Sweet Tea!!

That's what we call it down south. One can not be a southerner and not love their sweet tea. It's against the law!

OK....maybe it's not against the law....or maybe you'd just be reported to the Daughter's of the Confederacy, and there would be a long line of little old ladies with blue hair waiting for their turn to smack you one with their purse for having the audacity to dislike sweet tea.

And if you want to have some really refreshing sweet tea (iced tea for all you northerners and other uneducated people), then you have got to try the Iced Tea Blend from Mystic Monk Coffee. It is very good.

What? You didn't know that Mystic Monk Coffee has tea? You need to pay closer attention. If you used my links to Mystic Monk Coffee, you'd know these things! The good monks at Mystic Monk Coffee also have such teas as Mango Fusion, Peach Pizzazz, Earl Grey, and English Breakfast Tea.

You can also find their great coffees as usual (don't forget about the Monk Shots), including their Bolivian Fair Trade Organic!

With the weather getting warmer and more humid though, nothing hits the spot like a tall glass of sweet tea, especially if it is from Mystic Monk Coffee, where your purchases helps support the Carmelite Monks of Wyoming.

Notre Dame won't recognize 'traditional marriage' student club | Fox News

The following excerpts are from FoxNews.com:

• A student group at the University of Notre Dame advocating traditional marriage has been denied official recognition as a campus club at the iconic Catholic institution, although members vow to appeal the decision.
• The group, Students for Child-Oriented Policy (SCOP), was rejected in an April 30 letter from the university’s Student Activities Office to Tiernan Kane, the club’s proposed president. The decision was based on a recommendation by the university’s Club Coordination Council, a division of student government, that found the club’s mission “closely mirrored” that of other undergraduate student clubs at the 12,000-student university.
• “In evaluating a proposal, approval is based on several things,” read the letter to Kane. “We consider the general purpose of a club, uniqueness to campus, proposed activities, a clear constitution, a strong understanding of budget planning, projected membership, opportunity for membership, among other things.”
• Due to the perceived duplicative mission of the group, SCOP’s proposal was rejected, according to the letter, which did not reference other university-recognized groups.
• “As such, the Club Coordination Council felt there was not a need for another similar-type club,” the letter continued. “You are encouraged to contact the Club Coordination Council’s Social Service Division to learn about collaborating with the existing clubs working toward your mutual goals.”
• SCOP, which was founded in January, is comprised of Notre Dame undergraduate and graduate students focused on the debate about marriage in Indiana, where the school is based, according to its Facebook profile, which had 69 members as of Tuesday.
• The group seeks to unite a network of students across The Hoosier State in favor of “child-oriented policies,” according to its organizers.
• “We reject the view that the young have agreed to redefine marriage,” the group’s Facebook page continues. “Rather, we think that they have not explored the meaning and importance of marriage.”
• Messages seeking comment from Kane and other SCOP students were not returned early Tuesday.
• Kane told The Cardinal Newman Society he believes Notre Dame should take the lead on marriage, much like it did in publicly voicing its support for the Dream Act and other controversial topics.

Read more by clicking below:

Notre Dame won't recognize 'traditional marriage' student club | Fox News

Time To End Communion In The Hand

For many years now, there has been a point of contention among Catholics as to whether Holy Communion should be received on the tongue, or in the hand.

There have been many disagreements, with some insisting communion should only be received on the tongue. They feel it is both irreverent and disrespectful to Our Lord for our hands to touch His body.

Others have said that this is nonsense and that these people are just hold overs from the "old days". They say that as long as we make a "throne" with our hands to receive the Body of the Lord, we are showing proper respect.

Then the "tongue only" folks point out that it would be too easy for someone to sneak off with the host for it to be used in some profane ritual.

I have to say, that I totally and completely agree with those who say that communion should only be received on the tongue. I think that the reception of Holy Communion in the hand should not just be discouraged, but banned outright in all Catholic Dioceses.

No, I am not calling anyone heretics...Vatican II modernists...or anything else.

After seeing how upset we all became with a Harvard University Club sponsoring a Satanic Black Mass, and the planned use of a host in that sacrilegious act , it became apparent to me, that only allowing reception on the tongue is the only way that should be allowed for any Catholic to receive the Body of Our Lord.

[Granted, in the case of the Harvard University Club, there were several conflicting statements as to whether or not the Satanists were actually in possession of a consecrated host. First they said they had a consecrated host....then they had a host, but it was not consecrated...then they didn't have a host at all, but planned to use bread. I think it best to assume that they did in fact have a consecrated host, and even knowing it was consecrated, they (the Satanists) would proclaim it as not being consecrated anyway, since they deny that transubstantiation takes place, and therefore deny the Body of Christ.]

If a priest, or EMHC (Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion) places a consecrated host in the hand of any communicant, it is far too easy for that communicant to pretend to have consumed the host, and then transport it elsewhere for their own nefarious purposes. We have all read about or heard of priests stopping communicants from leaving a parish with a host that had been placed in a pocket or purse instead of being consummed.

In any case, the fact remains that it would be much more difficult for anyone to remove a host from their mouth, when that host had been placed on the tongue by the priest or EMHC. It seems to me, that the action of the communicants owns saliva upon the host, would render it unsuitable for transporting, even if that was what the recipient had in mind.

Let me say here, by my own decision, beginning with my own first communion, I have always received on the tongue and not in the hand. No one told me to receive that way. No one forced me to receive that way. It was my decision, and mine only. I felt, and still do feel, it is the only proper way to receive the Body of Our Lord.

I do hope, that after this blatant disregard for the Catholic faith by some students at Harvard University, that bishops in the United States, and around the world, will put an end to receiving Holy Communion in the hand.

© Gary Stephen Smith and Faith of the Fathers, 2014.

Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Gary Stephen Smith and Faith of the Fathers with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Vatican's doctrinal official gives blunt warning to LCWR : News Headlines - Catholic Culture

The following excerpts are from Catholic World News:

• At a meeting with representatives of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR), the prefect of the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith rebuked the group for giving a top award to a dissident theologian, and pointedly reminded the American women religious that the LCWR is “a canonical entity dependent on the Holy See,” and must comply with Vatican-mandated plans for reform.
• Cardinal Gerhard Müller said that the decision by the LCWR to confer its Outstanding Leadership Award on Sister Elizabeth Johnson, whose writings have drawn a caution from the US bishops’ committee on doctrine, can be “seen as a rather open provocation” in light of the Vatican’s call for reform of the American group.
• Under the terms of the reform ordered by the Vatican in 2012, Cardinal Müller reminded the LCWR, the speakers at LCWR meetings should be cleared by the Vatican’s delegate supervising the reform process, Archbishop J. Peter Sartain of Seattle. But Archbishop Sartain was informed about the award for Sister Johnson “only after the decision had been made,” the cardinal observed, in an apparent violation of the Vatican’s directives.

Read more by clicking below:
Vatican's doctrinal official gives blunt warning to LCWR : News Headlines - Catholic Culture

Student Denied Admission for His Faith | School Prayer, American Center for Law and Justice ACLJ

The following excerpts are from ACLJ (American Center for Law and Justice):

• Late yesterday afternoon, ACLJ filed a lawsuit on behalf of Brandon Jenkins against officials of The Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) in Maryland for denying Brandon admission to its Radiation Therapy Program in part due to his expression of religious beliefs. As one faculty member explained to Brandon, on behalf of CCBC, the “field [of radiation therapy] is not the place for religion."  
• Brandon first applied for admission to the Radiation Therapy Program in April 2013. He met the standards of a competitive candidate and scored the maximum points allowed during his observation. During the interview process, college officials asked Brandon, “What is the most important thing to you.” Brandon answered simply, “My God.”
• Brandon was denied entry into the program. After Brandon inquired why he was denied, the Program Director, Adrienne Dougherty, told him:
• I understand that religion is a major part of your life and that was evident in your recommendation letters, however, this field is not the place for religion. We have many patients who come to us for treatment from many different religions and some who believe in nothing at all. If you interview in the future, you may want to leave your thoughts and beliefs out of the interview process.

Read more by clicking below:
Student Denied Admission for His Faith | School Prayer, American Center for Law and Justice ACLJ

Pope Francis' Catholic Truth

I think students, teachers, and school officials from Charlotte Catholic High School need to see this.

New web site encourages Catholics toward frequent Confession : News Headlines - Catholic Culture

The following excerpts are from Catholic Culture's Catholic World News:

• The evangelical group Catholics Come Home has launched a new web site, GoodConfession.com, encouraging more frequent use of sacrament of Reconciliation.

Read more by clicking below:
New web site encourages Catholics toward frequent Confession : News Headlines - Catholic Culture

Pre-Order Rick Santorum's New Book Now!

In Blue Collar Conservatives: Recommitting to an America That Works, Rick Santorum argues that the GOP has lost touch with its conservative base. Santorum provides a game plan for Republicans to bounce back, regain popularity, rediscover blue collar conservatives, and return to their party’s original values.

Available in hardback

Also available as MP3

Vegetable Stew-Lenten Recipe

Ingredients

1 medium Rutabaga

2 Turnips
4 Parsnips
2 carrots
3 stalks of celery
1 onion
4 cloves of garlic
salt, pepper, basil, oregano to taste
2 T tomato paste
1 cup frozen peas
1 chopped bell pepper (de-seeded)
1 chopped zucchini

Directions

Since some of these vegetables are often preserved by "waxing" them, they will need to be peeled, with a potato peeler or a paring knife (and the peels can't be saved). They are hard and need to be cubed into spoon sized pieces.

Chop and sauté the onions, celery, capsicum, courgette and garlic in a stewing pot, using enough oil for them to be moist. Add the seasonings to taste. Cover the mixture with water and then add several more cups of water. Bring to a boil and cook on low for 2 hours. Add water, and seasonings as needed. Adding the tomato paste to the stew, after an hour, adds a rich flavor and color.

If a thicker stew is desired, remove some of the broth and let it cool. Slowly add the cooled broth to a bowl with 3-4 tablespoons of flour. Whisk the flour into the liquid and add to the stew, returning the mixture to a near boil, stirring as it thickens.

This stew does very well overnight in a crock pot. It also works wonderfully well as a "pot pie," if cooked for one hour in a stew pot and then poured into a pie pan, with or without a dough bottom, and covered with pie dough. Then bake one more hour in the oven.

New poll underlines divisions among Catholics : News Headlines - Catholic Culture

The following excerpts are from CWN:

• A new survey of Catholics, conducted by the Spanish-language Univision network, has shown sharp differences among self-identified Catholics, and widespread dissent from Church teachings.
• The poll showed that Catholics in developing countries were more likely than their European and American counterparts to accept Church teachings on controversial issues such as homosexuality and contraception. The poll found, for example, that 99% of African respondents oppose same-sex marriage, while in the US only 40% do. Only 30% of the Catholics in Europe accept the Church teaching that women cannot be ordained to the priesthood, while in Africa 80% accept it.

Read more by clicking below:

New poll underlines divisions among Catholics : News Headlines - Catholic Culture

Saint Michael the Archangel Prayer

Teresa's March - Aleteia

The following is an article from the diary of  Teresa Graas, a 15 year old home schooled student from Kentucky, who attended the March For Life in Washington, D.C. Teresa is the daughter of my good friend and fellow Catholic blogger Lisa Graas. I am not including any excerpts, just the link that is below the photo:

Teresa Graas

Teresa's March - Aleteia

Former sedevacantist nuns form new religious community in California : News Headlines - Catholic Culture

The following excerpts are from Catholic World News Headlines:

• A new women’s religious community, the Marian Sisters of Santa Rosa, has taken root in northern California with the approval of Bishop Robert Vasa.
• The community, led by a formerly sedevacantist nun, emphasizes fidelity to the papacy, Eucharistic adoration, Marian devotion, and liturgical worship in both the ordinary and extraordinary forms of the Roman liturgy. The sisters’ apostolate includes Catholic education and catechesis.

Read more by clicking below:
Former sedevacantist nuns form new religious community in California : News Headlines - Catholic Culture

Thank You!

I want to thank all of you who prayed for me, and who were so generous with your donations!

I was able to get my power bill paid, and I am greatly relieved to say the least!

God is good, and I ask His blessings for all of you!

Thank you again, so very much!

Another Problem

Once again, I find myself in a most embarrassing situation, and I am in quite a quandary.

As you know, I hurt my back at work due to a ladder falling....while I was on it. I twisted my back in the fall, and have a "slight compression fracture". It is still bothering me somewhat, but is slowly improving.

Because of the back injury, I missed over a week of work, and there is no such thing as any insurance where I work. Plus, my employer had already started cutting our hours a good month before my fall. I have a power bill that is overdue, for $444.89. I have until January 22 to pay it, or my power will be turned off. If the power is turned off, I will have no water, as well as no heat, and no lights.

I am fortunate that my landlady, allows me to access her internet service with my wireless adapter. (I mention this for those who wonder why I still have internet.)

I don't have cable or satellite TV, or even over the air TV. I have not had TV service in fact, for almost 8 years.

I would be very, very grateful for any donations you might be able and willing to make. We are having a colder winter this year than we have had in several years, and electric heat is my only source of heat.

If you can't make a donation prayers are greatly appreciated as always.

Thank you, and God bless you all!

Australia's Dr Death Philip Nitschke Importing Suicide Kits Into the United States | LifeNews.com

The following excerpts are from LifeNews.com (emphases are mine):

• In his most recent newsletter, Philip Nitschke, Australia’s Dr Death, claims to have found a way to import suicide kits into the United States, starting in January 2014, under the cover of his Max Dog Brewing kit.
• Nitschke admitted that his Max Dog Brewing kits are in fact Suicide kits that he sends to people who pay by credit card for the kit that is used for an “undetectable” death.
• A 2010 report demonstrated that coroners were aware of 51 Australians who had died from an overdose of Nembutal, a lethal barbiturate that Nitschke has promoted since the late 1990’s as ‘a peaceful way to die’.
• Of the 38 cases fully investigated by coroners, only 11 people were known to have suffered chronic physical pain or a terminal illness before their deaths. Of the 51, 14 were Australians in their 20’s and 30’s.
• Journalist Michael Cook put it to Nitschke in 2011 that ‘nearly two-thirds of the Australians who died after quaffing Nembutal… were under 60, and quite a few were in their 20s and 30s… [suggesting that] that mental illness or depression, not unbearable pain, was the reason for the suicide.’
• Nitschke responded:
• ‘There will be some casualties… but this has to be balanced with the growing pool of older people who feel immense well-being from having access to this information, [about suicide drugs].’
• American authorities need to confiscate Max Dog Brewing suicide devices while they are being imported or distributed throughout the United States.
• If you are experiencing suicidal feelings and you are reading this article, please contact a suicide hotline.  In the United States contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (Link). In Canada contact Your Life Counts (Link).

Read more by clicking below:
Australia's Dr Death Philip Nitschke Importing Suicide Kits Into the United States | LifeNews.com

Ex-Catholics....

Did They Ever Know The Faith?

Being a person who works in retail with the public, you meet all kinds of people. Some, who are regular customers even become good friends/ Some are just people you see every day.

Inevitably, among the people you meet, something or another will lead to a talk about faith, and I am not shy about telling folks I am a convert to Catholicism. Some see all Christians as brothers in Christ, and some see Catholics and Protestants in a state of constant opposition as to what is the truth. (To those I say, Jesus Christ is the Truth, and that is all the Truth any of us should be concerning ourselves with.)

Some Protestants are taken aback, when I suggest that they visit a Catholic Church, and find out for themselves if what they have been told by their pastors, neighbors or friends about the Catholic Church is factual. Many, if not most, act as if I had suggested they walk barefoot across a bed of hot coals.

I have heard several ideas of what Catholics believe, where I have had to restrain myself from smirking, if not laughing out loud. For instance, one man, in all seriousness and with sincerity, asked me if I belonged to the branch of Catholics that believes in Jesus Christ, or to the branch of Catholics that doesn't.

So, I try to explain things, and hopefully help them to better understand.

Then on occasion, I come across, someone who will boldly proclaim to me (as well as to others whom I know) that they are an "ex-Catholic" who found a church that believes in the Bible, and where they also found Jesus Christ as their "personal Lord and Savior" at some denomination or another, and then proceed to tell me what is "wrong" with the Catholic Church.

Every time one of the ex-Catholics starts telling me what is "wrong" with the Church, I consistently find that there is not something "wrong" with the Church, but there is something wrong with their understanding of what the Church is, and what she teaches.

One of these is, that they don't “need to confess my sins to a man” but that they confess to Jesus through prayer, and receive forgiveness from Him.

I tell them that Catholics also ask for forgiveness in prayer, and that when we go to confession, we are confessing to Jesus through the priest who is physically before us in Christ's place. Christ hears our confession through the priest, and when the priest gives us absolution, he is following the teaching of Christ from Holy Scripture: "Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained." -- John 20,23.

They will usually follow this with, we just don't need to confess to men. I then tell them that since their church follows the Bible so closely, then they confess their sins to each other? I'll get a strange look usually and I quote James 5,16:"Confess therefore your sins one to another: and pray one for another, that you may be saved. For the continual prayer of a just man availeth much."

The worst one I have ever heard though, was where a self described ex-Catholic told a friend of mine that he stopped being Catholic because “Catholics believe that the Pope is Jesus Christ on earth”. I couldn't keep quiet, and told him no, he had it wrong. Catholics believe that the Pope is the Vicar of Christ, he is the visible head of Christ's Church on earth, who acts for and in the place of Christ.

Any way, the thing I keep seeing again and again, seems to answer my question, i.e., “did they ever know the faith?” It is all too apparent that these people were just nominal Catholic's and never understood, nor ever bothered to try to learn about the Church and it's teaching.

I don't want to sound as all knowing, or as “another knows it all convert”, but I am thinking, shouldn't catechesis be a continual, ongoing part of our faith? Not just in the parish, where this should be happening, but, also ideally in the home, and within the community of the faithful as well.

Teaching the faith is like growing a garden. We don't plant the seeds, and then think the job is finished, complete. We plant the seeds, and then we water, fertilize, hoe, weed, and prune, so that we have a garden that grows, becomes stronger, and is fruitful.

After all, we are all called to share the faith, and we all can learn something new as revealed to us by the Holy Spirit as we mature in our faith, and help others to mature in theirs.

Assyrian International News Agency: Christians in Middle East Deserve Better

The following excerpts are from Assyrian International News Agency (AINA.org):

• Since the so-called "Arab Spring," there has been a new Middle East Christian leadership that has emerged with policies that are more coherent, intellectual, and courageous in challenging the status quo and bringing into the open the plight of the Middle East Christians in their countries. This positive leadership has brought their various denominations together and has given new confidence to the local Christians in their countries because they all face similar challenges.
• The plight of the Middle East Christians has also brought The Vatican and Arab and Muslim leaders to the understanding that emptying the Middle East of Christians and the rise of religious fundamentalism does not bode well for their governments or religion, and have initiated national and international conferences in the Middle East and abroad.
• Even westernized Muslim leaders, such as Baroness Sayeeda Warsi (the British government minister for faith and the first Muslim member of British cabinet), called on western governments to do more to protect besieged Christian minorities across the world, particularly in the Holy Land where they are now seen as outsiders.....
• However, European and American leaders seem to have reversed roles regarding the preservation of Middle East Christianity, Christians, their rights, and their existence. While President Vladimir Putin is publicly demanding the safeguard of Syrian and Middle East Christians, the American government is seen as doing the opposite by cooperating with politically-religious-minded political groups, such as in Egypt, the Syrian opposition, or by turning a blind eye to Iraqi Christians' dilemma after invading Iraq.
• Pope Francis, like his predecessors, has been eloquent and outspoken regarding the Middle East Christians. Unfortunately, his message has been dimmed by the western press, who has been more interested in his "liberal" view than in his efforts to preserve the Middle East Christians....

Read more by clicking below:

Assyrian International News Agency: Christians in Middle East Deserve Better

I Am In Need of Your Prayers

Well, today turned out not to be such a good day. I went to work planning on working my 2-10 shift. I went and got my tray ready, snd took it up front so the cashier who was working couid close out her shift and go home.

I had actually gotten there earlier than usual, when I saw the pike of letters for the road sign. The boss had wanted the sign changed when the stock person came in at 4. Since it looked like rain, I decided to go ahead and change the sign before the rain arrived.

Anyway, I had finished changing the sign, and was getting ready to come down off the next to the top rung on the step ladder, when the ladder started falling to the right, tangling my feet in it, and I hit the ground with a solid “thud”.

I twisted my back in the fall, and according to the x-rays, managed to pull the muscles in the lumbar region of my back.

I have known people who hurt their backs before, but I had no idea pulling the muscles in your back could hurt to the point that it makes you dizzy and nauseated. No, I didn't hit my head. If I had hit my head with this old hard head, I wouldn't have gotten hurt. (I said it before anyone else could, so there!)

I will have to be out of work through Monday, when I go back to the doctor. My employer's workmen's comp is taking care of the doctor, emergency, and med needs.

I won't get paid for the day's out (there is no disability insurance), and I can't afford to miss, but have no choice.

So I would greatly appreciate your prayers at this time. Also, I won't be posting to the “Daily Catholic Mass Readings”, “The Pope And Church News”, or “Saint Quote of the Day” blogs for the next couple of days at least. I typed this before taking the pain killers and muscle relaxant's.

Thank you, and God Bless you all!

Yes, Virginia, I Do Have A Blog Roll

Some long time readers and followers of "Faith of the Fathers Blogs" are probably familiar with the items in our sidebars. However, many who only read the blog posts with a feed/news reader or a mobile device (such as an iPhone) never see the sidebar items (which is why you should visit us with a computer occasionally) at all.

In particular, I want to call your attention to the sidebar item (on the right hand side bar) "MY FAVORITE BLOGS (LISTED BY MOST RECENT POST)". This is more or less a blog roll, where I link to some good, solid Catholic blogs and bloggers that you may not be aware of, and would find good reading (when your not here, that is) and good information as well.

The two newest additions are the Catholic apologist Tim Staples, and his blog, appropriately entitled, "Tim Staples", and Father Tim Finigan's blog, "The hermeneutic of continuity". Both are well worth the time to read, as are all the blogs listed there quite frankly..

There are also a lot of well known blogs and bloggers listed here as well as some well known Catholics whom you may not have been aware of as also having blogs.

These include Timothy Cardinal Dolan's "The Gospel In The Digital Age"; Father Robert Barron's "Word On Fire"; Father John Zuhlsdorf's "Fr. Z's Blog" (formerly called "What Does the Prayer Really Say?"); Priests for Life's "Father Frank Pavone's Blog"; Father Juan Velez's (author of "Passion For Truth: The Life of John Henry Newman) blog "Cardinal John Henry Newman"; Jimmy Akin's blog, “Jimmy Akin”; Sofia Guerra's “Always Catholic”; Lisa Graas' “Catholic Bandita”; Taylor Marshall's “Taylor Marshall”; and more than I have time to post about here.

As I said, all have great posts, not just the ones I mentioned here, but all of them that are in "MY FAVORITE BLOGS (LISTED BY MOST RECENT POST)" on the right hand sidebar. Give their stats a boost and visit them all. You won't regret it!