Catholic Fire

Saint Rapahel was born  in 1835 as Joseph, son of Andrew and Josepha Kalinowski in present day Lithuania.  Saint Raphael felt a call to the priesthood early in his life, but decided to complete his education.  He studied zoology, chemistry, agriculture, and apiculture at the Institute of Agronomy in Hory Horki, Russia, and at the Academy of Military Engineering in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Saint Raphael became a Lieutenant in the Russian Military Engineering Corps in 1857.  During his post he was responsible for the planning and supervised the construction of the railway between Kursk and Odessa.  He was promoted to captain in 1862 and stationed in Brest-Litovsk.  In Bret-Litovsk he started, taught, and covered all the costs of a Sunday school, accepting anyone interested. In 1863 he supported the Polish insurrection. He resigned from the Russian army and became the rebellion's minister of war for the Vilna region.  He only took the commission wi...

Vatican City, Nov 18, 2009 / 11:33 am ( CNA ) .- Following today's general audience, Benedict XVI appealed to the international community to respect the rights of children around the globe. The Holy Father recalled that November 20 marks the United Nations Day of Prayer and Action for Children, saying, “My thoughts go to all the children of the world, especially those who live in difficult conditions, and suffer because of violence, abuse, sickness, war or hunger.” “At the same time,” he continued, “I make an appeal to the international community to increase its efforts to offer an adequate response to the dramatic problems of infancy. May a generous commitment on everyone's part not be lacking so that the rights of children may be recognized and their dignity given ever greater respect."

Sanctus Bene~ polyphony: Catholic Chant via Catholiques1:

Irondale, AL (EWTN) (November 17, 2009) - EWTN Global Catholic Network will air a Solemn High Mass in the Extraordinary Form live from the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Hanceville, Ala. at 8 a.m. ET, Saturday, Nov. 21. The date was chosen because it is the Feast of the Presentation of Our Lady. The two-hour Solemn High Mass will be celebrated by Fr. Laurent Demets, a member of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter, which is a Society that instructs and trains priests to preserve, promote, and protect the Church’s authentic liturgical and spiritual traditions. EWTN Global Catholic Network, in its 28th year, is available in over 150 million television households in more than 140 countries and territories. With its direct broadcast satellite television and radio services, AM & FM radio networks, worldwide short-wave radio station, Internet website www.ewtn.com and publishing arm, EWTN is the largest religious media network in the world.

Today is the optional memorial of St. Rose Philippine Duchesne. Saint Rose was born on August 29, 1769 at Grenoble, France to a family of wealth and political connections. When she was eight years old, she heard a Jesuit missionary speak of his missionary work in America, which sparked a strong desire within her to evangelize. She was educated at home until she was 12 years old, when she was sent to the convent of the Visitation nuns in Grenoble to continue her studies. She joined them when she was 19 without the permission or knowledge of her family. Her convent closed quite abruptly during the Reign of Terror of the French Revolution. She spent the next ten years living as a laywoman, but continued to live as if she were still with her Order. She established a school for poor children, cared for the sick and hid priests from the Revolutionaries. When the Reign of Terror ended, she reclaimed her convent and attempted to reestablish it with a small group of sisters. However, most...

Vatican analyst Andrea Tornielli reported this week that the first step toward the beatification of John Paul II has already been completed.  He explained that officials at the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints have given the green light for the proclamation of the late Pope's heroic virtue. Tornielli added that only the signature of Pope Benedict XVI is needed for the proclamation to become official, noting that it “could come during Christmas, when the prefect for the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints, Archbishop Angelo Amato, will include it in cardinals’ agenda.” Once the decree is signed, he said, Pope Wojtyla will be given the title of “venerable.” For more information, read the entire CNA article here.

I'm so happy to hear that Sarah Palin wants to continue her role in politics and is speaking out against Obama's policies and ObamaCare. She was recently interviewed by Barbara Walters and here is what ABC News had to say about that interview: (My comments are in red ). In an interview with ABC News' Barbara Walters, Palin, whose book, "Going Rogue: An American Life," lands on bookshelves Tuesday, said she would give the president a mere four for his job performance on a scale of one to 10. That's way too high, Sarah! Obama gets a zero from me. "There are a lot of decisions being made that I -- and probably the majority of Americans -- are not impressed with right now," said Palin, the former governor of Alaska. "I think our economy is not being put on the right track, because we're strayed too far from, fundamentally, from free enterprise principles that built our country. And I question, too, some of the dithering, and, hesitation, ...

In her short life Elizabeth showed such great love for the poor and suffering that she has become the patroness of Catholic charities and of the Secular Franciscan Order. Born in Bratislava in 1207, Princess Elizabeth, the daughter of King Andrew of Hungary was betrothed at the age of four to Prince Ludwig of Thuringia (in central Germany) and sent to live at his father's court. They were married when she was fourteen and he was twenty - one. She loved him deeply and bore him three children. In addition to caring for her children, Elizabeth was devoted to the poor, the sick, and the aged. Seeking to become one with the poor, she wore simple clothing. Daily she would take bread to hundreds of the poorest in the land, who came to her gate. She grew in piety under the spiritual direction of a Franciscan Friar. Once when she was taking food to the poor and sick, Prince Ludwig stopped her and looked under her mantle to see what she was carrying; the food had been miraculo...

See Pope targets eliminating hunger as goal for Catholic Church for more information.

 Lots of good stuff here that wasn't shown on TV -- some of it very funny. Be sure to watch to the end. Did you watch the interview today -- what did you think?

Obama's Home Teleprompter Malfunctions During Family Dinner ~ Via Onion News Network.

Carl Cameron Reports on Palin Oprah Interview on Fox News, Nov 16, 2009.

Thanks, Esther, for the tag. As the title says, I have to say something nice about a priest. It's difficult to narrow down my choice to one priest because I have known so many really wonderful priests. The priest I have had the most interaction with recently has been the associate pastor of our parish, Fr. Michael Linnebur. His photo is below.  Let me share a little information about Father with you: Fr. Michael Linnebur is originally from Sacred Heart parish in Colwich, Kansas. He was a graduate of Colwich Elementary School, Andale High School (’97), and Kansas State University (’02), before entering the seminary in the fall of 2002. He spent his first 4 years studying philosophy and theology at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio, and then completed his last 2 years of theology at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. Fr. Linnebur was ordained to the priesthood on May 24, 2008 by Bishop Jackels, and began serving the St. Francis of Assisi par...

Outside My Window ... it's a dark and dreary day...cold, wet, and windy. I am thinking ...about the work I need to do this week. I am thankful ... for the home we live in...it's not perfect, but it provides shelter from the cold weather and it seems that we are seeing more and more people losing their homes in this recession. From the kitchen ... I will be making turkey cutlets a la Jean -- my own special recipe...my dh loves it and so do I! I am wearing ...a pink nightgown. I am creating ...a less cluttered and more organized home, which seems to be an ongoing challenge here. I am going ...to work in a more determined manner on the Light Weigh Program this time and pray for the grace to do better this time. I would be content with losing 30 lbs -- so I have about 21 lbs. to go. I  am reading... my Bible and devotionals now. I have finished reading Bleeder -- waiting for the review to be published.   I am hoping ... that I get a check in the mail soon. T...

St. Margaret of Scotland, Patroness of Mothers St. Margaret of Scotland was not a Scot, but was born about 1045 in Hungary of Anglo-Saxon and Hungarian parents. Her family was in exile at that time due to the Danish invasion of England. Margaret's grandfather was King Edmund Ironside of England and her father was Edward the Exile, the heir to the throne of Scotland. Margaret was the eldest of three children born to Edward and Agatha. She was educated by her mother and was well grounded in the scriptures and liturgy. She was about 12 when the family returned to England and was educated under the influence of the Benedictines. She learned French, ecclesiastical embroidery, and began to read works of theology: St. Augustine and St. John Cassian greatly influenced her spiritual development. While fleeing the invading army of William the Conqueror in 1066, her family's ship wrecked on the Scottish coast. They were assisted by King Malcolm III Canmore of Scotland, whom Marga...

Sarah Palin sits down with Oprah. The former governor of Alaska and Republican vice-presidential candidate will appear on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" today. The episode was taped last week. It airs a day before Palin's book "Going Rogue: An American Life," goes on sale. The book is No. 1 on Amazon's bestseller list. To find out what time and channel the show is on in your area, click here.

The chorus sings ‘Rain in Africa’ but at the beginning, close your eyes and hear the brewing thunderstorm. Remember, there are no instruments, musical or otherwise.