Sunday, July 12, 2026
Smoke in This Life Not the Next — Sun, Jul 12 Seventh Sunday after Pentecost Virtue: Mission & Mercy
Cigar: Aromatic, expansive (Cameroon)
Bourbon: Jefferson’s Ocean — bright, generous
Reflection: Where am I sent with compassion?
This Sunday carries a different weight. After the austerity of a cheap night, the soul is asked not to withdraw but to go outward — to let mercy become movement. The Cameroon wrapper sets the tone: aromatic, spacious, a leaf that seems to widen the heart with every draw. Jefferson’s Ocean follows, its brightness shaped by travel, by crossing waters, by refusing to remain still. Together they form a liturgy of being sent.
Mission begins when the heart consents to feel what another suffers. The old account of Chocosca — the single drop of purgatorial sweat that felled a strong religious — reveals the scale of pain the dead endure and the living rarely imagine. It also reveals the dignity of intercession: the living can choose to carry a fraction of another’s fire, not to be destroyed by it, but to transform it into love.
Tonight’s smoke rises in that spirit. Each draw becomes a willingness to be inconvenienced, to stretch, to feel, to pray for the Benedictine soul whose kindness once guided a penitent toward Communion. Mercy is never abstract; it is always embodied, always costly, always sent.
On this Seventh Sunday after Pentecost, the question becomes concrete: Where am I sent with compassion today? The Cameroon leaf teaches expansion. The bourbon teaches movement. The purgatorial witness teaches feeling. Together they form a single truth: mission is mercy, and mercy is mission — the heart traveling outward so both souls may move toward God.
JULY 12 Seventh Sunday after
Pentecost
St.
Veronica-Simplicity Day
Tobit, Chapter 2,
Verse 8
A
righteous person cannot just ignore justice. Tobit must do the work the Lord
has appointed him, hell or high water.
Tobit[1]
Within forty days, however, Sennacherib’s
sons assassinated him.
His successor appointed Ahiquar (Tobit’s
nephew) over all the treasury accounts.
Previously, Ahiquar had held the position
of cupbearer in Sennacherib’s court. So he had a long history of court
service and was well-respected.
Ahiquar’s name means “My divine brother is
precious.”
Because of his position, he was able to
intercede on behalf of Tobit.
Tobit was forgiven and allowed to come out
of hiding.
Later, when he and his family were about
to celebrate the festival of Weeks/Pentecost, Tobit was filled with gratitude
because they had so much food and saddened because so many others had
little/none.
He told his son to go out into the city
and invite to dinner those who were homeless and poor. In so doing,
Tobit was trying to instill the same values into his son.
Tobias came back with a report that
another Jew was lying dead in the marketplace (obviously a public execution of
sorts).
Without hesitation, Tobit rose up from the
table and grabbed the body and buried it.
Helping the Poor[2]
Righteous people have a
professed interest in helping the poor. It is hard to find anyone who’s
anti-poor. What matters are not platitudes— we’re all in favor of clean air,
too—what counts are the kinds of policies we adopt. Good intentions matter, but
not much: great damage has been done in the name of helping people. Hitler said his policies would save Western
civilization. Stalin and Mao said they would create a utopia. They were all
genocidal maniacs.
If we want to help the
poor, we should at least know who they are. Census data tell us that nearly all
the poor in this country live in houses or apartments that are in good
condition and aren’t overcrowded.
More than 80 percent of the poor
own an air conditioner, two-thirds have cable TV, and half own a computer.
Fully 96 percent of poor parents say their children were not hungry for even a
single day in the past year. By any historical measure, there are practically
no poor people left in America.
When we compare our “poor” to the
poor in other nations today, we learn why I chose quotation marks to describe
ours.
It would be wrong to conclude that
we should therefore do nothing to help those who are not affluent. As
Catholics, we have a moral obligation to help those in need.
At a minimum, our energy and
dollars should be directed at those who can’t help themselves. As for able
bodied persons who are not affluent, the most charitable thing we can do is to
enable them to become self-reliant.
Champions of the poor who oppose
school vouchers cannot be taken seriously; it is minority children in the inner
city who suffer.
Fraud is rampant.
When my oldest daughter
was a 12-year-old, I brought her to the office on “Bring Your Daughter to Work
Day” (this trendy idea didn’t last long). On our way to work, a man was
standing next to a table with a huge jug; UHO was inscribed on it (United Homeless
Organization). He asked us to give, but I refused. My daughter wanted to know
why. When we got to my office, I explained my reasoning. I downloaded stories
on my computer showing what a fraud UHO was. Caryn learned that virtually all
the money went to the operators and the street hustlers. Three years ago, New
York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo (now governor) said, “UHO exploits the good
intentions of people who thought their charitable donations were helping to
fund services for the homeless. Instead, their donations go directly to UHO’s principals and workers, who abused the
organization’s tax-exempt status to line their own pockets.” Some things
never change. Over the summer, it was reported that those who live in New York
City’s Caribbean neighborhoods are buying groceries with their Electronic
Benefit Transfer cards (food stamps for those on welfare) and sending them
overseas. There are literally hundreds of 45-to-55-gallon cardboard and plastic
barrels that line the walls in virtually every Caribbean supermarket. The food
is being shipped to relatives in Jamaica, Haiti and the Dominican Republic. But
not all of it: some is being resold by rip-off artists.
Dishonesty
is also rampant.
Bread
for the World is a
prominent liberal organization that collects donations for the alleged purpose
of helping the poor. Not a dime pays for bread: All proceeds go to lobbyists
who pressure politicians to spend more money on poverty programs.
Back in the 1980s,
celebrities organized a well-publicized campaign to help the poor. “Holding Hands Across America” garnered
the support of legions of public figures (even the Reagans were roped into it).
It raked in hundreds of millions.
Unfortunately for the
poor, two out of every three dollars raised was spent to pay for the bash. More
recently, when a donor sent great New York pastrami sandwiches to the “Occupy
Wall Street” gang, the pro-poor demonstrators told the homeless who asked for
some to get lost. The soup was for the poor.
Helping the poor is a
noble cause, but it can also become a fool’s errand.
We need to ask who the intended
beneficiaries are, and what, if anything, can be expected of them in return.
We need to know how much of the
money goes to administrative costs, and how much is spent on the target group.
We need to know if there is a
face-to-face relationship between donors and recipients, or just a money
transfer.
We need to know about fraud and
dishonesty.
One of the great things
about Mother Teresa is that she never sought the limelight. She simply went
about her business helping the poor and comforting the sick and dying. It’s our
good fortune that she was “discovered” and introduced to the world. She’s the
proper role model, not those who stand on street corners asking for “spare
change,” or white-collared professionals who manipulate public sentiment for
self-serving reasons.
Eight
Levels of Charity-seek the highest good.[3]
Maimonides defines eight levels in giving
charity (tzedakah), each one higher than the
preceding one.
On an ascending level,
they are as follows:
8. When donations are
given grudgingly.
7. When one gives less
than he should, but does so cheerfully.
6. When one gives directly
to the poor upon being asked.
5. When one gives directly
to the poor without being asked.
4. Donations when the
recipient is aware of the donor's identity, but the donor still doesn't know
the specific identity of the recipient.
3. Donations when the
donor is aware to whom the charity is being given, but the recipient is unaware
of the source.
2. Giving assistance in
such a way that the giver and recipient are unknown to each other. Communal
funds, administered by responsible people are also in this category.
1. The highest form of
charity is to help sustain a person before they become impoverished by
offering a substantial gift in a dignified manner, or by extending a suitable
loan, or by helping them find employment or establish themselves in business so
as to make it unnecessary for them to become dependent on others.
Imagine
if we did this…what would the world be like?
Copilot’s
Take
Tobit offers
one of Scripture’s most vivid portraits of righteous courage. In Tobit 2:8, his
neighbors mock him for burying the dead, warning that he is inviting execution.
They speak from fear; Tobit acts from obedience. He knows Sennacherib has
already hunted him once. He knows Jews have been killed for this very deed. Yet
when Tobias reports a murdered man lying in the marketplace, Tobit rises from
the table immediately. Charity, for him, is not sentiment—it is fidelity to
God’s justice even when the cost is high.
This pattern
of defiant righteousness runs through the entire narrative. Tobit’s exile ends
only because Ahiquar—long trusted in the Assyrian court—intercedes for him.
Freed from hiding, Tobit prepares to celebrate Pentecost with gratitude for
God’s provision and sorrow for those who have none. He sends Tobias into the
city to bring the poor to their table, teaching that charity is not an
abstraction but a household discipline. And when confronted with injustice—a
Jew slain and left in public—Tobit does not theorize about poverty or lament
societal decline. He acts. He buries the dead. He confronts evil directly.
Modern
society is filled with proclamations of concern for “the poor,” yet very little
of Tobit’s clarity. The Church commands love for the poor (CCC 2448), but also
warns against structures of sin, fraud, and exploitation (CCC 1887–1888). Good
intentions do not sanctify bad systems. Charitable organizations have siphoned
donations into administrative costs, activists have championed the poor while
despising them in person, and bureaucracies have perpetuated dependency rather
than dignity. Charity without truth becomes corruption; charity without courage
becomes performance.
This is why
Maimonides’ hierarchy of charity remains so striking. His highest level of
giving is not almsgiving at all—it is preventing poverty through work, dignity,
and self-reliance. Catholic teaching affirms the same truth: work honors the
Creator (CCC 2427), and authentic charity seeks the integral development of the
person, not their permanent dependency. The poor deserve empowerment, not
management. They deserve justice, not sentiment. They deserve the kind of love
embodied by Mother Teresa—quiet, sacrificial, unadvertised, and rooted in the
dignity of the human person.
Public life
demands this same moral clarity. The Church teaches that citizens must
cultivate truth and justice (CCC 1915), and that when authority commands
something contrary to the moral order, the faithful must refuse (CCC 2242).
Integrity, not applause, is the measure of service. Courage, not convenience,
is the measure of charity. The Covenant of Public Service reflects this ancient
wisdom, calling for a public ethic capable of confronting corruption, defending
the vulnerable, and resisting policies that harm the poor under the guise of
helping them. Readers can revisit that foundation here: http://www.icemanforchrist.org/p/the-covenant-of-public-service.html
If charity
were lived at Tobit’s level—fearless, immediate, sacrificial—and at Maimonides’
level—dignity-building, fraud-resistant, truth-oriented—the world would be
recognizably Christian. The poor would be lifted rather than managed. Public
servants would confront corruption rather than negotiate with it. Charity would
be measured by transformation rather than sentiment. Justice would be pursued
even when dangerous. Integrity would be more valuable than applause.
Tobit shows
that righteousness is not merely believing the right things—it is doing the
right things when the cost is high. That is the charity the Gospel demands.
That is the charity capable of confronting evil with the courage of a servant
of God.
ON KEEPING THE LORD'S DAY HOLY[4]
CHAPTER III
DIES ECCLESIAE
The Eucharistic Assembly:
Heart of Sunday
Easter
banquet and fraternal gathering
44.
The communal character of the Eucharist emerges in a special way when it is
seen as the Easter banquet, in which Christ himself becomes our nourishment. In
fact, "for this purpose Christ entrusted to the Church this sacrifice: so
that the faithful might share in it, both spiritually, in faith and charity,
and sacramentally, in the banquet of Holy Communion. Sharing in the Lord's
Supper is always communion with Christ, who offers himself for us in sacrifice
to the Father".(72) This is why the Church recommends that the faithful
receive communion when they take part in the Eucharist, provided that they
are properly disposed and, if aware of grave sin, have received God's pardon in
the Sacrament of Reconciliation,(73) in the spirit of what Saint Paul writes to
the community at Corinth (cf. 1 Cor 11:27-32). Obviously, the invitation
to Eucharistic communion is more insistent in the case of Mass on Sundays and
holy days.
It is also important to be ever mindful that communion with Christ is deeply tied to communion with our brothers and sisters. The Sunday Eucharistic gathering is an experience of brotherhood, which the celebration should demonstrate clearly, while ever respecting the nature of the liturgical action. All this will be helped by gestures of welcome and by the tone of prayer, alert to the needs of all in the community. The sign of peace — in the Roman Rite significantly placed before Eucharistic communion — is a particularly expressive gesture which the faithful are invited to make as a manifestation of the People of God's acceptance of all that has been accomplished in the celebration and of the commitment to mutual love which is made in sharing the one bread, with the demanding words of Christ in mind: "If you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift" (Mt 5:23-24).
Seventh
Sunday after Pentecost[5]
"Not
everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord’, . . .but he who does the will of my
Father. . .shall enter the kingdom of heaven". Not so much what one
"says" about the Lord, but how he "does" His
"Will," is what brings forth "good fruit". Deeds, not mere
words, are acceptable to God, acceptable to neighbor also. Example is the best
precept.
The
final fruit of sin is "death;" the fruit of "justice" is
"life everlasting".
The
Holy Eucharist is the "health-giving" Fruit of Calvary, our antidote
against the poison-laden Dead-Sea fruit of the world, the flesh and the devil.
"Faith cannot save without virtue" (St. John Chrysostom).
IN[6] the Introit of the Mass the Church invites us to
the praise of God in the following words: “Oh, clap your hands, all ye nations,
shout unto God with the voice of joy, for the Lord is most high, He is
terrible: He is a great king over all the earth”; (Ps.xlvi. 2, 3).
Prayer. O God, whose providence never faileth in what it
doth order, we humbly beseech Thee to put away from us all things hurtful, and
to give us all things profitable to us.
EPISTLE.
Rom. vi. 19-23.
Brethren: I speak a human thing, because of the
infirmity of your flesh: for as you have yielded your members to serve
uncleanness and iniquity unto iniquity, so now yield your members to serve
justice unto sanctification. For when you were the servants of sin you were
free men to justice. What fruit therefore had you then in those things of which
you are now ashamed? For the end of them is death. But now being made free from
sin, and become servants of God, you have your fruit unto sanctification, and
the end life everlasting. For the wages of sin is death, but the grace of God,
life everlasting in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Explanation.
In these words, St. Paul admonishes the Romans that they ought henceforward to
devote themselves as zealously to the service of God as they had hitherto done
to that of iniquity, because the service of sin is death, but the service of
God is life everlasting. The words “servants, to serve”, denote the full and
unconditional subjection of the Christian to God, without walking any longer
according to his own will, just as, in regard to the state of sin, they
indicate the dominion of the passions over the sinner. There is no requirement
more reasonable than that a man should labor as much for God and his own
salvation as he has labored for sin and hell. We should, therefore, often think
on the wages of sin eternal death; and when we are tempted, ask ourselves, “What
shall I gain by my lust, my in justice, my vengeance? Ah, nothing but eternal
death! And shall I, created to inherit eternal life, shall I make myself the
heir of eternal death?”
GOSPEL.
Matt. vii. 15-21.
At that time Jesus said to His disciples: Beware of
false prophets, who come to you in the clothing of sheep, but inwardly they are
ravening wolves: by their fruits you shall know them. Do men gather grapes of
thorns, or figs of thistles?
Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit,
and the evil tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth
evil fruit: neither can an evil tree bring forth good fruit: every tree that
bringeth not forth good fruit shall be cut down and shall be cast into the
fire. Wherefore by their fruits you shall know them. Not everyone that saith to
Me: Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that doth the
will of My Father Who is in heaven, he shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Who are meant by false prophets?
1. The world, which
promises us honors and riches, but in the end rewards our toil and labor with
disgrace and scorn.
2. The flesh, which
promises pleasures and joys, but at last leaves nothing but the bitter
reproaches of an unquiet conscience.
3. The devil, who
promises us a long life, and time for repentance, while the obdurate sinner is
cut off suddenly in the midst of his days.
4. All such evil-minded
persons as conceal their wicked purpose under the mask of virtue and honesty,
until they have entrapped unwary souls, and drawn them into all kinds of
shameful misdeeds. It is these false prophets of Satan, and wolves of hell, that
make the greatest havoc in the flock of Christ.
Why does Christ say, “every tree that bringeth not
forth good fruit shall be cut down and cast into the fire”?
He thereby warns us that
faith alone, without good works, or, in other. words, the mere desire for
heaven without the practice of virtue, will not save us. Christ says plainly, “Not
everyone that saith to Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven,
but he that doth the will of My Father Who is in heaven.” Jesus also saith, “Whosoever
shall do the will of My Father Who is in heaven, he is My brother, and sister,
and mother; (Matt. xii. 50). Endeavor, therefore, O Christian, to fulfil in all
things the will of God.
INSTRUCTION
ON GOOD WORKS
What are
good works?
All actions of men which are
done according to the will of God, from love of Him, and by the help of grace.
Which are
the principal good works?
Prayer, fasting, and
almsgiving. Prayer including all acts belonging to the service of God: fasting,
all mortifications of the body; almsgiving, all works of mercy.
How many
are the works of mercy?
Two: corporal and spiritual.
Which are
the spiritual works of mercy?
Those which have for their
object the salvation of our neighbor; as,
1, to admonish the sinner.
2, to instruct the ignorant.
3, to counsel the doubtful.
4, to comfort the afflicted.
5, to bear wrongs patiently.
6, to forgive injuries and offences.
7, to pray
for the living and the dead.
Which are the corporal works of
mercy?
1, To feed
the hungry.
2, to give
drink to the thirsty.
3, to
clothe the naked.
4, to visit
the prisoners.
5, to
shelter the houseless.
6, to visit
the sick.
7, to bury
the dead.
What is necessary to render works
meritorious?
1, They must be good in themselves.
2, they must be done by the grace of God.
3, in the
state of grace.
4, by free
will.
5, with the
good intention of pleasing God.
Can we be saved without good works?
No;
for Christ says expressly, “Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall
be cut down and shall be cast into the fire.” And that servant in the Gospel
(Matt. xxv. 25) who neither wasted his talent nor yet traded with it, but
digged into the earth and hid his lord’s money, was therefore cast into the
outer darkness.
St.
Veronica[7]
Simplicity
Day[8]
” In character, in manner, in style, in all things,
the supreme excellence is simplicity.”
~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
We
live in a complicated world; with taxes and devices and every imaginable
complication the world can provide. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just take
some time to keep things simple? To winnow life down to the bare essentials and
hold onto it like the precious thing it is? Simplicity Day encourages you to do
just that, to let go of all of life’s complications and live a day… simple.
Simplicity Day was born out of a need to be free from the complications of the
world and to allow ourselves to just be simple. Celebrate life through
simplicity by turning off your devices, getting rid of complicated things and
just let life be about living for a day. One of the great conundrums of the
modern world is that the more opportunities and options you have the less happy
you’re going to be. Some of the happiest people in the world have been
determined to be those who live in uncivilized areas concerning themselves only
with what they’re going to eat that day and where a good place to sleep is. We
can learn much from them, though few of us would want to go to such extremes.
However, we can all benefit from just cutting out the things that make our
lives difficult. Simplicity Day is about getting rid of these complications and
culling from your life what doesn’t bring you joy.
How to Celebrate Simplicity Day
Step away from the computer and find a
sunny nook with a cup of tea and a book to pass the time.
Walk in the forests or through fields and
just feel the sun on your skin and the sounds of birds and insects. These
moments will be the ones that can truly set you free. During these long moments
take the time to relax and consider how you want to proceed in your life.
What can you cut out that buries you
under complications that bring no benefits? Are there people or things you can
remove that will make your life a little happier each day by the removal of
these complications?
These questions can lead you to a
simpler, happier life. Wouldn’t it be nice to have peace of mind? Simplicity
Day can lead the way.
Around the Corner
Today
in honor of the Holy Trinity do the Divine Office giving
your day to God. To honor God REST: no shopping after 6 pm Saturday till
Monday. Don’t forget the internet.
July 4-July
26 Tour de France[9]
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.
Bucket Item
trip: Pilgrimage:
Manoppello Italy:
Basilica of the Holy Face “Veronica’s Veil”
Foodie: Pollo
al Mattone (Italian Roast Chicken Under a Brick)
Spirit hour: Villa Vallombrosa Wine
World Rum Day-stationed
in Barbados when in the Navy
National Pecan Pie Day-Douse
it in Bourbon
Let
Freedom Ring Day 5 "Freedom from Cowardice" by Fr. Rick Heilman
Daily
Devotions
Unite
in the work of the Porters of St.
Joseph by joining them in fasting: Holy Priests, Consecrated, &
Religious notice I haven’t found a link to
someone living to emulate-any suggestions-please post.
Novena
to Our Lady of Mount Carmel-Day 6
Litany
of the Most Precious
Blood of Jesus
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
Rosary
[2]http://www.catholicleague.org/helping-the-poor/
[5]My Sunday Missal,
Confraternity of the Precious Blood
[6]Goffine’s Devout
Instructions, 1896
DEADLINE – U.S.A. (1952) Humphrey Bogart • Ethel Barrymore • Kim Hunter • Warren Stevens • Martin Gabel Directed by Richard Brooks
Deadline – U.S.A. is a fierce, clear‑eyed drama about truth, corruption, and the vocation of journalism in an age when silence is profitable and courage is costly. Beneath its brisk newsroom pace lies a moral battle: a dying newspaper fighting to print one last act of honesty before the presses go dark.
Humphrey Bogart’s Ed Hutcheson is a study in principled stubbornness — a man who believes that truth is not an abstraction but a duty. Ethel Barrymore’s Margaret Garrison embodies the fading nobility of a press empire built on conscience. Kim Hunter’s Nora is the emotional counterweight, reminding Hutcheson that integrity must be lived at home as well as in print. And the newspaper itself becomes a symbol: the final institution standing between citizens and the shadows that thrive when scrutiny disappears.
The film’s power lies in its insistence that truth-telling is dangerous, and that moral clarity often arrives when everything else is collapsing.
1. Production & Cultural Setting
A Nation Between Prosperity and Corruption Released in 1952, the film reflects a postwar America booming economically yet increasingly entangled with organized crime and political rot. Newspapers were still the watchdogs of public life — but their survival was fragile.
Bogart: The Relentless Moral Voice Bogart plays Hutcheson with weary conviction, a man who knows the cost of integrity and pays it anyway.
The Press as Battleground The newsroom becomes the arena where truth must fight for oxygen against money, intimidation, and apathy.
2. Story Summary
The Threat The newspaper is being sold, its presses soon to stop. Hutcheson has days — maybe hours — to finish an investigation into a powerful mobster.
The Pressure Owners want silence. Lawyers want caution. Criminals want fear. Hutcheson wants the truth in print.
The Personal Cost His marriage is strained, his staff exhausted, his future uncertain. Yet he refuses to retreat.
The Breakthrough A young woman’s murder becomes the key to exposing the criminal empire. Hutcheson pushes forward even as the paper’s closure looms.
The Final Act The presses roll one last time — not for profit, but for justice. The truth is printed even as the institution dies.
3. Moral & Emotional Resonances
A. Truth Requires Sacrifice The film insists that honesty is rarely convenient and often dangerous.
B. Institutions Matter When newspapers die, corruption grows unchecked.
C. Courage Is Contagious Hutcheson’s resolve strengthens those around him.
D. Integrity Is Public and Private The newsroom and the home both demand moral clarity.
E. Justice Sometimes Needs One Last Push Even a dying paper can deliver a blow that echoes.
4. Hospitality Pairing — A Night of Moral Resolve
Drink: Rye whiskey — sharp, uncompromising, upright.
Plate: A simple roast beef sandwich — newsroom fuel.
Atmosphere: A desk lamp, scattered papers, the hum of a printing press.
Symbol: A folded newspaper — truth preserved in ink.
5. Reflection Prompts
Where am I called to speak truth despite pressure. What corruption in my life thrives because I avoid confrontation. Which institution in my world needs my loyalty before it collapses. Where has fear muted my voice. What truth must be printed — even if the presses stop tomorrow.
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