Salve Regina

From The Glories Of Mary, by Saint Alphonsus Liguori:

O Lady, O ravished of hearts! ("O Domina, quae rapis corda.") I will exclaim with St. Bonaventure: "Lady, who with the love and favor thou showest thy servants dost ravish their hearts, ravish also my miserable heart, which desires ardently to love thee. Thou, my Mother, hast enamoured a God with thy beauty, and drawn him from heaven into thy chaste womb; and shall I live without loving thee?

"I will say to thee with one of thy most loving sons, John Berchmans of the Society of Jesus, I will never rest until I am certain of having obtained thy love; but a constant and tender love towards thee, my Mother, who hast loved me with so much tenderness" ("Nunquam quiescam, donec habuero tenerum amorem erga Matrem meam, Mariam"), even when I was ungrateful towards thee.

And what should I now be, O Mary, if thou hadst not obtained so many mercies for me? Since, then, thou didst love me so much when I loved thee not, how much more may I not now hope from thee, now that I love thee? I love thee, O my Mother, and I would that I had a heart to love thee in place of all those unfortunate creatures who love thee not. I would that I could speak with a thousand tongues, that all might know thy greatness, thy holiness, thy mercy, and the love with which thou lovest all who love thee.

Had I riches, I would employ them all for thy honor. Had I subjects, I would make them all thy lovers. In fine, if the occasion presented itself I would lay down my life for thy glory. I love thee, then, O my Mother; but at the same time I fear that I do not love thee as I ought; for I hear that love makes lovers like the person loved. If, then, I see myself so unlike thee, it is a mark that I do not love thee. Thou art so pure, and I defiled with many sins; thou so humble, and I so proud; thou so holy, and I so wicked.

This, then, is what thou hast to do, O Mary; since thou lovest me, make me like thee. Thou hast all power to change hearts; take, then, mine and change it. Show the world what thou canst, do for those who love thee. Make me a saint; make me thy worthy child. This is my hope.Amen.Source: Recta Ratio

Local Press Coverage of Yesterday's Ordinations

The Lincoln Journal Star did a fine story on yesterday's events which can be found here.
Be sure to click on the audio file on the left side to hear the press conference with Dario Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos.

Audio of press conference here if I did things correctly.....


QUOTE Those attending the ordination service had an opportunity to experience it in its highest form, with lots of incense, pomp and ceremony. The altar was set up in the Cathedral with the cross atop a pedestal, flanked by candles and flowers. Throughout much of the service, Hoyos and other priests faced the altar, with their backs to the congregation, directing their prayers symbolically toward God.In the news conference the cardinal got a laugh when he turned his back on reporters, demonstrating the rudeness of not looking at the person one is addressing. When the priest faces the altar, both he and the congregation behind him have their faces turned toward God, Hoyos said.During the Mass Friday, he said, “I was not alone. I was accompanied by the people of faith. I was with them, giving our face to God.” UNQUOTE

Feast of the Sacred Heart

CONGRATULATIONS to the four new priests. God bless you and keep you. May you walk in Our Lord's footsteps all your days.

There are several more posts with photos mostly from EWTN of the ordinations here in Lincoln, Nebraska USA today. The photos are in backwards chronological order ( I'm a tad bit foggy/tired) , so scroll down and then work your way back up to see them in order.

What a huge blessing.

And God bless our dear Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz for being a friend and supporter of tradition and Western Catholic Orthodoxy.

He's a brick.

Bishop B, you are The Man.

It is determined if the candidates are worthy.

An ugly modernist cathedral becomes one of the most gorgeous spots on earth because of this.

God's Hands Have Fashioned And Made Me

What A Day!

I'm "all in" ~ basically toast, that is to say, really tired. But really, really good-tired. This day





1.)started last night with horrendous weather, major gales and tornadoes dangerously close (one in the city of Kearney, NE, slightly west of us. The lightning went on for hours and the thunder ~ well, the thunder shook the house, stopped the electricity and scared the dog into fits. About 3 1/2 -4 hours of sleep, never a good thing before a busy day.





2.) then the sacred rite of ordination (more on that below). It was my first Traditional Latin Ordination and a Cardinal from the Vatican was here to do it. I got to The Cathedral of the Risen Christ at 8:30 AM, then LOTS of kneeling & standing (LOTS) and then I left right after the service concluded, about 1:40 PM ~ I had to rush home, eat and get to work. (I'm just now in from work)





3. Lastly, A hectic day at work.


WHEW!!!





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A few comments from my frazzled brain. As a Melkite who was 18 years Greek Orthodox, I did feel a bit like I was in a cultural exchange program, but not too much. I guess I'm spending enough time at St. Francis (the local FSSP Oratory). I have been to an Orthodox ordination, but not a Roman Catholic one.

There is a point where the Cardinal asks if these candidates are worthy, sort of a "speak now, or forever hold your peace" moment ~ and I remembered the Greek custom of hollering Axios !" (worthy) but managed to restrain myself. :o) Many of the Trads are a bit serious, and I could envision myself being escorted out by the burly guys with the frilly hats and big swords ~ and missing the Big Event. So I kept quiet. But, in case anyone is reading this who knows the new priests, tell them I said AXIOS!! WORTHY!!

Tomorrow I'm going to Mass at one of the new reverend father's FIRST MASS ~ what a special occasion. It was a wonderful day. Thanks be to God. Deo gratias.

I'll post more pics in my next post.

Pax Christi.

DJY

Traditional Ordinations Tomorrow

My posts will be scarce tomorrow since I am getting up early and heading for The Cathedral here in Lincoln, Nebraska, where His Eminence Dario Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos, President of the Ecclesia Dei Commission, will confer the Priestly ordinations. His Excellency, Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz will be sitting in choir.


Please keep the following ordinandi in your prayers as they ascend to the altar of Our Lord:
Rev. Mr. Jared McCambridge, FSSP
Rev. Mr. Dennis Gordon, FSSP
Rev. Mr. Justin Nolan, FSSP
Rev. Mr. Jonathan Romanoski, FSSP


On Friday, May 30th, 2008, the Feast of the Sacred Heart, these four men will be ordained priests for the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter by Darío Cardinal Castrillón Hoyos, the President for the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei. To be televised live on EWTN at 11:00AM (EST), the ordinations will take place at the Cathedral of the Risen Christ, in the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska.


About the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter ~


Established in 1988 by Pope John Paul II, the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter is an international society of Catholic priests entrusted with the preservation and administration of the Catholic Church's ancient Latin liturgical traditions. Nearly 200 priests belong to the Fraternity and over 100 seminarians are studying in its two seminaries in Bavaria, Germany and Denton, Nebraska.

Deo gratias!

GLORIA PATRI, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto. Sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

Morning Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us sinners.

Sung by nuns from St. Elizabeth Monastery, Belorussia "Lord,Jesus Christ, Son of God, have Mercy On Us, Sinners!"- Иисycoва молитва-Поют сёстры монастыря Св. Елизаветы. Белорусия - Also known as the prayer of the heart, it is one of my daily devitions for 30 years.
http://www.lovetobecatholic.com/video_783_The_Jesus_Prayer_

No More Secret Government

I am proud to be an American, but I am ashamed of what the government is doing in my name.

Yet another in a long, agonized series of articles, essays and blog posts which decry the devolution of the US into a thug state run for the benefit of the top quarter of one percent of the population. I concur wholeheartedly: this is not my America. I repudiate all recent attempts to make it conform to the image of Stalinist Russia and Nazi Germany. That is not who we are, and we the people need to emphasise that point at every turn.

From the Populist Party web site.

How Jennifer Became Pro-Life

A personal journey from the secular standard issue mass-mind worldview to a traditional Catholic one. Made all the more poignant by the fact that this young woman started out an atheist, it is a gripping account of a soul's progress towards the light. From Jennifer's blog "Et Tu?"

"How I Became Pro Life"

QUOTE It made me realize that my pro-choice viewpoints were putting me in the position of deciding who was and was not human, and whose lives were worth living. I (along with doctors, the government, or other abortion advocates) decided where to draw this very important line. When I would come across Catholic blogs or books where they said something like "life begins at conception," I would scoff at the silliness of that notion as was my habit...yet I found myself increasingly uncomfortable with my defense UNQUOTE

Time To Vote For Summer Reading List!

I just took a moment to pop on over to Amy Welborn's site, Charlotte Was Both ~ and found a link to Aquinas And More Books and their Catholic Summer Reading List, which they're asking readers to vote on your favorite three three top contenders.

Here are all 64 of the books in the running, although it's down to the final ten now.

Cool.

I voted for Pope Benedict's book, Chesterton on St. Francis and Mike Aquilina's litle book on family life.

QUOTE There is literally “something for everyone” in the title offerings - both fiction and non-fiction and books for young readers. Last year we were featured on EWTN/Ave Maria Radio and the program was mentioned in a number of Catholic publications. The purpose of the program is to keep Catholics reading and engaged with their faith during the summer vacation season and to expose them to new titles and to the Catholic novel - something that is becoming a rare and exotic species.
The program will feature downloadable discussion guides for reading groups, flyers that Catholic retailers across the country can download and use in their stores so they can sponsor reading groups in their local markets, and much more. We are also encouraging parishes around the country to start up summer reading groups. UNQUOTE

Ahmadinejad Requests Meeting With The Pope

From Reuters

Quote ROME (Reuters) - Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has asked for an audience next week with Pope Benedict which would be the first meeting between the two leaders, a diplomatic source said on Tuesday.
Ahmadinejad is among the heads of state expected to visit Rome to attend a June 3-5 United Nations summit on global food security, hosted by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization.
Vatican sources said earlier this week that it was not yet clear if the pope would meet individual heads of state attending the U.N. event or hold a collective audience for them in order to save time. UNQUOTE

Hmm, what do you make of this? This story surfaces at the same time that the Asia Times is reporting a "leaked from a highly placed reputable source" that the Bush administration wishes war with Iran and is even planning it. What to make of it all...insights welcomed.

God knows that we are all sick and tired of this constant malignant drumbeat of war.


Crank up the volume.

Alisa Miller, head of Public Radio International, talks about why -- though we want to know more about the world than ever -- the US media is actually showing less. Eye-opening stats and graphs. This short video will open your eyes, and helps explain why, on our our brief trip to Ireland a few years ago, I felt like I was finally getting access to some good world news.

Mommy's Home!

What a world we live in. May all the mommies and daddies the world over be home soon, and safe, and doing what really matters ~ taking good care of their wee ones. God save us.

Herbology For the Rest of Us

I stumbled across this article today, and found it fascinating. "For entertainment purposes only" as the disclaimer goes ~ but ya just might want to bookmark it! Indeedy. Wow.

QUOTE LUCKY FOR US, WE LIVE AT A time when researchers gather new information about herbs almost daily. And they're confirming that sometimes herbs just work better than prescription and over-the-counter medicines. For example, deglycyrrhizinated licorice heals ulcers without the risk of severe bleeding that accompanies prescription ulcer medicines. And St. John's wort lifts mild and moderate depression without squashing your libido or making you sleepy the way prescription antidepressants do. Here we reveal the 20 herbs that experts say you can count on to safely treat common chronic ailments. UNQUOTE

Tuesday

Footbridge on UNL East Campus, near our home

It's a quiet grey day here in Nebraska, and my hubby is off work, our youngest daughter isn't off to her new school yet, and our grandaughter is here just for the day. What a joy it is to have family peacefully busy together! We just got through with an hour or so of beading, making earrings, bookmarks and a bracelet. What fun. Even the two year old was able to help, and she loved it.

God is good.

Some Weather

The weather has been quite lively around the Midwest lately ~ tornadoes, gale force winds, heavy rain and daily thunderstorms. Here's a picture that was making the rounds today of a barn in Kansas, not so far from here, a few days ago. Now, those are some heavy clouds...

Here Comes Prince Caspian

I've seen some great films lately: notably the superb, wonderful pro-life Bella, the irreverent pop pro-life Juno, and The Simple Life of Noah Dearborn featuring master actor Sidney Poitier.

It looks like another goodie is here: Prince Caspian got a rave review from Catholic Online.

QUOTE The Kings, Queens and the Prince, along with the all the Narnians who have joined them in their mission, soon rediscover faith, hope and love. These virtues enable them to do great things, for others.Their heroism in battle deepens as the story progresses, revealing that there are degrees of heroism in the order of goodness. They move from shouting “For Narnia”, as they charge forward in the initial dramatic battles, to shouting “For Aslan” in the final ones.The film also develops the theme of harmony with the created order as a fruit of faith, hope and love. This is done through the relationship between humans, the Narnians and the trees.These trees, we learn, once danced when Narnia was filled with hope. Now, they are still. That will all change at the command of Aslan in one of the most breathtaking scenes of this film. UNQUOTE

The Last WWI Vet and Memorial Day

I saw this in my morning paper today. by George Will, it's a tribute to the last known US Doughboy. It is Memorial Day here in the US, a chance to pray for the dead, take care of the graves and to rest a little and reflect on the honor due our warriors, the care due to them upon their return, and the debt that non-warrior society owes them which can never be repaid in full.

Whatever one's politics, the warriors don't make the unjust wars, but they are the ones doing the fighting and the suffering and the dying.

QUOTE The eyes of the last doughboy are still sharp enough for him to be a keen reader, and his voice is still deep and strong at age 107. He must have been a fine broth of a boy when, at 16, persistence paid off and he found, in Oklahoma City, an Army recruiter who believed, or pretended to, the fibs he had unavailingly told to Marine and Navy recruiters in Kansas about being 18. UNQUOTE

Memorial Day for all soldiers is embodied in the words of the oath that a person first takes when they enlist into the service of the country:

I DO SOLEMNLY SWEAR (OR AFFIRM) THAT I WILL SUPPORT AND DEFEND THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES AGAINST ALL ENEMIES, FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC; THAT I WILL BEAR TRUE FAITH AND ALLEGIANCE TO THE SAME; AND THAT I WILL OBEY THE ORDERS OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES AND THE ORDERS OF THE OFFICERS APPOINTED OVER ME, ACCORDING TO REGULATIONS AND THE UNIFORM CODE OF MILITARY JUSTICE. SO HELP ME GOD.

This oath taken by each and every soldier exemplifies the reason why soldiers/warriors do what they do each and every day. Soldiers are defenders of the same principles that made this country great. They stand as Patriots to defend and protect the ideals and goals espoused in the Constitution of the United States. Soldiers bear true faith and allegiance to that document and they work, and live, within the Codes of Military Justice. Soldiers also obey the orders of the President of the United States and the Officers appointed over them; however, their first fealty is to The Constitution and all it enshrines.

Happy Memorial Day to all.

Respect and Honor to the Veterans.

Mitakuye Oyasin!

Hillary Finally Outs Herself As A Bunny Boiling Bloodless Golem

It is like those old B grade horror movies, you know, the ones where the soulless alien golems are caught gobbling the veins of innocent passerbys like so much spaghetti: when caught in the act, the look on their golem-ish faces is one of feigned surprise and outraged innocence. "Oh no" they protest, "This isn't blood, this is spaghetti sauce. Oh no, no. You just don't understand the trials of a special person like me."

So sounded her little "apology".

Hillary, this is so not about YOU.

So it is with Hillary Clinton yesterday in her breathtakingly horrid gaffe invoking Bobby's assassination as a reason for her to keep in the race, and her so-called apology to Ted Kennedy (and NOT Barack Obama).

Here's Olberman's take on the subject, and I agree with his every word.

Dollar Chart

Whoa. It seems the US dollar has lost half it's value since Bush took office. Check it out. That's robbery of every citizen, man woman and child, as much as if he had stolen half of every dollar-using person's money.

It seems that the "just-print-more" fix/bailout has its downside after all.

What Are Those Paulites Up To, Anyhoo??

Read The Revolution: A Manifesto by Rep. Ron Paul.

Heaven Begins On Earth

One of my favorite spiritual sites, Spirit Daily, has this little gem to offer. Take it for what it's worth to you: to me it seems good advice.

QUOTE Free yourself from the baggage of worldliness, which is attachment to things.
You take none of it with you and it can hold you back. Clean yourself. Simplify.
Do you see a bird in a cage? That's what we are like when we are all closed in by routine. The Holy Spirit cannot be spontaneous. We box God out. Don't cage yourself in by routine.
There is "balance." It is extremely important to balance our lives -- and avoid all extremes. Slow down. Don't outrun the Holy Spirit. Expand your horizons. That's where Heaven is. Don't be a robot.
There are extremes of negativity. There are extremes of eating. There are extremes of drinking. There are extremes politically and religiously. There is the extreme of scrupulosity (adhering to each letter of the law, but not the spirit). Any extreme puts the spirit at odds with the balance of Heaven.
You see this all the time: devout people who are dour because they have closed everyone else off, believing only they are destined for Heaven. When someone is out of balance they are fearful and that fear will evolve into anger.
Which is the opposite of love, and to feel Heaven -- to bring it here -- one has to love in all circumstances. Heaven is love.
And so there it is: just those few things for a taste of what God has designed as the ultimate in goodness:
Eternal happiness, which for all of us can begin today. UNQUOTE

Corpus Christi

Deo Gratias!! Tomorrow is the Feast of Corpus Christi. A great day for church and beauty, high honour to the High King of heaven.

Get Your Freak On

Your happy and clear-headed joyful freak, that is. Here's an excerpt from Rob Brezsny's mind-blowing "Pronoia:How the World is Conspiring to Shower You With Blessings", which was published in The Sun magazine a few years ago. If you haven't seen The Sun, do yourself a favor and check it out; you'll find current commentary written from a stance of progressive wisdom - poetry which is actually good - and much more.
In 2001 Brezsny founded the Beauty and Truth Laboratory, which he describes as “a think tank of sorts,” to balance what he sees as the unrelenting negativity in the news and entertainment media. The Beauty and Truth Laboratory, which
may or may not have offices in Brezsny’s garage, is dedicated to exploring the possibilities of pronoia. Coined by Grateful Dead lyricist John Perry Barlow, pronoia is the opposite of paranoia. A “pronoiac” is someone who believes that the world is conspiring to shower him or her with blessings.

QUOTE At the Beauty and Truth Laboratory, we believe that stories
about the rot are not inherently more captivating than stories
about the splendor. On the contrary, given how predictable
and omnipresent the former have become, they are actually
quite dull. Obsessing on evil is boring. Rousing fear is a hackneyed
shtick. Wallowing in despair is a bad habit. Indulging
in cynicism is akin to committing a copycat crime.
How did it come to be that the news is reported solely by
journalists? There are so many other kinds of events besides
the narrow band favored by that highly specialized brand of
storytellers. Indeed, there are many phenomena that literally
cannot be perceived by journalists. Their training, their
temperament, and their ambitions make vast areas of human
experience invisible to them.
“Ninety-six percent of the cosmos puzzles astronomers,”
read a headline on CNN’s website: proof that at least some of
our culture’s equivalent of high priests — the scientists — are
humble enough to acknowledge that the universe is made up
mostly of stuff they can’t even detect, let alone study.
If only the journalists were equally modest. Since they’re
not, we’ll say it: The majority of everything that happens on
this planet escapes their notice. UNQUOTE

De Chardin On the Divinity of Matter

"By means of all created things, without exception, the divine assails
us, penetrates us, and molds us. We imagined it as distant and
inaccessible,
whereas in fact we live steeped in its burning layers . . . This
palpable world, which we are used to treating with the boredom and disrespect
with which we habitually regard places with no sacred association, is a
holy place."
-Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, *The Divine Milieu*

The Prosecutor's Viewpoint

The author of this article published in Common Dreams
contends that the current administration is legally liable for high crimes committed in defiance of American law, including disregarding our Bill of Rights and shredding our Constitution.
An interesting read; I await the book's publication later this month.

Vincent Bugliosi received his law degree in 1964. In his career at the L.A. County District Attorney’s office, he successfully prosecuted 105 out of 106 felony jury trials, including 21 murder convictions without a single loss. His most famous trial, the Charles Manson case, became the basis of his classic, Helter Skelter, the biggest selling true-crime book in publishing history.

The Prosecution of George W. Bush For Murder is available May 27.

For more information visit www.prosecutionofbush.com

The Psycho Ex-Girlfriend of the Democratic Party

Funny, snarky, and oh so true.

From MadAtoms.
Despite all the math counting her out, Hillary Clinton fervently remains in the race to become the Democratic nominee for president in 2008. She has become the Democratic Party's psycho ex-girlfriend, and she's not going away without a restraining order.

NOTE (Caution: language alert for a few F Bombs)

Company's Coming...

Posts may be a tad bit scarce for a while: we are bustling about expecting our daughter, son-in-law and grandaughter for a visit. Also we're hosting a BBQ Sunday, and some other social buzzings. I will post as able with a houseful of people.

Don't hesitate to comment away: I know people are reading the site but comments are few. Don' be shy!


Deb