St Gregory of Narek, most beloved Armenian theologian and Doctor if the Church

February 27 marks the feast of  Saint Gregory of Narek and Doctor of the Church,  and  the most beloved and significant theological and literary figure of the Armenian religious tradition.

Gregory was an Armenian mystical and lyrical poet, monk, and theologian. He is venerated as a saint in the Armenian Apostolic and Catholic Churches and was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Francis in 2015.


The son of a bishop, Gregory was educated, ordained, and later stationed at Narekavank on the southern shores of Lake Van, modern Turkey. Scholars consider Gregory the most beloved and significant theological and literary figure of the Armenian religious tradition.

He is best known for his Book of Lamentations, a significant piece of mystical literature which serves as a confessional prayer book in many Armenian religious households. His works have inspired many Armenian literary figures and influenced Armenian literature in general throughout the ages

Saint Gregory was born in a village on the shores of Lake Van  circa 945,  in the Armenian town of Andzevatsik, located in modern-day Turkey. 

After the death of his parents. Gregor and his older brother were raised by a scholarly uncle who had them educated at the Narek monastery in the village of Narek on the south shore of Lake Van, which is also located in modern-day Turkey, and remained a monk there until his death in 1003.  The monastery was a prominent center of learning located in what is now Turkey. Gregory too entered the monastery and was ordained in 977

There are over 10,000 saints recognized by the Roman Catholic Church. However, only a few dozen of them have been named a doctor of the church, an honorific that recognizes the importance of their teaching, scholarship and writings.

A professor of theology, Saint Gregory wrote a mystical interpretation of the Song of Songs,

which is notable for its ample use of earlier Greek commentators on the biblical book, particularly Gregory of Nyssa. Though St. Gregory of Narek is the author of many works, his fame rests upon the Book of Lamentations

also known as the Book of Prayer. He described his poem as “an encyclopedia of prayer for all nations.” This classic of Armenian literature has been translated into 30 languages. The Russian text of the Book of Lamentations was set to music in 1985.

His poetry is deeply biblical and suffused with the images, themes, figures, and events of salvation history, while at the same time being intensely personal. In form, his theology is not an intellectual reflection upon God, but rather a dialogue with God in prayer, “speaking with God from the depths of the heart.” According to Gregory, the goal in life is to reach God, to achieve union with God, insofar as human nature allows, to erase the differences between God and humans. This union cannot take place at the level of the intellect, but only at the level of the heart and feelings through experience of God

St. Gregory of Narek lived and died as a member of Armenian Apostolic Church, making him the only Doctor who was not in communion with the Catholic Church during his lifetime.

To the present day, the Armenian Church preserves a very ancient tradition of Christianity. Armenia was the first nation to adopt Christianity officially,  years before Constantine converted to Christianity and initiated the Christianization of the Roman Empire.

In the aftermath of the Council of Constantinople in 553, however, the Armenian Church severed its ties with the Latin- and Greek-speaking churches over Christological differences, becoming most closely aligned with the Syriac and Coptic Orthodox Churches. As in many Christian traditions prior to modern times, in Armenian Christianity, monasticism was seen as a fundamental expression of the Christian life. Hundreds of vibrant monasteries were founded. Unlike western monasteries, which tended to be isolated from lay persons and political centers, Armenian monasteries were deeply integrated in the ordinary lives of lay Christians, and monks were seen by kings as trusted advisors and confidants. Monasteries were also centers of Christian learning and education. Kings often sent their sons to monasteries to be educated. The chief scholars were known as vardapets, Armenian for “church teachers.” One such vardapet was St. Gregory of Narek.

Cardinal Angelo Amato, the Prefect for the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, pointed to four areas of special distinction in the doctrine of St. Gregory of Narek which contributed to his being named a Doctor of the Church: (1) his realistic appreciation for the gravity of sin, which limits human beings and makes them incapable of speaking with God without the mediation of the incarnate Word; (2) his profound dogmatic reflections on the mystery of the holy Trinity; (3) his defense of the sacraments as efficacious mediations of divine grace in the Church; and (4) his devotion to Mary, particularly in her role as mediator between God and humanity.

In recent years, there has been growing interest in St. Gregory among Roman Catholics. Pope St. John Paul II laid the groundwork for this. He mentioned St. Gregory, with approval, in several speeches, in the 1987 encyclical Redemptoris Mater (Mother of the Redeemer), and in the 2001 Apostolic Letter to the Armenian church. The Armenian saint is also mentioned in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (Art. 2678), where his hymns to Mary are praised. In 1996, John Paul II and Armenian Apostolic Catholicos Karekin I issued a common declaration of faith in Christ, in which they agreed that they believe the same things about Christ, even if they express these things in different language—language which in the past unfortunately led to divisions between Catholics and Armenians in the aftermath of the Second Council of Constantinople in 553. Thus, this statement effectively exonerates St. Gregory of any “Christological” errors: even if St. Gregory was not in communion with the Catholic Church, in doctrinal matters there was complete agreement

The monastery where St. Gregory of Narek lived had remained active until 1915 when it was abandoned. It was destroyed by the Turks in the 1950s, and a mosque was built on its site. By naming St. Gregory of Narek a Doctor of the Church, Pope Francis is not only recommending the writings and exemplary life of a great poet and theologian for our intellectual and spiritual enrichment, but also showing the solidarity of the Roman Catholic Church with the Armenian Church­—a very powerful statement in the face of those who continue to deny the Armenian Genocide

Armenians want Turkey to admit the Genocide, not only because it is the truth, but also because admission is necessary for justice. It would also be the first step for reparations. Armenians suffered tremendous losses of life, property, and cultural heritage. 

Saint Gregory pray for Christian unity as Saint Paul wrote to the Corinthians"

"I urge you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and in the same purpose.

For it has been reported to me about you, my brothers, by Chloe’s people, that there are rivalries among you.

I mean that each of you is saying, “I belong to* Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to Cephas,” or “I belong to Christ.”


Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

I give thanks [to God] that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one can say you were baptized in my name.

(I baptized the household of Stephanas also; beyond that I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.)

 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with the wisdom of human eloquence, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its meaning." 1 Corinthians 1:11

Saint Gregory Narek Prayers

February 26, 2024, Monday of the Second Week in Lent - Selected Reflections

"The only time our Lord asked the apostles for anything was the night He went into agony. Not for activity did he plead but for an hour of companionship." - Venerable Fulton J. Sheen

On the night before he was betrayed,  Jesus went to pray in the Garden of Gethsemane. He took Peter, James, and John.

When he returned, Jesus found the disciples sleeping. He said to Peter, "so you could not keep watch with me for one hour?

It used to be  easy to muse at the choices the disciples made, either because of lack of faith or intelligence, such as when Jesus 

"began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and rise after three days.He spoke this openly. Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.At this he turned around and, looking at his disciples, rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do" - Mark 8:31

 No longer.

One hour of companionship with the Body, Blood, Soul & Divinity of Jesus Christ.

When I keep watch with Christ during Adoration for just one hour, I'm often reminded of how Peter, James, and John repeatedly fell asleep despite his apparent anguish and his requests that they pray with Him.

More Selected Lenten Reflections 

February 23 2024 Friday, First Week of Lent, Selected Lenten Reflections:  Servant of God Julia Greely

February 22 2024 Thursday, First Week of Lent, Selected Lenten Reflections:  Blessed Carlo Acutis Highway to Heaven

February 23, 2024, Friday, First Week of Lent, Selected Lenten Reflections

An Angel with a Little Red Wagon. An illiterate freed slave, who was blinded in one eye as a small child after being grazed by a slave master's whip upon her mother, is one of six American Black Catholics on the road to Sainthood. 

Servant of God Julia Greey was born in Missouri. After being emancipated in 1865, she earned a living working for white families in several states, spending most of her time in Denver, Colorado.

Although Julia herself was poor, and despite the immense suffering in her life, she had a great capacity to both love and forgive.

She entered the Catholic Church at Sacred Heart Parish in Denverin 1880 and received the Eucharist daily. When asked why she continued her fast even after communion, she is quoted as saying "Communion is my breakfast."

She had a deep devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus abd witnessed to the Lord's tender mercy by serving others.  She was known as the Angel of Charity and was often seen around town with a Little Red Wagon carrying food, clothing and firewood to those in need. When necessary, she begged for the items and delivered in secret or after dark so those she helped wouldn't be embarrassed.   - From The Little Black Book Six-minute meditations on the Passion according to Luke.

About The Little Black Book
Six-minute meditations on the Passion according to Luke.

This Lenten booklet is based on the writings of Bishop Ken Untener.
Little Books are produced in Saginaw, Michigan, by editor and writer Erin Looby Carlson
ⁿ

For more on Servant of God Julia Greeley:

February 22 2024 Thursday, First Week of Lent, Selected Lenten Reflections:  Blessed Carlo Acutis Highway to Heaven

Julia Greeley: The journey from slavery to Sainthood

Julia Greeley: The journey from slavery to Sainthood, one of six American Black Catholics on the road to Sainthood including Pierre Toussaint, Mother Mary Lange, Henriette DeLille, Augustus Tolton, and Sr. Thea Bowman.


Julia Greeley, was born into slavery, at Hannibal, Missouri, sometime between 1833 and 1848. While she was still a young child, a cruel slavemaster, in the course of beating her mother, caught Julia’s right eye with his whip and destroyed it. This disfigurement remained with Greeley the rest of her life. She became referred to as "one-eyed Julia."

She did not seek revenge. She did not invoke the known use of t the Code of Hammurabi: a "tooth for a tooth." Rather, as Saint Paul's Letter to the Romans "Beloved, do not look for revenge but leave room for the wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” Rather, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals upon his head.” - Romans 12:19

 1865, Greeley was freed during the American Civil War, though not by the Emancipation Proclamation (as Missouri was a border state and had to enact its own emancipation laws after the fact). Greeley moved to Denver and in 1879 became a cook and nanny to Julia Pratte Dickerson of St. Louis, a widow who would later marry William Gilpin – who had been appointed by President Abraham Lincoln as the first territorial Governor of Colorado.

 Julia Greeley was baptized into the Catholic Church on June 26, 1880, at Sacred Heart Church in Denver, and became especially devoted to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the Holy Eucharist, receiving Holy Communion daily. Despite secretly suffering from painful arthritis, she tirelessly walked the city streets distributing literature from the Sacred Heart League to Catholics and non-Catholics alike. Julia was an outstanding supporter of all that the parish had to offer. The Jesuits who ran the parish considered her the most enthusiastic promoter of devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus they had ever seen. Every month she visited on foot every fire station in Denver and delivered literature of the Sacred Heart League to the firemen, Catholics and non-Catholics alike.

Julia Greeley: one of six American Black Catholics on the road to Sainthood including Pierre Toussaint, Mother Mary Lange, Henriette DeLille, Augustus Tolton, and Sr. Thea Bowman

Despite working long hours taking care of children, cooking and cleaning, she would often be seen walking at night through the streets of Denver pulling a small wagon of food and supplies, which she would deliver to poor families. 

Greeley spent the majority of her time helping others and completing church duties. When the Gilpins died, Greeley began to do labor work for a number of wealthy white families. With this money she made, she decided to give it all away to people who needed it. She pulled a red wagon through the streets of Denver in the dark to bring food, coal, clothing, and groceries to needy families. She made her rounds after dark so as not to embarrass white families ashamed to accept charity from a poor, black woman.

Whatever she did not need for herself, Julia spent assisting poor families in her neighborhood. When her own resources were inadequate, she begged for food, fuel and clothing for the needy. One writer later called her a “one-person St. Vincent de Paul Society.” 

One of her major acts of kindness was when she donated her own burial plot for an African American man who died. He was going to be laid into a pauper's grave, but Greeley refused to let it happen. After this, many people began to call her the "colored angel of charity" because of her kindness. Because of all her dedication to families in poverty, she was officially named "Denver's Angel of Charity



A daily communicant, Julia had a rich devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and the Blessed Virgin and continued her prayers while working and moving about. She joined the Secular Franciscan Order in 1901 and was active in it till her death in 1918.

As she lived in a boarding house, Julia’s body was laid out in church, and immediately many hundreds of people began filing pass her coffin to pay their grateful respect. She was buried in Mt. Olivet Cemetery (sect. 8, Block 7), and to the present day many people have been asking that her cause be considered for canonization, a request which was finally granted in the Fall of 2016. Denver Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila formally opened the sainthood cause of Julia Greeley, qduring a Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in downtown Denver in late December 2016.

As part of the Cause for Canonization, Julia’s mortal remain were transferred to Denver’s Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception on June 7, 2017

February 22, 2024, Thursday of the First Week in Lent Blessed Carlo Acutis Highway to Heaven: Selected Lenten Reflections From The Little Black Book:

Blessed Carlo Acutis, an Italian teen who wore a track suit and tennis shoes, who enjoyed playing soccer and loved going to Mass, is on the path to Sainthood.






Blessed Carlo Acutis inspired those around him, including his own mother. He had a deep faith, generous heart, and was known for going out of his way to help those in need. He came to the rescue of kids being picked on, bought sleeping bags for the homeless and used his computer knowledge to share his deep love for the Eucharist.

The gifted computer programmer created a website documenting Eucharistic miracles around the globe. He went to daily Mass and made a Holy Hour in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament as often as possible. He called the Eucharist his "Highway to Heaven." On his website he wrote: "The more often we receive the Eucharist, the more we will become like Jesus, so that on earth we will have a foretaste of heaven.

In 2006, the teen who impacted the faith of many through the witness of his life died at the age of 15, just weeks after being diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia. He offered his suffering for Pope Benedict XVI and for the Catholic Church.


On this day on 2020, Pope Francis announced that a miracle attributed to the intercession of Blessed Carlo Acutis had been approved. This cleared the way for his beatification on October 10, 2020- From The Little Black Book Six-minute meditations on the Passion according to Luke.


About The Little Black Book
Six-minute meditations on the Passion according to Luke.

This Lenten booklet is based on the writings of Bishop Ken Untener.
Little Books are produced in Saginaw, Michigan, by editor and writer Erin Looby Carlson

More on Blessed Carlo Acutis

Carlo's witness of faith led to a deep conversion in his mom, because, according to the priest promoting his cause for sainthood, he “managed to drag his relatives, his parents to Mass every day.
Carlo is set to be the first millennial saint and is already known as the "patron saint of the internet"


Reportedly Carlo's last words:
"To be always united with Jesus, this is my plan of life. living with Jesus, for Jesus, in Jesus. I am happy to die because I lived my life without wasting even a minute of it on anything unpleasing to God”.

Children On Psychiatric Drugs Hoax

The #NewYorkTimes'
@MattRichtel and the Legacy media
just "found" a new study: "More Young People Are on Multiple Psychiatric Drugs, Study Finds" - which illustrates both Occam's Razor and the ancient proverb: follow the science, not the so-called scientists, Propagandists or corruptpoliticians.




As far back as 2018, even the NIH needed to be "elucidated" about ADHD drug overprescription:
"Indeed, evidence from several countries shows that there has been an increase, over the last decades, in the prescription rate of ADHD medications.[13–16] However, to what extent the increase in prescription rates can be considered an “overprescribing phenomenon” remains to be elucidated"

In 2014, a study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry (one of the largest long-term analysis of preschoolers with ADHD) concluded that there may be little benefit in drug therapy for young children with ADHD.


Yet, in 2010 Sir Ken Robinson was telling us about the mental health drug hoax:

 

We also know that since. Doctor Martin Luther King Jr was an obstacle to progressive policies, he had to be canceled.

 
MLK Jr. death cleared the way for the uber progressive Warren Court's Decision: the Court found that teaching children about wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, fear of the Lord., charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control and chastity was too radical, all hell broke lose.


Using analysis tools like the Ishikawa Cause-Effect Diagram, the Pareto Rule, Security Professionals' Attack Tree and or Occam's Razor, they all suggest that after the uber progressive Warren SCOTUS (1963) decision, we have had
[ ] A mental health crisis
[ ] Infanticide turned into #BlackGenocide
[ ] African American nuclear family has joined the Sea Turtles in the extinct list - compare to 2% divorce rate for couples using NFP
[ ] [80% of AA kids are raised in fatherless homes
[ ] Replaced faith-based Gleaning with SNAP
[ ] [AIDS epidemic
[ ] Opiod crisis
[ ] We have a fatherlesssness crisis
[ ] A Girlhood Crisis
[ ] A Trans Crisis.
[ ] Obesity crisis

The Recycle Hoax and Global Warming Hypocrisy

NPR's Michael Copley reports on the Recycle Hoax - "recycling cannot go on indefinitely, and does not solve the solid waste problem.




"Consumers sort their trash so plastic packaging can be repurposed, and local governments use taxpayer money to gather and process the material. Yet from the early days of recycling, plastic makers, including oil and gas companies, knew that it wasn't a viable solution to deal with increasing amounts of waste."

The plastic inndstry, not unlike others, has worked for decades to convince policymakers (aka corrupt politicians) that recycling would keep waste out of landfills and the environment.

Copley doesn't report that the New York Times and Legacy Media fawned over Taylor Swift recently having "to travel across the globe and through time, to make the Superbowl," as NYT's Benjamin Hoffman, reported. Exacerbating climate warming. Her critics called her hypocritical for that. Yet, I can assure you her critics are as hypocritical.

The plastics industry is like any other industry, like: The fashion industry. The fashion industry produces Up to 100 billion garments every year. And each year, as much as 92 million tons of clothing ends up in landfills. Only 20% of textiles are collected for reuse or recycling globally. Almost 60% of all clothing material is actually plastic.

Puppy Mills

The global pet care market size was estimated at USD 150.67 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach USD 159.10 billion in 2022.

Approximately 2.15 million puppies are sold that originated from puppy mills every year.

Approximately 2,000 “dog breeding facilities” are granted official operations licenses by the USDA. 

There are an estimated 10,000 puppy mills in America.

Only around 30% of pets in the U.S. come from rescue facilities.

Up to 25% of the dogs in shelters are purebred, often resulting from the busts of puppy mills.

About 20% of puppies purchased from pet stores (a large driver of puppy mill usage) end up being surrendered to a shelter.

About 1.2 million dogs are euthanized in shelters every year, many because puppy mills flood the market.

The minimum legal size of a puppy mill cage is only six inches larger than the dog.

The electric vehicles - Heritage Foundation research explains that the carbon dioxide emitted while manufacturing a Nissan Leaf battery is “equivalent to driving a gasoline-powered BMW 320d for 24,000 miles.” For a larger Tesla Model S battery, carbon dioxide emissions are “equivalent to driving the BMW 320d for 60,000 miles.”

The fast food and restaurant industry: The restaurant industry is far from being good for the environment. Restaurants generate enormous quantities of food waste, plastic waste, and emissions while simultaneously consuming huge quantities of water and energy (Kasim & Ismail, 2012

The consumer industry: Americans spend over $1.3 billion on greeting cards in the digital age, while for Ventines Day Americans spent over 1.4 billion U.S. dollars on chocolate candy

Over $2 billion worth of pumpkins purchased for Halloween endup in landfills instead of the stomach of hungry kids. Thirteen million hungry kids just in America alone are hungry, 700 million world with1
Over $3 billion worth of Christmas trees, not counting decorations, end up in landfills

Whole mountains are being leveled in the name of progress.

The facts speak for themselves: we live in a disposable society with the flawed notion that the planet has united resources:
Hence it's easy to accept the idea of infinite or unlimited growth, which proves so attractive to economists, financiers, corrupt politicians, Propagandists and experts in technology

We can debate the science, although in California and in Social Media platforms like @LinkedIn, it is verboten


Pope Francis Laudate Deum is Spot on. 29. The ethical decadence of real power is disguised thanks to marketing and false information, useful tools in the hands of those with greater resources to employ them to shape public opinion.

"Artificial intelligence and the latest technological innovations start with the notion of a human being with no limits, whose abilities and possibilities can be infinitely expanded thanks to technology. In this way, the technocratic paradigm monstrously feeds upon itself." Laudate Deum

Consider the recent report that 
"Scientists Resort to Once-Unthinkable Solutions to Cool the Planet - Three geoengineering projects seek to alter the chemistry of the atmosphere and the ocean. Critics warn of unintended consequences," with good reason.  Not a single invention has been void of unintended consequences, despite what social media, legacy media or the establishment may claim, including the recent COVID Vaccine. Yet, the New York Times and the Legacy Media fawned over Tailor Swift doing the unthinkable to warm up the planet, while nillionaire brothers took millions out of their gas station chain so they could repay debt on their private jets. The good news, according to the Palestinian Wasp, Taylor Swift's fans, including the New York Times and Legacy Media, should not worry about her finances or her contribution to global warming.

But the New York Times was not alone. While we take a Cursory review of media coverage praising Swift for her contribution to global warming: HindustanTimes' @AditiSrivastava reports:"Chiefs fans sing Taylor Swift's Love Story as she spans time zones for Super Bowl arrival"

New York Times's Benjamin Hoffman, reports:  Taylor Swift had to travel across the globe and through time, to make the Superbowl. Swift and Gates made it to Day's rendition of the Black National Anthem

The New Yotk Time's Santul Nektar  @SantulNerkar used a different lens with similar results. Nektar reported the "Cetaphil's ad showed a father and daughter connecting over football and Taylor Swift, a nod to how the music superstar’s relationship with Travis Kelce was said to have gotten more fathers and daughters watching NFL games together this season. But a social media influencer said the idea was stolen from her". 

Jake Fenner over at  the Dailymail.Com took on the Black National Anthem prism:
Super Bowl fans are left split by Andra Day's performance of the 'Black National Anthem' ahead of the game... as Megyn Kelly says song 'doesn't belong' in pre-game proceedings.

What no one reported is that

Every year, about 1,5000 private jets fly to and from airports for meetings at the WEF or #SuperBowl appearances. Each jet emits 2 tons of CO2

The yearly carbon footprint: US average: 16 tons of CO2.

Bill Gates: 7,500 tons of CO2.

John Kerry: 2,000 tons of CO2.

Taylor Swift: 8,205 tons of CO2


Then there's the Climate Change Billionaires Bliss:

In Singapore, they call it "nudging" consumers to do what the state wants, which is increase use of public transportation, a government official explains, then cracks a big laugh, as he is behind the wheel of a Mercedes.


Recall Gavin, billionaires & corrupt politicians tell us to eat insects, turn off gas appliances, nudge us to stop using gasoline cars (make it imposdible to afford filling up) & instead switch to EVs - while they use private jets, eat scrumptious dinners and so on - that's nothing.

According to a 2022 Oxfam report, 125 of the world's richest billionaires each emit over a million times more carbon than the average person in the bottom 90%, and a solid 50-70% of billionaires' emissions are thought to result from their investment

Or as we like to say, leave it to corrupt politicians,  Propagandists and Influencers

forget about God - it's about Mammom. Forget about America, is about Mammon. Forget About Global Warming -  its about Mammon.

And we all are hypocritical.

RELATED

The Qanat System puts California Politicians to shame.

Around 3,000 years ago, way before the Conquistadors sat foot on America, the Qanat System was developed as a sophisticated method of transporting water over long distances. These underground aqueducts were crucial for sustaining agriculture and settlements in hot, arid climates.

The Qanat system involved digging tunnels by hand, often extending for many miles, with vertical shafts or wells dug at intervals to provide ventilation and access for the workers. These shafts supplied oxygen and allowed workers to reach the underground tunnels, making the construction of these vital water channels possible. The Qanat system remains a remarkable example of ancient engineering and ingenuity in water management.

Sadly California Politicians never learned: The Qnat System is in Iran, not California

Feast Day of Saint Joselito, Teenage martyr for the faith and Patron saint of children and teenagers

February 10 is the Feast Day of Saint of José Sánchez del Río, aka Joselito.
Teenage martyr for the faith and Patron saint of children and teenagers.

St. José Sánchez del Río was a Mexican Cristero (“soldier for Christ”) who was martyred for refusing to renounce his Catholic faith.

2000 years ago Gamaliel the Elder, or Rabban Gamaliel I, a leading authority in the Sanhedrin in the early first century CE, a man held in great esteem by all Jews and as the Jewish law teacher of Paul the Apostle, Gamaliel encouraged his fellow Pharisees to show leniency to the apostles of Jesus Christ- Acts 5:34. He explaind why the Sanhedrin shouldn't kill Jesus' twelve apostles. He points out what happens to religious and or political movements that are not in God's will: once the leaders are gone, the movements disappear: "Acts 5:39 But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them; you may even find yourselves fighting against God.” They were persuaded by him. 40 After recalling the apostles, they had them flogged, ordered them to stop speaking in the name of Jesus, and dismissed them."

150 years later, Tertulian had a similar message:  “We spring up in greater numbers the more we are mown down by you: the blood of the Christians is the seed of a new life," yet AntiChristian governments such as the Mexican government that persecuted Catholics during the Cristero War

and or authoritative governments, 

refuse to pay heed.

Simon Sinek argues his Golden Circle explains why some leaders are able to inspire, while others aren’t.  Likewise, the Golden Circle of Hate explains why some leaders are able to promote hate.

Saint José was a young boy who stood up for people to be able to love God and the Church freely in Mexico. He wanted to be a soldier, but was too young to fight; instead, he was allowed to carry the flag.

Joselito, as he was also known, was martyred at just 14 years old during the Cristero War, an armed resistance to the Mexican government's persecution of the Catholic Church between 1926 and 1929. Captured by government forces, Joselito was offered his freedom if he denied the faith.

As José was forced to walk through town, he recited the rosary, prayed for his enemies, sang songs to Our Lady of Guadalupe, and proclaimed, “I will never give in. Long Live Christ the King!"

Long live the Virgin of Guadalupe!" In the midst of the torture, the chief captain of the escort asked him, not out of compassion, but out of cruelty, what he would like his parents to hear as his last words. Jose replied: "We will see each other in heaven. Long live Christ the King!

The miracle needed for his canonization attributed to José Luis Sánchez del Río the inexplicable recovery of a baby in Mexico who doctors said had "no hope of survival", 2008–2009. 

The Cristero War erupted in 1926 after the Mexican government began enforcing anti-clerical laws written into the Mexican Constitution. President Plutarco Elias Calles, who took office in 1924, violently targeted the Church, seizing church

As the war on children and the unborn continues, Saint Joselito, pray for us and a national conversion

St Scholastica, foundress of the Benedictine nuns & Twin Sister of St. Benedict

February 10 marks the feast of Saint Scholastica, (480 – 10 February 543)
an Italian Christian hermit the sister of Benedict of Nursia and the foundress of the Benedictine nuns. She is the patron saint of Benedictine nuns, education, convulsive children, and right relationships.

“Either speak of God or keep silence, for, what in this world is so worthy of speech?” - Saint Scholastica

Xx

Saint Scholastica illustrates the old proverb, Man proposes, God disposes.
According to the late-6th-century Dialogues of Pope Gregory the Great, Scholastica was born c. 480 in Nursia, Umbria, of wealthy parents (Anicius Eupropius and his wife Claudia Abondantia Reguardati). Scholastica and Benedict were brought up together until he left central Italy for Rome to continue his studies. St. Scholastica consecrated her life to God from her earliest youth. After her brother went to Monte Cassino, where he established his famous monastery, she went to Plombariola, where she founded and governed a monastery of nuns, about five miles from that of St. Benedict.

The twins visited each other once a year in a farmhouse because Scholastica was not permitted inside the monastery. They spent these times discussing spiritual matters. According to the Dialogues of St. Gregory the Great, the brother and sister spent their last day together in prayer and conversation. Scholastica sensed her death was close at hand and she begged Benedict to stay with her until the next day.

He refused her request because he did not want to spend a night outside the monastery, thus breaking his own Rule. Scholastica asked God to let her brother remain and a severe thunderstorm broke out, preventing Benedict and his monks from returning to the abbey.

Benedict cried out, “God forgive you, Sister. What have you done?” Scholastica replied, “I asked a favor of you and you refused. I asked it of God and he granted it.”

Brother and sister parted the next morning after their long discussion. Three days later, Benedict was praying in his monastery and saw the soul of his sister rising heavenward in the form of a white dove. Benedict then announced the death of his sister to the monks and later buried her in the tomb he had prepared for himself.

Prayers to Saint Scholastica

Saint Scholastica, God granted your request because of your great love. I ask now that you turn to God with my request out of your great love for Him and your great love for me.


Love is patient (1 Cor. 13:4). Through God’s grace, help me, St. Scholastica, to grow in love by becoming more patient.

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails (1 Cor. 13:7-8). St. Scholastica, you were a great witness to this truth. Help me to believe it more fully and to live it out each day.

Amen.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

California needs Saint Josephine Bahkita

February 8th marks the feast day of Saint  Josephine Bahkita, patron Saint of Human Trafficking. And California needs Saint Josephine: it's not Systemic racism.  It's Systemic Humanism.

Prayer for the Intercession of St. Josephine Bakhita

• Asks for her help in freeing those who are enslaved
• Asks for her help in providing relief to survivors of slavery
• Asks for her help in providing healing for survivors of slavery

Consider that California is No.1 in Child Trafficking. 2.  California is No.1 in fentanyl consumption and 3. California is No.1 in Homelessness Where “homeless” is misleading. The vast majority of those on the streets are there due to severe drug addiction and/or mental illness. The issue not that they got a little behind in their mortgage payments and would be back on their feet if someone just offered them a job

Saint Josephine is an illustration of the Transitive Property of Hate  a shining ray of hope for human trafficking victims and an inspirational demonstration of how a victim can recover from their trauma and become whole again.

Josephine Bakhita was a Sudanese-born slave who became a Roman Catholic Canossian nun in Italy, living and working there for 45 years. In 2000, she was declared a saint by the Roman Catholic Church

Bakhita was born in Olgossa in the Darfur region of southern Sudan - Darfur, (Arabic: “Land of the Fur”) historical region of the Billād al-Sūdān (Arabic: “Land of the Blacks”), roughly corresponding to the westernmost portion of present-day Sudan.

When she was 7–8 years old, she was seized by Arab slave traders, who had abducted her elder sister two years earlier. She was forced to walk barefoot about 600 mi to El-Obeid and was sold and bought twice before she arrived there. Over the course of twelve years  she was sold three more times.

In El-Obeid, Bakhita was bought by a rich Arab who used her as a maid for his two daughters. They treated her relatively well, until after offending one of her owner's sons, the son lashed and kicked her so severely that she spent more than a month unable to move from her straw bed. Her fourth owner was a Turkish general. She had to serve his mother-in-law and his wife, who were cruel to their slaves. Bakhita says: "During all the years I stayed in that house, I do not recall a day that passed by without some wound or other. When a wound from the whip began to heal, other blows would pour down on me.

In 1883 she was sold to Callisto Legnani, Italian consul in Khartoum, Sudan. Two years later Legnani took Josephine to Italy and gave her to his friend Augusto Michieli. Bakhita became babysitter to Mimmina Michieli, whom she accompanied to Venice’s Institute of the Catechumens, run by the Canossian Sisters. While Mimmina was being instructed, Josephine felt drawn to the Catholic Church. She was baptized and confirmed in 1890, taking the name Josephine.

When the Michielis returned from Africa and wanted to take Mimmina and Josephine back with them, the future saint refused to go. During the ensuing court case, the Canossian Sisters and the patriarch of Venice intervened on Josephine’s behalf. The judge concluded that since slavery was illegal in Italy, she had actually been free since 1885.

Prayer for the Intercession of St. Josephine Bakhita

• Asks for her help in freeing those who are enslaved
• Asks for her help in providing relief to survivors of slavery
• Asks for her help in providing healing for survivors of slavery

St. Paul Miki & companions. martyred during Christian Persecution in Japan

February 6th is the Memorial of St Paul Miki and Companions victims of the Japanese Christian Persecution- Not unlike what we are seeing today.- They were the first martyrs of Japan.

While Nagasaki, Japan, is familiar to Americans as the city on which the second atomic bomb was dropped, immediately killing over 37,000 people.

But three and a half centuries before, 26 martyrs of Japan were crucified on a hill, now known as the Holy Mountain, overlooking Nagasaki

In the 1540s, St. Francis Xavier introduced Christianity to people in Japan. A generation later, Paul Miki was born and raised in the faith, one of the first fruits of the seeds planted by the great Jesuit missionary.

By the 1580s, there were more than 200,000 converts to Christianity in Japan, and the Japanese emperor felt threatened by the new religion. He banished Catholics in 1587, but the Jesuits who continued to serve the faithful there went into hiding and worked in secret.

Paul was born the son of a Japanese military leader and educated by these Jesuits. He wanted to become a priest and began studies. Just before his ordination, the emperor began violently persecuting Christians. Despite this, Paul decided to continue his ministry and was known for his eloquent and intelligent preaching.

Under this persecution, Paul and 25 other men and boys—Jesuits, Franciscans, and lay people—were arrested and condemned to execution. They were forcibly marched 600 miles throughout Japan so as to be an example to other people. Villagers abused them as they passed by, but the Christians sang the Te Deum, an early Christian hymn of praise.

By the time the group entered Kyoto, their ears had been severed and blood streamed down their necks. The sight of these suffering Christians inspired sadness and compassion among the witnesses, many of whom were moved to become Christians themselves. The Christians were then taken to a hill near Nagasaki and tied to crosses. Executioners killed the martyrs by stabbing them in the stomachs with swords.

As he was awaiting death, Paul said, “The only reason for my being killed is that I have taught the doctrine of Christ. I thank God it is for this reason that I die. I believe that I am telling the truth before I die. I know you believe me and I want to say to you all once again: Ask Christ to help you become happy. I obey Christ. After Christ's example, I forgive my persecutors. I do not hate them. I ask God to have pity on all, and I hope my blood will fall on my fellow men as a fruitful rain.”

St. Paul Miki and his companions were the first martyrs of Japan, and their example sustained the Christian community there with courage, even as it survived underground for 300 years.

When missionaries returned to Japan in the 1860s, at first they found no trace of Christianity. But after establishing themselves they found that thousands of Christians lived around Nagasaki and that they had secretly preserved the faith. Beatified in 1627, the martyrs of Japan were finally canonized in 1862.

St. Paul Miki and Companions, martyrs whose example encouraged Christians in Japan—pray for us!

The Power of Women Can Be Harnessed For Good or Evil. Kamala Harris and Joe Biden prefer evil.

Women Have The Power To Make Choices: The choices we make today, determine who we become on the future:  That power can be used for good or evil:

“You who claimed to be my judges. you'll be careful. one day we'll be judged.” — Joan of Arc.

The Good:
The Jesus Movement spread rapidly throughout the Roman Empire due in part to the initiative of female apostles, prophets, evangelists, missionaries, heads of house churches and widows and financial support from Christian businesswomen such as Mary of Magdala l   Joanna, Lydia, Phoebe , Olympias, and others.  Pope Benedict XVI acknowledged as much on February 14, 2007, when he said, “without the generous contribution of many women, the history of Christianity would have developed very differently.” The “female presence in the sphere of the primitive Church,” he also noted, was in no way “secondary”.

The Ugly

Joan of Arc rose from the illiterate daughter of a peasant to the head of a French army. Avirginal teenage warrior in white armor, a Catholic saint and martyr, and the woman who fought the odds and medieval gender roles only to be betrayed by the man she helped.  The English executioner, later said he had sinned gravely.and repented for executing "a saintly woman."   Nearly 20 years after Joan's execution, King Charles VII ordered an investigation into Joan's trial that helped clear her name. Other investigations followed, including one Pope Calixtus III held in 1455 — a retrial that completely exonerated Joan of the earlier charges of heresy and witchcraft. Joan's fame continued to grow, and in 1920, Pope Benedict XV canonized her as a Catholic saint.

Read More: 

The Evil

On the other side of the spectrum is
Kamala Harris as illustrated in her tweet: "The power a woman has to make decisions about her own body is directly connected to her power to make decisions about her future."  is meaningless.  The following statement "This week I met with health care providers to talk through how we protect reproductive rights for women in America " is not only oxymoronic, but is evil.  The statement is euphemism for infanticide aka  #BlackGenocide, the disintegration of the African-American nuclear family and a host of other social ills.

Is it any wonder Joe Biden, Joe, aka #JoeOfScranton, aka diábolos(Greek #διάβολος,)  Kamala Harris aka #Gomer (Hebrew: גומר,) the #DNC  and the qBiden Administration are collectively referred to as the #AntiChrist?

Whoopi Goldberg speaking for progressives in the USA says women need to get rid of the Toxic Thing inside them. However, just like Hamas, the Islamic IndustrialComplex and  its ecosystem the Toxicity is in the heart, not in the womb. A hateful heart generates hateful thoughts. Such thoughts become acts of terrorism. Or if you prefer, Ben Sirach states [4] When a sieve is shaken, the refuse remains; so a man's filth remains in his thoughts.

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 2270) "Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception. From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person - among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life. 72

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you. 73

My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately wrought in the depths of the earth. 74

(CCC 2271) " Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law:

You shall not kill the embryo by abortion and shall not cause the newborn to perish". 75


YET, Democrats continue to enable #BlackGenocide

Sixty years ago,  The Great March on Washington, organized by A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin with an alliance of civil rights, labor, annd religious organizations  came together under the banner of jobs and freedom and was held in Washington, D.C., on August 28, 1963.

At the march, final speaker Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial, delivered his historic " I Have A Dream" speech in which he called for an end to racism and racial segregation


Five years later, MLK Jr. was assassinated, turning his dream into a nightmare:  racism has morphed into DEI, the #AbortionIndustrialComplex  has enabled the Black Genocide, the disintegration of the African-American nuclear family and  a fatherlesssness crisis.  NYT's Katie Rogers "reports" the Biden Administration continues to sharpens its Abortion Message, which is nothing less than  AntiChristian and pure evil and Biden's Administration is being referred to as an Anti-Christ 

David Brooks is Dead Wrong about the Nuclear Family

"The nuclear family is the stone progressives rejected and water is still wet."

David Brooks argument in the Atlantic that "THE NUCLEAR FAMILY WAS A MISTAKE - The family structure we’ve held up as the cultural ideal for the past half century has been a catastrophe for many. It’s time to figure out better ways to live together." Is like arguing that because water has been wet for half a century, it  has been a catastrophe and we must change it.!

The nuclear family is not a contrived progressive construct. It's God's creation, from the beginning! The Catholic Catechism (2207) teaches "The family is the original cell of social life. It is the natural society in which husband and wife are called to give themselves in love and in the gift of life. Authority, stability, and a life of relationships within the family constitute the foundations for freedom, security, and fraternity within society. The family is the community in which, from childhood, one can learn moral values, begin to honor God, and make good use of freedom. Family life is an initiation into life in society."

Consistent with Jeremy Rifkin's the Emphatic Civilisation where he charts the evolution of human consciousness from the rise of mythological consciousness in primitive tribal societies, to theological or faith-based con- sciousness in the agrarian Dark Ages, and deological consciousness" introduced by the Age of Reason.

Consider the effects of the Black Genocide, including the fact that the African American nuclear family has joined the Sea Turtles in the endangered list and the social ills due to fatherlessness: – 71% of high school dropouts are fatherless; fatherless children have more trouble academically, scoring poorly on tests of reading, mathematics, and thinking skills; children from father-absent homes are more likely to be truant from school, more likely to be excluded from school, more likely to leave school at age 16, and less likely to attain academic and professional qualifications in adulthood


Do you know that in Google books, you can hardly find references related to nuclear family, racism gun violence, peer pressure, abortion, homelessness, mental health, fatherlessness, obesity and so on, prior to 1960? But then (1963) after an uber progressive Warren SCOTUS decided that teaching children about wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, fear of the Lord., charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control and chastity was too radical, all hell broke lose.

Using analysis tools like the Ishikawa Cause-Effect Diagram, the Pareto Rule, Security Professionals' Attack Tree and or Occam's Razor, they all suggest that after the uber progressive Warren SCOTUS (1963) decision, we have had
[ ] A mental health crisis
[ ] Infanticide turned into #BlackGenocide
[ ] African American nuclear family has joined the Sea Turtles in the extinct list - compare to 2% divorce rate for couples using NFP
[ ] [80% of AA kids are raised in fatherless homes
[ ] Replaced faith-based Gleaning with SNAP
[ ] [AIDS epidemic
[ ] Opiod crisis
[ ] We have a fatherlesssness crisis
[ ] A Girlhood Crisis
[ ] A Trans Crisis.
[ ] Obesity crisis


What David Brooks is about feelings.  About libertinage.  If it feels good, do it.

Gender identity is not a feeling, for example: Gender identity is not a feeling.  "God created man in his own image . . . male and female he created them"; He blessed them and said, "Be fruitful and multiply"; "When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God. Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them Man when they were created." Catholic Catechism  2331

Granted, there are various worldviews:

[  ] Hindu sees the human person as a soul trapped in a body

[  ] The Buddhist sees the person as neither a body nor a soul

[  ] The atheist views the person as a body without a soul.

While We’re each free to believe whatever we want to believe, Sacred Scriptures say life is short, death is real, Hell is hot, eternity is long, and Jesus saves!

The Christian view is that humans are bodies and souls, created in the image and likeness of God. Every human being has a unique and rational soul that animates his human body, whether in the womb or a jail cell


[  ] Everyone made in God's image
[  ] Everyone is broken
[  ] Everyone is created for love
[  ] Everyone has desires that are not good.  We are all broke
[  ] Those who identify as gay or trans, have dignity 
[  ] Those who experience same-sex attraction are worthwhile
[  ] Those who are grappling with their Sexuality as part of the family, that is, part of the human family, and if they are Christian, they are part of the family of God
[  ] If you are same-sex attracted person, you belong to the Catholic Church.



The nuclear family is the stone progressives rejected and water is still wet.

Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God- The Octave Day of Christmas

The Solemnity of Mary, is a feast day of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, Jesus Christ, whom she had circumcised on the eighth day after his birth according to Levitical Law.

 

An Octave, derived from Latin octava is eight. In Christianity, it is the eighth day after a feast. It is also the whole period of these eight days, during which certain major feasts are observed

The octave of Christmas is celebrated as an eight-day feast which begins on the Nativity, Dec. 25, and continues to January 1. According to Jewish law, circumcision is the physical representation of the covenant between God and Abraham described in the Old Testament and is required for the inclusion of males in the Jewish faith. Newborn boys are circumcised in a traditional ceremony on the 8th day after birth:

March 25, nine months before Christmas, is the date that is often associated with the Annunciation to Mary, Gabriel’s announcement to Mary that, by the coming of the Spirit upon her, she would conceive and bear the heir to David’s throne, whose kingdom would have no end. Annunciation:

[  ] Through the disobedience of Adam sin enters the world. Rom. 5:12
[  ] The Father sends His Son to save the world. Jn. 3:17
[  ] The Angel Gabriel is sent to a virgin named Mary. Lk. 1:26,27
[  ] The Angel tells Mary: “You are to have a Son and will name Him Jesus.” Lk. 1:31
[  ] He is the Son of God. Lk. 1:32
Mary consents: “Let it be done to me.” Lk. 1:38
[  ] God the Son becomes Man, in obedience to His Father. Lk. 1:35
[  ] By His obedience many shall be saved. Rom. 5:19
[  ] Mary becomes Mother of God. Lk. 1:35
[  ] Nothing is impossible with God. Lk. 1:37

Nativity- December 25

[  ] In Bethlehem will be born He Who is to rule my people. Micah 5:2

[  ] Joseph and Mary leave Nazareth to register in Bethlehem. Lk. 2:4

[  ] There, Mary gives birth to the Son of God. Lk. 2:7

[  ] Mary lays Him in a manger, because there is no room for Him in the inn. Lk. 2:7

[  ] Angels announce to shepherds nearby: “The Savior is born.” Lk. 2:10,11

[  ] Angels sing: “Peace to men of good will.” Lk. 2:14

Presentation of the Lord

[  ] When the Child Jesus is eight days old, He is circumcised. Lk. 2:21

[  ] And his parents name Him Jesus. Lk. 2:21

[  ] The name of Jesus is the only name by which we can be saved. Acts 4:12

[  ] “Ask the Father anything in My Name. He will give it to you.” Jn. 16:23

[  ] Lord, You are good and forgiving to all who call upon Your Name. Ps. 86:5

[  ] Joseph and Mary take Jesus to Jerusalem to present Him to God. Lk. 2:22

[  ] Simeon, a holy man, foretells: “This Child is destined for the fall and rise of many.” Lk. 2:34

[  ] “Your own soul a sword shall pierce.” Lk. 2:35

[  ] Joseph and Mary take Jesus to their hometown of Nazareth. Lk. 2:39

[  ] Whatever you do, do all in the Name of Jesus. Col. 3:17

While Catholic theology emphasizes that God's covenant with the Jewish people remains valid: according to an epistle of Cyprian of Carthage, circumcision of the flesh was replaced by circumcision of the spirit, Saint Paul argues true circumcision is not physical but spiritual: "For, as it is written, “Because of you the name of God is reviled among the Gentiles.” Circumcision, to be sure, has value if you observe the law; but if you break the law, your circumcision has become uncircumcision. Again, if an uncircumcised man keeps the precepts of the law, will he not be considered circumcised? Indeed, those who are physically uncircumcised but carry out the law will pass judgment on you, with your written law and circumcision, who break the law. One is not a Jew outwardly. True circumcision is not outward, in the flesh. Rather, one is a Jew inwardly, and circumcision is of the heart, in the spirit, not the letter; his praise is not from human beings but from God" Romans chapter 2:24-29

Ways to honor the Blessed Virgin Mary in this feast day:

 Pray the Rosary, Pray the Divine Office (3-5 times during the day, Spend Time in Reflection,  Visit a Marian Shrine. Attend a Mass.