By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
As Catholics around the world celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes and the World Day of the Sick, Pope Benedict XVI said the most profound sickness a person can suffer is the absence of God.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
The former lieutenant governor of New York is warning the public that new health care rules that will adversely affect millions of Americans may have been intentionally hidden in the stimulus plan.
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by Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
After spending his entire career defending the likes of Playboy and Penthouse, fighting child pornography laws and working for unlimited access to abortion, when it came time to face tough questions before the Senate Judiciary Committee, the President’s pick for Deputy Attorney General, David Ogden, suddenly became a changed man.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
Fr. Thomas Euteneuer, president of Human Life International and an exorcist who is authorized to perform exorcisms in several dioceses said there is a definite connection between the abortion industry and demonic influence.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
Even while the Italian senate was debating a new bill that would have saved her from death by starvation and dehydration, 38 year old Eluana Englaro passed away due to unknown causes on the evening of Feb. 9.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
A Pennsylvania Senator who refers to himself as “pro-life” received a stern letter from his bishop after he voted against an amendment that would have reinstated the Mexico City Policy, a law forbidding the use of taxpayer funds for overseas abortions that was overturned by executive order of President Barack Obama.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
The Italian government is racing against the clock to issue emergency legislation that will stop the killing of a 38 year old handicapped woman who is currently being deprived of food and water in a Italian clinic.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
A representative of one of the group’s that will now receive taxpayer money from U.S. citizens to fund overseas abortions has publicly stated that the breakdown of traditional families is not a crisis but a “triumph for human rights.”
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
A landmark study conducted in England finds that the “me first” attitude of adults is causing a variety of problems for children, including family breakdown, education issues, a growing gap between rich and poor, unkindness among teens and increasingly sexualized advertising directed at children.
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I had just gotten to baggage claim after arriving in Orange, CA. I turned on my cell phone to see that a voice message was waiting for me. The name and number said, "Michael Dubruiel." A smile came to my face as Mike has been a long time friend. Editor of two of my books, and acquisitions editor for another, Mike and I have spent many long hours on the phone together. Most recently, Mike was appointed Director of Evangelization for the Diocese of Birmingham.
When I listened to the voice message, however, my smile instantly dissipated. It was Mike's wife's voice I heard, well-known author and blogger, Amy Welborn. I heard what she was saying and yet it couldn't register in my mind. I pressed the button and listened again, and then quickly called her. When I spoke to her in person, Amy confirmed what I feared I had heard: Mike was gone. He collapsed at the gym the morning before. Just barely 50 and with no apparent physical problems.
Amy's blog has it all there for you, including the last article he wrote for publication in the Birmingham diocesan paper. Something worth reading, to be sure. Amy's blog address is
www.amywelborn.wordpress.com.
I have experienced the death of loved ones twice now -- one tragically and unexpectedly, one planned for and anticipated. The surreal experience of it all -- the shock and disbelief, the numbing reality, the misery and sorrow -- are almost impossible to communicate. And yet, for those of us with faith, we know God is present with us, and somehow mysteriously interacting with us in the midst of it all.
I know you will pray for Amy, for the four children left behind, and for the repose of Mike's soul. He would be pleased, I know, if we kept our eyes on Jesus, lived each moment in the grace of the present moment, and did all we could to bring the Faith to others. Mike was/is an evangelizer. He lived it in word and deed. Let us do the same.
May you rest in peace, Mike. And God bless you, Amy and children. We are praying for you.
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