Holy Saturday, Water, Fire and New Life

Every good thing that exists is gift … and is grace from our loving God who is Love and Grace itself. The very One who loved us into existence also wants us to share in His divine life through the sacraments and into eternal joy and happiness when we return to Him. The very fact that we want to seek Christ and know about Him is itself a grace from Him.

At the Easter Vigil Mass on Holy Saturday night we celebrate the three Sacraments of Initiation – Baptism, Cofirmation and Holy Eucharist. Those who are not baptized receive all three sacraments. Those who are already baptized and converting from another Faith or who have never completed their sacraments receive Confirmation and Eucharist. The remainder of us who are already fully initiated renew our own baptismal promises and call to live out our Faith each day. We too will be nourished with a share in the divine life when we receive Our Lord Jesus himself in the Holy Eucharist. This Mass has a rich texture of symbolism. This is in the same way as we are taught when we become Catholic that sacraments are” outward signs and symbols of what we inwardly believe and used by Christ to confer grace.” Let us explore this a little further.

"The Spirit renders Christian action God-like...

Our nation which once enjoyed freedoms guaranteed by our Founding Forefathers in the Declaration of Independence and at least the first two amendments to the US Constitution are being slowly eroded by our government. 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--'The First amendment to the US constitution” Freedom of Speech, Press, Religion and Petition  states: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. The Second amendment: The Right to Bear Arms states: A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.

ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
ON THE OCCASION OF CHRISTMAS GREETINGS
TO THE ROMAN CURIA

Monday, 20 December 2010

   The Tiny Footsteps of Jesus

Bottom line: St. Katharine Drexel teaches two Christmas lessons: love for Jesus in his humility and solidarity with the poor.

Merry Christmas! Don't be afraid to say it. Merry Christmas!

To begin this Christmas homily, I would like to tell you about a girl who wanted a special gift - the best gift anyone could ask for. She was nine years old and she wrote a Christmas letter to her adopted mother. "I am trying to study hard," she wrote, "so that I may make my first Communion this year." At that time children had to be at least ten or eleven to make their First Communion.* The year was 1867. The city was Philadelphia. And the girl's name was Katharine Drexel.

Mission Intention
  
Unity of Christians.  That Christians may attain full unity, witnessing to all the universal fatherhood of God

VATICAN CITY, JUL 7, 2007 (VIS) - Given below is a non-official English-language translation of the Apostolic Letter "Motu Proprio data" of Pope Benedict XVI, "Summorum Pontificum," concerning the use of the Roman liturgy prior to the reform of 1970. The original text is written in Latin.