Month: June 2012

The Church Year: June 10, 2012

Today is the 10th Sunday of Ordinary Time. The liturgical color is white.

In the Extraordinary Form, this is the season after Pentecost, and the liturgical color for today is green.

In the Ordinary Form, in the United States, this is Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ Sunday.

 

Saints & Celebrations:

On June 10, there is no special fixed liturgical day in the Ordinary Form.

In the Extraordinary Form, we celebrate St. Margaret, Queen of Scotland, widow, who died in A.D. 1093. It is a Class III day.

If you’d like to learn more about St. Margaret, you can click here.

For information about other saints, blesseds, and feasts celebrated today, you can click here.

 

Readings:

To see today’s readings in the Ordinary Form, you can click here.

Or you can click play to listen to them:

 

Devotional Information:

According to the Holy See’s Directory on Popular Piety:

Eucharistic Adoration

164. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is a form of Eucharistic devotion which is particularly widespread in the Church and earnestly recommended to her Pastors and faithful. Its initial form derives from Holy Thursday and the altar of repose, following the celebration of theCoena Domini Mass. This adoration is a most apt way of expressing the connection between the celebration of the memorial of the Lord’s Sacrifice and his continued presence in the Sacrament of the Altar. The reservation of the Sacred Species, so as to be able to administer Viaticum to the sick at any time, encouraged the practice among the faithful of recollection before the tabernacle and to worship Christ present in the Sacrament.

Indeed, this worship of adoration has a sound and firm foundation,” [109] especially since faith in the Lord’s real presence has as its natural consequence the outward and public manifestation of that belief. Therefore, the devotion prompting the faithful to visit the blessed sacrament draws them into an ever deeper share in the paschal mystery and leads them to respond gratefully to the gift of him who through his humanity constantly pours divine life into the members of his Body. [110] Abiding with Christ the Lord, they enjoy his intimate friendship and pour out their hearts before him for themselves and for those dear to them and they pray for the peace and salvation of the world. Offering their entire lives with Christ to the Father in the Holy Spirit, they derive from this sublime colloquy an increase of faith, hope, and charity. Thus they foster those right dispositions that enable them with due devotion to celebrate the memorial of the Lord and receive frequently the bread given us by the Father.

What’s the World’s Smallest Country?

Did You Know? You might say, “Vatican City State,” which is the smallest country that is extensively recognized. But Vatican City State is *huge* compared to the self-proclaimed micronation of Sealand. Sealand is only 6 *thousand* square feet, while Vatican City State is 4.7 *million* square feet! Vatican City State is *almost a thousand times larger* than Sealand! The latter is based on an old British gun platform from WWII in the North Sea and boldly proclaimed its independence from the UK in 1967. You have to admire the courage of the plucky Sealanders (all four of them). The only reason their nation hasn’t been crushed by British military might is, apparently, that it’s not deemed worth crushing. LEARN MORE.

Would God Really Send Someone to Hell?

If God is all-good and all-loving, how could he send someone to hell?

At first glance, it seems that he would not. But God is infinitely higher than we are, and our finite minds can only grasp a tiny bit of his infinite mystery.

Therefore, we need to check our intuitions about what God would or would not do against what we know.

In particular, we need to check them against what God himself has told us in his word.

In this video, I take on the question of whether God would really send someone to hell, and I show that we must reject the simple answer, “No, God would never do that.”

But we also see that the matter isn’t as simple as saying that God “sends” people to hell.

Drawing on the teaching of Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI, and the Catechism of the Catholic Church, we reveals the real reason that people “go to hell”–and the fact that we can avoid this as long as we open ourselves to God’s love.

No matter what we’ve done, no matter how bad our sins, we can–as long as we live–always be saved if we turn back to God and embrace his love.

Here’s the video!

I’m also preparing a message to the Secret Information Club where I “interview” Bl. John Paul II about hell.

Very few churchmen are willing to speak at any length about the doctrine of hell, but John Paul II was one of them, and drawing from his writings, I compose an “interview” that presents his wisdom on the doctrine of hell, its biblical basis, how we should understand it, and what it means for our lives.

If you’d like to receive the interview, you should sign up for the Secret Information Club by Friday, June 15th, and you’ll have the interview in your email inbox on Saturday morning.

You should sign up using this form:

(If you have any trouble, just email me at Jimmy@SecretInfoClub.com.)

You can also go to www.SecretInfoClub.com for more information.

Incidentally, before he hopped on a plane for Israel this afternoon, the globe-trotting author, blogger, and apologist Steve Ray sent me an email (and permission to use it) in which he said:

“Bravo, Jimmy! I look forward to your secret messages as a member of your Secret Information Club.

Actually, I like it that you do a lot of research I wish I had time to do.

Don’t tell anyone–this is a secret–but I copy each one and save it in my Logos Bible Software program for future reference.

Very valuable, fun, and great content. Keep up the good work.”

Steve Ray
www.CatholicConvert.com

The Church Year: June 9, 2012

Today is Saturday of the 9th week of Ordinary Time. The liturgical color is green.

In the Extraordinary Form, this is the season after Pentecost, and the liturgical color for today is white.

 

Saints & Celebrations:

On June 9, in the Ordinary Form, we celebrate St. Ephrem, deacon, and doctor of the Church. It is an optional memorial.

In the Extraordinary Form, we celebrate St.s Primus and Felician, martyrs, who died in A.D. 286. It is a commemoration.

If you’d like to learn more about St. Ephrem, you can click here.

If you’d like to learn more about St.s Primus and Felician, you can click here.

For information about other saints, blesseds, and feasts celebrated today, you can click here.

 

Readings:

To see today’s readings in the Ordinary Form, you can click here.

Or you can click play to listen to them:

 

Devotional Information:

Tomorrow,in the United States, we celebrate the solemnity of Corpus Christi, on which Eucharistic processions are often held. According to the Holy See’s Directory on Popular Piety:

162. The Corpus Christi procession represents the typical form of an Eucharistic procession. It is a prolongation of the celebration of the Eucharist: immediately after Mass, the Sacred Host, consecrated during the Mass, is borne out of the Church for the Christian faithful “to make public profession of faith and worship of the Most Blessed Sacrament.”

The faithful understand and appreciate the values inherent in the procession: they are aware of being “the People of God”, journeying with the Lord, and proclaiming faith in him who has become truly “God-amongst-us.”

It is necessary however to ensure that the norms governing processions be observed, especially those ensuring respect for the dignity and reverence of the Blessed Sacrament. It is also necessary to ensure that the typical elements of popular piety accompanying the precession, such as the decoration of the streets and windows with flowers and the hymns and prayers used during the procession, truly “lead all to manifest their faith in Christ, and to give praise to the Lord”, and exclude any forms of competition.

163. The Eucharistic procession is normally concluded by a blessing with the Blessed Sacrament. In the specific case of the Corpus Christi procession, the solemn blessing with the Blessed Sacrament concludes the entire celebration: the usual blessing by the priest is replaced by the blessing with the Blessed Sacrament.

It is important that the faithful understand that this blessing is not an independent form of Eucharistic piety, but the end of a prolonged act of worship. Hence, liturgical norms prohibit “exposition of the Blessed Sacrament for the purpose of giving the blessing.”

What a Beast This Guy Was

Did You Know? The Roman Emperor Nero, after being declared an enemy of the state by the Roman Senate, was forced to commit suicide June 9, A.D. 68. He had high regard for himself as an actor and a musician. Among his last words were the famous phrase, “Qualis artifex pereo,” or, “What an artist dies in me!” Nero had previously put St. Peter and St. Paul to death, and–by an interesting not-so-coincidence–“Nero Caesar” adds up to 666 in Hebrew and Aramaic. Good riddance to this guy. LEARN MORE.

Still Time to Find Out What Heaven Is Like!

I’ve now uploaded the next Secret Information Club secret communique for broadcast tomorrow morning!

Still time to get in on all the secret information action!

To find out what Bl. John Paul II says about heaven, signup Friday and you’ll get the special email in your inbox Saturday morning!

You should sign up using this here handy, dandy signup form:

(If you have any trouble, just email me at Jimmy@SecretInfoClub.com.)

The Church Year: June 8, 2012

Today is Friday of the 9th week of Ordinary Time. The liturgical color is green.

In the Extraordinary Form, this is the season after Pentecost.

 

Saints & Celebrations:

On June 8, there is no special fixed liturgical day in the Ordinary Form.

There is no special fixed liturgical day in the Extraordinary Form.

For information about other saints, blesseds, and feasts celebrated today, you can click here.

 

Readings:

To see today’s readings in the Ordinary Form, you can click here.

Or you can click play to listen to them:

 

Devotional Information:

According to the Holy See’s Directory on Popular Piety:

161. Eucharistic devotion, which is so deeply rooted in the Christian faithful, must integrate two basic principles:

  • the supreme reference point for Eucharistic devotion is the Lord’s Passover; the Pasch as understood by the Fathers, is the feast of Easter, while the Eucharist is before all else the celebration of Paschal Mystery or of the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Christ;
  • all forms of Eucharistic devotion must have an intrinsic reference to the Eucharistic Sacrifice, or dispose the faithful for its celebration, or prolong the worship which is essential to that Sacrifice.

Hence, the Rituale Romanum states “The faithful, when worshipping Christ present in the Sacrament of the Altar, should recall that this presence comes from the Sacrifice of the Eucharist, and tends towards sacramental and spiritual communion.”

How the Mighty Are Fallen

Did You Know? During the French Revolution, arch-terrorizer Maximillian Robespierre inaugurated France’s new state religion, the Cult of the Supreme Being, with large festivals all across France, on June 8, 1794. It didn’t last, but this was one in a series of events that did enormous damage to French Catholicism. LEARN MORE.

The Church Year: June 7, 2012

Today is Thursday of the 9th week of Ordinary Time. The liturgical color is green.

In some parts of the world (but not the United States), this is a holyday of obligation (Body and Blood of Christ). If it is a holyday of obligation in your area, be sure to go to Mass if you didn’t go yesterday evening. (In the U.S. we celebrate the Body and Blood of Christ this Sunday.)

In the Extraordinary Form, this is the season after Pentecost, and the liturgical color for today is white.

In the Extraordinary Form, it is Corpus Christi.

 

Saints & Celebrations:

On June 7, there is no special fixed liturgical day in the Ordinary Form.

There is no special fixed liturgical day in the Extraordinary Form.

For information about other saints, blesseds, and feasts celebrated today, you can click here.

 

Readings:

To see today’s readings in the Ordinary Form, you can click here.

Or you can click play to listen to them:

 

Devotional Information:

According to the Holy See’s Directory on Popular Piety:

Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ

160. The Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ is observed on the Thursday following on the solemnity of the Most Blessed Trinity. This feast is both a doctrinal and [ritual] response to heretical teaching on the mystery of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, and the apogee of an ardent devotional movement concentrated on the Sacrament of the Altar. It was extended to the entire Latin Church by Urban IV in 1264.

Popular piety encouraged the process that led to the institution of the feast of Corpus Christi, which reciprocally inspired the development of new forms of Eucharistic piety among the people of God.

For centuries, the celebration of Corpus Christi remained the principal point of popular piety’s concentration on the Eucharist. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, faith, in reaction to various forms of Protestantism, and culture (art, folklore and literature) coalesced in developing lively and significant expressions Eucharistic devotion in popular piety.

Something Wondrous This Way Comes

Author Ray Bradbury has died in Los Angeles at the age of 91.

Bradbury is often referred to as a science fiction author, though he wrote much more broadly than that, including works of fantasy, mystery, and horror.

His titles include some of the best-known in the history of speculative fiction, including:

He worked in both short story and novel form. Many of his stories ended up in film or television form, including episodes of the Twilight Zone and his own Ray Bradbury Theater anthology series.

He is credited by some for having helped bring speculative fiction new literary respect due to his evocative, lyrical writing style that brings out the emotion of a situation rather than just focusing on technology or common fantasy tropes.

One of the things that stands out in Bradbury’s fiction is the way he juxtaposes the normal and the fantastastic. This happens across genres in his works.

KEEP READING.