CATHOLIC PRESENCE

Pray for the Spiritual Renewal Conference this weekend

2007-02-22T21:52:00.000-08:00

The Sacramento Diocese will be holding its yearly conference at the end of this month. Fr. John Capuci is one of the featured speaker. See the information below..

Come, Follow Me — John 4:19

2 0 0 7 S A C R A M E N T O D I O C E S E

February 24 and 25

St. James Memorial Center

Corner of 14th and B Streets, Davis

Speakers:

Fr. John Capuci - Director of the Center of Jesus the Lord, a Catholic Charismatic Retreat Center, New Orleans, Louisiana

Ronda Chervin- Retired professor of philosophy and theology at Loyola Marymount University Author of fifty books on Catholic topics

James O’Connell & Word of Life Music Ministry

Pre-registration $35 ($40 at door) Youth (13–18) $8

No one will be turned away due to lack of funds.

Please make checks payable to SDCCR Conference 2007 and mail check, registration form and list of additional names to:

SDCCR /Mike Doneen, 2645 Belmont Dr., Davis, CA 95616

Name

Address City State ZIP

Phone E-mail

Special Needs:

Number of Adults ___ x $35 = $_____ Number of Youths ___ x $8 = $_____

Please use this to help a brother or sister attend: $_____

Total enclosed $______________

For more Information:

Anderson (530) 357.2692

Davis (530) 756.1058

Sacramento (916) 489.0261

Vacaville (707) 448.5965

Sponsored by the

Sacramento Diocese - Catholic Charismatic Renewal

Directions to St. James Memorial Center:

From Sacramento: Take I-80 WEST. Exit and turn right onto Mace Blvd. The name of the street will become E. Covell Blvd. Turn left on F St. Turn right on 14th St. Turn left onto B St.

From San Francisco: Take I-80 EAST. Merge onto CA-113 N toward Woodland. Take the Russell Blvd. exit right toward Davis. Turn left onto B St.

From North I-5, Woodland: Take CA-113 S toward Davis. Take the Covell Blvd. exit toward Road 31. Turn left onto W. Covell Blvd. Turn right onto Oak Ave. Turn left onto W 14th St. Turn right onto B St.

Blog - New Pentecost Catholic Ministries

Web - Catholic Charismatic Center

Blog - Catholic Presence

OTHER NEWS

2007-02-22T21:23:00.000-08:00



-- Cheney slams Iraq plan advocated by Dems (AP)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/
0,,-6431564,00.html
-- U.N. atomic report may expose Iran to wider
sanctions (Reuters)
http://today.reuters.com/News/newsArticle.
aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2007-02-22T080432Z_01_
HAF126411_RTRUKOC_0_US-IRAN-NUCLEAR1.xml&WTmodLoc
=NewsHome-C1-topNews-4

-- Obama, Clinton rivalry flares over donor (AP)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/
article/2007/02/22/AR2007022200129.html

-- Vermont legislature preparing for emotional
assisted suicide debate
(AP)
http://www.boston.com/news/local/vermont/articles
/2007/02/21/legislature_preparing_for_emotional
_assisted_suicide_debate

-- California assisted suicide bill protested
outside assemblywoman's office (Eureka Reporter)
http://www.eurekareporter.com/ArticleDisplay.
aspx?ArticleID=20774
-- How to contact your senators (U.S. Senate)
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_
information/senators_cfm.cfm
-- How to contact your congressman (U.S. House of
Representatives)
http://www.house.gov/writerep

Subscribe to "Headlines" at:
Jeff Ziegler  -  ziegleriti@yahoo.com
Thank you to Jeff Ziegler and his labor of love
in Christ!

NTERNATIONAL RELIGION NEWS, 2-19-07

2007-02-19T15:16:00.000-08:00

The Hall of Audiences

-- Recent papal audiences (VIS)
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/vis/
dinamiche/e1_en.htm
-- Congress of Pontifical Academy for Life to be presented Tuesday (VIS)
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/vis/
dinamiche/e0_en.htm
-- New bishop: India (VIS)
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/vis/
dinamiche/e2_en.htm
-- Church stance on technology affirms human dignity, Cardinal Levada
says (CNS) http://www.catholicnews.com/data/
stories/cns/0700943.htm
-- New head of clergy congregation issues defense of priestly celibacy
(CNS) http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/
cns/0700925.htm
-- CNA coverage http://www.theindiancatholic.com/
newsread.asp?nid=6098
-- Churches back plan to unite under pope (Times of London)
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/
article1403702.ece
-- Pope attacks legislative "lobbies" hurting family (Reuters)
http://today.reuters.com/News/newsArticle.aspx?
type=topNews&storyID=2007-02-17T181222Z_01_
L17155910_RTRUKOC_0_US-POPE-MARRIAGE.xml&
WTmodLoc=NewsHome-C1-topNews-5

-- Vatican takes steps to control overcrowding (New York Times)
http://travel.nytimes.com/2007/02/18/travel/
18journeys.html
-- Church-state showdown: Italian bill proposes rights for unwed couples
(CNS) http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/
cns/0700931.htm
--Uganda: Archbishop begs for international action to save shaky
cease-fire deal (CIS for Africa)
http://allafrica.com/stories/200702160946.html
-- Sudanese bishop blames politics for delay in implementing peace (CNS)
http://www.theindiancatholic.com/newsread.asp
?nid=6098
-- Edmonton archdiocese plans for flu pandemic; guidelines reveal
Communion restrictions (CCN)
http://www.catholic.org/international/international_
story.php?id=23071
-- London Catholic churches see boost in illegal immigrants, report says
(CNS) http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/
cns/0700923.htm
-- Christian movements plan meeting to show European churches have life
(CNS) http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/
cns/0700930.htm
-- Together for Europe 2007
http://www.miteinander-wie-sonst.de/_en/
miteinander_2007.html
-- How a bar bouncer turned to the road to the priesthood (Montreal
Gazette)
http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.
html?id=bc9f84f7-3af8-4c50-947e-aa969d7e3689&k
=53356

-- In gay dispute, Anglican leader urges humility (AP)
http://www.sptimes.com/2007/02/19/Worldandnation
/In_gay_dispute__Angli.shtml

-- Seven Anglican clerics snub U.S. bishop (Los Angeles Times)
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/
la-fg-anglican17feb17,1,3394400.story?coll=la-news-
a_section

-- Setback for church conservatives (BBC)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6367831.stm
-- Chiapas: Evangelicals exploit religious violence for propaganda
(World War 4 Report) http://www.ww4report.com
/node/3182
-- Religious faith may help stroke victims: study (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/id
USN1231323120070215
-- 49th International Eucharistic Congress: Quebec City 2008
http://www.cei2008.ca/pages-en/index.htm
-- World Youth Day 2008: Sydney http://www.
wyd2008.org
-- Recent news photos: papacy and the Vatican (Yahoo)
http://news.yahoo.com/photos/ss/events/wl/
033002pope

I took the vows of fast and silence . . .

2007-02-16T11:17:00.000-08:00

"I took the vows of fast and silence for the sake of the role . . ."

Malgorzata Karnaszewska talks to Piotr Adamczyk, actor playing the main role in the film 'Story of Karol - Pope who remained a man'.

Malgorzata Karnaszewska: - How would you summarise the idea of the film about John Paul II?

Piotr Adamczyk: - I will repeat what Giacomo Battiato said, 'This film could be entitled 'Story of Karol -Pope of the suffering'. The film shows how the Pope reached out to the victims of conflicts, wars... How close to ordinary people he was. This is not only a report of his pontificate. I hope that this film will remind us of the resolutions, vows which we took at the moment of the death of John Pal II. I hope it will make us recollect those emotions. The recipe for a better world is simple and the Holy Father passed it to us...

- Did you take any vows then?

- Yes, like all people did.

- What was the most important thing for you while working on the film about the Pope?

- To continue the idea we had while shooting the first part: we wanted to make a portrait of an extraordinary man and his personality - without imitating or copying the Holy Father, but interpreting his figure. But it was much difficult to do in the second part of the film than the first one.

- Why?

- Playing young Karol Wojtyla I had some kind of freedom. Only a few pictures of that period were preserved, there were almost no documents. Playing the role of John Paul II I knew people would compare me to him. However, it is impossible to play this character. That's why we did not mean to make another documentary. But we rather wanted to paint a portrait that would remind us of the Holy Father. To show emotions, feelings, to touch his extraordinary personality. READ More from Catholic Sunday Weekly

Wednesday - Feb. 14, 2007

2007-02-14T16:44:00.000-08:00

SACRED LITURGY

-- Today is the memorial of St. Cyril (d. 869), monk, and St. Methodius (d. 885), bishop, Apostles of the Slavs, co-patrons of Europe, patrons of the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
http://www.newadvent.org/
cathen/04592a.htm

-- Pope Leo XIII, Encyclical on Saints Cyril and Methodius (Grande Munus, 1880).
http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/leo_xiii/
encyclicals/documents/hf_l-xiii_enc_30091880_
grande-munus_en.html

-- Pope John Paul II, Encyclical epistle commemorating the eleventh centenary of the evangelizing work of Saints Cyril and Methodius (Slavorum Apostoli, 1985).
http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/
encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_19850602_
slavorum-apostoli_en.html

-- Today's readings at Mass: Gn. 8:6-13, 20-22; Ps. 116:12-15, 18-19;
Mk. 8:22-26. http://www.usccb.org/nab/021407.
shtml
-- Where the memorial is kept with special devotion, Acts 13:46-49 and Lk. 10:1-9 may instead be read.
-- Icon of SS. Cyril and Methodius.
http://www.macedoniainfo.com/CyrillMethodius.jpg
-- Pope Benedict XVI's prayer intentions for February: that the goods of the earth, given by God for all people, may be used wisely and according to criteria of justice and solidarity (general intention); that the fight against diseases and epidemics in the Third World may find, in the spirit of solidarity, ever more generous collaboration on the part of the governments of all nations (mission intention).
http://www.apostlesofprayer.org

Subscribe to "Headlines" at:
Jeff Ziegler - ziegleriti@yahoo.com
Thank you to Jeff Ziegler and his labor of love in Christ!

Tuesday, February 13, 2007 -

2007-02-13T18:30:00.000-08:00

SACRED LITURGY

-- Today is Tuesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time.
-- Today's readings at Mass: Gn. 6:5-8, 7:1-5, 10; Ps. 29:1a, 2, 3ac-4,
3b, 9b-10; Mk. 8:14-21.
http://www.usccb.org/nab/021307.shtml
-- Sassetta, "The Last Supper" (1423).
http://www.wga.hu/html/s/sassetta/eucharis/
4lastsup.html
-- Pope Benedict XVI's prayer intentions for February:that the goods of
the earth, given by God for all people, may be used wisely and according to criteria of justice and solidarity (general intention); that the fight against diseases and epidemics in the Third World may find, in the spirit of solidarity, ever more generous collaboration on the part of the governments of all nations (mission intention).
http://www.apostlesofprayer.org

INTERNATIONAL RELIGION NEWS

-- Pope Benedict: Sunday Angelus address (VIS)
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/vis/
dinamiche/a4_en.htm
-- Pope's comments for the World Day of the Sick (VIS)
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/vis/
dinamiche/a5_en.htm
-- Pope addresses Costa Rican ambassador (VIS)
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/vis/
dinamiche/a0_en.htm
-- Pope addresses French Academy, recalls Sakharov (VIS)
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/vis/
dinamiche/a1_en.htm
-- Pope addresses volunteer groups (VIS)
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/vis/
dinamiche/a2_en.htm
-- Recent papal audiences (VIS)
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/vis/
dinamiche/a7_en.htm
-- Annual Vatican statistical yearbook released (VIS)
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/vis/
dinamiche/a6_en.htm
-- New bishops: Cuba, Nepal, India (VIS)
http://212.77.1.245/news_services/press/vis/
dinamiche/a3_en.htm
-- Pope: Weak are at mercy of others when laws not based on morality
(CNS) http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/
cns/0700823.htm
-- Pope says living in society means respecting others' rights, beliefs
(CNS) http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/
cns/0700825.htm
-- Pope says life will be judged on acts of charity toward others (CNS)
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/
cns/0700826.htm
-- Pope hits out at new "marriage, Italian style" (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/
idUSL1288395520070212
-- Vatican stats confirm growth of Church, especially in Africa, Asia
(CNS) http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/
cns/0700822.htm
-- New head of Syro-Malankara Catholic Church elected (CBCI)
http://www.konkaniworld.com/news/index.asp?id=1744
-- Sex cases prompt sale of bishop's home (London Free Press)
http://lfpress.ca/newsstand/News/Local/2007/
02/13/3605832-sun.html
-- Australian bishop reiterates call for release of U.S.-held prisoner
(CNS) http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/
cns/0700842.htm
-- Bishop slams kissing on the streets (Manila Standard Today)
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=
police3_feb13_2007
-- Enough is enough, Anglicans who want to bar colleagues are told
(Ekklesia)
http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/content/news_syndication/
article_070213anglican.shtml

-- Israel approves work at holy site, scene of clashes (New York Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/12/world/
middleeast/12israel.html
-- Muslim women don't have to wear veils: Queen Rania (AFP)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070209/wl_mideast_
afp/jordanreligionislam_070209114132

-- 49th International Eucharistic Congress: Quebec City 2008
http://www.cei2008.ca/pages-en/index.htm
-- World Youth Day 2008: Sydney
http://www.wyd2008.org
-- Recent news photos: papacy and the Vatican (Yahoo)
http://news.yahoo.com/photos/ss/events/
wl/033002pope

AMERICAN RELIGION NEWS - 2-8-07

2007-02-08T10:10:00.000-08:00

St. Joseph's symbol

-- U.S. bishops call for moral focus on global climate change; new
report demands urgent attention (USCCB)
http://www.usccb.org/comm/archives/
2007/07-029.shtml
-- Radio retreats in English, Spanish offered by Catholic Communication
Campaign (USCCB) http://www.usccb.org/
comm/archives/2007/07-028.shtml
-- Sociologists see strong identity, less commitment in young Catholics
(CNS) http://www.usccb.org/comm/
archives/2007/07-029.shtml
-- Cardinal George: Religious dialogue (Catholic New World)
http://www.catholicnewworld.com/cnw/issue/
cardinal.html
-- More clergy abuse files turn up in Fort Worth (Dallas Morning News)
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/
dn/religion/stories/020807dnmetfwdiocese.
13fafa9.html

-- Savannah diocese ranked second best in U.S. (Savannah Morning News)
http://www.savannahnow.com/node/224513
-- Sidebars of New York: Late CNS correspondent's memoirs published
(CNS) http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/
cns/0700748.htm
-- U.S. evangelicals eye renewed domestic drive (Reuters)
http://today.reuters.com/News/newsArticle.aspx?
type=domesticNews&storyID=2007-02-07T170235Z
_01_N07411454_RTRUKOC_0_US-USA-
EVANGELICALS-HISPANIC.xml&WTmodLoc=
USNewsHome_C1_%5BFeed%5D-9

-- Ousted pastor "completely heterosexual" (New York Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/07/us/07
haggard.html
-- Ted Haggard's next career (Slate)
http://www.slate.com/id/2159156/entry/0
-- Michael Pakaluk: The case for large families (Boston Pilot)
http://www.thebostonpilot.com/articleopinion.
asp?ID=4085
-- Dale O'Leary: Commercial education (Boston Pilot)
http://www.thebostonpilot.com/articleopinion.
asp?ID=4084
-- Film reviews (USCCB)
http://www.usccb.org/movies/index.shtml

Subscribe to "Headlines" at:
Jeff Ziegler
Thank you to Jeff Ziegler and his labor of love in Christ!

Come, Follow Me — John 4:19 - Renewal Conference

2007-02-07T23:51:00.000-08:00

The Sacramento Diocese will be holding its yearly conference at the end of this month. Fr. John Capuci is one of the featured speaker. See the information below..

Come, Follow Me — John 4:19

2 0 0 7 S A C R A M E N T O D I O C E S E

February 24 and 25

St. James Memorial Center

Corner of 14th and B Streets, Davis

Speakers:

Fr. John Capuci - Director of the Center of Jesus the Lord, a Catholic Charismatic Retreat Center, New Orleans, Louisiana

Ronda Chervin- Retired professor of philosophy and theology at Loyola Marymount University Author of fifty books on Catholic topics

James O’Connell & Word of Life Music Ministry

Pre-registration $35 ($40 at door) Youth (13–18) $8

No one will be turned away due to lack of funds.

Please make checks payable to SDCCR Conference 2007 and mail check, registration form and list of additional names to:

SDCCR /Mike Doneen, 2645 Belmont Dr., Davis, CA 95616

Name

Address City State ZIP

Phone E-mail

Special Needs:

Number of Adults ___ x $35 = $_____ Number of Youths ___ x $8 = $_____

Please use this to help a brother or sister attend: $_____

Total enclosed $______________

For more Information:

Anderson (530) 357.2692

Davis (530) 756.1058

Sacramento (916) 489.0261

Vacaville (707) 448.5965

Sponsored by the

Sacramento Diocese - Catholic Charismatic Renewal

Directions to St. James Memorial Center:

From Sacramento: Take I-80 WEST. Exit and turn right onto Mace Blvd. The name of the street will become E. Covell Blvd. Turn left on F St. Turn right on 14th St. Turn left onto B St.

From San Francisco: Take I-80 EAST. Merge onto CA-113 N toward Woodland. Take the Russell Blvd. exit right toward Davis. Turn left onto B St.

Blog - New Pentecost Catholic Ministries

Web - Catholic Charismatic Center

Blog - Catholic Presence

AMERICAN RELIGION NEWS

2007-02-07T23:33:00.000-08:00

St. Joseph symbol

-- Cardinal O'Malley: Civilization of love or culture of death (Boston
Pilot) http://www.thebostonpilot.com/articleopinion
.asp?ID=4079
-- Fans upset that retired bishop not given OK to talk here (Tucson
Citizen) http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/local/
41152.php
-- Letter criticizes diocese's treatment of retired bishop (Arizona
Daily Star) http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/168107
-- Retired priest recalls small "club" of priests in Congress (CNS)
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/
0700725.htm
-- Judge orders release of files on molester priest (Los Angeles Times)
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/
la-me-priest7feb07,1,6794288.story?coll=la-
headlines-pe-california

-- Parishioners look to Massachusetts high court to set policy on church
assets (South Coast Today)
http://www.southcoasttoday.com/daily/02-07/
02-07-07/01state-region.htm
-- Catholic Charities USA: President's budget misses mark on helping to
reduce poverty in America (Catholic Charities USA)
http://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/news/content_
displays.cfm?fuseaction=display_document&id
=917&location=3

-- Catholic Charities USA announces broad campaign to cut the U.S.
poverty rate in half by 2020 (Catholic Charities USA)
http://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/news/content_
displays.cfm?fuseaction=display_document&id=
914&location=3

-- Cardinal appoints 19th rector of St. John's Seminary (Boston Pilot)
http://www.thebostonpilot.com/article.asp?ID=4087
-- TV station continues to investigate a fugitive priest (CBS13
Sacramento) http://cbs13.com/topstories/local_story
_038010157.html
-- Six schools to close in Camden diocese (Philadelphia Inquirer)
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/local/
states/new_jersey/16638879.htm

-- Episcopalians spend forty days praying about parish's future (The
Tennessean)
http://tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/
20070207/NEWS06/702070446/1023/NEWS

-- A fighter for peace, justice dies at 76 (Kansas City Star)
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/
local/16638952.htm
-- Haggard now "completely heterosexual" (AP)
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2852851
-- Muslim liquor store owners face criticism (NPR)
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?
storyId=7217584
-- Dalai Lama gets prof's chair at Emory (AP)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-
6395721,00.html
-- Film reviews (USCCB) http://www.usccb.org/
movies/index.shtml

Subscribe to "Headlines" at:
Jeff Ziegler
Thank you to Jeff Ziegler and his labor of love in Christ!

Intercessory Call for Pope Benedict XVI’s mission to Turkey

2006-11-13T20:08:00.000-08:00

Michael - the Guardian Angel

Dear friend in Christ,

You can help further God's plan for unity among Christians, and peace with the Muslim world by praying for Pope Benedict XVI as he travels to the nation of Turkey later this month. It is not a pastoral visit to Catholic faithful, but a mission for unity with the Orthodox Churches and a challenge to dialogue with the Muslim world. Because there is so much at stake in this mission at this moment of history there needs to be a strong and meaningful support of prayer for the Pope. Are you willing to take up the challenge?

We invite you to join a communion of intercessors around the world on November 28-29 that the power of God will be manifested in the actions and words of Pope Benedict XVI. We will pray that God bring fruit from ecumenical dialogue, Christian unity is established and that God will put in order Islamic-Christian relations. We will intercede for an infusion of the Holy Spirit to displace all infidelity and error and place the Name of Jesus above, under and through the nations. Please - read more & "pray the news"

“God or the Girl”

2006-11-13T20:06:00.000-08:00

What do you do when someone exercises undue influence over you that has caused spiritual damage? What do you do when we suspect we have caused such damage to another? The answer is simple: tend to your boundaries. The word of God shows us how.

Part 1

“God or the Girl”

Recently a “Catholic Reality TV” series called “God or the Girl” aired on the A&E Channel. It showed the process of four young men who were discerning the call to the priesthood. As it turned out, one out of the four decided to enter the seminary. What was disturbing to me was that in two of the cases, I sensed a violation of spiritual boundaries on the part of two imprudent priests; the third by a domineering mother.

In one case, the priest “spiritual director” told the young impressionable man that in order to discern, he would have to literally carry a heavy cross many miles to another town. He suffered miserably, but it didn't bring him any closer to a decision. The other priest invited the second young man to stay in the rectory with him and serve in the parish. His aim was to get the upper hand over influences of the man’s girl friend. When the young man finally told the priest he sensed the call of God to the married life, the priest reacted by saying that it “was a dagger in his heart!” The third could scarcely talk with his mother without her bringing up the topic of the priesthood. The forth man, upon hearing the gentle yet voice of God through a challenging invitation, journeyed in faith to Guatemala where he experienced the love of God through a holy missionary priest in the most beautiful and deep way. This empowered him to freely give himself to the calling.

After reflecting, I see that the spiritual boundaries of the first three young men were being violated by the priests and the mother. They overstepped healthy boundaries by manipulating these men with their agendas and desires. Thank God they didn't enter the seminary! And thank God for the fourth who freely and joyfully gave himself to God's service in the ordained ministry.

Healthy spiritual boundaries are a means of communion and grace read more...

The Birthing Process of Intercessory Prayer

2006-11-13T19:59:00.000-08:00

Using the charisms of the Holy Spirit for prayer

By Maryellen Grewer

My heart wept with love for Sandy as I started to pray for God’s healing over her life. Along with some serious health issues, she alternately did not believe in God or had anger towards him for the circumstances of her life. There was a deep groaning which God meant for me to hear and pray for, but I had mistaken it at first.

The Apostle Paul says, “We know that all creation is groaning in labor pains even until now; and not only that, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, we also groan within ourselves as we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies” (Rom. 8:30 ).

Intercessors are called to pray for what is on the heart of God:
1. For all creation;
2. For redemption for ourselves and others

It is the extension of Christ’s Redemption that causes the intensity of this groaning. As intercessors we must attend to this groaning. We can get mislead and off-track by confusing the true groaning with our own angst, if we do not also attend to the gifts of the Holy Spirit in prayer. read more...

Do Christian students have a prayer in the classroom?

2006-10-15T20:44:00.000-07:00

For profs and students, religious revival in academia can be a heavy cross to bear. ~ BY LUCAS KWONG

I feel as if I’m drowning in an intellectual maelstrom, a vortex from which there is no release.” Although way more emo than I’d care to admit, that journal excerpt about my first week of Directed Studies indicates my inability to cope with the baptism-by-fire I would undergo in DS with respect to my faith. When faced with the question of the Bible’s historical accuracy in Literature, I chuckled nervously; when faced with Hume’s reasonable atheism, I scratched my head and doodled in my notebook. Even texts sympathetic to my belief seemed to verify that Christianity was a quaint historical artifact rather than a living, breathing, intellectually plausible system of belief.

Much to my parents’ relief, I was still praising the Lord and chewing on Communion wafers at the year’s end. Had I matriculated in 1999, academics might have spurred me into agnosticism; in 2003, though, a nascent network of students and faculty existed to convince me that my belief was worth preserving, even at Yale. And though I didn’t know it at the time, I had entered college amidst a groundswell of post-9/11 academic religious interest. That resurgence coincided with a rapidly growing community of Ivy-League Christians who take their cues from the few professors they know to be believers. As a result Christianity—once the pariah of modern intellectualism—is slowly reinventing itself as a viable academic perspective on campus. What ramifications this has for the 21st-century secular classroom is a disputed question, but one thing is sure: If you listen closely, you can hear Bertrand Russell turning in his grave.

My decision to continue believing in a living God—despite Nietzsche’s pronouncements to the contrary—was largely due to the efforts of a faith community which, after an era of marginalization by the secular establishment, is exploding on Ivy League campuses. Moreover, Yale appears to be leading the pack with respect to this trend. According to statistics cited by the Christian Post, an online Christian news outlet, membership in fellowships such as Campus Crusade for Christ has, over the past 20 years, increased by 163 percent at Brown, 500 percent at Harvard—and 700 percent at Yale. Such growth stems from many factors—most notably, the influx of Asian-American students, many with deeply Christian roots in Korea and China, as well as the fact that evangelicals have climbed the socioeconomic ladder over the past 30 years, a trend which has empowered them to pay the high cost of an Ivy League education.

The Christian population explosion has coincided with an unprecedented revival of intellectual interest in religion after decades of indifference. While there were only six seniors majoring in religious studies at Yale as recently as 1999, that number has since ballooned to 30. After a recent internal curriculum review, Harvard, traditionally known for being more secular than Yale, is considering requiring a course in religion towards the undergraduate degree.

Along with virtually every other professor interviewed, Philosophy Professor John Hare, whose “Philosophy of Religion” class routinely reaches maximum capacity, cited the events of Sept. 11, 2001, as a trigger for this seismic shift in attitude. “It’s clear now how much is at stake for our world with regard to these religious questions,” Hare said. The secularist concept that faith and reason are mutually exclusive certainly seems to be on the way out. “Back in the ’80s, and even into the early ’90s, people would regularly come up to me and ask why we were teaching religion in university,” said Carlos Eire, chair of the religious studies department. “No one asks that any more.”

CAIO CAMARGO/YH

Peter Forrest, MC ’05, leads a discussion group for Christian students in the Directed Studies program.

But although gods and rituals seem inescapable in today’s cultural climate, Yale’s growing ranks of Christian students harbor an uneasy feeling that their faith is still not getting a fair deal in the classroom. “Our culture thinks it knows Christianity, whereas Buddhism and Islam still retain an air of mystery,” Jason Chu, MC ’08, said. Peter Forrest, MC ’05, an intern for Yale Students for Christ, added, “Christianity is still seen as the winner, and it’s always okay to bash the winners.” Forrest related a story from his own experience as a freshman in Directed Studies: During a discussion of Milton, he recalls, one literature professor casually dismissed Puritanism as “an idiotic set of beliefs.” At a college where architecture, iconography, and Latin mottos serve as daily reminders of its Christian heritage, the idea that Christianity is still the dominant ideology on campus may be hard to shake.

Considering that I’m still mildly traumatized from a Directed Studies lecture in which I was told that the book of Job was a veiled advertisement for atheism—a point I eloquently and maturely refuted by writing “bullshit!” throughout my lecture notes—I was pleased to hear last year that a group of DS veterans had organized a Christian discussion group for the program. Each week, a rotating collection of ex-DS upperclassmen—including Forrest and Chu—meet with currently enrolled freshmen to discuss their readings from a Christian perspective. The group, which held its first meeting of the year on Wed., Oct. 4, is intended to provide a supplement to classroom interpretations of Directed Studies texts—many of which are rooted in the Christian tradition.

While Christians frequently gather to talk about their life experiences, the DS discussion group is intended to be a little more focused than group therapy. At the meeting on Wednesday, the group discussed possible ways of structuring the discussion to avoid tangents unrelated to the material: they could either dissect one particular author’s viewpoint in light of Christian theology, or choose a theme with which to compare Christian and non-Christian ways of thinking (paradigms of heroism in Greek and Hebrew literature, for example.) Group members are wary of being perceived as a indoctrinators trying to keep freshmen from the unforgivable sin of thinking for themselves. Instead, they provide a very different vision of their purpose. “People assume that what one gets in Yale classes is an unbiased exploration,” said Forrest, who leads the discussion group. “That’s not true. Classes like DS offer a good but flawed take on the big questions. We’re trying to show that our beliefs can be preserved in the face of that.”

Chu added that a crucial goal of the DS discussion group is to raise questions among fellow believers, rather than simply project answers onto a text. “A lot of texts subtly impose a worldview on you, which you can passively buy into if you’re not actively thinking about what the text is saying. We’re asking ‘Should I accept this evaluation of the truth? How does this square with what I believe?’”

But not much philosophizing took place at the preliminary meeting, which only one freshman attended; instead, the group debated whether to ask non-Christians to come. David Lee, JE ’10, was initially uneasy about diluting the essence of the group. “It’s good to have a group where we can confirm each other and get our doubts out in the open,” he said. “What happens if a lot of non-Christians show up and cause Christians to start doubting their faith?” Recalling my own experience in Directed Studies, I could sympathize with Lee’s anxieties. Without the kind of support network offered by a discussion group, I spent a week lost in spiritual crisis, a kind of lethargic unease unique to anyone who has ever had to question their basic assumptions about the universe. Nonetheless, Forrest countered that the group doesn’t need to exclude non-believers in order to preserve its mission. He pointed out that non-believers who “ask hard questions” can only heighten the level of discourse. Ultimately, the group decided to remain open to non-Christians, while staying true to its unique mission.

Studying Aristotle with a Bible in one hand is just one example of how a Christian community is no longer content to quietly survive amidst secular hostility, but rather seeks to establish a flourishing presence in the classroom. Since 2002, St. Thomas More has annually invited nationally-recognized Catholic intellectuals in law, culture, and science to spend a day on campus lecturing and meeting with students. The United Church of Westville, a church I regularly attend, last year invited Hare to deliver a sermon on the role of the Christian scholar in the university. Meanwhile, Yale Students for Christ regularly hosts discussion panels and weekend retreats featuring such Christian academics as Greg Ganssle, a longtime member of the Directed Studies faculty. Indeed, professors known for straddling faith and reason are necessary models in an environment where, despite a renewed openness to religious discussion, Christians are still often left feeliing that they have something to prove.

As religion once again becomes a central concern for scholars across the nation, and Christian students and professors alike seek to recover their faith’s tarnished intellectual reputation, the consequences of Christian belief in the classroom—for certain departments, at least—are more visible than ever. Depending on the discipline, however, those consequences can take radically different forms, ranging from a heightened level of inquiry to complete misunderstanding between teacher and pupil.

It is no secret that science and religion do not always see eye to eye. However, Chemistry Professor Michael McBride said that he has never faced ridicule for his Christian beliefs: “People judge me on the basis of my science and teaching.” McBride, who teaches a Sunday School course on science and the Bible at Whitney Ave’s First Presbyterian Church, said that his faith informs his scientific research because as it impels him to study what he sees as the works of God’s hands. “It takes nothing away from the wonder of creation to understand how it works,” McBride said. For him, the subject of creationism inspires considerably less wonder: “It’s nonsense, and gives religion a bad name to people who think.” In McBride’s opinion, Christians should abandon creationism and focus on environmental care, or what he calls “the stewardship of creation.”

In the philosophy department, religion obviously forms an integral part of the curriculum: Christianity has a natural place amidst the clamor of ideas and theories. But although Hare was forthright with regard to his own personal beliefs—“I believe a life in Christ is deeply desirable”—he emphasized that, for a Christian professor, such faith must be balanced by objectivity at the podium: “I have to be fair to both sides, and not give all the good arguments to my side and the bad ones to the other.” As for Christian students of philosophy, the archetypal desire to know the truth is particularly pressing. Philosophy professor Shelly Kagan, himself a Jew, observed that Christian philosophers feel a special obligation to reconcile their beliefs with their studies in a way that members of other faiths might not share. “Judaism does not give central place to having some officially sanctioned set of beliefs—dogma—in the way that most versions of Christianity do,” Kagan said. “I imagine that threats [to belief] are perceived more commonly among Christians than among Jews.”

For students of literature, the academic notion of what constitutes a good piece of prose comes into direct conflict with the virtues prized by the booming Christian fiction industry. John Crowley, who teaches creative writing, was raised in a Catholic home, but “walked away from the faith without really examining it.” As a result, Crowley is sympathetic to Christian students, but is frustrated that the popularity of Christian thrillers like Left Behind might give those students an incentive to disregard his instruction. “I’ve had students who make God do all kinds of things that are convenient to the plot of their stories,” Crowley said. “But if I tell my students that they’re violating the rules of good fiction, they can just join the ranks of Christian authors who do it all the time, and whose audiences don’t have a problem with it.”

According to professor Carlos Eire, a practicing Catholic, the study of religion itself can have unpredictable effects on a student’s personal convictions. Eire, who is the chair of the religious studies department and specializes in the history of the Protestant Reformation, noted that the student evaluations he has received have ranged from “This course made me experience a religious conversion” to “This course destroyed my faith.” But although Christian students might think it lamentable that a class could cause someone to leave the fold—particularly when that class is taught by a Christian professor—Eire accepts this phenomenon as an inevitable consequence of the discipline, and refuses to treat Christian students with kid gloves.

As questions of belief become more prevalent in the life of the academy, Christian students in the Ivy League may be tempted to view their swelling numbers as an opportunity for a kind of academic militancy. One thinks of Jerry Falwell’s Liberty College, a fundamentalist Baptist institution in Virginia, whose debate team, currently ranked first in the country, believes it can argue America’s best minds into a renaissance of Christian values. But, in a week when a group called the National Organization for Gaining Acceptance of Your Sins (or the acronym NO GAYS) posted flyers and sent a campus-wide e-mail describing Jesus as a homophobe, the us-versus-them aggressive attitude of Liberty College seemed less appealing than ever. “The most important thing we can do [as Christian students] is to not fall into stereotypes,” said Ellen Ray, CC ’09, a DS veteran. “We have to show that we can approach things with an open mind.” In that respect, the Christian and secular scholar may have more in common than either might think. READ SOURCE

Woman's Day of Prayer set

2006-10-08T21:47:00.000-07:00

Women from across the 12 counties of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester are invited to A Woman's Day of Prayer.

The Oct. 14 event, sponsored by the Diocese of Rochester Women's Commission, starts at 8:30 a.m. at St. Mary's Church, 14 St. Mary Place.

The registration fee is $15, which includes lunch, and the deadline is Oct. 9. For more details, call Marangely Melendez at (585) 328-3210. Source

Put Your Faith Into Practice

2006-10-07T22:40:00.000-07:00

As reported by The Catholic Sun on October 5, Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted of the Phoenix Diocese will publish his new booklet, Catholics in the Public Square this Saturday. The booklet provides answers and guidance to questions regarding the role faith should play in public policy. The Catholic Sun quotes Bishop Olmsted as writing, “Catholics should not be afraid to embrace their identity or to put their faith into practice in public life.” Amen! We applaud Bishop Olmsted for his leadership in answering the questions posed regarding whether people of faith should speak out on the issues of the day. Many influential leaders, both inside and outside the church, simply do not believe that people of faith should put their faith into practice in the political realm. Many churches have even been reluctant to engage in the public policy debate over the sacred union of marriage being between one man and one woman. This booklet could not be more timely to counter the viewpoint that people of faith should not engage politically by voting their values.

Bishop Olmsted put his words into practice in the same issue of The Catholic Sun. Last week, the Arizona bishops issued a pastoral statement urging a YES vote on Proposition 107, the Protect Marriage Arizona Amendment. To quote that statement: “Protect Marriage Arizona... seeks to preserve the unique and irreplaceable status that marriage always has held in our society. In supporting Proposition 107, we urge citizens to vote yes to assure that we preserve the definition of marriage as between one man and one woman.”

Join me in praying for Bishop Olmsted and the successful launch of this booklet. Also join me in praying that other faiths would follow Bishop Olmsted’s lead and encourage their congregations to be faithful citizens. I look forward to reading Catholics in the Public Square. If you’d like a copy, they are available at many Catholic parishes throughout the Diocese of Phoenix, or call Basilica Press at (888) 570-5182 to order a copy.

email: cathi_herrod@azpolicy.org

phone: 602-424-2525/800-FAMILY-1

web: http://www.azpolicy.org

Be An Apostle of Prayer and fulfill the Mission of the Kingdom

2006-10-02T06:34:00.000-07:00

"Be apostles now, apostles of prayer! Offer everything you are doing each day in union with the Heart of our Lord for what He wishes, the spread of the Kingdom for the salvation of souls." Click here

Condoms for Life ???

2006-08-19T00:25:00.000-07:00

Frances Kissling, of the laughably named group "Catholics" for a Free Choice, has put on the full-court press once again. Capitalizing on the international AIDS conference being held in Toronto this week, she is promoting a cause called Condoms for Life.

Like most Kissling initiatives, Condoms for Life is an attack on the Catholic Church. Also typical of her work, it is a campaign that involves very few people and very little activity, but a huge public-relations offensive. She has succeeded, for instance, in arranging an interview with Voice of America.

She says the Pope’s guidelines and the Catholic Church influence many people through healthcare and should promote sexual practices that would reduce the spread of disease and human suffering.

What a good idea! The Church should promote abstinence and marital fidelity, which are undoubtedly the best ways to prevent the spread of AIDS! Gosh golly; why hasn't the Vatican thought of that!?

But wait. There are no large corporations manufacturing abstinence-related products, and making large contributions to Kissling's organization. Oh. Never mind. READ More

Doing good not easy task ...

2006-08-19T00:10:00.000-07:00

How I resonate with the thoughts of columnist Jeannette Batz, "Business trumps spirit; heart and soul is lost" (NCR, Jan. 10). When life was simpler, it seems to me, more got done with less stress.

We in Catholic institutions are victims of the time in which we live. To do good works is not an easy task today. In the health care ministry, we are barraged by federal and state regulations that necessitate a large number of local policies and procedures.

The trusting partnership we may have felt with everyone engaged in this admirable task of caring for the sick has given way to chains of command and corporate responsibilities. READ MORE

The Roman Catholic view on justification

2006-08-19T00:07:00.000-07:00

Justification is a divine act where God declares the sinner to be innocent of his sins. It is a legal action in that God declares the sinner righteous -- as though he has satisfied the Law of God. This justification is based entirely on the sacrifice of Christ by His shed blood: "...having now been justified by His blood..." (Rom. 5:9).¹ Justification is a gift of grace (Rom. 3:24; Titus 3:7) that comes through faith (Rom. 3:28; 5:1). Christians receive Jesus (John 1:12) and put their faith-filled trust in what Jesus did on the cross (Isaiah 53:12; 1 Pet. 2:24) and in so doing are justified by God. The Bible states that justification is not by works (Rom. 3:20, 28; 4:5; Eph. 2:8-9) because our righteous deeds are filthy rags before God (Isaiah 64:6). Therefore, we are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.
Those who are justified are saved and salvation is a free gift (Rom. 6:23), something we cannot earn (Eph. 2:1-10). However, Roman Catholic doctrine denies justification by faith alone and says: READ MUCH MORE

Doing "Good Works" that Count !

2006-08-19T00:04:00.000-07:00

Our Lord gave His Church a mission that is at once both simple and magnificent:

“Go and make disciples of all nations.”

Our commitment to that mission is the foundation for the Bishop’s Appeal. Every organization needs resources to accomplish its goals. For the Church in Maine, the Appeal provides the funding that enables us to share Good News and do Good works for people all over Maine — pastoral, educational, communication, and social works. These works are essential to our mission. The Appeal is not just “one more request for money”; rather, along with your parish offering, it is an essential use of your gifts. As a good steward of those gifts, you become a co-worker with the Lord. READ More

Serving Our Counties Builds Strong Families and Communities!

2006-08-14T17:17:00.000-07:00

The Sacramento county shows a number of vacancies on county boards and commissions. Sacramento Outlook wants to encourage Christians and those in the Marketplace to pray as ask God where He might want to use you to be a blessing to our city and county. God is calling forth His love and witness of His life through those who worship and serve only Him in their walk of life. Click here !

Sign up for FREE Subscription to "HEADLINES"

2006-08-14T11:25:00.000-07:00

You are encouraged to subscribe (free) to "Headlines" - An excellent comprehensive Catholic Headlines service by Jeff Ziegler at ziegleriti@yahoo.com. Below is an example of his excellent daily work. ~ Catholic Presence

Monday, August 14, 2006

SACRED LITURGY

-- Today is the memorial of St. Maximilian Mary Kolbe (1894-1941),
Conventual Franciscan, priest and martyr at Auschwitz.
http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintm01.htm

-- St. Maximilian Mary Kolbe founded the Militia of Mary Immaculate.
http://www.consecration.com

-- Today's readings at Mass: Ez. 1:2-5, 24-28c
(Such was the vision ofthe likeness of the glory of the Lord); Ps. 148:1-2, 11-14 (Heaven andearth are filled with Your glory); Mt. 17:22-27 (They will kill Him andbe raised ... The subjects are exempt from the tax).
http://www.usccb.org/nab/081406a.shtml

Welcome to CATHOLIC PRESENCE

2006-08-14T10:33:00.000-07:00

Catholic Presence is intended to post news and interest that particularly affects the Catholic Church community. May it strengthen faith, promote goodwill in the community and unity in the overall Body of Jesus Christ.