Saturday, January 29, 2011

Saints and their statues

I understand that the high priests of the Old Testament were prototypes of the only High Priest, Jesus Christ.

But what I didn't understand until recently is simply this: the Holy of Holies -- in Judaism -- to say nothing of our Catholic Churches -- are and were prototypes of Heaven!

When the High Priest entered the Holy of Holies yearly, on the Day of Atonement, he did indeed offer sacrifice for, not just the sins of the people but for his own sins. Of course, our High Priest, Jesus Christ, offered only one sacrifice for all...it was sufficient.

But did you know that, within the sanctuary of the Temple, there were images of angels? Not images of Moses, nor David, nor Abraham -- only angels.

Why is that?

Because regardless of the piety of the high priests and the people, at the time before Christ there were no humans in Heaven. Only angels.

After Christ offered His one sacrifice for all, the gates of Heaven were smashed open and people like you and me were, once again, offered admittance into the Kingdom.

And so our churches -- being, as I said, prototypes of Heaven (even more so now since the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ reposes there) have good reason to display images of human beings within them.

At long last, man -- created in the image of God our Creator -- has been welcomed in Heaven. No longer is this Kingdom the exclusive realm of angels, as it was in the days of our ancestors. Now there is an open invitation to mankind to live there.

As the saints do. As I hope you and I will some day.

And that's why the images of human beings complement those of the angels.

Just in case you were wondering. :-)

Sunday, January 23, 2011

"God's 38th Anniversary Present to Roe v Wade" by Carol McKinley

It took me several days to get my spirituality tucked in enough to read the sinister descriptions of Gosnell's infant extermination facility. The Grand Jury report, with photos of the macabre crimes against women and children is HERE. It's worse than I expected. Hundreds of children were delivered alive and then murdered. Their bodies and parts were strewn about in the blood and filth.

There's a picture of a 30 week old baby with a gaping hole in his neck where the scissors was inserted to sever his spinal cord. Though SCOTUS upheld the partial birth abortion ban in 2007, there are various ways of killing an unborn child in this country. And the findings at the Gosnell abortion clinic is proof positive that the partial birth abortion ban is as good as the morals and ethics of doctors who make a living out of killing children.

It's as effective as the law against stealing in a room filled with thieves.

Read the rest here.

Friday, January 21, 2011

Thursday, January 20, 2011

January 21: "Ask Them What They Mean by `Choice' Blog Day"


Okay, I'm starting a day early. NARAL has chosen to "celebrate" what is arguably the most infamous day in United States history -- the 38th anniversary of Roe v. Wade -- with a "Blog for Choice Day." So I'm "choosing" -- as our countless other bloggers -- to ask "pro-choicers" a simple question:

WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY "CHOICE?"

Jill Stanek, who sparked the counter-campaign, writes:
When NARAL announced a “Blog for Choice Day,” to be held this Friday, January 21, my blood boiled.

How dare they celebrate the upcoming 38th anniversary of the infamous Roe v. Wade decision with their ambiguous claptrap.

Over 50 million babies have been killed in America since that terrible day, most certainly nothing to cheer about, unless you’re in Rome at the Colosseum perhaps.

So pro-life bloggers are banding together to sponsor a counter “Ask Them What They Mean When They Say ‘Choice’ Blog Day” on the same day, January 21.

We’re also encouraging all pro-lifers on Twitter and Facebook to participate.

The idea is simple. Any time any of us reads pro-aborts spouting their obscure “choice” rhetoric on a blog, website, Facebook, or Twitter, we call them out on it. We ask them to explain what the “choice” is.

Is it to eat carrots rather than broccoli? To wear red instead of blue? No, of course “choice” is code for killing babies. What’s their problem with the A-word?

Please join us. Thank you!

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

The Abortion Murders - HUMAN EVENTS

From John Hayward at Human Events:

Fox News reports a horrifying case in Philadelphia, about a doctor who murdered “minorities, immigrants, and the poor” with scissors for profit. He’s been doing it for thirty years, and raked in millions of dollars. His lair is described by authorities as a “house of horrors,” filled with “bags and bottles” holding the corpses of his victims. Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams says “there were jars, lining shelves, with severed feet he kept for no medical purpose.”

Incredibly, the authorities ignored numerous complaints about this doctor’s bizarre behavior and criminal medical practices. His clinic hasn’t been inspected since 1993, despite ten malpractice suits filed against him, one of which included a fatality.

Sounds like an astonishing stop-the-presses story, right? One detail I left out: Dr. Kermit Gosnell is an abortion doctor. He’s charged with eight counts of murder – one mother and seven illegally “aborted” live babies.

Continue reading here.


Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Fred Foy: a legend, but also a friend.




Please pray for the happy repose of the soul of my good friend Fred Foy, and remember his lovely wife Fran and their family in your prayers. Thank you!

Announcing the “Ask Them What They Mean By ‘Choice’ Blog Day,” January 21!

Announcing the “Ask Them What They Mean By ‘Choice’ Blog Day,” January 21!

She can count the Pew Lady in!

Friday, January 14, 2011

John Paul II: Beatification set for May 1

Which is Divine Mercy Sunday, appropriately enough. Here's the story.

Monday, January 10, 2011

PRI reviews "unPlanned" by Abby Johnson

She had joined Planned Parenthood as a college student because she had been led to believe that the organization was dedicated to helping women in crisis. She believed them when they told her that they wanted to make abortion rare. She repeated their lies when she told naive young women that what was growing in their wombs was not a baby, but just a fetus, little more than a clump of cells, or a ball of tissue.

But as she went from being a volunteer to full-time employee, she learned that a key goal of the organization was to make as much money as possible by performing as many abortions as possible. Instead of helping to make abortions rare, as she had believed, she realized to her dismay that she was helping to make them more common.

Read the whole review here.

Get the book here!

Saturday, January 08, 2011

unPLANNED ::

unPLANNED ::

Thursday, January 06, 2011

"Here is the grain" -- Saint Andre Bessette

His name was Alfred Bessette. He was born on August 9, in 1845, and was baptized on condition the very next day, for he was so weak at his birth his parents feared for his life.

Read the story of this remarkable man who was canonized just last October. May Saint Andre Bessette intercede for you and for me!

P.S. The website of Saint Joseph's Oratory is definitely worth the trip!

Monday, January 03, 2011

Blessed be the Holy Name of Jesus!

Blessed be God.
Blessed be His Holy Name.
Blessed be Jesus Christ, true God and true man.
Blessed be the Name of Jesus.
Blessed be His Most Sacred Heart.
Blessed be His Most Precious Blood.
Blessed be Jesus, in the Most Holy Sacrament of the altar.
Blessed be the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete.
Blessed be the great Mother of God, Mary Most Holy.
Blessed be her holy and Immaculate Conception.
Blessed be her glorious Assumption.
Blessed be the name of Mary, Virgin and Mother.
Blessed be Saint Joseph, her most chaste spouse.
Blessed be God, in His angels and in His saints.