Another extremely dangerous health-food fad known as the soy sauce cleanse has left a woman brain dead.
Pope Francis has announced the advancement of the sainthood causes of 17 women, including that of Blessed Marguerite Bays, a humble laywoman who devoted her life to serving peasant farmers in spite of great physical suffering.
January 16
"Blessed are those that hunger and thirst for justice, for they shall have their fill."
-Matthew 5:6
Today's Reflection:
We must do more than agree with Church teaching on issues. We must form our conscience according to them, and we must let Church teaching move us forward with faith and confidence into the public square to proclaim the truth at every opportunity. How do your actions indicate your beliefs about the sanctity of life? How can you bring greater justice into the contemporary culture?
Commentary by Susan Brinkmann, OCDSA new poll, which found that seven out of 10 young voters support restrictions on abortion, is giving pro-life women the perfect opportunity to use their feminine genius to open the eyes of young women to the truth about U.S. abortion law that is too often hidden behind “reproductive rights” misinformation.
January 15
"As long as matters are really hopeful, hope is a mere flattery or platitude; it is only when everything is hopeless that hope begins to be a strength at all. Like all the Christian virtues, it is as unreasonable as it is indispensable." -G.K. Chesterton
Today's Reflection:
There is no hope without uncertainty. Perilous times, difficult circumstances, tenuous situations, and heartrending trials form the crucible in which hope is tested, refined, purified, and proven. Ponder this fact? How does it speak to you in your current circumstances?
An internationally famous faith healer who relies on his psychic powers to channel 30 “doctor entities” while “healing” the rich and famous has fallen into disgrace after hundreds of female patients accused him of sexual assault and a judge orders him to stand trial on allegations of rape and sexual abuse.
The Little Sisters of the Poor have found themselves back in court after a California judge blocked Trump administration rules that allow employers to opt out of providing no-cost birth control to female employees from taking effect.
By Miss.Monica.Elizabeth - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=25829162January 14
"We have to uphold the right of all men to live, to own what is necessary to lead a dignified existence, to work and to rest, to choose a particular state in life, to form a home, to bring children into the world within marriage and to be allowed to educate them, to pass peacefully through times of sickness and old age, to have access to culture, to join with other citizens to achieve legitimate ends, and, above all, to enjoy the right to know and love God in perfect liberty."
-St. Josemaria Escriva
Today's Reflection:
How are you actively participating in activities that speak for the poor, the weak, the disenfranchised, and the forgotten? During this week when we uphold the dignity of all human life, especially the unborn, how can you do more?
Intense and focused prayer is desperately needed as our nation approaches one of the saddest days in its history – the passage of Roe v. Wade on January 22, 1973 - a law that has led to the slaughter of more than 60 million Americans.
January 13
"Holy Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the Spirit...and the door that gives access to the other sacraments." -Catechism of the Catholic Church 1213
Today's Reflection:
In what specific ways can you live the grace of your Baptism?
