Catholic Fire

Pentecost – the great birthday of the Church is only nine days away! Are you getting excited? If not, you should be. This is a wonderful opportunity to take advantage of the great graces and gifts that the Holy Spirit wants to bestow upon us. Now, more than ever, we need these graces in our lives. We need the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit to stand strong in our faith and to be able to witness to the world. How can you prepare for the feast of Pentecost this year? 1. Pray the novena for the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit . These are gifts that will not break or shatter. They are lasting gifts that, when used, will bear much fruit. 2. Gather together as a community (with your family, friends, prayer group, or bible study) in prayer and wait for the promise of the Father to send the Holy Spirit.  Ask to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Pray, “Come Holy Spirit.” Pray for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon our country. Pray specifically for your own persona...

The Pentecost Novena begins on the day after the Solemnity of the Ascension, Friday of the 6th Week of Easter, even if the Solemnity of the Ascension is transferred to the 7th Sunday. ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE HOLY SPIRIT To be recited daily during the Novena On my knees before the great multitude of heavenly witnesses, I offer myself, soul and body to You, Eternal Spirit of God. I adore the brightness of Your purity, the unerring keenness of Your justice, and the might of Your love. You are the Strength and Light of my soul. In You I live and move and am. I desire never to grieve You by unfaithfulness to grace and I pray with all my heart to be kept from the smallest sin against You. Mercifully guard my every thought and grant that I may always watch for Your light, and listen to Your voice, and follow Your gracious inspirations. I cling to You and give myself to You and ask You, by Your compassion to watch over me in my weakness. Holding the pierced Feet of Jesus and lookin...

HAPPY PENTECOST!  Today is a special anniversary for me.

The Novena begins on the day after the Solemnity of the Ascension, Friday of the 6th Week of Easter, even if the Solemnity of the Ascension is transferred to the 7th Sunday. ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE HOLY SPIRIT To be recited daily during the Novena On my knees before the great multitude of heavenly witnesses, I offer myself, soul and body to You, Eternal Spirit of God. I adore the brightness of Your purity, the unerring keenness of Your justice, and the might of Your love. You are the Strength and Light of my soul. In You I live and move and am. I desire never to grieve You by unfaithfulness to grace and I pray with all my heart to be kept from the smallest sin against You. Mercifully guard my every thought and grant that I may always watch for Your light, and listen to Your voice, and follow Your gracious inspirations. I cling to You and give myself to You and ask You, by Your compassion to watch over me in my weakness. Holding the pierced Feet of Jesus and looking at Hi...

HAPPY PENTECOST!  Today is a special anniversary for me. A Reflection on the Birthday of the Church by Bishop Carl A. Kemme:

The Novena begins on the day after the Solemnity of the Ascension, Friday of the 6th Week of Easter, even if the Solemnity of the Ascension is transferred to the 7th Sunday. ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE HOLY SPIRIT To be recited daily during the Novena On my knees I before the great multitude of heavenly witnesses I offer myself, soul and body to You, Eternal Spirit of God. I adore the brightness of Your purity, the unerring keenness of Your justice, and the might of Your love. You are the Strength and Light of my soul. In You I live and move and am. I desire never to grieve You by unfaithfulness to grace and I pray with all my heart to be kept from the smallest sin against You. Mercifully guard my every thought and grant that I may always watch for Your light, and listen to Your voice, and follow Your gracious inspirations. I cling to You and give myself to You and ask You, by Your compassion to watch over me in my weakness. Holding the pierced Feet of Jesus and looking at His ...

Pentecost is the birthday of the Church and personally, this year, the feast commemorates the 8th anniversary of my lifetime oblature to the Community of St. John . So, let's celebrate! Here are some great posts on this feast day: 8 things to know and share about Pentecost by Jimmy Akin I have Come to Cast a Fire on the Earth – A Meditation on the Feast of Pentecost by Msgr. Charles Pope The Holy Spirit – The Principle of Unity throughout Scripture  by Sister Benedicta Marie, O.C.D. Celebrating Pentecost at Catholic Cusine Two of my Favorite Hymns for Pentecost:

May 16, 2013. (Romereports.com) On Saturday May18th and Sunday 19th, Pope Francis will meet with leaders and members of different lay movements. The meeting is a way to recognize their contributions to the Church and to mark the Year of Faith. Those two days will be quite busy. Roughly 120,000 tickets have already been given out for the Pope's Pentecost Sunday Mass. ARCH. RINO FISICHELLA President, Pontifical Council for New Evangelization “We chose this weekend when we celebrate Pentecost to highlight the presence of all these movements, new communities, lay associations and all the different ecclesial roles that are present within the Church. They are signs that reflect the presence of the Risen Spirit of Christ, that guides the Church in Her work of evangelizing.” Over 150 different movements from all over the world will gather in Rome over the weekend. Among them will be Catholic Action, Communion and Liberation, the Focolare Movement, the Community of St. Egidio and ...

May 15, 2013. (Romereports.com) For about 40 minutes, Pope Francis made his way through St. Peter's Square in the popemobile, as he greeted the crowds in St. Peter's Square. In fact a pilgrim actually asked the Pope to bless two white doves before setting them free. But it seemed like one of the doves wanted to stay with the Pope. Next Sunday, exactly 40 days after Easter, the Catholic Church celebrates Pentecost. So during his catechesis, the Pope talked about the power and importance of the Holy Spirit. POPE FRANCIS “The Holy Spirit, then, as Jesus promises, guides us 'into all truth.' He leads us not only to an encounter with Jesus, the fullness of Truth, but guides us "into" the Truth.” The Pope explained that truth is not an idea that everyone agrees with, nor is it a possession, rather he said, it's an encounter that's made possible by the Holy Spirit. POPE FRANCIS “Let's ask ourselves: are we open to the Holy Spirit, do I pray to...

"When the Advocate comes whom I will send you from the Father, the Spirit of truth that proceeds from the Father, he will testify to me. And you also testify, because you have been with me from the beginning. I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now. But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth. He will not speak on his own, but he will speak what he hears, and will declare to you the things that are coming. He will glorify me, because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you. Everything that the Father has is mine; for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine and declare it to you." ~ St. John 15:26-27.16:12-15

Today is a special day of celebration for me, not only because it is Pentecost, but because it is the anniversary of my lifetime Oblature with the Community of St. John. Four years ago today, I made my promises to the Lord with the Community, which I am so blessed to be a part of. Today, I thank God for the outpouring of graces He gave me through the Holy Spirit, to do this. What a beautiful gift! I didn't deserve this gift, but God, in His loving kindness, generously rewarded me. As I began to lose members of my own family through illness and death, He gave me a new family, whose hearts were so full of love. I will be forever grateful for His gift to me. For more information about the Community of St. John, please go to the following sites: Community of St. John, USA Biography of Father Marie - Dominique Philippe, OP, Founder of the Community of St. John Children of Hope The Community of St. John

"These days of preparation that immediately precede the Solemnity of Pentecost stimulate us to renew our hope in the help of the Holy Spirit to advance along the path of ecumenism. We have the certainty that the Lord Jesus never abandons us in our search for unity, because His Spirit is tirelessly at work to support the efforts we make to overcome all forms of division". ~ Pope Benedict XVI

Packed with prayers, scripture, and poetic reflections, Heidi Hess Saxton’s beautiful devotional, Behold Your Mother: Mary Stories and Reflections from a Catholic Convert consists of 48 meditations that will draw each of us to the heart of Our Mother Mary, who in turn, will draw us into the heart of her beloved Son. Each of the devotions provides us with a vivid and imaginative description of how our Blessed Mother must have felt and thought during the significant events of her life. These thought - provoking meditations provide us with insight into the “treasures of her heart” which enable us to relate to her on a human level. Saxton enchants us with three charming stories of how she “discovered” the Blessed Virgin Mary in her life and came to rely on Mary for protection and strength. As I read the stories, I was fascinated with these refreshing testimonies of the simple, yet powerful ways, the Blessed Mother gently acted as a channel of grace in her life, drawing her near to the S...