Catholic Prayer: Christmas Day Three ~ Blessing of Wine for the Feast of St. John the Apostle

Description:

St. John the Apostle, is the disciple "whom Jesus loved". It is a custom in the old countries to drink of "St. John's Love". The Church provided a special blessing of wine in honor of the Saint. According to legend St. John drank a glass of poisoned wine without suffering harm because he had blessed it before he drank. The wine is also a symbol of the great love of Christ that filled St. John's heart with loyalty, courage and enthusiasm for his Master; he alone of all the apostles was not afraid to stay close to Our Lord during the Passion and Crucifixion.

Prayer:

St. John's wine, blessed by the priest or sprinkled with water by the father of the family, is served with the main meal. In Catholic sections of Europe, even the children receive a little sip of it after the main course of the dinner. The wine is poured in glasses and passed around to the family and guests. As each glass is given, say:

"I drink you the love of St. John."

Response will be "I thank you for the love of St. John."

The following prayer is said over the wine:

Leader: Our help is in the name of the Lord.

All: Who has made heaven and earth.

Leader: The Lord be with you.

All: And also with you.

Leader: Let us pray. Be so kind as to bless and consecrate with Your right hand, Lord, this cup of wine, and every drink. Grant that by the merits of Saint John the Apostle and Evangelist, all who believe in You and drink of this cup may be blessed and protected. Blessed John drank poison from the cup, and was in no way harmed. So, too, may all who this day drink from this cup in honor of Blessed John, by his merits, be freed from every sickness by poisoning and from any harms whatever. And, when they have offered themselves in both soul and body, may they be freed, too, from every fault, through Christ our Lord.

All: Amen.

Leader: Bless, Lord, this beverage which You have made. May it be a healthful refreshment to all who drink of it. And grant by the invocation of Your holy name that whoever tastes of it may, by Your generosity receive health of both soul and body, through Christ our Lord.

All: Amen

Prayer Source: Feast Day Cookbook by Katherine Burton and Helmut Ripperger, David McKay Company, Inc., New York, 1951

Holiday Christmas Concert featuring the Chesapeake Orchestra Brass Players on Wednesday, December 28th, Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Bushwood, Md

HOLIDAY CHRISTMAS CONCERT 

Sacred Heart Church in Bushwood, Maryland is hosting a Holiday Christmas Concert featuring the Chesapeake Orchestra Brass Players on Wednesday, December 28^th, starting at 6:30 pm. The concert will feature works of Bach, Handel and Holiday Favorites at the beautifully decorated Sacred Heart Church in the heart of the Maryland country. Performers will be Music Director of the River Concert Series, Jeffrey SIlberschlag, trumpet, with Zachary Silberschlag,trumpet, Nathaniel Silberschlag, Horn, and Bryan Bourne, trombone. Admission is free and doors open at 5:45pm. Check us out on Facebook or at sacredheartbushwood.org for more information. 

St. Francis de Sales on so-called "ostentatious" and "worldly" priestly garb

“Saint Francis of Sales, the bishop of Geneva, while on a journey during Lent, went to a church that was attached to the monastery of Capuchin friars. He arrived at sermon time; the preacher had taken ostentation in dress as his sermon’s theme and was inveighing vehemently against prelates and ecclesiastical dignitaries who, instead of setting an example of humility, wore splendid garments.

“When the sermon ended, the bishop went into the sacristy and summoned the preacher. Once they were alone, Saint Francis said, ‘Reverend Father, your discourse was edifying. It may also be true that we who are in authority in the Church are guilty of sins from which the inmates of the cloister are exempt. Nevertheless, I consider it highly unwise to say such things as you did on this subject from the pulpit to the common people. Moreover, I wish to call your attention that for many reasons it is a matter of necessity that the princes of the Church should keep up an appearance befitting their rank. Besides, one never knows what may be hidden beneath a silken robe.’

“Saint Francis unbuttoned the upper part of his purple cassock, and let the monk see that he wore a ragged hair shirt next to his skin.

“‘I show you this,’ Saint Francis added, ‘so that you may learn that humility is quite compatible with the rich dress of one’s office. From henceforth, see that you are less harsh in your judgements and more prudent in your speech.'”

“If the dignitaries of the Church were wretchedly dressed, they would lose the respect due to themselves and to their office. Therefore it is not only permissible, but obligatory upon them, to dress in accordance with the official rank they hold.”

Source: Father Francis Spirago’s 
Anecdotes and Examples Illustrating the Catholic Catechism(New York: Benziger Brothers, 1904), 187-188.

Francis Repeats Use of Vile Words Associated with Sexual Perversion in a Public Forum

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, 

On November 9, 2013, this reporter wrote an Open Letter to Pope Francis “On a Papal Commission of Inquiry into Homosexuality, Pederasty 

and La Lobby Gay in the Catholic Church”  http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/engel/131110 . A member of the pope’s Council of Eight brought the Open Letter to the attention of the pontiff, and a short time later the Vatican announced the creation of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors (and vulnerable adults). 

At the end of my 2013 Open Letter to Pope Francis, I wrote the following commentary regarding the use of the words “coprophilia” and “coprophagia” made in a news interview in 2012 by the then Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Jorge Mario Bergoglio. 

It might surprise you Holy Father, that until quite recently, I still hoped that despite your obvious sympathy for the Homosexual Collective, you nevertheless might find some merit in the concept of a Papal Commission of Inquiry into Homosexuality and Pederasty which I have briefly described in this Open Letter.

Unfortunately, that glimmer of hope was wiped out when by chance a close friend of mine, Marielena Stuart, a multi-lingual journalist and creator of the exquisite blog, Roman Catholic World, sent me a copy of an interview you gave to Rome reporter Andrea Tornielli of the Vatican Insider on February 2012 while you were still Archbishop of Buenos Aires.

In an interview titled "Careerism and Vanity: Sins of the Church," Tornielli's last question to you was: Can you tell us how the Roman Curia is perceived from the outside?

And you, Archbishop Jorge Mario Bergoglio, replied:

I see it as a body that gives service, a body that helps me and serves me. Sometimes negative news does come out, but it is often exaggerated and manipulated to spread scandal. Journalists sometimes risk becoming ill from coprophilia and thus fomenting coprophagia: which is a sin that taints all men and women, that is, the tendency to focus on the negative rather than the positive aspects. The Roman Curia has its down sides, but I think that too much emphasis is placed on its negative aspects and not enough on the holiness of the numerous consecrated and lay people who work in it.

Now the term "coprophilia" which you used spontaneously in the interview refers to a sexual perversion (fetish) by which a person 

derives sexual excitement from the presence of feces. The term "coprophagia" pertains to the actual act of eating excrement. Both 

paraphilias are commonly associated with homosexual behavior and are a regular feature of homosexual pornography.

That a bishop should so glibly refer to such disgusting and perverted practices in a public interview clearly indicates to me that 

you are not unschooled in the ways and dangers of sexual perversion, and hence, have no real need for me to instruct you on the 

perversity of homosexual behaviors, nor on the grave necessity of combating the Homosexual Collective and other forces of organized 

perversion.

And so it is with great sorrow that I bring this Open Letter to a close.

Whether or not it will have any salutary effect upon your pontificate, especially as regards the establishment of a Papal 

Commission of Inquiry into Homosexuality and Pederasty, only time will tell. ...

Sincerely in Christ,
Randy Engel

It was, therefore, with a great sadnessand deep sense of outrage that I sawthat in the December 7, 2016, interview for the Belgian Catholic weekly, Tertio , the occupant of the Chair of Peter repeated the very same terms, coprophilia and coprophagia, in almost the same context that he used them more than four years ago in reference to the Roman Curia, before he became pope.          

There is no question that the pope knew exactly what he was doing when he chose to deliberately link a disgusting and perverse nomenclature to the communication issue of false news. What other objective is there in doing such a dastardly deed than to desensitize the faithful to the 

horror of sexual perversion and to attempt to introduce perverted words and acts into normal Catholic parlance?   

I called the pope out in 2013 in my Open Letter on this very subject, and I’m calling him out again in 2016. 

Francis needs to offer a prompt apology, first to God and then to the faithful Catholics everywhere, for his misuse of the Papal Office to 

promulgate such perverted and degrading terminology in a public forum. I respectfully suggest, for his eternal welfare, that the apology come sooner than later.

Sincerely in Christ

Randy Engel

December 8, 2016

Export, PA 

USA

Letter to a Young Mother Who Lives within walking distance of the church and sent an email inquiring about what is necessary for baptisn of her two year old child

Hello H,

Wonderful news!

I think I might have met you and visited your home? 

The Lord says that Sunday Mass is necessary unless a grave reason prevents arttendance. Perhaps I mistakenly believed you were already aware of this.

Please take some time to pray about this ordinary witness of faith without which we cannot be saved.

God bless your family,

FrC

Who Ya Gonna Vote For? The Choice Before Us

Who Ya Gunna Vote For?

Imagine a terrorist attack in which every man, woman and child in the states of Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Delaware, Alaska, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota and South Dakota was killed. As horrendous as this would be, fewer people would have been slaughtered than the number of children aborted in the United States in the last eight years.

The abominations to the sanctity of human life and the indifference to the teachings of the Catholic Church in this period extend well beyond abortion. There have been restrictions on religious liberty, coercion of individual conscience, the approval of same-sex marriage, a growing legality of physician- assisted suicide, sanctions on public prayer, the creation of special “rights” for LGBT individuals, the elimination of a distinction between genders in accessing public bathrooms, a movement towards creating children with three genetic parents, and experimentation with human-animal chimeras. God has been largely marginalized and religion is being driven from the public square.

How many more societal and governmental abuses can the Church sustain and still carry out its mission to evangelize and minister to the faithful? How much more repression can it bear and still remain an influence on public matters, helping to develop the moral underpinnings necessary for a government of and by the people?

On November 8, we will have an opportunity to change course by voting for the next leaders of this nation – those who will set its direction and shape its culture. This election is about much more than jobs, the economy, immigration, health care, defense, and foreign policy, as important as these are. It is about the future and, by means of lifelong appointments to the Supreme Court, what will happen in the next 40 years or more. It is about the values that underlie our society, and the kind of country we wish to pass on to our children and grandchildren.

From a moral perspective, the most important issue facing the nation is assuring the sanctity of human life. The Catholic Church has an immutable position opposing the wanton destruction of human life through abortion and euthanasia, actions which it calls intrinsic evils, and on redefining the source of life as anything but the union of one man and one woman. On these moral items, there are sharp differences between the positions of the two major presidential candidates, their vice-presidential running mates, and their party platforms.

One candidate believes unequivocally that every woman should have access to abortion, the other affirms that the unborn child has a fundamental right to life which cannot be violated. One stood arm-in-arm with the president of Planned Parenthood and told her: “I will always have your back,” the other will prohibit Planned Parenthood from receiving federal funds. One will retain the Obamacare mandate that employer health plans must include coverage for contraceptives, sterilizations and abortion-inducing drugs, regardless of any moral or religious objections, the other will get rid of the mandate.

One has promised to nominate Supreme Court justices who will ensure that abortion and same-sex marriage remain legal, the other will nominate justices who respect traditional family values and the sanctity of innocent human life. One wants to repeal the Hyde and Helms Amendments which prohibit the use of certain federal funds for abortions, domestically and abroad, and the other wants to make them permanent.

One will continue the current executive action allowing people to use public bathrooms, changing rooms and homeless shelters matching their gender identity, the other believes the states should decide the matter. One will urge Congress to make gender identity and sexual orientation a protected right in every aspect of public life, the other opposes this action. One will continue special considerations for gender and sexual self-identity in the military, the other wants the development of a military based on competency. One believes that religious teaching should change to accommodate LGBT rights, the other told Catholic leaders: “I will fight for you…I will defend your religious liberties.”

Which of the two candidates is more likely to continue the current Administration’s view that Catholic schools, hospitals and charities are not sufficiently religious to qualify for the Obamacare mandate’s narrow “religious exemption”? Which one is more likely to continue efforts to force pharmacists, doctors, nurses and other health professionals to violate their consciences and provide abortion-producing drugs and abortions? Which one is more likely to restrict the rights of military chaplains to preach and counsel in accord with their religious beliefs?

When you consider their vice presidential running mates, would you prefer one who is Catholic but has a record of voting for abortion and same-sex marriage, or one who is an Evangelical Protestant and who as governor passed some of the most restrictive laws against abortion in the nation? Would you prefer one who as a senator received ratings of 100% for his voting from both NARAL (National Abortion Rights Action League) and Planned Parenthood and a 0% from the National Right to Life Committee, or one who as governor received 0% ratings from both NARAL and Planned Parenthood and a 100% from the National Right to Life Committee? Further, the party platforms on which they are running are polar opposites regarding moral issues that the Catholic Church considers immutable. One party is opposed to the Church’s positions, the other is in agreement.

Unfortunately, both of the two presidential candidates have major character flaws, and the morality of some of their past actions is repugnant and reprehensible. If judged only on character, the choice of whom to vote for is difficult. Their stated positions, running mates and party platforms, however, should also be taken into account.

One of the two candidates will become president, and each of us will bear some responsibility for the outcome. Our choice is limited, for a Catholic in good conscience cannot vote for a candidate who promotes an intrinsic evil. The person who does not vote or votes for a third party nominee will only help elect the less desirable candidate.

Before you vote, strengthen your understanding of the Church’s positions on moral issues, those that are non-negotiable and those that allow prudential judgment, learn the views of the candidates, give the matter prayerful reflection, and then – and only then -- cast your ballot.

Vivat Jesus! * * * * *

November 2016

Lawrence P. Grayson
Editor, Pro-Life News & State Pro-Life Couple, Maryland State Council, Knights of Columbus

On Devotion to the Holy Souls

On Devotion to the Holy Souls

 Dom Prosper Gueranger, teaches: “Every sin causes a twofold injury to the sinner: it stains his soul, and renders him liable to punishment. Venial sin, which displeases God, requires a temporal expiation. Mortal sin deforms the soul, and makes the guilty man an abomination to God: its punishment cannot be anything less than eternal banishment, unless the sinner in this life, prevents the final and irrevocable sentence through confession to a priest and penance...For every fault satisfaction must be made to God’s justice, either in this world or the next.

“On the other hand, every supernatural act of virtue brings a double profit to the just man: it merits for his soul a fresh degree of grace; and it makes satisfaction for past faults...and satisfactions given to God by sinners can be transferred to others: God is willing to accept it in payment of another’s debts, whether the recipient of the boon be in this world or in the next, provided he be united by grace to the Mystical Body of Our Lord, which is one in charity.”

The great Jesuit scholastic theologian, Francisco Suárez, also teaches: "I believe that this satisfaction for the dead is a matter of simple justice, and it is infallibly accepted with its full value, and according to the intention of him who applies it. Thus, for instance, if the satisfaction I make would if kept for myself, avail me in strict justice for the remission of four degrees of purgatory, it will remit exactly the same amount to the soul [in purgatory] for whom I choose it.”

So, the teachings of the Holy Bible are clear, the infallible theology and Tradition of the Church is clear, our prayers and our penances of we members of the Church Militant still here on earth are immensely helpful to our brothers and sisters of the Suffering Church in purgatory. Since we of the Catholic Church, members of Christ’s Mystical Body are a family, we are all duty bound to one another. We are in it together, we are in this fight together to make it to heaven and we are not in it alone. We all must help each other out and who in the Church needs more help than our brothers and sisters in purgatory...still expiating their sins before they can enter into heaven.

Is any condition more pitiable than theirs? So great is their anguish on that river of fire, that river of purification that bears them on little by little to the ocean of Paradise.

May we heed the call of the Church and have pity on them, those dear holy souls in purgatory and continually offer our prayers and penances for their speedy entry into heaven.

In following the example of our ancestors in the Faith at Knock, Ireland, let us utilize the two most powerful instruments we have at our disposal for not only getting the souls in purgatory into heaven but ourselves as well, and that is prayers to the Blessed Virgin Mary who is the Refuge of Sinners-—she who is so close to Our Lord in heaven is our grand intercessor-—and as a loving mother of us all will not fail to look with favor on our prayers for those of her children most in need. And the second instrument, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass-—the most powerfuland effective form of prayer for any intention. May our prayers which we join to the Sacrifice offered by Father at this Mass on this night, grant remission to all the faithful departed, that the Precious Blood of Our Lord shed forth at this altar may extinguish the purifying flames of the Holy Souls whom we pray for and lead us all unto eternal life. Amen.

Our Lady of Refuge of Sinners, pray for us.

All our Patron Saints and Guardian Angels, pray for us.

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