Pope Benedict's Final General Audience

Pope Benedict XVI addressed the Church for the last time as Pope in the  final General Audience of his pontificate today in St Peter's Square.

Here is an excerpt from his remarks:

At this point I would like to offer heartfelt thanks to all the many people throughout the whole world, who, in recent weeks have sent me moving tokens of concern, friendship and prayer. Yes, the Pope is never alone: now I experience this [truth] again in a way so great as to touch my very heart. The Pope belongs to everyone, and so many people feel very close to him. It’s true that I receive letters from the world's greatest figures - from the Heads of State, religious leaders, representatives of the world of culture and so on. I also receive many letters from ordinary people who write to me simply from their heart and let me feel their affection, which is born of our being together in Christ Jesus, in the Church. These people do not write me as one might write, for example, to a prince or a great figure one does not know. They write as brothers and sisters, sons and daughters, with the sense of very affectionate family ties. Here, one can touch what the Church is – not an organization, not an association for religious or humanitarian purposes, but a living body, a community of brothers and sisters in the Body of Jesus Christ, who unites us all. To experience the Church in this way and almost be able to touch with one’s hands the power of His truth and His love, is a source of joy, in a time in which many speak of its decline.

Read the full text of Pope Benedict's message here.

We love you Papa B!

[Video] Pope Benedict Abdication Partay

[youtube=http://youtu.be/kxFoQHWyIw0] Ryan, Sr. Theresa, and I celebrated (a little early) the Solemnity of the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter, and also celebrated Pope Benedict, his life, his ministry, and his gift to the Church.  We talked about our reaction to the news of his abdication, his impact on our lives, and thoughts on the Pope and the Papacy in general.

These live hangouts are a blast, thanks for joining us and interacting if you made it.

CATHOLICISM Lenten Reflection by Fr. Robert Barron [Videos]

Pope Benedict receiving ashes on his head during Ash Wednesday last year. ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP/Getty Images Photo: ALBERTO PIZZOLI, Associated Press

"Even now, says the Lord, return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, and weeping, and mourning." Joel 2:12 "A clean heart create in me, God, renew your spirit within me." Psalm 51:12

Video Reflections to Prepare for Lent

Two teaser videos for you this Ash Wednesday morning from Fr. Robert Barron's Catholicism series.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/MOstFC5QZyc]

Who is Jesus Christ?  He is either who he says He is, or he is a lunatic, liar, and maybe even worse.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/AHzG3ocLaj4]

The temptation of Jesus reminds us to strive to put God at the center of our lives during Lent.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/KjV_KkJ5km4]

And 'cause I like you I'm gonna throw this in here too.  I'm feeling particularly Lent-y this morning.

GO TO MASS TODAY!

Listen, today is the last Mass our beloved Papa Benedict XVI will be saying as Pope.  If you don't already have enough reason to go to Mass and get your ashes to kick off this special Lenten season, go to Mass to join the Pope in the Eucharist offering prayers for him and this challenging time for the Church.  Do it!

Check out the Mass readings for today here.

+JMJ

The Girl Who Made it Rain

In June a desperate urgency hung over a hot rural town in western Ohio.  In the 1920's rain was a sensitive friend to the farmers in this town who relied on the growth of their crops to support their families.  If there is too much rain, the corn and tomatoes could be washed out.  If not enough rain fell, then few crops would survive the heat and make it to harvesting season.  So far this season you could count on one hand how many times it had rained.

By the end of June it seemed the whole town took on the temperament of the fields: hot, grumpy, and thirsty for rain.  After hearing an ear full of complaining for the past six weeks, the old Priest of the town took action.  At the end of a particularly arid Sunday Mass Father announced a special Mass to be held the following Friday offering up the intentions of all farmers and to ask God to send rain.

"Jesus tells us not to worry.  The daisies never worry and yet they are clothed with more splendor than King Solomon." The kind old Priest smiled, "How much more will God take care of you, whom He loves much more than daisies."

Not a few in the pews thought even daisies would not hold up much longer in such a scorcher and wondered if the Priest could not have chosen a better example from the Bible.  Even so, they were all a little hopeful and at least determined to pray with all their hearts at next Friday's Mass.

That Friday, the kindly old Priest looked out on the small congregation of winnowing fans in stuffy dresses and brow-wipers in cotton shirts.  All the windows were ajar and even the doors to the Church were left open to gasp for air.  Every now and then the sighs of uncomfortable horses could be heard, tied up on the shady side of the Church near the doors.  Other than this there was no movement nor even the faintest breeze outside.

The worn Priest nervously patted his neck with a handkerchief and wiped his mouth as eyes persisted on him, waiting for the homily.  The dry heat was everywhere and on everything.  He smirked as he made a silent joke to himself about the effect this Mass might have on the next month's collection if rain did not come soon.

The Priest began to speak, starting the homily on faith he had given every year around this time for decades, when an object in the sea of warm bodies caught his breath.  It was small, short, and brightly colored; clutched firmly in the grasp of a small bright girl whose feet hardly touched the ground where she sat.  Such an object was unique in the Church and one of its kind on that day.  The Priest had not seen one in almost two months.

A familiar feeling of conviction, hope, and reckless abandon stirred anew in the Priest's soul.  And the stooped Priest of God stood tall and pointed to the girl and gave a homily that made everyone who heard it forget about the heat and see themselves and God for the first time in months.

No one who retold this story in the years to come could ever remember if rain came that year.  Either way wouldn't change the transformation that happened to the eyes of everyone present that day.

But if it did rain, it was because of the faith of the girl with the umbrella.

March for Life 2013

[youtube=http://youtu.be/Opl0jnKbn5Y] Send some prayers our way today as our youth group joins over 200,000 others in a March on DC to stand up for LIFE.  Check out more about the March for Life here.

"But I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself. And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another?"

              - Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Fr. Mitch Pacwa Epic Debates

[youtube=http://youtu.be/E5VDG2nb5h0] I want to make sure all you great Catholics out there are aware of what is, in my opinion, a few of the best Catholic debates of all time - Fr. Mitch Pacwa on the John Ankerberg Show.

I learned a heck of a lot from Fr. Mitch Pacwa watching him handle these tough Protestant issues on the John Ankerberg Show, with a less-than-unbiased moderator.  Fr. Pacwa is so precise and clear; in the words of one of my professors "He's got a brain the size of France."

There are too many videos to post them all here, but to get the rest, go to youtube and type "Fr. Mitch Pacwa debate".

Go learn something!

[youtube=http://youtu.be/EU2K9HQFxso]

Fr. Mitch Pacwa Debates Protestant about Mary

[youtube=http://youtu.be/cOVWL2AHh18]

### What are your favorite Catholic debates?  Any other good ones on youtube?

+JMJ

"Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist" - Review

Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist Brant Pitre

Douobleday 240 pages

Once or twice a year I read a book that rocks my world.  This was one of them.  This is a super review of sorts; a bunch of resources, videos, and links are included.

How would the Jews at the time of Jesus viewed his actions at the Last Supper and His words about the Eucharist?

It's hard for a twenty-first century Christian to hear the words and actions of Christ with the ears of the Jews who heard and saw them firsthand.  Dr. Brant Pitre attempts to accomplish just that in "Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist".  He gives you the eyes and ears of a first century Jew using the Bible and ancient Jewish tradition.  Seeing the Eucharist from this perspective is like suddenly seeing 3D after living your entire life in two dimensions - mind blown.

Dr. Pitre looks at the Eucharist through the Old Testament and various sources of Jewish tradition; the Targums, Babylonian Talmud, and Mishna are various collections of ancient commentary, oral traditions, and Bible commentaries from Jewish rabbis between 600 BC and 220 AD.

The book focuses chiefly on the New Exodus, the New Passover, the Manna, and the Bread of the Presence.  Dr. Pitre unpacks each of these perspectives on the Eucharist by first looking to the Old Testament and then drawing from the extra-biblical traditions of ancient Rabbis.

Bread of the Face

By far the two biggest takeaways for me are the sections on the Manna and the Bread of the Presence.  The Bread of the Presence is remarkably hard to miss in its connections and implications with the Eucharist.  An accurate translation of the Bread of the Presence is literally the "Bread of the Face" and was kept in the tabernacle the Jews had in the wilderness during the exodus (Leviticus 24:1-9) along with the Ark of the Covenant and the golden lamp stand, known as the Menorah.

The Bread of the Face was kept on a golden table, or altar, and veiled when brought out of the tabernacle (Numbers 4:1-15).  It was kept with flagons of wine (Exodus 25:29) and the bread and wine were eaten by the Levitical priests every Sabbath day (!).  The Bread of the Presence was a "perpetual due" that would be continually "before the Lord" as a "covenant forever".

According to Rabbinic tradition, the bread changed once it was brought into tabernacle, as Dr. Pitre explains:

"...certain rabbis believed that something special happened to the Bread of the Presence when it was offered by the priests as a sacrifice to God.  Before the bread was brought into the Holy Place to be offered in sacrifice, it could be laid on a marble table.  But after the bread had been consecrated to God by the priests, it had to be laid on a golden table..." (pg. 128)

Also, when the Temple in Jerusalem was built and pilgrims would travel for miles to celebrate Passover, Pentecost, or the feast known as Tabernacles, the Bread of the Face would be removed from the Temple so pilgrims could see it:

"They [the priests] used to lift it [the Golden Table] up and exhibit the Bread of the Presence on it to those who came up for the festivals, saying on them, 'Behold, God's love for you!' (Babylonian Talmud, Menahoth 29A)" (pg. 130-131)

The connections here to the Eucharist, as we know it now in our experience as Catholics, are just ridiculous.  What more love does God have for us than giving us His body on the cross and in the Eucharist?  Doesn't it make sense that this sign of the "covenant forever" would continue after Christ, to be eaten on the Sabbath?  Isn't it a sign of God's "presence" here on earth with His people and in His "temples"?

There were at least two chapters in the book when I felt the sections drawing from the writings of the rabbi's were redundant and hard to trudge through.  Sometimes there wasn't much incentive to read those parts except to see that the rabbis agreed with how Dr. Pitre interprets the Eucharist through the Old Testament.  Despite those couple instances, the book is very easy to read and hard to put down.

READ THIS BOOK!

Like a Scott Hahn book, Dr. Brant Pitre uses the Old Testament to explain the Catholic faith in ways that leave you screaming "Why have I never heard this before?".  Dr. Pitre answers the question "why did early Christians so easily believe in the Real Presence?" in a very convincing and unique way.

This book would be a time-bomb to give to a protestant and great for those who think Mass is boring or don't understand the Real Presence of the Jesus in the Eucharist.  This book is a must read and I highly recommend buying multiple copies to give away.

Resource Goodness

You can read the first chapter of this book here.  Also check out Dr. Brant Pitre's website with links to talks and other books by him.

You can get an outline of Dr. Brant Pitre's talk on Jesus and the Jewish roots of the Eucharist here.  Download and save the pdf by right clicking and clicking "save as".  This outline gives you a bird's eye view of the book and would be great for presenting this content to an RCIA class or other study group at your church.

You can also listen to an hour long talk by Dr. Pitre on this topic (and most of the content of the book) here.

Video Goodness

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[youtube=http://youtu.be/97SvFoW-hS4]

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### I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review, through the Blogging for Books program.  I was not required to write a positive review and I receive no other compensation for this review other than the book.

Buy Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist here!

Creation of the Universe and You

[youtube=http://youtu.be/N_ZjaZmjImE] Hat tip to Brandon for linking to this well produced and simple video put out by the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston as part of their new VCAT project. The film series walks you  through the Catechism using engaging youtube videos released every month during the Year of Faith.

I love this video.  It captures your attention with the retro and cheesy tv production of the 1970's and is super smooth and simple, driving home a big message: "This world is not an accident. You are not an accident. You were made by God. You were made FOR God. Not because of luck, but because of love."

I would love to see more videos in the same style and genre: "Mr. Smith's Catechism Class" from the 60's.  But, you know...minus all the poor catechesis of the 60's...

"Say What?" Monday Catechism Series #1

Introducing a new series on this blog: each Monday I'll be posting a gem from our Catechism of the Catholic Church that is interesting or remarkable.  This week's Interesting Catechism is about discrimination against those with homosexual tendencies.  It may come as a shocker, but the Church actually does believe that homosexuals should be accepted and loved.  But this paragraph is followed by another that explains that acceptance does not mean honoring or promoting same-sex marriage, nor is the Church saying that those with homosexual tendencies should act on them.  Persons with homosexual tendencies are called to chastity and Christian perfection.

2358 The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God's will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord's Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition.

2359 Homosexual persons are called to chastity. By the virtues of self-mastery that teach them inner freedom, at times by the support of disinterested friendship, by prayer and sacramental grace, they can and should gradually and resolutely approach Christian perfection.

+JMJ

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"Year of Faith" - 5 Things You Should Know

Faith is the fundamental act of Christian existence. Pope Benedict XVI (Christianity and the Crisis of Cultures, Pg. 77)

Fifty years ago on October 11th a seismic shift occurred in Rome, sending shock waves throughout the worldwide Church that have been magnified up to this very day.

This Year Just Got a Whole Lot Faithy-er

On this fiftieth anniversary of Vatican II and the twentieth anniversary of the writing of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the Pope has inaugurated a "Year of Faith", calling the faithful to focus on knowing, living, and sharing their faith better for the next year.

Here are 5 things you need to know about the Year of Faith:

1. What is the Year of Faith?

• Starts October 11, 2012 and ends November 23, 2013
• A "summons to an authentic and renewed conversion to the Lord, the One Savior of the world" (Porta Fidei #6).
• A call to know our faith, live our faith, and share our faith

Several times in the recent history of the Church Popes have challenged the faithful to dive deeper by announcing a year long focus on a specific aspect of the faith.  I did some research and found these past "Years of"...

2009-2010 Year of Priests and St. John Vianny 2008-2009 Year of St. Paul 2004-2005 Year of the Eucharist 1983-1984 Holy Year of Redemption 1967-1968 First Year of Faith Announced by Pope Paul VI

Pope Benedict XVI announced this Year of Faith in an Apostolic Letter titled "Porta Fedei" (Door of Faith) in which he explains "The Year of Faith ... is a summons to an authentic and renewed conversion to the Lord, the one Saviour of the world."

"If today the Church proposes a new Year of Faith and a new evangelization," Pope Benedict explained in a homily at the Opening Mass for the Year of Faith "it is not to honor an anniversary, but because there is more need of it, even more than there was fifty years ago! And the reply to be given to this need is the one desired by the Popes, by the Council Fathers, and contained in its documents."

2. Resources for the Year of Faith

• Pope Benedict XVI's Apostolic Letter "Door of Faith" announcing and explaining the Year of Faith
• Pope's homily he gave today at the Opening Mass for the Year of Faith
• Year of Faith Website!!!
• USCCB's Resources for the Year of Faith
• Even More Resources!!!
• Want to learn your faith? Read the Catechism in a year!

3. Official Prayer for the Year of Faith

What could be better for the Year of Faith than a prayer that encapsulates our faith, a prayer of faith said around the world, and established in the fourth century?  None other than that oldie-but-goodie: The Nicene Creed.

That's right folks, the Nicene Creed is the official prayer for the Year of Faith.  Pray it often, learn it, memorize it, share it, write it on your stuff, spray paint it, love it - many martyrs shed their blood to ensure that this creed of faith would be passed on to you.

It is by believing with the heart that you are justified, and by making the declaration with your lips that you are saved. May the year of faith lead all believers to learn by heart the creed and to say it every day as a prayer, so that the breathing agrees with the faith. --From the Pastoral Aid for the Year of Faith

4. Plenary Indulgence for the Year of Faith

Everyone loves indulgences.  Get rid of some temporal punishment for your sins, or offer it up for someone else (I could use it!).  Here are the requirements as explained from the Year of Faith website.

During the Year of Faith, which will last from 11 October 2012 to 24 November 2013, Plenary Indulgence for the temporal punishment of sins, imparted by the mercy of God and applicable also to the souls of deceased faithful, may be obtained by all faithful who, truly penitent, take Sacramental Confession and the Eucharist and pray in accordance with the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff.

(A) Each time they attend at least three sermons during the Holy Missions, or at least three lessons on the Acts of the Council or the articles of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, in church or any other suitable location.

(B) Each time they visit, in the course of a pilgrimage, a papal basilica, a Christian catacomb, a cathedral church or a holy site designated by the local ordinary for the Year of Faith (for example, minor basilicas and shrines dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Holy Apostles or patron saints), and there participate in a sacred celebration, or at least remain for a congruous period of time in prayer and pious meditation, concluding with the recitation of the Our Father, the Profession of Faith in any legitimate form, and invocations to the Blessed Virgin Mary and, depending on the circumstances, to the Holy Apostles and patron saints.

(C) Each time that, on the days designated by the local ordinary for the Year of Faith, ... in any sacred place, they participate in a solemn celebration of the Eucharist or the Liturgy of the Hours, adding thereto the Profession of Faith in any legitimate form.

(D) On any day they chose, during the Year of Faith, if they make a pious visit to the baptistery, or other place in which they received the Sacrament of Baptism, and there renew their baptismal promises in any legitimate form.

... faithful who, due to illness or other legitimate cause, are unable to leave their place of adobe, may still obtain Plenary Indulgence "if, united in spirit and thought with other faithful, and especially at the times when the words of the Supreme Pontiff and diocesan bishops are transmitted by television or radio, they recite ... the Our Father, the Profession of Faith in any legitimate form, and other prayers that concord with the objectives of the Year of Faith, offering up the suffering and discomfort of their lives".

5. Year of Faith Website

The Church went all edgy and created a website for the Year of Faith.

It's got it all: the Catechism, the Compendium to the Catechism, the official hymn for the Year of Faith, a Mass for the Year of Faith, a collection of homilies by the Pope on Church Fathers, Apostles and medieval theologians, news for the Year of Faith, a worldwide calendar of events, a publication on the New Evangelization, how to obtain a plenary indulgence for the Year of Faith, and lots more.

So Get Out There and Grow In Faith!

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