Seeking God’s Guidance for the United States: An Appeal for Prayers
As we approach the 250th anniversary of the founding of our nation, the President has called for a campaign of prayer leading up to this milestone. A call to prayer such as this should be a time of unified vision and good will for the sake of our nation, which has put the need for Divine guidance aside. Let us put our partisan differences aside. Let us put our religious differences aside. Petitioning God to bless our nation should come from all believers.
Pray Every Day for World Peace
At Fatima, Our Lady stated that if her requests were heeded there would be peace in the world. Peace has been illusive in these 108 years since she appeared to the three shepherd children at the Cova da Iria. Why is this? She stated that war was a punishment for sin. How simple this is. Not […]
An Optimistic Time for the Church
I was in Rome several weeks ago. There I felt a sense of optimism and the hope that we Catholics should always feel. I attribute this to several factors: firstly, this is a Holy Year of Hope, which Pope Francis declared this last year. Since it began many have made their way to Rome to enter the Holy Doors at the major Basilicas. Secondly, the Conclave and the election of Pope Leo XIV have added to the enthusiasm as he is bringing a youthful energy to the Papacy bringing even more people to the seat of our Faith. Holy years are always a time of renewal. They provide a unique opportunity to avail ourselves of the spiritual benefits such as the attainment of a plenary indulgence when we visit jubilee churches. These are special and exceptional gifts that the Church grants, but the full intention is for us to embrace full amendment of life, without which there is no long-term benefit. Dioceses all over the world have designated pilgrimage sites: the Blue Army Shrine is a designated place of pilgrimage in the Diocese of Metuchen. A pilgrimage to Rome however is special as it is the seat of the Church and for those able, it is a must do journey.
People are Seeking God in the Quiet
I read an article in the National Catholic Register about the increase in vocations to the priesthood in several dioceses in the U.S. It was an uplifting piece which shows that the call is there and many are answering. However, looking at the regions from which they come defies established logic, however. The large population centers with many Catholics and beautiful churches are not on the list of these places. The percentage of young men pursuing priestly vocations in large urban areas of the United States is much lower than it is in smaller regions. In places like New York and Chicago this is apparent. Perhaps the noise of the big city is drowning out the call of God. It is easy to blame bishops and priests in these areas, or to point to difficulties in the seminaries, but perhaps the root cause is deeper than that. These troubling statistics reinforce the concerns of many, including the Holy Father and his recent predecessors, that the distractions of our present world obscure the call of God. He whispers, He does not shout.
Confronting the Technological Revolution
After his election to the papacy last month Pope Leo XIV gave insight to his selection of the name he chose. He referred, as I expected, to Pope Leo XIII’s focus on the well-being of working-class people in the rapidly changing socio-political environment of the late 19th century. Just as Pope Leo XIII saw the dangers that the Industrial Revolution posed and the looming specter of the Marxist ideology, which was looking to control the working class, Pope Leo XIV has stated he sees the dangers of out-of-control technology in the present day as a great threat to our humanity. Both of his immediate predecessors, Pope Francis and Pope Benedict XVI, also referred to the potential dangers in these technologies.
A Special Message From the Executive Director: A Response to Apple TV and the Attacks Against the Eucharist Revival
I was dismayed when I learned of the blasphemous display on the Apple TV show Your Friends and Neighbors. The characters in this show, a couple in a romantic relationship, break into a church, open the tabernacle and desecrate the Sacred Species, mocking the beliefs that we all hold as the core of our Faith. This was a direct attack on the Real Presence of Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. In this time of Eucharistic Revival, when this most foundational aspect of our Faith is on the rebound, a company which provides entertainment has decided to insult a major group of their customers, defying all business logic. Why is this? Why is it always open season on Christianity and especially Catholicism, while other faiths are rarely offended in the media? The answer is the truth which lies in Catholicism. Pontius Pilate looked at Jesus and asked, “What is truth?” while looking directly at Truth. The writers and actors in this series become modern day Pilates when they look at Truth and deny it. They say “crucify Him” by these actions.
Habemus Papam!
On Easter Monday we woke to the news that the Holy Father, Pope Francis had died. Although not surprising after his long illness it still was unexpected news that morning. Immediately we said a prayer for the repose of his soul. The seat was vacant as the world mourned his passing. Dorothy and I travelled back […]
United Around the Fatima Message
We just returned from a beautiful pilgrimage to Fatima. The past eight days were spent with the members of the Apostolate for Family Consecration who are celebrating the 50th anniversary of their founding. We congratulate them and are honored to have shared this time with them. We appreciate that they came to us to organize […]
Politics and the Catholic Conscience
One month into his second term as President of the United States, Donald Trump has, as he promised, hit the ground running. A whirlwind of initiatives, executive orders and legislative presentations has put into motion a redefinition of the status quo. More accurately an attempted elimination of it. Most will agree that government needs to go on a diet as costs and bureaucratic choke points have exploded and are a burden to the economy and invasive to working class people. Some worry that needed programs will not survive. Some see the breakneck pace of these changes as onerous; others are applauding it.
The Holy Year Has Arrived! The Jubilee of Hope and the Centennial of the First Saturday Devotion
We welcome 2025 in a special way. The Holy Father has declared a Holy Jubilee Year dedicated to the virtue and message of hope. At the same time, we also commemorate the 100th anniversary of the apparitions in Pontevedra, Spain where Our Lady gave us the First Saturdays devotion. It is no coincidence that the Holy Year and this great anniversary come together in this special year. The message of Fatima was first presented to us by an angel who laid the foundation of this spirituality by calling for pardon through the adoration of Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. Eight years later, the last surviving seer, Sr. Lucia, was given the formula for obtaining mercy and hastening the Triumph of the Immaculate Heart promised at Fatima. Eucharistic devotion is at the forefront of this devotion. How appropriate that this unique convergence comes only one year after the great year of the Eucharistic Revival.
