Tuesday, May 26, 2026

 

Concise Takeaway

The Church teaches that evil is real, personal, and active—but always finite, always defeated in principle by Christ, and always permitted only within God’s providence for a greater good. Confronting evil therefore requires truth, repentance, sacramental life, and spiritual combat, not fear or fascination. Catholic Digest

1. What the video’s theme aligns with

(spiritual warfare, resisting darkness, deliverance prayer) typically emphasize:

• Naming evil honestly
• Rejecting fear
• Standing in Christ’s authority
• Using Scripture and prayer as weapons
• Renouncing sin and demonic influence
• Trusting God’s sovereignty over all spiritual forces

These themes map directly onto the Catechism’s teaching that the entire Christian message is, in part, an answer to the question of evil (CCC 309). Catholic Digest

2. CCC: The Nature of Evil and the Enemy

The Catechism is unambiguous:

• The devil is real, a fallen angel who became evil by his own free choice (CCC 391). Catholic Digest
  
  
• His power is not infinite; he is a creature (CCC 395). Catholic Digest
• God permits demonic activity only within His providence, which “with strength and gentleness guides human and cosmic history” (CCC 395). Catholic Digest

This means:
Confronting evil is never a battle of equals. God is not threatened. We are not abandoned.

3. CCC: How Christians Confront Evil

The Church gives a clear pattern:

a. Confession and repentance

Regular confession “helps us form our conscience, fight against evil tendencies, and be healed by Christ” (CCC 1458).
The beginning of good works is “the confession of evil works.” United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

This is the Church’s first line of spiritual warfare:
Expose the darkness in yourself so the darkness outside has no foothold.

b. Repairing harm

Evil is confronted not only spiritually but morally:
We must “repair the harm” we have caused (CCC 1459). United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

c. Scripture and truth

Jesus confronts Satan in the desert with Scripture (Matthew 4).
The Church sees this as the model:
Truth is the first weapon.

d. Prayer

Jesus commands us to pray: “Deliver us from evil” (Matthew 6:13).
Paul urges constant prayer in the Spirit (Ephesians 6:18). Bible Hub

e. The Armor of God

Ephesians 6:10–18 describes the battle as spiritual, not fleshly.
The armor is truth, righteousness, faith, salvation, the Word, and prayer. Bible Hub

f. The Church’s mission

Believers are called to be “salt and light” (Matthew 5:13–16), confronting evil by living visibly holy lives. Bible Hub

4. CCC: God’s Victory Over Evil

The Catechism insists:

• God always brings good from evil (CCC 395). Catholic Digest
• The devil cannot prevent the building of God’s Kingdom.
• The battle is not equal; God’s victory is assured from the beginning.

This is the essential correction to fear‑based or sensational approaches to spiritual warfare.

5. Integrated Reflection: How a Catholic Confronts Evil Today

Drawing the video’s theme together with the Catechism:

1. Name evil without dramatizing it.
   Evil thrives in vagueness and secrecy; it dies in the light of truth.

2. Reject fear.

   
   Fear is the devil’s oxygen. The Christian stands under Christ’s authority.

3. Repent quickly and concretely.
   Confession is not merely therapeutic—it is warfare.

4. Live in a state of grace.
   A soul in grace is a fortress; a soul in mortal sin is an unlocked house.

5. Use Scripture as a weapon.
   Jesus shows the pattern: quote truth, reject lies.

6. Pray with authority but humility.
   Deliverance belongs to Christ; we stand under His victory, not our own power.

7. Stay in the Church.
   The sacraments, the saints, and the community are God’s appointed bulwark.

8. Do good aggressively.
   Evil is not only resisted; it is overwhelmed by charity, justice, and mercy.

6. Final Synthesis

The Church’s teaching is sober, balanced, and fearless:

• Evil is real.
• The devil is real.
• The battle is real.
• But God is infinitely greater, Christ has already won, and the Christian confronts evil not with panic but with clarity, repentance, sacramental strength, Scripture, and prayer.

This is the Catholic way:
Courage without bravado, vigilance without obsession, victory without pride.

Here is your short, tight, Smoke‑in‑This‑Life version, keeping your cadence and the doctrinal punch without excess.

Smoke in This Life and Not the Next

Tue, May 26 – Tuesday Reflection

Virtue: Courage & Listening
Cigar: Gentle, attentive
Bourbon: Basil Hayden – soft, inviting
Reflection: What voice do I welcome

The saints teach that every soul in Purgatory suffers the pain of loss—the ache of being withheld from the Face of God. Even the lesser “pain of sense” is no small thing: if a tiny household flame can wound us, what of a fire kindled by God’s justice, burning until the soul is clean.

But St. Francis de Sales steadies the heart: the same fire that purifies also consoles. The souls suffer, but they suffer in perfect love. They want the flame. They welcome the cleansing.

Tonight’s gentle cigar and soft bourbon ask the same question:
Do I welcome the voice that purifies, or the one that excuses?

Purgatory Line:
The fire that burns is the fire that loves.

MAY 26 Whit Tuesday

2 Samuel, Chapter 12, Verse 18

On the seventh day, the child died. David’s servants were AFRAID to tell him that the child was dead, for they said: “When the child was alive, we spoke to him, but he would not listen to what we said. How can we tell him the child is dead? He may do some harm!”

 

Even today advisers and courtiers of powerful men and women dread to tell bad news or to tell the unfortunate truth to their leaders. David has fallen by killing Bathsheba’s husband Uriah and the child of their unholy union has died. David and even modern leaders forget the law of sacrifice. The law of sacrifice is simple: Those leaders who stop seeking new challenges; stop growing, inevitably stop leading. John Maxwell states, “When we stop sacrificing, we stop succeeding.”[1]

 

If you want to become a great leader, you must be willing to make sacrifices.

 

There is no success without sacrifice. Every person who has achieved any success in life has made sacrifices to do so.

 

Leaders are often asked to give up more than others. Leaders have to give up their rights. Leaders need to learn how to put others ahead of themselves. It’s not easy, but you need to give up more than the people you lead.

 

You must keep giving up, to stay up. John Maxwell takes the Law of Sacrifice even further when he states that ‘If leaders have to give up to go up, then they have to give up even more to stay up’. Today’s success is the greatest thread to tomorrow’s success. There’s always a cost involved in moving forward. The day you stop being willing to pay the price is the day when you stop creating the results you desire.

 

The higher the level of leadership, the greater the sacrifice.

You’ve probably noticed that the higher the position, the fewer the number of people able to step in. It’s not because there’s lack of capable people. It’s simply because there’s not enough people willing to pay the price. From my childhood I remember learning about the utopia of communism – they tried to make everybody equal. Everybody should have the same rights and the same pay. The problem with this is the law of sacrifice. There will always be some who will be willing to sacrifice more, while others will not be willing to do anything extra. No philosophy of equality will ever be able to overcome this mindset. It’s the inner job. You must decide for yourself how much time, effort or other sacrifice you’re going to assign to a specific job, project or task. The Law of Sacrifice states that those who do will go up. And those who continue doing this, will stay up.[2]

Copilot’s Take

David’s servants trembled to tell him the truth because they had watched a king unravel under the weight of his own sin. Their fear was not irrational; it was the natural consequence of a leader who had stopped confronting evil within himself. When a leader becomes unpredictable, uncorrectable, or unreachable, the people around him begin to fear the truth more than the consequences of silence. The death of the child was not God’s cruelty but the cost of David’s refusal to sacrifice his pride, his comfort, and his desires before they consumed him. Sin had already hollowed him out; truth merely exposed the emptiness.

This moment reveals the first law of confronting evil: if a leader will not confront the evil within, others will fear confronting the evil around him. David’s fall began long before Bathsheba. It began the day he stayed home when kings go to war. He stopped sacrificing. He stopped stretching. He stopped growing. And when a leader stops sacrificing, the people he leads begin to suffer. Maxwell’s Law of Sacrifice is not merely about giving things up; it is about killing the right things before they kill you—pride before it becomes tyranny, comfort before it becomes stagnation, entitlement before it becomes corruption.

The servants’ fear exposes a deeper truth: evil thrives wherever sacrifice disappears. Leadership is not a platform for privilege but a furnace for purification. Those who rise must give up more than others, and those who stay at the top must give up even more. Today’s success is tomorrow’s greatest threat because it tempts a leader to coast. The moment a leader believes he has earned the right to stop sacrificing is the moment he begins to decay. The higher the calling, the greater the cost; the fewer the people willing to pay it.

Yet David’s story does not end in ruin. What separates him from Saul is not moral superiority but moral surrender. When confronted with the truth, David lets it break him instead of hardening him. He gets up. He washes. He worships. He returns to the battlefield of his calling. This is the pattern of every great leader who confronts evil: they face the truth without flinching, accept the cost without complaint, and sacrifice again without hesitation. Their greatness is not measured by how little they suffer but by how much they are willing to give for the sake of others.

In the end, evil does not fear talent, charisma, or authority. Evil fears the man who has already died to himself. Such a man cannot be bribed, intimidated, seduced, or manipulated. He is free—and a free man is dangerous to darkness. David’s servants feared telling him the truth, but the man who rose from the floor after the child’s death—the man who worshiped—became the kind of leader evil fears. His strength was not in his perfection but in his willingness to sacrifice again.

Whit Tuesday

 

Introit of the Mass is again a song of joy: " Receive the joy of your glory, alleluia; giving thanks to God, alleluia; Who hath called you to a heavenly kingdom. Attend, O My people, to My law, incline your ears to the words of My mouth."

 

Prayer.

 

May the power of the Holy Ghost be with us, O Lord, we beseech Thee, which may mercifully purify our hearts and de fend them from all adversities. Through Our Lord Jesus Christ, Who liveth and reigneth in the unity of the same.

 

EPISTLE. Acts viii. 14-17.

 

In those days: When the apostles who were in Jerusalem, had heard that Samaria had received the word of God; they sent unto them Peter and John. Who, when they were come, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost. For He was not as yet come upon any of them: but they were only baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they laid their hands upon them, and they received the Holy Ghost.

 

Explanation.

 

The Samaritans had been converted and baptized by Philip the Deacon. Peter and John administered to them, by the imposition of hands and prayer, the Sacrament of Confirmation.

 

Is Confirmation a sacrament?

 

Yes, for Jesus Christ has promised the Holy Ghost not only to the apostles, but also to all the faithful, to confirm them fully in faith and charity.

 

What is the outward sign of this sacrament?

 

The imposition of the bishop’s hands, the anointing with the chrism, and the words of the bishop.

 

What grace is conveyed through this sacrament?

 

Through holy Confirmation, God confirms and completes in the Christian the grace of Baptism, and strengthens him for the combat with his spiritual enemies. Confirmation, like Baptism, cannot be received more than once, because the grace received in these sacraments is always efficacious if we only cooperate with it; and because in these sacraments we receive also an in delible character, which forever distinguishes the souls of those who have been baptized and confirmed from those who have not.

 

GOSPEL. John x. 1-10.

 

At that time Jesus said to the Pharisees: Amen, amen, I say to you: he that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up another way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.

And when he hath let out his own sheep, he goeth before them: and the sheep follow him, because they know his voice. But a stranger they follow not, but fly from him, because they know not the voice of strangers. This proverb Jesus spoke to them. But they understood not what He spoke to them. Jesus therefore said to them again: Amen, amen, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All others, as many as have come, are thieves and robbers: and the sheep heard them not. I am the door. By Me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved: and he shall go in, and go out, and shall find pastures. The thief cometh not, but for to steal and to kill and to destroy. I am come that they may have life, and may have it more abundantly.

 

How is this parable to be understood?

 

The sheepfold is the Church, or congregation of the faithful; the door for the flock is Baptism; for the pastors, lawful vocation and mission from God, through their spiritual superiors; the chief pastor is Christ; the sheep are the faithful; the invisible door-keeper is the Holy Ghost, inasmuch as He prepares hearts for Jesus; the visible door-keeper is the bishop or his representatives. The thieves and robbers are the Pharisees and heretics of all ages, who lead astray the sheep of Christ, and destroy their spiritual life by false doctrines. If we would not become the prey of thieves and murderers, we must follow the doctrines of the teachers and pastors whom Christ has appointed for His Church.

Which are the fruits of the Holy Ghost? They are the twelve following:

1. Charity.

2. Joy.

3. Peace.

4. Patience.

5. Benignity.

6. Goodness.

7. Longsuffering.

8. Mildness.

9. Faith.

10. Modesty.

11. Continency.

12. Chastity.

These fruits should be visible in the Christian, for thereby men shall know that the Holy Ghost dwells in him, as the tree is known by its fruit.

Notice I have placed the Fruits of the Holy Spirit in stairstep fashion so we may reflect on them seeing that by concentrating on each step of our growth in the spirit we may progress closer and closer to our heavenly Father. Today we will be focusing on the second step which is continency.

Apostolic Exhortation[3]

Veneremur Cernui – Down in Adoration Falling

of The Most Reverend Thomas J. Olmsted, Bishop of Phoenix,
to Priests, Deacons, Religious and the Lay Faithful of the Diocese of Phoenix on the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist

My beloved Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I. The Graces of Holy Communion

ii. We become “One Body and One Spirit in Christ.”

43. The “re-education camp” divided the prisoners into groups of fifty who slept on the floor as their bed. Each man had a foot and a half wide space. Of the fifty prisoners with Cardinal Van Thuan, only five others were Christians. With the cooperation of the non-Christian prisoners, they made arrangements so that at night they would be near each other. When lights went out at 9:30, then he quietly said Mass and distributed Communion to the Catholics.

He kept one consecrated Host always in his shirt pocket. During the night, the prisoners took turns for adoration. During the day, even amid the cruelty of prison life, Cardinal Van Thuan and the few Christians focused their attention on Jesus. For them, Jesus in the Eucharist became a true companion. As a result of the Eucharistic presence that was clandestinely introduced into the prison camp, the Christian prisoners regained the fervor of their faith during those difficult times and even other non-Christians converted to the faith. The strength of Jesus’ love in the Eucharist is irresistible. The silent presence of Jesus in the Eucharist brought consolation to those who suffered, strength to a weakened faith and especially a fortified bond of unity among them.

44. How much we need the Eucharist in our world today! We are also struggling through a challenging time. We are emerging from a pandemic that has crippled many with FEAR and left much suffering in its wake. Throughout this time, we have also experienced great division within our country and even within our Church. A tangible and rapid decline of our culture produces empty noise and vain pleasures that drown out God’s invitation to enter into a loving relationship with Him.

45. What can we do to bring peace, justice and love to a world that is starving for God and His love? By ourselves, we can do nothing. But, in the Eucharist, God Himself is our nourishment and strength. We cannot transform our lives nor change the world with our own strength alone. The Eucharist as a Sacrament of communion and love motivates us inwardly to work tirelessly towards reconciliation and the restoration of justice; to work together to restore respect for the dignity of all men and women made in the image and likeness of God.

To be continued…

Bible in a year Day 325 Boldness in Faith

Fr. Mike highlights the boldness of Peter and John in our reading from Acts as they stand before the council of church leaders and defend the name of Jesus. He also addresses Paul’s writings on God’s grace given to us in our sinfulness and the war between good and evil present within ourselves. Today’s readings are Acts 4, Romans 6-7, and Proverbs 27:4-6.

May 26 — Litany of Trust

“From the lie that evil has more power over my life than Your grace, deliver me, Jesus.”

Evil’s first victory is not in the damage it causes but in the fear it provokes. The enemy thrives on intimidation, exaggeration, and shadows. He wants the believer to imagine him as vast, cunning, and unstoppable. But Scripture reveals the opposite: evil is finite, defeated, and terrified of the light. When Jesus steps into a scene, demons beg for permission to flee. When He speaks, storms fall silent. When He dies, death itself collapses. The Christian confronts evil not as a victim but as a man standing beneath the banner of a victorious King. The question is not whether evil is strong, but whether I remember who stands with me.

In my own life, Lord, I confess how often I allow fear to shape my imagination. I see the chaos of the world, and a small voice whispers that darkness is advancing faster than grace. I feel the weight of temptation, and pride suggests that I must fight alone. I encounter hostility, and discouragement tells me that goodness is too fragile to endure. But this is not Your way. You do not ask me to defeat evil by my own strength. You ask me to stand firm, to cling to Your Cross, and to trust that Your victory is not symbolic but real. Deliver me from the lie that evil has the final word.

Jesus, teach me the courage of the saints. Teach me to confront evil with clarity, not panic. Teach me to recognize the enemy’s tactics without granting him authority he does not possess. Teach me to wield goodness as a weapon, truth as a shield, and mercy as a hammer that breaks chains. Teach me to remember that every battle I face has already been touched by Your triumph. Teach me to see every moment of fear as an invitation to deeper trust.

From the fear that darkness is stronger than light, deliver me, Jesus.
From the lie that I must fight alone, deliver me, Jesus.
From the temptation to surrender to discouragement, deliver me, Jesus.
From the belief that evil advances unchecked, deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire to retreat instead of resist, deliver me, Jesus.

Jesus, I trust that Your Cross has already broken the power of evil.
Jesus, I trust that no darkness can overcome a heart surrendered to You.
Jesus, I trust that Your grace is stronger than every attack.
Jesus, I trust that courage grows wherever Your name is spoken.

Jesus, I trust that You will make me a man who fears God, not evil.

Around the Corner

·         Bucket List trip[4]: World Vineyard Tour: Douro Valley

·         Pray Day 8 of the Novena for our Pope and Bishops

·         Religion in the Home for Preschool: May

·         Foodie-Blue berry Cheesecake

·         Drops of Christ’s Blood

·         Spirit Hour: Port

Daily Devotions

·         Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them in fasting:

·         Litany of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus

·         Offering to the sacred heart of Jesus

·         Drops of Christ’s Blood

·         Universal Man Plan

·         Rosary

---

[1] John Maxwell, The John Maxwell Leadership Bible

[2] http://silviapencak.com/law-of-sacrifice/

[3]https://dphx.org/veneremur-cernui/

[4] Schultz, Patricia. 1,000 Places to See Before You Die: A Traveler's Life List Workman Publishing Company. Kindle Edition. 

TOPPER TAKES A TRIP (1938)

Constance Bennett • Roland Young • Billie Burke
Directed by Norman Z. McLeod

A supernatural comedy wrapped in elegance and mischief, Topper Takes a Trip is the lighter, brighter second chapter of the Topper saga.
Constance Bennett returns as Marion Kerby — a ghost with charm, nerve, and a moral agenda.
Roland Young is once again the bewildered gentleman dragged into the afterlife’s unfinished business.
Billie Burke provides the fluttering social‑ite counterpoint.

This is not merely a comic romp.
It is a meditation on loyalty, conscience, and the strange grace that sometimes arrives from beyond the veil.

It is a fantasy about a man who discovers his marriage, his courage, and his purpose only when a ghost refuses to let him drift.

1. Production & Historical Setting

Hollywood’s Escapist Interlude

Released in 1938, the film sits between Depression‑era hardship and the gathering storm of war.
Audiences wanted relief — and MGM delivered a polished, buoyant fantasy where death is not frightening but corrective.

McLeod’s Light Touch

Director Norman Z. McLeod shapes the film with:

• airy pacing
• crisp comic timing
• a European holiday atmosphere
• a refusal to let the supernatural become sinister

The result is a comedy that floats rather than pushes.

Bennett’s Ghostly Authority

Constance Bennett plays Marion with effortless poise.
She is playful, but she is also purposeful — a spirit who meddles because she loves.

Young’s Perpetual Bewilderment

Roland Young’s Cosmo Topper remains the perfect comic victim:
a man who wants order but keeps encountering grace in chaotic form.

2. Story Summary

A Marriage in Trouble

Mrs. Topper, weary of Cosmo’s odd behavior (and unaware of the ghost behind it), leaves him.
Cosmo retreats to Europe to recover his dignity.

Marion Returns

The ghost of Marion Kerby reappears with a mission:
restore the Topper marriage and finish the work she began in the first film.

Invisible Interference

Marion’s antics — unseen by others — create chaos in hotels, casinos, and seaside resorts.
Cosmo is blamed for everything.
But each disruption pushes him toward honesty, courage, and clarity.

The Dog

Yes — even the ghost dog returns, adding physical comedy and supernatural charm.

The Reconciliation

Through mischief, embarrassment, and unexpected tenderness, Marion forces Cosmo and his wife to see each other again.
The marriage is restored.
The ghost’s work is done.

3. Spiritual & Moral Resonances

A. Grace in Unlikely Forms

Marion is a comic guardian angel —

a reminder that help sometimes arrives wrapped in embarrassment.

B. The Marriage as Vocation

Cosmo learns that fidelity requires effort, humility, and truth.

Running away solves nothing.

C. The Lowly as Teachers

Marion, though dead, is the film’s moral compass.

She sees what the living refuse to see.

D. The Comedy of Conscience

The supernatural is not frightening here.

It is corrective — a nudge toward virtue disguised as chaos.

E. Joy as Moral Medicine

The film insists that laughter can heal what pride has broken.

4. Hospitality Pairing — The Ghost’s Gentle Nudge

A mild Connecticut‑shade cigar — light, aromatic, playful
A soft bourbon — Basil Hayden or Four Roses Small Batch
A European café plate — fruit, bread, and a touch of sweetness
A bright lamp in a quiet room — the glow of clarity after confusion

5. Reflection Prompts

Where have I allowed comfort to replace connection.
What relationship needs a nudge toward honesty.
Who in my life has played the “Marion Kerby” role — the one who disrupts to heal.
What invisible grace is trying to get my attention.
Where do I need to stop drifting and start choosing.