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‘Friends’ star Matthew Perry cries to God: ‘Show yourself to me’…
Have you ever read a book that takes you in and captivates you, stirs your heart and mind and, for whatever reason, just won’t let you go? I just finished reading Matthew Perry’s new memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, and I honestly can’t stop thinking about it. Oh, I know, it’s not Chaucer. It’s not even the latest mass-market “Christian living” read. It’s not about a saint or the Pope. The story’s protagonist is a bit of an anti-hero for most of it. And the subject matter is admittedly dark — a lot of drugs, some references to unchaste sexual relationships, and a goodly dose of coarse language. So why did I read it? Well, truth be told, I was a bit of a Friends enthusiast back in the day. I remember watching the pilot as a young teenager when it first aired in 1994, and...
Why all the fascination with the devil and exorcism?
The curiosity exhibited by many Catholics toward demonic activity is real — and troubling. I’m going to begin this article with a disclaimer. I am not an expert on demonic possession or the occult. In fact, one of my goals in life — and I’m willing to work very hard on accomplishing this goal — is to never become an expert on such matters. Though I cannot point to a specific survey to support this assertion, my goal seems to be increasingly in the minority. Novels, non-fiction books, Russell Crowe interviews, Catholic podcasts, and films about demonic activity and exorcism are all the rage among many Catholics lately. (Even writing about this subject from the counterpoint position, this blog is likely to receive exponentially more views than anything I have written about Mary, grace, the s...
You can’t trick God in your prayer life…
I made the mistake of catching the eye of a friend. We had listened to a fellow lecture for an hour, and then our host asked him, an Episcopal minister from that body’s Catholicish wing, to lead the final prayers. And he started speaking in a top of the mouth, stiff-jawed, pursed lips, fruity-sounding way a million miles from his regular voice. My friend found it as funny as I did, and despite our best efforts, we both only partly suppressed our laughter through the prayers. And the glares we got, oh boy. We deserved them, but I’m still a little surprised that no one else seemed to find the disjunction of voices as funny — let me be honest, as preposterous — as we did. For years before that, this idea of prayer as something to be done in a special voice had put me off praying. The evangeli...
Watch this testimony of a Texas priest who spent 65 hours listening to the confessions of 1,167 penitents during Holy Week…
By Victoria Arruda – Apr 12, 2023 Fr. David Michael Moses of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston recently experienced what he described as “one of the craziest weeks” of his priestly ministry. He spent about 65 hours in the confessional and attended to more than a thousand people during Holy Week. Check out his inspiring story: Priest hears confessions for 65 hours during Holy Week This is not the first time 29-year-old Fr. David Michael Moses held confessions for hours on end. He also served the faithful almost non-stop during Holy Week and Christmas last year, as well as Ash Wednesday this year. On one of the days, the priest even offered confessions from 6:00 a.m. until midnight. He explained his most recent experience in this Instagram post: “Last week, I heard 11...
Biden Administration to Appeal to Supreme Court Over Ruling Restricting Access to Abortion Pills…
The drug will no longer be permitted to be distributed via mail, however. Instead, an in-person doctor visit to prescribe and dispense the drug is required. Additionally, mifepristone’s use will be limited to the first seven weeks of pregnancy, instead of 10, and a follow-up doctor’s visit to check for complications is required after a chemical abortion. On Thursday morning, the Biden administration announced it intends to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court. “The Justice Department strongly disagrees with the 5th Circuit’s decision in Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA to deny in part our request for a stay pending appeal,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said. “We will be seeking emergency relief from the Supreme Court to defend the FDA’s scientific judgment and protect...
8 Ways to Read (a Lot) More Books This Year…
How much do you read? For most of my adult life I read maybe five books a year — if I was lucky. I’d read a couple on vacation and I’d always have a few slow burners hanging around the bedside table for months. And then last year I surprised myself by reading 50 books. This year I’m on pace for 100. I’ve never felt more creatively alive in all areas of my life. I feel more interesting, I feel like a better father, and my writing output has dramatically increased. Amplifying my reading rate has been the domino that’s tipped over a slew of others. I’m disappointed that I didn’t do it sooner. Why did I wait 20 years? Well, our world today is designed for shallow skimming rather than deep diving, so it took me some time to identify the specific changes that skyroc...
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New Mexico Is Losing a Form of Spanish Spoken Nowhere Else on Earth [NYTimes Paywall]…
A dialect from the state’s earliest Spanish-speaking settlers has endured for over 400 years in the state’s remote mountain villages. But its time may be running out. WHY WE’RE HERE We’re exploring how America defines itself one place at a time. In a small village in northern New Mexico, some residents still speak the oldest Spanish dialect in the country. April 9, 2023 Leer en español QUESTA, N.M. — When the old regulars gather at Cynthia Rael-Vigil’s coffee shop in Questa, N.M., a village nestled in the snow-capped Sangre de Cristo Mountains, they sip lattes and lavender lemonade and gossip in Spanish. Someone from Mexico City or Madrid sitting at the next table could be hard-pressed to follow their rare dialect. But Spanish speakers from four centuries ago might have recognized the unus...
To celebrate Easter well is to learn how to live a truly human life…..
“This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.”Psalm 118 To celebrate Easter well is to learn how to live a truly human life. Right now, this Easter season, we have an utterly unique opportunity to achieve something transcendently important. As surely as the reality of Easter is itself a great gift, so also our celebration of it and the fruits this celebration can bring are great gifts—especially if we are intentional in our observance. At issue here is not just one particular feast; at issue is the meaning of life and our ability to recognize it and live it. From the start Christians have discovered in scripture, including and even especially the Old Testament, words that highlight the reality of Easter and how that reality can and should form our daily life. The im...
On Jessica Bates and the “new orthodoxy” — Can people of faith still adopt children?
(Image: dylan nolte/Unsplash.com) Jessica Bates, a widowed mother of five children aged ten to seventeen in Oregon whose husband died six years ago in a car accident unsuccessfully attempted “to adopt siblings from foster care,” both of whom are under the age of nine. Ms. Bates sought to adopt both children in light of her nondenominational Christian, biblical beliefs to care for orphans and to seek justice for the fatherless. Ms. Bates applied to adopt both siblings because in addition to the reality that some families are reluctant to adopt two children at once, she did not want either child to feel alone or isolated. After she was well into the process, the Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) rejected Bates’ application to adopt the two siblings because it promulgated a rule that...
How to obtain the unique graces offered to the faithful on Divine Mercy Sunday…
The Divine Mercy plenary indulgence is probably the most powerful grace you can receive all year. The feast of the Divine Mercy is the first Sunday following Easter Sunday. In St. Faustina’s diary, Jesus explains how to obtain the unique graces on Divine Mercy Sunday: “The soul that will go to confession and receive Holy Communion shall obtain complete forgiveness of sins and punishment. On that day, all the Divine floodgates through which graces flow are opened. Let no soul fear to draw near to Me, even though his sins be as scarlet….Mankind will not have peace until it turns to the fount of My Mercy.” (Diary, 699) What makes the Divine Mercy Sunday graces so unique? To obtain a plenary indulgence throughout the year, the individual must be detached from all sin, which is very difficult. ...
At Wednesday Audience, Pope Francis Tells ‘Keyboard Warriors’ to Put Aside Online Polemics to Proclaim the Gospel…
Pope Francis added that the encyclical remains relevant today, encouraging people to read Pacem in Terris. “For example, this passage will suffice: ‘Relationships between political communities, like those between individual human beings, must be regulated not by resorting to the force of arms, but in the light of reason, that is, in truth, in justice, in active solidarity,’” he said, quoting paragraph 62 of the document. “I pray that the heads of nations will let themselves be inspired by it in their plans and decisions,” the pope added. Pope Francis also reminded the crowd that the Church will celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday this week on April 16. More in Vatican Pilgrims at the pope’s Wednesday audience in St. Peter’s Square on April 12, 2023. Daniel Ibáñez/CNA “The Lord never ceases...
Father Brian Mullady explains the difference between freedom and license…
“We’re actually becoming more free as we understand more about what the truth is … through Christ’s teaching,” said Father Mullady, Dominican Catholic Priest, Professor, Scholar and author of eight books. “People who commit sin, enslave themselves to a certain point of view and they’re not free even though they interpret freedom as license.” In his new book, A Primer on Fundamental Moral Philosophy, Father Mullady explains what a well-formed conscience looks like and underscores that following one’s conscience isn’t enough without guidance from God and His Church. Chaos follows for individuals and the society around us. Learn more about Father Mullady at his website https://fatherbrian.weebly.com/ Services Marketplace ...
