Upvote
0
-
Starting today August 7th, 2024, in order to post in the Married Couples, Courting Couples, or Singles forums, you will not be allowed to post if you have your Marital status designated as private. Announcements will be made in the respective forums as well but please note that if yours is currently listed as Private, you will need to submit a ticket in the Support Area to have yours changed.
-
CF has always been a site that welcomes people from different backgrounds and beliefs to participate in discussion and even debate. That is the nature of its ministry. In view of recent events emotions are running very high. We need to remind people of some basic principles in debating on this site. We need to be civil when we express differences in opinion. No personal attacks. Avoid you, your statements. Don't characterize an entire political party with comparisons to Fascism or Communism or other extreme movements that committed atrocities. CF is not the place for broad brush or blanket statements about groups and political parties. Put the broad brushes and blankets away when you come to CF, better yet, put them in the incinerator. Debate had no place for them. We need to remember that people that commit acts of violence represent themselves or a small extreme faction.
Upvote
0
Holy Week and Easter Illustrated with Commentaries by James Tissot
- By Michie
- One Bread, One Body - Catholic
- 0 Replies
Tissot's paintings and commentaries—based on the Bible and the visions of Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich—can help us walk closer with Our Lord during Holy Week.
Continued below.
Holy Week and Easter Illustrated with Commentaries by James Tissot
Tissot's paintings and commentaries—based on the Bible and the visions of Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich—can help us walk closer with Our Lord during Holy Week. (Repost from last year with changes.)
roseannetsullivan.substack.com
New Capitol Hill office will ‘anchor’ Society of St. Vincent de Paul’s advocacy
- By Michie
- One Bread, One Body - Catholic
- 0 Replies
WASHINGTON (OSV News) — As the “face of the poor” in the U.S. changes and their needs evolve, a new office on Capitol Hill in Washington for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul will “anchor” the organization’s advocacy on behalf of the poor and homeless, its national leader said.
“Seniors, women, single parents and the displaced middle class have become a larger part of the more than 5 million people SVdP USA serves every year. As the world evolves, so do the needs of the poor,” said John A. Berry, national president of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul’s National Council of the United States.
He made the comments at the ribbon-cutting and blessing of the organization’s new national office near the U.S. Capitol. Its headquarters are in St. Louis.
“This unique direct relationship we have with our neighbors in need gives us a perspective and a view from the reality of the poor that we will be able to share with policymakers and like-minded nonprofits and other organizations. The new D.C. office will anchor that advocacy work,” Berry said April 4.
Continued below.
www.oursundayvisitor.com
“Seniors, women, single parents and the displaced middle class have become a larger part of the more than 5 million people SVdP USA serves every year. As the world evolves, so do the needs of the poor,” said John A. Berry, national president of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul’s National Council of the United States.
He made the comments at the ribbon-cutting and blessing of the organization’s new national office near the U.S. Capitol. Its headquarters are in St. Louis.
“This unique direct relationship we have with our neighbors in need gives us a perspective and a view from the reality of the poor that we will be able to share with policymakers and like-minded nonprofits and other organizations. The new D.C. office will anchor that advocacy work,” Berry said April 4.
‘A fire that lights the world’
Continued below.
New Capitol Hill office will 'anchor' Society of St. Vincent de Paul's advocacy
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul opens a D.C. office to strengthen advocacy for the poor amid evolving needs and faith-driven service.
www.oursundayvisitor.com
Vatican updates rules for Mass intentions, permits collective offerings under strict conditions
- By Michie
- One Bread, One Body - Catholic
- 0 Replies
The Vatican’s Dicastery for the Clergy issued a decree updating the Church’s norms governing Mass intentions and stipends, emphasizing both proper spiritual understanding and practical solutions for modern pastoral challenges.
Pope Francis approved the document — published so far only in Italian — on Palm Sunday, April 13. It will take effect on Easter Sunday, April 20, 2025.
The decree, which replaces the 1991 instruction Mos Iugiter, maintains Canon 945 of the Code of Canon Law, affirming that priests may receive offerings for celebrating Mass according to specific intentions, while introducing significant provisions for “collective intentions.”
According to the updated norms, bishops’ conferences or provincial councils may now permit priests to accept multiple offerings from different donors for a single Mass with a “collective intention,” but only when all donors have been explicitly informed and freely consented.
Continued below.
www.catholicnewsagency.com
Pope Francis approved the document — published so far only in Italian — on Palm Sunday, April 13. It will take effect on Easter Sunday, April 20, 2025.
The decree, which replaces the 1991 instruction Mos Iugiter, maintains Canon 945 of the Code of Canon Law, affirming that priests may receive offerings for celebrating Mass according to specific intentions, while introducing significant provisions for “collective intentions.”
According to the updated norms, bishops’ conferences or provincial councils may now permit priests to accept multiple offerings from different donors for a single Mass with a “collective intention,” but only when all donors have been explicitly informed and freely consented.
Continued below.
Vatican permits collective Mass intentions in new decree updating 34-year-old norms
Pope Francis approved the document — published so far only in Italian — on Palm Sunday, April 13. It will take effect on Easter Sunday, April 20, 2025.
www.catholicnewsagency.com
Anxiety
- By FaithT
- OBOB General Politics Forum
- 15 Replies
Thanks. I hope you get some peace.I have anxiety disorder, too...alongside depression with adjustment disorder (a VA term that basically means I don't make a very good civilian) and PTSD.
The first three manifest by avoidance and self-isolation, meaning I stay away from crowds and noisy venues, etc. The PTSD, however, when it springs into action, is a little more dramatic. Any type of loud, unexpected, percussive noise---especially if it resembles gunfire---makes me jump, duck, and hyperventilate. But any loud noise will do; I have been known to go into episodes when somebody near me sneezes. These usually leave me breathing rapidly, sweating lightly, and feeling shaky. The worst ones cause an amygdala hijack, which means my brain just takes over and reacts instinctively; when that happens, I end up diving for cover, and am totally incapacitated for several minutes. In those episodes, I end up hyperventilating, sweating heavily, shaking badly, my heart trip-hammers, and I am left feeling weak and woozy. I may or may not start weeping.
I was in a supermarket one time, looking at the soda pop, when a woman off to my left lost her grip on a case of Coca-Cola. It crashed into her shopping cart with a resounding boom, and I dove for the floor, spouting a profane curse, and ended up huddled against the wall, shaking and unable to function terribly well. A crowd gathered fairly quickly, and my wife, who was down the aisle a ways, came back over to me to direct traffic. I remember someone asking, "Is he okay?", and she replied, "He will be, in a little while." I came back to myself after a bit, and was able to stand up and communicate. The crowd dispersed (show's over, folks; nothing to see here) except for the lady who had dropped the case of soda to begin with, who stood off to the side with tears running down her face because she felt responsible. I went over to her and said, "Now look, dear: it is not your fault that I have this condition, okay? So you have nothing to feel guilty about. Sometimes this just happens, and it is what it is." I smiled and gave her a hug, and hopefully she felt better. I moved off a way, and I heard my wife talking to her in a low tone; probably explaining what just happened, and everybody left on friendly terms.
Another time I was in a Lowe's or a Home Depot, can't remember which, and somebody behind us tipped over a big steel shelving unit onto the floor. It hit the concrete with a sound remarkable similar to an artillery round exploding. I remember that everything in my vision went to a grainy yellow, and when I came to, I was trying to crawl under a grocery cart. My wife said that I had yelled "INCOMING!!!" and dove onto the floor. I was a mess after that one, crying, shaking, sweating, gasping for air. I don't remember yelling or diving, but I remember the condition I was in afterwards, quite well.
Usually they're not that bad; but they can be, in the right (or wrong) circumstances. There's nothing anybody can do about it; the VA counselors explained to me that PTSD literally re-configures parts of your brain, and when it's done, it's done. There is no cure for it; all you can do is manage the symptoms with medication or therapy. In my case, I take 100mg of Sertraline during the day to keep me on an even keel, and 50mg of Trazodone at night to kill the nightmares and let me sleep. These do me pretty well, although I still get nightmares from time to time, and I still get really twingy in crowds---tight store aisles make me extremely claustrophobic---and I usually like to sit with my back to the wall with my eye on the exit doors when we go to a restaurant.
So, I wouldn't feel too bad about ducking out early, if I were you.Be thankful that you don't have it as bad as some others.
Upvote
0
ICE Nabs NJ Sushi Restaurant Owner Convicted Of Spying For China
- By Michie
Of course not. LolZhang was convicted of acting as an unregistered agent of the Chinese government in April 2024, for which he was sentenced to just three years’ probation. In May 2021, he pleaded guilty to having served as an agent of China in 2016 without notifying the U.S. Attorney General, according to a report from the New York Post.
Despite the serious conviction, the Biden Administration allowed him to remain in the United States with, when compared with the sentences received by peaceful January 6 trespassers, an incredibly light sentence.
ICE Nabs NJ Sushi Restaurant Owner Convicted Of Spying For China
A New Jersey Sushi restaurant owner is in ICE custody after he was convicted of conducting espionage operations for China last year. Ming Xi Zhang, known as “Sushi John,” was taken into custody by federal immigration with ICE’s Newark field office on March 24. Zhang, 61, is the owner of Ya Ya...trendingpoliticsnews.com
Is the ACLU going to file a lawsuit?
Upvote
0
The 7 Last Words of Christ and the Nicene Creed: ‘Father, Forgive Them, for They Know Not What They Do’
- By Michie
- One Bread, One Body - Catholic
- 0 Replies
You have to draw close to hear the words, for a crucified man struggles to speak, his lungs crushed under the pressure of his own weight, even as his body screams to him in pain.
Editor’s Note: For more than 20 years, Father Raymond de Souza has preached the Seven Last Words devotion, a traditional meditation on the seven times Jesus speaks from the Cross on Good Friday. Made famous in recent times by the Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, the meditations are usually organized around a particular theme. For 2025, Father de Souza chose the Nicene Creed as his theme, as the Catholic Church marks this year the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea. This first of seven meditations were preached at Holy Cross parish in Kemptville, Ontario, where Father de Souza is the pastor.
Elsewhere, the sun no doubt shone that first Good Friday, as it normally does. Then, as now, the day does not appear different from other days. Then, as now, people went about their business, for a holiday was at hand, and the final preparations had to be attended to. But the Gospels tell us that the sun did not shine in Jerusalem from noon until three that first Good Friday. Many then, as now, did not know what was happening, but the God who set the sun and the stars in their places knew what was happening. And so darkness fell across the land.
Continued below.
www.ncregister.com
Editor’s Note: For more than 20 years, Father Raymond de Souza has preached the Seven Last Words devotion, a traditional meditation on the seven times Jesus speaks from the Cross on Good Friday. Made famous in recent times by the Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, the meditations are usually organized around a particular theme. For 2025, Father de Souza chose the Nicene Creed as his theme, as the Catholic Church marks this year the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea. This first of seven meditations were preached at Holy Cross parish in Kemptville, Ontario, where Father de Souza is the pastor.
It is noon and in Jerusalem darkness falls upon the land, for the Son of Man has been lifted up and is now hanging upon the Cross (Mark 15:33).
Elsewhere, the sun no doubt shone that first Good Friday, as it normally does. Then, as now, the day does not appear different from other days. Then, as now, people went about their business, for a holiday was at hand, and the final preparations had to be attended to. But the Gospels tell us that the sun did not shine in Jerusalem from noon until three that first Good Friday. Many then, as now, did not know what was happening, but the God who set the sun and the stars in their places knew what was happening. And so darkness fell across the land.
Continued below.
The 7 Last Words of Christ and the Nicene Creed: ‘Father, Forgive Them, for They Know Not What They Do’
You have to draw close to hear the words, for a crucified man struggles to speak, his lungs crushed under the pressure of his own weight, even as his body screams to him in pain.
Pope Francis greets pilgrims at Palm Sunday Mass
- By Michie
- One Bread, One Body - Catholic
- 0 Replies
Marking another in a series of recent surprise public appearances, Pope Francis on Sunday briefly greeted thousands of pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square to celebrate Palm Sunday.
“Happy Palm Sunday and beginning of Holy Week!” the Holy Father said with some difficulty to the cheers of the large crowd that filled the square and spilled out along the Via della Conciliazione.
Unable to participate in the Palm Sunday Mass, the 88-year-old pontiff, still convalescing after a serious bout of double pneumonia that kept him hospitalized for 39 days, arrived in a wheelchair toward the end of the outdoor liturgy, smiling and without nasal tubes as he passed by clergy, religious men and women, and lay people standing near the altar.
Continued below.
www.catholicnewsagency.com
“Happy Palm Sunday and beginning of Holy Week!” the Holy Father said with some difficulty to the cheers of the large crowd that filled the square and spilled out along the Via della Conciliazione.
Unable to participate in the Palm Sunday Mass, the 88-year-old pontiff, still convalescing after a serious bout of double pneumonia that kept him hospitalized for 39 days, arrived in a wheelchair toward the end of the outdoor liturgy, smiling and without nasal tubes as he passed by clergy, religious men and women, and lay people standing near the altar.
Continued below.
Pope Francis greets pilgrims at Palm Sunday Mass
Marking another in a series of recent surprise public appearances, Pope Francis on Sunday briefly greeted thousands of pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square to celebrate Palm Sunday.
www.catholicnewsagency.com
Upvote
0
On the Difference Between Entertainment, and Seeking Truth
- By Stephen3141
Joe Rogan Podcast Guest Confronts Him for Platforming ‘Counter-Historical’ Views: ‘Just Raising Questions Is Not a Valid Thing’
"I just feel we should get it out straight away," British columnist and author Douglas Murray says The post Joe Rogan Podcast Guest Confronts Him for Platforming ‘Counter-Historical’ Views: ‘Just Raising Questions Is Not a Valid Thing’ appeared first on TheWrap.
Unfortunately, I assert, the electronic screen generations seem to prefer talk
shows that are designed to entertain and keep the attention of the listeners,
than talk shows that seek truth. I know that that is a big assertion.
This is not a problem with only one political party, or "conservatives" versus
"progressives". The fringe views that seem to entertain the most, can be
about one of dozens of topics, or from one of dozens of viewpoints.
---------- ----------
So, why is this topic important??? (to Christians)
1 Many in the younger generations tend to get their "news" from sources
that are NOT fact-checked. This is confusing the definition of news,
with the definition of gossip or speculation.
2 The tendency (I assert) of the younger generations for entertainment,
and the tendency to confuse solid information with gossip and speculation,
is an EPISTEMOLOGICAL problem. (Hence, the location of this thread
on a philosophical Christian apologetics location.)
3 This tendency to prefer a good story, over truth, is what historically was
the problem with (very, very fringe) theories about the historical
evidence given in the Bible, and the preference of (for example) "The
Search for the Historical Jesus". The goal of The Jesus Seminar,
for example, was to provide a forum for the rewriting of the biblical
text about the life of Jesus, into "believable" explanations that anyone
could believe. This tendency of preferring a good story over evaluating
the hard evidence, is the basis for horrendous theological fallacies.
4 Those who endlessly listen to speculative discussions (aka "explanations") of
modern events, gradually have their ability to evaluate and believe REAL TRUTH
in the form of evidence. This leads (I assert) to growing skepticism that there are
ANY accurate historical accounts. (Christians CANNOT accept this view.) And,
it leads to a tendency (I assert) that the listeners will be more and more
susceptible to believe "conspiracy theories."
---------- ----------
Although few North American Christians would accept the conspiracy theory that
"his disciples came by night, and stole his body out of the grave",
many North American Christians have no model of (Christian) epistemology, that
would carefully demonstrate why the evidence in the Bible from eyewitnesses
should be accepted, over beliving this other conspiracy theory.
Hi, I am Warren and this is who I am.
- By RileyG
- Introduce Yourself
- 3 Replies
Welcome Warren! God bless you!
Upvote
0
