Christ the King

Lindon Leners explained the significance of the Feast of Christ the King Sunday. In particular, he pointed out that it marks the end of the liturgical calendar and prepares us for the beginning of the Advent season.

Furthermore, the feast day reminds us that Christ should be King of all of our lives. That means every aspect of who we are and what we do.

I chose this image of Christ the King that appears in the National Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D. C.  I like this mosaic portrayal because Jesus has an intimidating look about him. He seems to be challenging any evildoers to "bring it on!"

RESOURCES FOR FURTHER STUDY:

Quas Primas - Encyclical on Feast of Christ the King

St. Josemaria on Christ the King
This point elaborates on Lindon's observation that Christ's throne on Earth was the cross.

FAQ of the Faith: Pre-Mass Fast

Every once in a while I'll look up from praying before (or even during) Communion and I see someone chewing gum.  I'm not talking about kids; I'm talking about adults, even Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist!

According to Canon 919, the Church generally expects people to fast from all food and drink (except water) one hour prior to receiving communion.

Now, I am not saying that we should commission a posse of "liturgical police," but  I believe we have an obligation to gently and pastorally correct our fellow Catholics.  I suspect that most of them simply do not know better because someone did not care enough to let them know.

I like what St. Josemaria said about correcting our fellow Christians:

It happens, however, that some people (who are good, or should we rather say 'goodish') pay lip service to the beautiful ideal of spreading our faith, but in practice they make do with a superficial and careless professional output. They seem scatterbrained. If we happen to come across such Christians, we should do our best to help them, affectionately but uncompromisingly, having recourse where necessary to the gospel remedy of fraternal correction: 'Brethren, if a man is found guilty of some fault, you who are spiritually minded ought to show a spirit of gentleness in correcting him. Have an eye upon thyself, lest thou too be tempted. Bear one another's burdens and so you will be fulfilling the law of Christ.' If besides the fact that they claim to be Catholics there are other factors involved, because, for instance, those at fault are older, or have more experience or responsibility, then there is all the more reason to talk to them. We should try to get them to react, helping them take their work more seriously, trying to guide them, like a good parent does or a teacher, but without humiliating them. (Friends of God, #69)

Saint Talk: St. Jerome, Doctor of the Church

"Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ." -- St Jerome

St. Jerome, Doctor of the Church, is most known for translating the Holy Bible from the original languages to Latin.  This came to be known as the Vulgate as it was the vernacular language of the time.   This translation continues to be used today.  One prime example is the Navarre Bible which contains exceptional commentaries.

• EWTN
• SQPN
• A Daily Word service is available which utilizes his writings and those of other saints and doctors of the church.

The Navarre Bible is an excellent bible translation to use for study and reflection:

FAQ of the Faith: IMPRIMATUR and NIHIL OBSTAT

The imprimatur and nihil obstat  collectively make up the evidence that the document or book has been reviewed by the bishop (where the work is published) and determined to be free of moral and theological error (i.e., nothing contrary to church teaching). Normally, these statements indicate you can read the work without worry that you are going to be reading something fishy. Unfortunately, a few "liberal" bishops have been known to approve questionable works. Additonally, absence of the statements does not mean a work is not loyal to the Church Magisterium. For example some of Scott Hahn's early book editions did not have them because he publishes with a mainsteam publisher.

So you're probably saying, "great so how do I know when something is a legitimate Catholic work or not?"  First, let me say absolutely DO NOT rely on an internet search or by just going to the Catholic section in a book store.  There is a lot of junk out there being sold and published under the guise of "Catholic."  Jesus did warn his apostles to "beware of false prophets (teachers)" [Matt 7:15]. Here are my suggestions for obtaining authentic Catholic materials:

• Find a reputable Catholic book store.  Locally, we have three: Sacred Heart in Richardson, Little Angels near St. Anne's in Coppell and Divine Mercy in Denton.  The obvious omission is deliberate.
• Ask someone you know who is well versed in Catholic reading material.
• Get to know the reliable publishers.  This site includes the links to many of these.
• Get to know the reliable authors like Scott Hahn, Tim Staples, Father Larry Richards, Patrick Madrid, etc.
• Go to reliable websites like EWTN which has a religious catalogue.
• Use this web site.  I often include links to books you can buy through our Amazon partnership.  Joe Catholic actually gets a small percentage of those proceeds.

I have included definitions from Catholic Dictionary:

IMPRIMATUR

NIHIL OBSTAT
For good measure I have included a link to Scott Hahn's new book which covers some of our Catholic customs.  I found it to be a great read.

Let me know what you think about me adding a monthly book review.

Live From Father Corapi's "Life, Love & the Purpose of Our Existence"

Brothers, I just heard four tremendous talks given by Father John Corapi.  I am coming back recharged and  inspired.

You are all in my prayers and I will be offering today's vigil mass for all the men of Joe Catholic.

Parish Mission: Discipleship to Jesus through Mary

St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church is hosting a parish mission May 23-26, 2010. The director of the mission will be Fr. AL WINSHMAN, S.J.

Schedule:

May 23-26, 2010 Sunday, 7:00 pm: Benediction & Teaching 

Mon-Wed, 8:30 am & 7:00 pm: Mass & Teaching

Mon-Wed, 6:10 pm: Gregorian Rosary & Confessions

A parish mission is a community event conducted over the course of consecutive evenings. It is designed to draw individuals closer to the Lord and to the community of their parish. It is a time for spiritual renewal and reflection.

To learn more about Father Al Winsham and his ministry:

Marian Renewal

Joe Catholic Takes a Road Trip

May 8th, we are taking the Joe Catholic show on the road.  Bishop Vann has invited us to attend Mass with him at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Fort Worth.  Following the 8AM mass, we will conduct our normal meeting.

Some of the men will be meeting at St. Catherine at 7AM and convoying to the cathedral. 

Talks and Speakers: 

• Catholic Toolbox - Teach Us to Pray, Don Gonzalez
• St. Talk - St. Isidore the Farmer, Lindon Leners
• FAQ of Faith - Fruits and Charisms of the Holy Spirit, Michael Hoffman

MAP OF CATHEDRAL

This is the first Joe Catholic post to contain an Amazon link associated with one of the talks.  If you purchase any of the items (always authentically Catholic) through the link on this website, the ministry receives a small percentage of the proceeds.  This can help offset the costs of printing flyers for the bulletins and any additional costs we incur as we continue to grow.  

The Truth about Pope Benedict XVI

Recently the secular press, especially the New York Times, has viciously gone after Pope Benedict XVI accusing him of complicity in the clerical abuse scandal.

Here are a few well written responses that uncover the rest of the story:

Let's Get the Story Straight

Hatred of the Church

Multiple Links

Joe Catholic Hits 21

Today Joe Catholic, just one month shy of its one year anniversary, celebrated a major milestone.  We broke through the twenty mark.  We had twenty-one men present for today's sessions.  That is incredible!  I expected a lower than normal turn out because of the Easter holiday. Instead, you set a new mark.  It is a testimony to your dedication to learn more about your faith and your willingness to be open to the Holy Spirit.  Praise God!  

Mystagogy - Living the Mysteries

Most Catholics are not familiar with the term "mystagogy."  The term is most closely associated with the RCIA process and the period of time following the Easter Vigil leading up to Pentacost Sunday.  It is a period of finishing, of filling in the gaps for "unfinished" Christians.  Truth is, we are all unfinished Christians and we could all do with some finishing, some additional catechesis.  This is precisely the role ministries like Joe Catholic and Why Catholic? serve.   

The catechesis is aimed at helping us grow in our faith.  More specifically to arm us with the knowledge to better utilize the sacraments - the real mysteries.  Mystagogy is really all about living the sacraments.  It's about walking the walk, in our every day ordinary lives.  It's answering the universal call to holiness.  

Blessed Mother Theresa said we are "called to blossom exactly where we are planted."  St. Josemaria asserts God is calling "ordinary Christians immersed in the bloodstream of society...to be saints and apostles, in the very midst of our professional work." 

As Catholics, we have the fullness of the Christian faith; we have the seven sacraments and apostolic succession.  We have a responsibility to act on this, for as scripture says, to those who much is given, much is required.  We have a duty to our family, friends and co-workers to know our faith, so we can share, and more importantly, live our faith.

We can remember the acronym CARE.  Continuous Adult Religious Education.  Use this website as a launching point to your continued development beyond what you learn at the sessions.  Start by reading any of the books on the recommended reading list.  Visit some of the links.  The Catholic Information Services has a wealth of online training.

Finally, I recommend one additional book - Living the Mysteries: A Guide for Unfinished Christians, Scott Hahn

John Paul The Great

John Paul II reigned as pope between 1978-2005.  He travelled more than any other previous pope.  He was a prolific writer and oversaw the canonization of numerous saints. JP2, as students called him at World Youth Day, was known for his strong devotion to Mary - he prayed all the mysteries of the rosary daily and even instituted the new luminous mysteries.   John Paul II is partially credited for the fall of Communism and is closely associated with the Divine Mercy devotion.

The Full Story

George Weigel's Witness to Hope

Encyclicals with Study Tool

Pope John Paul II Cultural Center

DIVINE MERCY

Simply put the message of Divine Mercy is that God loves us and His mercy is greater than any of our sins.  We are called to live the ABC's of mercy. ASK for his mercy.  BE merciful. COMPLETELY trust in his mercy.  In living a life of mercy we must be merciful to others.  We can do this in three ways - prayer, words and deeds.

DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY

PLENARY INDULGENCE

How to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet

The Mercy Hour

DIVINE MERCY NOVENA

The Mercy Pope

St. Faustina

Saint Talk: St. Joseph - The Man Closest to Christ

The bible says St. Joseph was a righteous man (Matthew 1:19), a just man.  Permit me to paraphrase for a moment.  Psalm 1 defines a just man as the man who studies his faith, lives it and doesn't hang out with naysayers.  He was a spiritual leader.

St. Joseph was strong in his faith and thus possessed the grace to to answer God's call to be the protector of his most cherished creation - Mary - and his only begotten son, Jesus.  Joseph was a man of action and a man of few words (he is not quoted at all in the bible).  When God called Joseph to move the family to Egypt to protect them from Herod, he did it (Matthew 2:13-23).  He did not negotiate with God.  Instead he was humbly obedient and acted on God's instructions.

Joseph is the leader, father and husband we can all model.  He was the original Joe Catholic, just an ordinary guy living a holy life through the extraordinary grace of our Lord.

Joseph of Nazareth, Federico Suarez

Go to Joseph, Richard Gilsdorf

EWTN - Profile and Links to Papal Writings

Catholic Toolbox: Social Justice & Universal Healthcare Bill

The president's health care reform is one of the most significant issues facing our country in recent years.  In a time when so-called Catholic politicians have scoffed at Church teaching, what are we called to do?  In the following post, I will outline a straight forward guide for action.

First, we must understand that we have a spiritual responsibility to be politically active.  (See CCC #1915) Now, for most of us this simply means staying informed and voting with an appropriately formed conscience.  In fact, we are called as Men of God to uphold the "common good."  The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains that the common good has two primary components: 1) respect for the human person and 2) the social well being of the group.
For a more a detailed account of what are responsibilities are as citizens see CCC 2238-2243  See below links for more information on this subject matter:

Bishop Vann's Letter to Congress

USCCB Main Page

USCCB - Health Care Reform

Catholics Respect Life Website

Spiritual Plan of Life

As we bring in the new year, many of us set out to fulfill new resolutions. Some of us are determined that this will be the year we quit smoking. Or perhaps some of us plan on losing the extra weight we have been carrying for too long. Still others make plans of self-improvement, like taking a continuing education course to increase their work and marketability in the workplace. All of these are admirable goals, but how many of us actually make spiritual goals - conscious decisions to improve our relationship with Jesus Christ?

Here is a list of things you can do throughout the year to fortify your relationship with our Lord:

• Begin with a morning offering; courageous moment; arise immediately and offer the day to our Lord (Here are some links to a few traditional Morning Offering Prayers) 
• Daily Prayer - ACTS (Adoration, Contrition, Thanksgiving & Supplication) pick a time and place for at least 15 minutes devoted to silent prayer 
• Spiritual Reading - 3 minutes a day from scripture ( I recommend you begin with the daily readings) and 12 additional minutes from other sources (See list of recommended books) 
• Pray the Rosary
• Pray before each meal and openly demonstrate the Sign of the Cross 
• Attend Daily Mass (when possible; see - www.masstimes.org) 
• Invocations or short prayers throughout the day 
• Frequent Confession (start with once every 3-4 months and build up to once a month) 
• End the day with an Examination of Conscience

Like any new plan you should consider your determination to implement the changes in your life. You may be better served to start with a few of the recommendations and build yourself up to doing more. The goal is NOT to create a check list of things you are doing, but to increase your relationship with Christ. We are the Church Militant engaged in what St. Paul calls Spiritual Warfare. These are some of the spiritual weapons we have available to us as we make our way in our daily lives in pursuit of holiness.

Tuesday Tech Talk: Mobile EWTN Streaming

EWTN audio and video programming are now available for live streaming on iPhone and other mobile devices.

EWTN on iPhone Instructions

FAQ of Faith: Indulgences

I have been working on my last final for my Catholic Theological Tradition course. One of the topics I am writing on is Martin Luther. As I was writing, I remembered that I had started a post on indulgences over a year ago. So here's an updated version of the post.

According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, "an indulgence is the extra-sacramental remission of the temporal punishment due, in God's justice, to sin that has been forgiven, which remission is granted by the Church in the exercise of the power of the keys, through the application of the superabundant merits of Christ and of the saints, and for some just and reasonable motive."

Rather than attempt to paraphrase more qualified minds on the subject, I will simply list the links below. The first is a very good summary by the USCCB that can be used for a handout at a formation session.

Resources:
Handout from Meeting

Primer on Indulgences

Myths about Indulgences

Recommended Book:

Handbook of Indulgences

Saint Talk - St. John Bosco

St. John Bosco, also known as Don Bosco, was born August 16, 1815. Shortly thereafter his mother dedicated him to Our Lady. His father died when he was 2 years old and John began working to help the family at a very young age. As a young man he was very athletic. He performed a one-boy circus act for the boys in his village. When he concluded his feats of magic and agility, he would recount the homily he had heard at that day's mass. Eventually, he entered studies to become a priest. He spent the bulk of his priestly life serving troubled youth. He possessed extraordinary trust in God providing for his ministry. He established a home, with vocational training, for boys. Eventually he would also form an order known as the Salesians.

St. John Bosco is known as the patron for students and young people. He was also known for his prophetic dreams and his gift for reading souls during confession.

Resources for additional reading:

EWTN

Saints SQPN

Catholic Online

Books to read:

St. John Bosco, F. A. Forbes

Forty Dreams of St. John Bosco

Catholic Toolbox: The Epiphany

The Epiphany is more than just a feast to recollect the story of the magi - Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar. It in fact, represents the manifestation of Messiah to all the nations. The Church actually acknowledges three "epiphanies" in the Gospel: the Adoration by the Magi, Christ's baptism in the Jordan and the miracle at the Wedding feast at Cana. The gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh represent Christ as King, God and Redeemer respectively.

Here are some resources for additional study:

The Catechism of the Catholic Church #528

EWTN

Catholic Answers

Catholic Encyclopedia