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Wednesday, April 30, 2025

Dara’s Corner  Try  Oatmeal Cookie ·           Spirit hour:  Nuptial Cocktail  in honor of St. Catherine ·           Bucket List Trip:  The ...

Vineyard of the Lord Project

Vineyard of the Lord Project
Donate to help establish a vineyard at the Immaculate Conception Church is Cottonwood, Arizona

Friday, April 25, 2025

 NIC’s Corner

Stop Pancreatic Cancer

Nicole Havermale 112%

Raised: $565

Goal: $500

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PurpleStride Phoenix 2025
Saturday, April 26, 2025

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Diane's Defenders (Captain)

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Purple Stride 2025

13 years ago, we lost a beautiful soul, my mother. Before her diagnosis I had never heard of pancreatic cancer, over the next 6 months I would come to understand and hate this disease. My mom fought for 6 months, bravely and graciously. When she was diagnosed the 5 year survival rate was 5%, today it has increased to 12% through awareness and research. I’ve been witness to the great work PanCan has done over the years. Please consider donating and joining my team in memory of my mom, Diane Havermale. 

I’ve stepped up to Wage Hope at PurpleStride, the walk to end pancreatic cancer. Will you help me rewrite the future of this disease by making a donation today?

Every dollar that you give ensures that the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network can continue working to improve outcomes for pancreatic cancer patients.

Purple ribbons aren’t enough. Please join me in the fight today. 


My soul, be at rest in God alone,

from whom comes my hope.

(Psalm 62:6)

·         desert ridge marketplace is pleased to present villa fleur: a lavish pop-up experience specially crafted to celebrate spring.

o   villa fleur will captivate guests transcending them into an eclectic atmosphere of rich prints and bold textures, striking visuals and lush florals. set under romantic lighting, guests will settle into parlor-style seating designed to ignite the senses while enjoying chef-driven fare and elixirs and a state-of-the-art projection show designed exclusively for villa fleur. this rare journey is available for a limited time from March 14 – May 11.

·         National Food Month

o   20 foods that taste better frozen

·         National Arbor Day

o   Caution: trees do fall

·         Spirit Hour: Visit a ICE bar

o   Not in your Lingerie

·         Bucket List trip: ICE hotel

·         World Penguin Day

·         Iceman’s 40 devotion

·         Get an indulgence

·         Operation Purity

Fun things to do.

Go to Slide Rock

Beware of others’ butts when in the water!

Dog friendly activity in Lake Havasu

Copper Still Distillery

Fido is welcome to join you for specialty cocktails at the dog-friendly attraction Copper Still Distillery. A small family-owned distillery, you and Fido are invited to the front or rear patios to enjoy a wide selection of flavored moonshine, vodka, whiskey, gin, and rum. Copper Still has a full bar and showcases tasty seasonal signature cocktails which you can remake at home using spirits sold on the premises. Light snacks are available as you sit and relax with a delicious refreshing summer cocktail or whiskey.


·         New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival--April 24-May 4--Love jazz? Join fellow music lovers at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Held every year since 1970, the annual Jazz Fest, as it’s called, showcases nearly every music genre, from blues to R&B, and everything else in between. It’s all performed across 12 stages during the last weekend in April.

·         Shenandoah Apple Blossom FestivalApril 25 thru May 4-- Take in the small-town charm of Winchester, VA, in this 6-day celebration of spring. First held in 1924, the annual festival packs a wallop of more than 30 events into its lineup: band competitions, dances, parades, carnival, a 10K race, the coronation of Queen Shenandoah and so much more, attracting crowds in excess of 250,000.


April 25 Friday in the Octave of Easter

Feast of St. Mark 

Psalm 118, verse 4-6

4 Let those who FEAR the LORD say, his mercy endures forever. 5 In danger I called on the LORD; the LORD answered me and set me free. 6The LORD is with me; I am not afraid; what can mortals do against me? 

When can we say, “His mercy endures forever!” It is when we have received it and given it away. Everybody needs to forgive somebody. 

Allen R. Hunt outlines there are three parts to forgiveness:

1) Receiving Forgiveness which involves experiencing God and forgiving yourself.

2) Deciding to Forgive.

3) Sharing Forgiveness. 

Friday In the Octave of Easter[1] Most people our NIC (Not In Church)


He revealed Himself in this way.

What does St. John the Evangelist mean when he reports to us that the disciples “dared” not ask Jesus “Who are you?”  After all, the Beloved Disciple had told Peter that this was the Lord.  Today’s Gospel passage suggests some unresolved ambiguity.  While the miracle of catching 153 fish convinced the disciples who He was, there was still some reason for them to ask His identity.  His miracle convinced them, but His appearance did not.

So, the Risen Jesus, in His glorified Body, was the same person, yet somehow different.  He had the same two natures—human and divine—yet He was somehow different.  The Resurrection narratives demonstrate some of the ways in which Jesus was different after His rising from the dead:  most famously—as we will hear this coming Sunday—the Risen Lord had a physical body that could pass through solid matter.

The point here is that in His Risen Body, Jesus looks different to His disciples.  He looks different enough to cause some confusion in their minds:  at least enough confusion for them to be tempted to “dare” ask Him “Who are you?”  For ourselves, regarding both our meditation and our speaking to the Lord in prayer, we should ask:  do we expect the Lord to appear to us in some certain way?  How might God want to surprise us in making Himself known to us, and in showing us His love?

Easter Friday Meditation[2]

Easter reminds us of these fundamental requirements of the Christian life: the practice of piety and patience. Through piety we live detached from human frailties, in purity of mind and body, in union with Christ. Through patience we succeed in strengthening our character and controlling our temper so as to become more pleasing to the Lord and an example and encouragement to others, in the various contingencies of social life. The Resurrection of the Lord truly represents—and for this reason it is celebrated every year—the renewed resurrection of every one of us to the true Christian life, the perfect Christian life which we must all try to live. "The Resurrection of Christ is the sacrament of new life." My beloved brothers and children! First of all let us look closely at our pattern, Jesus Christ. You see that everything in His life was in preparation for His resurrection. St Augustine says: "In Christ everything was working for His resurrection." Born as a man, He appeared as a man for but a short time. Born of mortal flesh, He experienced all the vicissitudes of mortality. We see Him in His infancy, His boyhood, and His vigorous maturity, in which He died. He could not have risen again if He had not died; He could not have died if He had not been born; He was born, and He died so that He might rise again.

·         Plan a pilgrimage; go to a shrine; do a Divine Mercy Hike.


 

o   Easter Friday was a favorite day for pilgrimages in many parts of Europe. Large groups would take rather long processions to a shrine or church, where Mass would be offered.

 

Easter Friday is a favorite day for pilgrimages. [3]

 

Pilgrimage was an essential part of Jesus’ religious life. As God was one, so he had only one holy city, Jerusalem, to which he called his people to make pilgrimage: “Three times a year all your males shall appear before the Lord your God.” These Tri-annual pilgrimages were required at the feast of unleavened bread (Passover), at the feast of the weeks (commemoration of the Torah & the 10 commandments) and the feast of the booths (Sukkoth). Christ by his sacrifice has created a heavenly Jerusalem which is not in a geographic location but is Eucharistic and is located in the tabernacle of every Catholic Church. Jerusalem has still retained an attractive power, because it contained the monuments of the Lord’s passion and is one of the most popular pilgrimage sites. A modern Catholic map of the world will offer many possible destinations for pilgrimage. Jerusalem and Rome remain favorites as well as the Marian shrines of Lourdes and Fatima. Also, since the middle ages travelers have also thronged to Santiago de Compostela, the shrine of St. James in Spain. Yet, here is the greatness of our God: we need not go to the far ends of the earth to go on pilgrimage as God lives with us in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel and we can always find local shrines to make small pilgrimages. We could also make a pilgrimage to visit with holy people we know, or travel to honor the graves of our ancestors, friends and mentors. A pilgrimage is sacramental: an outward sign of an inward grace. It reminds us that we are wayfarers on earth till we are taken up into heaven.

 

Holy Catholic pilgrimages for your “bucket list”[4]

 

Whether you follow in the footsteps of Jesus or the saints, a holy pilgrimage is an opportunity to enrich one's faith.


Click here to launch the slideshow


 

The holy pilgrimage has been a Christian tradition since the first recorded spiritual journey, in which a bishop named Mileto from Sardis in Asia Minor traveled to the Holy Land in around 160 to visit the place where [things described in the Bible] were preached and done. “In the 4th century, pilgrimages following the footsteps of Jesus and the apostles became popular after Constantines mother, St. Helena, visited Jerusalem, discovered what is thought to have been the True Cross, and built churches over holy sites related to Jesus life. To walk the same path as Jesus and his followers, and to see with ones own eyes the places mentioned in Scripture, was more than just travel, it was meant to hasten an interior journey as well. Rome became a major destination for European pilgrims in the 7th century after the Muslim conquest of the Holy Land limited the number of Christians allowed to visit the holy sites there. The Crusades themselves were considered a form of pilgrimage, and pilgrimages to the Holy land increased in the late Middle Ages, partly due to the guidance of the Franciscan friars who were entrusted with the guardianship of the holy sites.

 

Today, Christians continue to make pilgrimages to enrich their spiritual lives. Taken in the spirit of prayer, a pilgrimage can be as life-changing today as it was in the time of St. Jerome, who in the 4th century wrote, We will have a clearer grasp of Scripture after we have gazed with our own eyes on the sites where the events of our salvation unfolded.

 

Read more: Here’s why a pilgrimage is an important aspect of the spiritual life

 

Heres a glimpse of a few sacred places to complete any Catholics bucket list, where modern pilgrims can travel to walk the same path as Jesus and his followers, and visit the sites of the miracles and apparitions:

 

The Holy Land


 

Pilgrims to the Holy Land and Jerusalem follow in the footsteps of Jesus, from the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem where Jesus was born to the Via Dolorosa and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher where he was laid to rest. For the last 800 years, the Order of St. Francis has had guardianship over these holy sites and is today working to ensure that Christians continue to exist in the birthplace of Christianity. By offering pilgrimages in the Holy Land, they can help fulfill that mission.

 

·         When to visit: The busiest times in Holy Land are during the major Christian and Jewish feasts in spring and fall. 

Fatima

 

The shrine in Fatima, Portugal, marks the spot where Our Lady of the Rosary appeared to three shepherd children, Lucia dos Santos and her cousins, Francisco and Jacinta, between May and October of 1917. Pilgrims from all over the world gather for the torch-lit processions held every day, but especially on pilgrimage days in May and October.

 

·         When to visit: Pilgrim’s travel to Fatima all year round, but the best-attended processions are held on the 13th of May and October.

 

El Camino de Santiago


 

The Way of St. James or El Camino de Santiago became a major pilgrimage destination during the Middle Ages. Tradition tells us that St. James remains were carried by boat from Jerusalem to northern Spain where he was buried. Medieval pilgrims traveled from their homes to what is now the city of Santiago de Compostela, receiving penance for the expiation of sins by undertaking the arduous journey.

 

Today, the pilgrimage has enjoyed a resurgence in popularity, among believers as well as non-believers in search of a retreat from modern life. Pilgrims hostels or albergues welcome travelers along the way and can be found along the routes in Spain, France and Portugal. 

Read more:

 

You want to walk the Camino de Santiago? Here are 10 things you should know

 

·         When to visit: July and August are the busiest months on the Camino. Pilgrims traveling during April, May, June and September enjoy warm weather without the crowds. 

Ireland

Ireland has a long tradition of holy pilgrimages, dating back to St. Patrick’s fast on what is now known as Croagh Patrick in 441. In the pasts few years, the Pilgrim Paths foundation has been restoring the ancient penitential paths and has so far created five guided walks. After pilgrims get their “passports” stamped after completing each of the five routes, they receive an Irish Pilgrim Paths completion certificate from Ballintubber Abbey in County Mayo.

Read more:

 

Walk along Irelands own Camino pilgrimage route

Rome

European pilgrims headed to Rome along the Via Francigena to follow the paths of the martyred saints and early Christians. Emperor Constantine erected basilicas over the tombs of Peter and Paul, which attracted the faithful from all over Europe.

Read more:

The Via Francigena: The other great European pilgrimage

Today a modern pilgrim would similarly visit St. Peters Basilica, attend a papal audience with the successor to St. Peter, take a tour of the Catacombs, the Vatican museums, and the ancient churches of the Eternal City.

·         When to visit: Winter is the best time to visit Rome if you want to avoid the crowds. Spring and fall, outside of Easter week, offer mild temperatures without the crowds of summer.

Lourdes

Millions of pilgrim’s flock to southwestern France each year to visit the Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes. It is there that the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared 18 times in 1858 to a young peasant girl, St. Bernadette Soubirous. In one of her appearances, she told St. Bernadette to drink from the grotto’s spring. Many of the sick and suffering claim to have been miraculously cured by the spring’s healing waters.

Read more:

Traveling to Lourdes? Go out of your way to visit St. Bernadette’s incorrupt body

·         When to visit: The quiet season at Lourdes is between October and March. During peak season, beginning at Easter, there are usually about 25,000 pilgrims a day visiting Lourdes.

Poland

Even before Pope John Paul II’s canonization, a spiritual journey to his homeland in Poland had become a popular pilgrimage among Catholics. An itinerary might include a visit to Karol Wojtyla’s childhood home in Wadowice, the shrine of the Black Madonna at Jasna Gora Monastery in Częstochowa, and the beautiful Tatra Mountains where John Paul II skied. Other must-visit sites: The Shrine of Divine Mercy and the martyred St. Maximilian Kolbe’s cell at Auschwitz.

Friday’s during the season of Easter-Fast or not?

 

It’s well known that Catholics abstain from meat on Fridays during Lent, and that Ash Wednesday and Good Fridays are fast days, in which we cut back on how much we eat. But what about the rest of the year? Should we be abstaining and fasting on other Fridays? And in particular, what about right now, during the season of Easter? It’s easy to sound legalistic in answering these questions, so let’s begin by laying something of a biblical and spiritual framework:

First, fasting isn’t optional in Christianity. Jesus says that “when you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by men.” Instead, “when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by men but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Matt. 6:16-18). So there’s clearly a wrong way to fast (doing it for the acclaim of men), but that’s not an argument against fasting. Notice that Jesus says not “if you fast,” but “when you fast.”

Second, we need to fast. God summarizes the story of Israel by saying that “it was I who knew you in the wilderness, in the land of drought; but when they had fed to the full, they were filled, and their heart was lifted up; therefore, they forgot me” (Hos. 13:5-6). That’s true of not just Israel, but all of us. When things are going poorly, we realize our weakness and (hopefully) cry out to God for help. When things are going well, on the other hand, it’s easy to buy into the illusion that we can take care of ourselves just fine without God. For this reason, Moses warned that “when you eat and are full, then take heed lest you forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt” (Deut. 6:11-12). Fasting is one of the concrete ways in which we allow ourselves to be shaken out of this forgetfulness and self-delusion.

Third, fasting is a practice of the Church, not just a private devotion. It’s great to decide for personal reasons that you need to fast for a particular period of time. But it would be a mistake to think all Christian fasting is like that. When Jesus says “when you fast,” he doesn’t use the second-person singular, as if it were up to each of us to decide when and where to fast. Instead, he says “you” in the plural, like “when you all fast.” We see concrete instances of local churches calling fasts in places like Acts 13:1-3 and Acts 14:23.

Fourth, fasting on Fridays has always been part of Christianity. It’s easy to think of fasting on Fridays as a modern thing. But it actually goes all the way back to the time of the apostles. A first-century Christian text called the Didache instructs, “Let not your fasts be with the hypocrites; for they fast on the second and fifth day of the week; but fast on the fourth day and the Preparation.” In other words, one of the ways that Christians were setting themselves apart from groups like the Pharisees was that the Pharisees would fast on Mondays and Thursdays, and Christians would fast on Wednesdays (the fourth day of the week) and Fridays (the day of Preparation). This wasn’t an empty cultural marker, like wearing pink on Wednesdays. It was a reminder of the death of the Lord Jesus on Good Friday, the day of preparation (Mark 15:42; John 19:31). In the modern era, this has taken the form of abstaining from meat on Fridays, rather than a full-fledged fast. But the reasoning is the same. As the NCCB (now USCCB) puts it, “Catholic peoples from time immemorial have set apart Friday for special penitential observance by which they gladly suffer with Christ that they may one day be glorified with Him. This is the heart of the tradition of abstinence from meat on Friday where that tradition has been observed in the holy Catholic Church.”

Fifth, the joy of Easter trumps the fast. St. John the Baptist’s disciples asked Jesus why his own disciples didn’t fast, and he replied, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast” (Matt. 9:15). That’s the crux: our fasting shouldn’t interfere with rejoicing in the presence of Jesus. During the Octave of Easter (the eight-day period from Easter Sunday to Divine Mercy Sunday), we celebrate the bridegroom returning to us from the grave, so it’s fitting for a time to set all of our fasting and abstaining aside. Likewise, there are certainly particularly important feast days (called solemnities) in which we relax these disciplines in order to highlight the feast.

So where does all of that leave us? 

The Church’s instructions are clear. Catholics who are able to do so* are required to abstain from meat on Fridays during Lent (can. 1251), but we should also treat the entire season of Lent and every Friday throughout the year as penitential (can. 1250). As the USCCB explains, “Friday should be in each week something of what Lent is in the entire year.” Just as every Sunday is a mini-Easter, every Friday is a mini-Lent, preparing us for Sunday and Easter.

How do we mark that mini-Lent, outside the season of Lent itself? It depends a bit on where you live. In the United Kingdom, Catholics are required to abstain from meat throughout the year. In CanadaIreland, and the United States, you can substitute something else for meat (like alcohol). But as the American bishops explained, the point of this was not to abolish Friday penance, but to urge Catholics to come up with “other forms of penitential witness which may become as much a part of the devout way of life in the future as Friday abstinence from meat.”

All of this is relaxed entirely if “a solemnity should fall on a Friday” (can. 1251). That always includes the first (but only the first) Friday after Easter, since the Universal Norms specify that “the first eight days of Easter Time constitute the Octave of Easter and are celebrated as Solemnities of the Lord.” For the rest of Easter season, we’re back to Friday penances. Perhaps the best way to understand why is to consider the counsel of St. Ignatius of Loyola, who says in his rules for discernment, “Let him who is in consolation think how he will be in the desolation which will come after, taking new strength for then.” The Fridays of Easter keep our Easter highs from getting so high that we forget the cross, just as the Sundays of Lent keep our Lenten lows from getting so low that we forget the Resurrection.

So this season, let us keep that spirit of Friday penance, without losing an ounce of our Easter joy!

*Those who should not fast or abstain are exempted, including young kids, pregnant/nursing moms, and people who are suffering from illness. Fasting and abstaining from meat should never endanger your health or the health of your child.

Divine Mercy Novena[5]

Eighth Day - Today Bring Me the Souls Who Are In the Prison Of Purgatory.

Most Merciful Jesus, You Yourself have said that You desire mercy; so, I bring into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart the souls in Purgatory, souls who are very dear to You, and yet who must make retribution to Your justice. May the streams of Blood and Water which gushed forth from Your Heart put out the flames of purifying fire, that in that place, too, the power of Your mercy may be praised.

Eternal Father turn Your most merciful gaze upon the souls suffering in Purgatory, who are enfolded in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. I beg You, by the sorrowful Passion of Jesus Your Son, and by all the bitterness with which His most sacred Soul was flooded, manifest Your mercy to the souls who are under Your just scrutiny. Look upon them in no other way than through the Wounds of Jesus, Your dearly beloved Son; for we firmly believe that there is no limit to Your goodness and compassion. Amen.

Fasting: Wednesdays and Fridays (Water/Juice and bread only, if medically allowed, otherwise as is outlined by the USCCB)

 

St. Mark, Evangelist

EPISTLE. I Peter 5:5-14

Beloved:  Clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for: God opposes the proud but bestows favor on the humble. So humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God,
that he may exalt you in due time. Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you. Be sober and vigilant. Your opponent the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, steadfast in faith, knowing that your brothers and sisters throughout the world undergo the same sufferings.
The God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory through Christ Jesus will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you after you have suffered a little. To him be dominion forever.  Amen. I write you this briefly through Silvanus,
whom I consider a faithful brother, exhorting you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Remain firm in it. The chosen one at Babylon sends you greeting, as does Mark, my son. Greet one another with a loving kiss. Peace to all of you who are in Christ.

GOSPEL. Mark 16: 15-20

Jesus appeared to the Eleven and said to them: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who believe:
in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents with their hands,
and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them.
They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” Then the Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven
and took his seat at the right hand of God. But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them
and confirmed the word through accompanying signs.

But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them …. 

Saint Mark the Evangelist, like St. Luke, was not an apostle, as were the evangelists Matthew and John.  Yet various prayers and Scriptures in the Sacred Liturgy are taken today from those set aside for the apostles.  Why is this?  Is the Church just too lazy to compose prayers specifically for the evangelists?  Of course not.

The entire New Testament is apostolic in origin.  Out of the 27 books of the New Testament, only two were not composed by apostles:  the Gospel accounts of Mark and Luke.  Yet even these two books are apostolic in origin, for St. Mark was a disciple of St. Peter, and St. Luke of St. Paul.

 

That St. Mark handed down the Gospel account that he had received from an apostle reminds us of two things.  First, the Church is apostolic in origin, by the design of Jesus.  It’s in unity with our bishops under the guidance of the Pope that we can hear the fullness of the Gospel.  Second, each of us, like St. Mark, lives one’s own vocation to hand on to others the same Good News that’s been handed down through history by the apostles and their successors.

Feast of St. Mark[6]

John Mark, later known simply as Mark, was a Jew by birth. He was the son of that Mary who was proprietress of the Cenacle or "upper room" which served as the meeting place for the first Christians in Jerusalem (Acts 12:12). He was still a youth at the time of the Savior's death. In his description of the young man who was present when Jesus was seized and who fled from the rabble leaving behind his "linen cloth," the second Evangelist might possibly have stamped the mark of his own identity. During the years that followed, the rapidly maturing youth witnessed the growth of the infant Church in his mother's Upper Room and became acquainted with its traditions. This knowledge he put to excellent use when compiling his Gospel. Later, we find Mark acting as a companion to his cousin Barnabas and Saul on their return journey to Antioch and on their first missionary journey. But Mark was too immature for the hardships of this type of work and therefore left them at Perge in Pamphylia to return home. As the two apostles were preparing for their second missionary journey, Barnabas wanted to take his cousin with him. Paul, however, objected. Thereupon the two cousins undertook a missionary journey to Cyprus. Time healed the strained relations between Paul and Mark, and during the former's first Roman captivity (61-63), Mark rendered Paul valuable service (Col. 4:10; Philem. 24), and the Apostle learned to appreciate him. When in chains the second time Paul requested Mark's presence (2 Tim. 4:11). An intimate friendship existed between Mark and Peter; he played the role of Peter's companion, disciple, and interpreter. According to the common patristic opinion, Mark was present at Peter's preaching in Rome and wrote his Gospel under the influence of the prince of the apostles. 

This explains why incidents which involve Peter are described with telling detail (e.g., the great day at Capharnaum, 1:14f)). Little is known of Mark's later life. It is certain that he died a martyr's death as bishop of Alexandria in Egypt. His relics were transferred from Alexandria to Venice, where a worthy tomb was erected in St. Mark's Cathedral. The Gospel of St. Mark, the shortest of the four, is, above all, a Roman Gospel. It originated in Rome and is addressed to Roman, or shall we say, to Western Christianity. Another high merit is its chronological presentation of the life of Christ. For we should be deeply interested in the historical sequence of the events in our blessed Savior's life. Furthermore, Mark was a skilled painter of word pictures. With one stroke he frequently enhances a familiar scene, shedding upon it new light. His Gospel is the "Gospel of Peter," for he wrote it under the direction and with the aid of the prince of the apostles. "The Evangelist Mark is represented as a lion because he begins his Gospel in the wilderness, `The voice of one crying in the desert: Make ready the way of the Lord,' or because he presents the Lord as the unconquered King."

Patron: Against impenitence; attorneys; barristers; captives; Egypt; glaziers; imprisoned people; insect bites; lions; notaries; prisoners; scrofulous diseases; stained glass workers; struma; Diocese of Venice, Florida; Venice, Italy.

Symbols: Winged lion; fig tree; pen; book and scroll; club; barren fig tree; scroll with words Pax Tibi; winged and nimbed lion; lion.

Often Pictured as: Man writing or holding his gospel; man with a halter around his neck; lion in the desert; man with a book or scroll accompanied by a winged lion; holding a palm and book; holding a book with pax tibi Marce written on it; bishop on a throne decorated with lions; helping Venetian sailors; rescuing Christian slaves from Saracens.

Feast of St. Mark, the Patron Saint of Venice[7]

In Italy April 25th is Liberation Day, a national holiday commemorating the end of World War II in 1945 and the Nazi occupation of Italy. But for Venetians April 25th is an even older holiday, Festa di San Marco, or The Feast of St Mark. April 25th is the anniversary of St Mark’s death in 68 A.D. and in Venice is a lively celebration. Mass is held in the morning at Saint Mark’s Basilica, and there is music, dancing, concerts and carnivals throughout the day. Of course it wouldn’t be a festival in Venice without a Gondola Race! The "Regata di Traghetti" starts at the island of Sant’Elena and ends at the Punta della Dogana, at the entrance of the Grand Canal. One look at Saint Mark’s Square with Saint Mark’s Basilica is proof enough that the city is anything but subtle about their pride in their patron saint. The winged lion, which represents St Mark and is the famous symbol of the city of Venice, can also be found in Piazza San Marco, and all over Venice for that matter. Saint Mark may be a ubiquitous symbol in Venice today, but before the year 828 Saint Mark's remains were in Alexandria. Being an important maritime power, Venice needed equally important relics, a status symbol at the time. Venetian merchants Buono da Malamocco and Rustico da Torcello were up for the job, and smuggled Saint Mark’s remains from Alexandria into Venice. They accomplished the difficult task by hiding the relics in shipments of pork meat, which were understandably off-putting to the Islamic inspectors. Perhaps it’s because of the great effort taken to "import" Saint Mark’s remains that Venetians have always been so proud of their patron saint. 

Festival of the Blooming Rose

The celebration is also known as the "Festival of the Blooming Rose,” and it is tradition for men to give the woman they love a "bocolo," a red rose bud to symbolize their love. The legend surrounding the tradition of the rosebud centers on two star-crossed lovers, Maria Partecipazio, the Doge’s daughter, and Tancredi the troubadour. Maria was a beautiful noblewoman, whose father forbid her romance with Tancredi because of his lower social class. Tancredi enrolls in the army, seeking fame and glory through battle that would elevate his social status, making him able to return home worthy of Maria. He fought valiantly, but was ultimately killed in battle in Spain. Tancredi fell mortally wounded onto a rosebush, and with the last of his strength picked a rosebud and asked his friend Orlando the Paladin to take it back to Maria. Orlando returned to Venice on April 24th, and true to his word gave Maria the rosebud, still stained with Tancredi’s blood. The next day, on April 25th, Maria was found dead with the rose over her broken heart. So, while flowers are always a welcome gesture, if you’re in Venice for April 25th, be sure to symbolize your eternal love with a red rosebud!

The Rogation Days

These are the Church's special days of prayer during which the faithful beseech God for mercy in behalf of the bodily and spiritual needs of humanity, and especially to obtain His blessings upon the new growth in the fields. The term Rogation has been given these days because of the supplicatory and penitential exercises which characterize them. Outstanding are the special prayers (given in the Ritual and Breviary), the violet color of the vestments of the clergy and of the vestures, the Litany of the Saints sung during the procession and the special Rogation Mass. 

Formerly such observances were more numerous than today, and they included fasting and abstinence. They were held in time of public calamity to appease the just wrath of God because of sin or to beseech Him to avert impending calamities. It is still common in many places for clergy and people to proceed to the fields, imploring God's blessing upon them. Antedating the Christian observance, and which the latter replaced, was the pagan festival of the Robigalia which sacrifices were offered to the god Robigus whose special task it was, as popularly believed, to keep blight from grain. 

Today the Church has four such days to be observed during the year. The one replacing the pagan festival of April 25 coincides with the feast of St. Mark, celebrated on this day, and is called the Greater Litanies. The procession is held, and the Mass of Rogation is offered up. If the procession cannot possibly be held, whether out of doors or within the church, the Mass is of the feast of St. Mark, unless it occurs on a still greater feast, or during Easter week, when it is transferred. The three other Rogation Days, also called the Lesser Litanies immediately priced the feast of the Ascension. Their observance has come down to use form the institution at Vienna in France by Bishop Mamertus in the fifth century. Pope St. Leo III, towards the end of the eighth century, introduced practice for the universal church. 

—Excerpted from "The Mind of the Church after Easter and at Whitsuntide: Participation Outlines" by Rembert Bularzik, OSB, Orate Fratres 1935-05-18: Vol 9 Iss 7, pp. 292-293

BANQUET for the Feast of St. Mark

·         Feast of St. Mark-Mass

 

Catechism of the Catholic Church

Day 313 2401-2406

PART THREE: LIFE IN CHRIST

SECTION TWO-THE TEN COMMANDMENTS

CHAPTER TWO-YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF

Article 7-THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT

You shall not steal.

2401 The seventh commandment forbids unjustly taking or keeping the goods of one's neighbor and wronging him in any way with respect to his goods. It commands justice and charity in the care of earthly goods and the fruits of men's labor. For the sake of the common good, it requires respect for the universal destination of goods and respect for the right to private property. Christian life strives to order this world's goods to God and to fraternal charity.

I. The Universal Destination and the Private Ownership of Goods

2402 In the beginning God entrusted the earth and its resources to the common stewardship of mankind to take care of them, master them by labor, and enjoy their fruits. The goods of creation are destined for the whole human race. However, the earth is divided up among men to assure the security of their lives, endangered by poverty and threatened by violence. The appropriation of property is legitimate for guaranteeing the freedom and dignity of persons and for helping each of them to meet his basic needs and the needs of those in his charge. It should allow for a natural solidarity to develop between men.

2403 The right to private property, acquired by work or received from others by inheritance or gift, does not do away with the original gift of the earth to the whole of mankind. The universal destination of goods remains primordial, even if the promotion of the common good requires respect for the right to private property and its exercise.

2404 "In his use of things man should regard the external goods he legitimately owns not merely as exclusive to himself but common to others also, in the sense that they can benefit others as well as himself." The ownership of any property makes its holder a steward of Providence, with the task of making it fruitful and communicating its benefits to others, first of all his family.

2405 Goods of production - material or immaterial - such as land, factories, practical or artistic skills, oblige their possessors to employ them in ways that will benefit the greatest number. Those who hold goods for use and consumption should use them with moderation, reserving the better part for guests, for the sick and the poor.

2406 Political authority has the right and duty to regulate the legitimate exercise of the right to ownership for the sake of the common good.

THIS WE BELIEVE

PRAYERS AND TEACHINGS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

Prayer to the Holy Spirit[8]

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love.

Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And you shall renew the face of the earth.

O God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy his consolations.

Through the same Christ Our Lord. Amen.

Fitness Friday-Sleeping Workout

 

Recognizing that God, the Father created man on Friday the 6th day I propose in this blog to have an entry that shares on how to recreate and renew yourself in strength, mind, soul and heart.

 

Having trouble sleeping? Try some light catholic reading.

 

The reading of all good books is like conversation with the finest men of the past centuries.”  This quote is by the famous philosopher Descartes.  Although I am not a fan of everything Descartes has to say, I don’t think he’s too far off here.  Reading a good book by a good author is indeed like having a conversation with them.  By reading their book you’re looking into their mind, experiencing their world, and learning their wisdom. In my opinion there are no greater people to have “conversations” with through their writing than Catholic saints.  Catholic saints have written some of the most beautiful literature which inspires, educates, encourages, and informs us how to live a holy and happy life.  Here is a list of ten classic Catholic books which any and every Catholic should read at some point in their life.

 

*If you’re not much of a reader, or if you don’t have much free time to pick up a book, many of these classic Catholic books have audio book versions.

 

·         The Imitation of Christ by St. Thomas a Kempis

·         Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska by St. Maria Faustina Kowalska

·         Dark Night of the Soul ­by St. John of the Cross

·         The Way of Perfection by St. Teresa of Avila

·         The Story of a Soul by St. Therese of Lisieux

·         An Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales

·         City of God by St. Augustine

·         Summa Theologica by St. Thomas Aquinas

·         The Interior Castle by St. Teresa of Avila

·         The Confessions by St. Augustine

As you can tell, this list of great Catholic books by wonderful Catholic saints is in no particular order.  These are just 10 of the many Catholic books written by wonderful saints who have so much timeless wisdom to share.  Who wouldn’t want to have a conversation with any of these wonderful saints?  What books would you add to this list of classic Catholic books?  What does your favorite classic Catholic books list look like?

Daily Devotions

·         Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them in fasting: Today's Fast: The sanctification of the Church Militant.

·         Litany of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus

·         Offering to the sacred heart of Jesus

·         Make reparations to the Holy Face

·         Drops of Christ’s Blood

·         Universal Man Plan






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