Saints, Feast, Family
- Traditions passed down with Cooking, Crafting, & Caring -
April 20
Saint of the day:
Saint Agnes of Montepulciano
Patron Saint of Siena, Italy
Saturday of the Third Week of
Easter
WEED DAY
Acts,
Chapter 9, Verse 31
The
church throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria was at peace. It was being built up and walked in the FEAR of the Lord, and with the
consolation of the Holy Spirit it grew in numbers.
The church was at peace
because the apostles trusted in the power of God and accepted Saul as Paul.
Saul was the major threat to the fledgling church until Christ stopped Saul in
his tracks.
For those who do not fear
God let us pray that Christ stops us knocks us to the ground and delivers us as
He did Saul.
Christ chose Saul
because he was an earnest man first.
The great
need at this hour is manly men. We want not goody-goody piety; we have too much
of it. We want men who will do right, though the heavens fall, who believe in
God, and who will confess Him. Rev. W. J. Dawson.
Great men of the bible
realize that we are both body and spirit. They took great care of the body and
honored God with the use of it. Our examples are Moses, Sampson, David, Saint
Joseph and even Jesus Himself.
The body
of an athlete and the soul of a sage; these are what we require to be happy.
Voltaire.
Weed Day[1]
April 20 has become a counterculture holiday in North
America, where people gather to celebrate and consume cannabis. Some
events have a political nature to them, advocating for the legalization of
cannabis. North American observances have been held at Hippie Hill in San
Francisco's Golden Gate Park near the Haight-Ashbury district, the University
of Colorado's Boulder campus, Ottawa, Ontario, at Parliament Hill
and Major's Hill Park, Montreal, Quebec at Mount Royal monument, Edmonton,
Alberta at the Alberta Legislature Building, as well as Vancouver,
British Columbia at the Vancouver Art Gallery. The growing size of
the unofficial event at UC Santa Cruz caused the Vice Chancellor of Student
Affairs to send an e-mail to parents in 2009 stating: "The growth in scale
of this activity has become a concern for both the university and surrounding
community."
Up in Smoke[2]
Q: I have a question regarding
the use of marijuana and whether it is considered a sin to smoke it
recreationally now that it is legal in Washington state. I have a Catholic
friend who smokes it and doesn’t seem to think that there is anything wrong
with doing so. What does the church teach about using marijuana recreationally
— is it a sin?
A: During the period of
continuing formation following my ordination, I was introduced to Stephen
Covey’s well-known book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. The second
habit has always stuck with me: “Begin with the end in mind.” It means that
before we start something, we need to think it out and make sure our present
actions will help us toward our future goals.
Covey’s second habit can be applied to
the spiritual life. The goal of our spiritual lives is ultimately to love God
and others to the fullest possible extent, and ultimately to make it to heaven.
What we do in the present should assist us in these spiritual goals.
So, to your question, with the
understanding that marijuana is a legally prescribed therapeutic drug for
certain mental and physical conditions: Does recreational marijuana use help or
hinder us in reaching this goal of our Christian life?
The Catechism of the Catholic Church,
quoting Vatican II, says the following: “God willed that man should be ‘left in
the hand of his own counsel,’ so that he might of his own accord seek his
Creator and freely attain his full and blessed perfection by cleaving to him.”
(1730) God doesn’t force us to seek and love him; it is something that he has
left us free to do.
Marijuana affects the limbic system of
the brain, which deals with emotion, behavior, motivation, long-term memory,
and sense of smell and time. Using this substance, as many studies show, causes
both physical and psychological effects in the user, including heightened heart
rates, short-term memory loss, delayed reaction, depression and even anxiety.
When a person smokes marijuana, they are placing chemicals in their nervous
system that alter their consciousness and have the potential to produce future
emotional and physical damage.
Marijuana certainly is not beneficial
to the spiritual life, and if it becomes a serious impediment to growth in the
spiritual life and drawing closer to God and our ultimate goal, heaven, the
church would consider its recreational use a sin. It’s important to remember
that there is a big difference between recreational and therapeutic drug use
and this understanding does not apply only to marijuana.
YouCat, the youth catechism of the
Catholic Church, says: “Every time a person loses or forgets himself by
becoming intoxicated, which can also include excessive eating and drinking,
indulgence in sexual activity, or speeding with an automobile, he loses some of
his human dignity and freedom and therefore sins against God. This should be
distinguished from the reasonable, conscious, and moderate use of enjoyable
things.” (389)
When we forget ourselves in this way
through “intoxication” of any kind, we run the risk of forgetting what the
purpose and goal of our lives are, and certainly are not considering this
ultimate goal in the present.
St. Paul says, “Do you not know that
your body is a temple of the holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God,
and that you are not your own?” (1 Corinthians 6:19) We were created to be good
and responsible stewards of God’s creation, including our bodies, which are
sacred. Recreational marijuana use can be an impediment to the fullness of life
that God wants to share with us and so can become a hindrance to being a good
steward of what God has created. Do you want to be a Dude or a Dud?
Is it weed or Lipton’s?[3]
While trapped in the
hut some of the guys there were talking, and they mentioned that Lipton’s tea
when it was burnt smells just like marijuana. I could not believe it; the next
thing you know I was running back to my footlocker. I knew I had a pipe in
there somewhere. Yes! I loaded it up with Lipton’s and lit it. Tasted like pure
shit but yes it did smell just like marijuana. Brillo and I were going to have
some fun with this. At lunch, we took my pipe with us over to the galley and we
were eating slowly waiting for our victim. Then he came in, Mr. Winterover. You
know the guy with his head shaved who wintered over stares at walls and things
like that. He sat a few spaces down from us. Brillo and I watched him as he was
eating soup like an “animal.” Staring at the wall with his face about four
inches from the bowl and eating quickly, one spoon after another; just staring
at the wall. I pulled the pipe out, lit it, and took a big drag; held it in my
lungs then let the smoke out. Then, I passed the pipe over to Brillo, who did
the same. The smoke drifted over to Mr. Winterover, all the sudden he stopped
in mid stroke with the soup, sniffed, and then sniffed again. Slowly his head
turned our way, and he sniffed one more time. Then he dropped his spoon, jumped
up and ran over to us like a kid. He said to me,
“Hey, man is that shit.”
I said, “Yah it’s some
Maui Wowi.”
He said, “Holy crap
man how did you get it here, with customs and all.”
I quickly said,
“Brillo here just hid it in his jacket.”
He was rubbing his
hands together and prancing. “Hey man you don’t mind if I take a hit.” “Like
man I ain’t had any shit for 18 months.”
I said, “Sure, here you go.”
I handed the pipe to
Mr. Winterover, he greedily grabbed it, put the pipe to his lips taking a draw
bending his whole body backwards with the draw, then he took two more deep
draws rolling his eyes back in his head, breathed out and said to me and Brillo,
“Man, that was the best shit I have ever had!” Brillo and I could hardly
contain our laughter. After lunch we decided that it would also be fun to walk
through the officer’s quarter’s area on the way back to the hut. It was
interesting to note doors would open people would sniff through the crack in
the door, but nobody came out of their rooms.
Catechism
of the Catholic Church
PART FOUR: CHRISTIAN PRAYER
SECTION ONE-PRAYER IN THE CHRISTIAN LIFE
CHAPTER[4]
ONE-THE REVELATION OF PRAYER - THE UNIVERSAL CALL TO PRAYER
Article 3-IN THE AGE OF THE CHURCH
III. Prayer of Intercession
2634 Intercession is a prayer
of petition which leads us to pray as Jesus did. He is the one intercessor with
the Father on behalf of all men, especially sinners. He is "able for
all time to save those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives
to make intercession for them." The Holy Spirit "himself
intercedes for us . . . and intercedes for the saints according to the will of
God."
2635 Since Abraham,
intercession - asking on behalf of another has been characteristic of a heart
attuned to God's mercy. In the age of the Church, Christian intercession
participates in Christ's, as an expression of the communion of saints. In
intercession, he who prays looks "not only to his own interests, but also
to the interests of others," even to the point of praying for those who do
him harm.
2636 The first Christian
communities lived this form of fellowship intensely. Thus the Apostle Paul
gives them a share in his ministry of preaching the Gospel but also
intercedes for them. The intercession of Christians recognizes no boundaries:
"for all men, for kings and all who are in high positions," for
persecutors, for the salvation of those who reject the Gospel.
PRAYERS AND TEACHINGS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
Consecration
to the Blessed Mother[5]
O
Mary, Virgin most powerful and Mother of mercy, Queen of Heaven and Refuge of
sinners, we consecrate ourselves to thine Immaculate Heart.
We
consecrate to thee our very being and our whole life; all that we have, all
that we love, all that we are. To thee we give our bodies, our hearts and our
souls; to thee we give our homes, our families, our country.
We
desire that all that is in us and around us may belong to thee, and may share
in the benefits of thy motherly benediction. And that this act of consecration
may be truly efficacious and lasting, we renew this day at thy feet the
promises of our Baptism and our first Holy Communion.
We
pledge ourselves to profess courageously and at all times the truths of our
holy Faith, and to live as befits Catholics who are duly submissive to all the
directions of the Pope and the Bishops in communion with him.
We
pledge ourselves to keep the commandments of God and His Church, in particular
to keep holy the Lord's Day.
We
likewise pledge ourselves to make the consoling practices of the Christian
religion, and above all, Holy Communion, an integral part of our lives, in so
far as we shall be able so to do.
Finally,
we promise thee, O glorious Mother of God and loving Mother of men, to devote
ourselves whole-heartedly to the service of thy blessed cult, in order to
hasten and assure, through the sovereignty of thine Immaculate Heart, the
coming of the kingdom of the Sacred Heart of thine adorable Son, in our own
hearts and in those of all men, in our country and in all the world, as in
heaven. so, on earth. Amen.
Vinny’s
Corner
Colossal
Cave Mountain Park, Tucson
Ask any
former visitor and they’ll yell it from the rooftops: a trip to this hidden gem
in Vail, just a short drive from Tucson, is one of the most unique things to do
in Arizona.
A
former hideout for Apache Indians and stagecoach robbers, Colossal Cave
Mountain Park is a maze of caves and tunnels — which is listed on the National
Register of Historic Places — is now open for exploration by thrill-seeking
tourists from all over the world.
The bleeding Host in Poland was approved for
veneration in April 2016, by Bishop Zbigniew Kiernikowski of Legnica who said
that it “has the hallmarks of a Eucharistic miracle.” Learn more here
Next
Week
· Lyte
Sky Lantern Festival is coming to the
Tucson, AZ area Saturday, April 27th, 2024.
o Arizona- Tucson, Arizona
o Saturday,
April 27th, 2024
o 5:00 PM –
10:00 P
Daily
Devotions
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Today's Fast: Reparations
for offenses and blasphemies against God and the Blessed Virgin Mary
·
Litany of the Most Precious
Blood of Jesus
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Make
reparations to the Holy Face
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