Prayers please
A very dear friend just miscarried at fifteen weeks.
A very dear friend just miscarried at fifteen weeks.
Gallup poll: Most Americans consider themselves pro-life
I placed the pre-order through Amazon months ago, so imagine my joy to receive Karen Edmisten's book, "The Rosary: Keeping Company with Jesus and Mary," in the mail yesterday, just in time for Mother's Day!
As always, Karen writes with sincerity and clarity, drawing others to the rosary through a narrative that is intensely personal and deeply spiritual. Without so much as a word wasted, the book is a course in Marian history, apologetics, scripture and prayer that I cannot wait to share with my teenagers. (Truth be told, fifteen-year-old Agnes has already begun reading it without any encouragement from me--she knows a good thing when she sees it.)
The real genius of the book is that it is at once both simple and deep--simple and not at all intimidating for those just learning to say the rosary, yet deep and full of new information for those who have loved this prayer a long time. It is a book I can see myself revisiting whenever I need a lift or inspiration. Karen's "Making it Work" chapter in particular is one I need right now while juggling a new baby along with days that are fuller than full. My new motto is going to be "pray while you rock and nurse, rock and nurse . . . ." [p.70.]
Thank you, Karen, for a labor of love sure to remain a favorite forever. It is the perfect tribute to the "fairest of queens in the fairest of seasons, sweet May."
Am I the only one who found this video of Susan Boyle more troubling than triumphant?
Don't miss this profile of Commander Francis X. Castellano, native Long Islander, Knight of Columbus, and commander of the USS Bainbridge--the naval ship involved in the rescue of Captain Phillips from Somali Pirates last week.
In an address to the US House of Representatives, Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ) had something to say about the timing of Secretary of State Clinton's visit to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe immediately before receiving The Margaret Sanger Award from Planned Parenthood the following day:
"On the one hand, the miracle of Our Lady of Guadalupe has for five centuries brought a message of hope, faith, peace, reconciliation and protection for the weakest, most vulnerable among us. On the other hand, each year, Margaret Sanger's Planned Parenthood kills approximately 300,000 unborn baby girls and boys in their abortion clinics scattered throughout the United States."
Please click here to read more.
If you would like to encourage Representative Smith and thank him for his unequivocal support for the culture of life, contact information is available at his website. I hope he will hear from many, many Americans.
Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the unborn, pray for us!
One of my favorite Irish ballads, “Dublin in the Rare Auld Times,” begins:
As often as I have heard these lines about Dublin long ago, my mind has lingered on the opening phrase, “raised on songs and stories.” There is something romantic, yet obviously true, about the idea behind it — that children are not only entertained by tales passed from one generation to the next, but nurtured and “raised on” them as well. Family stories in particular become part of who we are, an irreplaceable birthright.