Catholic Fire

Via CNA: In a statement released last Friday, the Catholic Health Association (CHA) clarified that it has not thrown its institutional support behind the current health care bill, while also reiterating its commitment to protect life from conception to natural death. The Catholic Health Association “has long been committed to a goal of health coverage for all people in the United States. CHA has not, however, endorsed any of the bills currently under consideration,” the statement said. Sr. Carol Keehan, DC, president and chief executive officer of CHA, said that “our message has always been clear: health care must respect and protect human dignity from conception to natural death. In that spirit, coverage for everyone is a moral imperative and a matter of social justice.” “To date, CHA has not endorsed any health care reform bill, but our message to lawmakers is unchanged: Health reform should not result in an expansion of abortion, and it must maintain conscience protections f...

Staten Island, NY – Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life, today issued the following statement on the passing of Robert Schindler, Sr., father of Terri Schiavo. “Bob Schindler remains an inspiration. In spite of enduring the heartbreaking, court ordered killing of his daughter, Terry Schiavo, Bob never stopped fighting for the rights of others who were disabled or medically vulnerable. His quiet strength in the face of persecution and his compassion for those who were too weak to defend themselves will forever serve as examples of how we should show Christ’s love.”

  John Michael Talbot is on his way here and I can hardly wait! In this video clip, he speaks about the change in ministry models he'll be trying out in the coming months.

Raymund was born at Portella, Catalonia, Spain in 1204, the son of  wealthy parents. He was delivered by caesarean section when his mother died in childbirth. Hence his name non natus (not born). In his childhood he seemed to find pleasure only in his devotions and serious duties. His father, sensing that Raymund was drawn to religious life, ordered him to manage one of the family farms. Raymund readily obeyed but spent his time with the shepherds and workers, studying and praying until his father abandoned the idea of making his son a worldly success. Raymund later joined the Mercederians, which was founded by St. Peter Nolasco, who devoted to ransoming Christians captured by the Moors. He succeeded Peter as chief ransomer and went to Algeria to ransom slaves. He remained as hostage for several slaves when his money ran out and was sentenced to be impaled when the governor learned that he had converted several Mohammedans. He escaped the death sentence because of the ransom he...

A reader from Spain asks the following question : I have noticed that you are clearly anti-abortion. So do I. I agree with you completely that abortion is an assasination. You devoted your catholic blog to fight against that, and I admire your constance and perseverance in fighting with your opinion against abortion. You turned your catholic blog also in an anti-Obama political campagne, also because of abortion. But let me tell you, that, after seeing a lot of your posts showing your anti-Obama and other opinions against abortion, that you never, never talked about the other form of assassination which is reigning in USA: the death penalty. Are you against death penalty? Because you never talk about this, only of abortion. And death penalty it's also a terrible and cynical form of assassination, as abortion is. Why do you think about death penalty in USA? Because in my country -Spain- we do not kill people. We have not death penalty. I hope you understand that I do not pre...

The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio 1608 Oil on canvas, 361 x 520 cm Saint John Museum, La Valletta We celebrated the birthday of St. John the Baptist on June 24; today we honor the anniversary of his martyrdom. Shortly after he had baptized Jesus, John the Baptist began to denounce Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee. Herod had divorced his own wife and taken Herodias, the wife of his half- brother Philip and also his own niece. John the Baptist declared, "It is not lawful for you to have her," so Herod threw him into prison. Not only did Herod fear John and his disciples, he also knew him to be a righteous man, so he did not kill him. Herodias was determined to bring about John's death. From prison John followed Jesus's ministry, and sent messengers to question him (Luke 7:19-29). One day Herod gave an eloquent banquet to celebrate his birthday. His entire court was present as well as other powerful and influential Pa...

Previous Posts: Don't Inject Me! Swine Flu Vaccine containing mercury to be given to children, pregnant women

The Congregation of Oblate Sisters of Christ Priest was founded in Madrid in 1938. Within this completely contemplative congregation, the Oblates live entirely surrendered to God, in the solitude and silence, in the incessant prayer and austere penance. The Oblate offers her life, hides in her cell, in the cloister, in order to give life to the whole Church, but especially to the priests. The Oblate gives herself for the priests in order for them to be saints. She joins Jesus prayer: I do not ask that you take them out of the world but that you keep them from the evil one. They do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world. Consecrate them in the truth. Your word is truth. (Jn 17, 15-17). ~ Via Catholiques1.

Pro-Life Congressman Joe Donnelly (D- Indiana) takes the microphone away from Margie Haley, who points out the abortion mandate in the health care bill at a Town Hall meeting in Delphi, Indiana. LifeNews.Com has the story here.

Father Raymond de Souza has an interesting piece in the National Catholic Register   which reflects on how today's American political scene might have been different if Senator Ted Kennedy had held onto his pro-life beliefs: Kennedy's family legacy, his impregnable position in Massachusetts (he won more than 60% of the vote the year after Chappaquiddick) and his national prominence rendered him immune from the pressures other politicians had to face other politicians had to face. He could always choose his own path. Had he chosen to remain economically liberal but culturally conservative, he would have prevented the Democratic Party from embracing the orthodoxy of the unlimited abortion license. Had he remained pro-life the Democratic Party would have had to make place for other pro-life politicians. Had he remained pro-life many others — Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Jesse Jackson — would not have abandoned their pro-life positions as the price to be paid for national ambition....

Thousands of abortions involving underage girls are occurring in Scotland, although the children have taken classes on alleged "comprehensive sex education." The news comes after the British Medical Journal released a report on the U.K.'s sex education program, which Valerie Huber of the  National Abstinence Education Association  calls an utter failure. "The thing that really makes it interesting though, related to what's going on here in the U.S., is that [the Scots] implemented a program that the president is describing as a promising, in fact a successful program that he wants to replicate with your and my tax dollars here in the United States," she notes. Read the entire post.

 The Catholic bishops of New Jersey have distributed a letter explaining Church teaching on marriage and refuting the errors of same-sex "marriage" proponents. Urging the faithful to "protect and promote" marriage, they discussed the God-given natural complementarity of the union of man and woman. "As Catholics, we must not stand by in silence in the face of the many challenges that threaten marriage and, in turn, children and the public good. We must not shirk from our responsibility," the bishops' message begins. New Jersey state legislators may vote on recognizing same-sex "marriage" sometime after the November election. Parish priests throughout the state were directed to distribute the bishops' letter, titled "The Call to Marriage is Woven Deeply into the Human Spirit," in parish bulletins last Sunday, The Newark Star-Ledger reported. The bishops of Metuchen, Trenton, Camden, and Paterson were signatories to the mes...

Today is the memorial of St. Augustine - one of my favorite saints. At age 12, I read his Confessions and was fascinated with his great love and passion for the Lord. Little did I realize at that time that eleven years later, I would stop practicing my own Catholic faith and, like Augustine, it would be the long-suffering and persistent prayers of my mother that would draw me to the heart of  Jesus and back to the faith of my youth. St. Augustine was a Western Father of the Church and his conversion to Christianity is well-known as one of the most important events in the history of the Church. Augustine was born in Tagaste, Africa in 354 to Patrcius, a pagan Roman official, and to Monica, a devout Christian. Monica raised Augustine in the Christian faith, but when he went to study law in Carthage, he turned away from his Christian beliefs and led a life of immorality and hedonism. At age 15, he took a took a mistress who bore him a son, Adoedatus, which means “the gift of God,...

I love to hear vocation news like this: Ann Arbor sisters can't build fast enough to house new members

 Bishop D'Arcy describes his feelings prior to the 2009 Notre Dame graduation and on graduation day: “I found it an increasingly sad time, and I was convinced that there were no winners, but I was wrong.”      “ As graduation drew near, I knew I should be with the students. It was only right that the bishop be with them, for they were on the side of truth, and their demonstration was disciplined, rooted in prayer and substantive. I told the pro-life rally, several thousand people on a lovely May day, that they were the true heroes. Despite the personal costs to themselves and their families, they chose to give public witness to the Catholic faith…” Read the entire story here at America Magazine.

 I have written about the dangers of the swine flu vaccine in a previous post -- this catchy tune voices some of my concerns. This song was written in protest of the widespread swine flu vaccinations now being pushed around the world. There are good reasons why half the health care workers around the world are reluctant to receive the vaccine. Related Information: Swine flu jab link to killer nerve disease: Leaked letter reveals concern of neurologists over 25 deaths in America How Dangerous is the Swine Flu Vaccine?  'Dangers' of the fast-track swine flu vaccine Swine Flu Vaccine containing mercury to be given to children, pregnant women

To learn more about Blessed Mary MacKillop (1842 - 1909), go here. Related: MacKillop sainthood "almost completely certain": Pell

Today is the memorial of St. Monica, one of my favorite saints. She was a tenacious, patient and persistent prayer warrior who never gave up on her son, Augustine, a great sinner, who later became so strongly drawn to the faith that he was eventually canonized, as one of the Church's greatest teachers and philosophers and was designated as a doctor of the Church. Monica was born in 332 to Christian parents in present day Algeria to Christian parents and married at the age 13 or 14 to an older man named Patricius, who was neither wealthy nor Christian. He has also been described as an ill tempered man who was unfaithful to her. In addition, she had to deal with a live-in mother-in-law who was constantly criticizing her. She sought refuge in God through an intimate prayer life and in her three children: Augustine, Navigius, and Perpetua. (It is believed that two other children died in infancy.) In answer to her constant prayers, both her mother-in-law and her husband Patricius con...

Are you a Catholic Against ObamaCare ? -- Would you like to see changes made in the proposed health care reform that has been proposed by the Obama Administration which mandates abortion and supports euthanasia? If so, leave a comment here and we'll add you to the blogroll at the new blog Catholics Against Obama Care .

 I love hearing about conversion miracles like this one reported by LSN: Infamous Hollywood screenwriter Joe Eszterhas, 64, known for such sordid films as Basic Instinct and Showgirls, has undergone a conversion and now will be writing a new film on Our Lady of Guadalupe. Eszterhas has been one of Hollywood's most influential screenwriters, writing lucrative blockbuster films, such as Flashdance, Jagged Edge, and Basic Instinct, and raking in million-dollar paychecks.  Known for living the full 'Hollywood lifestyle', Eszterhas gave it up to move home to Ohio with his wife and children in the late 1990s. In 2001, faced with throat cancer resulting from his smoking and alcohol addictions, which threatened to kill him, Eszterhas turned to God in desperation. "Seven years ago, I sat down on a curb near my home, sobbing, and asked God to help me," he writes in a September 2008 Washington Post article.  "I cried and begged God to help me ... and He did. I h...

A group of filmmakers have recently filmed a documentary that aims to expose the terrible reality of abortion, focusing on the financial aspect of the multimillion dollar abortion industry. The film, entitled "Blood Money," includes numerous interviews with leaders of the pro-life movement, in which they lay out the facts about the abortion industry and the effects that abortions have on women. Read the rest at LSN. Sign up to show your support at www.bloodmoneyfilm.com

Although I did not agree with his pro-death, anti-Catholic policies, I was very sad to hear of the death of Senator Edward Kennedy . I had been praying for his health -- particularly his spiritual health. As a child, I admired his brothers, President John Kennedy and Senator Robert Kennedy. I was devastated when they were both assassinated. The incident at Chappaquiddick made me shudder and led me to pray for Edward Kennedy. I sincerely hope that he was able to repent on his death bed. Let us pray for the repose of his soul. From CNA: Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) passed away last night at the age of 77 after a battle with brain cancer.  Kennedy, a Catholic, will be remembered for his service to the poor, and dedication to education but also his opposition to pro-life issues. After a long struggle with brain cancer, last night Sen. Kennedy took a turn for the worse while at his home in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts.  Surrounded by his family members and a priest, Fr....

Jeanne (Joan) Elizabeth Bichier was born on July 1773 in La Blanc, France at the Chateau des Anges. Her father, Antony Bichier, was a public official; her mother was Mary Augier de Moussac, the daughter of a public official. At the age of 10, she attended the convent school in Poitiers, where one of her favorite pastimes was building sand castles, While her parents had named her Joan Elizabeth Mary Lucy, she went by the name Elizabeth. Elizabeth witnessed closely and was personally affected by the events of the French Revolution which rocked France when she was 16 years old. When Elizabeth was 19, her father died and Elizabeth had to engage in a long legal battle with the National Assembly to keep the state from seizing the family property. She studied the law in order to provide for her own defense and won the case. When she was twenty - three, Elizabeth and her mother left their family home to leave in a Paris suburb near Béthines in Poitou.  The local parish was in uphe...

"Where there is no love, pour love in, and you draw love out." ~ St. John of the Cross

Famed Hollywood actor Mickey Rourke, who was at the Sarajevo Film Festival last week, told a Bosnian newspaper that he thanks God and his Catholic faith for giving him a “second chance” in life to overcome his addictions, which almost led him to commit suicide. Read the full story here.

You've heard of the "death panels" associated with ObamaCare, but have you heard of the veteran's "Death Book"?  Chris Wallace interviews talk with Jim Towey, former director of faith-based initiatives in the Bush administration and current President of St. Vincent College on FOX News Sunday on August 23, 2009. Transcript of  FOX News Interview  Wall Street Journal article: The Death Book for Veterans: Ex - soldiers don't need to be told their a burden to society.

 Today is the optional memorial of St. Louis IX, (1215-1270). Louis IX, King of France, son of Louis VIII and Blanche of Castile, was born at Poissy, April 25, 1215. Louis was twelve years old when his father's death made him king.At that time, his mother Queen Blanche of Castile, was declared regent and remained an important influence throughout his life. Louis had tutors who made him a master of Latin, taught him to speak easily in public and write with dignity and grace. But Blanche's primary concern was to implant in him a deep regard and awe for everything related to religion. She used often to say to him as he was growing up, "I love you my dear son, as much as a mother can love her child; but I would rather see you dead at my feet than that you should commit a mortal sin." At nineteen, he married Marguerite of Provence and the couple had eleven children. Louis was a model father and his children received careful instruction from him in the Christian life....

  Amazing footage mixed to a song by a family of six, conveniently called MuSix, performing their song "My Tears" ~ Via 1roamingcatholic.

by Judie Brown President Obama has resorted to an incredibly infantile phrase—”wee-weed up”—to degrade his "health care reform" detractors. While the White House has now explained this remark as the president describing opponents of his health care debacle as agitated bed wetters, the truth is sobering—not silly. In fact, Obama’s opponents are perhaps a bit more honest than he would like; thus, the insults. Having said that, the worrying fact is that there are still an enormous number of well-meaning people, including Catholics, who simply do not want to see the truth about what is and is not contained in the various proposals currently floating around Congress. One example recently came my way via a Facebook comment. A very sincere Catholic recently wrote to me about American Life League’s opposition to the "health care reform" plan, even though our concerns stem from the fact that the proposals are based on imposed death as a cost-saving measure. The more I...

FRONT ROYAL, VA - Father Thomas J. Euteneuer, President of Human Life International (HLI) blasted Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, for her scathing and error-filled attack on the U.S. Catholic Bishops who have called for abortion to be excluded from all proposed national health care legislation. "Ms. Richards has done a favor to all pro-lifers and people of good faith in her hate-filled rant against the shepherds of our beloved Church," said Fr. Euteneuer. "First, she has reminded everyone that, despite President Obama's recent statements to the contrary, abortion is absolutely going to be covered in any health care reform legislation that crosses his desk. He and his cronies in Congress are much too beholden to the abortion lobby for any different outcome." "Second, she again highlights the extreme position of the organization she leads, and their hostility to the Catholic Church. No Catholic Organization should b...

Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life, speaks about the prayer cause he launched on Facebook (see www.ProLifePrayers.com), and about prayer regarding health care reform and Mother Teresa of Calcutta.  Cross-posted at Catholics Against ObamaCare.

The Martyrdom of St. Bartholomew TIEPOLO, Giovanni Battista 1722 Oil on canvas, 167 x 139 cm San Stae, Venice St. Bartholomew was born in Cana. His name means "son of Tolomai" and scholars believe he is the same person as Nathanael mentioned in John. He was brought to Jesus by the apostle Phillip. After the Ascension of the Lord, he preached the gospel in India where he was martyred in 79 A.D. The exact manner of his death is uncertain, but according to some, he was whipped severely and crucified with his head downward. He is often depicted in art as being whipped and holding in his hand his own skin. St. Bartholomew is the patron of bookbinders, butchers, corn-chandlers, dyers, glovers, furriers, leather-workers, plasterers, shoemakers, tailors, tanners, vine-growers, and Florentine salt and cheese merchants. He is invoked against nervous disorders and twitchings.

On the feast of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a new blog was born: Catholics Against Obama Care. While health care reform is needed, the current plan proposed is totally unacceptable. To learn more and to add your blog to our roll, please go here.

The Monstrous Regiment of Women H/T: To Be a Mother

Today, we are commemorating a beautiful Marian Feast, that of the Queenship of Mary. This special Liturgical Feast was proclaimed by Pope Pius XII on October 11, 1954 through his Encyclical Letter "Ad Caeli Reginam." The Holy Catholic Church made this proclamation based upon the fact that whether in time of peace or in time of war, the faithful have incessantly offered prayers of petition and hymns of praise and veneration to the Queen of Heaven. Following the tremendous destruction that occurred during World War II and considering the reality that the threat of a similar catastrophe filled the faithful with a great anguish, the Church turned its eyes towards Mary, the Heavenly Queen, in the hope of her protection. Mary has never failed those who have sought her intercession in prayer, placing their total trust in her. Mary’s queenship has roots in Scripture. At the Annunciation, Gabriel announced that Mary’s Son would receive the throne of David and rule forever. (Luke 1:32...

White House officials admit Obama's extreme confidence and total euphoria over "hope" and "change" were symptoms of a prolonged manic episode. Enjoy! H/T: American Catholic

Guiseppe Sarto was born June 2, 1835, the second of ten children born to a poor family in the village of Riese, Province of Treviso, near Venice. His mother, Margherita Sanson, was a seamstress. His father, Giovanni Sarto, who was a cobbler by trade, as well as the caretaker of the city hall and the town's postmaster, passed away when Gisueppe was 16. Gisueppe entered the seminary at the age of 15 and was ordained at the age of 23. For nine years, he served as chaplain at Tombolo, having to assume most of the functions of parish priest, as the pastor was old and in poor health. He sought to prefect his knowledge of theology by studying Saint Thomas and canon law. He established a night school for adults, and devoted himself to pastoral ministry for 17 years. He became the bishop of Mantua, cardinal patriarch of Venice, and Pope in 1903. As Pope, he took as the motto of his reign "to renew all things in Christ." Referred to as the "Pope of the Eucharist", he advo...

A film based on the Marian apparitions to three shepherd children at Fátima in Portugal on the 13th day of six consecutive months in 1917, starting on 13 May. The Miracle of the Sun occurred on the final day of the Blessed Virgin Mary's appearance in Fatima. The 13th Day premiered for the film industry on May 13th 2009, the opening day of the Marche du Film which runs alongside the world renowned Film Festival in Cannes. The producers of the film are trying for a release date in Fall of this year (2009 A.D.) to coincide with the October 13th anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun . For more information and to learn how you can promote this film, click here . ~ Video and information via Tito.

It's sad that we don't have more doctors in the US who are willing to stand up for what they believe like these courageous gynecologists in Spain. ( The AMA has endorsed Obama's health care reform which advocates abortion and promotes euthanasia.) I applaud them for upholding their convictions. Dr. Esteban Rodriguez, spokesman for the organization Right to Life (Derecho a Vivir) in Spain, responded yesterday to comments by the country’s Minister of Justice, Francisco Caamano, who said there was no room for a conscience clause in the new law on abortion. “We are willing to go to jail rather than following a criminal law, Rodriguez said, “and we are willing to commit the supposed crime of disobedience before the crime of abortion.” “We will not kill our patients, nor will we commit a crime against the public health deliberately harming the heath of women, no matter how much the Minister of Justice threatens us and abuses his power,” the doctor said. “We doctors are not sol...

Bernard, the founding abbot of Clairvaux Abbey in Burgundy, was one of the most commanding Church leaders in the first half of the twelfth century as well as one of the greatest spiritual masters of all times and the most powerful propagator of the Cistercian reform. Bernard is also known as the second founder of the Cistercians, the Mellifluous Doctor, and the last of the Fathers of the Holy Church. He was born to a noble family at Fontaines, near Dijon, France in 1090, the third of seven children, six of whom were sons. Bernard left his privileged life near Dijon, France, to join the Cistercians at the age of 22. He was well educated and so passionate about his faith that he convinced 30 of his relatives -- including all of his brothers, his uncle, and later his widowed father -- as well as many friends to join him at the abbey. Bernard first entered the abbey at Citeaux, but only three years later was sent with 12 other monks to establish another monastery in the Diocese of Champagn...

"I encourage all of you to make you voice heard to our representatives in Congress. Tell them what they need to hear from us: no health care reform is better than the wrong sort of health care reform . Insist that they not permit themselves to be railroaded into the current too-costly and pro-abortion health care proposals. Insist on their support for proposals that respect the life and dignity of every human person, especially the unborn. And above all, pray for them, and for our country." ~ The Most Reverend R. Walker Nickless, Bishop of Sioux City from a column posted on the diocesan website.

Obama emphasizes his concern for the well-being of black children, but his followers are probably completely unaware of the literal genocide of black babies that's carried out by one of Barack Obamas most loyal supporters, Planned Parenthood.

A video highlighting the largest pro-life coalition ever assembled to fight against the abortion mandate in the current nationalized health care legislation.

I previously reported on the firestorm at Belmont Abbey College which the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruled Belmont Abbey College must include coverage for contraception (which often function as abortifacients) in its employee health insurance plan. Judie Brown weighs in on this controversy in her blog post COLLISION OF CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS . Here is an excerpt: The news reports are quite clear on exactly what happened at Belmont Abbey , a Catholic college in South Carolina. The college has been warned by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that if the administration doesn’t stop discriminating against female employees by denying contraceptive benefits in the college’s health coverage plan, the EEOC will take them to court! “Contraception, abortion and voluntary sterilization came off Belmont Abbey College’s faculty health care policy in December 2007 after a faculty member discovered that coverage, according to an e-mail Belmont Abbey College Presiden...