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A Passing Prayer

Tell me if you have had this experience:  You are driving along in your nice, new car with the heater on, comfortable, fed and nicely groomed. In your periphery vision you see a man on the sidewalk and you turn your head and focus on him as you . . . Read More

 

 

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A Wake-Up Call

Yesterday, Father’s Day, my husband and I went to a seafood buffet with my mom, step-dad, and some of their friends. We had a great time.

Afterwards, back at Mom’s, the guys went upstairs to play on the computer while Mom and I stayed downstairs discussing the book I am writing about . . . Read More

 

 

 

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Carrying Our Crosses

Last night as I was watching television, I found myself wishing for the easy life and opulence that was reflected in the program I was watching. Because television symbolizes real life; doesn’t it? Perhaps real . . . Read More

 

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Catholic Bashing

As a former Protestant Evangelical, I’ve heard a lot of Catholic bashing. But, for me, it made me want to learn about the Catholic Church for myself. Evangelical Protestant churches are filled to the brim with . . . Read More

 

 

image_thumb[20][1]Catholic Relics

One thing that I like about the Catholic religion is that it is full of points of contact, such as statues, candles and relics. Catholics do not worship these items, but they help to bring us into a closer presence with God. The technical . . . Read More

 

 

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Dynamic Speakers

The priest who spoke at our convalidation seminar was eloquent, dynamic, and full of charisma. Why don’t all priests speak like that? I found . . . Read More

 

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End Time Prophecy

I have recently returned to a Catholic Church that is more orthodox in its teachings of the Bible, the Catechism and church doctrine. It’s not that I disliked my old parish — In fact, I loved it for awhile. The music was uplifting and youthful, and the priest was an excellent public speaker. But a foreign ingredient . . . Read More

 

 

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Eucharistic Miracles

As a relatively new Catholic (six years this coming April), I had a hard time wrapping my head around the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist, but now . . . Read More

 

 

card-jesus-is-coming[1]Examination of Conscience

I have been attending a “Life in the Spirit” Seminar. I love it because it is all about learning to incorporate Christ into every aspect of our lives. (Who doesn’t need that?)  My problem is that I am essentially lazy and misprioritized. (Is that a word?) Anyway, I need to begin building some better, more consistent spiritual habits . . . Read More

 

 

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Faith That Has Hands and Feet

In meditating on today’s reading (Acts 16:1-10), I was impacted by Paul’s willingness to go wherever the Lord sent him. As he traveled from city to city preaching the Good News of Jesus Christ, Paul was  . . . Read More

 

 

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Heeding God’s Call

Why would a 56-year-old Protestant decide to become a Roman Catholic?  The answer is simple: I finally heeded God’s call.  I was not raised a Catholic but always jumped at the chance of attending the Catholic Church. I loved the candles and the saints and the stained glass windows. I loved the altar and the priests and the prayers. Most of all, I loved the fact that the Catholic . . . Read More

 

 

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Here We Go Again

Time for Big Faith:  The Obama Administration has re-arranged priorities in the Middle East.  The date and location of our son’s next Naval deployment was changed. Instead of October, 2010, it was pushed  . . . Read More

 

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Hungry for the Truth

I have always felt that we should (as the Bible puts it) “walk circumspectly,” and yet, as an Evangelical Protestant, I never searched any deeper for the truth. I knew a handful of New Testament scriptures, thought that the Old Testament was a huge puzzle, and . . . Read More

 

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It’s Almost Here!

This month, Dad and Mom Garrison have been staying with us. We’ve been to Disneyland, Palm Springs, and all over. We’ve had many rousing hands of “Hand and Foot” (card game) and caught up on . . . Read More

 

 

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It’s Been a Year

I can’t believe that it’s been almost a year since I was received into the Catholic Church. It has been a year of growth and discovery as I continue to learn about my religion. The decision to go through the RCIA . . . . Read More

 

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My Dad’s Passing

Today is the twelfth year since my dad’s passing. My husband remembered, first.  My dad had a good life. He was born in 1929 to parents, Grace and Thomas. He grew up as a Catholic and was even an altar boy. My Grandma Grace had high . . . Read More

 

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My Guardian Angel

Guardian angels are ministering spirits sent by God. This is written in sacred scripture and has been manifested throughout Church history. Without getting into an exhaustive doctrinal exposition on the reality of guardian angels, I want to tell you how my guardian . . . Read More

 

 

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Prayer

It is always amazing when science validates something to do with God, spirituality or prayer. Today, there was another such finding.  A group of people were asked to do one of two things: . . . Read More

 

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Reaching the Poor

Pope Francis has taken it upon himself to assign his chief “alms-giver” along with off-duty Swiss guards to go out into the streets of Rome, reaching . . . Read More

 

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Strengthening Our Faith

Our son, Justin, is deploying to Afghanistan on Saturday, and I am dreading him being over there. I’ve gone up and down with it, cried some tears, and moped around. I’ve felt guilty for being so sad. . . . Read More

 

 

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The Hidden Christ

Who is the hidden Christ?  What does it mean?  Jesus said that when we do it unto the “least of them” we do it unto Him.  Meditate on this. Who are the “least of them” to you?  Here is who they are to me: . . . Read More

 

 

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The Passing of a Classmate

Yesterday I received news that one of my class mates, a man named Leonard, had lost his life. Most tragic were the circumstances surrounding his death.  Leonard and I were in the same college program to become . . . Read More

 

 

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Through the Bible

A woman named Lori placed a link online that is a plan for reading through the Bible in a year.  I had been looking for a plan that was:  #1 Free;  #2 Catholic; and #3 Contained all the books of the Bible, including the Deuterocanonicals.  . . . Read More

 

 

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Trials Turned to Gold

As I sat in the terminal waiting for our delayed connecting flight on the last leg of our trip, I felt angry that so many people (my husband and me included) had been so grossly inconvenienced. Our airline tickets hadn’t been cheap, and we should have been treated much better – in fact, catered to – for the price that we had shelled out  . . . Read More

 

 

 

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Unexpected Inspiration

A few days ago, I started walking my dogs. I was mad at myself for gaining back a pound that I had previously lost, and the dogs really needed to be walking more. So I devised a plan where I would walk three dogs one day and three dogs the next. We have seven dogs and our seventh is a blind, diabetic, Hungarian Puli who becomes disoriented when he is out of his . . . Read More

 

 

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Why the Latin Mass

Last night, on All Saints Day, a Holy Day of Obligation, I attended my first Latin mass — well, since 1962, that is. What I experienced was wrapped in incense, Gregorian chanting, drops of water and mystery. I felt waves of nostalgia.  As a child in the early 1960s, when I would attend the Catholic Church with . . . Read More