April 12, 2007
VATICAN CITY, APR 10, 2007 (VIS) - The Office of Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff today released a communique announcing that, at 10 a.m. on Sunday April 15, Divine Mercy Sunday, the Holy Father will preside at a Eucharistic celebration to mark his 80th birthday, which falls the following day, April 16.
Cardinals, archbishops and bishops of the Roman Curia, as well as auxiliary bishops and a representative of the priests of the diocese of Rome, will all concelebrate with the Pope.
“The Church in Rome and in the various parts of the world” the communique reads, “is invited to join the Holy Father Benedict XVI in raising to God the Father an intense prayer of thanksgiving for his 80th birthday and for the second anniversary of his election.”
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January 8, 2007
On Sunday, January 7, instead of welcoming new Archbishop of Warsaw, polish catholics were presented with an announcement that Archbishop Stanislaw Wielgus’ resignation was accepted by the pope Benedict XVI. The inaugural Mass was hastily turned into Thanksgiving Mass for the outgoing Archbishop of Warsaw Cardinal Glemp.
Archbishop Wielgus’ resignation was preceded by highly publicized by polish media, the scandal involving some documents from the communist era. These documents supposedly provided evidence that Archbishop Wielgus collaborated with former communist secret police by spying on his fellow clergymen. But whom a regular catholic, either polish or elsewhere in the world should believe?
While the fact that Holy Father’s personal involvement in accepting Wielgus’ resignation may indicate that the scandal may be indeed damaging the church, this in noway proves the guilt of Archbishop Wielgus. In fact in may very well be the last attempt of dying communist influence to show that they are still viable force in this former communist country.
It is said to see that documents, that were produced and compiled by communists are gaining any form of credibility. Especially knowing that secret services in Poland as well as in other former communist states has often employed deceit, lies and threats in order to produces “collaborationâ€.
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January 2, 2007
On December 30, 2006 Vatican has issued following statement in light of Sadam Hussain execution:
The execution of a capital sentence is always a tragic news, a cause of sadness, even when the person is guilty of terrible crimes. The Position of Catholic Church against the death penalty has often been reiterated. The killing of the guilty is not the way to rebuild justice and reconcile society, rather there is a risk of nourishing the spirit of revenge and inciting fresh violence. At this dark time in the life of Iraqi people , we cannot but put hope that all those in charge truly make every effort to ensure that, in such dramatic situation, hopes for reconciliation and peace are finally opened.
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For more news from Vatican visit http://www.vatican.va
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December 26, 2006
Today is the December 26, and across the United States of America, many people went back to work and…… well there are signs that it is over. Some people even decided that the Christmas tree was long enough in the house and you probably saw or will see by the end of this week most Christmas trees on the curb ready to be picked up. But what happened to the 12 days of Christmas? Well in the most “civilized†world it became 60 days before Christmas of shopping and when Christmas day comes and goes, it is all over. But it was not like that before….
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One first day of Christmas
my true love sent to me
a partridge in a pear tree.
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On the second day of Christmas
my true love sent to me
two turtle doves
and a partridge in a pear tree.
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Do you remember the song? Do you know the religious meaning behind it?
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True Love- God.
Two Turtle Doves- Old and New Testament.
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Keep coming back for next ten days and learn the rest of the song
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December 23, 2006
In
those
days a decree
went out from Ceasar
Augustus that all the world
should be enrolled. This was the
first enrollemen, when Quirinius was
governor of Syria. And all went to be enrolled,
each to his own city. Adn Jpseph also went up from
Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of
David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the lineage of
David, to be enrolled with Mary his bethrothed, who was with child. And
while they were there, the time came for her to be delivered. And she gave
birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in
a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.
Lk 2:
1-7
Jesus is the reason for the season!
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December 21, 2006
Recently the subject of married priesthood has surfaced again. The Holy Father has met to discuss the issue with his advisers about month ago. While the meeting reaffirmed the value of priestly celibacy it fell short of saying that discussions about married priesthood are nothing but over. In fact Holy Father in the past, while still a Cardinal, acknowledged that the celibacy is not a dogma but “the life styleâ€. Recent comments of Cardinal Humes had sparked new speculations that the issue indeed is not over. Vatican insiders report that in the near future Vatican may permit of ordaining married men who have proven their faith and are very likely candidates for the priesthood. This may very well involve ordaining current “permanent deacons†who are allowed to marry.
There are many arguments that can be made against or in favor of married priests. The fact of the matter is, that if married priesthood re-introduced back into the Roman Catholic Church, it will without question deeply affect the church and they way “business is doneâ€.
Unlike with celibate clergy, Bishop will be limited on how often can they transfer a married priest from one parish to another. If married priesthood is allowed again for the benefit and wellbeing of priests families, bishops should consider of assigning the priest to one parish for as long time as possible. Today in the Roman Catholic church priest are moved from parish to parish, and it is unlikely to see a priest stay more than 10 years in one parish.
The married priesthood will most certainly be accomplished with some financial hardship on the part of the family of the priest. It is very unlikely that a priest alone can support his family today. His wife will have to contribute financially and even sometimes be what we call “the bread winnerâ€. Currently most of the priests in the United States are covered with a medical insurance that is provided to them by their diocese. The insurance costs will definitely be a factor for many dioceses when considering married priesthood.
Some believe that the married priesthood will also solve the problem with shortage of priest. If allowing married priesthood comes in along with permission for the priests who have left to get married to reenter the ministry, it may provide a short term solution to the shortage, but it is very unlikely to be a long term solution. The orthodox churches in America are also suffer from the shortage of vocations although their priests can get married.
Supporters of married priesthood in the church say that it will eliminate many problems that church recently faced in regard to sexual abuse. Unfortunately pedophiles exists among married men as much, if not more.
It is not to say that married priesthood is something bad. In fact the married priesthood has potential to enhance the church. But in order to succeed in marriage, both the priest and his wife need to feel a special vocation to the life required by the priest. Many say that married priest will have to split his attention between the church and the family. If in marriage both become one, his wife should share with him the desire to work for the benefit of God’s church. This kind of approach can eliminate the need of dividing one’s attention, a both priest and his wife can dedicate themselves completely to the service of the church.
Please joing us to discuss this topic in our forums. We are looking to hear objective opinion in particular from married priests serving in the church today.
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December 20, 2006
For the past almost 2000 years, Christians around the world celebrate wonderful feast that commemorates the birth of Christ. This special season should be marked as much by receiving as by giving. But most importantly it should be marked by deep reflection about the meaning of Christs birth to many believers.
In his Gospel, Saint Mathew introducing the Christ relies on the prophecy from Isaiah:
Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel
The time of awaiting before the celebration of Christmas is called “Advent†and it is during this time that we hear the Church signing “O Come, O Come Emmanuelâ€. Saint Matthew in his Gospel also explains the meaning of Emmanuel- “God is with usâ€. The Christmas therefore commemorating the birth of Jesus at the same time celebrates the mystery of God’s condescension to humanity. The Eastern Catholics along with Orthodox Christians on the eve of Nativity proclaim this mystery in the following manner during the celebration of Great Complines:
“God is with us! Understand all you nations, and submit yourself for God is with us!â€
Celebrating the Nativity of Christ, Christians acknowledge and proclaim this truth not only within the frame of their prayers and liturgy, but as witnesses to the entire world. The Good News has certainly arrived. God is with us!
For Catholic and Orthodox Christians every celebration is interconnected and points towards Jesus’ suffering death and resurrection. It is also true of celebration of Nativity of Christ as well. Christ has come into the world to accomplish the will of the Father that “all will be savedâ€, which was fully fulfilled through his suffering, death and resurrection.
Christ is born, to bear our sins! Christ is born to die for us and to give us a new life!
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December 19, 2006
Book Description
From his very first day of life, when he rises from his bath to pray to God, it is clear that Nicholas is a miraculous child with a spiritual destiny. As he grows he is deeply saddened by the sickness, suffering, and death that he witnesses every day. Looking to use his special gifts to affect change in the often desperate world around him, Nicholas dedicates his life to worshiping the Lord and helping
those in need. Through his good works, Nicholas becomes the youngest man to ever become a bishop and the patron saint of seafarers, children, and prisoners. He performs more than twenty miracles, including bringing those wrongly killed back to life and going to people in need as an apparition, providing solace and inspiration.
In The Legend of Saint Nicholas, Demi describes pivotal events in the history and life of the saint, weaving a rich tapestry of luminous imagery into the story of his connection with Christmas and our modern-day Santa Claus. Demi’s gilded artwork brings Nicholas to life in a way sure to mesmerize readers new to the story of this fascinating and important historical figure.
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December 16, 2006
It seams that the liberal media today has no better time than Christmas and Easter to attack and ridicule the essence of the Christian values and beliefs. Some of the programming is intentionally pointed against the core Catholic beliefs as well.
While during the Easter time, most of the attacks are centered and revolved around what catholics believe about Jesus Christ. This Christmas season our Most Holy Mary, the Mother of God is at center of media rage. It may very well be due to the release of movie Nativity. In this article we will attempt to shed a light, from a catholic prospective, against some accusations.
First is very common one. You may hear on the TV that Blessed Mary was not really a virgin, that it was not part of Christian belief until about year 300 A.D., and that it was a “catholic inventionâ€.
Unfortunately the above statements are very shallow and a closer look into the Bible can reveal entirely different picture. In order to do so we must take into account the nativity description from the Gospel of Saint Matthew. Since he was writing his gospel mainly for a Jewish reader, in the verse 23 of the 1st chapter of his Gospel he quotes from the prophet Isiah:
Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel (which means, God with us).
(Isaiah 7:1)
The question is why did Matthew chooses to use this particular prophecy to introduces Jesus to his readers? Is it maybe that, being born of a virgin was an important “identifier†for the Messiah?
There is also tendency to show that the birth of Christ did not really happened as it is described in the bible. This claim is based on seemingly different account of Nativity by Saint Luke, who provided more descriptive story about Jesus’ birth and events surrounding it. All three gospels of Saints Matthew , Mark and Luke, make up what is known as Synoptic, which from Greek means “with one eyeâ€, Gospels. Therefore these Gospel should be seen and understood as complimenting each other and not contradicting. Are we to claim that we know better what happened 2000 years ago? On what basis? Because we are so advance? It makes better sense to give the benefit of the doubt to the people who where remote from the birth of Christ less than 100 years, rather than to people who are remote from the events more that 2000 years.
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December 15, 2006
We have come across this song on Google and would like to share it with our readers. When it comes to abortion and its aftermath, men are often overlooked. This song by a rapper Flypside is about so many men who have lost their children through abortion. What a powerful song! Please help us to spread this to other people. We also would like to hear from you if you know about the story behind this song. Please use the comment box in the bottom of the page to share with us what you know about this song. Thank You! Just watch and listen.
Just watch and listen!
You can get the CD at Amazon, click on the image below:
Happy Birthday
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