FAITHFULLY CATHOLIC (universal Christian)
~ Supporting you along the way of the cross while praying for the sanctity of marriage and family life,through the trials of infertility and loss as we stand faithfully and hopefully, upholding the teachings of the Church. ~
Share your story of faith and hope or write us if you need a prayer, you are not alone, we're here to listen. All requests are confidential. God bless you today and always.
This is a message sent to us from the Poor Clare Colettine Nuns in Wales, thank you for your prayers and intercession. If you are going to Mass or Adoration today please keep this little boy and his family in your prayers.
Dear Little hearts,
Please join us in prayer to pray for this little boy.... and the heroic family who already lost a child a few years ago to cancer, all things are possible to God.
This family has been a light of faith for so many, bless you all.
Lovingly all your sisters
For all of you praying for Anthony S. and wanting an update, here it is (I've gotten permission to share this by Doug, Anthony's dad): Anthony remains in the ICU at "..." Hospital. He is in critical condition as a result of a tragic accident while playing with a necktie by himself in his room. He got it tied... too tightly around his neck and couldn't loosen it before he passed out. He was discovered shortly afterwards but had by that time already stopped breathing and his heart had stopped beating. Doug and Kristen began CPR until the ambulance arrived and the EMT's took over. In the past 18 hours an amazing medical team have been stabilizing Anthony and also trying to ascertain the level of brain activity present, which is not altogether clear because of medications. But the medical team has indicated that there are signs that Anthony has suffered significant trauma. The next 24 hours are critical for showing signs of improvement in brain activity. They are also needing to repair a tear in Anthony's trachea that likely occured while intubating him.
This Christmas please pray for those that you know with Infertility, MS and other Autoimmune Diseases, as it keeps us from doing and being what we want to be, an active, motivated wife/husband, mother/father and friend. It may seem that we are frozen and as cold as ice, just because we are quiet and keep to ourselves doesn't mean we don't miss our friends. We just learn to accept where we are and who we have become, our total focus is staying as well as we can and praying that it doesn't affect anyone else.
Sometimes we might seem frozen and cold to those around us, but it's truly just that we are learning how to deal with what is happening in our own lives. Our hearts are actually on fire for we are constantly praying for that miracle in our lives and in those around us. We pray each day of our lives that Our Lord would touch me and heal me, and then I think of you... Isn't this who we really are? You are actually more then you think, even if your heart is not blazing there is that little flame that God keeps burning, trust HIM.
To suffer is what this world brings upon us but to be healed is where God wants us to be. As we learn to unite our cross to HIM we will be healed. The fire of God must burn in our hearts and our souls, when we ponder our own cross we are not uniting it with Our Lord in the midst of our cross we must think of those who suffer more. Ask Our Lord to bring people into your life that will understand, as there are many comrades that you will find friendship with. Our Lord never leaves us alone, just ask and you will receive!
Let God set your hearts on fire this coming NEW YEAR for what HE has planned for your lives. When you accept HIS will you will find your path and journey changed forever!
For anyone grieving the loss of a precious baby this Christmas
Every Christmas I buy a teddy bear for my son Thomas who died some years ago. This year’s bear is called Edith Bear. Today I am looking forward to arranging this bear on the coffee table in the lounge, together with a candle, a photo of our baby and some flowers. Edith Bear will help make Thomas a part of our Christmas.
On Christmas Morning we will kneel down in front of the altar. We will contemplate Baby Jesus in the nativity scene. We will think about our own lost child. One day we will be reunited with him because Jesus was willing to enter our world as a helpless baby.
May you find a way to include your baby in your celebration of Christmas. May you feel moments of joy despite your sorrow. And may Christmas give you hope.
When we reach out to another in need our hearts begin to heal. This letter below arrived in our email yesterday and I wanted to share this cry for need with you.
All of us at Hannah's Tears pray that you have a happy and holy Christmas.
Dear Hannah's Tears,
This Christmas, a young girl in Egypt needs your help to heal.
When the Holy Family fled in fear with the infant Jesus, they eventually arrived in the
safety of Egypt − bringing the Light of Christ to those who did not know Him.
Unfortunately, in today’s world, Egypt is no longer a safe haven for Christians.
It has joined the sad list of many countries where there is hatred and persecution
towards those who worship Jesus Christ.
A 7-year-old girl attending Mass in Alexandria, Egypt, felt that hatred firsthand, when
a bomb exploded outside her family’s church. For months she lay in a hospital bed
next to her mother with severe injuries. Miraculously, she survived.
This little girl not only suffered wounds of the body but also wounds of the spirit.
How long will it take before she is able to enter a Church without fear and trembling?
This little girl symbolizes all of today’s children around the world who are the
innocent victims of persecution and suffering. Victims who need our help.
When you attend Mass this Christmas, go with a heart full of faith and joy -- knowing
that you are safe and can sit and pray without fear. Together we celebrate the birth
of Christ, who brought light, hope, and promise for all. But please do not forget the
suffering children. For it does indeed fall on us as Christians to help our persecuted
brothers and sisters.
With your thoughtful gift and prayers today to Aid to the Church in Need, you will
be doing just that. Your generosity will help to renew the light and hope that has
been dimmed in the hearts of so many.
My deepest prayers to you and your loved ones for a joyous Christmas and blessed
… I feel like staying home for Christmas instead of going to Sarah and Shaun’s as planned. It will be hard to stay cheerful and festive and I don’t want to spoil anyone’s day. In fact I feel like staying in my room and not seeing anyone until I feel better. This may be months. I don’t want to impose on anyone, to be a nuisance and to have people get fed-up with me talking about Thomas all the time…
11th December
… Christmas is getting nearer and as it approaches I feel even more miserable. I don’t want to shop or send Christmas cards. I don’t even want to receive cards or presents. It is difficult to show an interest in the Christmas cooking or other plans…
18th December 1999
Andy and I went to finish the Christmas shopping… I kept thinking if only we had our baby in our arms, we could be happy this Christmas…
23rd December 1999
Andy came home early for the Christmas holidays. I get moments of Christmas excitement which get extinguished very quickly as I remember Thomas…
My baby died six weeks before Christmas and as Christmas Day drew closer, an added burden dragged upon my heart. I felt like the only sorrowful person in a world of rejoicing people.
Friends asked us to join in with their celebrations and although we did accept their invitation, all I really wanted to do was spend Christmas alone with my misery. The effort needed to look cheerful seemed beyond me and I didn’t want to be blamed for spoiling everyone else’s joy.
But every now and then, when I least expected it, that well-known feeling of Christmas excitement and anticipation passed through me: at the sound of a beautiful carol, at the thought of my children unwrapping their gifts… But then all at once I’d remember, and the excitement would vanish.
I imagined my son six weeks old in my arms, and I thought “If only… If only my baby had been healthy… If only God had healed him in the womb… If only the doctors had been able to save him... If only he were here with us, I could be happy this Christmas and everything would be alright.”
But of course, ‘if only’ never happens. That isn’t the way to healing and joy and peace. I had to find another way: acceptance, trust, prayer…
Instead of opening a can of soup today, think of making something warm and comforting on days where you just want to cuddle up and let your worries be lifted with a recipe of comfort. Our kitchen and the table that we set our meal, should become a place of feasting and bringing nourishing comfort to you and those you love. Hope you will join me in making a delicious pot of soup. I'm going to try the vegetable soup today.
Let us know what you chose to make and maybe share how God is blessing your life today as you take time to comfort yourself and those you love.
Still, God hasn’t promised any of us a “Rose Garden” in this life. Sometimes we feel more like we’re in the Garden of Gethsemane where Our Lord prayed in deep agony the night before His Passion. Remember though that when misfortunes or tragedies hit us, we can withstand them better with God’s help. And with day-to day problems, Catholic prayers can help turn mountains back into molehills.
Our Lord taught us to pray “lead us not into temptation,” so that we can resist temptations against His will when they hit us. Through prayer we are better able to resist the every day temptations such as envy, hatred, bearing grudges, greed, lust, and selfishness. These negative emotions don’t bring us any real joy or peace of mind.
For those people in your life who continually rub you the wrong way (and we all have them! Bosses, co-workers, family members, etc.), prayer can give you the grace to deal with them better.
Also, as Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “Pray for those who persecute and slander you” (Matthew 5:44). God wants us to pray for others, however we may feel about them (or even if we don't personally know them). Such prayers remind us that one way or another, we are all in this journey towards holiness together. Your prayers can do a world of good for others, just as their prayers can help you!
My baby Thomas died some years ago, in the month of November, and my grief was still so very fresh when I had to start thinking about Christmas preparations and Christmas shopping. These seemed so unimportant and I really wanted to forget Christmas all together. But I knew I couldn’t. I knew I couldn’t deny my other children the joy and excitement they really needed after the sorrow of the past months.
From my diary:
"I spent most of yesterday shopping. I hate Christmas shopping. I can never decide what to buy and I’m not at all interested in celebrating and being joyful. All our Christmas cards are mixed up with sympathy cards. They don’t seem to go together somehow. I heard a young baby cry in the book shop and I had to move along quickly because I felt tearful…”
Yes, it was very difficult. But looking back, I realise that making that effort for my children helped me to keep going. Focusing on my loved ones helped me survive.
Does anyone have any suggestions for coping with Christmas preparations that need to be done, but seem very unimportant?
I have listed the GAPS Diet program in the links at the top of this blog page, why? Well, I am finding that this diet thing has been very helpful to myself as well as many others that I know. I'm sure it is not an idea that you've never thought about concerning diet and food restrictions, especially if you have had problems with gluten, but I wanted to share the updated article from Dr. Natasha who has her degree as a Neurologist/Neurosurgeon and in dietary nutrition. Why I want to share it with you is that you will have a great chance in balancing your hormones if you follow this dietary regime, I'm sure of it. I have seen great benefits in my own health and I am not getting any financial benefit from promoting this site. I just feel that we as baptized Christians owe it to Our Lord to take better care of our body. So, it's worth a try isn't it? I pray this information will help you, and if you ever need any support concerning this diet or just a prayer of support, please let us know. God bless and take good care of YOU!
One man’s meat is another man’s poison!Most Recent Article by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride 2011 (Discusses adapting the GAPS diet to meet your individual needs - A Must Read)
However, my husband reminded me that today in the Byzantine Catholic calendar, it is the feast of the Maternity of Anna (St. Anne), or the Conception of the Blessed Virgin.
Here is a prayer from Byzantine Matins:
O Adam! O Eve! Lay aside your sorrow!
Behold, a barren womb today wondrously bears fruit: The Mother of our Joy!
Rejoice, O Father Abraham and all the patriarchs! See your seed blossom: The Mother of our God!
Rejoice, O Anna! Rejoice, O Joachim! Today in a wondrous manner you bear to the world The fruit of grace and salvation!
Rejoice, O choir of prophets! Behold, today Anna bears the holy fruit You foretold to us!
Rejoice, O ye nations! The barren Anna conceives the fruit of her womb; By preserving in hope, she bears our life!
Rejoice, O ye ends of the earth! Behold the barren mother conceives her Who without human seed will bear the Creator of all!
Today a royal robe of purple and fine linen Is woven from the loins of David. The mystical flower of Jessie blossoms From which comes Christ God, the Savior of our souls!
(From the Matins of the Byzantine Liturgy - December 9th)
[The Icon is the Embrace of Joachim and Anna. This feast celebrates the conception of Mary by Anna and Joachim. This feast is traditionally celebrated on December 9th but has been moved by some Byzantine Churches to December 8th to match the Western feast.]
1/2 c sliced shiitake mushrooms (about 5)
1/2 red bell pepper
2-3 green onions
1 stalk celery
1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 quart chicken broth
1 egg
METHOD:
Heat the stock in a saucepan. While it is coming to a boil, slice or chop the vegetables so that they are in small pieces, and set aside.
Add the ginger and toasted sesame oil to the stock. Once it comes to a boil, add the vegetables and cook until they soften, about 10 minutes. Once the vegetables have cooked, remove them with a slotted spoon back into a bowl.
Break the egg into a small bowl and lightly beat it. Stir the soup with one hand so that it is swirling around in a circle, and slowly pour the egg mixture in with the other hand. The speed with which you stir and pour will determine how thin and long the egg strands become.
Once all the egg is poured in, remove from heat and add the vegetables back in. Add salt if needed (this will depend on how salty the chicken stock was).
There are many versions of this recipe which mostly vary depending on which vegetables you add. Other additions include peas, chopped onion, meatballs, tomato slices, a little dry white cooking wine, dash of vinegar, and chili oil.
Today is the day we celebrate the gifts of 2 holy souls, St. Hannah and St. Juan Diego. They are truly the main patrons of this ministry as they suffered infertility. We learn in the Old Testament that we as Christians need to come to the foot of the altar where the sacrifice is made and where graces will flow. Do you recognize the gift that we have been given in that their feast day is the day after the Immaculate Conception? What is God telling you today? What does this mean to you? I think it is something to truly meditate upon on this feast. Let us open our hearts to this that graces may enter the depths of our saddened minds and hearts to find Jesus and Mary guiding us where we are to go in our time of sorrow let us find the path to Him who knows what He is asking of us. Pray to accept the call Our Lord has placed in you, as you have not been forgotten but recognized as an individual with purpose.
1 Samuel 2
Hannah’s Song of Thanksgiving
1 Then Hannah prayed and said,
“My heart exults in the LORD;
Myhorn is exalted in the LORD,
My mouth speaks boldly against my enemies,
Because I rejoice in Your salvation.
2“There is no one holy like the LORD,
Indeed, there is no one besides You,
Nor is there any rock like our God.
3“Boast no more so very proudly,
Do not let arrogance come out of your mouth;
For the LORD is a God of knowledge,
And with Him actions are weighed.
4“The bows of the mighty are shattered,
But the feeble gird on strength.
5“Those who were full hire themselves out for bread,
But those who were hungry cease to hunger.
Even the barren gives birth to seven,
But she who has many children languishes.
6“The LORD kills and makes alive;
He brings down toSheol and raises up.
7“The LORD makes poor and rich;
He brings low, He also exalts.
8“He raises the poor from the dust,
He lifts the needy from the ash heap
To make them sit with nobles,
And inherit a seat of honor;
For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’S,
And He set the world on them.
9“He keeps the feet of His godly ones,
But the wicked ones are silenced in darkness;
For not by might shall a man prevail.
10“Those who contend with the LORD will be shattered;
Against them He will thunder in the heavens,
The LORD will judge the ends of the earth;
And He will give strength to His king,
And will exalt thehorn of His anointed.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Saint Juan Diego, infertile, holy and devoted to serving Our Lord as he was called. I would like to share with you today the post that "Martha Trying to be Mary" has shared with us today concerning St. Juan and infertility, God did not let his life become fruitless. This is what our focus should be as we make our journey in this life. Nothing is empty when we live our lives for Christ, He has something special prepared for us we need to see this with His eyes.
Prayer to St. Juan Diego
You who were chosen by Our Lady of Guadalupe as an instrument to show your people and the world that the way of Christianity is one of love, compassion, understanding, values, sacrifices, repentance of our sins, appreciation and respect for God’s creation, and most of all one of humility and obedience; You whom we know is now in the Kingdom of the Lord and close to our Mother; Be our angel and protect us, stay with us as we struggle in this modern life often not knowing where to set our priorities; Help us to pray to our God to obtain the gifts of the Holy Spirit and use them for the good of humanity and the good of our Church, through the Heart of Our Lady of Guadalupe to the Heart of Jesus. Amen.
"Lay woman from the diocese of Braga. At age 14 Alexandrina jumped from a window to escape a rapist; she was injured in the fall, paralyzed, and was bed-ridden for the rest of her life. Member of the Salesian Cooperators. Mystic and visionary. The last 13 years of her life she had the gift of inedia, living solely off daily Communion.http://saints.sqpn.com"
Feast Day: October 13
4th Seer of Fatima
Uniting our sufferings to Christ Jesus on the Cross is so important in our lives today, don't forget that this is a prayer that will do much more then you know. Pray the Chaplet of Hannah's Tears uniting your sufferings to Jesus Christ Crucified. All at the foot of the altar where graces flow.
Prayer:
Blessed Alexandrina da Costa
My Protectress
By Alexandrina Society Founder – Francis Reynolds
Alexandrina, as an unworthy sinner I ask you
To place me on a path of salvation,
To save my soul and help with your mission
Of saving other souls for God.
I implore you to plead for me
As I beg the grace to be holy,
To be pure, to be kind and to do
Only what is pleasing to God.
Then God will dwell in me and His blood
Will flow in my veins with my blood
And His Flesh will be with my flesh
And I will be with Jesus forever.
Oh, sweet and gentle Alexandrina, God gave
You power equal to that of the all-powerful and
Appointed you protectress of mankind. I ask you
To intercede for me in my time of need and protect
Me spiritually, physically and mentally through this
day/night through Jesus Christ Our Lord. Amen
All I can say is that this song is a representation to my heart of what the Chaplet of Hannah's Tears is all about. Mary said yes and we also need to say yes to what God is asking of us, no matter what it is He will see us through.
One of my pet peeves was brought to mind by World AIDS Day. Not that I oppose finding a cure for HIV. I was a social worker when AIDS emerged in the eighties. I helped a young man with HIV who was kicked out of the loft in Greenwich Village which he had shared with his lover, and was now living miles from a payphone in the country where he slowly died of AIDS. No one was with him. He covered his mouth in my office, and treated himself as a pariah, asking me to touch the doorknobs for him, since no one knew how AIDS was transmitted. My heart broke with compassion for him, abandoned to die alone. There was very little I could do besides make him comfortable and keep him company in 1985.
In a little over three decades, we discovered AIDS existed, raised money for research, and found treatments. Now its effectively cured, if only we would admit that it is spread by immoral sexual activity, we could have it under control. I am happy for those who are benefiting. Too bad that young man is not among them.
In 1958 Dr Jerome Lejeune discovered trisomy 21, the cause of Down syndrome. We should have rejoiced that a cure was now possible, and as with AIDS, banded together to raise funds. However, rather than joining him in his efforts to find a cure, which Dr Lejeune described as "taking less effort than sending a man to the moon" (which, by the way was done since T21 was discovered) the March of Dimes spent its millions developing a search-and-destroy methods of prenatal diagnosis, using Dr Lejeune's discovery to find unborn babies with Down syndrome. This led to an abortion rate of 92% for such babies. Some cure. Dr Lejeune watched this happen and dedicated his life to finding a cure, he said, 'I see only one way left to save them, and that is to cure them. The task is immense--but so is Hope."
Did we kill AIDS patients as a means to a cure? Or cancer patients?
Dr Lejeune said, "Medicine becomes mad science when it attacks the patient instead of fighting the disease. We must always be on the patient's side, always."
Why was pre-natal diagnosis and abortion for nearly 50 years considered the end of the Down syndrome story? Sure, its a complicated disease, but so is HIV. I have to think that AIDS patients being movie stars like Rock Hudson had a lot to do with the dedication and speed with which we found a cure. There are 2.7 million afflicted with HIV in the USA and nearly half a million who have trisomy 21, or 20% of that number. That is still a significant population, yet there were no huge TV specials, no ribbon on the White House, or until recently, no big Hollywood celebrities sponsoring efforts to raise money for Down syndrome research. Instead, researchers like Dr Alberto Costa have to give of their own money to search for a cure for his daughter's Down syndrome.
Like Dr Costa, I have a daughter with Down syndrome. She is no Hollywood celebrity, but don't try to tell her that. Her smile and her can-do attitude brighten her elementary school. I volunteer full time to raise awareness of the inequity with which people with trisomy 21 are treated. No, not in education, thanks to the Americans with Disabilities Act, she can go to typical school right through college. But in research and in the way it is considered standard medical practice that a woman expecting a child with Down syndrome gets no more than a phone number for an abortion clinic instead of information about how good life is for those with Down syndrome. Thanks to Dr Brian Skotko, whose new survey in the American Journal of Medical Genetics, brings out the fact that 99% of families are happy with their child with Down syndrome, and that the people with T21 are just as pleased with their liives. This is not what expectant women have been hearing. My friends have been told they were selfish for wanting to give birth to their child with Down syndrome, bringing misery upon themselves and their families. Its simply not true. And I am working through KIDS (Keep Infants with Down Syndrome) to change how the diagnosis is treated, especially since with the new diagnostic test, MaterniT21, the diagnosis will be offered more widely and earlier. Doctors will have results at 12 weeks instead of 22, giving women plenty of time to educate themselves about what life is really going to be like for their child with Down syndrome before making a decision to abort.
I want people like Christina to find the compassion, resources, and acceptance which is now offered to AIDS patients. Why shouldn't she be treated with equal dignity?
Things are changing. Three years ago, the National Institute of Health formulated a research plan to find a cure for the cognitive delays of Down syndrome, and is now forming a consortium of parents and researchers. The legacy of Dr Lejeune lives on in newly formed Lejeune USA which had a major meeting at the Neuroscience Convention last month in DC (more about that meeting in future posts). UC San Diego Down syndrome researcher Dr William Mobley said, "if you told me a decade ago, I would be discussing clinical trials for a drug to treat Down syndrome cognitive delays, with four laboratories, I would not have believed it".
I was heartened by the star-studded fundraiser "Be Beautiful, Be Yourself" offered by the Linda Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome in Washington last month at $500 a plate. Gladys Knight was there and so was my Congressman. We don't want people with Down syndrome to go away, but there is bright promise that within a decade, the significant delays in memory and learning which my daughter endures, may be, like AIDS, on the way to the dustbin of history.
![[Alexandrina Maria da Costa]](http://saints.sqpn.com/sainta6y.jpg)
