Archive for the Uncategorized Category
Why Do We Need the Rosary
Posted in Uncategorized with tags Catholic, Christian, Rosary, stars, video.prayer on October 15, 2010 by JoannaIndex of Stories from Synod
Posted in Uncategorized with tags Bishops, Catholic Christian, Churched, Middle East, NCR, synod on October 15, 2010 by JoannaIndex
of stories from the Synod of the Churches of the Middle East
Carmelite tells of Incense of the Heart
Posted in Uncategorized with tags adoration, Aromatherapy, Benediction, Incense, Real Presence, Religion and Spirituality on October 15, 2010 by Joanna
Image by Lawrence OP via Flickr
There are moments when the physical and the spiritual harmonize in an astounding, yet simple symphonic moment.
That just happened to me.
You see, our Chapel is connected to our convent. So yesterday evening as I was walking in from the gardens, I was met by the unmistakable fragrance of incense, in the hallway of the convent. I’ve probably had this experience a hundred times, but last night it was very moving.
Incense is a sign of our adoration of God. We use it every day in our convents during Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and Benediction. It is a sign not only of our prayers rising before Him, but the total holocaust of our lives that we offer, holding nothing back, being totally consumed in the Flames of His Love.
But I was not in a particularly sacred space. It was a hallway. Actually, there was a bathroom right by where I smelled the incense. I pass through this area countless times every day. I probably know every nook and cranny. It could not be more familiar, or mundane for that matter.
Despite all this (because of all this?) I encountered a reminder of God’s presence. He is here. Right in the midst of my everyday “stuff.” A routine I follow day in and day out. Surroundings that I know like the back of my hand. Steps I could take blindfolded. Last night I was stopped in my tracks and made to reflect, “He is here. He is always here with me.”
I smelled it with my nose as I looked around with my eyes at what I could reach out and touch and know so well. And my spirit rose up within me. Just a brief moment, but deeply profound. Again, physical and spiritual intertwined in an inseparable and graced union.
My point is not to make you jealous of the beautiful life we have in Carmel. That hallway will be bustling today with sisters headed here and there, busy about the Father’s business. It will be moped later this week and the toilets will be scrubbed. Still, daily the perfume from the altar will penetrate this space, making it holy. May this same fragrance fill your lives, your very ordinary, yet anointed, lives.
Boston Tea Party for the Catholic Faithful
Posted in Uncategorized with tags Boston, Boston Catholic Tea Party, Bryan Hehir, Catholic Church, Catholic Tea Party, Letter writing online campaign, Pope Benedict XVI, Vatican on October 14, 2010 by JoannaPriests’ Secretary writes of Boston Catholics hitting the fan or more to the point:
Now, one blog has announced an all-out “Boston Catholic Tea Party” to drive the communication of their dismay all the way to the Vatican.
“Were fed up” sums up the feelings and furor of Boston Catholics who know better than to sit silent while dissent from Church teaching is tolerated by those responsible for teaching the faithful. Bloggers are making their voices heard at least in the bloggosphere.
Story here
Bloggers here: BostonInsider and ByranHehirExposed
The bloggers set up an on-line letter-signing campaign with concerns addressed to: Pope Benedict XVI, Cardinal Sean O’Malley, Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Archbishop Pietro Sambi, Archbishop Raymond L. Burke, Cardinal William J. Levada. These concerns are spelled out in an open letter format in which they ask that two Boston-area priests in particular be banned from future Boston Archdiocesan programs. Specific points of dissent promoted by these priests (one is an archdiocesan official!) are listed in the letter.
Today’s post at BrianHehirExposed states:
…we’re asking you to join the “Boston Catholic Tea Party” and help rid these upcoming conferences from “negative attitudes of the world” such as those the Holy Father alluded to. Today’s the day to start firing away!
Online letter here
Miracle of the Sun – 93rd Anniversary
Posted in Uncategorized with tags Fatima, Lucia de Jesus Rosa Santos, Marian apparitions, Sr. Lucis of Jesus on October 14, 2010 by JoannaOctober 13 is the 93rd anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun that occurred in Fatima, Portugal in 1917
H/T Priests Secretary Rare video -Check it out!
Lúcia de Jesus Rosa Santos – Sister Lúcia of Jesus and of the Immaculate Heart, better known as Sister Lúcia of Jesus – one of three children who witnessed a series of apparitions of the Virgin Mary in Fátima, Portugal in 1917- sings Ave Maria in this video taken in her advanced years. She died on February 13, 2005 at the age of 97.
Medjugorje Webcam – Apparition Hill
Posted in Uncategorized on October 12, 2010 by JoannaHere is a live image of Apparition Hill in Medjugorje. Nothing like being there, but it is the next best thing to being there while waiting for the miracle!
The Medjugorje Webcam produced by Queen of Peace Productions and MedjugorjeVideo.com write:
There is a 6-hour time difference between Medjugorje and U.S. Eastern Standard Time, so, depending on your location, when it is daytime for you, it may be nighttime in Medjugorje, and vice versa.
When it is daytime in Medjugorje, you can see Apparition Hill. At the top right corner of the image is the white statue of the Blessed Mother, which marks the place where the six visionaries experienced their first apparition. According to the third secret that Our Lady entrusted to the seers, the “permanent sign,” prophesied to be miraculous and indestructible, will appear on Apparition Hill.
Feel Good Video
Posted in Uncategorized, Video with tags celebrate life, dance, sing, togetherness on October 12, 2010 by JoannaI just watched this video again, It makes me feel so good I end up with tears in my eyes. Guess I’m a sucker for togetherness. Enjoy!
Light in the Temple
Posted in Christian, Church, Uncategorized with tags adoration.teaching, Christianity for Seekers, Prayer, reflection on October 12, 2010 by JoannaWith this instruction of St. Columbanus, I include a prayer I posted earlier this week, because it seemed to apply.
From the Instructions of St Columbanus
Perpetual light in the temple of the eternal High Priest How happy, how lucky are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes! How blessed it is to be wakeful and watching for God, who created all things, who fills them with being and exceeds all of them in greatness!I am a lowly creature but I am still his servant, and I hope that he will choose to wake me from slumber. I hope that he will set me on fire with the flame of his divine love, the flame that burns above the stars, so that I am filled with desire for his love and his fire burns always within me!I hope that I may deserve this, that my little lamp should burn all night in the temple of the Lord and shine on all who enter the house of God! Lord, I beg you in the name of Jesus Christ, your Son and my God, give me a love that cannot stumble so that my lamp can be lit but can never go out: let it burn in me and give light to others.And you, Christ, our gentle saviour, in your kindness light our lamps so that they shine for ever in your temple and lighten our darkness and dispel the shadows of the world.I beg you, my Jesus, fill my lamp with your light. By its light let me see the holiest of holy places, your own temple where you enter as the eternal High Priest of the eternal mysteries. Let me see you, watch you, desire you. Let me love you as I see you, and before you let my lamp always shine, always burn.Beloved Saviour, show yourself to us who beg a glimpse of you. Let us know you, let us love you, let us love only you, let us desire you alone, let us spend our days and nights meditating on you alone, let us always be thinking of you. Fill us with love of you, let us love you with all the love that is your right as our God. Let that love fill us and possess us, let it overwhelm our senses until we can love nothing but you, for you are eternal. Give us that love that all the waters of the sea, the earth, the sky cannot extinguish: as it is written, love that no flood can quench, no torrents drown. What is said in the Song of Songs can become true in us (at least in part) if you, our Lord Jesus Christ, give us that grace. To you be glory for ever and for ever. Amen.Prayer At Adoration
You, My Lord, light up my darkness. I join my voice to the bright “Hosannas” of adoring angels. With the elect of Heaven here at my side, I call upon these holy saints and angels to remember before the throne of God all who labor in Your vineyard. Make me Your monstrance that I may carry You in my heart and be Your light to all I meet today. Amen.
by Joann Nelander
Top Ten Fr. Corapi Facts
Posted in Uncategorized with tags Catholic, fact, Fr.Corapi on October 11, 2010 by JoannaShirley Temple and a Little Night Music
Posted in Uncategorized with tags Shirley Temple, song, Video on October 11, 2010 by JoannaMy mom sang this song for me when she was about 78 years old. She was almost as cute as this cutie. Enjoy! A good way to end the day; sweet dreams!
Shirley is 82 and still kickin’:
Johnny Cash and Psalm 39
Posted in Uncategorized on October 11, 2010 by JoannaThe great religious song I am a poor wayfaring stranger… interpreted by Johnny Cash.
Prayer At Adoration
Posted in Uncategorized with tags adoration, heaven, Lord, meditation, Prayer, Real Presence, Religion and Spirituality on October 11, 2010 by JoannaYou, My Lord, light up my darkness. I join my voice to the bright “Hosannas” of adoring angels. With the elect of Heaven here at my side, I call upon these holy saints and angels to remember before the throne of God all who labor in Your vineyard. Make me Your monstrance that I may carry You in my heart and be Your light to all I meet today. Amen.
by Joann Nelander
Courts of Praise
Posted in Catholic, Spiritual, Uncategorized with tags Christian, debt, gratitude., Praise on October 10, 2010 by JoannaThank you, dear Lord, for my life long,
for beloved family and friends,
and all dear hearts touching mine.
My treasure trove of souls
spills far beyond my time
to number as my own
those who have gone before,
your saints of ages past,
the cloud of witnesses on high
and pure angelic beings
in realms veiled from the eye.
There never was a day in which I was alone,
nor forgotten before Your throne.
There, at Your feet,
all heaven sweet anthems raise
to set celestial hearts ablaze.
My heart with choruses
swell my love,
grown great in gratitude.
I make a small return of love beside Your All Love.
You count my debt as paid
and bid me enter courts of praise.
By Joann Nelander
My All in All
Posted in Uncategorized with tags alph and omega, beginning and end, God on October 9, 2010 by JoannaLord, be the Alpha and Omega of my moments this day.
Be the beginning and end of my every thought, inclination and desire,
the motus primo primi of my every action.
I offer you each breath I draw,
every heart beat.
I expose to Your Merciful Heart my every sin,
failure and fault.
I lay my complaints at your feet and nail my concupiscence to Your Cross.
You, Lord, are my Heart, and my Healing,
You are purest Mercy.
Be my All in All.
by Joann Nelander
China’s Nobel Anger
Posted in Uncategorized with tags Barack Obama, Government of the People's Republic of China, Human rights in the People's Republic of China, Liu Xiaobo, Nobel Peace Prize on October 8, 2010 by Joanna
by k-ideas via Flickr
BBC News reporting on Liu Xiaobo (pronounced Liew Sheeow-boh
China has angrily condemned the decision to award the Nobel Peace Prize to jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo.
The Beijing government summoned the Norwegian ambassador in protest. It called Mr Liu a “criminal”, saying the award violated Nobel principles and could damage relations with Norway.
The Norwegian Nobel committee said Mr Liu was “the foremost symbol” of the struggle for human rights in China.
US President Barack Obama called for Mr Liu’s immediate release.
“We call on the Chinese government to release Mr Liu as soon as possible,” Mr Obama, last year’s Nobel Peace Prize winner, said in a statement.
“Over the last 30 years, China has made dramatic progress in economic reform and improving the lives of its people, lifting hundreds of millions out of poverty.
“But this award reminds us that political reform has not kept pace, and that the basic human rights of every man, woman and child must be respected,” Mr Obama said.
Other Western countries have also urged China to release Mr Liu.
‘Insult’Mr Liu, 54, was a key leader in the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989.
Last year he received an 11-year sentence for “inciting subversion” after drafting Charter 08 – which called for multi-party democracy and respect for human rights in China.
Announcing its 2010 peace prize in Oslo, the Nobel Foundation said: “Liu has consistently maintained that the sentence violates both China’s own constitution and fundamental human rights.”
Posted in Uncategorized on October 7, 2010 by Joanna
Image via Wikipedia
From a sermon by Saint Bernard, abbot
We should meditate on the mysteries of salvation
The child to be born of you will be called holy, the Son of God, the fountain of wisdom, the Word of the Father on high. Through you, blessed Virgin, this Word will become flesh, so that even though, as he says: I am in the Father and the Father is in me, it is still true for him to say: “I came forth from God and am here.”
In the beginning was the Word. The spring was gushing forth, yet still within himself. Indeed, the Word was with God, truly dwelling in inaccessible light. And the Lord said from the beginning: I think thoughts of peace and not of affliction. Yet your thought was locked within you, and whatever you thought, we did not know; for who knew the mind of the Lord, or who was his counselor?
And so the idea of peace came down to do the work of peace: The Word was made flesh and even now dwells among us. It is by faith that he dwells in our hearts, in our memory, our intellect and penetrates even into our imagination. What concept could man have of God if he did not first fashion an image of him in his heart? By nature incomprehensible and inaccessible, he was invisible and unthinkable, but now he wished to be understood, to be seen and thought of.
But how, you ask, was this done? He lay in a manger and rested on a virgin’s breast, preached on a mountain, and spent the night in prayer. He hung on a cross, grew pale in death, and roamed free among the dead and ruled over those in hell. He rose again on the third day, and showed the apostles the wounds of the nails, the signs of victory; and finally in their presence he ascended to the sanctuary of heaven.
How can we not contemplate this story in truth, piety and holiness? Whatever of all this I consider, it is God I am considering; in all this he is my God. I have said it is wise to meditate on these truths, and I have thought it right to recall the abundant sweetness, given by the fruits of this priestly root; and Mary, drawing abundantly from heaven, has caused this sweetness to overflow for us.
We Must Be Simple, Humble and Pure
Posted in Uncategorized with tags Assisi, feast, St. Francis on October 4, 2010 by Joanna
Image by Lawrence OP via Flickr
From a letter written to all the faithful by Saint Francis of Assisi
It was through his archangel, Saint Gabriel, that the Father above made known to the holy and glorious Virgin Mary that the worthy, holy and glorious Word of the Father would come from heaven and take from her womb the real flesh of our human frailty. Though he was wealthy beyond reckoning, he still willingly chose to be poor with his blessed mother. And shortly before his passion he celebrated the Passover with his disciples. Then he prayed to his Father saying: Father, if it be possible, let this cup be taken from me.
Nevertheless, he reposed his will in the will of his Father. The Father willed that his blessed and glorious Son, whom he gave to us and who was born for us, should through his own blood offer himself as a sacrificial victim on the altar of the cross. This was to be done not for himself through whom all things were made, but for our sins. It was intended to leave us an example of how to follow in his footsteps. And he desires all of us to be saved through him, and to receive him with pure heart and chaste body.
O how happy and blessed are those who love the Lord and do as the Lord himself said in the gospel: You shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart and your whole soul, and your neighbor as yourself. Therefore, let us love God and adore him with pure heart and mind. This is his particular desire when he says: True worshipers adore the Father in spirit and truth. For all who adore him must do so in the spirit of truth. Let us also direct to him our praises and prayers saying: Our Father, who art in heaven, since we must always pray and never grow slack.
Furthermore, let us produce worthy fruits of penance. Let us also love our neighbors as ourselves. Let us have charity and humility. Let us give alms because these cleanse our souls from the stains of sin. Men lose all the material things they leave behind them in this world, but they carry with them the reward of their charity and the alms they give. For these they will receive from the Lord the reward and recompense they deserve. We must not be wise and prudent according to the flesh. Rather we must be simple, humble and pure. We should never desire to be over others. Instead, we ought to be servants who are submissive to every human being for God’s sake. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on all who live in this way and persevere in it to the end. He will permanently dwell in them. They will be the Father’s children who do his work. They are the spouses, brothers and mothers of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Candlelight Procession – Santa Fe
Posted in Uncategorized with tags arts, Catholic, film, New Mexico, Papa John, Santa Fe New Mexico, Video clip, Vimeo on October 3, 2010 by Joanna
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Litany to the Holy Angels
Posted in Uncategorized with tags audio, Aussie, Catholic, mp3, Religion, voice on October 2, 2010 by JoannaOn the feast of the Guardian Angels here is a prayer in their honor:
