This blog is based on references in the Bible to fear. God wills that we “BE NOT AFRAID”. Vincit qui se vincit" is a Latin phrase meaning "He conquers who conquers himself." Many theologians state that the eighth deadly sin is fear. It is fear and its natural animal reaction to fight or flight that is the root cause of our failings to create a Kingdom of God on earth. This blog is dedicated to Mary the Mother of God. "
The Iceman Story
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Wednesday, July 1, 2026
July 1 — Day 8 of the Nine Days
The Jordan as Identity“I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness.”
If Day 4 is the Surrender,
Day 5 the Joy that follows surrender,
Day 6 the Witness that flows from joy,
Day 7 the Decrease that makes witness possible,
then Day 8 is the Identity that emerges from decrease.
John knows who he is
because he knows who he is not.
He is not the Christ,
not Elijah returned,
not the Prophet foretold.
He is the Voice —
nothing more,
and nothing less.
At the Jordan, identity is not self‑constructed
but God‑revealed.
John receives his name, his mission, his place
from the One he serves.
His identity is not a performance
but a vocation.
This is the freedom the modern world has forgotten:
identity is not invented,
it is bestowed.
Not seized,
but received.
Not curated,
but called.
A nation approaching its 250th year
must relearn this truth:
we are not what we brand,
broadcast, or demand.
We are what God names us to be —
a people formed for His purposes.
The world shouts,
“Define yourself.”
The Jordan whispers,
“Let God define you.”
Prayer
Jesus, speak my true name.
Strip away the false selves I’ve crafted,
the identities I cling to,
the masks I fear to remove.
Do this in my nation:
call us back to the identity You gave us,
that we may live not as self‑inventors
but as Your people,
Your witnesses,
Your own.
SMOKE IN THIS LIFE, NOT THE NEXT
Virtue — Reparation to the Precious Blood
Cigar — A deep red‑banded Rosado(the color of the Blood that saves and judges)
Pour — A rich Port wine(sweetness born from crushing, like grapes in the press of Gethsemane)
Reflection
Angela Tholomei died in sanctity — and was raised by her brother’s command in Christ. She awoke not with joy, but with terror. What she had seen of God’s judgments shook her to the bone.
Her life afterward proved it. Ordinary penances were not enough for a soul that had glimpsed divine severity. She fasted, watched, scourged herself, wore hair‑shirts — and still her conscience burned. She cast herself into flames, rolling in fire until her flesh was charred. Her body became a living warning, a contradiction, a scandal to the comfortable.
But she knew what she had seen. She knew what the Precious Blood had saved her from. And she knew what it cost.
Tonight’s Rosado burns like a reminder of that Blood. The Port tastes like crushed fruit — a small echo of the crushing that redeemed us. Some souls, once shown the truth, cannot live mildly again.
Purgatory LineThe Precious Blood saves — but it also reveals what we must be saved from.
The entire month falls within the
liturgical season of Ordinary Time, which is represented by the liturgical
color green. This symbol of hope is the color of the sprouting seed and arouses
in the faithful the hope of reaping the eternal harvest of heaven, especially
the hope of a glorious resurrection. It is used in the offices and Masses of
Ordinary Time.
Time
of Regeneration. The
Blood that coursed through the veins of Christ was a part of that Sacred
Humanity made possible by the maternity of Mary, whose parents, St. Joachim and
St. Anne are honored this month.
(July 26). Our Lord's blood poured out on the
Cross purchased our salvation, washed clean the robes of the martyrs, and gave
birth to the Church as it flowed from his wounded side. The Precious Blood of
Christ — now pulsing through his Mystical Body — continues its salvific work,
preserving and purifying, repairing and providing nourishment for regeneration
and renewal of its members.
July’s
longer and warmer days also provide us with the opportunity for renewal, both
interior and exterior. Schedules relax and pressures ease, inviting travel. But
whether we travel or not, like the missionary, St. Junipero Serra (July 1), we
preach to others — by our conduct, our speech, even the clothes we wear. May we
be modest in everything we do, imitating St. Maria Goretti, the young martyr
for purity (July 6), and “preaching” Christ to everyone we meet.
The
summer Readings of Ordinary Time remind us that our earthly pilgrimage is also
a journey, a great adventure towards union with Christ, the Beginning and the
End of our journey. Each Sunday with its Easter renewal becomes a mile marker
along the way, linking where we have been with where we are going. May the
Precious Blood of Jesus sustain us as we journey to our true home, with Mary
and the angels as our companions on the way.
Escape the heat, and take
in awe-inspiring glacial views, with a cruise to Alaska.
Cruise ships dock alongside towns from Seward, along Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula,
to Ketchikan, in the Alexander Archipelago. Cruise ships also dock near Katmai
National Park, where July is prime time to see bears gulp up Atlantic salmon on
their run. And if cruise prices prove too high in July, fret not: Alaska’s
prime cruise season stretches through September.
National
Ice Cream Month
This July we all scream
for ice cream. Celebrate National Ice Cream Month — designated a national
holiday by President Ronald Reagan in 1984 — with a trip to America’s coolest ice cream shops. And why not head to the
granddaddy of them all — Bassett’s
Ice Cream in
Philadelphia — the oldest ice cream company in the U.S., founded in 1861!
Ready
for a 68-mph adrenaline rush? Kick off July on the only wooden coaster to twist
upside down with a record-breaking three versions — and a stomach-in-your-mouth
81-degree drop. Take advantage of Outlaw Run’s extended hours this month at Silver Dollar City.
Celebrate
France’s biggest sporting event this month — the Tour
de France. The
official kick-off takes place on the island of Corsica then crosses onto
France’s mainland. Cruise the French countryside as you follow the grand event.
Or if you can’t make it abroad, head to one of America’s top bicycling cities.
Retrace one of America’s
biggest moments. This July the Battle of Gettysburg marks its 157th anniversary. Tour Gettysburg and its historic town and take in
battle reenactments of events that culminated in more than 51,000 casualties
and the setting for President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.
Our "Neighbor to the
North" marks its birthday this month. Get in on the festivities during the
Calgary Stampede! This 10-day event is Canada’s largest annual rodeo,
and one of its largest festivals to boot. Billed as the "Greatest Outdoor
Show on Earth," the rodeo draws more than 1 million visitors each year.
Pop! Boom! Bang! July
spells independence, with glorious fireworks nationwide. Celebrate Independence
Day with a visit to the annual Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks display over the
Hudson River. And if N.Y.C.’s not on your itinerary, check out more of America’s best fireworks displays — in St. Louis, Addison, Texas and
Chicago’s Navy Pier.
Run for your life! Join
hundreds of thousands of locals and tourists who flock to the northern Spanish
city of Pamplona for the annual San Fermin Festival.
At 8 a.m. on July 7, the celebration unfolds with six bulls and another six
steers running down a half-mile stretch of narrow streets. The week-long event
culminates in a final, grand fight in a bullring.
Head to one of the biggest
wine festivals under the sun! Celebrate wine harvest season this July with a
visit to California wine country. Held this year in Santa Barbara, the annual California Wine Festival showcases vintage wines, along
with gourmet appetizers including artisan breads and cheeses. Cheers!
Can’t make it to Pamplona
this month? Head to Key West instead! Hemingway Days Festival honors the late author, who lived
and worked on the southern coast of the island. The annual event includes its
own "Running of the Bulls" — this one with Ernest Hemingway
lookalikes pushing fake bulls on Key West’s famed Duval Street.
The annual Maine Lobster
Festival kicks off this month, and you won't want to miss a moment of it! Over
the course of the 5-day festival, more than 20,000 lbs. of lobster will be
served -- lobster rolls, lobster wraps, lobster Caesar salad. Did we say lobster?
Plus, see the annual Lobster Crate Race, cooking contest and the Maine Sea
Goddess coronation!
July arrives with weight.
The sun is fierce.
The days hum with labor.
The nights hold the smell of dust, smoke, and ripening fields.
If June is endurance,
July is fortitude —
the month when heat tests what spring only promised.
July is the season of fire,
of long work,
of loyalty proven under pressure.
It is the month when the heart learns courage that costs something.
❤️ The Spiritual Heart of July
July belongs to the Most Precious Blood of Jesus —
the feast of sacrifice,
the mystery of redemption,
the price of love paid in full.
If June is the Heart that loves,
July is the Blood that saves.
The Church anchors the month with feasts of courage, witness, and identity:
July 3 — St. Thomas the Apostle
The honest doubter who became the fearless missionary.
July 11 — St. Benedict
Father of Western monasticism, architect of stability and order.
July 22 — St. Mary Magdalene
Apostle to the Apostles — fidelity in the face of darkness.
July 25 — St. James the Greater
The pilgrim apostle, patron of those who walk long roads.
July 31 — St. Ignatius of Loyola
The soldier‑saint who forged the disciplined interior life.
July is the month when faith becomes mission,
devotion becomes action,
and love becomes sacrifice.
🌿 A Month of Testing and Tempering
July is not gentle.
It is the forge.
Fields bake.
Workers sweat.
Travelers seek shade.
Pilgrims rise early to beat the heat.
July teaches:
Fortitude
Sacrifice
Perseverance under pressure
Courage that holds its ground
Fidelity when comfort disappears
It is also:
Independence Day (U.S.) — freedom, responsibility, civic virtue
National Park & Recreation Month — stewardship of land and body
French National Day (Bastille Day) — memory, identity, renewal
World Day for Grandparents & the Elderly — heritage and blessing
A month of heat, history, and the testing of character.
🔥 The July 5×5 Precious Blood Framework
If June strengthened the heart,
July strengthens the will —
the capacity to choose the good even when it costs.
Body • Mind • Heart • Spirit • Mission
All five tempered like iron in summer fire.
Precious Blood Sequence (July 1–7)
Seven days of sacrificial clarity:
Price
Redemption
Covenant
Cleansing
Strength
Witness
Victory
Benedictine Arc (July 8–14)
Stability in a restless world:
Rule
Order
Work
Prayer
Balance
Community
Peace
Pilgrim Arc (July 22–25)
Mary Magdalene to St. James:
Seek
Rise
Walk
Persevere
Ignatian Arc (July 26–31)
Discernment under fire:
Examine
Choose
Renounce
Commit
Advance
🗺️ JULY 2026 TRAVEL CALENDAR
(All links are official sources)
🎆 Independence Day Celebrations — July 4
Nationwide
🎶 Montreux Jazz Festival — July 4–19
Montreux, Switzerland — montreuxjazzfestival.com
🎭 Shakespeare in the Park — All Month
New York City — publictheater.org
🏖️ San Diego Comic‑Con — July 23–26
San Diego, CA — comic-con.org
🚴 Tour de France — June 27–July 19
Across France — letour.fr
🎨 Santa Fe Art Week — July 12–20
Santa Fe, NM — santafe.org
🏞️ National Park & Recreation Month
U.S. parks, trails, and wilderness areas
🌕 Astronomical Notes
Full Buck Moon — July 29, 2026
A bright, muscular midsummer moon —
named for the antlers that reach full strength in July.
🌄 Closing Reflection
July is the month of tested courage —
courage that sweats,
courage that endures,
courage that refuses to retreat.
Every hot day becomes a proving ground.
Every long evening becomes a chance to choose the good again.
Every act of sacrifice becomes a mark of strength.
May we stand in His Blood.
May we walk in His courage.
May we live with fortitude.
King Cyrus of Persia has
just defeated the Babylonians. Inspired by God's spirit, he tells the
Israelites that they can head home and rebuild their temple. He returns the
sacred temple vessels stolen by the Babylonians and personally bankrolls the
whole building project from his treasury. Zerubbabel and Jeshua the High Priest
lead the people back and start laying down the foundations for a new Temple.
But Israel's enemies are able to frustrate the building plans by getting the
new Persian king Artaxerxes to order construction to a halt. Things stay that
way until Darius comes to power in Persia.
Two prophets, Haggai and Zechariah,
urge the Israelites to start building, so naturally the enemies of Israel again
complain to the king and demand he check the records to see if Cyrus actually
gave permission to build. But—when Darius finds Cyrus's original decree, he
lets them start rebuilding. Ezra (earlier in time but not in the narrative) is
sent by Artaxerxes to help the Israelites get their religious observance back
on track. A big part of this involves Ezra breaking up marriages between
Israelites and non-Israelites. He has a major meltdown when he hears about all
the intermarriage and manages to convince the men to send away their foreign
wives and children.
They
set the altar on its foundations, for they lived in FEAR of the peoples of the lands, and offered burnt offerings to
the LORD on it, both morning and evening.
Pray today for the souls of those
taken in battle. In the communion of saints, it is our duty; no-it is our honor
to pray for the souls of those in our company who have died; especially those
who have passed through the valley of fear in the heat of battle.
One thing is certain: There are no
atheists in foxholes but there may be a few lawyers.
Love
Litigating Lawyers, no matter how unpopular we generally consider them to
be…or how unprincipled we believe them to be we are to love them for the sake
of Christ. #LoveLitigatingLawyersDay
Declaration of Independence is in July and the
Constitution is in September, let us once again reflect on the marvelous
principles underlying these two documents. The following is a review of these
principles together with a comment or a quote by the Founders. Documentation
may be found in The Five
Thousand Year Leap.
·Principle 1–The only reliable basis
for sound government and just human relations is Natural Law.
Natural law is God’s law. There are certain laws
which govern the entire universe, and just as Thomas Jefferson said in the
Declaration of Independence, there are laws which govern in the affairs of men
which are “the laws of nature and of nature’s God.”
“Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom.
As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.” –
Benjamin Franklin
·Principle 3–The most promising method
of securing a virtuous people is to elect virtuous leaders.
“Neither the wisest constitution nor the wisest
laws will secure the liberty and happiness of a people whose manners are
universally corrupt. He therefore is the truest friend to the liberty of his
country who tries most to promote its virtue, and who … will not suffer a man
to be chosen into any office of power and trust who is not a wise and virtuous
man.” – Samuel Adams
·Principle 4–Without religion
the government of a free people cannot be maintained.
“Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to
political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports…. And
let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained
without religion.” – George Washington
·Principle 5–All things
were created by God, therefore upon him all mankind are equally dependent, and
to him they are equally responsible.
The American Founding Fathers considered the
existence of the Creator as the most fundamental premise underlying all
self-evident truth. They felt a person who boasted he or she was an atheist had
just simply failed to apply his or her divine capacity for reason and
observation.
·Principle 6–All mankind
were created equal.
The Founders knew that in these three ways, all
mankind are theoretically treated as:
Equal before God.
Equal before the law.
Equal in their rights.
·The Freedom to try.
·The Freedom to buy.
·The Freedom to sell.
·The Freedom to fail.
·Principle 7– The proper role of
government is to protect equal rights, not provide equal things.
The Founders recognized that the people cannot
delegate to their government any power except that which they have the lawful
right to exercise themselves.
·Principle 8 – Mankind are
endowed by God with certain unalienable rights.
“Those rights, then, which God and nature have
established, and are therefore called natural rights, such as are life and
liberty, need not the aid of human laws to be more effectually invested in
every man than they are; neither do they receive any additional strength when
declared by the municipal [or state] laws to be inviolable. On the contrary, no
human legislation has power to abridge or destroy them, unless the owner [of
the right] shall himself commit some act that amounts to a forfeiture.” – William
Blackstone
·Principle 9 – To protect human
rights, God has revealed a code of divine law.
“The doctrines thus delivered we call the
revealed or divine law, and they are to be found only in the Holy Scriptures.
These precepts, when revealed, are found by comparison to be really a part of
the original law of nature, as they tend in all their consequences to man’s
felicity.” – William Blackstone
·Principle 10–The God-given
right to govern is vested in the sovereign authority of the whole people.
“The fabric of the American empire ought to rest
on the solid basis of the consent of the people. The streams of national power
ought to flow immediately from that pure, original fountain of all legislative
authority.” – Alexander Hamilton
·Principle 11–The majority
of the people may alter or abolish a government which has become tyrannical.
“Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments
long established should not be changed for light and transient causes … but
when a long train of abuses and usurpations … evinces a design to reduce them
under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off
such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.” – Thomas
Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence
·Principle 12–The United States of America
shall be a republic.
“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United
States of America, and to the republic or which it stands….”
·Principle 13–A Constitution should
protect the people from the frailties of their rulers.
“If angels were to govern men, neither external
nor internal controls on government would be necessary…. [But lacking these]
you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next
place oblige it to control itself.” – James Madison
·Principle 14–Life and liberty are
secure only so long as the rights of property are secure.
John Locke reasoned that God gave the earth and
everything in it to the whole human family as a gift. Therefore, the land, the
sea, the acorns in the forest, the deer feeding in the meadow belong to
everyone “in common.” However, the moment someone takes the trouble to change
something from its original state of nature, that person has added his
ingenuity or labor to make that change. Herein lies the secret to the origin of
“property rights.”
·Principle 15–The highest level of prosperity
occurs when there is a free-market economy and a minimum of government
regulations.
Prosperity depends upon a climate of wholesome
stimulation with four basic freedoms (Speech-Worship-Want-Fear) in operation.
·Principle 16–The government
should be separated into three branches.
“I call you to witness that I was the first
member of the Congress who ventured to come out in public, as I did in January
1776, in my Thoughts on Government … in favor of a government with three
branches and an independent judiciary. This pamphlet, you know, was very
unpopular. No man appeared in public to support it but yourself.” – John Adams
·Principle 17–A system of
checks and balances should be adopted to prevent the abuse of power by the
different branches of government.
“It will not be denied that power is of an
encroaching nature and that it ought to be effectually restrained from passing
the limits assigned to it.” – James Madison
·Principle 18 –The
unalienable rights of the people are most likely to be preserved if the
principles of government are set forth in a written Constitution.
The structure of the American system is set forth
in the Constitution of the United States and the only weaknesses which have
appeared are those which were allowed to creep in despite the Constitution.
·Principle 19–Only limited and
carefully defined powers should be delegated to government, all others being
retained by the people.
The Tenth Amendment is the most widely violated
provision of the bill of rights. If it had been respected and enforced America
would be an amazingly different country than it is today. This amendment
provides:
“The powers not delegated to the United States by
the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the
States respectively, or to the people.”
·Principle 20–Efficiency and dispatch
require that the government operate according to the will of the majority, but
constitutional provisions must be made to protect the rights of the minority.
“Every man, by consenting with others to make one
body politic under one government, puts himself under an obligation to every
one of that society to submit to the determination of the majority, and to be
concluded [bound] by it.” – John Locke
·Principle 21–Strong local
self-government is the keystone to preserving human freedom.
“The way to have good and safe government is not
to trust it all to one, but to divide it among the many, distributing to
everyone exactly the functions he is competent [to perform best]. – Thomas
Jefferson
·Principle 22–A free people should be
governed by law and not by the whims of men.
“The end of law is not to abolish or restrain,
but to preserve and enlarge freedom. For in all the states of created beings,
capable of laws, where there is no law there is no freedom. For liberty is to
be free from restraint and violence of others, which cannot be where there is
no law.” – John Locke
·Principle 23–A free society cannot
survive as a republic without a broad program of general education.
“They made an early provision by law that every
town consisting of so many families should be always furnished with a grammar
school. They made it a crime for such a town to be destitute of a grammar
schoolmaster for a few months, and subjected it to a heavy penalty. So that the
education of all ranks of people was made the care and expense of the public,
in a manner that I believe has been unknown to any other people, ancient or
modern. The consequences of these establishments we see and feel every day [written
in 1765]. A native of America who cannot read and write is as rare … as a comet
or an earthquake.” John Adams
·Principle 24–A free people
will not survive unless they stay strong.
“To be prepared for war is one of the most
effectual means of preserving peace.” – George Washington
·Principle 25-Peace, commerce, and
honest friendship with all nations — entangling alliances with none.”-Thomas
Jefferson, given in his first inaugural address.
·Principle 26 –The core unit which
determines the strength of any society is the family; therefore, the government
should foster and protect its integrity.
“There is certainly no country in the world where
the tie of marriage is more respected than in America, or where conjugal
happiness is more highly or worthily appreciated.” Alexis de Tocqueville
·Principle 27–The burden of debt is as
destructive to human freedom as subjugation by conquest.
“We are bound to defray expenses [of the war]
within our own time, and are unauthorized to burden posterity with them…. We
shall all consider ourselves morally bound to pay them ourselves and
consequently within the life [expectancy] of the majority.” – Thomas Jefferson
·Principle 28–The United States
has a manifest destiny to eventually become a glorious example of God’s law
under a restored Constitution that will inspire the entire human race.
The Founders sensed from the very beginning that
they were on a divine mission. Their great disappointment was that it didn’t
all come to pass in their day, but they knew that someday it would. John Adams
wrote:
“I always consider the settlement of America with
reverence and wonder, as the opening of a grand scene and design in Providence
for the illumination of the ignorant, and the emancipation of the slavish part
of mankind all over the earth.”
Copilot’s Take
The scene in Ezra is striking: “They set the altar on its foundations,
for they lived in fear of the peoples of the lands… and offered burnt
offerings… morning and evening.” Fear presses in, yet worship rises up. Israel
does not wait for courage to appear; they build the altar because they
are afraid. The Catechism calls this fortitude — the virtue that “ensures
firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good” (CCC 1808).
Fear is not a failure. Fear becomes destructive only when it prevents a person
from turning toward God. The altar is the answer to fear.
The Feast of the Precious Blood reveals how God Himself confronts evil.
Christ does not defeat darkness through overwhelming displays of force but
through the offering of His own Blood — the “sacrifice of the New Covenant”
(CCC 613). Evil is not overcome by human strength but by divine self‑gift. This
is why the Church urges prayer for the dead: intercession is not sentimentality
but spiritual warfare. “From the beginning the Church has honored the memory of
the dead and offered prayers for them” (CCC 1032). To pray for those who have
passed through the valley of fear — especially in battle — is to stand with
Christ against the dominion of death.
Even the humorous line in today’s reflection — “Love Litigating Lawyers
Day” — carries a Gospel edge. Charity is not selective. The Catechism teaches
that love extends even to those who are difficult, irritating, or morally
ambiguous (CCC 1825). Evil thrives on contempt. Christ dismantles evil by
commanding love where the world demands hatred. To love the unlovable is to
refuse the logic of the enemy. It is to imitate the One who shed His Blood for
the righteous and the unrighteous alike.
The long list of founding principles included today is not political
nostalgia; it is a reminder that Natural Law is God’s architecture for human
freedom. “The only reliable basis for sound government… is Natural Law,” the
reflection states, echoing the Catechism’s teaching that Natural Law is
“written in the heart” (CCC 1954). A society that forgets God forgets the
source of its own liberty. A society that abandons virtue becomes vulnerable to
tyranny. True freedom requires moral strength, and the common good depends on
citizens who pursue what is right (CCC 1906–1912).
The reflection also highlights the family as the core unit of society — a
truth the Catechism affirms with force: “The family is the original cell of
social life” (CCC 2207). Evil always attacks the family first because it is the
foundation of every other freedom. To defend the family is to confront evil at
its root. To strengthen marriage is to strengthen the nation. To honor covenant
is to honor God.
Taken together, the readings, the feast, and the principles form a single
message: confronting evil begins with worship. Israel built the altar before
they felt safe. Christ shed His Blood before the world repented. The saints
prayed for the dead before victory was visible. The Founders appealed to
Natural Law before the nation existed. A person does not wait for ideal
conditions to stand firm. The altar is built now. Prayer rises now. Charity is
practiced now. Truth is defended now.
This is the posture for the Feast of the Precious Blood: When fear rises,
build the altar. When evil advances, plead the Blood. When the culture forgets
God, stand on Natural Law. When death surrounds, pray for the dead. This is how
believers confront evil without becoming it.
The Feast of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ is a
Catholic celebration that honors the redemptive power of Christ’s blood, shed
during His Passion. Though it was officially added to the General Roman
Calendar in 1849 by Pope Pius IX, its roots stretch back much further,
tied deeply to devotion to the Passion itself.
Originally celebrated on the first Sunday of July, it was later
fixed to July 1st by Pope Pius X. In 1933, Pope Pius XI elevated it to a
major feast to mark the 1,900th anniversary of Christ’s death. However, in
1969, it was removed from the universal calendar after Vatican II reforms, as
its themes were seen as already present in other major feasts like Corpus
Christi and the Sacred Heart.
Still, many religious communities—like the Missionaries of the Precious
Blood—continue to observe it with deep reverence. It’s a powerful reminder of
the belief that, as Scripture says, “the blood of Jesus Christ… cleanses us
from all sin” (1 John 1:7).
July
first is the Feast of the Precious Blood. This is a feast that does not exist
in the new Roman Calendar of Pope Paul VI. It is still, however, in the
traditional Roman calendar of 1962 usage. Both halves of the year, in January
and July, begin with the commemoration of the Precious Blood of Jesus. January
1 is the feast of the Circumcision, when the Precious Blood of Jesus was first
shed. July 1 is the commemoration of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus as it is
preserved in all Catholic churches at the hour of Mass. The Precious Blood of
Jesus was given to Him to divinize by Mary, the Mother of God. Between Jesus
and Mary there was a perpetual interflow of blood for nine months when He was a
Child in her womb. Anyone can see how divinized Mary became by this interchange
of blood for nearly a year. Everyone who wishes to become a son of God the
Father, as he becomes by Sanctifying Grace, must also become a child of Mary
the Virgin, by receiving in his mouth the Blessed Eucharist which is the Body,
Blood, Soul and Divinity of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. All the saints
of the Old Testament, when their bodies rise from the grave on the Last Day,
will receive the Precious Blood of Jesus.
Our Lord said of the chalice which
contained His Precious Blood at the Last Supper, “I will not drink of this
fruit of the vine, until that day when I shall drink it with you new in the
Kingdom of My Father.” The Kingdom of God the Father, whose sons we divinely by
adoption, is also the Queendom of Mary the Virgin, whose children we must
incarnately become in order to enjoy the happiness of Heaven forever.
Our Heavenly Father
desires all three hearts of Jesus, Mary and Joseph to be honored. And so along
with devotion to Jesus on First Fridays, and to Mary on First Saturdays, Our
Father longs for us to add devotion to St. Joseph on each First Wednesday of the
month.
"The Sacred
Hearts of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph have been chosen by the Most Holy Trinity to
bring peace to the world." It is at God's request that "special love
and honor be given to them" to help us "imitate" their love and their
lives, as well as "offer reparation" for the sins committed against
them and their love.
The
St. Joseph First Wednesday devotion is:
1. Pray the Joyful
Mysteries of the Rosary - remembering St. Joseph's love, his life, his role and
his sufferings
2. Receive Holy
Communion - in union with the love St. Joseph had for Jesus the first time and
each time he held him - his son, his God and Savior - in his arms.
In the approved
apparitions of Our Lady of America, St. Joseph revealed:
·"I
am the protector of the C0hurch and the home, as I was the protector of Christ
and his mother while I lived upon earth. Jesus and Mary desire that my pure
heart, so long hidden and unknown, be now honored in a special way.
·Let my
children honor my most pure heart in a special manner on the First Wednesday of
the month by reciting the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary in memory of my life
with Jesus and Mary and the love I bore them, the sorrow I suffered with them.
·Let them
receive Holy Communion in union with the love with which I received the Savior
for the first time and each time I held Him in my arms.
·Those
who honor me in this way will be consoled by my presence at their death, and I
myself will conduct them safely into the presence of Jesus and Mary."
Every Wednesday is
Dedicated to St. Joseph
The Italian culture has
always had a close association with St. Joseph perhaps you could make
Wednesdays centered around Jesus’s Papa. Plan an Italian dinner of pizza or
spaghetti after attending Mass as most parishes have a Wednesday evening Mass.
You could even do carry out to help restaurants. If you are adventurous, you
could do the Universal Man Plan: St. Joseph style. Make the evening a family
night perhaps it could be a game night. Whatever you do make the day special.
California
might not have any Confederate statues, but we do have plenty of monuments to
Junipero Serra, widely known as the "father" of the California
Missions. The story of the mass destruction of the Native population in
California is less prevalent in the history books. The statue was torn down
with a rope around the neck, its head splashed with blood-red paint. As the
statue lay on the ground, Native children used it as a bench. Activists tore down a Serra statue
in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park last week, as well as a statue of Francis
Scott Key, author of the American anthem, "The Star Spangled Banner,"
who was a known slave owner. Serra was a Spanish priest, who came to what was
then Alta California (part of Mexico), to spread Catholicism to the indigenous
population. (Here in L.A. that was mostly people from the Tongva tribe. And by
"spread" Catholicism, we mean force it upon them. Serra eventually
spearheaded 21 missions on the coast, from San Diego to San Francisco. The
missionaries were responsible for the ultimate destruction of Tongva culture.
Tongva people who joined the missions in California essentially became slaves, forced to do manual labor. They
suffered from disease, many of the women were raped, and thousands died or were
killed. Those who resisted and remained in the countryside often starved, as
their hunting grounds were turned into farms by the colonizers. This is
according to BLM (communist organization) supporters.
St. Junipero Serra
In
1776, when the American revolution was beginning in the east, another part of
the future United States was being born in California. That year a gray-robed
Franciscan founded Mission San Juan Capistrano, now famous for its annually
returning swallows. San Juan was the seventh of nine missions established under
the direction of this indomitable Spaniard. Born on Spain's island of Mallorca,
Serra entered the Franciscan Order, taking the name of Saint Francis' childlike
companion, Brother Juniper. Until he was thirty-five, he spent most of his time
in the classroom-first as a student of theology and then as a professor. He
also became famous for his preaching. Suddenly he gave it all up and followed
the yearning that had begun years before when he heard about the missionary
work of Saint Francis Solanus in South America. Junipero's desire was to
convert native peoples in the New World.
Arriving
by ship at Vera Cruz, Mexico, he and a companion walked the 250 miles to Mexico
City. On the way Junipero's left leg became infected by an insect bite and
would remain a cross, often life-threatening, for the rest of his life. For
eighteen years he worked in central Mexico and in the Baja Peninsula. He became
president of the missions there.
Enter
politics: the threat of a Russian invasion south from Alaska. Charles III of
Spain ordered an expedition to beat Russia to the territory. So the last two
conquistadores-one military, one spiritual-began their quest. Jose de Galvez
persuaded Junipero to set out with him for present-day Monterey, California.
The first mission founded after the nine-hundred-mile journey north was San
Diego (1769). That year a shortage of food almost canceled the expedition.
Vowing to stay with the local people, Junipero and another friar began a novena
in preparation for Saint Joseph’s Day, March 19, the scheduled day of
departure. On that day, the relief ship arrived.
Other
missions followed: Monterey/Carmel (1770); San Antonio and San Gabriel (1771);
San Luis Obispo (1772); San Francisco and San Juan Capistrano (1776); Santa
Clara (1777); San Buenaventura (1782). Twelve more were founded after Serra's
death.
Junipero
made the long trip to Mexico City to settle great differences with the military
commander. He arrived at the point of death. The outcome was substantially what
Junipero sought: the famous "Regulation" protecting the Indians and
the missions. It was the basis for the first significant legislation in
California, a "Bill of Rights" for Native Americans.
Because
the Native Americans were living a nonhuman life from the Spanish point of
view, the friars were made their legal guardians. The Native Americans were
kept at the mission after Baptism lest they be corrupted in their former haunts
— a move that has brought cries of "injustice" from some moderns.
Junipero's
missionary life was a long battle with cold and hunger, with unsympathetic
military commanders and even with danger of death from non-Christian native
peoples. Through it all his unquenchable zeal was fed by prayer each night,
often from midnight until dawn. He baptized over six thousand people and
confirmed five thousand. His travels would have circled the globe. He brought
the Native Americans not only the gift of faith but also a decent standard of
living. He won their love, as witnessed especially by their grief at his death.
He is buried at Mission San Carlo Borromeo, Carmel, and was beatified in 1988.
Excerpted from Saint of the Day, Leonard Foley,
O.F.M.
Things to Do:
Read about St.
Junipero Serra and the California Missions here and here.
Fr. Mike summarizes and contextualizes the book of Philemon,
addressing the tension of slavery addressed in the Bible. He provides an
explanation on the continued destruction depicted in Revelation as the visions
of the apostle John, holding it up to the light of the Gospel. Today’s readings
are Revelation 8-11, Philemon, and Proverbs 31:16-18.
Jeanne Crain • Michael Rennie • Max Showalter • Mary Anderson
Directed by Joseph M. Newman
A ship at sea is the perfect stage for paranoia — enclosed, drifting, and filled with strangers whose smiles may not be sincere. Dangerous Crossing is not merely a mystery. It is a meditation on isolation, gaslighting, and the fragile line between sanity and surrender.
Jeanne Crain’s Ruth Stanton boards the ship as a bride, radiant and hopeful. Within hours, her husband vanishes. The crew denies he ever existed. The walls close in. The ocean becomes a mirror of her fear — vast, indifferent, and impossible to escape.
Michael Rennie’s Dr. Manning is the lone figure who treats her distress as something more than hysteria. His calm presence becomes the film’s moral counterweight: the quiet insistence that truth matters even when everyone else conspires to erase it.
Beneath the suspense lies a deeper truth: when reality is denied, the soul begins to drift. And when a person is told repeatedly that what they know is false, the battle becomes spiritual — a fight to hold onto the self.
1. Production & Cultural Setting
Postwar Anxiety on the Open Sea
Released in 1953, the film channels the era’s unease — Cold War suspicion, shifting gender roles, and the fear of being dismissed or disbelieved. A ship becomes America in miniature: orderly on the surface, unstable underneath.
Jeanne Crain: The Woman No One Believes
Crain’s performance is a study in rising panic. She embodies every person who has ever been told their certainty is “imagined.”
Michael Rennie: The Steady Witness
Rennie’s doctor is not a savior but a witness — someone who refuses to let another human being be erased.
2. Story Summary
The Voyage Begins
Ruth Stanton boards the ship with her new husband. They check into their cabin. He leaves briefly — and never returns.
The Denial
The purser insists no such man boarded. The passenger list omits his name. The cabin is reassigned. Ruth’s sanity is questioned.
The Descent
As Ruth searches the ship, she encounters locked doors, evasive answers, and a conspiracy that seems designed to break her mind.
The Revelation
The truth emerges: her husband’s disappearance is part of a criminal plot tied to her inheritance — a scheme that requires her silence.
The Confrontation
Cornered, Ruth must reclaim her voice, her memory, and her courage. The ship becomes a battleground for her identity.
3. Moral & Emotional Resonances
A. Gaslighting Is Violence
The film shows how denying someone’s reality is a form of spiritual assault.
B. Isolation Breeds Vulnerability
Ruth’s danger increases as her circle of trust shrinks.
C. Truth Needs Allies
Dr. Manning’s quiet loyalty is a reminder that sometimes salvation comes through simple belief.
D. Evil Prefers Confusion
The plot works only if Ruth doubts herself — a tactic as old as the serpent.
E. Identity Must Be Guarded
Ruth’s fight is not just for her husband but for her own mind.
4. Hospitality Pairing — A Night of Maritime Noir
Drink: Dark & Stormy — ginger heat, ocean wind, a hint of danger.
Plate: Lemon‑roasted fish with black pepper — clean, sharp, bracing.
Atmosphere: Low light, the sound of waves, a single lantern glow — the loneliness of a ship at night.
Symbol: A passenger list — the names we cling to when others try to erase them.
5. Reflection Prompts
Where have I been made to doubt what I know is true.
Who stands beside me when others question my reality.
What “closed rooms” in my life need reopening.
Where is fear trying to rewrite my story.
What truth must I defend even when I stand alone.
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