On St. Stephen’s day

Stephen, filled with grace and power, was working great wonders and signs among the people.

Certain members of the so-called Synagogue of Freedmen, Cyrenians, and Alexandrians, and people from Cilicia and Asia, came forward and debated with Stephen, but they could not withstand the wisdom and the spirit with which he spoke. … When they heard this, they were infuriated, and they ground their teeth at him. But he, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon him together. They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul.  As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”  (Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59)

I pray my words reach you.

"I pray my words reach you.

I pray they reach the multitudes that are looking at your story and believing the lie that suffering is a mistake, that dying isn’t to be braved, that choosing our death is the courageous story.

No – hastening death was never what God intended.

But in our dying, He does meet us with His beautiful grace."

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No stumbling blocks, please!

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Luke (17, 1-6)

“Jesus said to his disciples, “Occasions for stumbling are bound to come, but woe to anyone by whom they come! It would be better for you if a millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea than for you to cause one of these little ones to stumble. Be on your guard! If another disciple sins, you must rebuke the offender, and if there is repentance, you must forgive. And if the same person sins against you seven times a day, and turns back to you seven times and says, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive.”

The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” The Lord replied, “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.

This is the word of the Lord.

The Best Prayer for Men

The Best Prayer for Men

By: Br. Patrick Mary Briscoe, O.P.|October 7, 2014|Posted in: Blessed Virgin Mary, Prayer

I read this article here

Devotion to Our Lady may not seem an intuitive thing for some Catholic men.  Growing up, I’d occasionally catch my father as he finished praying the Rosary early on Saturday mornings (begun in peace when the rest of us were asleep), or notice he’d left his handsome set of beads lying out on a coffee table.  I had the blessing of his example.  Other men know their fathers have placed a Rosary in their locker at work (try and find a Catholic firefighter who doesn’t have either a Rosary or a saint’s medal) or even just keep one in their pocket, where from time to time they’ll pause and touch the beads.  But for those men who haven’t “seen” or “heard,” how do we make sense of the Rosary as a manly devotion?

About John Paul I

I enjoyed reading this reflection by Card. J.Ratzinger when he was archbishop of Munich, and I want to share it.
Thanks



Ostensus non datus: he was shown to us, not given. We might well say that of Pope John Paul I, whose winning smile made the world look and listen. The Italians called him, with much love, “II Papa del sorriso” (the smiling Pope), and the whole world followed suit. 

Laggja Mirdita September 2014

This is how our project in Laggja Mirdita, Durrës, Albania, stands now, 26 September. This was done with the support of Maltese benefactors. We still need your help to finish it, first through prayer and then through your donations.
Thanks for your support.
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Rejoice, it’s Mary’s birth!

Feast of the nativity of Our Lady (September 8)

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 1, 18-23)

Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.” 

This is the word of the Lord.

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