By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
After 70 years of state enforced atheism, Russian schools will soon be teaching religion again, crucifixes may once again be hung on the walls of schools and offices, and a building once used for programs aimed at demolishing the family will soon host an important summit addressing the demographic crisis in that country.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
American scientists have successfully created a human heart out of adult stem cells that could one day spare transplant patients a long and uncertain wait for a donor.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
The economy, an entitlement mentality and loss of respect for human life are being blamed for a drop in the U.S. birth rate to 2.01, which is less than the replacement rate of 2.1.
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Jesus:
O Mother dear, didst thou but hear
My plaint of desolation,
Thy tender heart would burst apart
With grief of separation!
I am not stone, yet all alone
I hush My soul's outcrying, --
Alone to tread the wine-press red,
To bear the pain of dying.
My lips are dumb, the night has come;
Ah! Solace I might borrow
Had I but thee to bide with Me
In this wild waste of sorrow.
Mary:
"Gentle moon and start of midnight,
Day's fierce orb, and brooklets fair,
Golden apples born of sunshine,
Precious pearls and jewels rare, --
All things glorious, all things shining,"
Thus the sorrowing Mother spake;
"E'en ye bright, transfigured faces,
Mourn with me for Jesus' sake.
"Sparkle, gleam, and glow no longer:
Only moan and mourn for Him.
Shine not, shine not, weep forever,
Till your thousand eyes are dim;
For the mighty One has fallen,
And my Beautiful is slain;
In the dense wood pierced, my Shepherd, --
Weep ye, weep ye for my pain!
O most oppressed of all oppressed,
Heart of my heart, my all, my Son!
Grief's keenest sword doth pierce my breast:
I die with Thee, my only one!
Alas! The pain is all too great,
Since, living, still I share Thy fate.
"Yes, mine Thou wert to bear and rear
Through life and light, and pain and loss;
And now, ten thousand times more dear,
I yield Thee to the cruel cross!"
Frederick Spee, S. J. (1591-1635) Translated from the German by Mary E. Mannix
For Reflection:
Today I stand at the foot of the Cross with Mary my mother. What pain, sorrow, suffering, trial, contradiction do I yield to the "cruel cross?" How does Mary give me guidance in this surrender?
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
During testimony on behalf of the U.S. bishops before a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing last week, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick addressed the "growing threats to religious liberty" Catholics are currently facing in America as a result of the spread of radical secularism.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
Aid workers are reporting that at least 1,000 mostly Christians civilians were slaughtered this week at the Salesian Saint Therese of the Child Jesus mission in Duekoue, Ivory Coast, by Muslim troops loyal to president Alassane Ouattara, prompting many to ask if the conflict in this country is on the verge of becoming the "next Rwanda."
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
As of yesterday, 41 Senators have stated that they plan to block any spending bill that cuts Planned Parenthood funding, a number large enough to sustain a filibuster.
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"You must open the interior eyes of your soul on this light, on this heaven within you, a vast horizon stretching far beyond the realm of human activity."
St. Vincent Ferrer
For Reflection:
How "open" are my spiritual eyes? What one resolution can I make today to help be more so?
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Commentary by Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
"Never let an Easter go by without sticking a thumb in the eye of Christians" must be a secret adage among the mainstream media, which could explain why
Showtime chose the holy season of Lent to launch "The Borgia's," a 10-part miniseries about a corrupt and licentious pope and his scandal-ridden family.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
A pro-family group in Florida is warning families who plan to visit the Magic Kingdom this summer to avoid going there on the weekend of June 4, which is when approximately 15,000 people will converge on the site to celebrate homosexuality.
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