Friday, October 19, 2007

"Pray always without becoming weary"


Emailed FREE to subscribers Oct. 19, 2007

Dear Friends,

"Pray always without becoming weary," St. Luke reminds us this Sunday. You will see the messages of Persistence, Faith and Intercessory Prayer weaving in and out of this week's Readings. Jesus tells the parable of the persistent widow and the dishonest judge, Aaron and Hur raises the hands of the tiring Moses to keep the Israelites victorious in battle and St. Paul tells Timothy to learn, be faithful and have faith. It's also World Mission Sunday.

Just as Aaron and Hur supported the arms of Moses, so must we men - and priests - of today not let down our arms so we can lead our communities and families to God. This is the message delivered by Fr. Phil Bloom's "The Manly Task of Intercession." Fr. James wayne, the Director of Evangelization for the Archdiocese of Pittsburgh strikes an even stronger message with his podcast homily: "Study the Gospel truth. You can not defend what you do not know." Reflect on that awhile specially when he adds this, "Ignorance is the devil's playground."

Th call to faith is reiterated by Fr. Romy Seleccion, our Sunday homily editor, in "PRAYER and FAITH challenge us to become faithful disciples." And we are reminded by Franciscan Fr. Greg Friedman to be like the widow and remain persistent because "God is with us in the struggle" - always.

Speaking of Faith, "Does Doubt Belong to Faith?" If one doubts, is one already on the road toward unbelief? Check out this erudite presentation by Fr. Edward T. Oakes, S.J. And be touched by "Who is real quarterback?" - the story of Mary Favre, wife of star quarterback Brett Favre. Both Catholic, she talks about how their faith was built through her personal life struggles.

October, the month of the Holy Rosary, is in full swing. And last week, we celebrated the 90th anniversary of the Fatima apparitions. And so we thought it best that we bring you in this week's edition the most complete guide to understanding and praying the Holy Rosary. This guide will open your life to the many faces of this most wonderful devotion. Make sure you bookmark this page.

"The Fruits of Fatima: 24 years on - He averted World War 3 and saved millions of lives." Many of us do not know how close we really got to a full blown nuclear war with the Soviet Union in 1983. Read this story. From Nepal, we found this article about how in the only state where Hinduism is the national religion, people there still respect and love the Crucifix. And if you're planning to go to China for the 2008 Olympics, your rosaries and bibles will not be welcome. The government there is talking about banning these religious items for everyone entering the country. As you pray your rosaries this week, please ask the Blessed Virgin Mary to intercede so religious freedom may be a reality for all people everywhere.

We have LIFE STORIES. In "The Hour Of Our Death," we bring you an article that explores the Catholic teaching on who decides. And as the "40 Days for Life" campaign pushes on nationwide, we thought we should share this update report, "The dump truck of Death," from outside an abortion clinic in Sacramento, CA.

In CATHOLIC NEWS, we will hear how 854 million people will go to bed tonight with an empty stomach even though enough food was produced to feed everyone. Aware of this sad reality, Pope Benedict XVI marked World Food Day this week by urging all countries to recognize food as a universal human right. He also continued his piercing diatribe on culture proclaiming, "The hierarchy of values isn't determined by either trends or politicians." And how true he is.
Then we have internet news beginning with "GodTube: The Big Guy Goes Online." I've been telling you all that studies show 2 out of 3 people online use it for religious purposes. Now maybe everyone will see the light. This article explains how it is the fastest growing segment of the online world. And ParishWorld is right in the middle of this mix!

Attention Catholic parish leaders! Here is the most profound piece of advise we have ever found for those ministering to the youth and young adults: “It is important for us not to fall into the trap of defining young adults as the church’s next generation. Rather, young adults are the present generation of Catholics." The truth rings loud and clear in "Googling God" which discusses the religious landscape of people in their 20s and 30s.
More youth stories, we have the list of the "Top 50 U.S. Catholic High Schools of 2007." And “Why am I Catholic?” is a great video we found on youtube. It was prepared for a Confirmation Retreat and it gives six reasons for being Catholic. Check it out. It could give you ideas for your next round of Confirmations.
STORIES OF HOPE. "An angel walked the beat tonight on Highway 109" will move you. We also tell you about the homeless man who is the chess king of Washington. He sleeps on a bench but, during the day at Washington's Dupont Circle, he dazzles beginners and masters alike with his winning moves on the park's stone chessboards.

In LIFESTYLE stories, we have several health-related items starting with the arrival of allergy season and how to avoid the ailment as the weather gets colder. Avoid the sniffles. Read how here. "What to eat and what to avoid to cut cancer risk?" Fill your diet with veggies, fiber, vitamin D and calcium to prevent disease. And a serious health warning to all that a drug-resistant staph is loomming nationwide and deaths from it may surpass the AIDS toll. It is passed on through skin on skin contact. Be careful out there.

Finally, we would like to welcome several new parishes to our ParishWorld family: St. Christopher in West Covina, CA; St. Cyprian in Long Beach, CA; Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Los Nietos, CA and St. Frances Xavier Cabrini in Los Angeles, CA. We look forward to sharing our ministry with the people of your parishes.

Another exciting week in our Catholic world. Have a great and exciting coming new week.

Keep the faith. Peace.

Wally Arida
Publisher & Editor in chief
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