Soul and Sacrament

I nursed both my kids and the La Leche League was a blessing to me when I had my first child. We met monthly (bringing babies with you was the norm). There was no internet to rely on for information. As you read this keep in mind that La Leche League it is NOT IN ANY WAY a religious organization. I had heard of the national group years before my first child was born. The group was founded 1956 by seven Catholic mothers in Chicago. “They chose the Blessed Mother, the New Eve, to be the patroness of their fledgling movement, under the title Nuestra Senora de la Leche y buen parto (“Our Lady of the Milk and Happy Delivery”), a title associated with an ancient Marian shrine in St. Augustine, Florida.” —(https://open.substack.com/pub/kolbecenter/p/la-leche-league?r=5omzc2&utm_medium=ios) In the first 2 years of our marriage my husband and I would often visit St Augustine, Florida, a beautiful, historic coastal town located between Jacksonville and Daytona. It is the site where the ver...

Bert Ghezzi's book THE POWER OF DAILY MASS is a short but very inspiring book. I highly recommend it. Bert Ghezzi interviewed his fellow daily Mass attendees and asked them how daily Mass attendance affects their lives. The interviewees all had different but beautiful perspectives to share. At different times in my life I have attended daily Mass for a few weeks or months at a time. One particular time I had started a new job in a very hostile environment. It was during my first technical writing job where the majority of the employees were ex- or retired Army and Air Force. The employees were vicious and hostile toward each other, on one particar day two employees got into a screaming match and almost came to blows during a team meeting. Nobody seemed to think it was unusual. It got so bad that I’d wake up in the morning dreading the screaming matches and cursing that lay ahead for the day. I became so anxiety-ridden while getting ready for the day that I decided to start atte...

Good morning, and God bless you greatly and keep you safe and healthy during this scary time. I am not on Facebook very much these days. The political chaos of the last year soured social media for me. However, I do still believe that social media is a wonderful forum for sharing our belief in Jesus Christ, the Holy Roman Catholic Church, and the Gospel. I pray you all are well, and that you are making it through this pandemic safely. I will be posting more frequently. I just forget, often am off course with matters of faith these days. Nothing feels normal at this time, and daily mass is a difficult issue for me right now because of the rising covid death rates in recent days. No matter what, I do know that the Holy Spirit is at work, that Jesus lives and is present in the Holy Eucharist. God bless you all! Here's a quote from my blog that gives me joy when I read it. I hope it inspires you too! ".... God offers Himself to you and me in the blessed body and blood. It really i...

This article was originally published at The Coming Home Network at https://chnetwork.org/story/truth-and-true-food-leads-to-peace/ “ Truth and True Food Leads to Peace  Kelli Beaumont June 15, 2020   18 Comments My husband, James, was born and raised Catholic, but I had the good fortune of getting to evangelize him right out of the Catholic Church and turn him into a good Methodist, where we eventually served together as Methodist youth ministers. I believed that his Catholic upbringing lacked correct doctrinal teachings and biblical knowledge, centering instead on faithful Mass attendance and ceremonial practices, without understanding the realities behind them. The incorrect doctrinal teaching he received made my job of separating him from the Catholic Church all the easier. I saved him, so I thought, from a man-made tradition that taught a faithless works theology, fraught with paganism and superstition. He joined me in my Protestant enthusiasm, criticizing the Catholic Ch...

There's a survey being taken of all bishops regarding the Latin Mass that Pope Benedict made 'legal' a few years back. (Read about it here: https://www.lifesitenews.com/blogs/pope-francis-surveys-bishops-worldwide-on-traditional-latin-mass) This survey may mean that the bishops who don't like the use of the Latin Mass may prefer that it be taken away. Many of the present cardinals (and some of the older bishops) were the ones who created the reforms of Vatican II, and they see the new espousal of the Latin Tridentine Mass as a slap in the face of those reforms they worked so hard to create. It is not widely known that those Vatican II Mass reforms were the result of an ecumenical effort that included the input of Protestant clergy in the creation of the new Mass. It was supposed to bring the Catholic Church forward into the future and modernity, and it was also supposed to bridge the Protestant-Catholic gap by bringing us closer to our Protestant brethren. The results o...

“Eventually, in that chapel, deep in my heart, I knew. Sister Rose was right. God offers Himself to you and me in the blessed body and blood. It really is true. So I quietly prayed, “Lord, forgive my unbelief.” This sacrament really is what Jesus said it is. The real presence of Jesus among us. It all rides on the Eucharist. The Eucharist is our family meal. It is the gift of God. Jesus comes to us and feeds us with Himself in the elements. Our worship focuses on the altar because that is how and where Jesus presents Himself to us. The Eucharist also binds us together. Without the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, we merely have our own ideas rather than true unity. In the Eucharist, Jesus fuels and empowers His Church. Everything rides on the Eucharist. Very simply, God changed my heart. ‘This house will take care of you. Everything you need is in this house.’” — Allen Hunt, from his book, Confessions of a Megachurch Pastor

THIS WEEK’S PERSON OF FAITH: ROBERT CARDINAL SARAH I recently became aware of Robert Cardinal Sarah because I bought a book written by him. The book is called The Power of Silence: Against the Dictatorship of Noise. I find the topic interesting because I feel like my life is filled with voices and noise (self-inflicted) as I am a habitual tv-watcher, music-listener, video-watcher, etc. Lately I have realized that I need to actually budget some time to think, pray, and reflect in silence. I am planning to empty out my walk-in closet and create a quiet space there. Hubby is willing (reluctantly at first) to share his closet with me. Have you heard of Robert Cardinal Sarah? He has very strong opinions on how to promote the belief in the Eucharist as the true body and blood of Jesus Christ. He also believes we should receive the Eucharist while kneeling and on the tongue. He espouses a return to a more sacred, reverent attitude toward our church, worship, and the Eucharist. Some people ...

I’d be interested to know if there are any Catholic topics you’d like to read about here in my blog. I tend to love Catholic convert stories, but I realize I haven’t done much actual writing in quite a while. If there are any Catholic topics you’d like to read about, leave a comment for me or send me an email at rosiec6984@gmail.com. Have a beautiful, blessed day!! Rosie

If you’ve never heard of Jennifer Fulwiler, you will enjoy getting to know about her. She is a former atheist (raised atheist from birth), and a convert to Catholicism. She has a radio show on the Sirius XM Catholic channel 129. She is a standup comedian currently on tour, and she and her husband have 6 children.  She is the author of a bestselling memoir called “Something Other Than God.” She also wrote “One Beautiful Dream: The Rolicking Tale of Family Chaos,  Personal Passions, and Saying Yes to Them Both.” She and her husband live in Austin, Texas, with their six children. Today I started reading her memoir, Something Other Than God. I’ll keep you posted on my progress. Check out Jennifer’s conversion story on YouTube.

Wow. This conversion story was definitely an eye opener. The Journey Home tv show continues to amaze me. Definitely worth watching!

https://chnetwork.org/2011/06/07/the-verses-i-never-saw-marcus-grodi/

From this bishop’s homily for his father’s funeral mass....”Because, you see, the reception of the Eucharist, that intimate connection with Jesus, was at the very center of his relationship with God.” Eucharist at center of my father’s faith life - Arkansas Catholic - October 3, 2019 : Eucharist at center of my father’s faith life - Arkansas Catholic - October 3, 2019

These are in no particular order. I'm just listing them as they come to mind. 1. The sacredness of the Holy Mass and the scriptural basis for Transubstantiation.  Basically, we should have attended daily Mass in school as was the practice when my father's generation was in Catholic school. By the time I started Catholic school in the early 70's, we attended Mass once a week. I'm not complaining. Weekly Mass was wonderful. I'm grateful that I was able to attend weekly Mass with my fellow students. It was important to me then and is even more so now. Catholic schooling impressed that on my heart. But we should have attended daily Mass. The Mass and the Eucharist in the Mass is the sole source and summit of the Catholic faith. By the time I got to high school, Mass was optional. We had all-school masses a handful of times in the school year. The rest of the time we were allowed the option of attending Mass if we had an open mod (open study hall) during Mass time, wh...

I highly recommend this book. At the beginning of the new Millenium, I discovered a whole new world of Catholic teaching and wonderful books written by the new breed of Catholics - former Protestant clergy who became Catholic converts. My experience of 15 years worshipping in the Assembly of God churches had led me to believe that unhappy Catholics seeking a deeper relationship with Jesus routinely LEFT THE CATHOLIC CHURCH in order to be fulfilled spiritually. I remember Wednesday evening church services at the AoG churches where it was a lighter service, more open to fellowship, sharing, and "witnessing." Much of what was shared and witnessed was from former Catholics who passionately shared their disappointment in Catholicism and how they had "left the Catholic church and became real Christians." I personally had never, ever met a Protestant-turned-Catholic convert in my Catholic life. I assumed it just didn't happen. Pastor Jim Batts, at our church, Pentecos...