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Rosary

In 05 Homilies by Fr. Reid on 2015/10/02 at 12:00 AM

 

St. John’s Book of Revelation speaks so beautifully today of the holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. He tells us that it “gleamed with the splendor of God. Its radiance was like that of a precious stone, like jasper, clear as crystal.”
In speaking of this new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, St. John is, of course, speaking of Heaven itself! Hopefully hearing about the beauty of Heaven will make us desire it all the more.
As Christians Heaven is our greatest hope. God, who has created us for Himself, dwells there; and thus the greatest shame for any of us would be to miss out on it, where we will enjoy eternal union with Him.
The beautiful thing about our Catholic faith is that it’s designed precisely for this purpose: to get us to Heaven, and this it does primarily through the grace we receive in the Sacraments.
As we consider the magnificent graces available to us in the Sacraments of the Catholic Church, who of us could ever leave Holy Mother Church, especially as we consider the glories of Heaven and the pains of hell? For walking away from the Church and her Sacraments greatly jeopardizes our chances for salvation.
While our Catholic faith is demanding and difficult to live well, and while many people within the Church are poor examples of what a Catholic should be, the fact remains that Catholics have the best opportunity to get to Heaven because of our access to the Sacraments.
This truth doesn’t make us better than people of other religions, but it does make us more blessed – and it places upon us a greater responsibility for living lives of holiness by conforming our lives to God’s will.
In addition to the Sacraments that help us get to Heaven, our Lord has also given us His Immaculate Mother, the Queen of Heaven, as an intercessor and guide to help us along the steep and narrow path that alone leads to Heaven.
In the example of her sinless life we are given the perfect model of all that a Catholic should do and be. And from her throne in Heaven where she reigns with her crucified and risen Son, she intercedes for us to procure for us every grace we need to get to Heaven.
It’s for this reason that every Catholic should be so dedicated to Mary!
Last Sunday I spoke about the importance and power of our Lady’s Rosary, and I encouragedall of you to pray the Rosary every day in this month of May, as May is a month that we
dedicate to Our Lady.

Meditating on the mysteries of the life of Jesus and Mary in the Rosary helps us to knowJesus and Mary better so that we might become more like them. Meditating on the mysteries
of the Rosary also deepens our gratitude and increases our love for them.

But more importantly, as I mentioned last week, Our Lady revealed to Blessed Alan de laRoche that she promises incredible graces to those souls who are dedicated to the Rosary to
aid them along the path to salvation, especially at the moment of their death.

So once again I encourage all of you to pray the Rosary daily, especially in this month ofMary, for in praying with those beads we can find the help we need to get to Heaven!
Throughout history the Blessed Virgin Mary has appeared to many saints and seers and hasspoken to them of the vital importance of the Rosary and the great help it is to one’s personal holiness.
One 20th century seer to whom our Lady spoke about the Rosary was Lúcia Santos, one of the three children from Fátima who received apparitions of Our Lady in 1917.
8 years after the Fátima apparitions, Our Lady appeared to Lúcia again, who by then had entered a convent in the city of Pontevedra. During this apparition Mary gave to Sr. Lúcia the parameters for what we call the 1st Saturdays devotion.
Just as Friday is the day of the week that we dedicate to our Savior, Jesus Christ, for His suffering and death, so too is Saturday the day we focus on the sufferings of Our Lady.
Saturday is the day dedicated to Mary in commemoration of that 1st Holy Saturday some 2000 years ago when Mary would have felt the sword of sorrow that the aged Simeon prophesied about piercing her Immaculate Heart so very keenly, as her divine Son lay dead in the tomb.
Mary had first mentioned the 1st Saturday devotions when she appeared to Lúcia and the other two children in Fatima on July 13, 1917. When Mary appeared to Sr. Lúcia again 8 years later, she confirmed her desire that the 1st Saturday of each month be set aside as a day of reparation for sins against her Immaculate Heart.
Just as we wound the Sacred Heart of Jesus by our sins and ingratitude toward Him, we also wound Mary’s Immaculate Heart in the same way, for their hearts are perfectly united. We cannot honor or offend one of them without honoring or offending the other.
Specifically, Our Lady said to Sr. Lúcia:Look, my daughter, at my Heart encircled by these thorns with which men pierce it at every moment by their blasphemies and ingratitude. You, at least, strive to console me, and so I announce: I promise to assist at the hour of death with the grace necessary for salvation all those who, with the intention of making reparation to me, will, on the first Saturday of five consecutive months, go to confession, receive Holy Communion, say five decades of the beads, and keep me company for fifteen minutes while meditating on the fifteen mysteries of the Rosary.
Over time the Five 1st Saturday devotion was clarified to consist of making reparation for sins against Mary’s Immaculate Heart by the following elements: going to confession within a few days before or after the 1st Saturday, receiving Holy Communion on the 1st Saturday, praying 5 decades of the Rosary on the 1st Saturday, and spending at least 15 minutes in meditation on the mysteries of the Rosary (in addition to simply reciting it).
Yesterday, of course, was the 1st Saturday of this month, and so hopefully some of you were able to fulfill Our Lady’s request. But for those of you who were unaware of this devotion, please keep it in mind for the months to come!
As Christians we must always keep the goal of Heaven ever before us. While it is true that we are living on earth, we must remember that we are but strangers and sojourners here, and that our true citizenship is in Heaven.
Alas, because of our sinfulness getting to Heaven is not easy, and we all need help! And Our Lady is that help!
It is for this reason that one of the titles by which we venerate Mary is “Gate of Heaven,” and it is for this reason that when we pray the Hail Mary, we ask her to pray for us now and at the hour of our death.
Confident of her constant love and powerful intercession, may we always turn to her who is our life, our sweetness, and our hope, trusting in her maternal protection and solicitude.
Immaculate Heart of Mary, Cause of our Joy, pray for us!
05 May 2013

© Reverend Timothy Reid

Fr. Reid is the pastor of St. Ann Catholic Church, Charlotte, NC

Homilies from June 17, 2012 onward have audio.
To enable the audio, lease go directly to Fr. Reid’s homily homilies and select the matching date.

Link to Homilies:
http://stanncharlotte.org/content/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&id=8&Itemid=61

 

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The Quest for Shakespeare

In 15 Audio on 2015/10/02 at 12:00 AM

Host – Joseph Pearce

A scholarly exploration of the evidence for Shakespeare’s Catholicism hosted by Joseph Pearce and brought to life by professional actors. Shakespeare is arguably the greatest writer whoever lived yet few people know that he was a believing Catholic at a time of intense anti-Catholic persecution. This series follows the Quest for Shakespeare, discovering the evidence for his Catholicism. Once the evidence is discovered and presented, in these thirteen episodes, it will be seen that his Catholicism can be proven beyond all reasonable doubt.

The Quest for Shakespeare

Back to Series List

Program Name

Audio File Name – Click to download

1.

Will the Real Shakespeare Please Stand Up? 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_01.mp3

The first episode of a new series examining the evidence for Shakespeare’s Catholicism.

2.

His Father’s Will 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_02.mp3

The discovery of a spiritual last will and testament, written by Shakespeare’s father, proves that the Playwright was raised in a staunchly Catholic home.

3.

Faith of his Fathers 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_03.mp3

An examination of Shakespeare’s Catholic family.

4.

Living with Outlaws 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_04.mp3

Life for the young Shakespeare, at home in Stratford-upon-Avon, was fraught with danger and intrigue as his family faced the threat of persecution for its Catholic faith.

5.

A Rose by Any Other Name 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_05.mp3

Did Shakespeare work secretly as a schoolmaster in a Catholic stately home? The evidence is examined.

6.

Love’s Labours, Lost Years 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_06.mp3

The controversy surrounding Shakespeare’s marriage and the baptism of his children, and the mystery surrounding his “lost years”.

7.

Murdered Spy, Martyred Priest 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_07.mp3

Shakespeare’s relationship with Christopher Marlowe and St Robert Southwell.

8.

Playing Safe with the Queen 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_08.mp3

The complex nature of Shakespeare’s relationship with Queen Elizabeth.

9.

Family, Friends and Enemies 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_09.mp3

The evidence for Shakespeare’s Catholicism to be discovered in his relationship with his family and friends, as well as in his conflicts with his opponents.

10.

The King’s Good Servant 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_10.mp3

The complexities of Shakespeare’s relationship with King James I. How could he remain the King’s good servant, but God’s first?

11.

The Lessons of Lear 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_11.mp3

How Shakespeare’s Catholic sympathies can be discovered in his play, King Lear.

12.

Last Years 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_12.mp3

Shakespeare’s final years, after his retirement and his return home to Stratford, and the Catholic circles in which he moved.

13.

“He Died a Papist” 

Host – Joseph Pearce

qush_13.mp3

The evidence of Shakespeare’s will that suggests that he died, as he had lived, as a believing Catholic.

14.

Host – Joseph Pearce

tolkienlotr.mp3
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Who? Me? by Father Barron

In 06 Scripture & Theology on 2015/09/25 at 12:00 AM

THE WOMAN CAUGHT IN ADULTERY

I have mentioned the French philosopher René Girard before. Much of his work has centered on the phenomenon of group psychology, especially around the scapegoating mechanism. He says that a kind of community is formed precisely when a variety of people, who would otherwise rather dislike one another, come together in a common hatred of someone else.

We can see this, Girard tells us, at all levels, from the most personal to the most collective, from families to nation-states. How often is there a “black sheep” in a family? He or she plays an important role in family stability and identity. What is the only thing that two scholars can agree on? How poor the work of a third scholar is! What is the only thing two musicians can agree upon? How awful another musician’s composition is.

This dynamic is in effect in one of the most beautifully crafted stories in the New Testament: the woman caught in adultery. The text tells us “They caught her in the very act of adultery.” Where were they situated in order to catch her in the very act?! The voyeurism and perversion of these men is shocking. They then come en masse, in the terrible enthusiasm of a mob, and they present the case to Jesus.

Now what does Jesus do in the face of this violent mob that is seeking release from its tension? First, he bends down and writes on the ground. Sometimes silence, a refusal to co-operate is the best opening move. But the mysterious writing might indicate something else: the writing down of the sins of each person in the group, as some early theologians surmised.

Jesus then says, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to cast a stone at her.” He forces them to turn their accusing glance inward, where it belongs. Instead of projecting their violence outward on a scapegoat, they should honestly name and confront the dysfunction within them. This story, like all the stories in the Gospels, is a foreshadowing of the great story toward which we are tending. Jesus will be put to death by a mob bent on scapegoating violence.

 

By Father Robert Barron

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