I would like to go to a Catholic seminary to see if i can become a Catholic priest but i dont know if its the right path for me i have no problem leaving my life my few personal possessions and being celibate i was an atheist recently but i come back to faith but i dont know if the priesthood is my calling has anyone here gone to the seminary? i would like some advice and guidance

New guy here. Lurked for a while and wanted to join the conversation. Hoping to learn and grow in the Grace and Peace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

YouTube Channel Video Devo
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“React Or Respond?
Acts 16:23-25 NIV
After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks. About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.

This passage came up in my devotional morning time the other day. Acts is one of my most favorite books of the Bible as we read about the start of the early church and how passionate people were and how fast the church grew.

This specific story of Paul and Silas in prison always amazes me. The part I am most amazed by is right after verse 24. They’ve been thrown into prison and beaten severely.

PAUSE
If I were in their shoes, I know that I would be frustrated about my situation and probably looking at others, giving them a look of “Can you believe what they just did to us?” Then once in the cell, I know for sure I’d be going through the whole scenario in my head and thinking “What did we do wrong? How could we have avoided that? Can you believe they would do such a thing to us? I think we should file a report and complain to someone about how we were treated.”

UNPAUSE
No, Paul and Silas did NOT do anything I just described above. They started praying and singing! What??? How could they possibly have that attitude? Aren’t they upset about what happened? They’ve just been severely mistreated and all they do is start singing and praying.

When I think of this story, I think about how often I find myself reacting to situations instead of responding as I should. When we react to something, we tend to not think rationally and we go off on some tangent and often say things we don’t mean. However, when we respond, we’re often thinking through the situation, taking a few moments to gather our thoughts and figure out the best way to handle what is going on.

I would encourage all of us to work on responding instead of reacting. It’s so easy to just react, but we should focus more to respond with a loving heart and gestures that minister to others around us. It was a pivotal moment for Paul and Silas in what they did after they were beaten. Look what God did!!! And, look what God could and can do when we let Him use us in situations to respond instead of react.

Responding almost always seems to land us in a better outcome.

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Did it ever occur to you how many embryos are created and never implanted? "Limbo" was just a pre-Vatican II concept for many years, but the thousands of unharvested embryos frozen throughout the country have given "limbo" a new meaning.

EDITORIAL: If Catholic Gov. Kathy Hochul signs the bill, as she is expected to do, New York’s doctors will have been granted a license to kill some of their state’s most vulnerable and marginalized residents.

Let’s pull no punches — Monday was an utterly tragic day for New York State and for the entire nation.

The reason: The Empire State’s Legislature has now passed a bill legalizing so-called “medically assisted suicide.” As a result, if Gov. Kathy Hochul signs the bill as expected, New York’s doctors will have been granted a license to kill some of their state’s most vulnerable and marginalized residents.

Writing in National Review, Catholic journalist and pro-life advocate Kathryn Jean Lopez rightly compared what her home state has just done to its disastrous decision to legalize abortion in 1970.

As in the case of abortion, New York isn’t breaking new ground all by itself when it comes to sanctioning assisted suicide, the other hallmark Culture of Death legislative action. Eleven other states and the District of Columbia have done so earlier. But for better or for worse, New York remains the nation’s opinion leader, so legalizing this kind of medicalized killing carries a particularly heavy weight when it happens there.

Continued below.

Hi everyone, something interesting- I have found a little church in Hummelstown, Pennsylvania called Deep Rivers Church. For some reason I really like it there, I love it, it may be the presence of God in the church or the anointing on the church! Every time I walk in the door I sense the presence of an angel in the narthex, it is a spiritual force from God, it has helped me out several times, several times I was ill when I walked in the door but I snapped out of it when I walked in! It also helped me get connected with some people in the congregation! If you are ever in Hummelstown, PA you might want to pay them a visit, they are right across the street from the high school, Lower Dauphin High School!

Activists plan more events Tuesday in New York, Chicago, Dallas and Atlanta.

The protests that have roiled Los Angeles seem to be spreading across the country, as activists gathered Tuesday in New York, Chicago, Dallas, Atlanta and elsewhere.

Rallies protesting ICE raids and the government's immigration policies have been planned across California and beyond this week. A series of so-called No Kings demonstrations is planned nationwide for Saturday.

As immigration raids continue, ICE protests spread coast to coast

Activists plan more events Tuesday in New York, Chicago, Dallas and Atlanta. A curfew was imposed across downtown L.A. until 6 a.m.

www.nbcnews.com

Prediction: Widespread assaults on law enforcement, arson, vandalism, looting, freeway shutdowns and the like throughout the summer all over the US.

Hi everyone!

My name is Nikola and I’d like to share my original spiritual song, inspired by my journey of faith in Medjugorje.
This song is a thanksgiving to God and to everyone searching for peace and faith.
Here’s the demo version – I’d appreciate your feedback, prayers, and encouragement as I work on the final version!
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Has anyone else experienced something similar or found inspiration for music through faith? Feel free to share your stories!

If anyone wants to connect or collaborate, feel free to reach out!

The ever hopeful me always hopes James Martin, SJ will slither back under a rock or repent. I guess it’s been a disappointing month for him, though, so I guess he’s joining Bishop Michael Martin (just something about that surname, I guess) in powering forward just in case he’s shut down completely.

Can Catholics celebrate Pride Month? Yes, and here’s why.
Outreach Original James Martin, S.J. / June 2, 2025
For the LGBTQ person, pride is not about vanity but about human dignity.
This article was originally posted on June 1, 2022. It has been updated.

Click to expand...

As if this wasn’t a spiritual face plant the first go around, he’s decided to update it. Maybe it’ll contain an ounce of Church teaching now? Probably not. Let’s just start off by saying that sodomy and masturbation are an affront to human dignity. Dressing in BDSM attire is an affront to human dignity. Parading naked around little children is an affront to human dignity (and abusive to the dignity of the child, which is deserving of a millstone if one listened to the Lord). Accepting your sin or disorder as a good is an affront to human dignity. You know what’s not an affront to human dignity? Truth. But let’s just ignore that.

Continued below.

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Kamala Harris won the U.S elections: Bombshell report claims voting machines were tampered with before 2024


I'd put it in the "Conspiracy Theory" forum but unfortunately.....

A quiet but major change to voting machines by Pro V&V—used in over 40% of U.S. counties—was never publicly reviewed or disclosed. Watchdog group SMART Elections flagged suspicious updates, missing votes, and statistical anomalies suggesting potential vote tampering.

Click to expand...

There appears to be some actual evidence that these voting machines were problematic.

What was the problem with the other voting machines in 2020 again? As I recall, there WERE no problems and those lawsuits fell flat and were met with counter suits in the billions when no wrong doing was found.


I would expect Pro V&V to take the EXACT same steps if these allegations are proven.

I mean Trump has been quoted as implying that there was some nefarious stuff around computers.

Ultimately, it's not as if Trump will lose power. He would "get impeached" again but Republicans who are not interested in democracy will have no interest in getting rid of him.


In what ways are these accusations THE SAME as 2020 and in what ways are they DIFFERENT? I feel like some mouth breathers are going to see these two situations as carbon copies of each other. There are certainly similarities, but there are also vERY important differences.


Thoughts?

John Fetterman Rips Fellow Democrats For Not Condemning LA Riots​

Democrat Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman took to social media Monday to criticize his fellow Democrats for not denouncing the violent riots that broke out in Los Angeles after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raid.

In a post on X, Fetterman said he was disappointed in his party’s failure to take a firm stand against the destruction, calling the situation “anarchy and true chaos.” He said that the Democratic Party risks losing its moral high ground when it fails to unequivocally condemn such actions.

No I am not a fan of Fetterman and he did not suddenly become important. It is a discussion topic plainly stated

Mysterious Riot Gear Handed Out to LA Protesters Raises Questions​

Footage of the scene showed boxes of solid, full-face masks—almost akin to helmets—being handed out from the back of a pickup truck by two women while a masked driver waited for them to unload the goods.

The footage has sparked concerns among some that external agitators are facilitating riots by equipping crowds for potential clashes with the police or National Guard. However, others say the masks are safety gear, worn as a precaution after protesters were injured by rubber bullets that the authorities fired.

“Why do you have guns? What are you going to do, you going to shoot some kid who’s afraid of you and runs?” she asked. “You going to shoot an elected official? If you shoot me, you better shoot straight. I don’t know why you’re in my city. The governor was not contacted. This is Trump, and his outrageous attempt to not only target our sanctuary city but to frighten us and intimidate us. This is wrong, and I hope that none of you will use those guns to shoot anybody. There’s no reason to shoot anybody.”
She should not taunt our young men and women who are just trying to to their job. This is a good example of what so many leaders in the Democratic Party really think about the military and law enforcement personnel.

President Trump ordered the National Guard to Los Angeles to protect federal agents and assist local authorities, a move that local leaders have criticized as inflaming the situation. California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has called their deployment a “serious breach of state sovereignty” and a “complete overreaction.”



There have been several other documented incidents of this happening as well
Login to view embedded media (not all of the cars getting hit appear to even be police cars, some of them are plain)


For anyone who's followed any of the other "on the ground" video captured by both reporters and regular citizens, the chaos seems to be a little more intense than some media outlets are reporting it to be. In the age of the smart phone and with how many independent citizens have recorded video of what's going on, the "mostly peaceful" angle is going to be a tougher sell on this one.


Gavin suggesting that sending in the national guard is "an overreaction" comes across with a little bit of this vibe



And there is a bit of irony in some suggesting that sending in the national guard is what's "inflaming" the situation and not the...well... people literally setting flames to things.


It seems as if some democratic pundits want to discuss this the same way as an enabler for an abusive husband. Where the rioters aren't the ones at fault, but rather, it's the fact that they didn't get their way politically, so its the fault of others for doing something that made them really mad.

"It's my fault he punched me, if I would've had dinner ready on time, he wouldn't have gotten so mad"

(This is NOT a political thread...)

I see a fractured view of "identity" in America today.

(I assert) Much of the views of personal "identity" is idolatry, or wishing
(yearning for something we do not have, which collapses down easily into
sinful yearnings), or a punching bag for racial emotions, or an appeal to
all sorts of blame groups that (supposedly) are causing me to fail to gain
some goal.
********** **********

IDENTITY for a Christian, is supposed to be tied up with peoplehood.
Our identity was fixed, when we left Egypt in the Exodus, and now
WE ARE SUPPOSED TO BE IDENTIFYING WITH THE PEOPLE OF GOD.

And, so what happens when Christians are fuzzy about their "identity",
and accept a secular definition of identity???

What happens when Christians accept templates of "identity" and try to force America,
and the fair rule of law in America, into a template of "identity" that the foundational
document were never framed to make it? Such as a racial and cultural homogeny?

I see identity problems on both sides of the current Los Angeles rioting.

Christians should not view American as a land of plenty, but where

"Irish need not apply."

The people of God have an identity that is not racial.
Anyone who followed Moses, is in the People of God.

Nor is America a land of opportunity for criminals (of ANY type, even billionaires),
where one can legitimately build one's "identity" as Al Capone did in Chicago.
********** **********

The People of God already have an identity. And it is supposed to be growing into
an entity that brings forth righteous deeds. There are very visual artifacts of
worldly identity on display, in the demonstrating over the ICE raids in Los Angeles.
BUT, I don't think that these worldly concepts of identity are the identity of the
People of God, and I don't think that the People of God ought to be getting
entangled in worldly concepts of identity, to the mangling of the Faith.

I certainly don't think that worldly politicians ought to be dictating what the
definition of Christian identity is.

Is there any offcial, or traditional understanding of what it means to say that the single divine-human person suffers?

With a human it's fairly easy. If my foot is injured, I'm injured as a person. But I have a unified consciousness, which would experience anything happenng to any part of me.

It's not so clear that this is true of the God-man. While consciousness in the modern sense probably isn't covered by theology, it seems likely that the human nature has a human consciousness. That would suffer when Christ suffers as a human. But Aquinas seems to say that the Logos can't suffer: "n the contrary, Athanasius says (Ep. ad Epict.): "The Word is impassible whose Nature is Divine." But what is impassible cannot suffer. Consequently, Christ's Passion did not concern His Godhead." It's not obvious that there is anything independent of those two natures that could support a whole-person experience. Now obviously theologians would assert that as a single person, the person of the God-man suffers when Jesus suffers. But I'm trying to get a sense of what that actually means.

In a legal settlement, a Connecticut couple has been awarded $2 million because their daughter was born with Cystic Fibrosis. The court assessed the penalty against the doctor who neglected to run a relatively simple blood test almost four years before the child’s birth. At first blush, this looks like a simple malpractice suit, but its moral implications are mind-boggling.

The desire to have healthy children is universal. In Genesis 9:1, God told Noah and his sons to “Increase and multiply, and fill the earth.” The only way to fulfill that command is to give birth to healthy children, who can then produce healthy children of their own.

With medical discoveries occurring rapidly, it is normal for parents to request all available information about the pre-born child. This concern is especially present when specific diseases are known to run in families when the parents are older than usual, when complications arise within a pregnancy, or for a thousand other reasons.

An Unfulfilled Request

Continued below.

The Double Tragedy of A Girl Whose Parents Claim Should Not Have Been Born

In a legal settlement, a Connecticut couple has been awarded $2 million because their daughter was born with Cystic Fibrosis. The court assessed the penalty aga

www.tfp.org

# 1 FOR / GAR , is a Comjuncation

# 2 IF , EI , is also a Condjuncation

# 3 THE / is a Definite Articile , in the Nominative Case , in the Signular , in the Neuter

# 4 BLOOD / NAIMA , in the Nominative Case , inthe Sigbular , in the Neuter

# 5 OF BULLS / LAUROS , in the Genitive Case , in the Plural

# 6 AND / KAI , is a Conjuncation

# 7 OF GOATS / TRAGOS , in the Genitive Case , inthe Gentive Case , in the Plural

# 8 AND / KAI , a Conjuncation

# 9 THE ASHES / SPODAS , in the Nominative Case , in the Signular

# 10 OF AN HEIFER / DAMALIS , in the Genitive Case , in the SIngnular

# 11 SPRINKING / RANTIZO , in the Present Tense , in Active Voice , in a Participle Tense , in the Nominative Case , in Singular

# 12 THE / HO , is a Definite Arricle , is a Accusative Case , is a Plural

# 13 UNCLEAN / KOINOO , in the Perfect Tense , is a Participle Tense , in Passive Voice , is a Particile Tense , in the Plural

# 14 SANCTIFIED / in the Present Tense , in the Active Voice , in the Indicative Mood , in e Singuluar

# 15 TO / PROS , is a Prepostion

# 16 , THE / HO , in the Accusative Case , in the Singular

# 17 PURIFYING / KATHAROIE , in the Accusative Case , in the Singular

# 18 OF THE / HO , is a Definite Article , ina Gentve Case , in the Singular

# 19 FLESH / SARZ , in the Genitive Case , in the Singular

And when looking at many OP , many are quoting the Law of Moses , or the TEN COMMANENGS and I jst wonder if they are

there priests and Keeping all the Law and all its ceremonial PURITY of the RED HEIFER in Numbers 19 .

dan p

Here for support through life's struggles. I'm a saved, happily married man, with three children. But, life is still difficult. Battling the enemy, with his lies and deception every day is very tiring. God bless you all.

Kinder Eggs are illegal in the US.
Because you can’t put non edible things inside of food.

Breast milk is food for babies.
Should breast implants be illegal under the same law ?

Breast implants could leak.

Luke 12:51-53
Do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth? I tell you, no, but rather division; for from now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
https://www.bible.com/bible/100/LUK.12.51-53.NASB1995


I was think about this verse and how it is playing out today. I would love it that all my family will be saved. My son has come to Christ but my daughter is caught up in the world though a beautiful young women and is a good potential wife and mother as she is engaged. I try to set the example in Christ but they know me better than anyone lol.

But I find with family and friends that the more you try to be like Christ it seems the more this divides people. The more those who are not in CHrist will react or see you as different and even can provoke a reaction as though a threat or trying to be too good. As though you are trying to show them up.

I think this has been a developing cultural shift in recent years as social norms have predominated which creates a stark contrast between Christianity and secular norms. I know this is happening on social media which basically you could say is a big family in a sense. But people can be vicious even towards friends and acquaintances.

It use to be I think when the social norms were more in tune with God and the bible and even during the cultural revolutions primarily western nations God fearing. Or at least respectful of the majority who believed in God. But as time has gone by and God has been removed from the public square and social norms its less tolerated.

Families are dividing along political and belief lines. Friend and family are being cancelled due to their beliefs. Its become more personal. But I really think its spiritual. Its a fundemental spiritual battle. As the world sinks more into anti God and Christ its getting conflicted about Christ as the truth. Because Christs truth cuts deepest when the lies grow. Christ light shines brightest when the darkness grows.

So I think we are moving into a time when we will see both bold Christians who will stand with Christ even if that means losing friend and family while at the same time see a rising up of hate for Christ as His truth is magnified in the world.

I think this is a natural development as to how things have been going and I can se the trend continuing and becoming more conflicting. I guess all Christians can do is keep doing the same and don't give up or in even when the going gets tough. Thats when Christ works the best.

Hi all,

What does Panagia mean in regards to the Virgin Mary?

I know Theotokos means “The Mother of God” or more literally God-bearer.

Thanks

I say ten to twenty years in prison.