Face to Face With Evil

Praying at an abortion clinic is both heart wrenching and yet oddly fulfilling at the same time.

Every Saturday morning we gather at a local woman's clinic and begin our rosaries, walking up and down the sidewalk as witnesses for life. Our hearts bleed with the knowledge that 20 feet away babies are being killed in their mother's wombs; and the  mothers are being emotionally and sometimes physically destroyed.

We feel fulfilled in that we are there being witnesses for life. We are no longer silent but rather, by our peaceful presence standing up for life and not just for the unborn but for all life. We are the Church Militant, here on the earth, continuing to wage the battle against evil by our prayers and our witness!

We come face to face with evil every Saturday morning that we are there, week after week. From the well dressed man in the expensive pick up truck who circles the block 3 times blaring his horn and waving at us with just one finger, to the man who walks up and down the opposite side of the street yelling to us that God loves murders too, to the people of all ages, races and genders who feel the need to express themselves and verbally assault us with foul language!

But today we can face to face with the worst, most hurtful one yet...a child......a young girl, I would say between the ages of 11and 13.  She, her younger brother and her friend decided that at their tender ages they were going to put a stop to our praying and witnessing. They began by roller blading through us twice. Then they gathered at the corner and when we processed near them they began to blow shrill whistles and use noisemakers to drown out our prayers. The more we ignored them and continued the more intense, the more agitated and malicious they became. She even got to the point of when I made the Sign of the Cross on myself and was facing her she became angry and yelled at me telling me not to bless myself in front of her!  And when you looked into her eyes, you saw evil.... pure hatred for us!  I know that some may think that I am exaggerating but my companions will agree with me, the local priest who joins us will agree.. these children are not unknown to him, they have been there before even though my group has never seen them before.

Yes we come face to face with evil every week...sometimes, it's the face of a business man, a woman walking down the street, a medical doctor who has forgotten what the Hippocratic Oath stands for and sometimes it is a child....

53,310,843 babies were murdered by abortion in the 37 years after Roe v. Wade-  one little girl tried to stop us today.. below is one little girl who is begging us not to!

Suffering

I thought a lot about suffering today... the day's events all seemed to be focused on it and so tonight in my reflection and meditation on this day it just seemed natural to write about suffering.

The day started out as an ordinary Sunday. 10:30 Mass was full and the Mass was beautiful as always and I was feeling a wonderful sense of peace until right after the homily when someone near the front of the church began to have a medical emergency. Her tearful children were ushered out by a concerned family friend. A couple of doctors and a nurse in the congregation rushed to her aid and the rescue was called.  As they carried her out on a stretcher I felt myself tearing up, thinking of this young woman, her tearful children and her worried husband. Even in church, where I always feel the safest, we are not spared suffering.........

I returned to church in the evening for a special speaker that our youth group had invited. The woman invited to speak that evening was an elderly Jewish woman who had survived the death camps during World War II.  She talked about her childhood, her family and her husband (who had been sent to Auschwitz and who had lost his whole family) - she talked about how her sons were embarrassed to bring friends home from school because their parents had accents and how they were angry that they had no Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles or Cousins like their classmates. They did not know until high school about the things their parents had been through when they were children...

So this leads me back to suffering... why do we suffer? I know people who will say to me, "when an animal is suffering we put them out of their misery, why can't we do that with people. People who are terminal and suffering greatly with their illness, why can't we be kind and put them out of their suffering?" and I tell them the same thing every time... because human suffering is redemptive, an animals' suffering is not.

Our suffering, united to Christ's suffering, is redemptive, if not for us then for someone else. God uses our suffering to either sanctify us or gives the graces from our suffering to another soul that needs them.

I will remember that very ill woman from my church tonight in my prayers. I will thank God that the Jewish woman survived her horrors and is here to educate our youth about the sin and dangers of hatred and I will end this post with a part from the Diary of Saint Faustina in which Jesus said-

                  ''You are not living for yourself but for souls,

                      and other souls will profit from your sufferings."

As the 40 Days for Life fall campaign nears it's final day I spent tonight reflecting on how I have been transformed over these past 40 days.

As the co-chair of my parish's pro-life committee I had already been praying outside a woman's clinic that performs abortions during the evenings after work, but the clinic was closed at that time. My friends and I did not mind that the clinic was closed, we were there to pray for the babies that had died that day, the ones that could be aborted the next day and to just pray to rid the evil that surrounded that place! But during the 40 Days for Life we increased our prayer vigils to include Saturday mornings; when the clinic was open for business.....

And on every Saturday morning between the hours of 7:00 and 9:00 am the women arrive at the clinic. The abortionist arrives at 9:00 and the abortions are performed between 9 and 11:00 am.

The entire time we are out front; peacefully praying our rosary for an end to the unspeakable acts that are being performed inside this pristine, neat, tidy building.

The first time I went to this place I was reminded of Jesus telling the Jewish religious leaders that they were like white sepulchers, all clean and nice on the outside but inside, full of dead men's bones.. this clinic, this place of evil was so neat and respectable on the outside but inside was full of dead babies and wounded, broken women....

Each Saturday I can feel the cries of the unborn deep in my soul as I walk up and down that sidewalk, holding my rosary and praying with my friends.  At times I want to break down that door and cry out to these people "Can't you see what you are doing??  You are killing children!!"  I carry the weight of these deaths with me even as I walk away - their unknown faces haunt me and I take comfort in the fact that they are now safe with Jesus.

So as the latest 40 Days for Life campaign draws to a close I know that my fight has not and I will continue to be at that clinic one evening a week and every Saturday morning until there is no longer a need to be. God made it rain for 40 days and nights, the Israelites wandered the desert for 40 years, Jesus prayed and fasted for 40 days before starting his public ministry and in 40 days my life was changed forever -

Lenten Reflection for Week Two

Come now, let us set things right, says the LORD: 
Though your sins be like scarlet, they may become white as snow;       
Though they be crimson red, they may become white as wool.
If you are willing, and obey, you shall eat the good things of the land;
                            Isaiah Chapter 1

What an uplifting reading from today's liturgy-  Beautiful words to meditate on- Our Father in Heaven sending us words of comfort, of forgiveness and hope. A perfect reading for beginning our second week of Lent. We are given a promise that if we are willing and we obey what Gods asks of us,  we shall eat the good things of the land and have our sins forgiven no matter how horrific they may be. 

It is all up to us! God has given us everything we need, every chance to travel the right road and He has guaranteed us that if we persevere and follow His will we shall have forgiveness and enter into everlasting joy with Him -

This week of Lent let's focus on whether or not we are making a conscious effort to conform to God's will and obey his law so that we will see our sins of scarlet,  become white as snow!

Deo Gratias

Help Needed for New Catholic Handmade Selling Site

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10% off at Handmaid Rosary Beads

Lenten Special-  10% off all items in my Etsy store during Lent..  Use coupon code LENT2011 at time of checkout!
http://www.etsy.com/people/HandmaidRosaryBeads

Ash Wednesday - The Beginning of Lent

Today, Ash Wednesday,  the Catholic Church begins the Season of Lent. Lent is a season that most poeple look at as a time of 'giving up' something but Lent to me, is really about a journey- a journey of 40 days through the desert to the resurrection. A time of renewal and repentence; as the Prophet Joel says in the first reading of today's Mass:

"Even now, says the Lord, return to me with your whole heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning. Rend your hearts not your garments and return to the Lord, your God."

Even now, over two thousand years since the prophet Joel urged the people of Zion, we are still being called by God to return to His love with a repentent and contrite heart.

As we travel through Lent this year let's make a concious effort to spend more time in prayer, of truly being sorry for the many times we have sinned and offended Him. To wind our way through the desert of our sinfulness to come out the other end to share in the glory of His Resurrection!

Deo Gratias

St. Therese Little Flower Rosary

I just love the center and crucifix on this rosary. This is the first time I have used this set...absolutely stunning with the photo of The Flower.

The beads are pink quartz for the Aves and a pretty glass foil rosebud for the Paters. The center and crucifix are made in Pewter.

Visit my Etsy Shop to see more photos or to purchase!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/HandmaidRosaryBeads

The Fifth Sorrowful Mystery- The Crucifixion of Jesus

We finish up the Sorrowful Mysteries with the culmination of all the suffering, agony and torture as Jesus dies on the cross.

This one event in history, this death of one solitary human being will change the world as man knew it for all time. From the words "I thirst" to "Woman, behold your son" to "It is finished" Jesus continues to cry out for us to love him, gifts us with his Mother and finally makes the ultimate sacrifice, his life, to redeem us.

As we meditate on this final mystery let us always remember how much Our Lord suffered for our redemption. He continues to "thirst" for us, for our friendship, for our company and most of all for our love. How lucky we are to have a Creator who loves us so much!  Deo Gratias!

The Fourth Sorrowful Mystery- The Carrying of the Cross

In this mystery we travel with Jesus along the Via Dolorosa - the Way of the Cross. We see Jesus fall and get back up again. We see him trying to comfort his Mother and warn the women of Jerusalem. We see Veronica, attempting to comfort the Savior in some small way by wiping the sweat and blood off his face.  All through this mystery we continue to watch Jesus persevere, knowing that at the end of this trial is gift of the resurrection and the opening of Heaven to all of us.

As we meditate on the fourth mystery, we need to ask ourselves, do we persevere through our trials in life with the same grace and dignity of our Lord- with the same faith; gladly carry our crosses, knowing that as lonely and painful as they may be, at the end of them is salvation? We should always view the crosses God sends us as gifts of His love with which to sanctify ourselves and ready our souls for Heaven, not as punishments

"Oh my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell and bring all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of thy mercy"

The Third Sorrowful Mystery- The Crowning with Thorns

Ecce Homo  - Behold the Man!  Pilates declaration to the crowd as he presents the scourged Savior. Jesus, the King of the Universe, mocked by the Roman soldiers, given a crown of thorns and taunted. Your heart aches for Him, our gentle Lamb of God, yet Jesus suffers all willingly. He had the ability to display his true Kingship, yet he suffers their humilations and cruel taunting with patience and dignity- a lesson for all of us to learn on how to handle ourselves when we face the cruelity of others or of life. 

Courage and fortitude are the virtues I believe this mystery is trying to teach us. Courge when we face difficulties in life. Fortitude to continue to go forward with our beliefs and our faith when we face ridicule or prejudice. The crown of thorns is meant for each of us to wear at some time in our lives, perhaps we will wear this crown more than once in our lifetime. We need to wear our crown of thorns as Jesus did, with dignity, peace, courage and fortitude.

Ecce Homo- Behold the Man, Agnus Dei- Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.

The Second Sorrowful Mystery

The second Sorrowful Mystery is the Scourging at the Pillar.

I am sure that all of us have seen various movies on the life of Christ and have witnessed in these movies the terrible scourging that Jesus suffered for us. The Roman Army was very skilled in their scourging and this scene in The Passion of the Christ movie I think is the only one which truly depicts just how brutual a punishment this really was. Christ suffered unspeakable pain and loss of blood at the hands of the soldiers and did this all willingly so that our sins would be forgiven.

In this mystery the prophecy of Isaiah comes to pass. Isaiah Chapter 53 is one of my favorite verses in the Old Testament.

Who would believe what we have heard? To whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?

He grew up like a sapling before him, like a shoot from the parched earth; there was in him no stately bearing to make us look at him, nor appearance that would attract us to him.

He was spurned and avoided by men, a man of suffering, accustomed to infirmity, one of those from whom men hide their faces, spurned, and we held him in no esteem.

Yet it was our infirmities that he bore, our sufferings that he endured, while we thought of him as stricken, as one smitten by God and afflicted.

But he was pierced for our offenses, crushed for our sins, upon him was the chastisement that makes us whole; by his stripes we were healed.

We had all gone astray like sheep, each following his own way; But the LORD laid upon him the guilt of us all.

Though he was harshly treated, he submitted and opened not his mouth; like a lamb led to the slaughter or a sheep before the shearers; he was silent and opened not his mouth.

Oppressed and condemned, he was taken away, and who would have thought any more of his destiny? When he was cut off from the land of the living, and smitten for the sin of his people,

A grave was assigned him among the wicked and a burial place with evildoers, though he had done no wrong nor spoken any falsehood.

(But the LORD was pleased to crush him in infirmity.) If he gives his life as an offering for sin, he shall see his descendants in a long life, and the will of the LORD shall be accomplished through him.

Because of his affliction he shall see the light in fullness of days; through his suffering, my servant shall justify many, and their guilt he shall bear.

Therefore I will give him his portion among the great, and he shall divide the spoils with the mighty, because he surrendered himself to death and was counted among the wicked; and he shall take away the sins of many, and win pardon for their offenses.

As we pray this second of the Sorrowful Mysteries let us always remember how much Jesus suffered to "deliver us from evil"

The Sorrowful Mysteries

I thought I would begin my little series on the Rosary by starting with the Sorrowful Mysteries.  I must admit that these are my favorite. I love to mediate on the suffering, crucified Christ. In meditating on the suffering Savior I am constantly reminded how much Jesus loves us and to what lengths He went to in order to ransom us from sin and inspires me to try harder not to sin and cause Him more pain.

My earliest impressions of the suffering Christ was a beautiful picture that was in my parent's family bible. This beautiful bible, one of the large family editions, had the most wonderful color plates and I used to spend hours looking at the pictures and thinking about God, Jesus and Mary. My favorite was a picture of Jesus suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane.

This picture, titled Agony in the Garden, was done by artist Carl Bloch. This picture touchs my heart like no other religious picture. The loneliness of our Savior in his darkest moments, alone, with no human support is being beautifully supported and comforted by an angel. The angel knew and loved Jesus as the Creator and his/her King. He/she is the loyal subject from a "kingdom not of this world". I love the way the angel is softly holding Jesus's head against his/her chest, you can almost imagine the angel stroking his hair as he/she comforts him. I also really like the way Bloch has depicted the angel to look feminine yet masculine, since angels have no gender I like his take on these beautiful spiritual beings.

All in all this picture truly reflects the moment of Jesus's agony in the garden and is a wonderful picture to reflect upon as we pray this 1st mystery of the Sorrowful Mysteries. Let us always remember, when we enter into our own Garden of Gethsemane, that Jesus knows how it feels to be betrayed, abandoned and left alone and we can turn to Him to comfort us the way the angel in this picture comforted Him.

The Rosary

I thought it would be nice to begin doing small pieces on the Rosary. I have always loved the rosary although I am not always the best "rosary sayer", distractions are a huge obstacle for me while reciting the rosary. I am much better in a group setting such as when we have the rosary devotions during the months of May and October in my parish. I also enjoy books that help me to concentrate on the particular mystery that I am praying.

One book that I really enjoy is Father Peyton's Rosary Prayer Book. I picked up this little book a couple of years ago when I journeyed to visit his resting place at the Holy Cross cemetery on the grounds of Stonehill College in Easton Massachusetts.

Just before the College is a beautiful center built in honor of the Holy Cross Fathers and houses a replica of Fr. Peyton's office in California, all decorated with his original belongings and set up the way he had them in the original space. There is also a wonderful gift shop, adoration chapel and several meeting rooms.

It was during my perusal of the gift shop that I found this wonderful little book written by Fr. Peyton. It is a book of Father's own reflections on each of the mysteries and is a wonderful aid to those trying to gain more insight and spiritual benefits from reciting the rosary I would highly recommend it to anyone. I am including a link to their gift shop http://www.hcfmstore.com/main/peyton_products.php?viewAll=1

Father Peyton was known as the 'Rosary Priest' and it was he who coined the phrase "The family that prays together, stays together". He is currently a "Servant of God" and his cause for beatification is ongoing.

I would encourage all to visit this site either on the web or if possible travel to beautiful Easton Mass and visit with Fr. Peyton personally. It is a nice little pilgrimage for those of us who live in New England. The grave site is very peaceful, he is buried with other Holy Cross priests and it is a custom to leave a rosary on his headstone and take one that is already there.

One of Our Holy Mother's main messages is to pray the rosary every day for peace, conversion of sinners and for the good of our own souls. Fr. Peyton echoed and lived that message every day of his life, shouldn't we?

More to follow on the rosary so please check back!

Deo Gratias