Posts
Rachel’s Corner Try an “Misto Soup breakfast”
· Spirit hour: Sicilian Wine in honor of St. Agatha
· do a personal eucharistic stations of the cross.
· National Macadamia Nut Month
· Bucket List Trip: Bahama-Mon
· How to celebrate Feb 5th
o Imagine a day filled with unique activities. Start by checking the weather forecast to plan outdoor fun in honor of the National Weatherperson’s Day. Hit a local park for a game of soccer or host a mini Olympics with friends to celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day. For a delicious twist, whip up some Nutella treats to mark World Nutella Day. Settle down with a good book and participate in a virtual read-aloud session for World Read Aloud Day.
o Indulge your sweet tooth by melting chocolate for some fondue on National Chocolate Fondue Day. If you’re into sports, design your own personalized signing day ceremony to honor National Signing Day. Get creative and bake some Runeberg cakes in tribute to Runeberg Day. Embrace the silly spirit and have a Fart Day contest with your pals for National Fart Day.
o Unleash your inner child by spending the day playing games and letting loose for Global School Play Day. Learn about conservation efforts and monarch butterflies on Western Monarch Day. Take a moment to reflect on diplomacy and political history in honor of Adlai Stevenson Day. Lastly, wrap up your day by watching classic movies and Broadway shows in support of the Move Hollywood & Broadway to Lebanon idea.
o Mix and match these activities to create a whimsical and enjoyable day full of surprises and adventures. Remember, it’s all about celebrating the little things in life and having fun with those around you. Enjoy your motley assortment of festivities!
Best Place to visit in February: Petrified Forest National Park
I thought this was a unique and wonderful beauty spot! Located in northeastern Arizona, it’s a protected park which spans over 220,000 acres and I was in awe of it ancient fossilized trees, brightly coloured Badlands, plant and animal fossils, and stunning desert vistas.
The summer heat here can reach dangerously high levels, so I explored during this month instead. I also encountered fewer crowds, and unlike many other national parks, all the roads and trails remained open. The conditions were also perfect for long hikes
– I just made sure I bought warm clothes for the cooler temperatures.
When here, I explored the ancient Puerco Pueblo site which were the remains of a 600-year-old village filled with interesting petroglyphs, the extraordinary Painted Desert (a huge area of colorful badlands), the petroglyph-covered Newspaper Rock, and Rainbow Forest which I found was a surreal but very photogenic spot filled with petrified wood.
- Visitors’ Center Address: 1 Park Rd, Petrified Forest National Park, AZ 86028
- Map Location
- Average temperature – 50° to 61°
My favorite highlights…
- Checking out Rainbow Forest Museum at the visitor center where I saw fossils from the Late Triassic period!
- Strolling along the short Crystal Forest loop and admiring the beautiful wood log deposits.
- Discovering the Blue Mesa Trail where I saw the incredible colorful badlands and pieces of petrified wood.
- Driving on the famous Historic Route 66 which travels through the park!
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.
Dinner Menu
🇵🇹 Week 5 – Rota → Lajes Field (Azores)
Theme: Mid‑Ocean Vigilance, Eucharistic Watchfulness, Island Resilience, Trans‑Atlantic Calm
Dates: Fri, Feb 6 – Thu, Feb 12
Lajes is the ancient crossroads of the Atlantic — a place where sailors, aircrews, and chaplains have paused for centuries before crossing oceans. Perfect for your pilgrimage arc.
Day 1 – Fri, Feb 6 – Arrival & Island Orientation
Lodging:
Lajes Field Air Force Inns (dodlodging.net in Bing)
Evening:
Walk along Praia da Vitória Bay
Orientation at Lajes Fitness Center
Day 2 – Sat, Feb 7 – Cathedral & Volcanic Recreation
Morning:
Igreja Matriz da Praia (Eucharistic clarity)
Afternoon Outdoor Rec:
Terceira Island volcanic caves, lava tubes, and coastal cliffs
Visit Azores – Terceira (visitazores.com in Bing)
Evening:
Bowling or intramural sports (FSS)
Day 3 – Sun, Feb 8 – Sunday Mass & Atlantic Witness
Catholic Mass:
Lajes Chapel (65th Air Base Group Religious Services)
Afternoon:
Civic witness in Angra do Heroísmo (UNESCO fortress city)
Angra Tourism (visitazores.com in Bing)
Evening:
Community Center resilience night
Day 4 – Mon, Feb 9 – Fitness & Azorean Culture
Morning:
Workout at Lajes Fitness Center
Afternoon:
Visit Serra do Cume overlook — the “cathedral of the winds”
Dinner:
Island seafood stew (caldeirada) with local Verdelho wine
Day 5 – Tue, Feb 10 – Fortress Cliffs & Outdoor Rec
Morning:
Monte Brasil fortress and coastal batteries
Outdoor Rec:
Whale‑watching or coastal hike
Azores Whale Watching (visitazores.com in Bing)
Evening:
Bowling league
Day 6 – Wed, Feb 11 – Monastic Clarity & Civic Witness
Morning:
Visit São Bento Monastery (Angra)
Afternoon:
Civic witness in Praia da Vitória — marina, civic squares, seaside promenade
Evening:
Community Center resilience
Day 7 – Thu, Feb 12 – Firelight Finale
Ritual Act:
Candlelight vigil facing the Atlantic
Pour wine into a chalice, light a candle, and name one “crossing” God carried you through.
Final workout:
Lajes Fitness Center
🔑 Key Links
Lajes Field Air Force Inns (dodlodging.net in Bing)
Visit Azores – Terceira (visitazores.com in Bing)
Angra do Heroísmo Tourism (visitazores.com in Bing)
Azores Whale Watching (visitazores.com in Bing)
February 5 Thursday- Feast of St.
Agatha
Exodus, Chapter 20, Verse 18-20
Now as all the people
witnessed the thunder and lightning, the blast of the shofar and the mountain
smoking, they became afraid and
trembled. So
they took up a position farther away and
said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak
to us, or we shall die.” Moses answered the people, “Do
not be AFRAID, for God has come only
to test you and put the fear of him
upon you so you do not sin.”
The
Israelite’s were afraid and preferred to have Moses mediate for them with God
rather than having a real relationship with God.
What is
love?
In
his text On Loving God, St. Bernard surveys the four types of love that
Christians experience as they grow in their relationship with God: loving one's
self, selfish love, loving God as God, and loving one's self in God. St.
Bernard reminds us that not only did God give us life, but He gave us Himself.
For indeed, "God deserves to be loved very much, yea, boundlessly, because
He loved us first, He infinite and we nothing, loved us, miserable sinners,
with a love so great and so free." St. Bernard reminds us that we are
indebted to God for his love and His sacrifice. Not only should we love God
because it is what He deserves, but also because loving God does not go without
reward. Loving God is to our advantage. The Lord rewards those who love Him
with the blessed state of the heavenly Fatherland, where sorrow and sadness
cannot enter. St. Bernard's medieval prose is poetic and full of clever
imagery. His work is as beautiful as it is knowledgeable.
Emmalon Davis, CCEL Staff Writer
Fear has a way of echoing through both the Church
and the daily news, often blurring the line between spiritual anxiety and
societal unrest. In Scripture, the Israelites trembled at the foot of Sinai,
stepping back from the God who desired to draw them close. Today, many
believers experience a similar recoil—not from thunder and lightning, but from
the noise of a world saturated with conflict, division, and uncertainty.
Reports of disrupted worship, immigration tensions spilling into sacred spaces,
and communities shaken by public hostility reveal how fear can infiltrate even
the places meant to shelter the soul. Yet the Christian tradition insists that
holy fear is not the same as worldly fear. Holy fear steadies the heart,
sharpens conscience, and leads to deeper love. Worldly fear isolates, agitates,
and blinds. The challenge for the Church is to resist the instinct to retreat
and instead cultivate the reverent courage Moses described—a fear that frees
rather than enslaves, a fear that draws us toward God and one another rather
than driving us apart.
FEAST of Saint AGATHA[1]
Agatha
came from Catania, a city in Sicily. I was stationed there while in the Navy
and lived in the small town of Nicolosi which was situated on the Volcano
(Etna) near the city of Catania. I was impressed and formed as a young man by
the faith and beauty of the people of Sicily.
Agatha
was born in Sicily and died there a martyr. She belonged to a rich, important
family. When she was young, she dedicated her life to God and resisted any men
who wanted to marry her or have sex with her. One of these men, Quintian, was
of a high enough rank that he felt he could force her to acquiesce. Knowing she
was a Christian in a time of persecution, he had her arrested and brought
before the judge - - himself. He expected her to give in to when faced with
torture and possible death, but she simply affirmed her belief in God by
praying:
"Jesus
Christ, Lord of all, you see my heart, you know my desires. Possess all that I
am. I am your sheep: make me worthy to overcome the devil."
Quintian
imprisoned her in a brothel in order to get her to change her mind.
He
brought her back before him after she had suffered a month of assault and
humiliation in the brothel, but Agatha had never wavered, proclaiming that her
freedom came from Jesus. Quintian sent her to prison, instead of back to the
brothel -- a move intended to make her more afraid, but which probably was a
great relief to her. When she continued to profess her faith in Jesus, He had
her tortured. He refused her any medical care, but God gave her all the care
she needed in the form of a vision of St. Peter. When she was tortured again,
she died after saying a final prayer:
"Lord,
my Creator, you have always protected me from the cradle; you have taken me
from the love of the world and given me patience to suffer. Receive my
soul."
Because
one of the tortures she supposedly suffered was to have her breasts cut off,
she was often depicted carrying her breasts on a plate. It is thought that
blessing of the bread that takes place on her feast may have come from the
mistaken notion that she was carrying loaves of bread. Because she was asked
for help during the eruption of Mount Etna, she is considered a protector
against the outbreak of fire. She is also considered the patroness of bell
makers for an unknown reason -- though some speculate it may have something to
do with the fact that bells were used as fire alarms.
Prayer: Saint Agatha, you suffered sexual assault
and indignity because of your faith. Help heal all those who are survivors of
sexual assault and protect those women who are in danger. Amen
Things to
Do[2]
·
Bake an Agatha loaf! On St. Agatha's feast day
people would bake loaves attached to a picture of St. Agatha and prayers for
protection from fires. The parish priests would bless the loaves, and people
would keep them in their homes in case of a poor harvest and famine. The
prayers would then be hung above the main door of each home to invoke St.
Agatha's guardianship.
·
Spanish tradition associates this feast day with
ancient fertility customs. Young men would visit many farms throughout the
countryside, singing songs of praise to St. Agatha and invoking God's blessing
upon people, animals, and fields. However, if they did not receive the
customary gifts of money or food for their services, they would call down a
'quick old age' upon the ungrateful inhabitants of that farm. Although most of
us do not live in such communities where this kind of custom would be practicable
or even understood, we can pray to St. Agatha for a greater openness to the
transmission of new life in our culture, and actively affirm and support young
couples with children whenever possible.
·
St. Agatha is the patron saint against fire.
Take this day to establish a fire escape plan for the family and to practice a
family fire drill. Also check the smoke detectors, fire alarms, and carbon
monoxide detectors to see if they are all working. Change the batteries on all
the alarms!
Bible in a Year Day 218 Each Will Be Judged
Fr. Mike reflects on some of the ways that people turn away from God,
including: worshipping idols, fasting for selfish reasons, and not honoring the
sabbath. He also highlights the passage from Ezekiel 18 that tells us that each
person will be judged by their own actions, and not by those of their parents
or children. The readings are Isaiah 57-58, Ezekiel 17-18, and Proverbs 13:5-8.
National Signing Day
National
Signing Day marks the start of the college football signing season. From this
day forward, high school football players can sign a National Letter of Intent
to play football for a university in the National College Athletic Association
(NCAA). The National Letter of Intent is a binding agreement between a
potential student-athlete and a NLI member institution. Once signed, the
agreement requires the athlete to attend and represent the institution for at
least two semesters or three quarters, and in return, the institution must
provide athletic financial aid for the same duration. National Signing
Day marks the start of many football players' careers as they transition into
more professional setting. National Signing Day was established in 1981 by the
College Football Association in an effort to eliminate separate conference
signing dates and force student-athletes to commit to only one NCAA
institution. Prior to 1981, NCAA football conferences required recruits
to sign separate letters of intent since conference letters only restricted
signing within the conference itself.
National
Signing Day Top Events and Things to Do
·
Get
out to your local park and play a game of football with your family and friends
to celebrate all those who are committing to playing in NCAA football today.
·
Watch
the day's events of your favorite conference live. Most are aired live
across networks such as ESPN and they can often be found online.
·
Review
some of the student-athlete rules and criteria in order to gain a better
understanding of the players' responsibilities and duties in addition to
playing ball. Some basic requirements include:
1) earn at least a 2.3 GPA in core courses
2) earn at least 9 credits per semester
3) adhere to amateurism requirements (limiting agent involvement, prize money,
salaries and contracts with professional teams)
·
Watch
a movie about NCAA Football. Our favorites are Friday Night Lights
(2004), The Blind Side (2009), Rudy (1993) and The Express (2008).
·
Support
a local high school football team. Your financial and time donations can mean
the chance to get a scholarship for a high school student to pursue university
studies.
Daily Devotions
· Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them in fasting: Today's Fast: True Masculinity
·
Carnival: Part Two, the Final
Countdown
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Make
reparations to the Holy Face
·
Rosary
A tight, Depression‑era romantic drama, Ring Around the Moon (1936) delivers an unexpectedly tender love story built on class tension, mistaken commitments, and the slow triumph of honest affection.
The film is short, earnest, and emotionally unpredictable — exactly the kind of classic that rewards a devotional, moral‑formation reading.
🎬 Film Snapshot
- Year: 1936
- Studio: Chesterfield Pictures
- Director: Charles Lamont
- Runtime: ~65 minutes
- Genre: Romantic Drama
- Cast: Donald Cook (Ross), Erin O’Brien‑Moore (Gloria), Ann Doran (Kay)
📖 Plot Summary
Ross Graham, an ambitious newspaperman, is romantically entangled with two women:
- Kay Duncan — his sincere, grounded co‑worker
- Gloria Endicott — a wealthy society woman
Ross prefers Kay, but through a mix of pressure, pride, and poor discernment, he ends up marrying Gloria — a decision he regrets almost immediately. Meanwhile, Kay has moved on and married someone else.
The story unfolds with surprising emotional turns, culminating in a sweet, redemptive ending that reviewers consistently praise.
🎭 Themes & Emotional Texture
- Class & Identity: Depression‑era anxieties about wealth, status, and authenticity.
- Duty vs. Desire: Ross’s choices reveal the cost of confusing comfort with calling.
- Honesty as Redemption: The film rewards truth‑telling, even when late.
- Unexpected Grace: Despite its B‑movie origins, the film carries real heart.
✝️ Catholic-Themed Reflection
This film is a quiet masterclass in discernment of spirits:
False Consolation
Ross chooses Gloria because the match looks good on paper — status, security, admiration.
But it leaves him restless, divided, and spiritually thin.
True Consolation
Kay represents humility, truth, and the kind of love that strengthens virtue.
Her eventual freedom — moving on without bitterness — is a model of detachment.
Moral Insight
The film invites a meditation on this principle:
“Choose the love that leads you toward virtue, not the comfort that leads you away from yourself.”
🍸 Hospitality Pairing
Period‑Authentic Choice:
The Highball — simple, refreshing, unpretentious.
Perfect for Kay’s grounded character and the newsroom setting.
Thematic Modern Choice:
The Newspaper Cocktail — rye, lemon, simple syrup, bitters.
A nod to Ross’s profession and the film’s emotional sharpness.
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