Catholics
Comments
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I'm here
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I am now...9pm here
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I'm starting now too
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Paula - I'm already in prayer... I need to get to bed. :-)
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So many of us tonight...how wonderful...
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"For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." Matthew 18:20
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Amen, thank you all for praying for me and with me tonight. So many of us are here tonight and yes Tori, it is wonderful indeed. Theresa, I know you guys are up so early each day and with a long commute. So glad to be praying with you here tonight.
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Friday, Sixth Week in Ordinary Time, Office of Readings
Take delight in the Lord,
- and He will give you your heart's desire.
Commit your life to the Lord and trust in him.
- and He will give you your heart's desire.
God our Father, you have promised to remain forever with those who do what is just and right. Help us to live in your presence. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, you Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever.
Amen
(Good night sisters.... there was that message again in tonight's Liturgy of the Hours - live in God's presence - in the moment - not for yesterday or tomorrow but today.)
Pax et bonum!
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Michelle, thanks for posting the intentions and St. Jude prayer. Theresa, thanks for posting the prayer too.
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I'm here.
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Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thy intercession was left unaided. Inspired with this confidence, we turn to thee, O Virgin of virgins, our Mother. To thee we come, before thee we stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, do not despise our petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer us. Amen.0
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Thanks for the prayers Ladies, I feel so much better when we pray together.
Amen
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Amen - beautiful prayers!
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All praise to You, O God, this night
For all the blessings of the light;
Keep us, we pray, O King of kings,
Beneath Your own almighty wings.
Forgive us, Lord, through Christ your Son,
Whatever wrong this day we've done;
Your peace give to the world, O Lord,
That we might live in one accord.
Enlighten us, O blessed Light,
and give us rest throughout this night.
O strengthen us, that for Your sake,
We all may serve You when we wake.0 -
Whenever you ask for in prayer with faith, you will receive. Matthew 7:7-80
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Ladies... I have two terrible things I ask for prayer for.
The priest that was our family priest for 14 yrs just got a 35 yr old married woman preg. and we found out that this is not his first affair.... we moved to a new parish a year ago........ now this priest stepped down to marry a man... they now live in Iowa.... together.
This is making my DH say..." screw the Church".... he is about over it all. I ask for prayer for all of this.
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Amen. What a wonderful way to end the day and the work week praying with all of you dear sisters in Christ. Lord, hear our prayers and let us hear you through the Holy Spirit.
I think the Holy Spirit is at work -- the very strong messages coming to us in different ways to live in the present. God bless & keep you all.
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AMEN!!
So wonderful that so many could join us tonight!
God Bless each of you and wrap you in His warm embrace
Love to you sisters!
Goodnight
Maria
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Laura--it is disheartening to see these things happening in the church...but, as I always have to remind myself...we are only human....My prayers go out to those priests, the parishes and those that have been hurt by these events...
Tori
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I love this focus on being in the present. I have a hard time keeping my mind quiet. I can be enjoying something and then my mind goes a mile a minute somewhere else. I need great practice figuring out how to just enjoy the moment. I don't seem to wander so much when I'm interacting with my grandson, tho. Something about the beauty of young children is so captivating that I can truly enjoy just being with him.
And, priests are people too - I once worked with a consulting company that was hired to work with the Archbishop of Indianapolis and had to travel around parish to parish interviewing the parish priest. I learned so much just sitting and talking with each one -- their lonliness, their sincerity, their very, very tough assignment from God, their sense of humor. One parish priest told me his job was like being nibbled to death by ducks. The interviews were actually about the parish school....but these guys were so relieved to be able to speak to a non-parishioner about anything that they inevitably wound up revealing very personal things. I think its a very lonely life today - not the "community" of priests from the past (when there were so many more of them and not so spread out). I have great sympathy for the true challenge of devoting one's entire self to God and the church.
Maybe we should also pray for the religious and the courage and endurance it takes to follow that life in the service of God? I'm sorry you and your husband are so traumatized by their failings.
Hugs, Pat
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Laura, that happened to our parish in Orange County, California with so many scandals. The parish priest (main one) molested 2 girls while they were attending the parish school years before. Unfortunately it was past the statue of limitation, or else that priest would have had been convicted to jail time. Another one molested a boy. And the priest who Christened our daughter was later married to a parishioner. We also left that Church and was disgusted. They need our prayers too.
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Sorry I am late had inlaws for dinner. I did the Novena for all of your intentions today at 2 and am preparing to begin again. I will be doing it twice a day for 9 days.Its amazing how close I feel to all of you as I repeat this Novena and hold up your intentions as I can really try to imagine your feelings and issues..and sending you peace.God Bless all of you0
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Good to see you Michelle! God bless you too sister...
Tori
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Ditto. Thank you Michelle, God Bless you and your family too! I too feel all of your embrace as the prayers are being sent up to our Lord.
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Laura - sorry to read about the upsetting incidents in your parishes. Only thing I can say is priests are subject to the same human condition as the rest of us. Breaking vows & leaving the priesthood have to be worse pain for those priests than lay people breaking marriage vows if you look at it that way. Maybe ask your new pastor to hold a discussion forum with parishoners? That could help with all the mixed feelings and move forward as a parish.
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Ladies,
The reason you did not get my Amen is because I received a distress call during prayers from my dear friend battling alcoholism. Tough stuff as she has not surrendered and is still not willing to say good bye to wine for good. So this afternoon, I will be saying prayers from last night and our Novena with great reverence. My friend is very spiritual and active in her Church. The one thing that really bothers her about her drinking is it does not make her available to God, and she has made attempts to give this to God as well. One day at a time.
I can imagine many of us have been touched in some way with this disease, so any words of wisdom in my PM are welcomed and will remain private. I have the good fortune of working with an MD who runs an Addiction Facility and I see him work with clients daily as they struggle. But the power of change lies within the individual...but I am sad to see her go through this.
Many Blessings today.
Prayers for anyone in the throes of addiction, that they may receive "their bottom, their awakening"
without having to suffer any more losses...0 -
Laura,
I am sorry for everyone who is having a crisis in their faith due to the choices of their Priests/Ministers and Church leaders. I had a long discussion with my boss who is a Nun. She is my blessing every day. She has told me stories of her living situation with two Sisters (they are three in a house together.) The Order is larger, and they all live in different neighborhoods.. So when I heard the stories of their home life, it struck me how very human their interactions were. Crankiness, lack of understanding and support at times, even coldness to outsiders. I felt that when I visited my boss one time to pick up some work.
We talked about my belief of holding them to a different standard when representing God. She explained that they were all indeed human, but I still felt somewhat disillusioned. Then there are the much larger, much more serious failings within the Church that has crossed over to criminal offenses and a slew of innocent victims. This is very hard to reconcile, and I have no answers.
This has certainly brought me away from the Church as well, left me very skeptical and non trusting of Church leaders.
In my heart I know that God feels your pain and those who have been affected by their actions. I know that this is discervice to those who are true to their faith and Church. I can only imagine the costs to fellow Priests, Ministers and those who have pledged their lives to represent God's word. I have no answers, but just to reach out and say this must have rocked your Parish, and I hope there is a way for you all to come together and heal the wounds and pain you are feeling.
The rest I just have to give up to God, as I don't understand.
Much Love,
Traci
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This is a timely topic, since I received an email from my sister yesterday about this. I, too, have known a wayward priest (never really liked the guy - he was aloof), but to that one bad apple, I have been blessed to know many, many truly devout and good priests. Same with nuns. I have known some nuns, mostly out in the world (i.e., they don't live in a convent) who like us have been tainted by secular society and aren't living any holier life than you or me. The nuns, I think, have been hit the hardest in the last 30+ years with the changes and the changes in the way we view women in society. The more traditional convents are growing in numbers, and the modern congregations are decreasing. Many young women are disillusioned by the more modern orders.
Was it Pat who suggested we keep our priests and nuns in prayer or as a focus of Friday night prayers this week? I agree - good idea!
But to keep things in perspective, this is the email I received:
Excerpts of an article written by non-Catholic Sam Miller - a prominent Cleveland Jewish businessman:
Why would newspapers carry on a vendetta on one of the most important institutions that we have today in the United States, namely the Catholic Church?
Do you know - the Catholic Church educates 2.6 million students everyday at the cost to that Church of 10 billion dollars, and a savings on the other hand to the American taxpayer of 18 billion dollars. The graduates go on to graduate studies at the rate of 92%.
The Church has 230 colleges and universities in the U.S. with an enrollment of 700,000 students.
The Catholic Church has a non-profit hospital system of 637 hospitals, which account for hospital treatment of 1 out of every 5 people - not just Catholics - in the United States today.
But the press is vindictive and trying to totally denigrate in every way the Catholic Church in this country.
They have blamed the disease of pedophilia on the Catholic Church, which is as irresponsible as blaming adultery on the institution of marriage.
Let me give you some figures that Catholics should know and remember.
For example, 12% of the 300 Protestant clergy surveyed admitted to sexual intercourse with a parishioner; 38% acknowledged other inappropriate sexual contact in a study by the United Methodist Church, 41.8% of clergy women reported unwanted sexual behavior; 17% of laywomen have been sexually harassed.
Meanwhile, 1.7% of the Catholic clergy has been found guilty of pedophilia. 10% of the Protestant ministers have been found guilty of pedophilia. This is not a Catholic Problem.
A study of American priests showed that most are happy in the priesthood and find it even better than they had expected, and that most, if given the choice, would choose to be priests again in face of all this obnoxious PR the church has been receiving.
The Catholic Church is bleeding from self-inflicted wounds. The agony that Catholics have felt and suffered is not necessarily the fault of the Church. You have been hurt by a small number of wayward priests that have probably been totally weeded out by now.
Walk with your shoulders high and your head higher. Be a proud member of the most important non-governmental agency in the United States . Then remember what Jeremiah said: 'Stand by the roads, and look and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is and walk in it, and find rest for your souls'. Be proud to speak up for your faith with pride and reverence and learn what your Church does for all other religions.
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Thersa
I got the same email and forwarded it to all of my friends and families it is so amazing and it makes me proud to me a Catholic.
Starting day 2 of the Novena to St. Jude now.
Ladies don' t forget to pray to St. Jude today and offer up the intentions listed I have updated them and will copy and paste here again
M
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Ok LadiesThe prayer is posted above, I hope you can all commit to the 9 days of this novena: It is really so powerful - I promise!Lets start this evening and I have the following intentions:Theresa - Career intentions and Spiritual VocationsPaula - Her mother's Health, Job OfferTori - Peace and Health to make it through RadsJanet - Successful surgery next monthMichelle - Prayers for Husbands Career Path and finances, Sons Health, and Peace from anxietyCathy S- That she may be able to walk again in the midst of a serious brain tumor Norm Auger (stroke recovery), Maureen Senese (successful chemo), Brianna (infection in her bloodstream - 18 years old) in your prayers. For Wendy healing of breast cancer and peace Ellie's Children and Grandchildren, Peace, Health and Happiness Maria's Family Health, Daughter's depression to lift and for her FIL's issuesFor Traci to continue to be held and uplifted by our Lord in her path. Please let me know and I can add more and modify before this evening.God Bless you all Michelle
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