between a man and woman, as the basis for family and society. For more instruction or inspiration, visit foryourmarriage.org or marriageuniqueforareason.org.

 

·       Plan to do the retreats weekly; perhaps on the day of the week you were married.

·       Enjoy a good home cooked meal together after your retreat; use a recipe for the saint of the day. Available at Catholicculture.org. Say Grace together and ask to the saint of the day’s intervention. 

 

Abraham Lincoln[4] 


Lincoln's Birthday (1809) celebrates the birthday of Abraham Lincoln, one of the most popular presidents in United States history. It is a state holiday in some states on or around February 12. It's also known as Abraham Lincoln's Birthday, Abraham Lincoln Day or Lincoln Day. 

“Character is Destiny” [5] is a book written by John McCain in it he highlights the 16th President, Abraham Lincoln, of the United States as an example of a man who demonstrates for us the characteristic of RESILIENCE. Resilience is the ability to become strong, healthy, or successful again after something bad happens. 

Abraham Lincoln had known loss and grief all his life yet rather that than succumb to defeat; he somehow, always found a way to rise back up. He was inarguably a man of action. Although he was known to have chronic depression he never yielded and, in some way, resurrected from his melancholic states thinking, “To remain as I am is impossible; I must die or be better.” Lincoln rose to the highest office in the land after surviving a hard and poor childhood in the Indiana wilderness, a harsh father, little education, and deep loneliness. He survived the death of his brother, a sister, his mother, his first sweetheart, and his own children and his marriage to Mary Todd was troubled. As president he was considered dismal by most. How did Lincoln persist? He willed it. He was neither swift nor brilliant at work, but he was exhaustive; he continued. His resilience sprang from his deep conviction that America was, “the last, best hope of earth.” In the end he paid for his devotion with his life; so that the government of the people, by the people, and for the people shall not perish from the earth. 

Darwin Day[6]

Darwin Day commemorates the achievements and the life of the scientist Charles Darwin. Names like Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, Galileo Galilei, and Charles Darwin are among the most historic names in science. Darwin’s most famous achievement is the development of the Theory of Natural Selection. The celebration occurs every year on Darwin’s birthday, February 12th.

Character is Destiny[7]

 

John McCain pointed out in his book entitled, “Character is Destiny” that an understanding heart must be generous (Oseola McCarty), forgiving (Nelson Mandela), tolerant (Four Chaplains), full of mercy (Mother Antonia), faithful (Christian Guard at Hua Lo prison) and compassionate (Maximilian Kolbe). John now suggests for us that adding to our understanding heart we must strive to have a creative mind. A creative mind must be built on a thirst or curiosity in the mysteries of creation. John points out as an example of curiosity the renowned Charles Darwin.

 

McCain says of Darwin:

 

His curiosity and courage helped him to discover the history of nature and start an argument that has continued for 150 years. A curious thing about the father of the theory of evolution is that he himself was an avowed agnostic, keeping to his scientific methods.

 

The evolution of all life on earth, including man, was and still is, in some quarters, considered an affront to the belief that the progress of the human race over time bears the unmistakable sign of the divine spark in our nature. But why can we not be content in our faith with the understanding that God’s divine intelligence, which exists beyond time and space, and has left us to choose by the exercise of our free will whether to accept His grace or reject it, could have left nature to work its physical changes upon us? We have a second nature, a moral nature, that is not determined by ecological change but by the workings of our conscience. Is not our conscience and its effect upon our will enough confirmation for the believer that God, the Creator, has endowed us with the divine spark of His love to improve, if we so choose, our second nature in service to Him? It is enough, I believe, for anyone who can see in our struggle to be good a divine purpose, as we may still glimpse in the wonders of nature the divine intelligence that created it and set it all in motion.

 

To believe and follow God is our choice. Not all will follow. Our principal belief is in our salvation not in this life but the next. Man, and nature, even at their cruelest, cannot deny us that, nor the gloriousness of His creation, a gloriousness that human qualities like curiosity have led us to appreciate with humility and awe. Time and the laws of nature do not expose the absence of God, whose proofs are a matter for the heart to contemplate, a matter of faith. 


Evolution and the Catholic Church[8] 

Early contributions to biology were made by Catholic scientists such as Jean-Baptiste Lamarck and the Augustinian friar Gregor Mendel. Since the publication of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species in 1859, the attitude of the Catholic Church on the theory of evolution has slowly been refined.

 

For nearly a century, the papacy offered no authoritative pronouncement on Darwin's theories. In the 1950 encyclical Humani generis, Pope Pius XII confirmed that there is no intrinsic conflict between Christianity and the theory of evolution, provided that Christians believe that God created all things and that the individual soul is a direct creation by God and not the product of purely material forces.

 

Today, the Church supports theistic evolution(ism), also known as evolutionary creation, although Catholics are free not to believe in any part of evolutionary theory.

 

The Catholic Church holds no official position on the theory of creation or evolution, leaving the specifics of either theistic evolution or literal creationism to the individual within certain parameters established by the Church. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, any believer may accept either literal or special creation within the period of an actual six-day, twenty-four-hour period, or they may accept the belief that the earth evolved over time under the guidance of God. Catholicism holds that God initiated and continued the process of his evolutionary creation and that all humans, whether specially created or evolved, have and have always had specially created souls for each individual.

 

Catholic schools in the United States and other countries teach evolution as part of their science curriculum. They teach the fact that evolution occurs and the modern evolutionary synthesis, which is the scientific theory that explains how evolution proceeds.


Eve of the feast of St. Catherine de Ricci[9]

St. Catherine experienced the stigmata every Thursday and Friday and thus accompanied Jesus in His Passion. Despite Catherine's extraordinary interior life, she continued to serve the monastery in many capacities including prioress for 36 years. The Canticle of the Passion was revealed to Catherine immediately after her first great ecstasy of the Passion. Our Lady desired Catherine to spread it as a form of prayer and contemplation pleasing to Our Lord.

The Canticle is chanted in some Dominican monasteries on the Fridays of Lent.

Lament of Christ

X  My friends and My neighbors have drawn near and stood against Me.

X  I was delivered up and came not forth; My eyes languished through poverty.

X  And my sweat became as drops of blood, trickling down and upon the ground.

X  For many dogs have encompassed Me the council of the malignant hath besieged Me.

X  I have given My body to the strikers and My cheeks to them that plucked them.

X  I have not turned away My face from them that rebuked Me and spit upon Me.

X  For I am ready for scourges, and My sorrow is continually before Me.

X  The soldiers, plaiting a crown of thorns, placed it upon My head.

X  They have dug My hands and feet; they have numbered all My bones.

X  And they gave Me gall for My food; and in My thirst, they gave me vinegar to drink.

X  All they that saw Me laughed Me to scorn; they have spoken with lips and wagged their heads.

X  They have looked and stared upon Me; they parted My garments among them and upon My vesture they cast lots.

X  Into Thy hands I commend My spirit; Thou has redeemed me, O God of truth.

X  Be mindful, O Lord, of Thy servants, when Thou shalt come into Thy kingdom.

X  And Jesus having cried out with a loud voice gave up the ghost.

The mercies of the Lord I will sing for all eternity. Surely, He hath borne our infirmities and carried our sorrows. He was bruised for our sins. All we, like sheep, have gone astray; everyone hath turned aside into his own way. For the Lord hath placed upon him the iniquities of us all. Arise, why sleepest Thou, O Lord? Arise and cast us not off to the end. Behold, God is my Savior, I will deal confidently, and will not fear. We beseech Thee, O Lord, help Thy servants whom Thou hast redeemed with Thy Precious Blood.

V. Have mercy on us, O benign Jesus. R. Who in Thy clemency didst suffer for us.

Look down, we beseech Thee, O Lord, on this Thy family for which Our Lord Jesus Christ did not hesitate to be delivered into the hands of the wicked and suffer the torments of the Cross.

Depositio[10]

 

The last ceremonial act of the Time after Epiphany is the bittersweet farewell, or depositio, to the word "Alleluia," which is suppressed for seventy days in the traditional Roman rite from Septuagesima Sunday until Holy Saturday night. This ceremony usually takes after the office of none (i.e., around 3 p.m.) on the Saturday before Septuagesima Sunday 

Daily Devotions

·       Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them in fasting: Today's Fast: Holy Priests, Consecrated, & Religious

·       Saturday Litany of the Hours Invoking the Aid of Mother Mary

·       Offering to the sacred heart of Jesus

·       Drops of Christ’s Blood

·       Our Lady of Argenteuil

·       Iceman’s 40 devotion

·       Universal Man Plan

·       Rosary




[2] https://www.azriseupfaithful.com/

[5] McCain, John and Salter, Mark. (2005) Character is destiny. Random House, New York

[6] https://www.wincalendar.com/Darwin-Day

[7] http://www.icemanforchrist.org/p/character-is-destiny.html

[8]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolution_and_the_Catholic_Church

[9]http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/prayers/view.cfm?id=1296

Comments

Popular Posts