Immersed in St. Catherine of Siena in the Summertime

For some "light" summer reading, my parish Summer Book Club read the highly regarded and reviewed biography titled, "St. Catherine of Siena," by Sigrid Undset. Sigrid Undset was an expert on the Middle Ages as well as a Third Order Dominican.  The author is considered one of the "greatest novelists of the twentieth century." She won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1928 for her epic work, "Kristin Lavransdatter."
So during the month of June, a group of us, read, studied and discussed St. Catherine of Siena as portrayed by Undset. I had studied St. Catherine before but that was many years ago and I wanted to revisit the fascinating life and writings of this extraordinary saint and Doctor of the Church.
Catherine as you may know was instrumental in convincing the French Pope- Pope Gregory XI to leave Avignon, France where he was living. She implored him through letters and eventually visited him to convince him the papacy belonged in Rome. It seems he feared he would go to hell (she was very convincing!) if he didn't listen to this bold Dominican, who was revered in her own day for her saintliness and inspired judgment. 
The book was excellent but this was one of my favorite paragraphs in the book,
"On September 13, a day or two after Catherine had started on her journey to Italy, Gregory left Avignon--forever. He had taken Catherine's advice and left suddenly, taking all the Cardinals, except six. The French Cardinals in his retinue wept and his relations who remained behind wailed and lamented. The Pope's old father, knelt at the city gates, in despair at the departure of his son. Pope Gregory passed him without a word......." (page 212).
Pope Gregory must of believed that it was much better to head back to Rome and try to heal that city and the Church,  then to spend eternity in Hell as Catherine had hinted to.
Catherine was an amazing woman saint, for any age, and I highly suggest this book.
NJA

Year of Mercy Committee Visits St. Pius X Residence on Long Island

The pastor of my parish asked Fr. Jude Dioka to form a Year of Mercy Committee to help all parishioners better understand, "unpack" and act upon ways to show mercy, in the Great Jubilee Year of Mercy declared by Pope Francis.  The late Msgr. John McCann, who I greatly respected, suggested that I be one of those members.
On Saturday evening June 4th a group of us visited, prayed with and had dinner with the elderly, retired priests of St. Pius X Residence, located on the grounds of Dominican Village, in Amityville, Long Island. We met the retired priests in their chapel and Fr. Jude led us in reciting the Rosary. Fr.Jude prayed on his knees (on the floor of the chapel) for the entire Rosary which impressed me.Afterwards we went into the dining room to have dinner with the priests. We had catered the dinner of delicious food, but I thought since it was the Year of Mercy I would do something special,  so I made 40 rice balls which is my Italian specialty dish and brought them along. They enjoyed them and all the other food, as well as the delicious ice cream cake that Catherine (the chairperson of the committee) picked up at Carvel and brought to the residence. It's their favorite.
Msgr. Thomas Costa was very grateful for our visit, he said we had lifted up the spirits of the priests, including himself. He told me a little about his "call" to work with the elderly priests, he is a registered nurse.  It was a great story of God leading him where he was most needed.  It was a wonderful evening and a concrete way we were able to share and show mercy and kindness to the elderly priests who reside at St. Pius X Residence. 
NJA

Celebrities Love Pope Francis And His Educational Foundation!

The latest A-list movie star to visit Pope Francis at the Vatican was George Clooney. He brought along his wife Amal, who is a human rights lawyer. They both shook hands with the Pope and exchanged warm greetings. George Clooney received an award as well for work he is doing for the Pope's educational foundation. It seems like visiting the Pope is the latest celebrity "must-have meeting." Leo DiCaprio visited the Pope with his father some months ago and then won an Oscar afterwards. Seems like the Pope brought him good luck and blessings.
George is involved with "Scholas Occurrentes" an arts organization founded by Pope Francis. The educational organization brings together children from different areas, hoping to bring about cooperation and understanding.
George was given an award on Sunday and Richard Gere and Salma Hayek were also honored and met the Pope as well.
DiCaprio, George Clooney, Salma Hayek and Richard Gere join other A-listers who have met the Pope such as Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Hudson and Mark Wahlberg. I'm sure there have been others.
So it seems A-list movie stars like Pope Francis and want to get close to him. But they also want to help which is a good thing.
NJA

Women Deacons Would Invigorate the Church!

 I have long thought that ordaining women as deacons would invigorate the Catholic Church, make women feel more appreciated and give them an opportunity to share their many gifts for the good of the Church and the faithful.
It's a no- brainer as far as I'm concerned. According to news reports, Pope Francis has agreed to set up a Vatican commission to study the possibility of ordaining women to the diaconate.
Some pessimists think that not much will come of the commission as there are bishops and cardinals opposed to the idea, but I think that would be a missed opportunity.
It's no secret that young people are straying away from the Church. This is one area that upsets them for sure. They don't like the fact that the Church is not more inclusive.
The diaconate would have to be seperated from the priesthood since it is tied to the diaconate but I'm sure that could be worked out. I know that because years ago I wrote to an archbishop asking why women couldn't be ordained deacons, as was the case in the early Church. He wrote back to me that because the diaconate is tied to priesthood that presented a problem but that he was in favor of women deacons (that was over 20 years ago).
The Church has to move forward in the modern world. This would be a good step in the right direction. Young adults need to take a second look at the Church and if the Church started ordaining women as deacons, I'm confident that many young people would see that as a positive development.
The Church should not debate this for 10 years....the new evangelization calls us to think outside the box, to preach the message of Christ to the modern world, which desperately needs to hear it.
I pray the movement of the Holy Spirit, causes this Vatican Commission to be open to God's will, to do what is necessary to open the doors to Christ and Christ's teaching, through utilizing the many gifts of talented and holy women.
NJA

Feast of Divine Mercy--What Is God's Will For Your Life? Pray to Find Out.

Blessed Mother Teresa found her calling, the call within the call as she described it. Her calling was to the poorest of the poor and she had to change direction in her life, from being a teaching nun to going out onto the streets of Calcutta.  Many of the saints have said that the most important thing in life is uniting your will to the will of God. Sometimes we might be doing great things for the Lord, but it might not be what God's will is for your life. It's tricky finding out the will of God and then acting on it. Mother Teresa was successful, her beautiful and noble work for the poor continues after her death. What a great tribute to sanctity and fulfilling the will of God that her work continues in so many places in the world.

On Divine Mercy Sunday, I spent the day in prayer and sharing knowledge.  I spent part of the day in prayer during Eucharistic Adoration, in reciting the Chaplet of Divine Mercy and I gave a talk on St. Faustina and divine mercy. I led participants in prayer and others did as well. I knew it would be a powerful day because it was the Feast day of Divine Mercy in the Jubilee Year of Mercy. I mentioned that in my talk that it was a special day which wouldn't happen again in our lifetimes, the Feast Day landing in the Year of Mercy.  The 3:00 PM hour was especially grace-filled.  It took me some time to realize the affect it had on me, but what I think happened that day, for me, in my own spiritual journey is that God made it clear to me that something I've been working on has to be completed. That's God will. I feel it strongly. I procrastinate, sometimes, which of course is not good. I wonder if anyone will read the book I have to finish but that's not important ...what's important is that I get it done.

So that was the "fruit" of Divine Mercy Sunday, the grace of the day for me. I wonder what the others were given because I'm sure graces were given freely and abundantly that day. I was given direction. Now I have to act.
NJA

Poverty and the Zika Virus and Pope Francis' Call To Help the Poor

As Pope Francis so often reminds us, we can't forget about our poor and marginalized brothers and sisters in the world. Those who are trapped in poverty cannot overcome their situation without help. We can all do more.
I sponsor a little girl from a third world country and through my monthly giving, I help her to have basic necessities that her family could not otherwise afford. I give to other charities as well.
But we can all do more.
I recently read an article in the New York Times written by a medical doctor,  Dr. Peter Hotez, who is warning that the Zika virus spread by a certain type of mosquito and which is believed to be responsible for babies being born with a devastating brain birth defect (microcephaly), will soon spread in areas of poverty in the southern United States.  As he wrote in the article ("Zika is Coming"), "In crowded places, mosquitoes have lots of access to lots of people. Poor people often live in proximity to garbage, including old tires, plastic containers and drainage ditches filled with stagnant water, where this species of mosquito lives and breeds. And they often have homes with torn screens on their windows. The combination creates ideal conditions for the Zika virus to spread."
He also wrote that "the extremely poor cities of Brazil's northeastern states make up the epicenter of the epidemic."
I've seen pictures of Brazilian mothers holding and comforting their babies who have been born with small heads and brain damage. It is heartbreaking to see these poor mothers who have so few resources to begin with, now having to care for these babies. They need help from charitable organizations and from government agencies.
So Pope Francis' message of compassion for the poor and more equality and better paying jobs and opportunities for the poor, wherever they exist in the world, is needed now more than ever.  When will we listen and act upon his wisdom?
NJA

Immersed in Divine Mercy and St Faustina-2016

Happy Easter to All! Blessed Easter Season! This week I will be immersed in the Diary of St. Faustina, the message of Divine Mercy and the reading of a book I just ordered, "7 Secrets of Divine Mercy" by Vinny Flynn. I received a call recently and asked if this Sunday, Divine Mercy Sunday, I could give a talk on Divine Mercy. I agreed. A few days later, a woman sitting in the pew in Church, in front of me, had the book by her side, "7 Secrets....." so I just knew I had to read that book for my talk, seemed providential to me. As it turned out that woman was giving a talk on Divine Mercy a week later which I attended. People of faith always amaze me when they show the benefits of their faith and how it has positively affected their lives. It's a fact that people of faith can weather life's "storms" and trials better. During the talk that she gave on Divine Mercy, she shared that her husband of 40 years asked her for a divorce a couple of years before. He had met someone else (younger naturally). It came as a complete shock to her. He recently re-married and though she looked disturbed as she shared the story, she still had it together, she still had her deep faith, she was brave and focused on the good and positive in her life. People of faith can pick themselves up, dust themselves off and move on. Belief in the Resurrection, nourishment from the Eucharist and the healing power of Jesus can do that. I've seen it over and over again. I've experienced it in my own life, going through the death of loved ones.

So as I prepare for my talk on Sunday and as I spend the next few days reading about St. Faustina's message and the benefits of trusting in God (no matter what!), I look forward to study and growing in both my trust in God and my knowledge of what's really important in life.
NJA

"Give thanks to the Lord, for God is good; for God's mercy endures forever."  (Psalm 117:1