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SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS

To bear with patience wrongs done to oneself is a mark of perfection, but to bear with patience wrongs done to someone else is a mark of imperfection and even of actual sin.

Rev. Thomas Byles: A Saintly Priest Who Perished In The Titanic Disaster

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Rev. Thomas Byles The sinking of the RMS Titanic on April 15, 1912, is one of the most famous tragedies in history, inspiring countless books and films. The disaster claimed 1,496 lives during the maiden voyage of a ship once thought to be unsinkable. Among the passengers was Fr. Thomas Byles, who spent his final moments offering comfort and spiritual support to others. After his death, Pope Saint Pius X is said to have called him a “martyr,” and a plaque at his former parish honors his “heroic death in the disaster” for his selfless devotion to fellow passengers. Sources https://saintoftitanic.org/ https://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/titanic-victim/fr-byles.html https://catholicexchange.com/priest-on-titanic-the-last-voyage-of-fr-thomas-byles/ Thomas Roussel Davids Byles was born on 26 February 1870, Grosvenor Road in Headingley, England, to Alfred Holden Byles and Louisa Davids, the eldest of their seven children. His father, Reverend Dr. Alfred Holden Byles, was both a congregatio...

A Brief Examination of Conscience

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Conscientia, secundum ipsam nominis originem, importat ordinem scientiae ad aliquid: dicitur enim conscientia quasi cum alio scientia. (ST I, q. 79, a. 13) Saint Thomas Aquinas Do you give others reason to love you? Why are you afraid? What are you putting in the way of God granting you His peace? Is fear or trust the basis of your decisions? Who is first in your life? God? A spouse? Children? Work? Drugs? Sports? Do you project your own inadequacies on to others? Is holiness important to you? If 'no', then what is your religion? If 'yes', then how do you cooperate with God for your spiritual health and well-being? Do you have high expectations for your children and do you offer a high level of support to help them achieve their potential? Are you indifferent to your children? Your spouse? Do you maintain high expectations without providing support to others or to yourself? Why ask how someone is doing if you are not prepared to listen to his answer? Do you really care...

"Christian Faith and Demonology" (1975). A Reminder.

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Saint Michael Crushes And Chains The Devil GN 2026 Recently I came across a document that reads as if most of it was written only yesterday. Though only a portion of the work is here presented and commented upon, a reader could do well by accessing the entire work. The composition points out contemporary challenges that needed to be addressed, but also notes that a certain naïveté had taken hold, blinding some to the reality of and need for spiritual warfare. Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose. Christian Faith and Demonology (Fede Cristiana Demonologia) L’Osservatore Romano, English Edition, July 10, 1975, pp. 6-10. This text was first published in Italian ( Fede Cristiana Demonologia)  in L’Osservatore Romano, Italian Edition, June 26, 1975, pp. 6-7. The original text was published in French in L’Osservatore Romano, French Edition, July 4, 1975. https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19750626_fede-cristiana-demonologia_en.html Sa...

Deplatforming the Deplatformers

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There is a disturbing trend among some Catholic influencers. They heap negative criticism upon popes and prelates for meeting with those who are in most need of God's mercy. That hostile trend has been growing for some time, now aided by various technologies. It’s true that some members of the clergy act in ways that go against Catholic virtue and deserve to be called out. More on that later. There are Catholic influencers who are angry at the optics of a pope meeting with a female (Anglican) "archbishop." People assume that meeting with someone is part of a conspiracy that includes acceptance of heterodox teaching and practice. Optics - really?! Jesus meeting the Samaritan woman. St John 4:1-42 Jesus protects a woman caught in adultery by challenging her accusers and offering her mercy instead of condemnation. St John 8:1-11 Jesus dined with tax collectors and sinners at Matthew's house. St Matthew 9:10-13, St Mark 2:15-17, and St Luke 5:29-32 "What was Jesus th...

Being Architects of Communion

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Excerpt from Architects of Communion  Guide for Parish Development The Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter files.ecatholic.com/3059/documents/2016/6/160531_Guide_to_Parish_Development.pdf?t=1465586849000 Introduction "The clergy and faithful of the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter are called to be architects of communion, simultaneously preserving the distinctiveness and integrity of their communities while demonstrating commitment to act in communion with the broader Church. One of the means to demonstrate a commitment to communion is through the careful development of Ordinariate parishes and parochial communities. "The parish has at its basis and center the celebration of the Holy Eucharist, from which all education in the Spirit originates and from which flows various works of charity, mutual help, missionary activity, and different forms of Christian witness. The organization of the Catholic Church known as its hierarchical constitution is understood as f...

Obedience In Catholic Terms

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The Church recently celebrated Good Shepherd Sunday. How many were paying attention to Christ's teaching? Addressing the Jewish teachers, Jesus told aspiring leaders, or shepherds, that they had forfeited their position. John 10:25-30 Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name, they bear witness to me; but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me; and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” Those are some sobering words for clergy. Obedience in Catholic teaching is not merely “doing what you’re told.” It is a faithful, loving alignment of your will with God’s will, expressed concretely through lawful authority, especially in the forms God has establi...

Listen, provide fellowship, and share God's mercy and truth.

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The good news about many converting to the Faith deserves a heartfelt 'thanks and praise be to God.' Despite the weak practice of the Faith in many places, sanctuaries being turned into spectacles by some clergy and laity, and false teachers spreading half-truths—such as Father James Martin, who on April 16 was recorded trying to normalize sinful practices contrary to Catholic teaching—people are successfully finding their way home to the Church that Christ established. Fr James Martin exposed:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2-EgkkFC9Y&t=9s Despite several decades of timid efforts to promote the Faith in most North American and European nations, people are converting. It seems that, given the weak witness of Catholics of the developed nations, the Holy Ghost has stepped in to reach people through, among additional ways unknown in their totality, social media influencers who are for the most part lay men and women on fire for the communion with Jesus that is found in the ...

Canada Undead?

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"What do vampires and socialists have in common? Both are lifeless bloodsucking monsters that fear the light." Bloodthirsty undead feed on the innocent, all while reveling in the very systems that sustain their grim mission. Vampires inhabit the shadows of society. A vampire will even destroy another to protect its dominance. Vampire culture is parasitic, distorting elements of Christian culture: hospitality transforms into enabling illness, charity transforms into lust and indulgence, and hope transforms into confusion and despair. Vampire culture is fueled by an obsession with gaining and using power to control others and to push corrupt beliefs. The Vampire Slayer Key Principles of Justice in Catholic Social Teaching Dignity of the Human Person. At the heart of Catholic social teaching is the belief that every human life is sacred and possesses inherent dignity. This principle asserts that all individuals deserve respect and protection, which forms the foundation for justi...

SAINT (Mother) TERESA OF CALCUTTA

Holiness is not the luxury of a few people, but a simple duty for you and me.

SAINT JOAN OF ARC

Go forward bravely. Fear nothing. Trust in God; all will be well.

SAINT FRANCIS DE SALES

Have patience with all things - but first with yourself. Never confuse your mistakes with your value as a human being. You are perfectly valuable, creative, a worthwhile person simply because you exist. And no amount of triumphs or tribulations can ever change that.

GEORGE ORWELL

In a time of deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

I doubt not then but innocence shall make false accusation blush, and tyranny tremble at patience.

MARCUS AURELIUS

There is but one thing of real value - to cultivate truth and justice, and to live without anger in the midst of lying and unjust men.