First Week of Advent

What Is Advent?

Christmas is here! Or is it? Before the end of October one sees the signs of Christmas everywhere. But by the time December 25 arrives, most people are "Christmased" out — too many parties, rich foods and stretched budgets. We Catholics don't need to draw our drapes and twiddle our thumbs while the rest of society is celebrating Christmas in advance. Instead, we can celebrate two seasons: Advent and Christmas.

Advent is a time of preparation. A time to prepare our hearts and souls for the upcoming celebration of the birth of Christ, our Savior.

For Catholics, the Christmas Season begins with the birth of Christ, and continues until the Feast of the Epiphany.

Have a blessed and peaceful Advent Season,
Penny

Happy Thanksgiving 2005

From our family to yours, have a peaceful and happy Thanksgiving Day!

The turkey is in the oven all stuffed and smelling yummy. We look forward to a blessed day with family and friends. We'll watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, eat, talk, play some football, watch some football, snooze on the couch and eat some more! Ah, Thanksgiving.

We Thank our good Lord for all His many blessings and for everything.

Happy Thanksgiving Ya'll,
Penny

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

What a terrific movie. We kept to a family tradition my husband and I started many years ago when the children were younger...going to the MIDNIGHT MOVIE. It's so much fun!

If you liked the Lord of the Rings movies you're sure to enjoy Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.


"Soon we must all choose between what is right and what is easy."

Albus Dumbledore


God bless,
Penny

Sign My Guestbook

I have a Guestbook now, so take a few minutes to go to the bottom of the page and sign it, why don't ya. :)

Thank you for visiting!

God bless,
Penny

November, Month of the Holy Souls

Pray for the souls in Purgatory.





All Souls' Day
J.M.J.


Rev. Fr. Leonard Goffine's
THE CHURCH'S YEAR
INSTRUCTION OF THE FEAST OF ALL SOULS
[November 2]

What is All Souls' Day?

It is the day set apart by the Catholic Church for the special devout
commemoration of all those souls who have departed this life in the grace
and friendship of God, for whom we pray, that they may soon be released by
God from the prison of purgatory.

What is purgatory?

Purgatory is a middle state of souls, suffering for a time on account of
their sins. St. Paul writes to the Corinthians: And the fire shall try every
man's work, of what sort it is. If any man's work abide, which he hath built
there upon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work burn, he shall
suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire. (i. Cor. in.
13-15.) "And when St. Paul," says St. Ambrose (Serm. 20. in Ps. cxviii.)
"says, yet so as by fire, he shows that such a man indeed becomes happy,
having suffered the punishment of fire, but not, like the wicked,
continually tormented in eternal fire." St. Paul's words, then, can only be
understood to refer to the fire of purification, as the infallible Church
has always explained them.

Are the heretics right in denying that there is such a place of purification
as purgatory?

By no means, for by such denial they oppose the holy Scriptures, tradition
and reason. The holy Scriptures teach that there is a purgatory: it is
related in the Second Book of Machabees, that Judas Machabeus sent twelve
thousand drachms of silver to Jerusalem, to be used in the temple, to obtain
prayers for those who fell in battle, for he believed it a good and
wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from their
sins. But for what dead shall we pray? Those in heaven do not require our
prayers; to those in hell they are of no avail; we must then pray for those
who are in the place of purification. Christ speaks of a prison in the
future life, from which no man comes out until he has paid the last
farthing. (Matt. v. 25, 26.) This prison cannot be hell, because from hell
there is never any release; it must be then a place of purification. Again
Christ speaks of sin which shall be forgiven neither in this world nor in
the next, (Matt. xii. 32.) from which it follows that there is a remittance
of some sins in the next world; but this can be neither in heaven nor in
hell, consequently in purgatory. As the council of Trent says, (Sess. 6. c.
30.) the Church has always taught, according to the old tradition of the
Fathers, in all her councils, that there is a purgatory, and every century
gives proofs of the continual belief of all true Christians in a purgatory.
Finally, man's unblinded reason must accept a purgatory; for how many depart
this earth before having accomplished the great work of their own
purification? They cannot enter heaven, for St. John tells us: There shall
not enter into it any thing defiled. (Apoc. xxi. 27.) The simple separation
of the soul from the body does not make it pure, yet God cannot reject it as
He does the soul of the hardened sinner in hell; there must then be a middle
place, a purgatory, where those who have departed not free from stain, must
be purified. See how the doctrine of the Church, reason and the holy
Scriptures all agree, and do not let yourself be led away by false arguments
from those who not only believe in no purgatory, but even in no hell, so
that they may sin with so much more impunity.

For what, how much, and for how long must -we suffer in purgatory?

Concerning this the Church has made no decision, though much has been
written by the Fathers of the Church on the subject. Concerning the severity
of the punishment in purgatory, St. Augustine writes: "This fire is more
painful than any that man can suffer in this life." This should urge us to
continual sanctification and atonement, so that we may escape the fearful
judgment of God.

How can -we aid the suffering souls in purgatory?

St. Augustine writes: "It is not to be doubted that we can aid the souls of
the departed by the prayers of the Church, by the holy Sacrifice of the
Mass, and by the alms which we offer for them." The Church has always
taught-that prayers for the faithful departed are useful and good, and she
has always offered Masses for them.

What should urge us to aid the suffering souls in purgatory?

1. The consideration of the belief of the Church in the communion of saints,
by which all the members of the Church upon earth, in heaven, and in
purgatory are united by the bonds of love, like the members of one body, and
as the healthy members of a body sympathize with the suffering members,
seeking to aid them, so should we assist our suffering brethren in
purgatory. 2. The remembrance that it is God's will that we should practice
charity towards one another, and that fearful judgments are threatened those
who show no charity to a brother in need, together with the recollection, of
God's love which desires that all men should be happy in heaven. 3. We
should be urged to it by love for ourselves, for if we should be condemned
to the pains of purification, we would assuredly desire our living brethren
to pray for us and perform good works for our sake, while the souls who have
found redemption, perhaps through our prayers, will not fail to reward us by
interceding for us.

Can we aid the souls in purgatory by gaining indulgences?

Yes, for indulgences, (as explained in the Instruction on the eighteenth
Sunday after Pentecost,) are a complete or a partial remittance of the
temporal punishment due to sin, bestowed by the Church to penitent sinners
from the treasury of the merits of Christ and His saints. If we gain such a
remittance, we can apply it to the souls in purgatory. Such an indulgence,
however, can be transferred only to one soul.

For which souls should we pray?

We should, on this day especially, offer prayers and good works for all the
faithful departed, but particularly for our parents, relations, friends and
benefactors; for those who are most acceptable to God; for those who have
suffered the longest, or who have the longest yet to suffer; for those who
are most painfully tormented; for those who are the most forsaken; for those
who are nearest redemption ; for those who are suffering on our account; for
those who hope in our prayers; for those who during life have injured us, or
been injured by us; and for our spiritual brethren.

When and by what means was this yearly commemoration of the departed
introduced into the Church?

The precise time of its introduction is not known. Tertullian (A. D. 160)
writes that the early Christians held a yearly commemoration of the faithful
departed. Towards the end of the 10th century St. Odilo, Abbot of the
Benedictines at Cluny, directed that the yearly commemoration of the
faithful departed should be observed on the 2nd of November with prayers,
alms and the Sacrifice of the Mass, which time and manner of celebration
spread through various dioceses, and was officially confirmed by Pope John
XIX. This day was- appointed that, having the day previously rejoiced at the
glory of the saints in heaven, we might on this day most properly pray for
those who are yet doing penance for their sins and sigh in purgatory for
their redemption.

The Introit of this day's Mass as of all Masses for the dead reads: Eternal
rest give to them, O Lord: and let perpetual light shine upon them. A hymn,
O God, becometh Thee in Sion; and a vow shall be paid to Thee in Jerusalem:
hear my prayer; all flesh shall come to Thee. Eternal rest give to them, O
Lord: and let perpetual light shine upon them.

COLLECT O God, the Creator and Redeemer of all the faithful, grant to the
souls of Thy servants departed the remission of all their sins: that through
pious supplications they may i obtain the pardon which they have always
desired. ! Who, livest &c.

EPISTLE (i. Cor. xv. 51-57.) BRETHREN, behold, I tell you a mystery: we
shall all indeed rise again, but we shall not all be changed. In a moment,
in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet: for the trumpet shall
sound, and the dead shall rise again incorruptible: and , we shall be
changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must
put on immortality. And when this mortal hath put on immortality, then shall
come to pass the saying that is written: Death is swallowed up in victory. O
death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting? Now the sting of
death is sin: and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who
hath given us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

GOSPEL (John v. 25-29.) At that time, Jesus said to the multitudes of the
Jews: Amen, amen, I say unto you, that the hour cometh, and now is, when the
dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.
For as the Father hath life in himself, so he hath given to the Son also to
have life in himself: and he hath given him power to do judgment, because he
is the Son of man. Wonder not at this, for the hour cometh wherein all that
are in the graves shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that have
done good things shall come forth unto the resurrection of life: but they
that have done evil, unto the resurrection of judgment.

The Epistle and Gospel of this day speak of the resurrection of all men and
of the judgment, when every one according as he has lived, sinful and
impenitent, or pure and innocent, will receive an eternally miserable or an
eternally happy life. Purgatory will then end and there will be only heaven
and hell. It remains with us to choose which of these two we shall possess.

At the Offertory of the Mass the priest prays:

O Lord Jesus Christ, King of Glory, deliver the souls of all the faithful
departed from the pains of hell and from the deep pit: deliver them from the
mouth of the lion, that hell may not swallow them up, and they may not fall
into darkness: but may the holy standard-bearer, Michael, introduce them to
the holy light: which Thou didst promise of old to Abraham and to his seed.
We offer to Thee, O Lord, sacrifices and prayers: do Thou receive them in
behalf of those souls whom we commemorate this day. Grant them, O Lord, to
pass from death to that life which Thou didst promise of old to Abraham and
to his seed.

We may profitably and devoutly repeat the following as often as we pass a
graveyard.

V. From the gates of hell,
R. Deliver their souls, O Lord.
V. Eternal rest give to them, O Lord,
R. And let perpetual light shine upon them.
V. May they rest in peace,
R. Amen.
V. May the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest
in peace,
R. Amen.

From http://www.sspxasia.com/Documents/The_Church_Year/All_Souls.htm (The
Church's Year online)

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Sincerely in Christ,
Our Lady of the Rosary Library
"Pray and work for souls."
http://olrl.org






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A Pink and Red Ribbon Day

Our youngest child, who is now thirteen, rode in her first Turn-n-Burn Horse Show yesterday. When she and her borrowed horse Skeeter ran into the arena for the first time, in an Exhibition trial, I was in complete awe of their calm confidence. I have always been amazed at the courage and agility of horse and rider when it comes to racing around those metal barrels. For their first time out of the hole together they ran a decent 23.673 seconds, and they only got better from there. For the day they garnered a Pink fifth place ribbon for Beginner Barrels with a time of 22.556 and a Red second place ribbon for Buddy Pick Up with a time of 20.824. She, Skeeter and her buddy Savanah looked great and had a fun time.

You can check out pictures of the event at www.laurelhillranch.com

I say yippy and ride'em Cowgirl!!!!! :)

All the best,
Penny

Book Update:The Topsy-Turvy Homeschooler

My agent has made a submission, concerning my book, to a publisher. YES!!!!

I will keep you all posted as to the outcome.

Have a Blessed Day,
Penny

All Saints Day

J.M.J.

Rev. Fr. Leonard Goffine's
THE CHURCH'S YEAR
INSTRUCTION ON THE FEAST OF ALL SAINTS
[November 1]

Why has the Church instituted this festival?

To give praise to God in His saints, (Ps. cl.) and to pay to the saints
themselves the honor which they merit for having made it the work of their
earthly life to promote the honor of God. 2. To impress vividly upon our
minds that we are members of that holy Catholic Church which believes in the
communion of saints, that is, in the communion of all true Christians, who
belong to the Church triumphant in heaven, to the Church suffering in
purgatory, or to the Church militant upon earth; but, more particularly, to
cause us earnestly to consider the communion of the saints in heaven with
us, who are yet battling on earth.

3. To exhort us to raise our eyes and hearts, especially on this day, to
heaven, where before the throne of God is gathered the innumerable multitude
of saints of all countries, times, nationalities and ranks of life, who have
faithfully followed Christ and left us glorious examples of virtues, which
we ought to imitate. This we can do, for the saints, too, were weak men, who
fought and conquered only by the grace of God, which will not be denied to
us.

4. To honor those saints, for whom during the year there-is no special
festival appointed by the Church. Finally, that in consideration of so many
intercessors God may grant us perfect reconciliation, may permit us to share
in their merits, and may grant us the grace to enjoy with them, one day, the
bliss of heaven.

Who first instituted this festival?

Pope Boniface IV. first suggested the celebration of this festival, when in
610 he ordered that the Pantheon, a pagan temple at Rome, dedicated to all
the gods, should be converted into a Christian church, and the relics of the
saints, dispersed through the different Roman cemeteries, taken up and
placed therein. He then dedicated the Church to the honor of the Blessed
Virgin and all the martyrs, and thus for the first time celebrated the
Festival of All Saints, directing that it should be observed in Rome every
year. Pope Gregory IV. extended this feast to the whole Catholic Church, and
appointed the 1st of November as the day of its celebration.

At the Introit the Church sings: Let us all rejoice in the Lord, celebrating
a festival day in honor of all the saints; at whose solemnity the angels
rejoice, and give praise to the Son of God. Rejoice in the Lord, ye just:
praise becometh the upright. Glory &c.

Why is the Gospel of the Eight Beatitudes read on this day?

Because they form, so to speak, the steps on which the saints courageously
ascended to heaven.

If you desire to be with the saints in heaven, you must also mount patiently
and perseveringly these steps, then God's hand will assuredly aid you.

EXPLANATION OF THE EIGHT BEATITUDES.

I. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

THEY are poor in spirit who, like the apostles, leave all temporal things
for Christ's sake and become poor; they who have lost their property by
misfortune or injustice, and bear this loss with patience and resignation to
the will of God; they who are contented with their poor and lowly station in
life, do not strive for greater fortune or a higher position, and would
rather suffer want than make themselves rich by unlawful means; they who
though rich do not love wealth, nor set their hearts upon it, but use their
riches to aid the poor; and especially they who are humble, that is, who
have no exalted opinion of themselves,' but are convinced of their weakness
and inward poverty, have a low estimate of themselves, therefore, feel
always their need, and like poor mendicants, continually implore God's grace
and assistance.

II. Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the land.

He is meek who represses every rising impulse of anger, impatience and
desire of revenge, and willingly puts up with every thing that God, to prove
him, decrees or permits to happen to him, or men inflict upon him. He who
thus controls himself, is like a calm and tranquil sea, in which the image
of the divine Sun is ever reflected, clear and Unruffled. He who thus
conquers himself is mightier than if he besieged and conquered strongly
fortified cities, (Prov. xvi. 32.) and will without doubt receive this
earth, as well as heaven, as an inheritance, enjoying eternally there the
peace (Ps. xxxvi. n.) which is already his on earth.


III. Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.

The mourners here mentioned are not those who weep and lament over the death
of relatives and friends, or over misfortune or loss of temporal riches, but
those who mourn that God is so often offended, so little loved and honored
by men, that so many souls, redeemed by the precious blood of Christ, are
lost. Among these mourners are also those who lead a strict and penitential
life, and patiently endure distress; for sin is the only evil, the only
thing to be lamented, and those tears only, which are shed on account of
sin, are useful tears, and are recompensed by everlasting joy and eternal
consolation.


IV. Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice, for they shall
have their fill.

Hunger and thirst denote the ardent longing for those virtues which
constitute Christian perfection. He who seeks such perfection with ardent
desire and earnest striving, will be filled, that is, will be adorned by God
with the most beautiful virtues, and will be abundantly rewarded in heaven.

V. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

They are merciful who assist the poor according to their means, who practice
every possible spiritual and corporal work of mercy, who as far as they can,
patiently endure the faults of others, strive always to excuse them, and
willingly forgive the injuries they have received. They especially are truly
merciful, who are merciful to their enemies, and do good to them, as
written: Love your enemies, and do good to them that hate you. (Matt. v.
44.) Well is it for him who is merciful, the greatest "rewards are promised
him, but a judgment without mercy shall be passed on the unmerciful.

VI. Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God.

They are clean of heart, who carefully preserve the innocence which they
received in baptism, and keep their heart and conscience free not only from
all sinful words and deeds, but from all sinful thoughts and desires, and in
all their omissions and commissions think and desire only good. These while
yet on earth see God in all His works and creatures, because their thoughts
are directed always to the Highest Good, and in the other world they will
see Him face to face, enjoying in this contemplation a peculiar pleasure
which is reserved for pure souls only; for as the eye that would see well,
must be clear, so must those souls be immaculate who are to see God.

VII. Blessed are the peace-makers, for they shall be called the children of
God.

Those are peace-makers who guard their improper desires, who are careful to
have peace in their conscience and regulated tranquility in all their
actions, who do not quarrel with their neighbors, and are submissive to the
will of God. These are called children of God, because they follow God who
is a God of peace, (Rom. xv. 33.) and who even gave His only Son to
reconcile the world, and bring upon earth that peace which the world does
not know and cannot give. (Luke ii. 14.; John xiv. 27.)

VIII. Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake, for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven.

Those suffer persecution for justice' sake who by their words, writings, or
by their life defend the truth, the faith and Christian virtues; who cling
firmly to God, and permit nothing to turn them from the duties of the
Christian profession, from the practice of their holy religion, but on its
account suffer hatred, contempt, disgrace, injury and injustice from the
world. If they endure all' this with patience and perseverance, even, like
the saints, with joy, then they will become like the saints and like them
receive the heavenly crown. If we wish to be crowned with them, we must
suffer with them: And all that will live godly in Christ Jesus, shall suffer
persecution, (ii. Tim. iii. 12.)

SUPPLICATION. How lovely, O Lord, are Thy tabernacles! My soul longeth for
Thy courts. My body and soul rejoice in Thee, most loving God, Thou crown
and reward of all the saints, whose temporal pains and sufferings Thou dost
reward with eternal joy, filling them with good! How blessed are they who
have faithfully served Thee, for they carry Thy name on their forehead, and
reign with Thee for all eternity. Grant us, we beseech Thee, O God, by their
intercession, Thy grace that we, after their example, may serve Thee in
sanctity and justice, in poverty and humility, in meekness and repentance,
in the ardent desire for all virtues, by mercy, perfect purity of heart, in
peacefulness and patience, following them, and taking part, one day, with
them in heavenly joy and happiness. Amen.

[See the Instruction on the Veneration of Saints at the beginning of the
second part of this book.]

From http://www.sspxasia.com/Documents/The_Church_Year/All_Saints.htm (The
Church's Year online).


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Sincerely in Christ,
Our Lady of the Rosary Library
"Pray and work for souls."
http://olrl.org






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