Rachel’s Corner
(Luke 4:18)
· Know that you are on a great stage where all heaven and earth are watching you. What message is our life giving?
· do a personal eucharistic stations of the cross.
· Foodie: ARNI PSITO ME PATATES
· Bucket List: Military Hop
· Spirit hour: Tsikoudia
Thursday Feast
Thursday is the day of the week that our Lord gave himself up for consumption. Thursday commemorates the last supper. Some theologians believe after Sunday Thursday is the holiest day of the week. We should then try to make this day special by making a visit to the blessed sacrament chapel, Mass or even stopping by the grave of a loved one. Why not plan to count the blessing of the week and thank our Lord. Plan a special meal. Be at Peace.
· According to Mary Agreda[6] in her visions it was on a Thursday at six o'clock in the evening and at the approach of night that the Angel Gabriel approached and announced her as Mother of God and she gave her fiat.
- Grilled Chicken Skewers With Toum (Shish Taouk)
- Cabbage Tabbouleh
- Honey Orange Blossom Baklava
- Lebanese Baklava
Best Places to Visit in June
Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts
Visiting Newcomers that came over by paying the Drug Cartels and possibly the Joe Biden Crime Syndicate are not welcomed
Martha’s Vineyard is one of the best places to visit in the USA in June with so many wonderful things to do and gorgeous sites to see. It is one of the best day trips from Boston, and June is an excellent time to visit before the summer tourists arrive in July and August.
While you are in Martha’s Vineyard, take a ride on their oldest operating platform carousel called Flying Horses Carousel. It is a historic landmark and a fun attraction for all ages.
Martha’s Vineyard is also home to lighthouses, museums, and summer festivals. You can visit one of the five remaining lighthouses on Martha’s Vineyard, such as Edgartown Lighthouse, or check out the island’s first festival of the season called Vineyard Artisan Festival.
Make sure to visit either Detente or Martha’s Vineyard Chowder Company for the island’s best chowder. If you visit during the first week of June, you will be lucky enough to enjoy restaurant week at many of the island’s top eateries and restaurants.
The ocean waves lapping up against the bluffs in Marth's Vineyard
Where to Stay: Harbor View Hotel
Nearest Major Airport: Martha’s Vineyard Airport (MVY)
Average Temperature: 73°F // 57°F
Contributed by Lenore from The Nitty Gritty Travel OT
Speaking of Horrible- National Stitch Day
Introduction
to the Gospel of Mark[1]
The Gospel of Mark, the earliest and shortest of the four Gospels,
presents a vivid, fast-paced narrative of Jesus’ life, emphasizing his
authority, suffering, and the call to discipleship. From a Catholic
perspective, Mark’s Gospel is not just a biography—it’s a spiritual roadmap
that invites believers to confront fear and grow in faith.
Fear is a recurring theme in Mark, often appearing at pivotal moments:
when Jesus calms the storm (Mark 4:35–41), when he walks on water (Mark
6:45–52), and even at the empty tomb (Mark 16:1–8). In each case, fear is not
condemned outright—it’s acknowledged as a natural human response. But Mark
consistently shows that fear is a threshold to faith, a moment of
decision where trust in Christ can take root.
For example, when Jesus asks, “Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?”
(Mark 4:40), he’s not scolding but inviting the disciples—and us—to shift from
panic to trust. The Catholic interpretation sees this as a call to deeper
discipleship: to follow Jesus even when the path is uncertain, even when the
cross looms large.
Mark also portrays the disciples as deeply flawed—often confused,
fearful, and slow to understand. Yet this is precisely the point: their journey
mirrors our own. The Gospel reassures Catholics that faith isn’t about
perfection but perseverance. Jesus never abandons his disciples, even when they
fail him.
In Catholic spirituality, this Gospel becomes a powerful meditation on
how fear can be transformed. Through sacraments, prayer, and community,
believers are invited to encounter Christ in their storms and hear him say, “Do
not be afraid; only believe” (Mark 5:36).
JUNE 26 Thursday
ST. JOSE ESCRIVA-Get Off Drugs Day-Canoe Day
Mark,
Chapter 5, Verse 15:
Perhaps St. Jude refers to a type of Holy fear we have when we witness the greatness of God as mention in this verse. “On those who waver, have mercy; save others by snatching them out of the fire; on others have mercy with fear, abhorring even the outer garment stained by the flesh.” (Jude 1:22-23)
Copilot:
Mark 5 is
rich with dramatic encounters—demonic possession, chronic illness, and even
death—and through each, fear plays a pivotal role. From a Catholic perspective,
here are the key lessons about fear in this chapter:
1. Fear
reveals our need for faith – When Jairus hears his daughter has died, Jesus
tells him, “Do not be afraid; only believe” (Mark 5:36). This moment
captures a central Catholic teaching: fear is natural, but it must be
transformed by faith and trust in God’s power.
2. Fear can
be healed by encounter with Christ – The woman with the hemorrhage approaches
Jesus in fear and trembling, yet her faith leads to healing. Jesus responds not
with rebuke, but with tenderness: “Daughter, your faith has made you well”.
Catholics see this as a model of personal encounter with Christ, where fear
gives way to peace through faith.
3. Fear of
the divine can lead to awe and conversion – After Jesus casts out the legion of
demons, the townspeople are seized with fear—not just of the miracle, but of
the presence of divine authority. This fear, when rightly ordered, becomes holy
fear, a reverence that opens the heart to conversion.
4. Fear must
not paralyze our witness – The healed demoniac wants to follow Jesus, but
Christ sends him home to proclaim what God has done. Catholics are reminded
that even those once bound by fear or sin are called to be witnesses of God’s
mercy.
In all
these stories, fear is not dismissed—it’s acknowledged but then transformed.
The Catholic tradition sees this as a call to move from fear to faith, from
trembling to trust, and from silence to witness.
St. Josemaria Escriva[2]
was born in 1902 at Barbastro Spain. He was ordained in Saragossa in 1925 and
by divine inspiration founded Opus Dei which opened a new way for the faithful
to sanctify themselves in the midst of the world. He died on June 26, 1975 and
was canonized a saint on October 6, 2002.
Things to Do:
·
Read
a longer biography of St. Josemaria and at Anastpaul
·
Visit
this site to find St. Josemaria Escriva's
writings
·
View
this video on St. Josemaria Escriva at YouTube
·
Visit
Opus Dei's official US website.
Opus Dei[3]
Work, family life, and the
ordinary events of each day are opportunities for drawing close to Christ and
making Him known to others. As the Second Vatican Council taught, every
baptized person is called to follow Christ closely, by living according to the
Gospel and making its teachings known to others. The aim of Opus Dei is to
contribute to that evangelizing mission of the Church, by fostering among
Christians of all social classes a life fully consistent with their faith, in
the middle of the ordinary circumstances of their lives and especially through
the sanctification of their work. The following are some of the main features
of the spirit of Opus Dei:
·
“Divine filiation is the foundation of
the spirit of Opus Dei,” said its founder, Saint Josemaría Escrivá. A Christian
is a child of God by virtue of baptism. Thus, the formation provided by the
Prelature seeks to foster among the Christian faithful a deep awareness of
their being children of God and helps them act accordingly. It fosters
confidence in divine providence, simplicity in their dialogue with God, a deep
awareness of the dignity of each human being and of the need for fraternity
among all people, a truly Christian love for the world and for all human
realities created by God, and a sense of calm and optimism.
·
Ordinary life. “It is in the midst of the most
material things of the earth that we must
sanctify ourselves, serving God and all mankind,” said Saint Josemaría. The
family, marriage, work – all of our activities – are opportunities for drawing
close to and imitating Jesus, trying to practice charity, patience, humility,
diligence, integrity, cheerfulness, and all the other human and Christian
virtues.
·
Sanctifying work means to work with the spirit of
Christ, to work competently and ethically, with the aim of loving God and
serving others, and thus to sanctify the world from within, making the Gospel
present in all activities whether they be outstanding or humble and hidden. In
the eyes of God what matters is the love that is put into work, not its human
success.
·
Prayer and sacrifice. The formation given by Opus Dei
encourages prayer and sacrifice in order to sustain the effort to sanctify
one’s ordinary occupations. Thus, members strive to incorporate into their life’s
certain practices of Christian piety, such as prayer, daily Mass, sacramental
confession, and reading and meditating on the Gospel. Devotion to our Lady
occupies an important place in their
hearts. Also, in striving to imitate Christ, they try to acquire a spirit of
penance by offering up small sacrifices, particularly those that help them
fulfill their duties faithfully and make life more pleasant for others, such as
renouncing small pleasures, fasting, almsgiving, etc.
·
Unity of life. Saint Josemaría explained that
Christians working in the world should not live “a kind of double life. On the
one hand, an interior life, a life of union with God; and on the other, a
separate and distinct professional, social and family life.” On the contrary:
“There is just one life, made of flesh and spirit. And it is this life which
has to become, in both soul and body, holy and filled with God.”
·
Freedom. The members of Opus Dei are
ordinary citizens who enjoy the same rights and are subject to the same
obligations as any other citizen. In their professional, family, political,
financial or cultural activities, they act with freedom and personal responsibility,
not involving the Church or Opus Dei in their decisions, nor presenting those
decisions as the only Catholic solutions. This implies respecting the freedom
and the opinions of others.
·
Charity. To meet Christ is to find a
treasure that one cannot stop sharing. Christians are witnesses to Jesus and
spread his message of hope among their companions, with their example and their
words. “Side by side with our colleagues, friends and relatives and sharing
their interests, we can help them come closer to Christ,” wrote Saint
Josemaría. The wish to make others know Christ, which is a direct consequence
of charity (that is, love of God above all things and of one’s neighbor as
oneself), cannot be separated from the desire to contribute to finding
solutions to the material needs and social problems of one’s surroundings.
·
Fighting Evil?
There’s A Summer Saint for That.
Is
There a Way to Combat Evil in Our Daily Lives?
We
can uphold Truth and fight these attacks not by any amazing feat, but simply by
fulfilling our Ordinary Work in the most perfect way. By fulfilling our daily
duty within our Domestic Churches we are building up the family culture. The
family is being attacked, and the more we strengthen and provide examples of a
true family, the more we present Truth against lies. And we can ask some of the
summer saints for help in these areas:
June
26 is the Optional Memorial of St. Josemaria
Escriva, who
helped promote the universal call to holiness, in whatever vocation or
avocation we live. That includes the usually hidden vocations of mothers and
housewives!
And
housewives have a patron saint to envy: July 29 is the feast of St. Martha, one of the saints of the Gospel,
a close friend of Jesus. How wonderful to turn to Martha to work on daily
chores, knowing that after Christ admonished her, she learned to put Him first
in doing all her work. How many other saints can brag to have Jesus as a close
personal friend, Who dropped by for personal visits and raised a brother from
the dead?
Later
in August, all cooks turn to another patron, St. Lawrence, the deacon and martyr, who died on a gridiron, joking as
he was dying to flip him over because the first side was done. Restoring a Catholic Culture
through the family can
be done one meal at a time, invoking saints like Martha and Lawrence to help us
serve the family with love, devotion, and a bit of variety and tastiness!
Saturday,
July 11, was the feast of St.
Benedict. St.
Benedict formed his Rule in imitation of the family. His monasteries following
the pattern of the family as Rome and the secular culture crumbled. Now as the
actual family structures crumble, we can turn to St. Benedict to help us
reinforce our domestic churches against these battles.
Above
all, the summer shares Our Lady as our greatest intercessor and example through
all these trials. She is honored as Our Lady of Mount Carmel on July 16, and in August honored by the Solemnity of the Assumption, and her Queenship, but we also see her as the Mother
of God, the homemaker of the Holy Family, the faithful mother who encourages us
to “do whatever He tells you.” She is forefront in the Communion of Saints
directing, fighting, nourishing, and advising those on earth.
It
is easy to feel overwhelmed by all these attacks, but we are not left alone. We
are surrounded by our cloud of witnesses and spiritual sisters and brothers to
help us in our daily battle.
Got battles to combat?
Yes, there’s a summer saint for that!
Bible
in a Year-Day 8
Fr. Mike zeroes in on the theme of surrender as we discover
how God changed Abram to Abraham and Job continues to struggle with his
affliction. Today's readings are Genesis 16-17, Job 5-6, and Proverbs 1:20-33.
International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit
Trafficking[4]
Today serves to draw
awareness to the need for action and cooperation in order to achieve a
drug-free world. Illicit drugs and their trafficking pose a large health
threat to humanity. Drug problems and dependencies put a great deal of pressure
on health care systems and constitute a threat to the safety and well-being of
humans all around the globe. Long-term drug abuse has been linked to poor
general health, contraction of diseases through needle sharing, trouble with
the law, poor self-hygiene and alienation from loved ones, psychological
illnesses and death from overdose. In December 1987, the International Day
Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking was designated by the United
Nations. It is celebrated annually on June 26, a symbolic day that commemorates
the dismantling of the opium trade in Guangdong. The day also serves as an
opportunity for Member Nations to reaffirm their support for UN Conventions
that attempt to control the world's drug supply.
Facts & Quotes
·
The
UN estimates that in 2007, the value of the illegal drug trade is 322 billion
dollars per year.
·
Approximately
51 billion dollars is spent on the war on drugs in the US every year.
·
No
one is immune from addiction; it afflicts people of all ages, races, classes,
and professions. – Patrick J. Kennedy, American democratic politician and
former US representative for Rhode Island.
Top Events and Things to Do
·
Watch
a movie on the perils of the war on drugs on society, government and the
citizens involved. Some suggestions are Dallas Buyers Club (2013), Sicario
(2015), Requiem for a Dream (2000), Christiane F (1981) and Blow (2001).
·
Spread
awareness by using the hashtags
#InternationalDayAgainstDrugAbuseandIllicitTrafficking, #saynotodrugs and
#warondrugs on social media.
·
Read
a book on the dangers of drug use and the problems with the war on drugs. Some
suggestions are: Smoke and Mirrors, Chasing the Scream, and Drug Wars.
Canoe
Day[5]
There
is magic in the feel of a paddle and the movement of a canoe, a magic
compounded of distance, adventure, solitude, and peace. Sigurd F. Olson
There
is a special day for just about every hobby nowadays, and canoeing doesn’t miss out on the fun, with its
very own day of aquatic paddling celebration. Canoeing is a fantastic hobby,
and along with being environmentally friendly and relaxing, it is also a great
form of outdoor exercise that’s
suitable for all ages. It is
no surprise that canoeing gets its own day of celebration, with so many fans
around the world. Canoeing is an easy activity to learn, and with some basic
safety gear anyone can hit the water and enjoy this healthy hobby.
The
way of a canoe is the way of the wilderness, and of a freedom almost forgotten.
It is an antidote to insecurity, the open door to waterways of ages past, and a
way of life with profound and abiding satisfaction. Sigurd F. Olson
Despite
the huge popularity of paddling a canoe, Canoe Day began in
2007. Since that time, it has become the highlight of every canoe loving fan
each year, and you can find activities in all regions of the world to enjoy
paddling with new friends. Canoes have been part of cultures all over the
world, from the deep South Pacific to the Pacific Northwest of the United
States. Used for commerce and hunting, fishing and recreation, the role they’ve played in the cultures of the
past and in the world of today cannot be understated. Even better, it’s a great way to get healthy and
stay in shape while getting out in to the wild. Going out to sea in a canoe is
another unique experience, one that has you above the water, but right down on
it where you can enjoy visits from critters like otters and seals.
How to Celebrate
Celebrating
Canoe Day is easy! You get out there and become one with your canoe! Explore
the great wide open and find adventure and freedom in the steady rhythm of your
paddles pushing you along. There are places you can’t get with roads or on foot, only
the river will take you there. Get out there and find what the world has to
offer, and come back with a sense of wonder and profound peace in your soul.
When a
man is part of his canoe, he is part of all that canoes have ever known. Sigurd F. Olson
Daily Devotions
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: For the men of the Porters of St. Joseph
·
Litany of the Most Precious
Blood of Jesus
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Rosary
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