Examine 2012 before New Years Resolutions + Perfection Sainthood Our Minds It is always prudent to examine our past as we start off the New Year. Were we judgmental before knowing all of the facts? Were you aware that foolishness is sinful? How much gossip were we involved in? Were we honest with ourselves in 2012? How much charity did we express among the Brethren. Did we show our love for the truth? Did we put private revelations above the deposit of Faith? What did we do to help the Faithful foster Unity last year? Did we check the reliability of a story before forwarding it to others? As 2012 ends remember we are one year closer to Our Death and one year closer to Christ's return on Pentecost Sunday or Saturday depending what part of the world that your in at the time. One must remember that the Lord cannot return until the one world liberal, democracy and interfaith, pluralistic gospel spreads through out the world. Right now the Muslim resistance remain the biggest problem. O Eternal Father, after having thanked Thy infinite bounty for Thy exceeding benefits in the past, we humbly implore pardon for our manifold sins and negligences for the time we have consumed and wasted in vanities and in things that profit not unto salvation, and for the woeful want of correspondence with Thy graces which we have so habitually manifested. But filled with confidence in Thy mercy, so lavishly displayed in a multitude of ways, we ask Thy blessing upon our good purposes and resolutions. For now we renew the sacred promises we made in Baptism, when we first became Thy children and heirs of the heavenly kingdom, and we renounce Satan with all his works and pomps. Firmly convinced that the salvation of our immortal souls is the one great business of life, the purpose for which we have come into the world, we solemnly resolve for the future not only to do all in our power to avoid every grievous sin in thought, word, and deed, but also to shun every unnecessary occasion that might imperil our souls. We further resolve to fulfill with greater exactness and fidelity the duties of our progress in things spiritual, to be more devoted to holy Mass, to receive the Sacraments more frequently, and to pray more often and more fervently. Bless, O my God, these good resolutions which we offer to Thee at this, the threshold of a new year. Give us Thy precious grace and make us truly wise. The days and years of our life are passing so swiftly away. Help us, in Thy mercy, to utilize them, as we ought to do, for Thy greater honor and glory, for the good of our neighbor, and for our sanctification. The night cometh in which no man can work longer; soon, at best, we shall have to appear before Thee to render an account of our stewardship. May we then be found worthy to receive from Thee that divine welcome: "Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of the Lord. Perfection The relatively perfection union with God which is possible in this world, consisting in proportional to the degree of charity possessed and exercised: it is therefore compatible with venial sin, but not mortal sin. "The perfection of Christian life consists essentially in charity, primarily in loving God, secondarily in loving ones neighbor." (Saint Thomas Aquinas). When a man loves God with his whole heart, soul, mind and straight, and his neighbor as himself for God's sake, then is he perfect. The perfection attainable in this life is only relative and progressive; absolute and ultimate perfection belongs to the next life, when the creature will have definitely gained his last end, God Himself, in the Beatific Vision. The attachment to God by love which perfect demands involves as its counter detachment from all that hinders or diminishes that love. Hence the way of perfection is a way of renunciation and mortification. Perfection is open to all, because the full love of God is possible in any walk of life; and all are called to it, at least remotely, in the words of Jesus Christ: (Matt. 5:48)--the calendar of saints includes men and women of all types and all nations. But the religious life is more conducive to perfection than life in the world, because it concentrates definitely on this aim by means of the vows of religion and organized prayer and asceticism. Perfection demands the observance of the precepts and of such counsels as apply to ones state of life. The essence of perfection, therefore, does not consist in a multiplicity of devotions, confraternities, etc: nor even in austerity, solitude, silence, and virtuous exercises. All these are means of acquiring perfection, or are manifestations of its presence. How to Become a Saint The way Saints are made outside the cloister as well as in. It can be expressed in three words: Fidelity to conscience.. All those who are saved eternally will be saved of their fidelity to conscience. The only thing you need to do in order to become a Saint is obey your conscience, and God will do the rest...Begin today; and see what a wonderful change it will make in your life. Every time your conscience prompts you to good, do it: every time it tells you a thing wrong, don't do it. The chief difference between saints and ordinary Christians is simply this, that they always obey the slightest suggestion of the still, small voice, while others do not. This is what St. Paul meant when he said. "Extinguish not the Spirit;" for conscience is like a flame, which may be blown out by willful inattention, and thus man is left, without a guide, to walk in the dark. In such a condition it is utterly impossible to remain long upon the narrow path that leads to the kingdom of heaven. Our Minds,,Confusion My circumscribed mind,,Is partially blind,,Restricted,,constricted,, And caught in a bind. It knows there are others,,,Who think differently,,But what should I do,, If they don't think like me? I'm caught in a quandry,,This prison I'm in,,It's all so confusing,, It's all such a din,,, Think well on your choices,,But know what you sought,,,May not be the thing,,, Nor the answer you got.....Msgr. Ruscitto Ambiguity is the Father of Apostasy A Man cannot Save Himself by his own good works Good works prompted by purely natural motives cannot save a man. Thus St. Paul says, If I should give all my goods to feed the poor, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing." 1 Cor. XIII., 3. yet good works inspired by faith in Christ and love for Christ are necessary. "By works a man is justified, and not by faith only." James II.,24. Indeed the "Son of man will come in the glory of His Father....and then will He render to every man according to his works." Matt.XVI., 27 Apoc: 22:12 Radio Replies "Our Fathers have sinned & done evil in sight of the Lord God, forsaking Him, they have turned away their faces from the Tabernacle of the Lord, and turned their backs." II Paral. 29:6 Grace be with you in 2013, in Christ, Joseph

Novus Ordo Watch: Monitoring the New Church

Novus Ordo Watch: Monitoring the New Church

What most Catholics are not aware, that it is generally held, Jeremias and and St. John Baptist were both born without sin. They were sanctified in their mother's womb before birth. The Immaculate Conception is, according to Roman Catholic dogma, the conception of Mary, the mother of Jesus without any stain ("macula" in Latin) of original sin. The dogma thus says that, from the first moment of her existence, she was preserved by God from the lack of sanctifying grace that afflicts mankind, and that she was instead filled with divine grace. It is further believed that she lived a life completely free from sin.[1] In the words of Pope Pius XII in Mystici Corporis, "she was free from any personal or hereditary sin" [2] Her immaculate conception in the womb of her mother, by normal sexual intercourse, should not be confused with the doctrine of the virginal conception of her son Jesus. (though it is generally held that Jeremias and John the Baptist received it before birth, but not at conception); The feast of the Immaculate Conception, celebrated on December 8, was established as a universal feast in 1476 by Pope Sixtus IV. He did not define the doctrine as a dogma, thus leaving Roman Catholics freedom to believe in it or not without being accused of heresy; this freedom was reiterated by the Council of Trent. The existence of the feast was a strong indication of the Church's belief in the Immaculate Conception, even before its 19th century definition as a dogma. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception is a Holy Day of Obligation, except where conferences of bishops have decided, with the approval of the Holy See, not to maintain it as such. It is a public holiday in some countries where Roman Catholicism is predominant e.g. Italy. In the Philippines, although this is not a public holiday, the predominance of Catholic Schools make it almost a holiday. The Immaculate Conception was solemnly defined as a dogma by Pope Pius IX in his constitution Ineffabilis Deus, on December 8, 1854. The Roman Catholic Church believes the dogma is supported by Scripture (e.g. Mary's being greeted by Angel Gabriel as "full of grace" or "highly favoured"), as well as either directly or indirectly by the writings of many[who?] of the Church Fathers[citation needed] , as well as sensus fidei and often calls Mary the Blessed Virgin (Luke 1:48). Catholic theology maintains that, since Jesus became incarnate of the Virgin Mary, it was fitting that she be completely free of sin for expressing her fiat. (Ott, Fund., Bk 3, Pt. 3, Ch. 2, §3.1.e). The main objection stated by theologians such as Anselm (d.1109), Bernard (d.1153), Aquinas (d.1274), and Bonaventure (d. 1274) was that it removes Mary from the company of those needing salvation, thus detracting from the universality of Christ's redemptive work... Scriptural sources A series of articles on Roman Catholic Mariology General articles Overview of Mariology • Veneration of the Blessed Virgin • History of Mariology • Mariology of the saints • Mariology of the popes • Encyclicals & Apostolic Letters • Marian Movements & Societies Devotions Rosary • Immaculate Heart • 7 Sorrows • Acts of Reparation Dogmas and Doctrines Doctrines • Mother of God • Perpetual virginity • Immaculate Conception • Assumption • Mother of the Church • Mediatrix • Co-Redemptrix Expressions of devotion Art • Music • Architecture Key Marian apparitions (approved or worthy of belief) Guadalupe • Miraculous Medal • La Salette • Lourdes • Pontmain • Laus • Banneux • Beauraing • Fátima In his Apostolic Constitution Ineffabilis Deus (8 December 1854), which officially defined the Immaculate Conception as dogma for the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Pius IX primarily appealed to the text of Genesis 3:15, where the serpent was told by God, "I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your seed and her seed". According to the Roman Catholic understanding, this was a prophecy that foretold of a "woman" who would always be at enmity with the serpent—that is, a woman who would never be under the power of sin, nor in bondage to the serpent. Some Roman Catholic theologians[who?] have also claimed the angel Gabriel's salutation to Mary at the Annunciation (Luke 1:28) as scriptural evidence for the Immaculate Conception. The verse "Thou art all fair, my love; there is no spot in thee", "Tota pulchra es, amica mea, et macula non est in te" (Vulgate[10]), from the Song of Solomon (4.7) was also regarded as a scriptural confirmation of the doctrine, and as "macula" is Latin for "spot" or "stain", is probably responsible for its name. The early Church Fathers compared Mary to Eve. St. Justin Martyr said that Mary was a kind of New Eve, "in order that the disobedience which proceeded from the serpent might receive its destruction in the same manner in which it derived its origin". (Dialogue with Trypho, 100) Tertullian argued in a similar manner: "As Eve had believed the serpent, so Mary believed the angel. The delinquency which the one occasioned by believing, the other by believing effaced". (On the Flesh of Christ, 17) St. Irenaeus declared that Mary became "the cause of salvation, both to herself and the whole human race", because "what the virgin Eve had bound fast through unbelief, this did the virgin Mary set free through faith". (Against Heresies, Book III, cap. 22, 4) St. Jerome coined the phrase, "Death came through Eve, but life has come through Mary", (Letter XXII, To Eustochium, 21). The Catholic Encyclopedia of 1907, however, states that these scriptures merely serve as corroborative evidence assuming that the dogma is already well established, and that there is insufficient evidence to prove the dogma to someone basing their beliefs solely on biblical interpretation: No direct or categorical and stringent proof of the dogma can be brought forward from Scripture. ... The Proto-evangelium [Genesis 3:15], therefore, in the original text contains a direct promise of the Redeemer, and...the perfect preservation of His virginal Mother from original sin. The salutation of the angel Gabriel—chaire kecharitomene, Hail, full of grace...finds its explanation only in the Immaculate Conception of Mary. But the term kecharitomene (full of grace) serves only as an illustration, not as a proof of the dogma. ― [2] Other verses sometimes used to defend the Immaculate Conception include: "And you shall make the ark of testimony of incorruptible wood, and you shall gild it with pure gold, you shall gild it within and without; and you shall make for it golden wreaths twisted round about." (Exodus 25:10-11 Brenton LXX) "So I made an ark of boards of incorruptible wood, and I hewed tables of stone like the first, and I went up to the mountain, and the two tables were in my hand." (Deuteronomy 10:3 Brenton LXX) Other translations use the words "setim", "acacia", "indestructible", and "hard" to describe the wood used. In any case, Moses used this wood because it was regarded as very durable and "incorruptible". Mary is regarded by Catholic and Orthodox Christians as being the Ark of the Covenant in the New Testament and therefore claim it is fitting that the New Ark likewise be made "incorruptible" or "immaculate". Their basis for calling the Virgin Mary the Ark of the Covenant is based partly on the parallels of the Ark in Second Samuel 6 with the Nativity narrative of the Gospel of Luke. The early Church Fathers called Christ, the Church, and the Virgin Mary each at one point as being symbolized by the Ark. [11] Wikipedia, Attwater a Catholic Dictionary, Harpercollins Encyclopedia of Catholicism