Keeping the Faith… Telling the Truth
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Today is the Feast of one of the most powerful saints in Heaven – St Joseph. Click here to read more
If you have devotions, prayers, novenas, stories of miracles in your life which you attribute to St Joseph, tell us now. Last year, we had a really beautiful thread to mark the Feast of St Joseph, so click here to read it if you missed it or wish to refresh your memory…
Remember, this thread will close at midnight, so try to stay on topic!
Blogger Naomi emailed an entertaining (if slightly troubling) clip of someone, somewhere in Ireland, having a spot of car trouble by the harbour. Since it’s St Patrick’s Day – my patron saint – I thought it would be nice to have a break from debating and allow you all to (a) enjoy Naomi’s clip and (b) wish those of us who bear St Patrick’s name, a very happy feast day! And special Feast Day wishes have to go to blogger Petrus’s new baby son, Patrick, since this is his very first St Patrick’s Day on the planet earth. An adorable little boy, we wish Patrick a very VERY happy first St Patrick’s Day!
Click here to enjoy the film clip – you need to keep clicking on the forward button. The whole thing only takes seconds, so keep focused or you’ll miss the fun.
If you have any happy memories of a visit to Ireland or any stories – pious, interesting, or just plain fun – share them with us today.
A very happy St Patrick’s Day to one and all!
Tags: ireland, missionary, st patrick
Happy Feast of St Valentine!
Now, this seems as good a time as any to answer that 65 million dollar question I keep being asked less and less: how come I never got married? Well, the truth is, I was engaged at one time. I really thought I had met “Mr Right”. Then I discovered that his first name was “Always” and the rest, as they say, is history…
Anyway, as the Feast of St Valentine descends upon us, as the Valentine cards drop on the doormat and the TV and radio news bulletins carry stories of marriage proposals, the general national ethos is one of romance. Valentine’s Day is all about the stuff of romantic dreams . So, “dreams” seems as good a topic as any right now, given that we’ve never discussed the matter before. And it would never have crossed my mind to discuss “dreams” but for Torkay…
Torkay, one of our American bloggers, has requested a discussion on strange and ominous dreams experienced by our bloggers, or dreams experienced by others known to our bloggers. At first I thought: what?! And then I remembered that God has often spoken to people – people like St Joseph, for example – through dreams (Matthew 1:20)
Anyway, as an example of the kind of dreams we might post, Torkay supplied us with one of his own, which he had a few days before George W. Bush was elected President in November of 2000:
‘I’m at a party at a fancy house in Georgetown (upscale section of Washington, D.C.), attended by heavy hitters and major players, and wondering what I am doing among this crowd. I walk up to a Senator and a General ask them if they’d like to make a little bet with me. The Senator is offended and huffs off, but the General asks me what I’m talking about. I say to him: “I’ll bet you that in one or two administrations from now, the United States will be attacked, probably by China. The U.S. military will be too depleted to defend the country, and we will have to call on NATO to repel the attack. NATO troops will occupy the country, and that is how the U.S. will finally succumb to the New World Order.” The General thought a moment, then dismissed my bet, saying that NATO wouldn’t have any weapons that the U.S. hadn’t already developed. I woke up in a cold sweat.’
If you’ve had a similar dream that seems to have a bearing on the future of your country, or the future of the Faith, this is your chance to tell the rest of us.
On the other hand, if you’ve had some less serious but interesting dream, let us hear that, too. As long as the rules of modesty in all things pertains, this is an (almost) “anything goes” thread.
Obviously, any “over the edge” stuff will be deleted and life thereafter will be a nightmare for the blogger concerned.
Editor’s Teaser…
My dream? Oh yes, I almost forget – my recurring dream. Well, I’ll post that on the thread later, although for a bit of fun, you are welcome to post your best guess…
The latest candidates beginning the process that ultimately may lead to canonisation have been announced and inlude Pope Pius XII – read more
That’s the good news. The less than good news is that Pope John Paul II’s name is also on the list despite having reigned over one of the worst periods in the Church’s history – and failed to act (by his own admission) to discipline dissenters when he ought to have done so.
Click on ‘comments’ if you have a view on this.
Tags: holocaust, jews, pope pius xii
A friend in England, emailed me the following very interesting information about an alleged “visionary” – Joe Coleman: when you’ve read the information below, click on ‘comments’ to tell us what you think – is this another hoax like the Medjugorje phenomenon? I received this message from my friend, Kevin, yesterday afternoon. Later that night I received another email from a friend in the USA asking if I had heard of this amazing event. Clearly word is spreading like wild fire. Should the Irish bishops quell this, before it gets out of hand like Medjugorje?
Miracle of the Sun – at Knock, Ireland…
You may hear talk circulating about ‘miracles’ occurring at Knock centreing around a “Joe Coleman” – supposed ’seer’ but is in fact a spiritualist and medium. Apparently, 30,000 turned up there to see an ‘apparition’ on account of this man’s ramblings, and it has been announced there will be two more ‘apparitions’ before Christmas, and crowds of over 50,000 are expected – this is superstition and fanaticism on a grand scale. Needless to say, Coleman has connections with Medjugorje (he’s seen ‘Our Lady’ there) . . .
Click here to read more about Joe Coleman
Joe Coleman…
There follows an article, by an eyewitness, in the Mayo News dated Monday, 19 October, 2009
| “Joe Coleman is a self-proclaimed clairvoyant / medium. Why would the Blessed Virgin Mary overlook this mortal sin to convey a secret message to him? The Catechism of the Catholic Church unequivocally states that ‘all forms of divination are to be rejected’.”Dear Sir,Before hysteria sweeps the country about the Knock ‘miracle’ last Sunday, I feel I have to share with you a few issues surrounding the incident. I was one of the many witnesses there, and observed what appeared to be the sun spinning, shaking and taking on a blueish colour at the same time as everyone else. However, after the incident I was left feeling unsettled and somewhat disturbed, something just didn’t ring true with my faith. I do not believe that what I witnessed was a divine miracle: an optical illusion – yes, of divine origin – no. I have a strong Catholic faith, visit Knock regularly and for this reason feel impelled to ask believers if they believe that any kind of clairvoyancy is forbidden by the Church – it breaks the first Commandment given by God to Moses.Joe Coleman is a self-proclaimed clairvoyant / medium. Why would the Blessed Virgin Mary overlook this mortal sin to convey a secret message to him? The Catechism of the Catholic Church unequivocally states that “all forms of divination are to be rejected… the phenomena of clairvoyance, and recourse to mediums… contradict the honour, respect and loving fear that we owe to God alone.” (CCC, #2116).Claiming to be able to provide secret messages is typical of false private revelations – Joe Coleman stated before the Sunday ‘apparition’ that Our Lady told him she would make her biggest statement yet to be heard on Earth.How strange it was that Our Lady ‘requested’ people to gather at 3pm in the grounds of Knock Shrine, the very time of the daily Mass celebrated there, and on that day, the Dominican pilgrimage to Knock. Why would she not have invited people to attend Mass first and then receive a message?What effectively happened was that at 3pm there were two groups of people: one was celebrating Mass in the Basilica in Knock with the Dominican pilgrimage, the other was outside looking into the sky for a sign. And while it was wonderful to see the crowds making their way to Knock, the other thing you have to ask is, was it for the right reason and will it bear good fruit? Will this event inspire them to pray the Rosary and read Scripture daily, attend Mass prayerfully and reverently, or will it cause them to become distracted with news of the next ‘sign’ or secret message from Joe Coleman?Our faith is not a secretive one – the message is there for all. But the problem is that this kind of revelation is addictive, for all the wrong reasons. What will the next message be? Where will she appear next? In contrast, the simple message of the Gospels, which is to conform your lives to Christ every day in thought, word and deed, has a danger of appearing ‘boring’ – the society demanding instant gratification will instead be tempted to clamour for the adrenaline rush of signs and secret messages.And ultimately, when the Church has to step in regarding such false revelations, what happens is that the unity of the Mystical Body of Christ is threatened – think Christina Gallagher and the House of Prayer in Achill.While her messages began by appearing harmless and of possible divine origin, they soon became heretical (she promised eternal life to anyone who visited the House of Prayer and also undermined the doctrine of the Holy Trinity). When the Archdiocese of Tuam stepped in to clarify the Achill House of Prayer was not authorised by the Church, what we saw was an effective amputation of a section of the Body of Christ – previously faithful believers were lost to the Church along with Christina. In Jesus’ own words: “False Christs and false prophets will arise and show signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect.” (Mk. 13:22).The above article was submitted by a South Mayo resident, whose name and address have been supplied to the Editor. |
Tags: joe coleman, knock, miracle of the sun
It this a new Eucharistic miracle worthy of our belief?
Click here to read the report
Eucharistic miracles reinforce the power of the priesthood and such an event should make any lay person who is handling the Sacred Species, think again. Or maybe you disagree? In any event, tell us what you think should be the effect of a Eucharistic miracle on the faith and lives of Catholics. At the very least, should it spur us on to greater outward reverence?
Click on ‘comments’ to share your thoughts.
Tags: eucharist, miracle, Real Presence
Today, 7th October, is the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. Read the article below and then click on comments with your thoughts, tips on how to concentrate better when praying the rosary and, of course, your stories of grace which you attribute to the rosary.
…in 1957, the last remaining Fatima seer Sister Lucia again stressed the importance of the Rosary in a private interview with a confidante, Fr. Augustin Fuentes [see interview here]. She told him the Devil was prepared to engage in a decisive battle against the Holy Virgin, and that God was giving two last remedies to the world – the Holy Rosary and devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. She said:
“In these latter times in which we live, the Most Holy Virgin has given a new efficacy to the recitation of the Rosary. She has given this efficacy to such an extent that there is no problem, no matter how difficult it is, whether temporal or above all spiritual, in the personal life of each one of us, of our families, of the families of the world or of the religious communities, or even of the life of peoples and nations, that cannot be solved by the Rosary.
“There is no problem I tell you, no matter how difficult it is, that we cannot resolve by the prayer of the Holy Rosary. With the Holy Rosary we will save ourselves. We will sanctify ourselves. We will console Our Lord and obtain the salvation of many souls.”
It was just a few years before the opening of the disastrous Council Vatican II when she spoke these words. Perhaps that is why Our Lady gave as a remedy the Rosary – and not the Mass, which would be changed almost beyond recognition…
Click on ‘comments’ to share your thoughts with us – and a Happy Feast Day to all visitors and contributors to this site.
Matthew Parris, the sugary-sweet “gay” – all things to all people except Catholics – journalist and general commentator on any and every topic, has put pen to paper to rubbish one of the Church’s greatest saints.
Click here to read The Times article
Now, I haven’t checked it out yet, but I would bet my last ten pence piece that Parris would never write such a nasty piece about Muhammed or Khadija or anyone else associated with Islam. Get my drift?
The thing is, I’d actually been looking for a nice piece on the tour of the relics of my favourite saint, when I stumbled across this bigoted article, and my blood began to boil. I did try to find an email address for Mr Parris but, unsurprisingly, there doesn’t seem to be a website or other electronic means of contacting him. So, if anyone knows him, please, do let him know that we are taking a keen interest in his savage and blatantly bigoted attack on a great saint and Doctor of the Church.
But don’t waste your time complaining to Ofcom – they’re every bit as bigoted, as we discovered when we reported the pornographic coverage of the Feast Day of another great saint (St Agatha) on The Wright Stuff – a vacuous “discussion” show where the only opinion that matters is that of the superficial, politically correct show host – Matthew Wright. What is it with these ‘Matthews”?
This thread is two-fold in its purpose. Firstly, to analyse the kind of mind that would write such a bitter piece about such a lovely saint, thus, necessarily, reflecting on the nature of atheism and its negative effects on hearts, minds and souls, and secondly, to recount any stories we may wish to share about St Thérèse of Lisieux. She’s my Confirmation saint and her “Little Way” was my very first encounter with the spiritual life – beyond basic prayers – as a child. So, she’s very special to me. Is she special to you?
Click on ‘comments’ to share your thoughts.
Tags: london times, matthew parris, relics, saint thérèse of lisieux
Apart from the 13 year old girl who described the Fatima Conference held in the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Glasgow as “fantastic” and “the best experience I’ve ever had”, the following emailed message from Michael, who organised a busload from Newcastle, perhaps helps to give a flavour of the impact of the day: “On behalf of myself and of the squad from Tyneside, please except our sincere thanks to your Team for such a wonderful Conference, and the excellent meal, that was so unexpected, God Bless you All! As I was able to get to Confession at the Hotel; it was good to leave my many sins on Scottish soil!”
Both Father Nicholas Gruner and Father Paul Kramer gave excellent talks and some of the bloggers, keen to discuss the details of the talks, have prompted this thread.
So, if you were present at the Conference and wish to comment, feel free. If you were not able to attend and wish to ask a question, go ahead.
The fact of the matter is that this Conference was a truly memorable and graced occasion. There were many “spin-offs” that, in the nature of things, it would not be appropriate to divulge, but we are truly thankful that this event appears to have made a huge impact on many souls. One seasoned Conference attender told me that this was the best Conference she had ever attended.
We are praying that it will be a turning point for Scotland even if, again in the nature of things, the truth of this will remain hidden in this world.
Anyway, click on ‘comments’ if you wish to share your experiences of the Conference or if you have a question to ask.
We’ve been asked to publish a thread to allow visitors to this site to post requests for prayers, asking for a remembrance for a special intention, that sort of thing. Since the blogger who made the suggestion goes by the name “Guardian Angel”, how could we refuse?
So, if you wish us to add your special intention to our prayers, please click on ‘comments’ with your request. Or if you have a link to an item of spiritual or devotional interest or a story of a miracle to share – anything, really, that falls into the “spiritual/devotional” category, this is the thread for you!