What Priests do. (from CourageousPriest.com)

Mr. Hoopes wrote an excellent tribute to priest.   It is so good I realized that you would have some beautiful memories.  Do you have any you want to share?  Please leave a comment below.

by TOM HOOPES:  The greatest priestly action I have ever seen was at Mass on a hot summer Sunday at St. Mary’s Parish in New Haven, Conn.

This was back before the parish had air conditioning. It was tough for the congregation, but worse for the visiting priest who said Mass in the summer. He had diabetes and some kind of degenerative nerve disorder that made his hands shake.

Catholic Priest Hearing Confession & Praying the Rosary

“It’s hot for you,” he would joke. “But I’m up here wearing a horse blanket!”

This priest’s homilies were excellent, but the moment that is burned in my memory happened during the Eucharistic prayer.

Father was slowing down through the first part of the prayer, like an old record player that needed to be cranked. When he started the consecration, it sounded like he was going to stop altogether.

But after he started the consecration, it quickly became clear that nothing could make him stop.

“Take this,” pause, “all of you,” pause, “and” … long pause … “eat it.”

He took a long gasping breath and looked like he wouldn’t recover. A parishioner ran to his side. The priest made it clear he wasn’t about to leave the altar, so the parishioner brought a chair for him to rest on.

“This … is … my … body … which will be … given up … for you.”

He lifted the host with shaky hands. We watched in rapt silence.

He slowly worked through “When the supper was ended, he took the cup …”

And then a replacement priest had been brought over from the rectory.

But Father wasn’t about to stop halfway through the consecration.

Word after agonizing word, he got to the end of the consecration.

By then, an ambulance had come. After he elevated the chalice, he was carried away on a stretcher.

Then the replacement priest stepped up to the altar. “Let us proclaim the mystery of faith,” he said.

Talk about alter christus. Watching that priest was like watching Our Lord consecrating the Eucharist — from the cross.

“Mom, why wouldn’t he stop?” the kids asked their mother in the car.

“Because he’s a priest,” said April. “That’s what priests do.”

She was right. It is vitally important that priests preach and that they do it well. But preaching isn’t the most important thing priests do. A priest doesn’t need to be talented, interesting or well-read to do the most important things priests do.

Not enough evidence

I listened to the radio today and on it was a man who says he was a preacher of some kind and has now converted to Atheism.  His claim was that there is simply not enough evidence.  This makes me ask as simple question, what kind of evidence are we talking about?  Does he mean empirical?  Then aside from the miracles around the world, which would require faith (more on that latter), then he is right.  The invisible, omniscient God is not confined to what we considered to be empirical evidence.  To be able to point to a scientific fact of some kind and say," yep there it is God has been proven by this scientific means." would mean God is not God.  That would imply that we can narrow him down, or fully understand him in some way.  It would make God a created thing, as all physical things have a creation, thus he would not be above us or beyond us.  In a word he would not be God. That said, the touch of God can be seen in every single created thing.  His Glory is revealed in creation.  If you cannot look into a mirror and see the glory of God, it is not that the evidence is lacking, but grace and when grace is absent blindness is the result.  This man's atheism began when he stooped praying, he did not play because he became arrogant. Prayer automatically leads to humility, when prayer stops pride sets in.  Before long this man began to rely on his own mind, and when his finite mind could not grasp the highest good in all its wonder, which is God, he fell into darkness while staring into the sun.  Now because of his blindness he cannot see the light that is all around him and in creation, so thus he can’t see the evidence and concludes the sun must not exist.  That is answering if he simply means empirical, but I think he must mean it in that sense because if he means with reason, then he is simply irrational.  During this radio show he said he would rather we focus on those children who are suffering.  The question is, if there is no objective standard for Right and wrong, good and bad, then why?  Who cares about anyone else?  If all I am is self absorbed, devoted to my own survivals, then I do not care about anyone, including my children.  To say “well I must be concerned because if civilization fall apart then it puts the collective in danger which I happen to be a part of" is a big stretch to say the least.  Forget that fact that no animal on earth thinks this way, or can even reason at all, but the actions of one who is concerned for survival alone would be to conquer them when they are week and use them for food or slavery.  In a world he claims that is so selfish there has been extraordinary acts of selflessness, one need only point to the Saints.                                 

I am going to move on because that is not his real argument at all, in fact it is a red herring, a distraction.  The real argument is this, how can he ever use any valuable words or thinking while denying the metaphysical realities, which are the invisible, or spiritual realities.  He clams we need justice, a word that has no way of really being proven.  No empirical data can prove "Justice" "Love" "Peace" "Right" "Wrong".  Put simply he is betting on nothing, at the very least I am betting on something, that there is a God, and something is always better than nothing. It is an act of irrationality to claim God does not exist, and thus unscientific.  Science does not make claims, only theory's.  It also does not ask the question why but how.  If God exists then words such as “suffering”, and “love”, do not have any value. Evil would only be a matter of perception, which ends in relativism.  With God the world makes little sense, because it is a mystery, without God it does not make ANY sense.   In the end Faith is needed, even more so with an Atheist.  He must take it on faith that every act of creation came into being without any creator at all, It simply just happened.  He must take it on faith that what is said by a scientist is fact, that 2+2 is 4 and not some other number, because without an objective standard it is all opinion.  Either God created the universe where math is what it is, or we simply made it up             

Selctive Abortion

This is the link to the report i found on Spirit Daily:  http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/sex-selection-abortion-ban-wins-strong-house-majority-but-fails-to-clear-2

once again we have a chance to aid in the battle against the evil, Nazi ideal we know as abortion.  Yet, we once again get lose that battle in a so called "prof-life" country thank you to our leaders.  The funny thing is we put them there and then do not kick them out.  Now this is not a political issue.  It happens to be being discussed in the political arena, but the issue is one of morality, ethics, and basic human rights.  The so called leaders who voted against this ban sound allot like allot of so called Catholics..or i should say ex Catholics, as in case you did not know any support ( and that also means if you do nothing to stop it) of abortion means automatic excommunication...see CCC 2271-2274..in fact here is a little snip
"2272 Formal co-operation in an abortion constitutes a grave offence. The Church attaches the canonical penalty of excommunication to this crime against human life. 'A person who procures a completed abortion incurs excommunication latae sententiae' 'by the very commission of the offence', and subject to the conditions provided by Canon Law. The Church does not thereby intend to restrict the scope of mercy. Rather, she makes clear the gravity of the crime committed, the irreparable harm done to the innocent who is put to death, as well as to the parents and the whole of society.
2273 The inalienable right to life of every innocent human individual is a constitutive element of a civil society and its legislation"
If anyone does not think the war is real, that it is simply an invisible war with no effect on the "Real World", then they need to re learn there Catholic faith...which is to say open there eyes to the 53million and counting babies who have been murdered. Hitler would be impressed, we not only got to do the same thing but even convinced women and the world that it is a moral good, a choice, a responsible action for ones life and body.  Hitler forced death on the Jews, and other faiths.  Not in America, we do it better, we got them to chose it for them selves.  Has anyone read " A Modest Proposal"?  The feminist movement, whom i consider to be traitors to women, must have not only read it but consider it there plan of action.  Time is running out for all of us, how l long will the blood of babies cry to God for justice and we do nothing?  We have it so made in this country, yet we still complain about everything...except the murder of babies..i mean no one wants to be bothered with what it really is.  Well not here, not in the Cohort, i will show you what ois really going on.         

This Is what we are talking about, and if you think this is horrible...you'er right my only question is how in the hell is this "My choice?"  "My body?"  Why do you not want to see the truth, deny reality, and go to mass? If anyone reading this thinks this is blood is not on all of our hands..then i pray for your soul when you stand before God and HE shows this picture and asks you through his tears, why you, and I, did NOTHING? We at times say God is not fair to allow evil in the world, well if he was "fair" what do you think he would do to all of us for this genocide?  But wait now there is more, now we can kill off girls before they are even born.  "Your going to have a girl".."what? i do not want a girl i want a boy" "well we can terminate and you can try again."  Oh, Vin, that is crazy and unheard of..Really???  ask China about that one.  it is perfectly legal  in America to kill a child because that child is a girl.  The Teaching is clear, if you abort, you are aborting you soul.  I can not say that any specific person is in hell but people, just like people who support abortion, are in hell.    

   

Gendercide-and they call US sexist

I am sending this from my phone but I had to make a quick post after reading spiritdaily's report on the gender IDE ban that was shot down. For years the Church has warned of the consaquences of birth control and abortion. The world called the Church,and still does, sexist and hateful. Yet here we are all but endorsing the extermination of women. At least we are not the first as china has done it for years, yet here we are following there ungodly example. I will go into more when I'm back home but we as Catholics need to get busy or we will be the first to meet Gods punishment.

Why, Lord, do we not Love?

As I sit here tonight looking at the cross i have on my wall, (called the agonizing cross which can be found here: http://www.preciousbloodinternational.com/store/products.php?cat=8 ) i say a prayer to God posed in the form of a question, "Why do I not love you as I want?"  If I were married or even just dating and in love with someone, I know how I would act and what I would do.  I would make time for that person, even when I would rather watch TV or play some video game, or have a Cigar or whatever.  My mind would be unable to go any real amount of time without thinking of her.  I would dress a certain way, act a certain way, live a certain way all because of this person.  When I am asked about way I act in this way or that I would simply and happily say, "I am in Love".  Actually, I would not have to say anything...people do not ask such things when we are in Love with another.  Why then do we not do any of these things with Jesus?  Why when asked about our differences in action and dress saying that we are in Love is not good enough, we must explain ourselves so as not to seem ridiculous or simple minded.  Why do I speed through my prayers and time with Jesus so I can go and do really nothing at all?  When I really think about it, TV is not reality, not my Xbox, or much else this world has to offer...or at least it is of a lesser reality...and yet I cannot wait for Mass or the Liturgy of the Hours to be over so i can resume my "medication" of entertainment.  I can fell deep inside this great desire to seek only Jesus, to be filled only by him and not seek the world, yet I still run to my endless distraction of ...nothingness.  Then I wonder why I feel so down or confused or under attack.  Yes, my education and my reason tell me all about original sin, concupiscence, the World, the Flesh, and the Devil.  Yet, why does it seem like so many others, such as the saints, find relaying on God and trusting in him so easy?  How is it that loving him comes to natural to them? I know it is not just because i do not see him physically...I do not see my family half the time i still love them.  Sometimes it feels as though no matter how much i offer up, no matter how much I pray, or do I can never get to where I trust and love Jesus.  Then again...maybe that is the point?  Maybe I am the problem? Maybe I am not the one who needs to do anything at all?  What I am getting at is I get in my own way, in place of letting Jesus love me, I keep trying to get him to Love me, to accomplish something and then get a reward...in other words..I struggle to get past conditional Love.  If I do, or say, of achieve certain goals or objectives then i gain his love, and in turn am a saint.  Yet, it does not work that way, and it is easy to forget. It is easy to not forgive one’s self or others, when one is stuck in this thinking.  It is easy to feel shame as well because it is truly never enough, when there was nothing I had to do the be enough anyway, God already and me enough.  This is not to say we do not have to act on our faith...being Catholics means faith and works.  Just that even in our works it is our Abba moving in us and though he asks us to act, there is nothing we can do to "earn" Love, or holiness.  Holiness is not based upon our actions, it is how deeply we fall in Love with Jesus, and then from that, action flows forth...not the other way around.  So, in our daily lives, in the seemingly mundane, in the washing of dishes, clothes, and taking care of others, in the prayers we sometimes rush through there is the path to holiness.  Not because we do these things in order to gain some reward, but because we desire to grow closer to God.  Action without the desire for God is empty and is wasted.  Sometimes the greatest prayer we can say is that one that comes straight from the heart which does not say anything more than "why do I not love you more, teach me to Love in all that i do and say."                             

(PODCAST) introduction

The name says it all...and this is my first time doing this.

http://feeds.feedburner.com/TheCohortOfMarycom

As a Hen gathers her chicks so i long to gather you, but you would not come.

I teach 5th grade religion class at a local Church and sometimes I must jump In for the other grades as needed.  Tonight I was asked to step into the 9th grade class as the teacher would not be coming.  I had no Idea what to teach them as I did not know where they had stopped and what they were told up to this point.  So I asked them, I asked them If they remembered anything from the last 9yrs they have been In religion class....blank stares, and looks of confusion was all I got.  This was the start of yet another experience I would have with higher grade religion class that would bring me into further depression and great concern for the future generations.  I asked simple questions such as "Is baptism necessarily for salvation?" "What does Baptism give us, and what does it remove?" "What Is Christian Initiation?"  "What is confirmation?"  "Is John in the old or new testament?" "What are the first four books of the new testament called?"  All of which they did not have an answer.  This night has made me ask questions I am not sure for the answer.  In this age we are more educated than any other.  We have had the awesome grace of God to have such things as the Mass explained In great detail.  We have an entire Catechism at our finger tips ready to explain in great detail any question about the faith we may have.  One can go to any store and see dozens of Bible study guides, prayer books, and explanations for the faith ranging from the advanced to the most simplistic.  This is to say nothing of the Internet, a gateway to unlimited sources of Information.  None of this was available to those before who often tell me they did not understand the mass due to the Latin.  Yet for not understanding It they sure were faithful and can tell me more about the faith then these teenagers I met tonight.  For all the complaints about the Church In the old days they somehow were taught the faith. I do not know if the youth felt the same and did not want to be there but were forced.  The ones tonight did not seem to care much at all.  I am told things were somewhat different but even then there were those who did not want to go, yet somehow they have at least a basic grasp of the faith.  I know this is not true across the board, but It seems to be In most cases.  As I was In that class tonight all I could think about was Jesus weeping over his people, though I laughed somewhat out of shock at some of their answers, my heart ached.  All my education was no help to me In my search to find a way to reach them.  There is a a part of me that wonders If maybe we, as a Church, are trying to hard to explain everything?  Have we sucked out all the mystery in this age of enlightenment? In my education In seminary, the Intellectual seems to get all the focus or at least treated with a sort of paranoia. What I mean Is, It seems those who are leaders in the church and teachers seem to be paranoid that the world is sitting back and accusing the Church of being unreasonable or not intellectual.  We are so paranoid that we over compensate and make simple faith a side note.  I have learned that when we try and compete with the spirit of the world on an Intellectual level, we lose every time, not because what we teach is not an Intellectual endeavor or that we do not use our minds.  No, It Is that the spirit of the world is that of the enemy, and his is the Intellect of an angle, we cannot compete in that manner.  We cannot try and "explain" every little aspect of Catholic Teaching and then wonder why our youth do not have any faith at all.  I am not saying Ignore the Intellect, that would not be true catholicity, but rather that In this age of the Intellect we forgot his spouse...faith...Or better expressed we tend to forget It Is not us who does the work of conversion but Jesus.  We, and I do It myself, forget It Is about a love affair with Jesus, not jamming enough Information Into a persons mind that they will have no choice but to see the pure logic, and rationality of our argument and thus convert...that Is the way the world wins over people...That Is prideful and It takes the power away from Jesus and makes conversion something we, the educators and formatters, bring about.  I understand the theory behind It though....we, like Jesus, long so very deeply to bring them to Christ.  In our strong desire to be a good servant and in our zeal to win converts we forget to get out of the way sometimes.  Our work must be in showing them our own love affair with Jesus, our beloved, and then relay on God for the rest.