Advent Preparation Guide 2020

As we know, in our modern-day secular world, there is no distinction made between Advent and Christmas. Usually right after Halloween, Christmas stuff starts appearing. Out of respect for soldiers, some people wait until after November 11 to begin decorating for the season. However, this is far too early according to the Christian Calendar.

In the Catholic Church, everything is governed by seasons. As the Bible says, there is a time and place for everything in our universe. Prior to great celebrations in the Church, we strive to strip away our inordinate attachments to the material world to be better prepared for the spiritual significance of the season we will celebrate.

The most famous of such times is Lent which is a preparation for the most important season of the Christian calendar - Easter. The meaning of Easter has nothing to do with material goods, but rather it has everything to do with spiritual goods.

In the same way, Advent is our way of preparation for the upcoming feast of Christmas. Christmas is a spiritual reality. Unfortunately, our modern society focuses almost exclusively on the material aspect - how many gifts will you receive or give. At most the secular world will say that Christmas is about spending time with your loved ones. Rarely do they discuss the true reason and meaning for Advent and Christmas.

Christmas is a celebration of the Second Person of the Trinity becoming incarnate to dwell among us to bring salvation to the whole world. Jesus was, in a sense, born to carry out his mission which was to offer himself as the perfect sacrifice on Calvary for the salvation of souls. His incarnation and birth made this possible. Our job on Earth is to unite ourselves more fully with God and to receive his Grace. One of the things that stands in our way to achieving this is our attachments to material or created goods. These attachments prevent us from achieving a closer spiritual union with our Creator.

Advent is a great opportunity, sort of a lesser Lent (in terms of penance), to remove some attachment to the material world and move closer to God. That way we can more fully celebrate the true meaning of Christmas.

To that end, I found an excellent Advent preparation. This comes from reginaprophetarum.org. I have transcribed it here into regular text. Feel free to print this off and use it as a guide as you prepare for the coming of the Savior of the World.

ADVENT IS COMING

THE FOUR WEEKS OF ADVENT are set apart by the Church to commemorate the ages that intervened between the fall of our first parents and the birth of  Christ which we celebrate at Christmas. It is a Season of special prayer and  penance mingled with joyful expectation, and calculated to prepare our souls for a worthy keeping of this great solemnity. Advent is also the beginning of the  ecclesiastical year, and as each succeeding year brings us closer to the Second Coming of Christ as Judge of the world, this holy time is likewise intended to make us ready to meet our Judge. Such preparation is best achieved by seeking sanctification through voluntary amendment of life, acts of penance, and works of charity. 

Do not let this time to Grow in Holiness Pass You By!!

Consider the following categories on what we should do for Advent this year.

1. VOLUNTARY AMENDMENT OF LIFE
Give up those things that need to go sooner or later, namely bad habits. Our goal here is to learn to love our souls more than our bodies… to break a bad habit forever and Advent is a good time to do it. Examples: Gossiping, surfing the web without real need, watching T.V., overeating, eating between meals, eating and drinking junk foods (e.g., soda), bad drinking habits, complaining, saying vulgar words, not getting up on time, using a snooze alarm, wasting time playing video games, going to movies, listening to base music, useless chattering on facebook, blogs, and the like, etc. 

In this category I am going to give up _______________________

2. ACTS OF PENANCE
Perform some kind of penance. Our goal here is to train ourselves to say “no” in little things so that we can say “NO” to big temptations later. We can resume doing the things given up here once Advent is over. Examples: Avoid eating or drinking something that we enjoy, such as desserts. Give up eating out, taking completely warm showers, drinking alcoholic beverages, etc... 

In this category I am going to give up _______________________

3. WORKS OF CHARITY
Perform some good and holy action(s). Our goal here is to strengthen our relationship with Christ and His Church. Ideally, what we start here would continue in some way even after Advent is over. Love God more than yourself! Examples: Pray the Rosary everyday, attend daily Mass as much as possible, read the Sacred Scriptures _______ minutes a day, spend _______ additional time everyday with my family, read a life of a saint or saints, increase spiritual reading in place of electronic media, make a daily visit to the Most Blessed Sacrament or shrine of Our Lady.

In this category I am going to _______________________

To get the PDF version, go to http://reginaprophetarum.org/mission_materials/Advent%20is%20Coming.pdf

Supreme Court Orders Preliminary Injunction in Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn v. Cuomo

Of all the places I have been, churches seem to be most strictly observing Covid regulations. Go into Walmart and Costco and people are just randomly walking all over the place. Contrast this with Mass, where the number of people is very strictly enforced, names and phone numbers are gathered, and people are only allowed to sit in designated areas at least 6 feet apart.

The difference is night and day. Not only that, most of the churches I go to have not one but two announcements regarding how we should proceed to communion in a "safe and respectful" way.

In my opinion, churches are going a little too extreme with all this mass hysteria (excuse the pun). We only have a handful of cases in my province, but this doesn't stop them from pulling out all the stops.

For governments to put much stricter limits on church services than they do on huge retailers is absolutely unacceptable!

Supreme Court Orders Preliminary Injunction in Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn v. Cuomo

Happy Feast Day of St. Andrew November 30 + Prayer

 

Prayer to St. Andrew

O Glorious St. Andrew,

you were the first to recognize and follow the Son of God.

With your friend, St. John,

you remained with Jesus,

for your entire life,

and now throughout eternity.

Image of St Andrew the Apostle sitting reading

Just as you led your brother, St Peter,

to Christ and many others after him,

draw us also to Him.

Teach us how to lead them,

solely out of love for Jesus

and dedication to His service.

Help us to learn the lesson of the Cross

and carry our daily crosses without complaint,

so that they may carry us to God the Almighty Father. Amen.

Pope Francis's Opinion Piece in the New York Times about Covid: Analysis

Well, at least it wasn't from an airplane this time! Pope Francis once again outdoes himself by writing an opinion piece in the New York Times. You know, because being the Vicar of Christ isn't a big enough deal, he has to be hip and down with the left-wing peeps.

Anyway, his article, in which he mentions the word "pandemic" 5 times, "covid" 4 times, and "Jesus" zero times, is full of exaggerated and emotion-based claims. He doesn't even take other sides of the debate seriously. No, there is only one correct perspective on Covid, everyone else is a heartless monster.

There are some parts of this opinion piece I agree with. The pope starts off his article titled "A Crisis Reveals What Is in Our Hearts" by saying that we often think of issues as global rather than individual and we can feel powerless. He encourages people to care for those around them. That's a huge thing in my opinion. Too often, people get involved with causes, and neglect smaller areas where they can actually have an impact.

He continues by describing the medical issues he faced as a youth and some of the encounters he had with medical professionals. He goes on to talk about the current situation and applauds medical professionals who gave their lives serving others. Certainly this is very laudable and perhaps heroically virtuous.

Soon after this however, he goes off the rails. He commends all government lockdowns as making "great efforts to put the well-being of their people first, acting decisively to protect health and to save lives". About any government that did not impose draconian lockdowns, he says "The exceptions have been some governments that shrugged off the painful evidence of mounting deaths, with inevitable, grievous consequences."

Clearly, to Pope Francis, this is a completely black and white issue with no moral ambiguity whatsoever. There is no room for any disagreement. Either you are in favor of strict government lockdowns or you are a horrible person who cares nothing for people.

He is not satisfied, however, to simply mention people opposed to any and all forms of government oppression under the guise of "protecting people". He has to lay a smack-down on them. This is from his letter:

Yet some groups protested, refusing to keep their distance, marching against travel restrictions — as if measures that governments must impose for the good of their people constitute some kind of political assault on autonomy or personal freedom! Looking to the common good is much more than the sum of what is good for individuals. It means having a regard for all citizens and seeking to respond effectively to the needs of the least fortunate.

It is all too easy for some to take an idea — in this case, for example, personal freedom — and turn it into an ideology, creating a prism through which they judge everything.

Ah, isn't it nice to simply caricature those with whom you disagree? Makes things rather simple. People who are protesting the lockdowns aren't doing so simply because they feel a concept of personal freedom is being challenged. As if they know there is a huge danger to society without these lockdowns but they refuse to be told what to do.

The reality is that the anti-lockdown side of the equation actually has very solid reasons for disagreeing with the draconian measures being put in place. Destroying the economy isn't some intellectual idea like not being allowed to have frozen yogurt on a particular Saturday. Destroying the economy has huge and devastating impacts on people's lives. This is particularly true in third-world countries. People literally starve to death if they cannot earn an income. They cannot simply apply for unlimited unemployment benefits. Not everyone is so lucky.

There are many negative repercussions to the lockdowns such as increased depression, spousal abuse, drug abuse, people being prevented from seeking medical help, etc. Many of the people opposing the lockdowns say the "cure" is much more devastating than the disease. But no, according to the pope, these people are heartless evildoers who just want to increase suffering because of "concepts".

Another thing is that most anti-lockdown people don't just say anything goes. They want a common-sense approach to dealing with the issue. Protect vulnerable people specifically. Perhaps not everyone has to have the same restrictions. For more age categories, the survivability can be as high as 99.9%. Should our entire civilization be shut down to stop such a disease?

The other big issue in my opinion is the isolation. On the one hand, Pope Francis condemns modern technology such as cell phones and the internet and other technologies and encourages people to meet face to face. Yet somehow he feels this has no value while there is a virus circulating. What about the 90 year old grandmother who sits alone in her nursing home longing to see her children and grandchildren. Is she and her children evil for wanting to see her? As one commentator put it, perhaps she only has a few Christmases or Thanksgivings left. Maybe she is willing to risk Covid to see her family.

On top of all of this, there is credible evidence to show the lockdowns are doing little if anything in terms of Covid. Places that didn't lock down at all are faring very similarly to places that imposed massive restrictions. You won't see this much on Facebook, Youtube, etc as this opinion has been banned.

This is NOT a simplistic good vs. evil question. There is legitimate debate as to what constitutes the best course of action. For the Holy Father to suggest that anyone who dares question their particular leaders with regards to Covid are evil is flat-out wrong. Perhaps he should speak to several people who disagree with his stance to truly find out their perspective. I can guarantee him there are many faithful Catholics in that boat.

And on a side note, I strongly suggest the pope stick with actual moral issues such as the Ten Commandments, the works of Mercy, the seven deadly sins, etc and how to be holier people, instead of always focusing on climate change and whatever else is the topic-du-jour in the leftist world. We need a moral and spiritual leader, not another political one.

Is the Catholic Church Racist for Taking So Long to Appoint Archbishop Gregory to the Cardinalate?

Archbishop Gregory will soon be Cardinal Gregory. I just saw a headline indicating that he will be the first African-American Cardinal in the US. This was a headline on CNN. Of course, they are trying to present this from a particular angle and people who know little about the Church may get the wrong impression from this headline.

Many will read the article thinking, wow, for the FIRST time in history, the Church is choosing an African American! That's crazy. But we need a little perspective.

First of all, there are currently 14 cardinals from the US, so we are not talking about very many men. Just 14. 

Secondly, the African American community is not very large within the Catholic Church. According to Pew Research, only 5% of black Americans are Catholic, while Catholics overall make up 22% of the overall population.

Next, there are very few black priests overall. Out of around 37,000 priests in the US, only 250 are black. With such a low number of black priests, we would not expect more than 1 black cardinal.

Let's check out the math on this. There are 14 cardinals in the US. One of them will be black, which represents 7% of cardinals. At the same time, 250 out of 37,000 priests are black which is 0.6% of the total priests. Just from a statistical point of view, if the percentage of black cardinals in the US exceeds 0.6%, they are represented more than the number of priests.

But how many cardinals have there EVER been? Overall in the history of the US, there have been 58 American Cardinals. Back to the math. If black priests are only 0.6% of priests, you would statistically expect 0.348 to be black. So having one black cardinal does not demonstrate racism or injustice.

We also need to keep in mind the universality of the Catholic Church. The Church is huge in Africa. We have many black cardinals when you take into consideration the entire world.

Some people are critical of some of the decisions of Archbishop Gregory. We cannot be made to feel we must accept everything he says and does because he is black and that doing so is some kind of racism. As a contrast to this, there are some black cardinals that many conservatives really appreciate and admire, such as Cardinal Sarah and Cardinal Arinze, to name just a couple.

The Catholic Church is universal and any form of racial discrimination is strongly frowned upon and in fact is a sin. God created all people of all different races. To reject someone based on their race is rejecting God's creation.

What do the Symbols on the Miraculous Medal mean?

 

Source: https://denvercatholic.org/the-miraculous-medal-explained/#.Vm9F2YRlm9Y

The miraculous medal has great significance to Catholics around the world. Today is the feast day of the Miraculous Medal. The chart above explains what the symbols mean on this beautiful medal.

Here is the text of the above graphic:

Each symbol on the Miraculous Medal means something. Together, they create a tiny lesson in Mariology. The Miraculous Medal is not magical, but wearing it and meditating on its symbolism can bring about greater faith, hope and purity.

The Rays
This is hard to see on the medal but in St. Catherine's vision, Mary had three rings on each finder. Rays of light emanated from some of these rings and touched the globe. Mary said these indicated the graces people had asked for and she gave. Her other rings were struck with light, but did not emit rays. Mary said those were the graces she was ready to give, but no one had asked for.

The Prayer
Mary appeared to St. Catherine surrounded by these words. This was years before the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception was clarified by the Church. Her open arms remind us of the "recourse" we have in her.

The Stars
One for each of the Twelve Apostles, who formed the Church. Thus the 12 stars are a symbol for the whole Church.

The Globe
Often obscured by engravers adding the year of the apparitions, Mary is actually crushing a serpent wrapped around the world (Gen. 3:15). The fact that she is standing on the globe alludes to her Assumption.

The Two Hearts
The heart on the left has a crown of thorns and belongs to Jesus. It symbolizes his Passion an dlove for all of us. The heart on the right is pierced by a sword and belongs to Mary. The sword comes from Simeon's prophecy in Luke 2:35. The two hearts are next to each other to show the intimacy between them. The fires show the intensity and purifying nature of their love.

The M With the Cross
The "M" stands for Mary, our Mediatrix. "Mediatrix" is a Marian title meaning Jesus listens to our prayers as she presents them, and that he gives us graces through her. This is the role of a Queen Mother in the Davidic Kingdom (see 1 Kings 2:13-20). While he did not have to do this, Christ chose to have a mother to play this role. She is entwined by the Cross, a sign of Jesus's suffering and redemption. This also signifies her presence at the food of the Cross.

This is what the Supreme Court said about targeting religious services for shutdown

The Supreme Court of the United States has decided in a 5-4 decision that the State of New York is not within its rights to shut down religious services while at the same time permitting a random assortment of businesses to remain open. This amounts to targeting and discrimination.

I can't believe this decision was only 5-4. Thank goodness we have level-headed and objective judges who can see this for what it is - religious persecution.

Justice Gorsuch put it well here:

“It is time — past time — to make plain that, while the pandemic poses many grave challenges, there is no world in which the Constitution tolerates color-coded executive edicts that reopen liquor stores and bike shops but shutter churches, synagogues and mosques,” Justice Gorsuch wrote.

For more detail, check out: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/26/us/supreme-court-coronavirus-religion-new-york.html?fbclid=IwAR0Hn5YjefP8HsvVEvAxE4VmdULy7eefKsBIeX_fBWOMbhxOYY5fkT86kSk

First Thanksgiving in America

 

Why should politicians get to decide how important religion is?

During this Covid situation, many politicians have taken it upon themselves to limit religious gatherings. This topic really came up today when I read a Supreme Court document for the case of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn vs. Governor of New York Andrew Cuomo.

In it, Justice Gorsuch wrote the following:

At the same time, the Governor has chosen to impose no capacity restrictions on certain businesses he considers “essential.” And it turns out the businesses the Governor considers essential include hardware stores, acupuncturists, and liquor stores. Bicycle repair shops, certain signage companies, accountants, lawyers, and insurance agents are all essential too. So, at least according to the Governor, it may be unsafe to go to church, but it is always fine to pick up another bottle of wine, shop for a new bike, or spend the afternoon exploring your distal points and meridians. Who knew public health would so perfectly align with secular convenience? 

This is in the US where they supposedly have freedom of assembly and freedom of worship, as specific in the 1st amendment of the US Constitution. So the absurdity is even more stark. How can a hardware store or acupuncturist be considered essential and allowed to open while a church or other place of worship be considered non-essential and forced to stay closed whether or not they follow safety protocols?

First of all, being free means you make your own choices when it comes to risks. If people are afraid to attend a church service, they can stay home. Why should the general populace be forced to stay home because the leader is very risk-averse.

The other question is who gets to decide what is essential and what isn't. Should a secular governor who is non-religious get to decide the value of a religious service? That is absolutely absurd. It's completely subjective. It'd be like asking me the value of an archery class if I have absolutely no interest in archery and have nothing to do with it. Not only that, I allow every other type of physical fitness facility to open, just not that particular one. No one would think that would be legitimate.

The leaders of the religions should be the ones to decide what is open and what isn't. There is meant to be a separation of church and state. I agree with that but only in the sense that the government should keep its paws off religious institutions. Do you really think the bishop cares nothing for his flock? Give me a break. I'm glad the diocese of Brooklyn is suing this terrible governor. He needs to be taught a lesson.

Awesome quote from Justice Gorsuch

 

Text of Quote: At the same time, the Governor has chosen to impose no capacity restrictions on certain businesses he considers “essential.” And it turns out the businesses the Governor considers essential include hardware stores, acupuncturists, and liquor stores. Bicycle repair shops, certain signage companies, accountants, lawyers, and insurance agents are all essential too. So, at least according to the Governor, it may be unsafe to go to church, but it is always fine to pick up another bottle of wine, shop for a new bike, or spend the afternoon exploring your distal points and meridians. Who knew public health would so perfectly align with secular convenience? 

The Date of Advent 2020

The first Sunday of Advent is Sunday November 29, 2020.

The Last Day of Advent is Thursday, December 24, 2020.

Dates of Advent 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023

Sunday, November 29, 2020 is the beginning of the Advent season in the Christian Calendar.

 Advent is the period of time in the Liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church preceding Christmas. It is a time of spiritual preparedness so that we are ready to welcome the Christ Child into our lives.

Questions and Answers about Advent:

How long is Advent?
Advent can range from 22 to 28 days long. Each of the 7 lengths of Advent are represented equally (i.e. equal numbers of 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, & 28)

What is the longest possible Advent season?
Advent can be a maximum of 28 days long.

What is the longest possible Advent season?
The shortest possible Advent season would be 22 days long.

Why does the length of Advent change?
This is because Advent always starts on a Sunday and is a total of 4 Sundays. The day of the week for Christmas Day always changes and can be any of the days. However, Advent always starts on a Sunday. If Christmas Day is on a Sunday, the 4th Sunday of Advent will be as far from Christmas Day as possible. If Christmas Day were on a Monday, the 4th Sunday of Lent would be the day before Christmas.

What is the earliest and latest possible start dates for Advent?
The earliest possible start date for Advent is November 27th.
The latest possible start date for Advent is December 3rd.

Does the length of Advent change as much as the date of Easter?
Because both Ash Wednesday (the beginning of Lent) and the date of Easter are always on the same day of the week, the time between both is fixed. If you could every day from Ash Wednesday to Holy Saturday (inclusive), you get 46 calendar days. This is the case every year.

However, the actual date of Easter varies considerably. As we've seen, Advent can start on 7 different calendar days, whereas Ash Wednesday can occur anywhere from Feb 4 to March 10. That means there are 36 possible calendar days upon which Ash Wednesday can occur (this includes February 29).

(Random Side Fact: Ash Wednesday has never occurred on February 29, and will do so for the first time in 2096. Leap years were first introduced with the Gregorian calendar and thus a Feb. 29 Ash Wednesday has only been possible since 1582, but it hasn't happened yet).

Comments:
Look forward to hearing your comments!

St. Dymphna

Prayers for People suffering from Epilepsy

In the Catholic Church, there are many saints who can be invoked for those suffering from epilepsy. I will try to list them here and perhaps add a short reason why they are considered such a patron saint. I will also provide a prayer if available for each saint.

St. Apollinaris of Ravenna
A native of Antioch, St. Apollinaris was made bishop of Ravenna by St. Peter himself. What a great honor. This saint suffered greatly under the persecution of various Roman emperors. Despite this, he continued to preach, even when Christianity was outlawed. He was known as a miracle worker and churches were built in his honor in Europe, especially in Germany.

Pope St. Cornelius
This saint and pope is an interesting figure. He was the Bishop of Rome during a debate in the Church over whether Christians who had practiced pagan rituals, offered sacrifices to idols, temporarily stopped practicing their Christian faith or performed other such actions so as to avoid being killed could be readmitted to the Church. One group led by Novatian thought that such people could not be forgiven by the Church or in this life but that it was left up to God whether such people could be forgiven.

Pope Cornelius, on the other hand, believed that such people could be reconciled with the Church after a period of repentance. Ultimately the viewpoint of Pope Cornelius prevailed. Novatian was also a pretender to the papacy and there was something of a struggle in that regard as well.

St. Dymphna
This is a very well-known saint who is asked to intercede often in the case of mental health issues. St. Dymphna has a very strange story. She devoted her life to Christ at a young age. When her mother died, her father, who was a petty king in Ireland, became very distraught. He sought a new wife but wanted someone who looked like his deceased spouse. The person who most closely resembled his dead wife was his daughter Dymphna. Horrifyingly, he attempted to marry his own daughter, so she fled to another country.

Eventually the king located Dymphna in Belgium where she had fled. He demanded she return with him to Ireland. When she refused, he took out his sword and cut off her head.

This tragic story is the source of St. Dymphna's patronage of those with mental illness. Clearly her father had gone crazy. Perhaps through her prayers in heaven, she was able to convert his heart.

◇◇◇

These are just 3 saints who are invoked against epilepsy. The following is a prayer against epilepsy said to St. Dymphna:

Good Saint Dymphna, great wonder-worker in every affliction of mind and body, I humbly implore your powerful intercession with Jesus through Mary, the Health of the Sick, in my present need. (Mention it.) Saint Dymphna, martyr of purity, patroness of those who suffer with nervous and mental afflictions, beloved child of Jesus and Mary, pray to Them for me and obtain my request.

(Pray one Our Father, one Hail Mary and one Glory Be.)

Saint Dymphna, Virgin and Martyr, pray for us.

Feast Day of Christ the King Christus Rex

 

O Lord our God, You alone are the Most Holy King and Ruler of all nations.

We pray to You, Lord, in the great expectation of receiving from You, O Divine King, mercy, peace, justice and all good things.

Protect, O Lord our King, our families and the land of our birth.

Guard us we pray Most Faithful One.

Protect us from our enemies and from Your Just Judgment.

Forgive us, O Sovereign King, our sins against you.

Jesus, You are a King of Mercy.

We have deserved Your Just Judgment

Have mercy on us, Lord, and forgive us.

We trust in Your Great Mercy.

O most awe-inspiring King, we bow before You and pray;

May Your Reign, Your Kingdom, be recognized on earth.

Amen.

Prayer for Abdominal Pains and Stomach Cramps (Also Labour Pains and more)

An interesting saint I discovered today was St. Erasmus of Formia also known as St. Elmo. He is invoked in prayer for those suffering from abdominal pain and stomach cramps. I'll get into why he is the patron of these ailments and maybe talk a little about my theory as to why this is the case.

He is also the patron of women in labor and those with appendicitis. Basically anything to do with abdominal pain in general.

But first of all here is the prayer:

The prayer that I found to St. Elmo speaks of his valiant faith. He maintained this faith in the face of great persecution and suffering. 

Prayer to St. Elmo for those suffering from Abdominal Pains or Stomach Cramps

O God, grand us through the intercession of Your dauntless bishop and martyr St. Erasmus, who so valiantly confessed the Catholic Faith, that we may learn the doctrine of this faith, practice its precepts, and thereby be made worthy to attain its promises. We ask all this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Prayer I composed to St. Elmo for healing:

O Great St. Elmo, Through your powerful intercession, you have brought healing to many of those who suffer from various ailments and pains of the abdomen, the pains of childbirth, those suffering from stomach cramps and many other ailments.

You yourself suffered great persecution and tortures in your holy witness of the Catholic faith. I ask your intercession for the intention of ___________ (state intention). Please intercede for me to God, our loving Father, that he may bring healing in body, mind, and soul. May I follow your example of great faith in the face of adversity and may God bless me with his abundant Grace.

I ask these prayers in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Please let me know in the comments below your thoughts on the prayer I composed. It was written in my own words, so please let me know if I am missing anything or if I said anything improperly.

So, back to St. Elmo. St. Erasmus was the bishop of Formia, Compagnia, Italy. During the prosecutions on Christians by Diocletian, he fled to Mount Lebanon to live a life of solitude. It is said he was fed by a raven who visited him. But the emperor discovered his whereabouts and threw St. Elmo in prison and had him tortured.

Let's just think about that for a minute. The emperor was so rabidly and violently opposed to Christians, he sought them out in mountains where they were in seclusion. Sometimes we think we have it bad in our day and age with Christians being persecuted, and we certainly are, but those times were so much worse. However, despite anything these terrible emperors tried to do, they had no impact. In fact, their attempts at stamping out Christianity only made it stronger. So be thankful for prosecutions because as we see in history, it strengthens the faith. The Roman empire no longer exists, but the Church most certainly does. Put your trust in God, not in temporal powers.

Back to the story. St. Erasmus was arrested by Diocletian, but he was able to escape. It is said he did so with the help of an angel.

St. Erasmus moved from Formia to Gaeta, both on the west coast of Italy. Because they were both on the coast, St. Elmo was invoked by sailors for his protection as they frequently visited the ports where he resided. Eventually during storms at sea, sailors would sometimes see electrical discharges. They saw these as indicators of St. Elmo's protection and thus became known as St. Elmo's fire.

According to Wikipedia, St. Elmo's fire is a weather phenomenon in which luminous plasma is created by a corona discharge from a sharp or pointed object in a strong electric field in the atmosphere (such as those generated by thunderstorms or created by a volcanic eruption).

Wow:

.

So eventually St. Elmo was again arrested and executed by the evil emperor. He was disemboweled.

Back to my theory. Why are saints often the patrons of their method of death. My theory is that once a saint dies and is in heaven, they receive a glorified body without any blemish or issue. Technically though, it's the same body they had on Earth, yet it's glorified. This means that their body had to undergo a transformation. The body parts were transformed from diseased and damaged to perfect and without issue, in fact, glorified. Therefore, that particular saint has intimate and holy knowledge as to how God can bring perfect healing both physically and spiritually.

Thanks for reading and until next time. Look forward to all comments!

USCCB takes a couple of good steps, but is it consistent?

The head of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops Archbishop Jose Gomez has issued some statements concerning Joe Biden and his possible presidency. First of all we all need to remember that Joe Biden isn't officially confirmed as president yet. And plus there are many lawsuits that are currently being undertaken which could see reversals and so on. So we shouldn't jump to any conclusions which it seems the US Conference of Catholic Bishops is currently doing.

Anyway, I just read this article where the conference is welcoming Joe Biden as the successor of Donald Trump. However they are expressing concern over his stance on abortion. This is obviously a fantastic development that they are actually speaking out. However there are still issues with this in terms of how it's being done.

Once again first and foremost it's fantastic that the USCCB is actually issuing a statement condemning abortion and condemning Joe Biden's approach to it. As we all know Joe Biden is very pro-choice and has no issue with abortion up to the moment of birth. In fact his party, the Democratic party, wants to increase access to abortion and eliminate anything that stands in its way.

From a Catholic perspective and from a basic perspective of morality, abortion is an absolute evil. There are no circumstances under which a direct abortion can be morally licit. It is murder. This is where the problem comes in with the statement by the Bishops. The problem is that in the same pronouncement in which they express concern over Joe Biden's stance on abortion they also congratulate him on many far less important issues and which I would argue don't have anything really to do is Catholicism at all. For example they say that he is doing a good job when it comes to climate change, racial justice, and immigration issues.

First of all let's talk about climate change and immigration issues. Those issues are ones which do not have solid Catholic doctrine behind them. For example how we should deal with climate change is definitely up for debate. In Catholic theology, human beings are the most important things on the Earth. We do not worship the Earth because the Earth is meant to serve humanity. This goes for animals of the Earth and all of the resources of the earth. Their ultimate end is to help humanity. And so the only correct understanding of our place in the world is that humanity must be placed first. Therefore, if our goal in reducing climate change is for the betterment of humanity overall then it can be acceptable. But often times climate change rhetoric looks at human beings as being some kind of parasite or disease of the earth which must be eradicated. Many climate change advocates demand less humanity and fewer people on the Earth and this is completely contrary to Catholic morality.

Also, as I've alluded to, the measures taken to lessen climate change must always be weighed against the negative effects these measures will have on humanity from a Catholic perspective. For example, if implementing climate change protocols will lead to great levels of hardship and possibly even starvation of many people it can in no way be considered. However, this is rarely the case when it comes to global warming.

As an example of this way of thinking I remember watching a show about very poor people in Africa and this United Nations institution was helping them build solar panels and other green energy technology in their Village. These people could not even access clean drinking water and they did not have access to electricity. But the primary focus of the UN was that these people use renewable energy even though renewable energy would be far more expensive than conventional forms of energy.

Countries and people must be allowed to evolve in terms of their technology. Perhaps once a society reaches a very advanced level they can start implementing green energy policies. But if they do so prematurely this actually ends up harming people far more. I remember reading an article about how every developed Nation at one point was very polluted and used very dirty forms of energy but after they had achieved a certain level of economic status they were able to implement cleaner forms of energy. But the point is if people are starving to death that is not the time to force them to have very expensive forms of energy at the expense of their development.

Similarly, when it comes to immigration, this is a matter of prudential judgment that each person with influence must make for themselves. Of course we must be compassionate and welcoming of refugees and people suffering under difficult situations but when it comes to the policy of a country concerning immigration this is not a moral issue but rather a prudential issue. One could reasonably argue one way or the other when it comes to this topic. No country is morally obliged to take in an unlimited number of people. As happens often, these discussions can become very polarized. One side says we need to have unlimited amounts of immigration while the other side insists there should be absolutely no immigration. My point is that the level of immigration that a particular country embraces can be the matter of discussion and debate and not something which should be seen as an absolute moral issue. Who is to say that taking in 100,000 immigrants is morally inferior to taking in 1 million. This is something that people must decide on their own and with the leaders of their country. Immigration policy does not involve Catholic doctrine or any kind of absolutes in that way.

This is far different from abortion which is an absolute evil. It is wrong to place these two issues on the same footing as it seems the USCCB is doing. This is causing great confusion to uncatechized Catholics. They falsely take on the idea that immigration policy is of the same importance as abortion policy. And so they weigh out their two options in that way. For example, they may say well one candidate is pro-life but he's also opposed to high levels of immigration, while the other candidate is pro-choice but embraces high levels of immigration. Based on the statements of the USCCB, someone who is not well-informed could reasonably think that both candidates in this case were equal, morally speaking. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Racial Injustice is definitely something of importance. However it is my belief that this issue has been blown completely out of proportion. The Catholic Church is probably the most diverse institution on the face of the planet. We have laity, priests, and bishops from all over the world, of all different nationalities, speaking dozens of languages. There is hardly a place on Earth that doesn't have the Catholic Church. And the two places where the church is growing fastest are Africa and South America. Clearly these people do not feel the Catholic Church is a racist Institution. So I think it's a poor prudential judgment for the bishops to be aligning themselves with groups such as black lives matter which stands firmly against most of the beliefs of the Catholic Church. I know the church has not officially aligned itself with BLM but at the same time they are making statements talking about our Collective guilt when it comes to these issues. I'm not saying there's nothing that should be done but to make it sound like racism is an ever-present threat to every non-white person is rather absurd. Of course racism is wrong but the demand for racism in order to advance certain ideas is far greater than the supply.

Overall, I believe that bishops conferences have become far too political. There are potentially thousands of sins one could commit. Yes, racism is one of them. Yes, maliciously destroying the Earth is a sin. But these are but two out of thousands of sins. We need to get back to the traditional teachings of the church. We need to talk about the seven deadly sins, about sins of pride, sins of gluttony and lust and so on and so forth. We rarely hear about these things. Instead of aligning itself with the state, the Church needs to separate itself from the state. Although we do not believe in the separation of church and state, the Church needs to act completely independently and have no ties to the state that would curtail its activity. The Church is appointed by Jesus Christ to pass judgement on the state and to tell those within it whether they're acting in a moral or immoral way.

The Simple Solution of World Hunger and Poverty

I've heard many religious people preach on poverty and world hunger and offer their simple and easy way to beat it. It's the billionaires and millionaires! If only those greedy businesspeople would give a tiny part of their wealth to the poor, we'd eradicate poverty and all would be great!

It sounds so simple. Rich people have "too much" and poor people have too little. So the rich just have to give money to the poor and bam, problem solved. I have many issues with this sentiment and I believe it causes more harm than good.

These days everyone seems to want to save the world. They want to end world hunger, end pollution, end fossil fuels, save the whales, end global warming, etc. People seem to think in the grandest and most grandiose of terms. Why go for something small like helping your neighbor with something when you can save the entire planet!

It's a very enticed proposition and one that leads to great damage in my opinion. Let me explain why.

I have heard this phrased in various ways, but how can someone expect to "change the world" when they can't even change the sheets on their bed. It's a legitimate question. Think of yourself. Think of a negative characteristic or issue you've been dealing with. Perhaps you are impatient, maybe you are messy, perhaps you are rude or inconsiderate. Maybe you don't do your fair share of chores. The list could go on. Now, just think of the difficult you had or are having in overcoming this relatively minor flaw. So you can't even overcome something this small and yet you expect at the flick of a finger, you can change over 7 billion people? You must be a real optimist!

By trying to change the world and not ourselves, we are passing the buck on to everyone else while convincing ourselves that we are morally upright and perfect. We adopt a sort of relativist mentality whereby our failures are insignificant and meaningless and we are doing our part to rescue every man, woman, and child on the Earth. Wow, what a sense of moral superiority one can achieve through this!

In fact, many people neglect to do even small things as they are too busy focusing on the big things. Yet, they probably have little if any real impact on the so-called "big things", despite what they tell themselves. People try to convince others to vote a certain way. They spend dozens of hours informing themselves, discussing their opinions to others, etc. In the end, most likely they will get the influence of exactly one vote and have no other impact. Yet they could have spent those countless hours helping out a neighbor, visiting family, or working on becoming holier.

The issue of global poverty is not as simple as saying well look at this huge corporation that had profits of $X Billions of dollars. They simply have to transfer that money and poof, problem over. Again, when we think this way, we shift all the responsibility to everyone else. "I'm not responsible for poor people, that's the responsibility of billionaires." I'm not saying billionaires shouldn't help if they have the means, but I am saying we shouldn't scapegoat our own responsibility on them.

Global poverty is a complex issue. It will not be solved simply by throwing money at it. Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have pledged to give tens of billions of dollars toward eradicating poverty. Will poverty be over once this happens? Of course it won't. I'm not holding them up as moral paragons as there are many issues we could discuss. But I am talking about the concept of money solving all problems.

As Catholics we believe in the value of work. It's better for a man to work and earn money to provide for his family rather than become permanently dependent on someone else to support him. Jesus said to feed the hungry and clothe the naked. But he meant it in a personal one-on-one way, not please advocate for rich people to give stuff to the poor.

The other part is that we don't know how rich we are. If you are reading this from a computer or expensive mobile device, you are relatively rich. In fact, to be among the global one percent, you only have to earn something like $36,000 per year. That's really not that much. What if someone from a poor country was speaking to you and said you should support them because you are among the 1%?

Sure, you could say you may be in the 1% but others are richer. First of all, that's got nothing to do with you. You are given commands by God Almighty. They can't be deflected onto someone else. Secondly, could someone with $10 million say they are not responsible because there are billionaires out there with much more? Could someone with $1 billion say he isn't responsible because Jeff Bezos has almost $200 Billion? Of course that would be absurd.

I also think we as human beings are designed to help those around us first. It has to be a personalized approach. I heard this as one of the key problems with government poverty-reduction strategies - it's completely impersonal. If you know someone who is struggling financially, you can help them but more than financially. Maybe you can help find them a job. Perhaps you can help them with any addiction issue they may have. Perhaps you can provide a place to stay in some circumstances. But you are an accountability partner and you can do much more good than them receiving a paycheck from an anonymous source.

Another point is that poverty is not a simplistic issue. Tens of billions of dollars have been given to poor people and poor countries and yet there is still much poverty. Poverty is going down a lot globally though, but this decrease has very little to do with charity. It has more to do with a global market for products and services and increased efficiency brought by capitalism. Charity definitely has its place, but again I think it mainly has to be personalized.

Stop blaming everyone else for the problems of the world. Help out a relative you've neglected, make amends with an old friend, help out someone who is hard on their luck. Don't think you have to change the whole world and demand others to do your work. Look forward to seeing your comments and have a great day!

Prayer for Those Suffering from Pneumonia and/or Covid

 

St. Bernardino of Siena - Patron Saint of Those Suffering from Respiratory Illness

I would like to share with you a prayer that I wrote for the patron saint of respiratory illnesses, St. Bernardino of Siena. I wrote this myself so please pardon me if it is not the greatest of prayers.

I am writing this prayer because pneumonia is a highly-searched illness and I wanted to provide a Catholic prayer in response to it. Covid is also a respiratory illness so one can also pray this prayer for that intention as well. Without further ado, here is the prayer I composed:

Prayer to St. Bernardino of Siena (Patron Saint of Respiratory Illness)

Lord, Father all-powerful and ever-living God,
You led St. Bernardino of Siena to help those suffering during the Plague.
Lord, you also assisted and cured St. Bernardino of Siena of his respiratory illness.
You gave St. Bernardino strength and courage to preach beautifully to the people of Italy.
I ask you, St. Bernardino, through your powerful intercession, to pray to God Almighty
For the intention of (State Intention Here)
Pray that the Lord brings healing, peace, love and joy to this person.
I ask this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Update: Thank you for viewing.