Tree of Life

  This blog post is dedicated to those days of the Liturgical Year where we honor the consecration of churches.  The liturgical color for such dedications are white, signifying the glory of God for which the church is consecrated.  One these days it is good to renew our Baptismal promises, recalling how we are also consecrated to God. On the Feast of St. John Lateran, it is good to pray for the Pope since this church is deemed "the Pope's Church." The same should also be done when we honor the dedication of St. Peter’s Basilica as the Pope is the successor of St. Peter. Dedication of a Church or Chapel, St. Gertrude Devotions St. John Lateran (November 9th) “A plenary indulgence is available for the faithful who visit a cathedral and pray the Our Father and Nicene Creed on the Feast of the Dedication of the Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran on November 9th or on the Feast of the Dedication of Saints Peter and Paul on November 18th.” About St. John Lateran St. John's...

A plenary indulgence can be gained under  the usual conditions  by visiting a church named for the Saint of the day and praying the Our Father and Apostle’s Creed.   The Saints mentioned on this blog are found below, they are listed on this post in order of their feast day ie St. Mark is first.  Saint Mark (Evangelist) (April 25) Saint Philip and James (May 3) Matthias (May 14) St. Peter* (June 29) Thomas (July 3) James the Greater (July 25) Martha, Mary and Lazarus (July 29) Bartholomew (August 24) Matthew (September 21) Luke (October 18) Saints Simon and Jude (Thaddeus) (October 28) St. Andrew (November 30) John* (December 27) Saint Mark the Evangelist (April 25) Who is Saint Mark? The Feast of St. Mark  St. Mark Relics  April 25 Customs and Folklore  St. Mark’s Day in Italy  St. Gertrude and the Feast of St. Mark   St. Mark Iconography More Iconography  St. Mark Artifact Vegan Lamb Recipes Saint Bartholomew  About Saint Bartholom...

     Saints Anne and Joachim, pray for us!  “O Lord,God of our Fathers, who bestowed on Saints Joachim and Anne this grace, that of them should be born the Mother of your incarnate Son, grant, through the prayers of both, that we may attain the salvation you have promised to your people. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.” The Feast of the Grandparents of God  Today we honor the parents of our Blessed Mother and the grandparents of Our Lord Jesus Christ. By the fact that they are Mary's parents, Anne and Joachim would've been deeply involved in the understanding of the mystery of the Incarnation, Our Lady's virginity and Her marriage to St. Joseph.  As Mary’s Nativity and thus her parents are important themes in the initial Advent of Christ, today’s feast is a continuation of Christmas in July .  About Saint Anne About Saint Joachim Customs for Today’s F...

  Each Marian feast day honor's Mary's role in salvation history one way or another. The feasts of Our Lady on this post honor Her intercession by means of  sacramentals  (blessings or blessed items) that She has given the Church. The liturgical color for these feasts are white or gold for Our Lady's purity and glory, Her powerful intercession. Popular devotion to Mary is to wear blue in Her honor. The posts are listed in chronological order according to wear they fall in the year as follows: Saint Simon Stock (May 16) Our Lady of Mount Carmel (July 16) First Apparition of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal (July 18) Saint Dominic (August 8) Our Lady of the Rosary (October 7) Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal (November 27) Our Lady of Kibeho and St. Catherine Laboure (November 28) Saint Simon Stock (May 16) St. Simon Stock to whom Our Lady revealed the Brown Scapular is honored on May 16th. See the Mount Carmel section below for more about this powerful and simple devotion....

Saints Peter and Paul, pray for us! Today we honor the great apostles of Christ, Peter and Paul. Throughout the year while we are constantly honoring one Saint or another today’s feast is one that is a Solemnity, the highest rank a feast can be.  This is a rank that most Saints don’t enjoy besides All Saints Day, St. Joseph, St. John the Baptist and of course the Blessed Mother as Queen of All Saints. We honor Peter and Paul this way because without them the faith would not be shared universally as it is today. This is because God willed that guided by the Holy Spirit the Church would witness to the Life and Paschal Mystery of His Son, Jesus Christ. This post is dedicated to the honor of Saints Peter and Paul, pillars of the Church.  June 29th is the day we honor the feast of the first Pope, Peter and the great defender of the faith, Paul. This feast celebrates together the martyrdom by crucifixion and sword of Peter and Paul respectively. St. Peter and St. Paul encompass the ...

 Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ, Corpus Christi otherwise known as Corpus Domini or Body of the Lord. We celebrate the Eucharist in a special way because when we celebrate the Eucharist on Holy Thursday, the sorrow of Good Friday is impending. Therefore, we celebrate the Eucharist after we've celebrated the glory of the Holy Trinity. Corpus Christi Simplified   Corpus Christi Customs   Eucharistic Symbols   Corpus Christi for Kids   Receiving Holy Communion (Book for Kids) The Meaning of the Real Presence Eucharistic Proofs Eucharistic Miracles In Defense of the Eucharist How Long is Jesus Present Within Us Post Communion?     Martyrs of the Eucharist More  Miracles of the Eucharist   National Eucharistic Revival  Fruits of the Eucharist: Church Posture: When passing in front of the tabernacle, genuflect, a bow is reserved for before Communion or when passing the altar when the tabernacle is separate fr...

  Today commemorates the news of emancipation being delivered to the enslaved African Americans, thus signifying the freeing of the last enslaved person in the United States. While today is a day for unity and uplifting Black/African American voices the authentic way to honor today's holiday is to not give into corporate white washing of the holiday as is so frequently done this month by corporations that rainbow wash for pride month but don't support marginalized communities throughout the remainder of the year. Juneteenth is an opportunity to rekindle our commitment to intersectionality and fighting injustice as we celebrate Pride month and the lives of queer African Americans. Today we celebrate the African American/Black Community and rejoice in their liberation and we celebrate Black Joy.     All about Juneteenth   Juneteenth Symbols Juneteenth Shows and Movies   Juneteenth (For Kids)   Catholic Juneteenth Events Juneteenth Festival Buffalo, NY Vega...

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY! On Father’s Day we honor in a special way: God, our Heavenly Father, St. Joseph, the earthly Father of Jesus and all our faithful priests. We salute and honor them today, thanking God for the fathers in our lives and pray that St. Joseph continues to be a model for them. Happy Father’s Day to all who celebrate and to those who need a comforting word or helping hand today, don't be afraid to seek s upport.     Honoring God the Father   St. Joseph, Image of God the Father   Honoring St. Joseph Today   Father's Day Resources   Father's Day Fun   Father's Day History   Father's Day Specials   Father's Day Horror: Creepshow, Stepfather III, Father's Day, Knock Knock, Holidays (Anthology film feat multiple holidays.) Father's Day and Mental Health   Considerate Father's Day Greetings   Dads of the Animal Kingdom   Why Do We Call Priests “Father”?    

         Today we honor the chief symbol of the United States of America, the American flag. To celebrate the flag is to honor what it symbolizes, a nation striving towards equality, liberty and justice for all. While today there is still much division and work to be done for unity, we look at the flag to recall all those beneath this banner of freedom should all enjoy the same rights as is their human dignity. As Flag day falls during Pride month it is difficult to be patriotic in a nation that everyday seems to move backwards towards equality as companies such as Target, Starbucks and those who sold Budweiser are proving themselves as not true allies. Nevertheless we persist with the pride and American flags, moving toward freedom and equality.                                        About Flag Day Honoring Flag Day as a Progressive Flag Day ...

H A P P Y P R I D E ! In June we celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride Month as we recognize the trailblazers of the gay rights movement and the benefits of the LGBTQ+ community to society and we remember above all that love is love. June is Pride Month because it was in this month that the revolutionary Stonewall Riots occurred. In June, Catholics honor the  Sacred Heart of Jesus , the symbol of God's love. As June is Pride Month and the month of the Sacred Heart, both celebrations of love these two themes are intimately united. This will be my first Pride as a married man, and I'm super excited to be able to celebrate Marriage equality in a special way this year, I created a blog post here , all about marriage. We take extra time this month in recognizing the great strides made towards LGBTQ+ equality and to strive to support intersectional allyship for all the marginalized, realizing there would be no pride without individuals like Marsha P. Johnson, a trans black woman.  A Catholic Loo...

“Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb!”  Today we celebrate the last day of Mary’s Month by the commemoration of Her Visitation to St. Elizabeth.  It is the day that Mary meets with her cousin Elizabeth because the Angel Gabriel when announcing to Mary the incarnation of Christ, he also told her that Elizabeth was pregnant. In her charity Mary selflessly visits her cousin. On this day St. John leaps in the womb at the sound of Mary’s voice and is purified in St. Elizabeth’s womb by Jesus’ presence within Mary’s. The Holy Spirit inspires Mary to pray the Magnificat after inspiring Elizabeth to first recite the second half of the Hail Mary, “Blessed art Thou…Mother of God”.  Therefore like the Annunciation today is a good day for special devotion to the Hail Mary! The Magnificat is also a testimony to the just and merciful power of God and the real Christian call to help the poor and downtrodden as the “rich are sent away empty.” The Canticle o...

As Christians we have a great duty to pray for the souls of the faithful departed. This and every Memorial Day we are grateful for the brave men and women who died for the cause of our civil freedoms as we remember that Jesus Christ died for our soul's freedom.  Today, fly your American Flag, dress patriotic, wear a poppy and take part in the National moment of silence at 3pm ( 3pm is used because that's when people are busy with activities so it provides time to pause and pray as the Angelus does at Noon daily) .   But most of all, Memorial Day is a great day to visit a cemetery/memorial and pray for the souls of those who died defending our freedoms, as well as praying for the intercession of Our Lady, the Immaculate Conception as patroness of America to intercede for their souls and their families as a grateful nation (a partial indulgence can be gained for prayers at a cemetery.)  Although we don't want war, and disagree with its ex...