J.M.J. +
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
Praise God! I am so overflowing with joy right now I could not wait to send this belated Christmas present to all of you especially the pro-life veterans of many years. I have copied an email from a fellow pro-life advocate and Knight of Columbus Steve. I am also emailing in regards to this Saturday’s peaceful prayer vigil which will take place at 345 Whitney Avenue’s Planned Parenthood from 8 am till 12 pm noon on the 29th of December. If you would like to take an hour of prayer please respond. What an awesome joy to receive such beautiful consolations that God is working miracles out of compassion for His people. Our Blessed Mother looks on us her children with love and joy and is interceding to her son in response to our efforts! We may never know until eternity how many lives were spared and souls were saved because we decided to serve God by praying and witnessing for the Unborn. So when we feel discouraged by the babies who have lost their innocent lives and weighed down by the persecution of passersby, when we feel too tired and too cold to come out to pray, and when we wonder if our efforts and prayers are doing anything at all lets reread this story and praise God for His great consolations and faithfulness! And let us remember that God’s time is not our time, but His time is the most glorious of all!
God Bless you all and a Very Merry and Blessed Christmas indeed!
Mike and Kerry
Hi Kerry, I thought I would let you know what happened today after you left. Not long after you left most of the others departed also, all except for Mike who was on the sidewalk in front of pp and Nathanael. While Nate and I were praying the Rosary a car stopped and the woman driving asked me to come over to her car that she wanted to ask me a question.So I walked up to the passenger side window of the car where a pretty young woman sat with a big smile on herface and said hi how can I help you. The driver of the car, an older woman asked me if I knew the name of one of the older men who was standing here earlier. I told her I wasn't sure which man she was talking about and then asked why she wanted to know their name. She said she wanted to thank him for talking her out of having an Abortion some 15 years ago, I think she said Bloomfield? Then she said she wanted to show him a picture of her 15 year old son as a result of him taking the time to witness to her that day....TEARS OF JOY FLOWING FREELY!!!!! I was really caught off guard. I said thanks be to God! Praise God ...Praise the Lord Jesus Christ or something like that. Then I gave them both a little baby Jesus and a Miraculous Medal of Mary. They were both Very Happy and said to tell all the people that come out to pray and talk to the people about not having abortions that they do make a difference. Keep up the Great Work don't stop Praying. You never know when you are going to find out when you made a Positive Result happen in this world or in someone’s life. You may find out that day or the next week or it might take 15 years or you might have to wait until you get into Heaven to find out the True Fruits of your labor :)
God Always Wins :)
May God bless you,
Love and Peace,
Stephen :)
The Eucharist
May the Heart of Jesus, in the Most Blessed Sacrament, be praised, adored and loved with grateful affection, at every moment, in all the tabernacles of the world, even to the end of time. Amen.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Monday, December 17, 2007
An Early Christmas Gift!
J.M.J +
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am emailing to thank all of you for the prayer coverage at New Haven Planned Parenthood last Wednesday on the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe and on Saturday. I wanted to share with you the fruits of your labor in serving God for the many hours that you do! On Saturday while five of us were praying the sorrowful Mysteries a car preceded to drive into PP Parking lot. In it a young woman and man rolled down their window in response to some literature we were holding up. As I got closer I could see a very fearful woman who began to cry as soon as I asked her if she was there for an abortion that day. I went on to hand her the appropriate literature and explain to her that she did not have to choose death for her baby and we could offer her the help she needed. I explained that her baby already loves her, God loves her and we love her. The young man in the car said he did not want her to have an abortion, but could not talk her out of it and she went on to say that things were not good between them right now. He looked at me and said he knows that the people in that building only want their money that they do not care about much else. I asked her if she knew who I was holding in my hands, her eyes fixed and drawn to a beautiful retablo image of Our Lady of Guadalupe I held to my chest. She looked up at me with a smile and said yes her tears began to flow harder. I then told her that Our Lady did not want her to have an abortion today and I was no longer speaking for myself but for what I believe Our Mother would want me to say. Tears began to stream. I asked her how far long she was she looked at me with a look of shame and said 12 weeks. I could hear the beautiful sound of the rosary being prayed directly behind me. I knew it did not matter what happened now because it was in Our Lady’s hands. As we talked about Our Lady of Guadalupe and the more the woman looked at the image her hard stare began to soften and at the conclusion of the Crucifixion of the sorrowful mysteries she looked up at me and said I won’t do it. I won’t do it. I am going to keep my baby. It was like watching a conversion of heart happen right before our eyes. It was surely a miracle at the prompting of the last two days of prayer as well as at the powerful Intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The next best part of the story is when I asked the young woman her name. She went on to tell me “My name is Marie” the name of Our Lady! So for all of you who came out to pray on Wednesday and Saturday as well as those of you who are praying from home or before the Blessed Sacrament thank you! We all now have a spiritual son or daughter as our early Christmas present who will get the chance to live and to love and serve God! Praise Jesus!
For those of you who would like to commit to an hour of prayer for this Saturday the 22nd at 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood please respond. We are seeking to cover the hours that the precious babies are killed from 8:00am until 12:00pm noon. It has been made very clear to me by numerous priests that this battle we are fighting is a spiritual one. The prayer is front and center and without all of you coming out to pray a sidewalk councilor would be null and void. This is God’s work and cannot be done by human hands alone. This has been the basis of the Helpers Movement all along. It is wonderfully explained in the following paragraph of the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants Prayer Book. “The goal of the Helpers is to establish at every site where the Unborn are unjustly killed a presence of pure prayer so that a woman seeking an abortion can really hear a compassionate offer of help from a sidewalk councilor. While the focus is on prayer, designated sidewalk councilors speak gently to woman entering the clinic offering literature which contains available true help. In this way the Helpers create an occasion for God’s grace to work and God, for His part, does take advantage of the opportunity.”
Please remember Marie and her baby as well as the father in your prayers each day and contact me to join us in prayer on Saturday and to rejoice over the precious life that was spared!
Praise God,
Mike and Kerry
I am emailing to thank all of you for the prayer coverage at New Haven Planned Parenthood last Wednesday on the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe and on Saturday. I wanted to share with you the fruits of your labor in serving God for the many hours that you do! On Saturday while five of us were praying the sorrowful Mysteries a car preceded to drive into PP Parking lot. In it a young woman and man rolled down their window in response to some literature we were holding up. As I got closer I could see a very fearful woman who began to cry as soon as I asked her if she was there for an abortion that day. I went on to hand her the appropriate literature and explain to her that she did not have to choose death for her baby and we could offer her the help she needed. I explained that her baby already loves her, God loves her and we love her. The young man in the car said he did not want her to have an abortion, but could not talk her out of it and she went on to say that things were not good between them right now. He looked at me and said he knows that the people in that building only want their money that they do not care about much else. I asked her if she knew who I was holding in my hands, her eyes fixed and drawn to a beautiful retablo image of Our Lady of Guadalupe I held to my chest. She looked up at me with a smile and said yes her tears began to flow harder. I then told her that Our Lady did not want her to have an abortion today and I was no longer speaking for myself but for what I believe Our Mother would want me to say. Tears began to stream. I asked her how far long she was she looked at me with a look of shame and said 12 weeks. I could hear the beautiful sound of the rosary being prayed directly behind me. I knew it did not matter what happened now because it was in Our Lady’s hands. As we talked about Our Lady of Guadalupe and the more the woman looked at the image her hard stare began to soften and at the conclusion of the Crucifixion of the sorrowful mysteries she looked up at me and said I won’t do it. I won’t do it. I am going to keep my baby. It was like watching a conversion of heart happen right before our eyes. It was surely a miracle at the prompting of the last two days of prayer as well as at the powerful Intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The next best part of the story is when I asked the young woman her name. She went on to tell me “My name is Marie” the name of Our Lady! So for all of you who came out to pray on Wednesday and Saturday as well as those of you who are praying from home or before the Blessed Sacrament thank you! We all now have a spiritual son or daughter as our early Christmas present who will get the chance to live and to love and serve God! Praise Jesus!
For those of you who would like to commit to an hour of prayer for this Saturday the 22nd at 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood please respond. We are seeking to cover the hours that the precious babies are killed from 8:00am until 12:00pm noon. It has been made very clear to me by numerous priests that this battle we are fighting is a spiritual one. The prayer is front and center and without all of you coming out to pray a sidewalk councilor would be null and void. This is God’s work and cannot be done by human hands alone. This has been the basis of the Helpers Movement all along. It is wonderfully explained in the following paragraph of the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants Prayer Book. “The goal of the Helpers is to establish at every site where the Unborn are unjustly killed a presence of pure prayer so that a woman seeking an abortion can really hear a compassionate offer of help from a sidewalk councilor. While the focus is on prayer, designated sidewalk councilors speak gently to woman entering the clinic offering literature which contains available true help. In this way the Helpers create an occasion for God’s grace to work and God, for His part, does take advantage of the opportunity.”
Please remember Marie and her baby as well as the father in your prayers each day and contact me to join us in prayer on Saturday and to rejoice over the precious life that was spared!
Praise God,
Mike and Kerry
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Our God is With Us!
J.M.J +
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
We rejoice together in thanksgiving for the abundant prayer presence at yesterday’s peaceful prayer vigil in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe at Planned Parenthood in New Haven. We were able to cover all the hours of abortion and many of them with multiple prayer warriors. We had about 30 people who came out to pray yesterday that I am sure of! However I do think more came out than were scheduled from speaking to some of you who reported more people praying. Father Martin DeMayo from St. Marks in Stratford joined us in prayer at PP as well. We continue to offer prayers of thanksgiving for his intentions for making such a sacrifice in regards to the distance he drives as well as his precious time! The candle lit vigil was very powerful for those of us praying alongside the beautiful image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Many of us commented how much last night’s crescent moon looked like the moon under her feet in the image. It brings us continual joy to do the will of the Father through the intercession of Our Lady and Advocate for the Unborn.
I am sure you know I am emailing in regards to this Saturday, the 15th’s, peaceful prayer vigil which will take place at the location of 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood in New Haven from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm noon, the hours where the precious infants will be killed. Please respond to commit to an hour of prayer. If you have not already joined us in prayer at the abortion mill we ask you to please consider doing it this weekend. We need to pray directly at the mill when babies lives and God’s children’s souls depend on us being on the frontline. The abortionists as well as all those who support the culture of death are God’s children and we must remember Jesus loves them greatly and longs for all souls to come to Him, especially those who are so very lost. I know that standing up for these babies in front of the abortion mill may seem intimidating at first, however we must remember we are not doing this on or by our own account. This is God’s work. He is with us! Our Lord and Savior died for each and every one of us, our sins certainly could bury us alive, but Our Emmanuel, our God who is with us, has saved us. For we know… “If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31)
Out of great love and adoration we embrace His will and accept in gratitude and humility to carry His Cross with Him. It is through Jesus’ Crucifixion and death that God has reconciled all to Himself bringing life out of death. Therefore as His disciples we must follow His will for salvation and die to ourselves. For we know that in this dying to ourselves babies in the womb will live!
God bless you,
Mike and Kerry
“What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but handed Him over for us all, how will He not also give us everything else along with Him? Who will bring a charge against God’s chosen ones? It is God who acquits us. Who will condemn? It is Christ [Jesus] who died, rather, was raised, who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword? As it is written:
“For your sake we are being slain all the day;
We are looked upon as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8: 31-39)
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
We rejoice together in thanksgiving for the abundant prayer presence at yesterday’s peaceful prayer vigil in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe at Planned Parenthood in New Haven. We were able to cover all the hours of abortion and many of them with multiple prayer warriors. We had about 30 people who came out to pray yesterday that I am sure of! However I do think more came out than were scheduled from speaking to some of you who reported more people praying. Father Martin DeMayo from St. Marks in Stratford joined us in prayer at PP as well. We continue to offer prayers of thanksgiving for his intentions for making such a sacrifice in regards to the distance he drives as well as his precious time! The candle lit vigil was very powerful for those of us praying alongside the beautiful image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Many of us commented how much last night’s crescent moon looked like the moon under her feet in the image. It brings us continual joy to do the will of the Father through the intercession of Our Lady and Advocate for the Unborn.
I am sure you know I am emailing in regards to this Saturday, the 15th’s, peaceful prayer vigil which will take place at the location of 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood in New Haven from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm noon, the hours where the precious infants will be killed. Please respond to commit to an hour of prayer. If you have not already joined us in prayer at the abortion mill we ask you to please consider doing it this weekend. We need to pray directly at the mill when babies lives and God’s children’s souls depend on us being on the frontline. The abortionists as well as all those who support the culture of death are God’s children and we must remember Jesus loves them greatly and longs for all souls to come to Him, especially those who are so very lost. I know that standing up for these babies in front of the abortion mill may seem intimidating at first, however we must remember we are not doing this on or by our own account. This is God’s work. He is with us! Our Lord and Savior died for each and every one of us, our sins certainly could bury us alive, but Our Emmanuel, our God who is with us, has saved us. For we know… “If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31)
Out of great love and adoration we embrace His will and accept in gratitude and humility to carry His Cross with Him. It is through Jesus’ Crucifixion and death that God has reconciled all to Himself bringing life out of death. Therefore as His disciples we must follow His will for salvation and die to ourselves. For we know that in this dying to ourselves babies in the womb will live!
God bless you,
Mike and Kerry
“What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but handed Him over for us all, how will He not also give us everything else along with Him? Who will bring a charge against God’s chosen ones? It is God who acquits us. Who will condemn? It is Christ [Jesus] who died, rather, was raised, who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword? As it is written:
“For your sake we are being slain all the day;
We are looked upon as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8: 31-39)
Our God is With Us!
J.M.J +
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
We rejoice together in thanksgiving for the abundant prayer presence at yesterday’s peaceful prayer vigil in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe at Planned Parenthood in New Haven. We were able to cover all the hours of abortion and many of them with multiple prayer warriors. We had about 30 people who came out to pray yesterday that I am sure of! However I do think more came out than were scheduled from speaking to some of you who reported more people praying. Father Martin DeMayo from St. Marks in Stratford joined us in prayer at PP as well. We continue to offer prayers of thanksgiving for his intentions for making such a sacrifice in regards to the distance he drives as well as his precious time! The candle lit vigil was very powerful for those of us praying alongside the beautiful image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Many of us commented how much last night’s crescent moon looked like the moon under her feet in the image. It brings us continual joy to do the will of the Father through the intercession of Our Lady and Advocate for the Unborn.
I am sure you know I am emailing in regards to this Saturday, the 15th’s, peaceful prayer vigil which will take place at the location of 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood in New Haven from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm noon, the hours where the precious infants will be killed. Please respond to commit to an hour of prayer. If you have not already joined us in prayer at the abortion mill we ask you to please consider doing it this weekend. We need to pray directly at the mill when babies lives and God’s children’s souls depend on us being on the frontline. The abortionists as well as all those who support the culture of death are God’s children and we must remember Jesus loves them greatly and longs for all souls to come to Him, especially those who are so very lost. I know that standing up for these babies in front of the abortion mill may seem intimidating at first, however we must remember we are not doing this on or by our own account. This is God’s work. He is with us! Our Lord and Savior died for each and every one of us, our sins certainly could bury us alive, but Our Emmanuel, our God who is with us, has saved us. For we know… “If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31)
Out of great love and adoration we embrace His will and accept in gratitude and humility to carry His Cross with Him. It is through Jesus’ Crucifixion and death that God has reconciled all to Himself bringing life out of death. Therefore as His disciples we must follow His will for salvation and die to ourselves. For we know that in this dying to ourselves babies in the womb will live!
God bless you,
Mike and Kerry
“What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but handed Him over for us all, how will He not also give us everything else along with Him? Who will bring a charge against God’s chosen ones? It is God who acquits us. Who will condemn? It is Christ [Jesus] who died, rather, was raised, who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword? As it is written:
“For your sake we are being slain all the day;
We are looked upon as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8: 31-39)
We rejoice together in thanksgiving for the abundant prayer presence at yesterday’s peaceful prayer vigil in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe at Planned Parenthood in New Haven. We were able to cover all the hours of abortion and many of them with multiple prayer warriors. We had about 30 people who came out to pray yesterday that I am sure of! However I do think more came out than were scheduled from speaking to some of you who reported more people praying. Father Martin DeMayo from St. Marks in Stratford joined us in prayer at PP as well. We continue to offer prayers of thanksgiving for his intentions for making such a sacrifice in regards to the distance he drives as well as his precious time! The candle lit vigil was very powerful for those of us praying alongside the beautiful image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Many of us commented how much last night’s crescent moon looked like the moon under her feet in the image. It brings us continual joy to do the will of the Father through the intercession of Our Lady and Advocate for the Unborn.
I am sure you know I am emailing in regards to this Saturday, the 15th’s, peaceful prayer vigil which will take place at the location of 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood in New Haven from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm noon, the hours where the precious infants will be killed. Please respond to commit to an hour of prayer. If you have not already joined us in prayer at the abortion mill we ask you to please consider doing it this weekend. We need to pray directly at the mill when babies lives and God’s children’s souls depend on us being on the frontline. The abortionists as well as all those who support the culture of death are God’s children and we must remember Jesus loves them greatly and longs for all souls to come to Him, especially those who are so very lost. I know that standing up for these babies in front of the abortion mill may seem intimidating at first, however we must remember we are not doing this on or by our own account. This is God’s work. He is with us! Our Lord and Savior died for each and every one of us, our sins certainly could bury us alive, but Our Emmanuel, our God who is with us, has saved us. For we know… “If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31)
Out of great love and adoration we embrace His will and accept in gratitude and humility to carry His Cross with Him. It is through Jesus’ Crucifixion and death that God has reconciled all to Himself bringing life out of death. Therefore as His disciples we must follow His will for salvation and die to ourselves. For we know that in this dying to ourselves babies in the womb will live!
God bless you,
Mike and Kerry
“What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but handed Him over for us all, how will He not also give us everything else along with Him? Who will bring a charge against God’s chosen ones? It is God who acquits us. Who will condemn? It is Christ [Jesus] who died, rather, was raised, who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword? As it is written:
“For your sake we are being slain all the day;
We are looked upon as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8: 31-39)
Saturday, December 8, 2007
Am I not here, who am your Mother?
J.M.J +
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am emailing in great joy for the wonderful peaceful prayer presence we had today at 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood! We had 35 people who came out to pray today that I am aware of!!! Our Lady, on the Feast of her Immaculate Conception, has obtained for us so many graces. The Christian presence and witness we experienced was yet just the beginning of the gifts we received today. A couple who went into Planned Parenthood as we were praying during abortion hours came out about 40 minutes later. As we know although the abortion procedure may only take 20 minutes, the women are kept for a total of 3 hours including the time of preparation, anesthesia and recovery. As this couple emerged from the building and drove past us out the driveway both of them had beautiful smiles on their faces and were waving and bowing their heads a s if to say thank you. As you can imagine we do not get many waves from those driving out that driveway. Many of us feel strongly that a baby's life was saved here! Praise God! Another most awesome gift Our Lady sent to us on this Most Holy Feast of her Immaculate Conception is the answer to a prayer I know many of us have held in our hearts for some time; Our Mother sent us one of her Priests. We had the honor of being lead in prayer today by Father Martin Demayo from St Mark’s Parish in Stratford. We are so very grateful for his presence and prayer.
I became inspired while reading an article in Columbia Magazine of the December issue written by Father Chavez, entitled Our Lady’s Messenger. It beautifully conveys the story of Saint Juan Diego’s encounter with Our Lady of Guadalupe. As we move into the Feast of Saint Juan Diego tomorrow and into the 5 consecutive days that Our Lady appeared to him on the 9th through the 13th , we are reminded that even the saints faced their own anxieties and uncertainty in the midst of a difficult world and troubling life circumstances. Father Chavez illustrates so beautifully below the faithfulness and love that Our Mother has for us as her children.
“On December 12th, Juan Diego left his home very early to summon a priest in Tlatelolco who could care for his uncle, who was seriously ill. Anxious and upset about Juan Bernardino’s condition, Juan Diego detoured around Tepeyac Hill so he could avoid encountering the Virgin Mother. However, Our Lady intercepted him and pronounced the most beautiful words, which are also directed to us: “Hear me and understand well, my littlest son, that nothing should frighten or grieve you. Let not your heart be disturbed. Do not fear that sickness, nor any other sickness or anguish. Am I not here, who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not the source of your joy? Are you not happily within my fold and under my arms? What else do you wish?” Mary assured Juan Diego that Juan Bernadino was already cured. Indeed, at the same moment, the Virgin appeared to the dying uncle and not only restored his health but also identified herself as “Holy Mary of Guadalupe.”
At this time of great transformation in the pro-life movement all of us are needed more than ever on the frontline. We know that our God is always faithful, He never changes. He is hearing our prayers and embracing our reparations for those who are killing His children and He is displaying His almighty power over the darkness of evil. We know our Blessed Mother is always faithful to the Will of her Son, from the beginning of her Fiat a resounding Yes, she inspires us to imitate her example by becoming obedient followers of Jesus her son. We can see though the example of her life and almost hear her now asking us to “…Do whatever he tells you.” John 2:5 It seems quite often that witnessing the powerful act of God’s hand, as we are in the pro- life movement, can frighten us. It is as if we want to be faithful but are afraid to go outside of our comfort zone in putting our Faith into action. It is almost as if through our own weakness and limitations we fear that somehow we will be unable to accomplish the goals we have set. It is then we need to remember that this is God’s work and He is in control. We are merely instruments being faithful to His Will. Now is the time for us to remain vigilant and all the more faithful. It is time to pull together as the Body of Christ, for our Master’s greater glory and for babies, women, and families!
After some discussion over the past week and especially today I have been made aware that it is very important to all of us to honor Our Lady of Guadalupe who’s feast is coming this Wednesday , the 12ths of December. Being she Is Our Mother, the Protectress of the Unborn, the patron of the Pro-life movement and of the Americas many of us feel it important to honor her faithfulness and intercession on behalf of the Unborn specifically by creating a strong prayer presence this Wednesday by covering the hours the babies are killed from 8:00 am-6:00 pm. We then are asking for as many people as possible to either come back or join us at 6:00 pm until 8:00 pm for a candlelit vigil in the front of the Planned Parenthood building facing Whitney Avenue on the sidewalk. We need as many people as possible to join in prayer and song while creating a very powerful witness! We are most focused in covering the 11:30am -6:00 pm abortion hour time slot and again especially the candlelit vigil as we need as many people to create a prayerful witness on the sidewalk adjacent to Whitney Avenue.
Please respond back as soon as possible to commit to an hour or to the Candlelit vigil time as I need an idea of how many candles I will need to purchase.
Thank you so much for your faithfulness and passion for the pro-life movement. It is an honor to know and pray with all of you!
God bless you!
Mike and Kerry
Am I not here, who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not the source of your joy? Are you not happily within my fold and under my arms? What else do you wish?”
Our Lady of Guadalupe Protectress of the Unborn Pray For Us!
--
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am emailing in great joy for the wonderful peaceful prayer presence we had today at 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood! We had 35 people who came out to pray today that I am aware of!!! Our Lady, on the Feast of her Immaculate Conception, has obtained for us so many graces. The Christian presence and witness we experienced was yet just the beginning of the gifts we received today. A couple who went into Planned Parenthood as we were praying during abortion hours came out about 40 minutes later. As we know although the abortion procedure may only take 20 minutes, the women are kept for a total of 3 hours including the time of preparation, anesthesia and recovery. As this couple emerged from the building and drove past us out the driveway both of them had beautiful smiles on their faces and were waving and bowing their heads a s if to say thank you. As you can imagine we do not get many waves from those driving out that driveway. Many of us feel strongly that a baby's life was saved here! Praise God! Another most awesome gift Our Lady sent to us on this Most Holy Feast of her Immaculate Conception is the answer to a prayer I know many of us have held in our hearts for some time; Our Mother sent us one of her Priests. We had the honor of being lead in prayer today by Father Martin Demayo from St Mark’s Parish in Stratford. We are so very grateful for his presence and prayer.
I became inspired while reading an article in Columbia Magazine of the December issue written by Father Chavez, entitled Our Lady’s Messenger. It beautifully conveys the story of Saint Juan Diego’s encounter with Our Lady of Guadalupe. As we move into the Feast of Saint Juan Diego tomorrow and into the 5 consecutive days that Our Lady appeared to him on the 9th through the 13th , we are reminded that even the saints faced their own anxieties and uncertainty in the midst of a difficult world and troubling life circumstances. Father Chavez illustrates so beautifully below the faithfulness and love that Our Mother has for us as her children.
“On December 12th, Juan Diego left his home very early to summon a priest in Tlatelolco who could care for his uncle, who was seriously ill. Anxious and upset about Juan Bernardino’s condition, Juan Diego detoured around Tepeyac Hill so he could avoid encountering the Virgin Mother. However, Our Lady intercepted him and pronounced the most beautiful words, which are also directed to us: “Hear me and understand well, my littlest son, that nothing should frighten or grieve you. Let not your heart be disturbed. Do not fear that sickness, nor any other sickness or anguish. Am I not here, who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not the source of your joy? Are you not happily within my fold and under my arms? What else do you wish?” Mary assured Juan Diego that Juan Bernadino was already cured. Indeed, at the same moment, the Virgin appeared to the dying uncle and not only restored his health but also identified herself as “Holy Mary of Guadalupe.”
At this time of great transformation in the pro-life movement all of us are needed more than ever on the frontline. We know that our God is always faithful, He never changes. He is hearing our prayers and embracing our reparations for those who are killing His children and He is displaying His almighty power over the darkness of evil. We know our Blessed Mother is always faithful to the Will of her Son, from the beginning of her Fiat a resounding Yes, she inspires us to imitate her example by becoming obedient followers of Jesus her son. We can see though the example of her life and almost hear her now asking us to “…Do whatever he tells you.” John 2:5 It seems quite often that witnessing the powerful act of God’s hand, as we are in the pro- life movement, can frighten us. It is as if we want to be faithful but are afraid to go outside of our comfort zone in putting our Faith into action. It is almost as if through our own weakness and limitations we fear that somehow we will be unable to accomplish the goals we have set. It is then we need to remember that this is God’s work and He is in control. We are merely instruments being faithful to His Will. Now is the time for us to remain vigilant and all the more faithful. It is time to pull together as the Body of Christ, for our Master’s greater glory and for babies, women, and families!
After some discussion over the past week and especially today I have been made aware that it is very important to all of us to honor Our Lady of Guadalupe who’s feast is coming this Wednesday , the 12ths of December. Being she Is Our Mother, the Protectress of the Unborn, the patron of the Pro-life movement and of the Americas many of us feel it important to honor her faithfulness and intercession on behalf of the Unborn specifically by creating a strong prayer presence this Wednesday by covering the hours the babies are killed from 8:00 am-6:00 pm. We then are asking for as many people as possible to either come back or join us at 6:00 pm until 8:00 pm for a candlelit vigil in the front of the Planned Parenthood building facing Whitney Avenue on the sidewalk. We need as many people as possible to join in prayer and song while creating a very powerful witness! We are most focused in covering the 11:30am -6:00 pm abortion hour time slot and again especially the candlelit vigil as we need as many people to create a prayerful witness on the sidewalk adjacent to Whitney Avenue.
Please respond back as soon as possible to commit to an hour or to the Candlelit vigil time as I need an idea of how many candles I will need to purchase.
Thank you so much for your faithfulness and passion for the pro-life movement. It is an honor to know and pray with all of you!
God bless you!
Mike and Kerry
Am I not here, who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not the source of your joy? Are you not happily within my fold and under my arms? What else do you wish?”
Our Lady of Guadalupe Protectress of the Unborn Pray For Us!
--
Friday, December 7, 2007
Saving Her Children
J.M.J +
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am posting to thank all of you who have committed to an hour of prayer or are coming out with the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants for tomorrow December the 8th’s peaceful prayer vigil at 345 Whitney Avenue’s Planned Parenthood in New Haven from 8am-12 pm noon. For those of you who wish to participate and have not taken an hour of prayer please respond. I am excited to tell all of you that we are now officially listed as a peaceful prayer protest at the American Life League’s website at http://www.all.org/stopp/maps/display.php?region=ct&PHPSESSID=d3e44b2649126366388bd4c9c78b7cb3
If you click on the New Haven PP location on the map you can see our information. We are now the second PP site listed in the state of Connecticut. The other is the 12 Case St. location in Norwich which recently hosted the 40 Days For Life this past Fall. This is awesome news because both Norwich and New Haven are 2 of the 4 PP's in CT which provide surgical abortions and we have them both covered. We all know that an abortion whether surgical, medical, or chemical is the same equally horrendous act of murder and therefore we continue to pray that all of our CT abortion clinics will become vigil sites. However it sends a powerful message to society that God has chosen these two facilities to be covered in prayer on a consistent basis. It is a great victory and honor at the hand of God that we should be able to cover the State headquarters at New Haven in a prayerful presence because we know more than anything that praying for the unborn on the front line is truly God’s work. We are allowing miracles to work through us as we pray becoming instruments directed by His hand. How awesome to become a vessel for His grace!
Below I have copied and included a story from Families Against Planned Parenthood website to keep fresh in our minds that God can use us to work miracles. The Holy Spirit wants to flood our hearts with grace and love causing them to overflow in prayer for these women, babies, men and families. The more people I speak to the more we all feel that something big is happening in the pro-life movement nationwide. We all felt this in the 40 Days For Life and we feel it now quite powerfully here in New Haven. Even those who are not consciously aware of the prayerful haven we are creating through God’s grace, say they cannot explain this feeling of optimistic change in the air. All of us know that we are s imply following where our Lord is leading us and He is changing the hearts of men and woman. We are remaining faithful servants on the front line and He is saving souls and lives by the healing grace of His hand. Tomorrow is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, and I could not close this email without conveying the many graces which are and will be distributed through Our Blessed Mother’s most beautiful and Immaculate heart! I cannot help but to call to mind how many times Our Lady has saved me and my family through her intercession. We will never know in this lifetime how many times Our Lady has protected and saved our children from harm. Now it is time that we help to save hers. And help her in her only wish and desire, to lead all s ouls to her Son!
God bless you!
Mike and Kerry
http://familiesagainstplannedparenthood.org/blog/2007/1201/encouragement-from-the-front-line/
When I arrived at the Planned Parenthood facility this morning I saw every entrance into the shopping center had pro-lifers with pictures of babies who had been aborted. It was very cold and starting to snow, the people we relieved in front of the clinic were happy to see us and spoke to us about a couple they believe turned away and did not have an abortion. We were encouraged and began to pray and to try to speak with those going in.
Several young couples went into the clinic. Pretty soon one came out again and started walking to their car, I asked them to come talk to us and the man (boy?) waved as they got in their car. As they came out of the driveway, he rolled down his window and spoke, saying "we decided not to go through with it."
Smiling widely, I thanked them and offered them the information on places that could help them with the pregnancy crisis. I told them God would bless them for this decision and we spoke of all the people that were praying for them and who wanted to help them. Both were smiling, the girl with a brightness in her eyes that could only be unshed tears. The boy thanked me and they drove away. Please continue to pray for this couple!
Today I know at least two babies lives were saved by our presence. I feel honored and blessed to be used by God in such a way. Please, when you are discouraged, cold, and feeling like we are getting nowhere, remember that each minute we are out there, a baby, a mother, and a father may be saved - in more ways than one! May God Bless you and keep you warm!
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am posting to thank all of you who have committed to an hour of prayer or are coming out with the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants for tomorrow December the 8th’s peaceful prayer vigil at 345 Whitney Avenue’s Planned Parenthood in New Haven from 8am-12 pm noon. For those of you who wish to participate and have not taken an hour of prayer please respond. I am excited to tell all of you that we are now officially listed as a peaceful prayer protest at the American Life League’s website at http://www.all.org/stopp/maps/display.php?region=ct&PHPSESSID=d3e44b2649126366388bd4c9c78b7cb3
If you click on the New Haven PP location on the map you can see our information. We are now the second PP site listed in the state of Connecticut. The other is the 12 Case St. location in Norwich which recently hosted the 40 Days For Life this past Fall. This is awesome news because both Norwich and New Haven are 2 of the 4 PP's in CT which provide surgical abortions and we have them both covered. We all know that an abortion whether surgical, medical, or chemical is the same equally horrendous act of murder and therefore we continue to pray that all of our CT abortion clinics will become vigil sites. However it sends a powerful message to society that God has chosen these two facilities to be covered in prayer on a consistent basis. It is a great victory and honor at the hand of God that we should be able to cover the State headquarters at New Haven in a prayerful presence because we know more than anything that praying for the unborn on the front line is truly God’s work. We are allowing miracles to work through us as we pray becoming instruments directed by His hand. How awesome to become a vessel for His grace!
Below I have copied and included a story from Families Against Planned Parenthood website to keep fresh in our minds that God can use us to work miracles. The Holy Spirit wants to flood our hearts with grace and love causing them to overflow in prayer for these women, babies, men and families. The more people I speak to the more we all feel that something big is happening in the pro-life movement nationwide. We all felt this in the 40 Days For Life and we feel it now quite powerfully here in New Haven. Even those who are not consciously aware of the prayerful haven we are creating through God’s grace, say they cannot explain this feeling of optimistic change in the air. All of us know that we are s imply following where our Lord is leading us and He is changing the hearts of men and woman. We are remaining faithful servants on the front line and He is saving souls and lives by the healing grace of His hand. Tomorrow is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, and I could not close this email without conveying the many graces which are and will be distributed through Our Blessed Mother’s most beautiful and Immaculate heart! I cannot help but to call to mind how many times Our Lady has saved me and my family through her intercession. We will never know in this lifetime how many times Our Lady has protected and saved our children from harm. Now it is time that we help to save hers. And help her in her only wish and desire, to lead all s ouls to her Son!
God bless you!
Mike and Kerry
http://familiesagainstplannedparenthood.org/blog/2007/1201/encouragement-from-the-front-line/
When I arrived at the Planned Parenthood facility this morning I saw every entrance into the shopping center had pro-lifers with pictures of babies who had been aborted. It was very cold and starting to snow, the people we relieved in front of the clinic were happy to see us and spoke to us about a couple they believe turned away and did not have an abortion. We were encouraged and began to pray and to try to speak with those going in.
Several young couples went into the clinic. Pretty soon one came out again and started walking to their car, I asked them to come talk to us and the man (boy?) waved as they got in their car. As they came out of the driveway, he rolled down his window and spoke, saying "we decided not to go through with it."
Smiling widely, I thanked them and offered them the information on places that could help them with the pregnancy crisis. I told them God would bless them for this decision and we spoke of all the people that were praying for them and who wanted to help them. Both were smiling, the girl with a brightness in her eyes that could only be unshed tears. The boy thanked me and they drove away. Please continue to pray for this couple!
Today I know at least two babies lives were saved by our presence. I feel honored and blessed to be used by God in such a way. Please, when you are discouraged, cold, and feeling like we are getting nowhere, remember that each minute we are out there, a baby, a mother, and a father may be saved - in more ways than one! May God Bless you and keep you warm!
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Loving Until It Hurts
J.M.J +
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am posting in regards to this Saturday the 8th of December’s prayer vigil at 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood in New Haven. Please respond to commit to an hour of prayer from 8 am -12 pm noon. What an awesome way to honor Our Lady on the feast of the Immaculate Conception, by standing in peaceful prayer vigil to save her children!
Because it is the second Saturday of the month the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants will be praying 20 decades of the Rosary at PP as well as the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy. There will be a procession following the 7:30 am Mass at St. Mary’s Church at 5 Hillhouse Avenue in New Haven leading to Planned Parenthood. We welcome all of you to come.
However if your schedule does not permit you to join the Helpers please do contact me as we are in need of people to take an hour of prayer to cover the remaining time span when the killing of these precious infants will take place this Saturday.
Below I have included some excerpts from a wonderful speech Blessed Mother Teresa gave in Washington, DC in 1994. I came across it again today and felt truly that no one could say it better than her, for she understood the sanctity of all human life especially amongst the weakest and most fragile of the poor. Let us pray that as we enter into Advent in great excitement and joyous anticipation of the Savior who will reconcile us to Himself that we may never forget that our King of Kings and Lord of Lords , chose to enter this world and our hearts through the fragility and humble meekness of an infant. Despite the holiness of Christ in all His power He chose to be born and laid in a simple manger of wood out of love for us. May we nev er lose sight that the very wood which secured Him on that holy night would go on to save us in the wood of His cross.
Speech of Mother Teresa of Calcutta to the National Prayer Breakfast, Washington, DC,February 3, 1994
On the last day, Jesus will say to those on His right hand,
"Come, enter the Kingdom. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was sick and you visited me." Then Jesus will turn to those on His left hand and say, "Depart from me because I was hungry and you did not feed me, I was thirsty and you did not give me drink, I was sick and you did not visit me." These will ask Him, "When did we see You hungry, or thirsty or sick and did not come to Your help?" And Jesus will answer them,
"Whatever you neglected to do unto one of the least of these, you neglected to do unto me!"
And so it is very important for us to realize that love, to be true, has to hurt. I must be willing to give whatever it takes not to harm other people and, in fact, to do good to them. This requires that I be willing to give until it hurts. Otherwise, there is no true love in me and I bring injustice, not peace, to those around me.
It hurt Jesus to love us. We have been created in His image for greater things, to love and to be loved. We must "put on Christ" as Scripture tells us. And so, we have been created to love and to be loved, and God has become man to make it possible for us to love as He loved us. Jesus makes Himself the hungry one, the naked one, the homeless one, the unwanted one, and He says, "You did it to Me." On the last day He will say to those on His right, "Whatever you did to the least of these, you did to Me," and He will also say to those on His left, "Whatever you neglected to do for the least of these you neglected to do it for Me."
When He was dying on the Cross, Jesus said, "I thirst." Jesus is thirsting for our love, and this is the thirst of everyone, poor and rich alike. We all thirst for the love of others that they go out of their way to avoid harming us and to do good to us. This is the meaning of true love, to give until it hurts.
But I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself.
And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another? How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As always, we must persuade her with love and we remind ourselves that love means to be willing to give until it hurts. Jesus gave even His life to love us. So, the mother who is thinking of abortion should be helped to love, that is, to give until it hurts her plans, or her free time, to respect the life of her child. The father of that child, whoever he is, must also give until it hurts.
But what does God say to us? He says: "Even if a mother could forget her child, I will not forget you. I have carved you in the palm of my hand." We are carved in the palm of His hand; that unborn child has been carved in the hand of God from conception and is called by God to love and to be loved, not only now in this life, but forever. God can never forget us.
Blessed Mother Teresa, please pray for us that we may come to know that offering our prayer and love for these little ones at the abortion mill does mean giving until it hurts, but that in that giving we become united to the Savior of the world who gave everything that He had for us. May we come to know that in praying for the unborn babies who are surely the least of His people and a gift to our world that we are loving and adoring our new born King who is to come, the Emanuel! For we know it is He there amongst the poor.
May God bless you,
Mike and Kerry
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am posting in regards to this Saturday the 8th of December’s prayer vigil at 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood in New Haven. Please respond to commit to an hour of prayer from 8 am -12 pm noon. What an awesome way to honor Our Lady on the feast of the Immaculate Conception, by standing in peaceful prayer vigil to save her children!
Because it is the second Saturday of the month the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants will be praying 20 decades of the Rosary at PP as well as the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy. There will be a procession following the 7:30 am Mass at St. Mary’s Church at 5 Hillhouse Avenue in New Haven leading to Planned Parenthood. We welcome all of you to come.
However if your schedule does not permit you to join the Helpers please do contact me as we are in need of people to take an hour of prayer to cover the remaining time span when the killing of these precious infants will take place this Saturday.
Below I have included some excerpts from a wonderful speech Blessed Mother Teresa gave in Washington, DC in 1994. I came across it again today and felt truly that no one could say it better than her, for she understood the sanctity of all human life especially amongst the weakest and most fragile of the poor. Let us pray that as we enter into Advent in great excitement and joyous anticipation of the Savior who will reconcile us to Himself that we may never forget that our King of Kings and Lord of Lords , chose to enter this world and our hearts through the fragility and humble meekness of an infant. Despite the holiness of Christ in all His power He chose to be born and laid in a simple manger of wood out of love for us. May we nev er lose sight that the very wood which secured Him on that holy night would go on to save us in the wood of His cross.
Speech of Mother Teresa of Calcutta to the National Prayer Breakfast, Washington, DC,February 3, 1994
On the last day, Jesus will say to those on His right hand,
"Come, enter the Kingdom. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was sick and you visited me." Then Jesus will turn to those on His left hand and say, "Depart from me because I was hungry and you did not feed me, I was thirsty and you did not give me drink, I was sick and you did not visit me." These will ask Him, "When did we see You hungry, or thirsty or sick and did not come to Your help?" And Jesus will answer them,
"Whatever you neglected to do unto one of the least of these, you neglected to do unto me!"
And so it is very important for us to realize that love, to be true, has to hurt. I must be willing to give whatever it takes not to harm other people and, in fact, to do good to them. This requires that I be willing to give until it hurts. Otherwise, there is no true love in me and I bring injustice, not peace, to those around me.
It hurt Jesus to love us. We have been created in His image for greater things, to love and to be loved. We must "put on Christ" as Scripture tells us. And so, we have been created to love and to be loved, and God has become man to make it possible for us to love as He loved us. Jesus makes Himself the hungry one, the naked one, the homeless one, the unwanted one, and He says, "You did it to Me." On the last day He will say to those on His right, "Whatever you did to the least of these, you did to Me," and He will also say to those on His left, "Whatever you neglected to do for the least of these you neglected to do it for Me."
When He was dying on the Cross, Jesus said, "I thirst." Jesus is thirsting for our love, and this is the thirst of everyone, poor and rich alike. We all thirst for the love of others that they go out of their way to avoid harming us and to do good to us. This is the meaning of true love, to give until it hurts.
But I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself.
And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another? How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As always, we must persuade her with love and we remind ourselves that love means to be willing to give until it hurts. Jesus gave even His life to love us. So, the mother who is thinking of abortion should be helped to love, that is, to give until it hurts her plans, or her free time, to respect the life of her child. The father of that child, whoever he is, must also give until it hurts.
But what does God say to us? He says: "Even if a mother could forget her child, I will not forget you. I have carved you in the palm of my hand." We are carved in the palm of His hand; that unborn child has been carved in the hand of God from conception and is called by God to love and to be loved, not only now in this life, but forever. God can never forget us.
Blessed Mother Teresa, please pray for us that we may come to know that offering our prayer and love for these little ones at the abortion mill does mean giving until it hurts, but that in that giving we become united to the Savior of the world who gave everything that He had for us. May we come to know that in praying for the unborn babies who are surely the least of His people and a gift to our world that we are loving and adoring our new born King who is to come, the Emanuel! For we know it is He there amongst the poor.
May God bless you,
Mike and Kerry
Friday, November 30, 2007
Vigil Dec 1st!
J.M.J +
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
It looks as if we are headed towards another very cold Saturday peaceful prayer vigil tomorrow from 8 am -12 noon so please bundle up well. Though a sacrifice, we remain joyous in knowing that the cold will only intensify our prayers for these precious little ones! Thank you to all of you who have taken an hour of prayer. If you have not and would like to please respond. We are still in need of the 11:00 am hour to have coverage.
I wanted to share a few stories I found through the Ryan Report. They certainly makes those cold days all worthwhile! For now only God knows how many of these precious babies we have helped to save. Through our faith and these gifts from God along the way, it makes our fight all the sweeter! Mike and I look forward to standing in peaceful prayer with all of you tomorrow.
God bless you,
Mike and Kerry
Life saved at Planned Parenthood in New York
A pro-lifer in Albany, New York submitted this success story, which took place outside the Albany Planned Parenthood clinic. She shared this story to us through the American Life League's Map Room web page.
I pray twice a month at this PP. Although I was not there on 11-10-07 when this incident occurred, my prayer partners related it to me. A woman approached them and said that several months ago her daughter came to this PP to have an abortion. When she saw them praying, she changed her mind. The woman then showed them a photo on her cell phone of her grandson! They would not have known of this if the woman had not stopped to tell them. We have no idea how many women change their minds and we don't know about it. Thanks be to God that babies are being saved by our prayer and presence.
Babies Saved from Planned Parenthood
Of course, the ultimate reason for our work is to save the lives of babies scheduled to die at Planned Parenthood abortion mills. This year, God granted us many victories and saved the lives of a number of children because of your faithful witness outside the killing centers. Here are just a few of the accounts of babies who will be celebrating their first Thanksgiving this year, thanks to your efforts:
Three lives saved from Planned Parenthood in three weeks Thirteen people participated in the abortion-day Prayer Vigil at Sarasota Planned Parenthood in Florida. At least three people contacted Sarasota Medical Pregnancy Center after speaking with a sidewalk counselor in front of Planned Parenthood. And, for the third time in three weeks, one of those was an abortion-minded mother who decided to keep her baby.
Baby’s life saved from Planned Parenthood in Pennsylvania A Hispanic woman went in for an abortion even after pro-lifers tried counseling her; however she did take some of the pro-life literature in with her. Twenty minutes later she came back out and decided to choose life after reading the pro-life brochure in Spanish.
Babies saved from Planned Parenthood in Colorado Since January 22 of this year, members of Colorado Right to Life have reported at least seven babies whose lives have been spared because their mothers changed their minds after talking with the peaceful, prayerful protesters outside of the PP mill in Denver.
Babies' lives saved from Planned Parenthood in FloridaDuring the month of February, we received reports of at least two babies that were saved by the members of Sarasota/Manatee Right to Life. In addition, there were also several women who stopped on their way into PP and then left before ever entering the clinic.
Life saved at Planned Parenthood A life has been saved outside of a Planned Parenthood in Bryan, Texas. The mother, who was a young woman, came up to the pro-lifers at a local restaurant and thanked them for being outside of the PP because, thanks to them, she decided not to have an abortion.
High school student’s role vital in saving a baby from Planned Parenthood On Saturday, March 10, a student from Mariamante Academy in Fredericksburg, Virginia saved a baby's life in Washington D.C. As one of his teachers and some of his schoolmates looked on, Piero, who speaks fluent Spanish, approached a Spanish-speaking couple outside the Planned Parenthood abortion clinic on 16th Street and engaged them in conversation. In the end, the couple did not abort their child.
Baby saved in Nebraska Outside of a PP location in Lincoln, Nebraska, a husband dropped his wife off and the wife indicated that she had several young children at home and walked inside the abortion facility. Each Friday, 40 to 80 prayer people stand in witness to life as the abortion deaths are done. An hour later the husband pulled up again at the end of the driveway. As the woman walked past us, she smiled this beautiful smile and said, "I have changed my mind!"
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
It looks as if we are headed towards another very cold Saturday peaceful prayer vigil tomorrow from 8 am -12 noon so please bundle up well. Though a sacrifice, we remain joyous in knowing that the cold will only intensify our prayers for these precious little ones! Thank you to all of you who have taken an hour of prayer. If you have not and would like to please respond. We are still in need of the 11:00 am hour to have coverage.
I wanted to share a few stories I found through the Ryan Report. They certainly makes those cold days all worthwhile! For now only God knows how many of these precious babies we have helped to save. Through our faith and these gifts from God along the way, it makes our fight all the sweeter! Mike and I look forward to standing in peaceful prayer with all of you tomorrow.
God bless you,
Mike and Kerry
Life saved at Planned Parenthood in New York
A pro-lifer in Albany, New York submitted this success story, which took place outside the Albany Planned Parenthood clinic. She shared this story to us through the American Life League's Map Room web page.
I pray twice a month at this PP. Although I was not there on 11-10-07 when this incident occurred, my prayer partners related it to me. A woman approached them and said that several months ago her daughter came to this PP to have an abortion. When she saw them praying, she changed her mind. The woman then showed them a photo on her cell phone of her grandson! They would not have known of this if the woman had not stopped to tell them. We have no idea how many women change their minds and we don't know about it. Thanks be to God that babies are being saved by our prayer and presence.
Babies Saved from Planned Parenthood
Of course, the ultimate reason for our work is to save the lives of babies scheduled to die at Planned Parenthood abortion mills. This year, God granted us many victories and saved the lives of a number of children because of your faithful witness outside the killing centers. Here are just a few of the accounts of babies who will be celebrating their first Thanksgiving this year, thanks to your efforts:
Three lives saved from Planned Parenthood in three weeks Thirteen people participated in the abortion-day Prayer Vigil at Sarasota Planned Parenthood in Florida. At least three people contacted Sarasota Medical Pregnancy Center after speaking with a sidewalk counselor in front of Planned Parenthood. And, for the third time in three weeks, one of those was an abortion-minded mother who decided to keep her baby.
Baby’s life saved from Planned Parenthood in Pennsylvania A Hispanic woman went in for an abortion even after pro-lifers tried counseling her; however she did take some of the pro-life literature in with her. Twenty minutes later she came back out and decided to choose life after reading the pro-life brochure in Spanish.
Babies saved from Planned Parenthood in Colorado Since January 22 of this year, members of Colorado Right to Life have reported at least seven babies whose lives have been spared because their mothers changed their minds after talking with the peaceful, prayerful protesters outside of the PP mill in Denver.
Babies' lives saved from Planned Parenthood in FloridaDuring the month of February, we received reports of at least two babies that were saved by the members of Sarasota/Manatee Right to Life. In addition, there were also several women who stopped on their way into PP and then left before ever entering the clinic.
Life saved at Planned Parenthood A life has been saved outside of a Planned Parenthood in Bryan, Texas. The mother, who was a young woman, came up to the pro-lifers at a local restaurant and thanked them for being outside of the PP because, thanks to them, she decided not to have an abortion.
High school student’s role vital in saving a baby from Planned Parenthood On Saturday, March 10, a student from Mariamante Academy in Fredericksburg, Virginia saved a baby's life in Washington D.C. As one of his teachers and some of his schoolmates looked on, Piero, who speaks fluent Spanish, approached a Spanish-speaking couple outside the Planned Parenthood abortion clinic on 16th Street and engaged them in conversation. In the end, the couple did not abort their child.
Baby saved in Nebraska Outside of a PP location in Lincoln, Nebraska, a husband dropped his wife off and the wife indicated that she had several young children at home and walked inside the abortion facility. Each Friday, 40 to 80 prayer people stand in witness to life as the abortion deaths are done. An hour later the husband pulled up again at the end of the driveway. As the woman walked past us, she smiled this beautiful smile and said, "I have changed my mind!"
Monday, November 26, 2007
Putting Out the Fire!
J.M.J +
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I just wanted to thank all of you who came out this Saturday to pray for the unborn at 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood. We will be covering PP again in prayer this Saturday December 1st and need to fill the hours of 8am-12pm noon when the killing of the unborn takes place. Please respond to confirm or take your hour.
As we move forward in this fight for LIFE we are reminded we are not fighting alone as we put on the armor of God and we are not fighting against merely a human cause as “For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens.” Ephesians 6:12
Planned Parenthood remains the largest abortion and contraception provider and advocate nationwide. The evil which takes place in the PP facilities is nothing short of the killing and murder of innocent and helpless pre-born babies who have had their rights and lives taken away from them. Planned Parenthood stands by their support of woman’s reproductive “rights” because they claim that every child should be wanted and loved and that if a child was unplanned and a burden he or she will go on to feel that rejection. They not only facilitate one of the greatest evils of our times, that of abortion, but go on to exalt themselves for providing this option of murder to woman as a loving and merciful act to spare those children who might have been unwanted or unpla nned. They also go on to injure the woman who they lie to psychologically and physically as well as pour salt into the wounds of infertile couples who are unable to have children of their own and desperately want to love the very babies that PP kills. Below is an article illustrating the hypocrisy and evil we face in our world and especially so through the evil of PP.
Planned Parenthood Praises Passage of Children’s Health Care Bill
Fri, 09/28/2007 - 11:26am
By Kendall McKenzie
Category:
WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Planned Parenthood Federation of America praised the U.S. Congress for passing legislation that would provide health insurance for more uninsured children and increase health care access for low-income children and families. “Planned Parenthood urges President Bush to sign this important and bi-partisan legislation that will ensure more children and pregnant women get access to quality, affordable health insurance, and not deny millions of children access to health care. President Bush has a simple choice: he can either be for children’s health care, or he can be against it,” said PPFA President Cecile Richards. Planned Parenthood mobilized tens of thousands of supporters to contact their members of Congress on the State Child ren’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) bill. Planned Parenthood also worked with governors and members of Congress on this legislation. As the leading sexual and reproductive health care advocate and provider, Planned Parenthood is dedicated to prevention and education. “The best way to build healthy families is to put prevention first — and that means making sure our children have health insurance, women have access to reproductive health care and affordable birth control, and teens have access to medically accurate information,” said Cecile Richards. “While this legislation represents a huge step forward for the health and safety of children and families across the nation, more work remains to be done,” said Richards. “Thousands of legal immigrant children, some of the most vulnerable among us, won’t be covered by SCHIP. We look forward to working with Congress in the future to make sure legal immigrant children and pregnant women have access to health ins urance.” Every year, Planned Parenthood provides millions of women, men and teens with health care information and services.
My friends in Christ,
I am posting because as Catholics and Christians it is unacceptable for us to allow Planned Parenthood or any organization to take away the right to life which God has created in these precious babies in the womb. Just because the world cannot see behind the walls of PP that does not change that tiny heartbeats are being silenced and silent screams are left unheard. It does not change that we have an obligation as Catholics and Christians to protect the least of God’s people. It is true there are those who are too sick or have circumstances which prevent this direct physical prayer of coming out to the abortion mill, but for many of us there are a million and one excuses why we might not co me out to pray at PP where the abortions take place. It is too upsetting. It causes pain to see the women. I am ashamed. I am too busy. It is too cold. Others will go and I am not needed. My prayer will not make a difference. I am afraid or uncomfortable to be in the presence of such evil. I will pray from home. The list could go on and on. There is no doubt that praying for the unborn is a sacrifice and a risk. There are so many things in our lives which demand our attention. However it is nothing short of what Jesus asks us to do in the Gospel. We know if we want to love Him and to follow Him we need to become like Him and take up our crosses as well as the crosses of our brothers and sisters who are the least of His people. Father Frank Pavone National Director of Priests for Life (forgive me for not being able to find the direct quote here) talks about the importance of going to the abortion mills to pray and stand witness for the unborn. Many people feel that it is enough for us to pray from home. However he compares abortion to a raging fire. Indicating that if there was a fire we would not try to put it out from a distance, but send the fire fighters directly out to extinguish it. Especially if it was our home we would want the firefighters right there! The unborn want and need us right there. They need us to put out that fire for them and God wants us right there serving Him and the least of His people.
The unborn need you. Their lives depend on it. The woman need you their souls and hearts depend on it. There is power in numbers and especially in prayer. Planned Parenthood and their Action Fund http://www.ppaction.org/ppvotes/main.html is standing up for who they represent. I think we all know of their leader who is the father of all lies, a liar and murderer from the beginning. It is time God’s people stand up for who we represent, Jesus Christ who is Truth. Pro-abortion advocates are not going away and PP is not going away without our constant prayer and presence at 345 Whitney Ave. Each and every one of you is just as important. If each one of you took an hour of prayer we could line the sidewalks in prayer! Could you imagine the power in that never mind the witness we could give on Whitney avenue! Over the past month we have seen God is doing His part we must remain faithful and do ours! Please respond to take an hour of prayer for this coming Saturday December 1st from 8am-12pm noon.
May the most Pure and Immaculate Heart of Mary soften our hearts to always say our “Yes” to God’s Will.
God bless you!
Mike and Kerry
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I just wanted to thank all of you who came out this Saturday to pray for the unborn at 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood. We will be covering PP again in prayer this Saturday December 1st and need to fill the hours of 8am-12pm noon when the killing of the unborn takes place. Please respond to confirm or take your hour.
As we move forward in this fight for LIFE we are reminded we are not fighting alone as we put on the armor of God and we are not fighting against merely a human cause as “For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens.” Ephesians 6:12
Planned Parenthood remains the largest abortion and contraception provider and advocate nationwide. The evil which takes place in the PP facilities is nothing short of the killing and murder of innocent and helpless pre-born babies who have had their rights and lives taken away from them. Planned Parenthood stands by their support of woman’s reproductive “rights” because they claim that every child should be wanted and loved and that if a child was unplanned and a burden he or she will go on to feel that rejection. They not only facilitate one of the greatest evils of our times, that of abortion, but go on to exalt themselves for providing this option of murder to woman as a loving and merciful act to spare those children who might have been unwanted or unpla nned. They also go on to injure the woman who they lie to psychologically and physically as well as pour salt into the wounds of infertile couples who are unable to have children of their own and desperately want to love the very babies that PP kills. Below is an article illustrating the hypocrisy and evil we face in our world and especially so through the evil of PP.
Planned Parenthood Praises Passage of Children’s Health Care Bill
Fri, 09/28/2007 - 11:26am
By Kendall McKenzie
Category:
WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Planned Parenthood Federation of America praised the U.S. Congress for passing legislation that would provide health insurance for more uninsured children and increase health care access for low-income children and families. “Planned Parenthood urges President Bush to sign this important and bi-partisan legislation that will ensure more children and pregnant women get access to quality, affordable health insurance, and not deny millions of children access to health care. President Bush has a simple choice: he can either be for children’s health care, or he can be against it,” said PPFA President Cecile Richards. Planned Parenthood mobilized tens of thousands of supporters to contact their members of Congress on the State Child ren’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) bill. Planned Parenthood also worked with governors and members of Congress on this legislation. As the leading sexual and reproductive health care advocate and provider, Planned Parenthood is dedicated to prevention and education. “The best way to build healthy families is to put prevention first — and that means making sure our children have health insurance, women have access to reproductive health care and affordable birth control, and teens have access to medically accurate information,” said Cecile Richards. “While this legislation represents a huge step forward for the health and safety of children and families across the nation, more work remains to be done,” said Richards. “Thousands of legal immigrant children, some of the most vulnerable among us, won’t be covered by SCHIP. We look forward to working with Congress in the future to make sure legal immigrant children and pregnant women have access to health ins urance.” Every year, Planned Parenthood provides millions of women, men and teens with health care information and services.
My friends in Christ,
I am posting because as Catholics and Christians it is unacceptable for us to allow Planned Parenthood or any organization to take away the right to life which God has created in these precious babies in the womb. Just because the world cannot see behind the walls of PP that does not change that tiny heartbeats are being silenced and silent screams are left unheard. It does not change that we have an obligation as Catholics and Christians to protect the least of God’s people. It is true there are those who are too sick or have circumstances which prevent this direct physical prayer of coming out to the abortion mill, but for many of us there are a million and one excuses why we might not co me out to pray at PP where the abortions take place. It is too upsetting. It causes pain to see the women. I am ashamed. I am too busy. It is too cold. Others will go and I am not needed. My prayer will not make a difference. I am afraid or uncomfortable to be in the presence of such evil. I will pray from home. The list could go on and on. There is no doubt that praying for the unborn is a sacrifice and a risk. There are so many things in our lives which demand our attention. However it is nothing short of what Jesus asks us to do in the Gospel. We know if we want to love Him and to follow Him we need to become like Him and take up our crosses as well as the crosses of our brothers and sisters who are the least of His people. Father Frank Pavone National Director of Priests for Life (forgive me for not being able to find the direct quote here) talks about the importance of going to the abortion mills to pray and stand witness for the unborn. Many people feel that it is enough for us to pray from home. However he compares abortion to a raging fire. Indicating that if there was a fire we would not try to put it out from a distance, but send the fire fighters directly out to extinguish it. Especially if it was our home we would want the firefighters right there! The unborn want and need us right there. They need us to put out that fire for them and God wants us right there serving Him and the least of His people.
The unborn need you. Their lives depend on it. The woman need you their souls and hearts depend on it. There is power in numbers and especially in prayer. Planned Parenthood and their Action Fund http://www.ppaction.org/ppvotes/main.html is standing up for who they represent. I think we all know of their leader who is the father of all lies, a liar and murderer from the beginning. It is time God’s people stand up for who we represent, Jesus Christ who is Truth. Pro-abortion advocates are not going away and PP is not going away without our constant prayer and presence at 345 Whitney Ave. Each and every one of you is just as important. If each one of you took an hour of prayer we could line the sidewalks in prayer! Could you imagine the power in that never mind the witness we could give on Whitney avenue! Over the past month we have seen God is doing His part we must remain faithful and do ours! Please respond to take an hour of prayer for this coming Saturday December 1st from 8am-12pm noon.
May the most Pure and Immaculate Heart of Mary soften our hearts to always say our “Yes” to God’s Will.
God bless you!
Mike and Kerry
Friday, November 23, 2007
Will the Son of Man Find Faith on Earth?
J.M.J +
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
Thank you so much to all of you who have committed to an hour for this Saturday the 24th from 8am until 12 pm noon. If you have not already please do respond to take an hour in prayer.
God’s grace remains apparent at Planned Parenthood New Haven. Despite the evil which takes place in that building, the unthinkable horror God’s little ones endure; Our Blessed Mother remains faithful to hearing and interceding for us in response to our unceasing prayer. Despite the huge sign on the building and the immensity of its 35,000 square feet woman walking to go inside seem to find their way to one of us peacefully praying on the sidewalk. I am often touched by the very young and scared faces who ask me if I am a staff member at PP. I am also amazed by how during the 24 Hour Vigil two woman came looking for abortions after hours only to find us there on the sidewalk with the information the needed for a crisis pregnancy center. We have lifted these young ladies up in prayer and given them into the care of Our Most Holy Mother’s hands. We may never know how many women, babies, and families we will help to choose LIFE through our efforts standing vigil for the unborn; however we do know in faith that God is always faithful in hearing our desperate prayer.
Pope John Paul II described the assassination attempt by Mehmet Ali Agca as just missing his central aorta by a fraction of an inch. He stated, “One hand fired, and another hand guided the bullet.” He attributed the miracle to our Lady of Fatima as this attempt took place on the feast day of May the 13th. We standing out at PP feel also that one hand is firing the women to seek abortion through this facility and another Hand is faithfully guiding them into our path.
In Jesus’ parable of the persistent widow He urges us about the great importance for us to pray always without becoming weary.
Then he told them a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary. He said “There was a judge in a certain town who neither feared God nor respected and human being. And a widow in that town used to come to him and say, ‘render a just decision for me against my adversary.’ For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought, ‘While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being, because this widow keeps bothering me I shall deliver a just decision for her lest she finally come and strike me.’ ” The Lord said, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says. Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them? I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” Luke 18:1-8
As we draw close to the end of another week and ever closer to Sunday, we are yet again reminded of the glorious triumph of our Lord over death and sin. Living in a society plagued by a culture of death, especially evident in the evil of abortion, we as God’s people have the privilege to witness to Jesus’ great act of love and sacrifice on the glorious cross by standing vigil and persistently praying for the unborn. Our prayer must not cease. It is a blessing and grace that we have come to understand that through Him who is Life can only come life. It is through following Him and the Gospel message that will bring us from a culture of death to a culture of life.
“…But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” Luke 18:8
God bless you,
Mike and Kerry
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
Thank you so much to all of you who have committed to an hour for this Saturday the 24th from 8am until 12 pm noon. If you have not already please do respond to take an hour in prayer.
God’s grace remains apparent at Planned Parenthood New Haven. Despite the evil which takes place in that building, the unthinkable horror God’s little ones endure; Our Blessed Mother remains faithful to hearing and interceding for us in response to our unceasing prayer. Despite the huge sign on the building and the immensity of its 35,000 square feet woman walking to go inside seem to find their way to one of us peacefully praying on the sidewalk. I am often touched by the very young and scared faces who ask me if I am a staff member at PP. I am also amazed by how during the 24 Hour Vigil two woman came looking for abortions after hours only to find us there on the sidewalk with the information the needed for a crisis pregnancy center. We have lifted these young ladies up in prayer and given them into the care of Our Most Holy Mother’s hands. We may never know how many women, babies, and families we will help to choose LIFE through our efforts standing vigil for the unborn; however we do know in faith that God is always faithful in hearing our desperate prayer.
Pope John Paul II described the assassination attempt by Mehmet Ali Agca as just missing his central aorta by a fraction of an inch. He stated, “One hand fired, and another hand guided the bullet.” He attributed the miracle to our Lady of Fatima as this attempt took place on the feast day of May the 13th. We standing out at PP feel also that one hand is firing the women to seek abortion through this facility and another Hand is faithfully guiding them into our path.
In Jesus’ parable of the persistent widow He urges us about the great importance for us to pray always without becoming weary.
Then he told them a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary. He said “There was a judge in a certain town who neither feared God nor respected and human being. And a widow in that town used to come to him and say, ‘render a just decision for me against my adversary.’ For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought, ‘While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being, because this widow keeps bothering me I shall deliver a just decision for her lest she finally come and strike me.’ ” The Lord said, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says. Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them? I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” Luke 18:1-8
As we draw close to the end of another week and ever closer to Sunday, we are yet again reminded of the glorious triumph of our Lord over death and sin. Living in a society plagued by a culture of death, especially evident in the evil of abortion, we as God’s people have the privilege to witness to Jesus’ great act of love and sacrifice on the glorious cross by standing vigil and persistently praying for the unborn. Our prayer must not cease. It is a blessing and grace that we have come to understand that through Him who is Life can only come life. It is through following Him and the Gospel message that will bring us from a culture of death to a culture of life.
“…But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” Luke 18:8
God bless you,
Mike and Kerry
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Saturday's Thankgiving Vigil
J.M.J +
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am posting in regards to this coming Saturday’s Vigil which will take place at 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood from 7:30 am to 12:00 noon. We are in need of people to commit to an hour of peaceful prayer especially so at this holiday weekend. As we approach Thanksgiving in gratitude to God for ALL that we have been given, especially the gift of our own lives and that of our family, let us stand witness for our fragile and threatened brothers and sisters who are in danger of losing theirs. In thanksgiving let us give back to God a small sacrifice of our time and prayer in gratitude for the Ultimate Sacrifice, which is Jesus Christ Himself given up for us. Please respond to choose an hour.
I just wanted to thank all of you who on your own time have been going out to PP to say the Miraculous Medal Novena. It truly fills my heart to see how ever present the Holy Spirit is to us, ever leading and guiding. You know it is the Holy Spirit when such fruitful acts of sacrifice occur without prompting. I was also made aware by Martin that tomorrow morning at PP (which is normally covered in prayer ) will not be. So if anyone is available, has a prayer partner, and feels moved to go please do so.
Through our prayer and witness at this time of thanks, let us proclaim the gift of choosing LIFE to a woman and her baby!
Wishing you a blessed Thanksgiving,
Mike and Kerry
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am posting in regards to this coming Saturday’s Vigil which will take place at 345 Whitney Avenue Planned Parenthood from 7:30 am to 12:00 noon. We are in need of people to commit to an hour of peaceful prayer especially so at this holiday weekend. As we approach Thanksgiving in gratitude to God for ALL that we have been given, especially the gift of our own lives and that of our family, let us stand witness for our fragile and threatened brothers and sisters who are in danger of losing theirs. In thanksgiving let us give back to God a small sacrifice of our time and prayer in gratitude for the Ultimate Sacrifice, which is Jesus Christ Himself given up for us. Please respond to choose an hour.
I just wanted to thank all of you who on your own time have been going out to PP to say the Miraculous Medal Novena. It truly fills my heart to see how ever present the Holy Spirit is to us, ever leading and guiding. You know it is the Holy Spirit when such fruitful acts of sacrifice occur without prompting. I was also made aware by Martin that tomorrow morning at PP (which is normally covered in prayer ) will not be. So if anyone is available, has a prayer partner, and feels moved to go please do so.
Through our prayer and witness at this time of thanks, let us proclaim the gift of choosing LIFE to a woman and her baby!
Wishing you a blessed Thanksgiving,
Mike and Kerry
Monday, November 19, 2007
The Miraculous Medal Novena for LIFE!
J.M.J +
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am posting in gratitude for the wonderful turnout we had on Saturday the 17th at Planned Parenthood in New Haven. We had almost 20 people come out to pray! One could feel the humble prayer and flowing graces in the air! We also had many friends praying from home and before our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. Some who offered their sickness and suffering for the pro-life cause. The prayer was very powerful.
We continue to believe that Our lady is obtaining awesome graces to be bestowed upon the New Haven PP headquarters. We continue to pray that through God's grace, as well as our prayers, we can help to save babies lives and mothers souls. Many have told me that in going out to pray they have an unexplained feeling, compelling them and telling them that what they are experiencing is something very special. That what they are a part of through this prayer and service to God defies that which is possible by the work of human hands alone. This grace had brought many of us to the realization that we are partaking in a greater plan, that of our Almighty God through the intercession of our Blessed Mother.
In response to your great love for our unborn brothers and sisters in Christ as well as for Our Most Blessed Mother we are asking all to join us spiritually this week from your homes in the Novena of the Miraculous Medal. This Novena begins tomorrow the 19th of November and will conclude on the 27th which is the Feast of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal. Please pray this in unity with us to petition Our Lady's intercession for our pro-life apostolate as well as to put an end to abortion and contraception particularly at the New Haven PP headquarters of CT. Please also include the intention of conversion of all those who are partaking in the abortion procedures themselves, especially the abortionists. This novena is said for nine days starting tomorrow and ending on the 27th. I have included the novena below. Please join with us in petitioning our Lord through Our Blessed Mother's Immaculate Heart to bestow a miracle for us in New Haven and in our state!
O Mary conceived without sin pray for us who have recourse to thee!
God bless you ,
Mike and Kerry
Novena of the Miraculous Medal
O Immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of Our Lord Jesus and our Mother, penetrated with the most lively confidence in your all-powerful and never-failing intercession, manifested so often through the Miraculous Medal, we your loving and trustful children implore you to obtain for us the graces and favors we ask during this novena, if they be beneficial to our immortal souls,and the souls for whom we pray.(Here form your petition)
You know, O Mary, how often our souls have been the sanctuaries of your Son who hates iniquity. Obtain for us then a deep hatred of sin and that purity of heart which will attach us to God alone so that our every thought, word and deed may tend to His greater glory.Obtain for us also a spirit of prayer and self-denial that we may recover by penance what we have lost by sin and at length attain to that blessed abode where you are the Queen of angels and of men.Amen.
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am posting in gratitude for the wonderful turnout we had on Saturday the 17th at Planned Parenthood in New Haven. We had almost 20 people come out to pray! One could feel the humble prayer and flowing graces in the air! We also had many friends praying from home and before our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. Some who offered their sickness and suffering for the pro-life cause. The prayer was very powerful.
We continue to believe that Our lady is obtaining awesome graces to be bestowed upon the New Haven PP headquarters. We continue to pray that through God's grace, as well as our prayers, we can help to save babies lives and mothers souls. Many have told me that in going out to pray they have an unexplained feeling, compelling them and telling them that what they are experiencing is something very special. That what they are a part of through this prayer and service to God defies that which is possible by the work of human hands alone. This grace had brought many of us to the realization that we are partaking in a greater plan, that of our Almighty God through the intercession of our Blessed Mother.
In response to your great love for our unborn brothers and sisters in Christ as well as for Our Most Blessed Mother we are asking all to join us spiritually this week from your homes in the Novena of the Miraculous Medal. This Novena begins tomorrow the 19th of November and will conclude on the 27th which is the Feast of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal. Please pray this in unity with us to petition Our Lady's intercession for our pro-life apostolate as well as to put an end to abortion and contraception particularly at the New Haven PP headquarters of CT. Please also include the intention of conversion of all those who are partaking in the abortion procedures themselves, especially the abortionists. This novena is said for nine days starting tomorrow and ending on the 27th. I have included the novena below. Please join with us in petitioning our Lord through Our Blessed Mother's Immaculate Heart to bestow a miracle for us in New Haven and in our state!
O Mary conceived without sin pray for us who have recourse to thee!
God bless you ,
Mike and Kerry
Novena of the Miraculous Medal
O Immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of Our Lord Jesus and our Mother, penetrated with the most lively confidence in your all-powerful and never-failing intercession, manifested so often through the Miraculous Medal, we your loving and trustful children implore you to obtain for us the graces and favors we ask during this novena, if they be beneficial to our immortal souls,and the souls for whom we pray.(Here form your petition)
You know, O Mary, how often our souls have been the sanctuaries of your Son who hates iniquity. Obtain for us then a deep hatred of sin and that purity of heart which will attach us to God alone so that our every thought, word and deed may tend to His greater glory.Obtain for us also a spirit of prayer and self-denial that we may recover by penance what we have lost by sin and at length attain to that blessed abode where you are the Queen of angels and of men.Amen.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Perpetual Saturday Vigil at Planned parenthood!
J.M.J+
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am posting in response to the outpouring of graces we have experienced through and since the 24 hour prayer vigil held at Planned Parenthood at 345 Whitney avenue New Haven on November the 3rd. Our ability to fill all 24 hours, as the body of Christ and through His grace was nothing short of a miracle. It was such an honor and blessing to stand and pray for the unborn with such passionate pro-life men and women! All remained faithful to their hours despite the obstacle of the cold and rain! We have never been so inspired or experienced people so filled with the Holy Spirit in our lives. It was so very humbling. It is such a gift to hear the zeal in the voices of those who have come to know that God’s hand is working and upon us as we pray in New Haven.
At the prompting of several of our fellow pro-life advocates and after the awesome response of the 24 hour vigil for Life on the 3rd, we continue to believe it is God’s Will for Planned Parenthood at 345 Whitney Avenue, the State of CT headquarters, to be more intensely covered in prayer on a regular basis. In response to this call to action we are prayerfully aiming to cover all Saturdays of the month in prayer from 7:30 am to 12:00 pm noon as these are the hour that the abortions take place. It is our goal that through God’s grace, and in union as the body of Christ, our peaceful prayer presence will stand to overcome the attack on the unborn, the dignity of women, and the sanctity of family life. We hope to stand in petition for the lives of those babies who might be saved as well as in consolation and love with those babies whose lives will be taken from their mother’s womb by abortion. A love, we know, may be the only love that these babies will experience in their lives here on earth.
Please leave a comment if you and or a prayer partner would like to commit to one of the hours starting at 7:30 am until 12:00pm noon for this Saturday the 17th or any future Saturday. It has become quite clear through the efforts of God’s people, especially on November 3rd’s 24 hour vigil, that we are not afraid to stand up for our brothers and sisters in Christ who cannot speak, pray, or protect themselves. And may we know that with God all things are possible!
“I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.” John 15:5
God bless you,
Mike and Kerry
Dear Friends of the Unborn,
I am posting in response to the outpouring of graces we have experienced through and since the 24 hour prayer vigil held at Planned Parenthood at 345 Whitney avenue New Haven on November the 3rd. Our ability to fill all 24 hours, as the body of Christ and through His grace was nothing short of a miracle. It was such an honor and blessing to stand and pray for the unborn with such passionate pro-life men and women! All remained faithful to their hours despite the obstacle of the cold and rain! We have never been so inspired or experienced people so filled with the Holy Spirit in our lives. It was so very humbling. It is such a gift to hear the zeal in the voices of those who have come to know that God’s hand is working and upon us as we pray in New Haven.
At the prompting of several of our fellow pro-life advocates and after the awesome response of the 24 hour vigil for Life on the 3rd, we continue to believe it is God’s Will for Planned Parenthood at 345 Whitney Avenue, the State of CT headquarters, to be more intensely covered in prayer on a regular basis. In response to this call to action we are prayerfully aiming to cover all Saturdays of the month in prayer from 7:30 am to 12:00 pm noon as these are the hour that the abortions take place. It is our goal that through God’s grace, and in union as the body of Christ, our peaceful prayer presence will stand to overcome the attack on the unborn, the dignity of women, and the sanctity of family life. We hope to stand in petition for the lives of those babies who might be saved as well as in consolation and love with those babies whose lives will be taken from their mother’s womb by abortion. A love, we know, may be the only love that these babies will experience in their lives here on earth.
Please leave a comment if you and or a prayer partner would like to commit to one of the hours starting at 7:30 am until 12:00pm noon for this Saturday the 17th or any future Saturday. It has become quite clear through the efforts of God’s people, especially on November 3rd’s 24 hour vigil, that we are not afraid to stand up for our brothers and sisters in Christ who cannot speak, pray, or protect themselves. And may we know that with God all things are possible!
“I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.” John 15:5
God bless you,
Mike and Kerry
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
God's Plan for Planned Parenthood.
J.M.J +
Praise Jesus!
This past Saturday, the 3rd of November, Planned Parenthood New Haven experienced God’s plan for what He calls parenthood to be through the continuous prayers of His people. In response to the 40 Days For Life campaign’s prompting ( in Norwich and nationwide) St. Mary's Pro-life movement the Helpers of God's Precious Infants in New Haven, as well as pro-life advocates from around the state, came out to the New Haven Planned Parenthood’s headquarters at 345 Whitney Avenue to pray and stand vigil 24 hours for an end to abortion. The attempt to cover New Haven Connecticut's Planned Parenthood headquarters in a 24 hour prayer vigil starting 12 midnight on this past Saturday the 3rd until 12 am Sunday morning at first seemed a daunting job. Although we only had three days to fill all the hours we were successful and believe that it was through Our Lady's intercession and at the holy Will of Her Son that all the hours were covered and many with multiple people. We are aware this was nothing short of a miracle. Those who participated in this vigil have been so blessed and filled by the Holy Spirit on fire and graced with zeal for protecting the sanctity of human life in the unborn. We feel God is calling us together to unite to do great things through Him for the sake of His tiniest and helpless of children. We pray that this first vigil will be the beginning of an end to abortion, contraception, as well as the attack on the family. It is our continued prayer to build upon what was accomplished this past Saturday as the beginning of what God Wills for us as His body.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
40 Days For Life New Haven
J.M.J+
I am posting to those who wish to pray to end abortion through the 40 days for Life campaign. 40 days of fasting and peaceful prayer vigil is taking place around the USA simultaneously in 80+ cities outside of Planned Parenthood. Here is a link to explain if you have not already heard of this history making pro life event! http://40daysforlife.com/splash.cfm
It is very exciting because this is the biggest pro life vigil ever held and to be involved in any way is being part of something that our kids or grand kids will someday be reading in their history books as the beginning of the end of abortion. My husband and I have decided at the prompting of 40 Days for Life to organize a 24 Hr Vigil in front of Planned Parenthood right here in New Haven CT On Saturday the 3rd ! We need people to come and stand vigil and pray with us for an hour or more. I know you might be feeling reluctant especially if you have never done a pro life vigil before, however I can assure you you will not be standing alone. In numerous cities men and woman will be standing with you in prayer and most importantly God and Our Lady will be standing with us. Serving God and standing up for the unborn in this peaceful witness is what Jesus is calling us to do in the Gospel. Whether or not people admit it abortion kills babies and hurts women. I spent and hour on the phone today with a woman who sobbed to me about the loss she felt about the children she had aborted. She kept saying how much she wanted her babies back, could I get them back for her. She said how she was lied to and did not understand what she was doing. I heard the despair in her voice of what happens to a woman when she is lied to, her baby is killed, and then goes on to learn how she was so betrayed. She kept saying that they took a piece of her soul that day. That one conversation would be enough for anyone to be confident that the pro abortion movement does not give woman choice but takes that away from them along with the hopes and dreams of mothering the child they carried within.
In response to 40 Days for Life's call to branch out to other PP in our state we are blanketing the New Haven PP as well with our prayers. Here is an excerpt below I received in email.
***SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 3, UNITY VIGIL ACROSS AMERICA***Every Saturday, there are an estimated 8,000 abortionscommitted in the United States, making it the busiest abortion day of each week. But this Saturday, November 3 -- Day 39 of 40 Days forLife -- is going to be different. In addition to a big final push in each of the 80+cities holding 40 Days for Life campaigns, we are asking people of faith and conscience all across America to form a simultaneous 24-hour peaceful prayervigil outside of every Planned Parenthood center and abortion facility possible. This Saturday, please take some extra time out of yourday to be one of the tens of thousands of people -- incities and towns all across America -- who will join together as part of this "Unity Vigil. "Your peaceful witness can make a tremendous life-saving impact and help make history at the conclusion of this fall's 40 Days for Life effort".
Michael and I have decided to try to pull together all of our brothers and sisters in Christ in order to organize a 24 hr vigil of peaceful prayer this Saturday in New Haven (345 Whitney Ave New Haven CT 06511)starting at 12 am on Sat through till 12 am Sun. These past 40 days have been the biggest pro life anti abortion prayer campaign in history! This Saturday it is the hope of men and woman from all over the country that through God's grace as many PP's as possible should have witnesses for Christ visible in peaceful prayer. The goal is to save babies lives while sending the message, not only to PP but the world ,that this evil we call abortion will no longer be tolerated by God's people. We ask for prayer now in order to fill all 24 slots as well as for protection and cover for all who are praying. But most importantly we need volunteers to take an hour slot of prayer to keep the vigil going. If you have others who might as well have interest in filling an hour, please do respond or pass this along. Thank you in advance for all your prayers and we hope that together we can fulfill this goal to bring Glory to God through saving the lives of the unborn.
God Bless,
Kerry
Friday, October 26, 2007
Natural Family Planning a Gift of Marriage
J.M.J +
I recently was at a Catholic bulletin board to which a question was posted in regards to teaching middle school aged girls Natural Family Planning, as an alternative to the birth control pill. As a Catholic while it is never my intention to hurt another’s feelings ,I am growing more concerned about the increasing mentality of tolerating this watered down and morally corrupt view on the impossibility for our youth to live chaste and pure lives as well as the true message of NFP. My husband and I believe that parents being the first educators of their children should teach the importance of living a chaste and pure life before marriage, and when the time comes, in marriage. It is my continued belief that through God’s grace, along with utilizing the Sacraments, our youth when given the truth of God’s plan for sex and marriage will recognize the dignity of the human person. Along with the understanding that they are worth waiting for and a new found respect for the beauty of union between husband and wife and the gift of children through that union, I believe our youth can and will want to live pure lives. I have a fantastic link for teens which promotes chastity and purity which has a modern type appeal to our youth! http://www.pureloveclub.com/
I am also growing wearier of not speaking up for those who may not understand what the acceptable moral teaching is on NFP within the context of the Magisterium of the Church. Below is a response I posted to a question on whether or not it is acceptable to teach NFP to young girls for those schools and parents who feel chastity is unrealistic in our day and age. I hope through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, I did it justice!
From a Catholic perspective NFP is meant to be used within the Sacrament of Marriage and only when the couple has prayerfully discerned it is needed either for the spacing of children and or other serious reasons. In context of our Faith it is never viewed as a birth control because abstaining from the marital embrace during the fertile time, unlike obstructing natural fertility with birth control pills or a condom, is in no way hindering God's Will when there is good reason. It is also perfectly acceptable for husband and wife to partake in the marital act when the woman is naturally infertile while abstaining in the fertile time, as God has deemed that period to be naturally infertile. So from a Catholic perspective I have a problem with young girls being taught NFP for "Birth Control" purposes. This would be taking NFP out on the confines of Marriage and changing completely the role it is meant to play. In response to the statement, "could it be a viable option for parents and schools who think "they're just going to have sex anyway"? "From a secular standpoint I am sure just as they are teaching that all teens are having premarital sex, need birth control because of this and when they are "irresponsible" in taking those pills can seek an abortion, they may consider adding NFP as a method of avoiding pregnancy. From a moral Catholic perspective this remains unacceptable because it does not change that it is immoral. Used in this way it has the same intentions as of using birth control and is perverting the context for which it was created to be used which is in Marriage. There really is no lesser of an evil here.
I recently was at a Catholic bulletin board to which a question was posted in regards to teaching middle school aged girls Natural Family Planning, as an alternative to the birth control pill. As a Catholic while it is never my intention to hurt another’s feelings ,I am growing more concerned about the increasing mentality of tolerating this watered down and morally corrupt view on the impossibility for our youth to live chaste and pure lives as well as the true message of NFP. My husband and I believe that parents being the first educators of their children should teach the importance of living a chaste and pure life before marriage, and when the time comes, in marriage. It is my continued belief that through God’s grace, along with utilizing the Sacraments, our youth when given the truth of God’s plan for sex and marriage will recognize the dignity of the human person. Along with the understanding that they are worth waiting for and a new found respect for the beauty of union between husband and wife and the gift of children through that union, I believe our youth can and will want to live pure lives. I have a fantastic link for teens which promotes chastity and purity which has a modern type appeal to our youth! http://www.pureloveclub.com/
I am also growing wearier of not speaking up for those who may not understand what the acceptable moral teaching is on NFP within the context of the Magisterium of the Church. Below is a response I posted to a question on whether or not it is acceptable to teach NFP to young girls for those schools and parents who feel chastity is unrealistic in our day and age. I hope through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, I did it justice!
From a Catholic perspective NFP is meant to be used within the Sacrament of Marriage and only when the couple has prayerfully discerned it is needed either for the spacing of children and or other serious reasons. In context of our Faith it is never viewed as a birth control because abstaining from the marital embrace during the fertile time, unlike obstructing natural fertility with birth control pills or a condom, is in no way hindering God's Will when there is good reason. It is also perfectly acceptable for husband and wife to partake in the marital act when the woman is naturally infertile while abstaining in the fertile time, as God has deemed that period to be naturally infertile. So from a Catholic perspective I have a problem with young girls being taught NFP for "Birth Control" purposes. This would be taking NFP out on the confines of Marriage and changing completely the role it is meant to play. In response to the statement, "could it be a viable option for parents and schools who think "they're just going to have sex anyway"? "From a secular standpoint I am sure just as they are teaching that all teens are having premarital sex, need birth control because of this and when they are "irresponsible" in taking those pills can seek an abortion, they may consider adding NFP as a method of avoiding pregnancy. From a moral Catholic perspective this remains unacceptable because it does not change that it is immoral. Used in this way it has the same intentions as of using birth control and is perverting the context for which it was created to be used which is in Marriage. There really is no lesser of an evil here.
Monday, October 1, 2007
A Eucharist Starved World
J.M.J
As Catholics we have been given by Christ the most awesome gift of the Holy Eucharist. We have a God who loves us so completely He suffered, died, and rose for our salvation and then went on to make it so we would never be without Him, by sending His Spirit and by giving Himself to us so completely Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity in the Blessed Sacrament. In a world that is love starved and where love is replaced with counterfeit substitutes, Jesus remains waiting for us in the Blessed Sacrament as Love itself. A love so pure and true that when we bask in His Eucharistic presence we cannot help but to be changed, for if we could feel His love we would surely become transformed into the likeness of Him who is Love. As we gaze at His Holy Presence we are reminded that love is freely giving all that we have so that others may have life.
In viewing the world which surrounds us one often wonders of whom the world learns of that which is love. We see families divided by divorce, contraception, abortion, euthanasia, war, attack on human dignity, as well as on the institution of marriage. And we ask ourselves where we are going wrong? How can it be we are in such a state of moral and spiritual crisis in our world?
The world’s portrayal of love as conditional and self fulfilling is the very reason that parents, as the first educators of their children, need to understand and live out their Catholic Faith. The Domestic Church is an integral part of Christ’s Body. The Catholic family should be a fruitful place where the seeds of catechismic faith are planted and nourished to grow. It is where our children build a foundation of Faith along with the skills of critical thinking in preparation for the adult years ahead. The Domestic Church should be in itself a sacred place where our children begin to understand and hear the vocation to which God is calling them. The Catholic home should be a haven which fosters vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life where as much as possible, the constant noise and message of the secular world is absent. As parents our lives should be a living testament to our faith through great love for and obedience to our Holy Father as well as the Magisterium of the Church. It is through this obedience as well as utilizing the Sacraments that we come to understand and radiate the treasure of God’s Church, a gift to which no worldly treasure could ever compare. I pray my children will come to know in their hearts, that God loves them so much He sent His only Son so that they might have eternal life, this eternal life which is attainable through His Church.
It is no secret our world is in a state of turmoil, chaos, and unrest. We know by the news and media our country is physically at war and in a battle where sadly men and woman must die every day to defend our freedom. Our hearts pour out to these families with loved ones who are lost at war and we pray for them. However we must also be attentive that there is a much greater spiritual war going on in our own homes and in our own families to which we need to know how to fight. As Father John Corapi so often preaches, have we forgotten that this war is a war for souls, that including the souls of our children? The difference with this spiritual war is that the consequence of fatality is eternal.
The only way to bring peace to our world is to bring peace within our families. This must happen through prayer. Father Peyton’s saying of “A family that prays together stays together” has taken on an even deeper meaning particularly now when there is such a blatant attack on the family as well as the institution of marriage. Is not the ultimate goal of the family for husband and wife to help one another get to heaven as well as their children? If this is true Father Peyton’s message becomes even more profound. For a family that prays together on earth will ultimately stay together in heaven for all eternity.
In a world that is no longer black nor white but grey, there remains a Eucharistic hunger only God can fulfill, a hunger mistaken as that of which earthly pleasures can satiate. The spiritual root of addiction to things such as drugs, pornography, sex, and gambling is nothing short of one’s misdirected need to satiate the hunger which only God can fill. It is only the One who suffered and died on the Cross who can lift us up and make us whole.
My husband Michael and I, after much prayer before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, have made the decision to home school our son within our Catholic Faith as well as any other children God Wills to send to us. We have already hit many road blocks in regards to those who believe we are unrealistic in our quest to teach Michael Mario as God has called us to teach him. We have heard the argument that educating our son in this way could cause great harm to him psychologically and socially. We have been accused of keeping him from understanding what the real world has to offer. In a world which hides the Truth by emphasizing an anti-Christian message our response to them is we sure hope so!
Through the teaching of Holy Mother Church, with our guidance as parents led by the Holy Spirit, and along with a network of other Catholic home schooling families we feel God will provide the education and understanding our son needs. We will nurture Michael’s seeds of Faith and when he is grown hope our efforts will have set deep roots in good soil to which that Faith will continue to grow. We pray he may come to understand that a world without God hungers for that which only our Eucharistic Lord can satisfy. As parents my husband and I will continue in prayer asking that through God’s grace we may come to mirror for our son the Love which gazes back at us from the Cross and fills our every hunger with the Bread of Life.
As Catholics we have been given by Christ the most awesome gift of the Holy Eucharist. We have a God who loves us so completely He suffered, died, and rose for our salvation and then went on to make it so we would never be without Him, by sending His Spirit and by giving Himself to us so completely Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity in the Blessed Sacrament. In a world that is love starved and where love is replaced with counterfeit substitutes, Jesus remains waiting for us in the Blessed Sacrament as Love itself. A love so pure and true that when we bask in His Eucharistic presence we cannot help but to be changed, for if we could feel His love we would surely become transformed into the likeness of Him who is Love. As we gaze at His Holy Presence we are reminded that love is freely giving all that we have so that others may have life.
In viewing the world which surrounds us one often wonders of whom the world learns of that which is love. We see families divided by divorce, contraception, abortion, euthanasia, war, attack on human dignity, as well as on the institution of marriage. And we ask ourselves where we are going wrong? How can it be we are in such a state of moral and spiritual crisis in our world?
The world’s portrayal of love as conditional and self fulfilling is the very reason that parents, as the first educators of their children, need to understand and live out their Catholic Faith. The Domestic Church is an integral part of Christ’s Body. The Catholic family should be a fruitful place where the seeds of catechismic faith are planted and nourished to grow. It is where our children build a foundation of Faith along with the skills of critical thinking in preparation for the adult years ahead. The Domestic Church should be in itself a sacred place where our children begin to understand and hear the vocation to which God is calling them. The Catholic home should be a haven which fosters vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life where as much as possible, the constant noise and message of the secular world is absent. As parents our lives should be a living testament to our faith through great love for and obedience to our Holy Father as well as the Magisterium of the Church. It is through this obedience as well as utilizing the Sacraments that we come to understand and radiate the treasure of God’s Church, a gift to which no worldly treasure could ever compare. I pray my children will come to know in their hearts, that God loves them so much He sent His only Son so that they might have eternal life, this eternal life which is attainable through His Church.
It is no secret our world is in a state of turmoil, chaos, and unrest. We know by the news and media our country is physically at war and in a battle where sadly men and woman must die every day to defend our freedom. Our hearts pour out to these families with loved ones who are lost at war and we pray for them. However we must also be attentive that there is a much greater spiritual war going on in our own homes and in our own families to which we need to know how to fight. As Father John Corapi so often preaches, have we forgotten that this war is a war for souls, that including the souls of our children? The difference with this spiritual war is that the consequence of fatality is eternal.
The only way to bring peace to our world is to bring peace within our families. This must happen through prayer. Father Peyton’s saying of “A family that prays together stays together” has taken on an even deeper meaning particularly now when there is such a blatant attack on the family as well as the institution of marriage. Is not the ultimate goal of the family for husband and wife to help one another get to heaven as well as their children? If this is true Father Peyton’s message becomes even more profound. For a family that prays together on earth will ultimately stay together in heaven for all eternity.
In a world that is no longer black nor white but grey, there remains a Eucharistic hunger only God can fulfill, a hunger mistaken as that of which earthly pleasures can satiate. The spiritual root of addiction to things such as drugs, pornography, sex, and gambling is nothing short of one’s misdirected need to satiate the hunger which only God can fill. It is only the One who suffered and died on the Cross who can lift us up and make us whole.
My husband Michael and I, after much prayer before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, have made the decision to home school our son within our Catholic Faith as well as any other children God Wills to send to us. We have already hit many road blocks in regards to those who believe we are unrealistic in our quest to teach Michael Mario as God has called us to teach him. We have heard the argument that educating our son in this way could cause great harm to him psychologically and socially. We have been accused of keeping him from understanding what the real world has to offer. In a world which hides the Truth by emphasizing an anti-Christian message our response to them is we sure hope so!
Through the teaching of Holy Mother Church, with our guidance as parents led by the Holy Spirit, and along with a network of other Catholic home schooling families we feel God will provide the education and understanding our son needs. We will nurture Michael’s seeds of Faith and when he is grown hope our efforts will have set deep roots in good soil to which that Faith will continue to grow. We pray he may come to understand that a world without God hungers for that which only our Eucharistic Lord can satisfy. As parents my husband and I will continue in prayer asking that through God’s grace we may come to mirror for our son the Love which gazes back at us from the Cross and fills our every hunger with the Bread of Life.
Friday, September 28, 2007
40 Days For Life!
J.M.J +
Dear Friends
I am posting to petition you to consider donating your time and prayers to help end one of the darkest evils we face today, abortion. Our family has decided to become a part of 40 Days For Life pro-life campaign and we hope yours will too. 40 Days For Life is a peaceful 40 day vigil of prayer that will take place in front of Planned Parenthood in Norwich CT as well as many other states throughout the U.S.A. If you are unable to keep an hour at PP, prayer and fasting during these 40 days from work or home is very much needed. Please feel free to pass this information on to all your friends and family and check out the video below for more info on this cause.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=On9jankGqB0
I copied the following from http://www.40daysforlife.com/norwich/
This fall, from September 26 - November 4, Norwich CT will be one of 89 cities in 33 states joining together for the largest simultaneous pro-life mobilization in history -- the nationwide 40 Days for Life campaign.
We are praying that, with God's help, this groundbreaking effort will mark the beginning of the end of abortion in our city and throughout America.
40 Days for Life is a focused pro-life campaign that consists of:
40 days of prayer and fasting
40 days of peaceful vigil
40 days of community outreach
To obtain more information in your state please go to
http://www.40daysforlife.com/
God Bless!
Dear Friends
I am posting to petition you to consider donating your time and prayers to help end one of the darkest evils we face today, abortion. Our family has decided to become a part of 40 Days For Life pro-life campaign and we hope yours will too. 40 Days For Life is a peaceful 40 day vigil of prayer that will take place in front of Planned Parenthood in Norwich CT as well as many other states throughout the U.S.A. If you are unable to keep an hour at PP, prayer and fasting during these 40 days from work or home is very much needed. Please feel free to pass this information on to all your friends and family and check out the video below for more info on this cause.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=On9jankGqB0
I copied the following from http://www.40daysforlife.com/norwich/
This fall, from September 26 - November 4, Norwich CT will be one of 89 cities in 33 states joining together for the largest simultaneous pro-life mobilization in history -- the nationwide 40 Days for Life campaign.
We are praying that, with God's help, this groundbreaking effort will mark the beginning of the end of abortion in our city and throughout America.
40 Days for Life is a focused pro-life campaign that consists of:
40 days of prayer and fasting
40 days of peaceful vigil
40 days of community outreach
To obtain more information in your state please go to
http://www.40daysforlife.com/
God Bless!
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Getting Lost in Secularized Media
J.M.J
“The serpent asked the woman, ‘Did God really tell you not to eat form any of the trees of the garden?’… ‘You certainly will not die! No, God knows well that the moment you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods who know what is good and what is bad.’ The woman saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eyes, and desirable for gaining wisdom. So she took some of it’s fruit and ate it; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.” (Gn 3:1-7).
You know those subtle lies the devil likes to tell us, the ones which can appear at first glance as good for us and pleasing to the eyes? It is more than clear in our society they surround us each day. The television, the news, and the internet speak a language of lies and deception which often are portrayed as for the benefit of humankind. As loyal Catholics striving to be obedient to God, we are accused of being prejudice or not loving or accepting of all people. If we wish to pray we are faced with a world that does not accept prayer for fear of offending those who do not believe in God. Prayer has been replaced with “moments of silence” and God with the importance of self will. We have removed God from our world, yet we wonder where He has gone when tragedy and terror strike us down. If we view the world through the eyes of Christ and His Church, it becomes clear that the secularized media offers us nothing more than the serpent offered Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden before their fall.
The secularized media has become a powerful vehicle for the anti-Gospel message in which desensitized society has become progressively and perpetually immersed. As Catholics following Christ, it is important we protect our families by filtering out inappropriate messages and media images which distort the Truth, which is Christ Himself. With our fallen nature it is easy to get caught up in the lies that media, the internet, and society tries to feed us. But when we look with open eyes, the eyes of faith, it is not so difficult to see that sin and deception are more accessible now in a technological way. It really is not surprising that the world is in such a state of turmoil, unrest, and confusion when we look at the amount of time spent engaged in the secularized media each day. Adults are no longer filtering out inappropriate content for the sake of their souls and are desensitized to the increasing corruption of the message of our times. The Good News seems to be a thing of the past and the “new” news, a norm to be accepted and enjoyed.
It is true; the message of a feel good society is wreaking havoc on the soul. Children are often left unattended to sit for hours in front of the television screen and many have their own television and internet access in their bedroom. The message they receive is one of a world without God, focused on sex, violence, greed and self importance. Young boys are learning manhood means sexual promiscuity, not purity. Young girls are learning to forgo their purity and true femininity, in hope of becoming as “equals” to their male counterparts. The result leaves us with children who have lost their innocence and are no longer living in the state of grace. We are left with children who kill one another in their own schools, those same schools which no longer offer a time for prayer or the mention of God’s name.
One cannot help but wonder what has caused our children to hate one another so much as to kill? Could it be our society has taught them well? Is not the pro-abortion message itself the message our children are modeling? This message distorting abortion to that of a “choice” and not as the killing of a human being?
My husband, son, and I recently participated in a peaceful rosary procession at a local abortion mill in Connecticut. As I prayed what kept coming into my mind was that we were indeed praying outside of the Children’s hospital. In this place which was dedicated to saving the lives of children, unborn babies lives were being taken away.
Today as we remember and pray for all of the people who died in the attack on September 11th and their families, let us ask God to please open the hearts of all Americans to receiving His grace. We pray to come to understand that a country without God is a country without true freedom, peace, and love. It is a country where our children, which are our future, remain lost. Mary Queen of Peace pray for us and our children. Please take us under your mantle of protection and love. Amen
“The serpent asked the woman, ‘Did God really tell you not to eat form any of the trees of the garden?’… ‘You certainly will not die! No, God knows well that the moment you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods who know what is good and what is bad.’ The woman saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eyes, and desirable for gaining wisdom. So she took some of it’s fruit and ate it; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.” (Gn 3:1-7).
You know those subtle lies the devil likes to tell us, the ones which can appear at first glance as good for us and pleasing to the eyes? It is more than clear in our society they surround us each day. The television, the news, and the internet speak a language of lies and deception which often are portrayed as for the benefit of humankind. As loyal Catholics striving to be obedient to God, we are accused of being prejudice or not loving or accepting of all people. If we wish to pray we are faced with a world that does not accept prayer for fear of offending those who do not believe in God. Prayer has been replaced with “moments of silence” and God with the importance of self will. We have removed God from our world, yet we wonder where He has gone when tragedy and terror strike us down. If we view the world through the eyes of Christ and His Church, it becomes clear that the secularized media offers us nothing more than the serpent offered Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden before their fall.
The secularized media has become a powerful vehicle for the anti-Gospel message in which desensitized society has become progressively and perpetually immersed. As Catholics following Christ, it is important we protect our families by filtering out inappropriate messages and media images which distort the Truth, which is Christ Himself. With our fallen nature it is easy to get caught up in the lies that media, the internet, and society tries to feed us. But when we look with open eyes, the eyes of faith, it is not so difficult to see that sin and deception are more accessible now in a technological way. It really is not surprising that the world is in such a state of turmoil, unrest, and confusion when we look at the amount of time spent engaged in the secularized media each day. Adults are no longer filtering out inappropriate content for the sake of their souls and are desensitized to the increasing corruption of the message of our times. The Good News seems to be a thing of the past and the “new” news, a norm to be accepted and enjoyed.
It is true; the message of a feel good society is wreaking havoc on the soul. Children are often left unattended to sit for hours in front of the television screen and many have their own television and internet access in their bedroom. The message they receive is one of a world without God, focused on sex, violence, greed and self importance. Young boys are learning manhood means sexual promiscuity, not purity. Young girls are learning to forgo their purity and true femininity, in hope of becoming as “equals” to their male counterparts. The result leaves us with children who have lost their innocence and are no longer living in the state of grace. We are left with children who kill one another in their own schools, those same schools which no longer offer a time for prayer or the mention of God’s name.
One cannot help but wonder what has caused our children to hate one another so much as to kill? Could it be our society has taught them well? Is not the pro-abortion message itself the message our children are modeling? This message distorting abortion to that of a “choice” and not as the killing of a human being?
My husband, son, and I recently participated in a peaceful rosary procession at a local abortion mill in Connecticut. As I prayed what kept coming into my mind was that we were indeed praying outside of the Children’s hospital. In this place which was dedicated to saving the lives of children, unborn babies lives were being taken away.
Today as we remember and pray for all of the people who died in the attack on September 11th and their families, let us ask God to please open the hearts of all Americans to receiving His grace. We pray to come to understand that a country without God is a country without true freedom, peace, and love. It is a country where our children, which are our future, remain lost. Mary Queen of Peace pray for us and our children. Please take us under your mantle of protection and love. Amen
Getting Caught Up in the Web!
J.M.J
The World Wide Web, as we call it, offers a plethora of vast knowledge accessible instantaneously. We can access information in the blink of an eye and send email or text messages to family, friends, and strangers alike with the click of a button. However there can be a great danger when the Internet is used along with the mentality of the world in which we live. When the Internet is not used with the careful awareness of God’s plan for us, the Web becomes something one’s soul could certainly get tangled up into. I am growing increasingly disturbed by the many chain email message I receive in my inbox daily, most from my Catholic friends. I am sure you all know I am referring to the poems, stories, and prayers which usually end with some wish to be granted if you send out the message to 20 people standing on your head in 8 minutes while scratching your nose or else terrible evils will befall you and your family. Now I am not writing this to wag a finger at anyone who passes on these things, but I feel it uncharitable not to write about the fear and confusion which these types of messages breed. One email “prayer” chain letter I received brought great sadness to my heart. It was a picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe accompanied by a prayer to have your wish granted. Under her beautiful image were threats of what can happen to the person who does not forward the message to friends and family, including an example of the death of one’s family who did not comply in the time specified. As Catholics and Christians we need to set an example for others, especially our children, what our faith really means to us. Passing on superstitious and malicious messages which detracts from the richness and beauty of our faith and especially our Blessed Mother should never be tolerated. If we do not convey to others through our words and actions how important Jesus and His Church are to us we are robbing them of an opportunity to see the splendor of our faith. It is our job to protect our faith as well as our brothers and sisters who may not understand it. Perhaps others really do not understand how these types of emails attempt to detract from God’s greatness. Perhaps they are fearful of the threats or desperate for the granted wishes in lack of a solid faith. What a wonderful opportunity to serve our Lord through reaching out to those who need us. We so often do not think of how our actions will affect other people. Everything we do or say can affect the life of others in a profound way. The bottom line comes down to this; God does not put attachments onto prayer. If we say a novena we do so in faith and anything else attached to that, such as asking you to pass it on in a specific manner has nothing to do with God. If we pass along a prayer or message it should be out of the charity of our hearts. Really, what is loving about passing on an email to your friend that threatens harm? What are you saying to that person? I can remember two chain letters I received when I was caring for my mother who was battling cancer. I am assuming they came from family or friends who were afraid of the repercussions if they did not send them on. Both specifically threatened imminent death of a close loved one if I did not comply with their distribution. As a Catholic I knew the letters were nothing but garbage however it was very hurtful to know that someone I loved, who obviously believed they were true, would send them to me with a terminally ill parent. So next time you receive one of those chain emails delete it and send your friend back something they can really pass on to others, the richness of our Catholic faith.
The World Wide Web, as we call it, offers a plethora of vast knowledge accessible instantaneously. We can access information in the blink of an eye and send email or text messages to family, friends, and strangers alike with the click of a button. However there can be a great danger when the Internet is used along with the mentality of the world in which we live. When the Internet is not used with the careful awareness of God’s plan for us, the Web becomes something one’s soul could certainly get tangled up into. I am growing increasingly disturbed by the many chain email message I receive in my inbox daily, most from my Catholic friends. I am sure you all know I am referring to the poems, stories, and prayers which usually end with some wish to be granted if you send out the message to 20 people standing on your head in 8 minutes while scratching your nose or else terrible evils will befall you and your family. Now I am not writing this to wag a finger at anyone who passes on these things, but I feel it uncharitable not to write about the fear and confusion which these types of messages breed. One email “prayer” chain letter I received brought great sadness to my heart. It was a picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe accompanied by a prayer to have your wish granted. Under her beautiful image were threats of what can happen to the person who does not forward the message to friends and family, including an example of the death of one’s family who did not comply in the time specified. As Catholics and Christians we need to set an example for others, especially our children, what our faith really means to us. Passing on superstitious and malicious messages which detracts from the richness and beauty of our faith and especially our Blessed Mother should never be tolerated. If we do not convey to others through our words and actions how important Jesus and His Church are to us we are robbing them of an opportunity to see the splendor of our faith. It is our job to protect our faith as well as our brothers and sisters who may not understand it. Perhaps others really do not understand how these types of emails attempt to detract from God’s greatness. Perhaps they are fearful of the threats or desperate for the granted wishes in lack of a solid faith. What a wonderful opportunity to serve our Lord through reaching out to those who need us. We so often do not think of how our actions will affect other people. Everything we do or say can affect the life of others in a profound way. The bottom line comes down to this; God does not put attachments onto prayer. If we say a novena we do so in faith and anything else attached to that, such as asking you to pass it on in a specific manner has nothing to do with God. If we pass along a prayer or message it should be out of the charity of our hearts. Really, what is loving about passing on an email to your friend that threatens harm? What are you saying to that person? I can remember two chain letters I received when I was caring for my mother who was battling cancer. I am assuming they came from family or friends who were afraid of the repercussions if they did not send them on. Both specifically threatened imminent death of a close loved one if I did not comply with their distribution. As a Catholic I knew the letters were nothing but garbage however it was very hurtful to know that someone I loved, who obviously believed they were true, would send them to me with a terminally ill parent. So next time you receive one of those chain emails delete it and send your friend back something they can really pass on to others, the richness of our Catholic faith.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Loving the Poor is Belonging to Christ
“It is easy to love the people far away. It is not always easy to love those close to us. It is easier to give a cup of rice to relieve hunger than to relieve the loneliness and pain of someone unloved in our own home. Bring love into your home for this is where our love for each other must start.” Blessed Teresa of Calcutta
J.M.J
Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta often said that in all of her work with the poorest of the poor, spiritual poverty was by far the most devastating form of desolation she had ever encountered. Her motivation for starting the order of the Missionaries of Charity was an encounter with an abandoned dying woman she found on the streets of Calcutta in front of the local hospital. Blessed Teresa stayed with that woman until she died and then went onto dedicate her life to serving and loving Jesus in the poorest of the poor. She understood what it is Jesus is calling us to be as His followers. She heard His call and responded by loving each individual she encountered as a human being deserving dignity and as her family of brothers and sisters, the children of God.
When we really stop to think about it, we as people often take the message of Jesus, to love one another, and distort it to fit into our own lives. It seems we want so much to feel good about ourselves, to do what we feel is right for us, and to try to alleviate the fear that we are less than others, that we often neglect the poor around us each day. What is really ironic is that in our selfishness and self focus we truly become the most poor.
How often have we hurt God in others by excluding them from our lives because we rationalize it is what is best for us and our families? Blessed Mother Teresa once told a story about a woman who had nine children who were starving. Mother and her sisters travelled to bring milk to the family and as soon as it was given, the woman scurried off unannounced and in haste. Blessed Mother Teresa asked the woman upon her return where she had gone. She replied that the woman next door had eight children and she gave her half the milk so that the children would not go to bed with an empty stomach. It did not surprise Mother that she gave, as often there is great generosity and love amongst the poor, rather what impacted her was that this woman knew who her neighbor was.
Do we know who our neighbors are? Do we have the generosity and love of the poor? Blessed Mother Teresa, in dedicating her whole being for the love of Christ, understood His simple and yet profound message. She understood that giving of self and losing its false nature brings us closer to God. She saw Jesus in the sick, dying, unloved, and abandoned. She often said Jesus was her all, He was her love, and she needed to be able to talk about that Love. She always said that everything that she did, she did for love of Him.
Blessed Teresa no longer saw the outcasts of society before her; it was her beloved Jesus, who was truly in her midst and dying in her arms. She was not afraid to touch the lepers or how catching their disease might affect her life. She was more concerned about others catching a diseased heart, unable to give and receive love. The only fear one could say she may have had was that others might not come to know that through their suffering, Christ lives within them. She wanted the poor to know she loved them and more importantly that God loves them. She understood that a self focused world would sadly miss one of the greatest privileges of all, that of loving the suffering Jesus amongst the poor, even in our own families. Blessed Mother Teresa knew that God was truly in her midst in every lost soul and every abandoned and dying child. In her humble and simple ministry she found a peace that only comes from giving your life away for Christ and others.
How often do we make other lepers in our own lives out of fear of losing ourselves? It is only when we realize as Blessed Teresa did, that everything we have and all that we are is God’s gift to us, will we begin to understand true happiness and peace. It is in understanding that we posses nothing, that we can begin to understand how Mother so freely gave everything that she had. It is then we can come to understand that authentic love is self sacrifice, mirrored after the Ultimate Sacrifice, Love Himself.
Blessed Teresa took God’s gift of her life, and made it a living prayer in thanksgiving to Him. Even through her decades of the dark night she remained faithful to what she knew God called her by vocation. Despite her own struggles and emotions, she remained obedient to God, the blind faith which He is calling of each of us. Blessed Mother Teresa said “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” I often ask myself if I am doing my job as a Christian when so many of my brothers and sisters are leaving the Church. Was I so preoccupied with myself and my life that I missed someone felt unwelcome in our Father’s House?
Are we truly doing our best to make others feel they belong to us? In a very dark world full of false promises, it seems God’s people need each another more than ever. Let us pray to Blessed Mother Teresa to intercede for us for the grace to understand what Jesus is calling us to be as Catholics, what He is calling us to be as families, and what He is calling us to be as brothers and sisters in the Body of Christ. “For you know the gracious act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that for your sake he became poor although He was rich, that you by his poverty might become rich" (2 Corinthians 8:9).
Thank you Blessed Teresa for teaching us that true richness comes from serving the hidden Christ, who is always amongst the poor.
J.M.J
Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta often said that in all of her work with the poorest of the poor, spiritual poverty was by far the most devastating form of desolation she had ever encountered. Her motivation for starting the order of the Missionaries of Charity was an encounter with an abandoned dying woman she found on the streets of Calcutta in front of the local hospital. Blessed Teresa stayed with that woman until she died and then went onto dedicate her life to serving and loving Jesus in the poorest of the poor. She understood what it is Jesus is calling us to be as His followers. She heard His call and responded by loving each individual she encountered as a human being deserving dignity and as her family of brothers and sisters, the children of God.
When we really stop to think about it, we as people often take the message of Jesus, to love one another, and distort it to fit into our own lives. It seems we want so much to feel good about ourselves, to do what we feel is right for us, and to try to alleviate the fear that we are less than others, that we often neglect the poor around us each day. What is really ironic is that in our selfishness and self focus we truly become the most poor.
How often have we hurt God in others by excluding them from our lives because we rationalize it is what is best for us and our families? Blessed Mother Teresa once told a story about a woman who had nine children who were starving. Mother and her sisters travelled to bring milk to the family and as soon as it was given, the woman scurried off unannounced and in haste. Blessed Mother Teresa asked the woman upon her return where she had gone. She replied that the woman next door had eight children and she gave her half the milk so that the children would not go to bed with an empty stomach. It did not surprise Mother that she gave, as often there is great generosity and love amongst the poor, rather what impacted her was that this woman knew who her neighbor was.
Do we know who our neighbors are? Do we have the generosity and love of the poor? Blessed Mother Teresa, in dedicating her whole being for the love of Christ, understood His simple and yet profound message. She understood that giving of self and losing its false nature brings us closer to God. She saw Jesus in the sick, dying, unloved, and abandoned. She often said Jesus was her all, He was her love, and she needed to be able to talk about that Love. She always said that everything that she did, she did for love of Him.
Blessed Teresa no longer saw the outcasts of society before her; it was her beloved Jesus, who was truly in her midst and dying in her arms. She was not afraid to touch the lepers or how catching their disease might affect her life. She was more concerned about others catching a diseased heart, unable to give and receive love. The only fear one could say she may have had was that others might not come to know that through their suffering, Christ lives within them. She wanted the poor to know she loved them and more importantly that God loves them. She understood that a self focused world would sadly miss one of the greatest privileges of all, that of loving the suffering Jesus amongst the poor, even in our own families. Blessed Mother Teresa knew that God was truly in her midst in every lost soul and every abandoned and dying child. In her humble and simple ministry she found a peace that only comes from giving your life away for Christ and others.
How often do we make other lepers in our own lives out of fear of losing ourselves? It is only when we realize as Blessed Teresa did, that everything we have and all that we are is God’s gift to us, will we begin to understand true happiness and peace. It is in understanding that we posses nothing, that we can begin to understand how Mother so freely gave everything that she had. It is then we can come to understand that authentic love is self sacrifice, mirrored after the Ultimate Sacrifice, Love Himself.
Blessed Teresa took God’s gift of her life, and made it a living prayer in thanksgiving to Him. Even through her decades of the dark night she remained faithful to what she knew God called her by vocation. Despite her own struggles and emotions, she remained obedient to God, the blind faith which He is calling of each of us. Blessed Mother Teresa said “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” I often ask myself if I am doing my job as a Christian when so many of my brothers and sisters are leaving the Church. Was I so preoccupied with myself and my life that I missed someone felt unwelcome in our Father’s House?
Are we truly doing our best to make others feel they belong to us? In a very dark world full of false promises, it seems God’s people need each another more than ever. Let us pray to Blessed Mother Teresa to intercede for us for the grace to understand what Jesus is calling us to be as Catholics, what He is calling us to be as families, and what He is calling us to be as brothers and sisters in the Body of Christ. “For you know the gracious act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that for your sake he became poor although He was rich, that you by his poverty might become rich" (2 Corinthians 8:9).
Thank you Blessed Teresa for teaching us that true richness comes from serving the hidden Christ, who is always amongst the poor.
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Thank You Lord Jesus for the amazing gift of Your most Holy Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. Give us the grace and wisdom to live out our vocations.
J.M.J
The words of Monsignor Jara to Blessed Teresa of the Andes' at her First Holy Communion Class at Mass, speak strongly to us parents who are the first educators of our children in the Catholic Faith. Read his powerful words to her before receiving Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament for the very first time:
"Ask Jesus Christ that, if you will ever commit a mortal sin, that He will take you today, since your souls are as pure as the snow on the mountains. Pray to Him for your parents, the authors of your existence. For those who have lost their parents, this is the moment to seek to be united with them. Yes, you are approaching to become witnesses of the intimate union of your souls with Jesus Christ. Look at the angels of the altar, dear little girls. Look at them, they envy you. All heaven is present."
The words of Monsignor Jara to Blessed Teresa of the Andes' at her First Holy Communion Class at Mass, speak strongly to us parents who are the first educators of our children in the Catholic Faith. Read his powerful words to her before receiving Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament for the very first time:
"Ask Jesus Christ that, if you will ever commit a mortal sin, that He will take you today, since your souls are as pure as the snow on the mountains. Pray to Him for your parents, the authors of your existence. For those who have lost their parents, this is the moment to seek to be united with them. Yes, you are approaching to become witnesses of the intimate union of your souls with Jesus Christ. Look at the angels of the altar, dear little girls. Look at them, they envy you. All heaven is present."
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Pray More
J.M.J
I do not know if it is somewhere in between a misguided Catholic education or a laziness of heart, but it seems to me that somehow we can fall into the realm of thinking prayer is something we are only doing for God. I certainly was not raised with the misconception of the power of prayer or without the understanding that prayer life was important, however what was lacking in my life was the understanding that prayer is needed all the more when we feel life has no time or room for it, that suffering is an act that can bring us ever closer to God, and most of all prayer really is God’s gift to us.
I have experienced repeatedly God’s way of using the deepest heartaches in life to bring me to my knees and ever closer to Himself, most of the time in the midst of fear, tragedy, and abandonment. I never would have thought that in the midst of shear emotional and physical exhaustion, that God would be calling my husband Michael and I to pray even more than we had been daily. Morning and Evening prayer, Mass, Lectio divina, and the Rosary seemed to us to be a full and sustaining prayer life. Especially after the birth of our Son Michael Mario, who was an extremely high needs and allergic infant, we could not understand why after his arrival everything around our family began to fall apart and seemed to be trying to pull us down with it. Serious situations befell us such as mentally and physically ill family members in crisis, difficult extended family relationships causing division, difficult living arrangements and a need to move immediately with many obstacles in the way, including a job change for Michael, and even the death of our 2 year old family dog Bendito to Leukemia which came on as fast as it took him from us. We could hardly believe the little dog was gone in a month’s time leaving us again aware of how our lives were not in our control but in God’s.
I had always relied on prayer for strength and grace as a teenager into young adulthood. It was the mercy of God and uniting my suffering with Jesus on the cross that I always felt was my stronghold. Watching and caring for my mother who suffered a prolonged battle with cancer gave this gift to me. As she decreased I watched her prayer life and faith increase. Like John the Baptist who said “He must increase; I must decrease” (Jn 3: 30). Through our suffering and it’s example to others we can bring glory to God! We can learn when we enter into conversation with our Lord through prayer, especially partaking in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass as well as adoring Him in the Most Blessed Sacrament; it is there we obtain the grace and strength to be faithful in living out His Most Holy Will for us, as difficult as it may seem at the time.
In a secularized world we are often fed the message to do whatever makes us most comfortable. Therapists are often quoted as saying phrases like “whatever you need to do…or whatever feels right for you.” Don’t get me wrong, I am an advocate for therapy and feel it is an important tool to help both psychological illness as well as emotional health; however I do believe our society as a whole perverts the beauty of sacrifice suffering can bring. Sometimes doing what we feel we need or makes us comfortable is not the right thing. Sometimes so God and others can increase we need to decrease. Complete surrender of will and trust in God is a lesson I am learning through God’s grace and the power of prayer especially in the midst of chaos. I have learned that suffering is a part of life that we must endure for our soul, only God knows why. I have found peace in trusting that.
The messages our secularized world tries to feed us can feel overwhelming, but those very messages cannot stand true next to Truth Himself, which is our Eucharistic Lord. Only He feeds us with the true Bread of Life. Only in surrender to His powerful love can we find wholeness and the purpose of our very being. I will never understand the mind of God and I must be honest in saying I have wasted too much time trying to figure that out, however I am very aware that acceptance of His Will in my life and a need to pray all the more during the difficult struggles is now what I am sure of. It becomes clear through faith opened eyes that unrest of the soul stems from a message which depicts suffering as evil. It could not be more far from the truth. It is beautiful when viewed through the eyes of God the Father who gave His only Son so that we might live. It is beautiful when viewed through the eyes of Mary, our Blessed Mother, as she stood by the foot of the cross offering her Son and her own emotional suffering in response to God’s will for the redemption of the world. And it is most beautiful when viewed through the eyes of Jesus. “Christ became obedient unto death, even death on a cross ” (Philippians 2:8) out of His great love for each and every one of us who are but sinners and often fall and reject His love. Jesus who is God did not equate Himself on earth with His Father; rather He humbled Himself through enduring human suffering and being obedient to His Father’s Will. What appeared to be or look like the ultimate evil, God so gloriously used to bring us eternal life through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ! Yet the world struggles to see through the darkness in which we live the beauty that suffering can bring. It is not surprising that the most sacred and profound of all which we can partake in this life endures serious attack. If you call to mind the things which are most beautiful and holy like the True Presence of the Eucharist, the sanctity of human life, the dignity of the human person, the family, and the Church it becomes clear that the devil is working overtime, especially so when it comes to the act that models and unites us to Christ on the Cross.
Sitting before the Blessed Sacrament in prayer I allow my fears and worries to be laid at Jesus’ feet. Worries that my son, who is on my husband’s watch until it is my turn to walk him, will never make it home happy in the car seat fade away. Fears that my loved ones health and safety as well as my own are not in my control seem to dissipate. And I am left alone with Him in the peace and security of His love and mercy. I understand and know why He is calling me to Himself to pray in the midst of a world which promises are counterfeit and empty. I know that in the midst of all we are facing in this world and as a family, God is calling us to pray more and receive our strength to endure every suffering from Him. Adoring the True Presence of our Lord in the Most Holy and Blessed Sacrament, thoughts of my mother who I believe is in heaven now, come to my mind. I thank God for the gift I have received and I imagine if she could speak to me now what she would be saying along with our Eucharistic Lord is so very simple….. Pray More.
I do not know if it is somewhere in between a misguided Catholic education or a laziness of heart, but it seems to me that somehow we can fall into the realm of thinking prayer is something we are only doing for God. I certainly was not raised with the misconception of the power of prayer or without the understanding that prayer life was important, however what was lacking in my life was the understanding that prayer is needed all the more when we feel life has no time or room for it, that suffering is an act that can bring us ever closer to God, and most of all prayer really is God’s gift to us.
I have experienced repeatedly God’s way of using the deepest heartaches in life to bring me to my knees and ever closer to Himself, most of the time in the midst of fear, tragedy, and abandonment. I never would have thought that in the midst of shear emotional and physical exhaustion, that God would be calling my husband Michael and I to pray even more than we had been daily. Morning and Evening prayer, Mass, Lectio divina, and the Rosary seemed to us to be a full and sustaining prayer life. Especially after the birth of our Son Michael Mario, who was an extremely high needs and allergic infant, we could not understand why after his arrival everything around our family began to fall apart and seemed to be trying to pull us down with it. Serious situations befell us such as mentally and physically ill family members in crisis, difficult extended family relationships causing division, difficult living arrangements and a need to move immediately with many obstacles in the way, including a job change for Michael, and even the death of our 2 year old family dog Bendito to Leukemia which came on as fast as it took him from us. We could hardly believe the little dog was gone in a month’s time leaving us again aware of how our lives were not in our control but in God’s.
I had always relied on prayer for strength and grace as a teenager into young adulthood. It was the mercy of God and uniting my suffering with Jesus on the cross that I always felt was my stronghold. Watching and caring for my mother who suffered a prolonged battle with cancer gave this gift to me. As she decreased I watched her prayer life and faith increase. Like John the Baptist who said “He must increase; I must decrease” (Jn 3: 30). Through our suffering and it’s example to others we can bring glory to God! We can learn when we enter into conversation with our Lord through prayer, especially partaking in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass as well as adoring Him in the Most Blessed Sacrament; it is there we obtain the grace and strength to be faithful in living out His Most Holy Will for us, as difficult as it may seem at the time.
In a secularized world we are often fed the message to do whatever makes us most comfortable. Therapists are often quoted as saying phrases like “whatever you need to do…or whatever feels right for you.” Don’t get me wrong, I am an advocate for therapy and feel it is an important tool to help both psychological illness as well as emotional health; however I do believe our society as a whole perverts the beauty of sacrifice suffering can bring. Sometimes doing what we feel we need or makes us comfortable is not the right thing. Sometimes so God and others can increase we need to decrease. Complete surrender of will and trust in God is a lesson I am learning through God’s grace and the power of prayer especially in the midst of chaos. I have learned that suffering is a part of life that we must endure for our soul, only God knows why. I have found peace in trusting that.
The messages our secularized world tries to feed us can feel overwhelming, but those very messages cannot stand true next to Truth Himself, which is our Eucharistic Lord. Only He feeds us with the true Bread of Life. Only in surrender to His powerful love can we find wholeness and the purpose of our very being. I will never understand the mind of God and I must be honest in saying I have wasted too much time trying to figure that out, however I am very aware that acceptance of His Will in my life and a need to pray all the more during the difficult struggles is now what I am sure of. It becomes clear through faith opened eyes that unrest of the soul stems from a message which depicts suffering as evil. It could not be more far from the truth. It is beautiful when viewed through the eyes of God the Father who gave His only Son so that we might live. It is beautiful when viewed through the eyes of Mary, our Blessed Mother, as she stood by the foot of the cross offering her Son and her own emotional suffering in response to God’s will for the redemption of the world. And it is most beautiful when viewed through the eyes of Jesus. “Christ became obedient unto death, even death on a cross ” (Philippians 2:8) out of His great love for each and every one of us who are but sinners and often fall and reject His love. Jesus who is God did not equate Himself on earth with His Father; rather He humbled Himself through enduring human suffering and being obedient to His Father’s Will. What appeared to be or look like the ultimate evil, God so gloriously used to bring us eternal life through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ! Yet the world struggles to see through the darkness in which we live the beauty that suffering can bring. It is not surprising that the most sacred and profound of all which we can partake in this life endures serious attack. If you call to mind the things which are most beautiful and holy like the True Presence of the Eucharist, the sanctity of human life, the dignity of the human person, the family, and the Church it becomes clear that the devil is working overtime, especially so when it comes to the act that models and unites us to Christ on the Cross.
Sitting before the Blessed Sacrament in prayer I allow my fears and worries to be laid at Jesus’ feet. Worries that my son, who is on my husband’s watch until it is my turn to walk him, will never make it home happy in the car seat fade away. Fears that my loved ones health and safety as well as my own are not in my control seem to dissipate. And I am left alone with Him in the peace and security of His love and mercy. I understand and know why He is calling me to Himself to pray in the midst of a world which promises are counterfeit and empty. I know that in the midst of all we are facing in this world and as a family, God is calling us to pray more and receive our strength to endure every suffering from Him. Adoring the True Presence of our Lord in the Most Holy and Blessed Sacrament, thoughts of my mother who I believe is in heaven now, come to my mind. I thank God for the gift I have received and I imagine if she could speak to me now what she would be saying along with our Eucharistic Lord is so very simple….. Pray More.
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