St. Thomas More - Saint of the Day for June 22

Photo by Loci B. Lenar

Saints and Angels - Excerpt from Catholic Online

Feastday: June 22,

St. Thomas More, Martyr (Patron of Lawyers)

St. Thomas More was born at London in 1478. After a thorough grounding in religion and the classics, he entered Oxford to study law. Upon leaving the university he embarked on a legal career which took him to Parliament. In 1505, he married his beloved Jane Colt who bore him four children, and when she died at a young age, he married a widow, Alice Middleton, to be a mother for his young children. A wit and a reformer, this learned man numbered Bishops and scholars among his friends, and by 1516 wrote his world-famous book "Utopia".

He attracted the attention of Henry VIII who appointed him to a succession of high posts and missions, and finally made him Lord Chancellor in 1529. However, he resigned in 1532, at the height of his career and reputation, when Henry persisted in holding his own opinions regarding marriage and the supremacy of the Pope. The rest of his life was spent in writing mostly in defense of the Church.

In 1534, with his close friend, St. John Fisher, he refused to render allegiance to the King as the Head of the Church of England and was confined to the Tower. Fifteen months later, and nine days after St. John Fisher's execution, he was tried and convicted of treason. He told the court that he could not go against his conscience and wished his judges that "we may yet hereafter in heaven merrily all meet together to everlasting salvation." And on the scaffold, he told the crowd of spectators that he was dying as "the King's good servant-but God's first." He was beheaded on July 6, 1535. His feast day is June 22nd. 

Read More: St. Thomas More

 

Pope Francis calls for Christian Unity during general audience

By Loci B. Lenar

On June 19, 2012, I posted the following commentary on Christian-Miracles.com regarding Christian Unity:

Through prayerful discernment, Our Lord Jesus is calling everyone to pray for Christian unity and healing between religious denominations by reconciling differences. This goal will be accomplished with the power of prayer and through the Holy Spirit.

"Thus the word of the Lord came to me: Son of man, listen to the house of Israel saying, 'The vision he sees is a long way off; he prophesies of the distant future!' Say to them therefore: Thus says the Lord God; None of my words shall be delayed any longer; whatever I speak is final, and it shall be done, says the Lord God."  Ezekiel 12:26-28
 
Additional news regarding this matter was first posted on  Christian-Miracles.com in 2008.  Visit the website to read further details regarding this issue.

News Story from RomeReports.com

June 19, 2013 - With Rome's intense summer heat, Pope Francis made his way to St. Peter's Square, blessing children along the way. He even gave a baseball cap to a child to protect him from the high temperatures.

During his catechesis, Pope Francis described the Church as the Body of Christ.

POPE FRANCIS
“If the head is separated from the body, a person cannot survive. It's the same for the Church. We must always stay intensely connected to Jesus.”

The Pope added that the Church is not an NGO, or a cultural or political institution. He explained that the Church is a living Body, Jesus is the head who nurtures and guides it along the way. He also called for Christian unity.

POPE FRANCIS
“We Catholics should pray together, but we should also pray with other Christians. We must pray so that God may grant us all unity. Unity!

Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he said,  that unity is possible. But to start of, one must first look for unity at home, in one's family and parish.

POPE FRANCIS
“We shouldn't follow the path of division, nor the path of conflicts among us. No! We should all be united. All united despite our differences. Always united. That is the true path of Jesus.”

In light of his call for Christian unity, the Pope said that  very morning, he met with an Evangelical pastor. They both prayed together precisely for Christian unity.

Vatican sources say second miracle approved for John Paul II

The following excerpt is from Gazzetta Del Sud

Vatican City - The process of declaring former pope John Paul II a saint took a major step forward Tuesday, when the board of theologians of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints approved his second miracle. Now, the proclamation of his sainthood needs only the approval of the commission of cardinals and bishops and the final signature of Pope Francis, Vatican sources have told ANSA.    

The first miracle attribute to John Paul was an "inexplicable cure" - the first of two steps on the path to sainthood. The pontiff's successor Pope Benedict XVI, who abdicated earlier this year, sanctioned the beatification after a Vatican commission officially attributed as a miracle the inexplicable recovery of a French nun, Sister Marie Simon-Pierre, from Parkinson's Disease. The Vatican ruled that that came through the intervention of John Paul II. The second miracle that will be attributed to him remains a closely guarded secret but sources say it will "amaze the world". The Catholic Church has been keenly awaiting the canonization of the charismatic John Paul II, one of the most popular popes in history, since he died in 2005 aged 84.

Prayer for Employment

Photo by Loci B. Lenar

Prayer of the Day for Monday, June 17, 2013 - Catholic Online

You govern your creation, O God,
and bring it to perfection by the work of our hands.
Hear the prayers of your people who ask for work
that will enhance their human dignity
and promote the up-building of your kingdom.
Enable them to provide for those confided to their care
either by family ties or by charity we owe to one another
for the betterment of human life.

We ask this blessing in the name of Jesus
who laboured with his own hands while he lived on earth.

Amen.

Happy Father's Day!

Photo by Loci B. Lenar

 

May Our Heavenly Father bless all father's on this special day and guide all family members with the Holy Spirit to build a pillar of faith in their homes for peace and unity.  ~Loci B. Lenar

Father’s Day Prayer - Saint Jude Chapel

God our Father, you govern and protect your people and shepherd them with a father’s love. You place a father in a family as a sign of your love, care, and constant protection. May fathers everywhere be faithful to the example shown in the Scriptures: steadfast in love, forgiving transgressions, sustaining the family, caring for those in need. Give your wisdom to fathers that they may encourage and guide their children. Keep them healthy so they may support a family. Guide every father with the Spirit of your love that they may grow in holiness and draw their family ever closer to you. – Amen

Keys to Receiving God's Blessing

Photo by Loci B. Lenar

By Loci B. Lenar

If you're struggling with finances, put your faith and trust into God's hand. God will bless your finances through tithing and almsgiving. By giving to your church, you are helping to spread the good news of the gospels to the community, especially with helping those who are in need of God's love and mercy.

What does scripture say about giving to God's work? ..."Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it." (Malachi 3:10)

Jesus said, "Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Luke 6:38)

Read More: Keys to God's Blessing