Stations of the Cross

In our parish,we have Stations of the Cross every Friday during Lent.Normally, my job prevents me from attending each week.My regular schedule requires me to work on alternate Fridays and I can't go the days I work.For several months, we've been off work every Friday because business has been slow.I was expecting to be able to go to church every Friday this time, but as luck would have it, now that Lent has arrived, the manager has changed the work schedule.....again. Now, he's returned it the "normal" schedule and I can only attend the Stations on alternate Fridays, as before.
If we can go to Philippines according to plan,we'll be in Dumaguete during Holy Week and we can do Via Crucis the way it should be done.

Ash Wednesday

Looking back,I see my father as the strongest influence on my Catholicism.It was he who sent us to the nuns to learn the catechism.He took us to confession every Saturday and Mass every Sunday.
But,it's odd.....he never took us to midnight Mass at Christmas or Mass on Ash Wednesday.Today is Ash Wednesday and I can't imagine not going to Mass .My wife will be there with me and we will take our son.Was my father too busy with work then or did he not appreciate the significance of the day?Some many things I want to ask him but can't.
All I can do now is pray for him and for my mother.He's been dead nearly forty years....my mother, almost twenty seven years.
Memento homo, quia pulvis es, et in pulverem reverteris

The most important thing

Commenting on my previous post on Sr. Lucia, Oberon asks,"What is the most important thing?".If I were to confine my answer to a one sentence response I would say the most important thing is developing your relationship with God.There are certainly several paths available and I'm not going to argue which one is the best for everyone but instead write about what I feel is the best way for me.
Number one is receiving the Eucharist on a regular basis.
Twice- daily Meditation and daily Rosary are important.
Attending not only Mass on Sunday but on Holy Days of Obligation is something I strive to do.
Reading is high on my list as well....not only the Bible, but writings by a wide variety of religious and philosophical writers.
"And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened."

Sr. Lucia

Two years ago, in February,2005 I was reading the memoirs of Sister Lucia of Fatima.At the time, she was 97 years old.She died on Feb.13th while I was reading the first volume,.I'm not sure why it was that I was so interested in reading about Fatima or why I had ordered the two volumes But,I probably would not have noticed her passing had I not been reading her memoirs at that time.

Saint Bernadette

It was February 11,1858 when the Virgin Mary first appeared to 14 year old Bernadette Soubirous.Most of us are reasonable familiar with the story of Lourdes.Today the place where Our Lady of Lourdes appeared is a shrine and a place of pilgrimage for millions.As for the cures sought for there:

Excerpt taken from the Travel and Mission Notebook #113 by FJE
Told by in the Marian Collection (1991) by Brother Albert Pfleger
How Could an Unbeliever Persevere in His Disbelief? (I)
A group of Lutheran theologians from Eastern Germany published a proclamation in 1971 containing these lines filled with moving honesty:
“At Lourdes, Fatima and other Marian sanctuaries, impartial criticism is faced with supernatural facts, which have a close relation to the Virgin Mary, either because of the apparitions, or because of the miraculous graces obtained by her intercession. These facts defy any natural explanation. Until now, 1,200 of the cures that have taken place at Lourdes were recognized as scientifically inexplicable by medical doctors. Yet the Catholic Church has only declared miraculous 44 of them. For thirty years, 11,000 doctors, without distinction of religion or scientific opinions, had free access to the Office of Medical Observations. Therefore, a cure declared miraculous has the greatest possible guarantee.”

As for the photo......This is an actual photo of St.Bernadette as she appears today. Her body is on display in a chapel in Nevers, France.Most of us are unaware that her body was exhumed from the grave thirty yeras after she was buried and found to be incorrupt.

Prayer,Meditation and Multitasking

Faith,belief and a trust in God is a central part of my life.Meditation and prayer are daily activities and I like to spend time regularly reading something of a religious of philosophic nature.The Catholic church in this small southern town doesn't have daily morning masses....otherwise I'd adjust my schedule for that. But I do not live the life of a recluse....I have work to do and a family that I love very much.I use the word "multitasking" when writing about my daily activities but I'm not so sure that is the correct word. I try to get a lot done, but not all at the same time.I'm not happy with my present job and financial situation, so I'm busy all through the day on other projects.I'm forever looking for ways to improve the Dumaguete website and perhaps make a dollar or two with it.One blog cannot deal with all the interests I have so I have three......all requiring my attention on a regular basis.Now, I decided that the time has come for me to take another look at the novel that I set aside.One more job to do in an already busy day.I find myself asking for God's help putting this all together.Without this time spent with the Holy Spirit in meditation I would probably waste away into nothing.