You can’t win’em all

In June, a women’s Catholic Book Club in Hawaii ordered copies of Light Reading for Good and Wayward Catholic for discussion at their next meet. They were to send me their comments. Since then, there has been such resounding silence I feared a tidal wave had swept these Grande Dames of the Islands into the sea.
However, via the grapevine, I learned they survived the rigors of reading the book. However, I hear that two are being treated for shock and another has joined Jehovah’s Witness.

News flashes

-So far this year, in Indonesia there have been 17 attacks on churches by the Islamists.
- In Nigeria, Muslim extremists have caused 300 deaths, destroyed 300 homes and driven 14,000 people from their homes.
- Zhen, a 17-year-old Catholic in Shenzhen, China, sold one of his kidneys for $4,000 so he could buy an Apple iPad 2.

- In less than two weeks, car bomb attacks have hit three churches in the northern Iraq city of Kirkuk. Also, there were coordinated bombing in 17 other cities, killing 63 people and injuring 250.
(Comment: We Americans can take little pride in having devastated this country with a cost that could have modernized our rail system, built new bridges, improved our educational system, etc.)

Today’s Martyrs

 After Muslim militants in Nigeria had killed two of their children, Pastor Jams Musa Rike held the hand of his dying wife who had been shot and slashed with a machete. Before attacking her, the extremists told her, “We are going to kill you – now see how your Jesus will save you.”
Pastor Rike’s comforting words to his wife were, “Hold on to your faith in Jesus, and we shall meet and never part again.”

My favorite priest, layperson, breathing saint or organization

Joseph M. Sullivan, Retired Auxiliary Bishop of Brooklyn, has made (and continues to make) a great contribution to our Church. He is a renowned and much respected national leader in Catholic social services. For the 62 parishes of the Brooklyn West Vicariate he was Vicar for Human Services.

Early this summer, in the Buffalo News he wrote, “For most Catholics there can be no sacrament that better summarizes an attitude of welcoming our LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) brothers and sisters than those of Jesus, ‘Love one another as I have loved you’”  What a gutsy statement! As stated in America magazine, “There is nothing wrong with telling people that they are loved and lovable. And that all are, indeed, welcome.”
If Saint Basil were around today, he would enjoy Bishop Sullivan. Back in the year 360, the saint wrote, “The Christian directs every action, small and great, according to the will of God, performing the action at the same time with care and exactitude, and keeping his thoughts fixed upon the One who gave him the work to do.”
(Now, tell me about your favorite Catholic priest, layperson or organization that is making a difference  aljagoe@comcast.net)

Interesting sayings

Believe me, don’t wait until tomorrow to begin becoming a saint.
Saint Theresa of Lisieux (1897)

Come, let us rejoice in the Lord. The one, who by word, action or deed rejoices not in himself but in his Creator, rejoices in the Lord. Come, let us rejoice in the Lord. The one for whom God is always his only and complete happiness rejoices in the Lord.
Saint Peter Chrysologus (died 450)

People who fly into a rage always make a bad landing.
Will Rogers

All things dull and ugly
All creatures short and squat
All things rude and nasty
The Lord God made the lot.

Each nasty little hornet
Each beasty little squid
Who made the spiky urchin
Who made the sharks? He did!
Monty Python

Communiqués

- To be a Joyful Catholic, one cannot believe in solipsism.
Reginald Smithson, Berkeley, CA

- Thanks you for reminding us of the suffering Christians. This is the case of any Christian in Muslim, Marxist, Communist countries – when will people pay attention?
Latino GOPVOTER

- The New York Times (10/9) The Pew Research Center Poll showed that one-half of the Catholics don’t understand Communion.
NYTtweets

- Thank you for the gift of joy in our hearts, even in not so good times.
RKNIGHT RT

Chuckle time

A priest parked his car in a no-parking zone because he was short of time and couldn’t find a space with a meter. He put this note under the windshield: “I have circled this block 10 times. If I don’t park here, I’ll miss my appointment. Forgive us our trespasses.”
When he returned, he found a citation from the police officer with this note: “I’ve circled this block for 10 years. If I don’t give you a ticket, I’ll lose my job. Lead us not into temptation.”

We do indeed need to show joy as Catholics. “Be happily and uncomplicatedly Catholic.”

Michael J. Sheehan, Archbishop of Santa Fe

 

News Flashes

Police in Beijing detained 40 member of a Protestant Church on Easter Sunday. Joseph Kun of the Cardinal Kung Foundation, said, “For the past five years, the degree of persecution increased with many Christian arrested, sentenced, abused and tortured. There are still bishops and priests in jail and we don’t know is they are still alive. There is no freedom for the underground Catholic Church in China.”The bearded Archbishop of Canterbury, who will stand on his head to get notoriety, has criticized President Obama for the death of Osama bin Laden. 

Today’s Martyrs

In Mexico City, 60-year-old Fr. Francisco Sanchez Duran was murdered on April 26^th. Last year, 162 Mexican priests have received death threats.   Cardinal Norberto Rivera said that all their priests live in constant danger.                              

       My favorite priest, layperson, breathing saint or organization

 

Promise Hsu, a member of a Beijing Protestant Church, was arrested for taking part in an outdoor religious service. While in the police car, he continued singing hymns and gave a bible to one of the policemen, He told the judge, “In our hearts, we know that we gather here to worship, and for the sake of worship, we will pay the price.”

(Comment; Love gutsy Christians!)

(Now, tell me about your favorite Catholic priest, layperson or organization that is making a difference

aljagoe@comcast.net)

Interesting Sayings

No storm can shake my utmost calm while to this rock I’m clinging. Since love is Lord of heaven and earth, how can I keep from singing?

                                      Patricia Livingston

Turning to the Lord God the Father almighty, from a pure heart, as far as our littleness is able, let us give him the most sincere and true thanks, praying his singular gentleness with our whole hearts, that he would be pleased at his  good  pleasure to hearken to our prayers.

                            St. Augustineof Hippo (410)

Religion can do enormous good as long as people take religious teaching metaphorically and not literally; as long as people understand that all religions ultimately preach love and service underneath their superficial particulars; as long as people practice their faith open-mindedly and are tolerant of different beliefs.

                             David Brooks, New York Times Columnist

 

Communiqués

Every cretin who thinks ontologically will realize that joy is the keystone of our faith. I like your computer site.

                                      Ellsworth Kennedy 

What makes you think we lay-folks should meddle in writing theology?

                                      Mabel Adkins

 I’m afraid The Joyful Catholic is turning into The Hateful and Bigoted Catholic. I’m truly saddened by your decision to make your blog an anti-Muslim platform.

MJK,Katona,NY

Reply: Many thanks for your frankness, and I agree I am guilty of showing only the dark side of Islam. However, I think we Westerners have to be aware of the fate of persecuted Christians in the Middle East – just as I want us Americans to be aware of and concerned about our current dramatic division between the rich and the poor. In future blogs, I’ll attempt to show both sides of the Muslim issue.

                                     

Chuckle time  (thanks to Msgr. Filardi)

When the priest called on a recent widow, she said, “You realize you are the cause of my husband’s death. He had a bad heart and two weeks ago after he had been to confession, you gave him the penance of saying the rosary one day, skip a day and then say the rosary again.”

          The priest asked, “How would saying the rosary cause his death?”

          “It wasn’t the rosary,” she replied. “It was the skipping that did him in.”

 

Special Intentions List

As you pray with a broad brush, please include these loved ones, who have been submitted by our readers. You, too, are invited to send me names of your special persons who are in need of prayer.  My address is aljagoe@comcast.net. They will be on the list for 60 days. At the end of that time, if prayers are still needed, you merely have to renew the name.

Juanita Caldwell, Isola Todd, David Abbey, Linwood “Skip” Williams, Roseanne Somlock, Nicholas Gallagher, Tom Lewis, Donald Whitcomb, Violeta Zepeda, John Aylor, Rev. Joseph Marini, Enrique Portillo,

 Sharon McPike, Tom Ryan, Joseph Normile, Jim Quimby, Russell Edwards,  

Rev. Stephen Huffstetter, Hugh Cannon, Eric Moore, Joan Barrett,

8-year-old Michael Fotta and his parents, Lolita Alvarez, Jill Todd

Camilus Musselman, Ed Block, Isobel Milligan, Peter Bartkiewiez and his family, Joe Toles, Camilus Musselman,   Ed Cole, Bishop Thomas Olmsted,

Jay Parker, William Stephenson, Roger Stoven, Bob Abbott, Denny Kline, Lois Pinkin, Larry Mannino, Cheryl DeSantis, Lenore Sommers

Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, Laura Marsh, Marie Lyons, John Vaughey,

Christian martyrs in the Middle East, those in refugee camps throughout the world, the Japanese victims of their recent calamity

We Do Indeed Need to Show Joy as Catholics

We do indeed need to show joy as Catholics.  

My motto — “Be happily and uncomplicatedly Catholic.”

Michael J. Sheehan, Archbishop of Santa Fe

 

News Flashes

-             In his 11/21 New York Times column, Nicholas Kristof blasts charities who have staggering administrative costs, and he praises Catholic Charities as one of our most efficient and effective charities.

-         Under the category of  “nothing is new”, St. Luke wrote in the first century, As Jesus drew near Jerusalem, he saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If this day you only knew what makes for peace — but now it is hidden from your eyes.”

-         There have been massive demonstrations in Brussels, Paris and London about the Iraqi abuse of Christians following the slaughter of those at a Mass in Baghdad. Outside of Cardinal George urging President Obama to come to the aid of Iraqi Christians, we American seem oblivious to this situation. Could it be because of our sense of guilt in unilaterally being the nation that devastated this country?

-         In line with my blog about Sing-along Masses, Zenit listed the Pope’s ideas how to improve participation at Mass.  Here are a few of his suggestions (Hey, you priests, are you listening?) The word can only be heard in silence, outward and inward. The people must be educated in the value of silence. When called for, silence should be considered a part of the celebration.

 

My favorite priest, layperson, breathing saint or organization

As my favorite laypersons, I endorse Violet and Allen Large in Nova Scotia, who won $11 million in lottery.  They spent it all, and not a cent for themselves. They donated everything to charities. 75-year-old Allen said, “That money that we won was nothing. We have each other.” (I wonder if I would do the same. What about you?)

(Now, tell me about your favorite Catholic priest, layperson or organization that is making a difference

aljagoe@comcast.net

 

Interesting Sayings 

It is incumbent on every generation to pay its own debts as it goes.   A principle which if acted on would save one-half the wars of the world.   
Thomas Jefferson 

 

I call everyone ‘Darling’ because I can’t remember their names.  Zsa Zsa Gabor

 

If a man wishes to know the deepest ocean of divine understanding, let him first scan the sea, and the less he find himself to understand of those creatures which lurk beneath the waves, the more let him realize that he knows less of the depths of its Creator.

Saint Columban (died 615)

 

The early bird might get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.

A self-justifying procrastinator

 

Communiqués

As the lucky winner of Light Reading for Good and Wayward Catholics, I want you to know I thoroughly enjoyed this book.  It is a fresh breeze for our Church.

Dorothy Wilson

 It is through the fissiparousness of us Joyful Catholics that the Church will continue to expand.

                                                Dr. Roger Duckworth 

I agree with your three reasons to respect the Muslims. But for me, that’s all.

                                                Mildred Richard

 Chuckle Time

In a grade school production of the Christmas Story, the youngster playing the role of the stern innkeeper was unhappy with his assignment. The night of the play when Joseph knocked on the door, the kid followed the script and said, “Go away. The inn if filled and there is no room for you and Mary.”

          Then he added, “But come in and have a drink.”

Special Intentions List

As you pray with a broad brush, please include these loved ones, who have been submitted by our readers. You, too, are invited to send me names of your special persons who are in need of prayer.  My address is aljagoe@comcast.net. They will be on the list for 60 days. At the end of that time, if prayers are still needed, you merely have to renew the name. 

Juanita Caldwell, Isola Todd, David Abbey, Linwood “Skip” Williams, Roseanne Somlock, Nicholas Gallagher, Tom Lewis, Donald Whitcomb, Violeta Zepeda, John Aylor,

Rev. Joseph Marini, Enrique Portillo, Sharon McPike, Tom Ryan,

 Joseph Normile, Jim Quimby, Russell Edwards, Gertrude Goldstein,

Rev. Stephen Huffstetter, Hugh Cannon, Eric Moore, Joan Barrett, 8-year-old Michael Fotta and his parents, Lolita Alvarez, Camilus Musselman,

 Ed Block, Isobel Milligan, Peter Bartkiewiez and his family,

 Joe Toles, Grace Toomey, Bob Earll, Camilus Musselman,   Ed Cole, Bishop Thomas Olmsted, Jay Parker, William Stephenson, Roger Stoven, Bob Abbott, Denny Kline, Lois Pinkin, Larry Mannino, Cheryl DeSantis

The cholera victims in Haiti.

“Be Happily and Uncomplicatedly Catholic.”

We do indeed need to show joy as Catholics.   My motto — “Be happily and uncomplicatedly Catholic.”

Michael J. Sheehan, Archbishop of Santa Fe 

Quiz

Who will be the winner of the autographed copy of …

Light Reading for Good and Wayward Catholics ? 

 Send your answers to joyfulcatholic@comcast.net

1.     Who is the prophet from the 9^th Century BC who is a Catholic saint?   

2.     How did the apostle James, the brother of John, die?

3.     Who is the patron saint of the perfume trade?

My favorite priest

(Submitted by Marcia L. Castro)

My favorite priest is Father David Ross, who served at the Sacred Heart Parish in Toledo, Ohio.  He was a very charismatic priest who revived an old parish. His reverence for the Mass and the Eucharist was always evident.

 His gift of preaching made you want to come to church to hear the sermon. He had a beautiful singing voice and every Christmas and Mother’s Day he sang the Ave Maria.  It was so beautiful that it brought tears to your eyes.

Father Dave was a wonderful confessor and I never felt uneasy going face-to-face confession to him. His penances were always so appropriate, and when he gave you absolution, it was as if God was laying his hands on your head and heart.

The parish school children loved him and were always waiting to give him a hug. He was sadly missed when he was transferred to a parish over 50 miles away. If only there were more priests like Father Dave, the churches would be vibrant and full!

Now, tell me about your favorite Catholic priest, layperson or organization that is making a difference

joyfulcatholic@comcast.net 

News  

In his New York Times 8/8 article, G. Jeffrey MacDonald, a minister in the United Church of Christ said, “Clergy need parishioners who understand that the church exists, as it always has, to save souls by elevating people’s values and desires. They need churchgoers to ask for personal challenges in areas like daily devotions and outreach ministries.”

-    USA-Today reported that Bobby Jindal, (the jackass governor of Louisiana) approved a law permitting guns in churches. However, the Catholic bishops said, “No siree. Not in our churches” (comment: I bet it increases the churches’ income when the usher has the collection plate in one hand and a pistol in the other)

-         In the London Catholic Review, Dominic Scarborough, a layman from the south of England, wrote,”There is not a day that goes by tht I do not wakeup and question my faith in God and the Catholic Church.  I struggle to reconcile certain teachings with what I am told by the secular world and I frequently lose heart in the ability of the Church to reform itself. Each and every day somehow this struggle receives a reward of grace and I renew my commitment to the totality of the Catholic faith.”

-         From Mother Jones May-June, “In 2003, the predominantly Catholic Philippines bowed to church demand to support only natural family planning. Today more than half the pregnancies are unplanned. A study calculated that easy access to contraception would reduce these unwanted births by 800,000 and abortions by 500,000.”

 Interesting sayings  

There are qualities of Christ in all we serve; the young woman at an abortion clinic, the mentally ill and homeless man at the food pantry, the Latina who needs help fumigating her family’s one-room apartment. When we fail to recognize that, we fail him.  Jesus, let me see you in everyone!

                                                          Melanie Rigney

 

 

My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind.

       Albert Einstein

If temptation, darkness, or sadness come, we must act against them without allowing any bitterness, and wait impatience for the Lord’s consolation, which will evaporate all disturbances and shadows from outside.

                                                          Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1545)

Those fellows who wrote in the Lord’s Prayer “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us” had no relatives.

                                                          Tony, my barber

 

Chuckle Time 

Some UK Church signs:

-        Adam blamed Eve, Eve blamed the snake, and the snake didn’t have a leg to stand on.

 -        Down in the mouth? Come in for a faith lift.

-        Speak well of your enemies. After all, you made them.

  -        Happy Easter to our Christian friends

            Happy Passover to our Jewish friends

             To our atheist friends, good luck.

-        As you pass this little church, be sure to plan a

visit, so when at last you’re carried in, God won’t ask, “Who is it?”         

Special Intentions List 

 As you pray with a broad brush, please include these loved ones, who have been submitted by our readers. You, too, are invited to send me names of your special persons who are in need of prayer.  My address is joyfulcatholic@comcast.net. They will be on the list for 60 days. At the end of that time, if prayers are still needed, you merely have to renew the name.

Juanita Caldwell, Isola Todd, David Abbey, Amie Ellis,

Linwood “Skip” Williams, Gerry Paradiso, Eileen Grotsky, Roseanne Somlock, Nicholas Gallagher, Tom Lewis, Donald Whitcomb, Violeta Zepeda, John Aylor, Rev. Joseph Marini, Enrique Portillo,

 Sharon McPike, Tom Ryan, Joseph Normile, Jim Quimby, Russell Edwards,

Gertrude Goldstein, Rev. Stephen Huffstetter, Hugh Cannon, Eric Moore, Joan Barrett, 8-year-old Michael Fotta and his parents, Lolita Alvarez, Camilus Musselman, Jack Conner, Ed Block, Isobel Milligan,

Peter Bartkiewiez and his family, Joe Toles, Grace Toomey,

Camilus Musselman, Bob Kehlhofer, Ed Cole, Bishop Thomas Olmsted,

 Jay Parker, D.D. Gavin Shipman

As you note, because of miraculous healings, several names have been deleted and added to our Deo Gratias list. 

We do indeed need to show joy as Catholics

“Be happily and uncomplicatedly Catholic.”

Michael J Sheehan, Archbishop of Santa Fe

 

10 Wow’s

I agree with them:

 In Dancing with the Cranes and Other Ways to Start the Day, Diane Ackerman wrote, “It’s essential to stop and savor those instants when time suddenly snaps on a simple Wow!”

-

 Thick Nhat Nanh, the Buddhist priest and author, taught that upon awaking in the morning, you should start with a half-smile meditation.

- Joe Difato, publisher of The Word Among Us, wrote, “As you go through your day, you may not see God’s vision for your future. But his plan for you certainly includes aspects of what you are doing right now—and he wants you to be excited about it!”

 As Joyful Catholics, I recommend that every morning when we wake, we say ten WOWs before we get to the bathroom. When I tell this, I am often asked, “Like what?”

          That’s easy to answer. Just try to get to the bathroom with your eyes closed. After a few nervous steps, open your eyes and say, “WOW! I can see!”  Touch your thumb to each finger (we humans are the only animals who can do that) and that’s five WOW!s. Wiggle your toes—ten WOW!s. I’m alive!—another WOW!

          Expressing appreciation for a gift is a delightful way of saying. “Thank you.”  Doing so is our Joyful Assignment for each morning. And everyone likes to be thanked, even He.

(And what are your thoughts about this assignment?) joyfulcatholic@comcast.net

 

 Other recommended Catholic blogs

American Papist

The Catholic Key

The Divine Life

Recommended reading

You will enjoy Nicholas Kristof’s column, “A Church Mary Can Love”, in the April 17 New York Times.

“Loving and healing in the integrated person” in the April issue of Homilic & Pastoral Review by Dr. Donald DeMarco, professor emeritus of philosophy at St. Jerome’s University in Waterloo, Ontario

What a Priest!

 

 

We do indeed need to show joy as Catholics.  

My motto — “Be happily and uncomplicatedly Catholic.”

Michael J Sheehan

Archbishop of Santa Fe

 

What a Priest!

I noticed the difference as soon as I went in the church.  For many decades, when in London I have attended Mass at St. Mary’s Cadogan Street Church, just a few blocks from Sloane Square.  Instead of it being the dark and foreboding place I remembered (built in 1879), I found the church was bright and inviting.  I was greeted at the door and made to feel welcome. The priest’s homily was brief and of value. He made a special point of inviting everyone to the annual picnic to be held after the service.

          At the end of the Mass, he asked everyone to remain and get to know the persons sitting beside them.  Five minutes later, my wife, the young woman next to us and I were strangers no longer. She was from Australia studying to be a nurse, and as she had relatives living in the States, she asked many questions about America.

          Leaving the church, I congratulated the priest, who was Canon Stuart Wilson. Even though we could not stay, he insisted that he lead us to the picnic in the large courtyard behind the church.  There I was shocked to see a happy event taking place, like a 4^th of July celebration.  Everyone was having a splendid time, laughing, talking and clapping hands to the music of the four-piece Dixieland band.

          Having been awed by what I had seen, I called the next day to have an interview with Canon Wilson. He graciously agreed, and I met him Tuesday for morning coffee at the rectory.

          He proudly showed me how he had converted the former dismal rectory into a bright and happy residence. “This,” he said, “is not just the residence of the priest—it should be the home of everyone in the parish.”

Later he showed me an attractive meeting hall which had been storage space for unwanted items.

          In quizzing him about his involvement with St, Mary’s, he told me had been assigned to the church in 2006, when the church, rectory and community were in shambles. His first task was to get church members to join him in physically cleaning up the buildings. Then he began to renovate the buildings and developing a joyful sense of community.  An indication of his success is the fact that contributions to the church increased from 1,500 pounds a week to 3,700. 

          When we realized we both were converts, I told him about my conversion and asked about his. I was surprised when he told me he had been an Episcopal minister with a large church in London.  After years of prayerful concern, when he announced to his parishioners that he was to join the Roman Catholic Church, the entire congregation came with him.  “Wow!” I said.  “Don’t you need a bodyguard when you walk around the streets of London?”  He laughed and shook his head.

(And what are your thoughts? 

joyfulcatholic@comcast.net)

 

Other recommended Catholic Blogs

The American Catholic

Deacon’s Bench

Hermeneutic of Continuity

Recommended reading

 In the April 18 Sunday Opinion section of the New York Times, Nicholas Kristof has an excellent column “A Church Mary Can Love.” He ends with: “It’s high time for the Vatican to take inspiration from that sublime—even divine—side of the Catholic Church, from those church workers whose magnificence lies not in their vestments, but in their selflessness.  They’re enough to make the Virgin Mary smile.” (comment: Amen!)

The Catholic Martyrs of the Twentieth Century, by Robert Royal