Category Archives: Divine Providnce

More on the experience of ‘eucatastrophe,’ but from the life of St. Maximilian Kolbe

Posted on by

I am doing my annual novena to St. Maximilian Kolbe ( a different one from the one I publish for my readers) and in it I have been reminded of some examples of ‘eucatastrophe,’ the term coined by JRR Tolkien that I introduced to you in “This is enough, O LORD! Take my life, for I am no better than my fathers.” It means a sudden reversal of fortune resulting in a great good; as opposed to ‘catastrophe, meaning something ending in disaster.

Those of you who are familiar with the Life of St. Maximilian know of these; the first example is when he had started printing his monthly newspaper. He was under orders not to incur any debt for the friary he was posted to, and yet when the bill came for the print run for the first issue, he couldn’t afford to pay it. With this catastrophe looming before him, threatening to destroy his apostolate before it even was launched, St. Maximilian turned to Our Lady and prayed for assistance. While leaving the chapel, he noticed an envelop resting upon the altar with the words “For you, Oh Immaculate.” In the envelope was the exact sum in Polish marks that he needed to pay the bill. His apostolate was largely self-supporting afterwards (which is not to say that it never incurred debt, just that the means were eventually found to pay it before disaster!)

Another time was when his apostolate was getting too large for the friary it was based in. St. Max knew that he needed a more centralized location in Poland. The friary was then located in Grodno, in eastern Poland, which is now in Belarus. He desired something more in the country’s interior, perhaps near Warsaw or Krakow. He discovered suitable land, easily near population centers and transportation hubs that was perfect for his needs. Upon approaching the owner of the land, he convinced him that the land should be donated. The property was originally for sale at a price too high for St. Max. Upon discussion, and perhaps being influenced by St. Max’s personality and charm, with no small amount of assistance from the Immaculata, Prince Drucki-Lubecki donated the land. 

These are two examples of ‘eucatastrophe,’ wherein Divine Providence reaches out to someone either in despair or great need, and suddenly they find themselves in a situation markedly different from just before, and a situation that is highly positive and beneficial.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

This is enough, O LORD! Take my life, for I am no better than my fathers

Posted on by

The First Reading for the Mass for the 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B) is from 1st Book of  Kings Chapter 19, verses 4-8;

Elijah went a day’s journey into the desert,
until he came to a broom tree and sat beneath it. 
He prayed for death saying:
“This is enough, O LORD! 
Take my life, for I am no better than my fathers.” 
He lay down and fell asleep under the broom tree,
but then an angel touched him and ordered him to get up and eat. 
Elijah looked and there at his head was a hearth cake
and a jug of water. 
After he ate and drank, he lay down again,
but the angel of the LORD came back a second time,
touched him, and ordered,
“Get up and eat, else the journey will be too long for you!” 
He got up, ate, and drank;
then strengthened by that food,
he walked forty days and forty nights to the mountain of God, Horeb.

 

I attended the Vigil Mass last night to fulfill one of the requirements for the First Saturday Devotion (receiving Holy Communion) and the First Reading from 1 Kings struck me. Elijah is depressed after having slain the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah who are supported by Jezebel. Jezebel took issue with this and has threatened Elijah’s life if she ever caught him, and so now he is on the run. 

Despite his success in defeating the false prophets and showing Israel just Who the True God is, he is at a loss as to what to do next. He feels defeated as he has no support amongst anyone in Israel. This, despite the obvious support of God, by Whom Elijah wrought his victory over the false prophets of Jezebel.

I think many of us can relate; despite obvious signs of Divine Providence in the past, we may be now going through difficult times and are at the end of our proverbial rope. We may even yearn for death; not in any suicidal manner, but just as a release from the uncertainties and transitory ways of our secular life and the joy of hopefully getting to Heaven. There, we find eternal peace, happiness and freedom form anxiety, fear and the need for material support like income and food as well as no longer having to suffer from our own character defects. But we don’t get that; it’s not God’s will that we join Him yet.

But, as Elijah discovers, from within the depths of despair or loneliness comes a sudden reversal of fortune and circumstance. God suddenly has something for him to do and He supplies Elijah with the means to do it. 

I hope we all have had similar experiences. I know one time in late 1993, I was unemployed and facing eviction and on the same day, just in time, I landed a decent job and an apartment. Despair was gone and I felt pretty good about myself for having faced down those threats and survived. (A side note: although I believed in God, this happened during a period when I was not practicing any religion.) 

There is a word for this: Eucatastrophe – Wikipedia:

A eucatastrophe is a sudden turn of events at the end of a story which ensures that the protagonist does not meet some terrible, impending, and very plausible and probable doom. The writer J. R. R. Tolkien coined the word by affixing the Greek prefix eu, meaning good, to catastrophe, the word traditionally used in classically inspired literary criticism to refer to the “unraveling” or conclusion of a drama’s plot.

So, Elijah experienced a ‘eucatastrophe,’ as did I in November 1993. The biggest eucatastrophe is of course, the Resurrection. Eucatastrophes I think happen when things get out of control, either by external circumstances or our own neglect, and God will that He intervenes before we perish. This means He still has plans for us in some way. Perhaps He intervenes despite our past neglect and complacency; perhaps He Wills it to happen so as to show His might and power. Ultimately, all things work to glorify God. My life experience glorifies Him because although at the time I attributed it to my sudden newfound ‘street smarts,’ in retrospect it was done for me by Him in spite of myself. (And I wasn’t even a Catholic, or any kind of Christian!) 

I need a eucatastrophe within a month. I know ‘something’ will happen, but there is the anxiety driven by not knowing when relief will come. But, Faith assures us when Fear tries to tell us the worst will happen. 

We just have to Trust in Him. 

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Divine Mercy Sunday 2021

Posted on by

Divine Mercy Sunday is upon us. This is one of my favorite Sundays since the Divine Mercy devotion was instrumental in my reversion to the Church, but also due to the promises of Our Lord towards those who approach Him with sincere repentance and contrition in wiping away their sins.

I have always viewed Divine Mercy Sunday as a metaphorical ocean of the Precious Blood of Jesus, bottomless, with the shore off an infinite distance. And I dive into it, covering myself in His Blood and seeing my sins washed away.

I’ve blogged about this day before, so please read this post: Divine Mercy Sunday, and also this one: Divine Mercy Sunday: a Great Day for those who’ve really messed things up.

Here is another great resource on the holiday from the Marians: Divine Mercy FAQs

I do hope that you can avail yourself of this incredible example of the Divine Love for each one of us.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

33 Reasons NOT to walk the Camino

Posted on by

If you have been reading this blog for the past several years and retain a good memory for certain oddities, then you would know that I hold an obsession regarding the film “The Way.” It is a film directed by Emilio Estevez and starred his father, Martin Sheen. It is about a man (Sheen) who’s son (Estevez) died one day into his 500-mile pilgrimage and how he went to Spain to retrieve his son’s body. While there, the father impulsively decided to walk the Camino himself, carrying his son’s ashes, so that the son could ‘complete’ the Camino. It has lead me to watching untold hours of You Tube videos on the Camino. Ideally, I will walk the Camino someday; practically, it ain’t gonna happen, so until then I will do it vicariously. (Incidentally, there are ‘virtual Caminos;’ once in a while in my Facebook feed I see ads for such things. It’s like an exercise app where you enroll and walk so many miles a day wherever you live, either in your home or around the neighborhood and town. You keep track of how far you walk. I think it’s a smartphone app or Apple Watch thing; I’m not sure because I haven’t done that, either. But it looks interesting.)

Now, on to the point of this post. Recently I subscribed to a You Tube channel that is about this couple doing their third Camino. What I just love about it is that it is one of the few Camino channels that is unabashedly Catholic and approaches the Camino from its origins and purposes as a CATHOLIC RELIGIOUS AND SPIRITUAL PILGRIMAGE. Almost all of the others focus on a non-denominational/quasi-pagan spiritual development, or its historical and cultural importance, or that it’s a fun and worthwhile thing to do. Mostly backpackers for whom it is ‘just another’ hiking thing like the Appalachian Trail or whatever.

The channel is here: Los Peregrinos. The pilgrims are a Filipino couple from Dallas, Texas (although originally from the Philippines.) The series of videos are subtitled “33 reason why Catholics should not walk the Camino.” It is a funny use of ‘reverse psychology’ as each reason is a good lesson on faith and growing closer to Jesus, using Camino metaphors and examples.

I have not finished the series yet, currently I’m on Day 25. Each day they relate what happened, where they went and how it was; and at some point within the video he gives that day’s “reason not to walk” it, along with a “Camino Saint of the Day,” typically a saint from the area they were in on that day who is tied to the Camino in some manner.

I am loving these videos (although sometimes I do get dizzy as the camera is moved much too fast when a site is shot. But a small price for such an edifying series of videos.)

There is another You Tube Channel created by Catholics who also walked the Camino; although they visit churches along the way and their Faith is important, their videos aren’t as religious (but still worthwhile!) The St. Max Media YouTube Channel is run by a Polish lady who went on Camino with her daughter. Their playlist is here:  Camino de Santiago – The Way of Saint James

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Year of St. Joseph

Posted on by

On the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, Pope Francis issued the Apostolic Letter Patris Corde which established these upcoming twelve months as the “Year of St. Joseph.” This had long been speculated by those who do that sort of thing, and they were finally proven correct. Like other “Year of’s…” the faithful among us are to delve more deeply into the lives of the saint or doctrine so honored and to become more spiritually enriched as a result.

I really enjoy these “Year of…” declarations. My wife and I still continue the practice we did when Pope Francis announced the Year of Mercy a while back; that of jointly praying the Chaplet of Divine Mercy. I had dug more deeply into St. Faustina’s Diary throughout that Year and added several more books to my Divine Mercy bookshelf. For the previous “Year of Faith” I studied the Catechism of the Catholic Church and studied a few other books on Catholic Dogmas and Doctrines.

This Year of St. Joseph will be no different. I already had a collection of books on the Foster Father of Our Lord and Saviour, but hadn’t yet gotten to reading them. That will change. First up to be read will be The Life and Glories of St. Joseph by Edward Healy Thompson, M.A. From TAN Book’s description, “No words of St. Joseph are recorded In Scripture. In fact. little mention is made of him there. Yet. despite these seeming limitations. the Church nonetheless possesses an indescribably rich knowledge of St. Joseph and of his cultus. This book will astound most readers both with its scope and with its profundity. Based mainly on Scripture. but supported also by Tradition and the depositions of saints. it is a carefully reasoned analysis of the entirety of that great saint’s role in the history of Salvation and the life of the Church. Includes details about his spiritual life and noble lineage; how he was prefigured in the Old Testament; his relationship to Mary and Jesus; why he has been named by Pope Pius IX “The Patron of the Universal Church;” and so forth. Many beautiful insights.” 

As with other “Year of…” declarations, we will have to opportunity  to gain Plenary Indulgences. These are pious practices that we can perform that, if fulfilled correctly and with the proper attitude, can obtain for us the complete remission of our sins.

These pious acts “must be accompanied by sacramental confession, Eucharistic Communion, and prayer for the pope’s intentions; the usual conditions to obtain any plenary indulgence.”

The pious acts for gaining the indulgences are listed here, in this article from CNA, as well as at: Aleteia.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Emergency Fatima Novena!!!

Posted on by

There seems to be numerous novenas at this time of year. That is possibly just my imagination, but nevertheless today begins another novena. This one is to Our Lady of Fatima for the commemoration of the Miracle of the Sun Apparition on October 13, 1917. I know that the typical Fatima novena  celebrates the first apparition on May 13th, but in light of “everything that is going on,” from pandemics to presidential elections and threats of war and economic depression, as well as the ever-looming threat of religious persecution in areas not used to such things, I thought that it would be a great idea to have what I am calling an “Emergency Fatima Novena.”

You can say whatever prayers you’d like; you can do an online search for “Fatima Novena” and pick one that’s preferable or just grab a Rosary and say an extra one every day for the intentions of Our Lady of Fatima. But my “Emergency Novena” will consist of these intentions, which may sound strange or unconventional, but in light of how 2020 has been, I think quite reasonable. So here goes, my intentions and the explanations or reasons for them:

  • Peace
  • Reparation
  • Conversion of Russia
  • Magnificat Option
  • End to the Pandemic

OK. The first one, PEACE. At Fatima Our Lady promised there would be peace if we heeded her warnings. There wasn’t, and WWII happened with the Cold War following right after. Now I am not requesting ‘peace’ as in the absence of war, but that a just peace be established wherein every nation sees no need for aggressive action against another; no nation sees the need to establish global domination and all of the arrogance and conceit that have plagued nation-states for centuries. One reason why I am starting this Novena today, so that it ends on October 13th, is that today (October 5th) is also the feast day of St. Faustina Kowalska, the “Apostle of Divine Mercy.” Pope Francis elevated her feast day to the General Roman Calendar earlier this year. I think it’s placement is significant. St. Faustina reported Our Lord’s words that “Mankind will not have peace until it turns with trust to My mercy.” (Diary, paragraph 300)  I may read too much into coincidences, but with St. Faustina dying on the day she did, with her eventual canonization elevating that day to a spot on the Church calendar, it’s significant in connecting the Divine Mercy Message to the Fatima Message. Taking coincidences one step further, we have St. Maximilian Marian Kolbe being referred to as the “Prophet of the Civilization of Love” in the approved private litany to him. He established his Militia of the Immaculata for the express purpose of ushering in an eventual “era of peace” when everyone would be consecrated to Our Lady and the world is united under the banners of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Such a world is one founded upon peace, the kind of peace that can only be found in the universal acceptance of the Gospel. And while I’m referring to coincidences, the fact that St. Maximilian founded the M.I. only three days after the Miracle of the Sun apparition is something that cannot be ignored. (I know of no source which tells us that St. Maximilian was aware of the Fatima Apparition. Not too surprising, given the state of communications of that era, that Europe was convulsed in WWI, and how slow the news of the Apparition spread. It really did not become too well known until after WWII. But that doesn’t matter. God works through us, and we may not be aware of how our apostolic work may be done in coordination with another’s.) Taking this back to the Fatima Message where Our Lady promised a period of peace, and we can see the connections between the Divine Mercy and Fatima Messages, as well as St. Maximilian’s work. Please bear in mind that this “era of peace” has nothing to do with certain periods of peace referred to by many heretical prophecies (I think they’re called “millenarian,” and are popular in Christian Evangelical circles as well as some Catholics who are not grounded in Church Tradition. This isn’t a literal 1,000 years of peace where Jesus rules until the Antichrist, or whatever. It is just ‘a period of peace’ of an undetermined length.)

So, to tie all that in, my “Peace” intentions are just for, by however Our Lord and Our Lady intends, the relaxation or elimination of all threats to the global order; that the nation-states of the world realize that their ultimate security will lie in not threatening the security of other nations. Naive? Yes, but I’ve always held that if the world was as naive as I can be at times, it would be much better off. 😉  If there is a Divine intervention of some kind (popularly referred to in Catholic prophetic circles as a “Warning,” “Illumination,” or “Chastisement,” who can say? I’ll leave the details up to Jesus and Mary.)

Next up: Reparation. This is obvious. We pray and make reparation for the sins against the Blessed Virgin Mary, for sins of impurity and blasphemies against Our Lord. There is plenty of all that going on every day and almost everywhere. From the vandalization of statues and churches, to sexualizing children, to normalizing sexual perversity and deviancy, to blaspheming Jesus in the propagating of false doctrine by “Catholic” priests and bishops; there’s more than enough sinning going on that dwarfs that which happened in the time of Noah or just before Our Lord’s Incarnation. How the Divine hand has been restrained only bespeaks of the power of prayer and reparation, but it is only a matter of time before the Father takes action.

OK, now the Conversion of Russia. Yes, I know that since the overthrow of Communism when the USSR collapsed in 1991 there has been a flowering and revival of Orthodox Christianity in that land. And yes, I know that Russia was consecrated to Our Lady’s Immaculate Heart in 1984. But Orthodox Christianity is still schismatic (they do not recognize the authority of the Pope over their Churches.) I pray that “by however Our Lord and Our Lady intends,” that Eastern Orthodoxy, including especially the Russian Orthodox Church, comes into communion with Rome.

Next, the Magnificat Option. There are Options galore in today’s Catholicism. There’s the Benedict Option, the Dorothy Option, the Hobbit Option, and who  knows what else. I came up with the “Magnificat Option” in a post on my Facebook.

In the Magnificat, we hear Mary pray,

He has mercy on those who fear him
in every generation. 
He has shown the strength of his arm, 
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.

He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, 
and has lifted up the lowly. 
He has filled the hungry with good things, 
and the rich he has sent away empty.

That, my readers, is the core of the Magnificat Option. That God , by however He intends,” shows His mighty strength and humbles the proud that currently govern our world, be they Presidents, Presidential candidates, Prime Ministers, globalists, banksters, and neocons, endless-war profiteers, and the elites who pervert our culture.

Last up, for the end to the pandemic. No need to explain.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Garden sobriety

Posted on by

I occasionally blog about “going outside to get outside (of yourself.)” Pope St. John Paul II frequently exhorted people to see God in Creation; not to worship the Created, but to cherish the work of the Creator. Given the amount of time he spent outdoors with the youth groups he led in Soviet-occupied Poland during his years as a parish priest, he found value in it, practiced what he preached and shared it with others.

I’m not that outdoorsy, but I do like going for walks, sitting outside when it’s nice and even saying my Morning or Evening Prayers out there. I frequently go for walks up and down our rural road, Rosary in hand.

One thing I’ve tried doing over the years is gardening, as in growing vegetables and herbs. I’ve had sporadic success. Some years better than others, or partial success: tomatoes grow but nothing else, or squash is fine but everything else, not so much.

This year, so far, seems to be different. Things are growing just fine, no pest problems, veggies are flowering and producing fruit, I even harvested some sugar peas this morning. I reported this on a gardening forum and was asked what did I do differently? I replied that “I did have a little more time this year, what with the lockdown and self-quarantine because of COVID-19, but not too much more than in the past. I think I just relaxed, put in the fence posts where I could, strung up the available chicken wire (I didn’t even bury them by a few inches to prevent critters from burrowing under) put in the outer deer-fencing, and just planted what I wanted in no regular order. I tossed pots here and there for herbs, flowers and cherry tomatoes, mostly along the edges. No nice rows, nothing like that. I mean, there is a semblance rows, but not too tidy. Everything is just planted around other things, and I hoped for the best.

I had thought that some of the zucchini was being eaten by something, so I went and purchased replacements. I chose acorn squash, actually, instead of more zucchini. I came home, put the acorn squash down on the grass, went off and did something, came back and wasn’t looking where I was going and stepped on the acorn squash plantlings. I was a little… shall we say… irked. But I figured, what’s the worst that can happen? and so I just planted them elsewhere. Turns out the zukes survived whatever was bugging them and the stepped on acorn squash recovered. (A few of each did die, but most are thriving.)

So, I just decided to relax about the need for me to really do well. If it’s gonna happen, it’ll happen. If not, oh, well, another year’s learning experience. No more wrapping up personal self-esteem with having a good garden. Just plant, chill out, water when needed, tend to it, and there it happens.“

I later edited the post to add that I practice gratitude, that every time I go out there I give thanks.

And THAT is the clincher, or one of them. There is that stuff I mentioned about “relaxing” and “chilling.” And that is true. I was thinking about this today and it does seem that “things are coming together” and I don’t have an adversarial relationship with my garden, that its success points to me; and because I have wrapped my self-esteem up in how good my garden is. To my mind, a lot depended upon having a decent garden. I just would like to grow things and be good at it. Except for times of extreme irritation, I never thought about giving up; I was going to persevere and regardless, keep on gardening every year. But I think I might eventually give up. But not after this year’s effort, even if something disastrous happens.

I suppose perseverance has paid off, but I think it is also something else. Partly the “relaxing” and “chilling” out, meaning I did what I could do and left the results up to God. And partly gratitude, for I do go out there frequently and when I see the results (so far) joy wells up in my soul and I utter wordless prayers of thanksgiving to God. I take no credit for how the garden is doing; I just planted stuff here and there, tend to it, and let it roll.

So, as of this post, I can grow stuff. It still remains to be seen if this is a fluke, but I have hope. I’m already planning next year’s garden!

Some pictures:

thumb-DSCF9009thumb-DSCF9008thumb-DSCF8958

I know it looks weedy and unkempt, but I don’t care. That is also one thing I’m doing differently this year: instead of diligently going out and weeding, (which ultimately fails as they get out of control and I give up) I just laid down cardboard in the pathways so I can walk amongst everything and tend. Weeds are growing right near all the plants, but nothing seems to suffer for it. At this point, I think that weeding may be a bad idea as pulling them up might disturb the roots. Otherwise, I just claim that I’m practicing “biodiversity!” Weeds are a “living mulch!” Yeah, that’s it! 🙂

 

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

On the meaning and impact of prayers

Posted on by

Recently I have begun to really look hard at the words of the various prayers I recite every day. I wonder if many of us do that, really look at them and try and grasp what you’re praying. Be careful what you pray for…

The words and meanings of many prayers lose their impact after they’ve been recited so often. Whether it’s the “Our Father” or the “Hail Mary,” we become immune to the words and what we are praying for.

As an example is this post on the Hail Mary in which I focus on a single line: Pray for us sinners. In it I say, “A thought had popped into my mind while praying the Rosary today…

The line in the second verse, “…pray for us sinners…” struck me.

It reads “pray for us sinners,” not “pray for me, a sinner.”

The Rosary is the devotional prayer most closely associated with Catholics. And rightly so, with the prayer’s popularity over the centuries and given that at any one time, there are probably hundreds of thousands (or more!) Catholics praying it around the clock, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

Someone, somewhere, right now, is praying a Rosary. Which mean that given the “pray for us sinners,” wording, there are thousands of people asking the Blessed Mother’s intercession for everyone and for each other, including you, right now.”

A sobering thought, especially if you’re going through a bad time. You are not alone. Someone, actually, a whole massive number of someones, are praying for you right now….”

If you are reading this, then there is an excellent chance that you have at least a basic book of Catholic prayers. Grab it and read the Morning Offering, and the Acts of Faith, Hope and Charity; especially if they are the traditional versions. Read them. Yes, you’ve probably read them 10,000 times already…. read them again, very slowly and ponder each line. Be like Mary, who “ponder these things in her heart.” Contemplate them, try to read them as if for the first time. They are really mind-blowing when you consider the words and what you are asking and declaring. (Not to mention the scary consideration of the “Our Father” in which you are asking God to forgive you of your sins only on the condition that you forgive others first. Think about that!)

But for your convenience:

MORNING OFFERING

O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary,
I offer You my prayers, works, joys and sufferings of this day for all the intentions
of Your Sacred Heart,
in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world,
in reparation for my sins,
for the intentions of all my relatives and friends,
and in particular for the intentions of the Holy Father.

ACT OF FAITH

O MY GOD, I firmly believe that Thou art one God in Three Divine Persons, Father, Son and Holy Ghost. I believe that Thy Divine Son became Man, and died for our sins, and that He will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe these and all the truths which the Holy Catholic Church teaches, because Thou hast revealed them, Who canst neither deceive nor be deceived.

ACT OF HOPE

O MY GOD, relying on Thy almighty power and infinite mercy and promises, I
hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of Thy grace, and Life Everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer.

ACT OF CHARITY

O MY GOD, I love Thee above all things, with my whole heart and soul, because Thou art all-good and worthy of all love. I love my neighbor as myself for the love of Thee. I forgive all who have injured me, and ask pardon of all whom I have injured.

Ponder every line, carefully. Perhaps your prayer life will be rejuvenated a little and you’ll see prayer in a different light. You can try this with other prayers as well.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

On Consecrating and Trusting

Posted on by

Of the pillars of my Catholic Faith, two are very important (apart from my marriage): my consecration to the Blessed Virgin Mary through the method of St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe and my devotion to the Divine Mercy, as revealed to us by Our Lord through St. Faustina Kowalska. There are other “pillars,” but these I’ll discuss now.

I consecrate myself daily to the Blessed Mother recite the Divine Mercy chaplet. And oftentimes throughout the day I say “Jesus, I Trust in You.”

But what does all that really mean? It comes down to Divine Providence and trusting that your prayers are heard and that the intentions mean something and that God will hear and answer your prayers. Perhaps not in the way you scripted, but somehow “He has your back.” Quite often I fear that I entrust myself to Mary and then by my actions I take it back a little. And similarly, I trust in Jesus, but take it back.

How do I take it back? By actions and feelings, but mostly feelings. Fear and anxiety about problems currently being faced and a future that is scary… Why bother entrusting yourself to Mary and trusting in Jesus if your fears and worries imply that you don’t really mean it?

Trusting in Divine Providence is scary; it requires deep faith and an abiding conviction that God is real, not just some nice fairy tale or soothing concept that gives us comfort. God exists, He is real, He understands us and responds to our needs. He was one of us, and remains to this day among us on our altars and in our tabernacles in the Eucharist. We need patience and trust that things will happen in time; when we need it, not always when we want it.

But it is still scary. It’s like the future is some dark tunnel or hallway and there’s no light anywhere illuminating the interior. You know you have to go through the tunnel as that’s the way to the future. And so you step into it and realize that it doesn’t get brighter.

I love “Divine Mercy in My Soul,” the spiritual diary of St. Faustina. I wrote before that “The Diary beautifully describes the love and mercy of God. I feel it is a text that every sober Catholic should have. It often serves to lift my spirits in ways other books do not (save for the Gospels.) When I read it I feel like it is a long, soothing letter of comfort, consoling me when times are difficult.”

Throughout it Our Lord is telling her that it wounds Him when people do not trust Him; not trusting in His mercy or His Providence.

So I’ve been thinking about that; like I said above, either God and religion is real or it’s all a bunch of hooey. Too often, when our fears and anxieties about the future overtake us and we fret all night in bed and don’t get to sleep, it’s as if we become functional atheists. We believe there is a God but we don’t quite have the faith that He hears, understands and plans for us. Including providing for us. Either our Faith is real or it’s not.

The mystery is how He will do it. Therein lies some of the fear and anxiety as often it might not be quite how we’d envision. We’d have more confidence if we knew what He was going to do, but of course it doesn’t work that way.

It takes courage to go out into the deep, to cast your nets into the future and hope that the fish swim into the net.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

On Bob Waldrop and introducing the Novena of Novenas

Posted on by

Today begins a special period of prayer, the “Novena of Novenas.” This was started several years ago by Bob Waldrop, the late founder of the St. Oscar Romero Catholic Worker House in Oklahoma City. Bob died on August 30, 2019.

I never met Bob in person although we had been friends on Facebook for around ten years. I first discovered him online in the early 00s. I was exploring my Catholic faith and seeing what was online (I am revert) and in the course of looking into various theories of Catholic living ran across his site on “Champagne Living on a Beer Budget.” This intrigued me, given my recent sobriety. I quickly learned that it had nothing to do with the drinking, brewing or fermenting of alcoholic beverages, but rather was an omnibus guide to frugal, simple living. I believe that it was from Bob’s numerous sites that I started learning that Catholicism wasn’t just about the sacramental and liturgical life. There is an entire system of thought rooted in Scripture, interpreted and implemented by saints, popes and laity, that brings into the political and economic sphere the teachings of Holy Mother Church. Soon afterwards I discovered Distributism, Subsidiarity and Solidarity; Personalism and Communitarianism. I’m lousy at applying many of them, but I try. Much later, monarchism and Tradition. (Bob was by no stretch of the imagination a monarchist. I think he was Traditional Latin Mass-friendly, but he was a Liturgical Music Director at a parish that only offered the Mass in the Ordinary Form. But his YouTube Channel does offer videos of chant and other pre-1962 hymns.)

I became entranced by Bob’s sites. I bookmarked them all including subpages in a browser folder entitled “Bobternet,” as his sites were massive (albeit disorganized, which he admitted) and contained copious amounts of information about a plethora of subjects, I figured he was a subset of the Internet and hence gave it that name. (He thought it hilarious when I told him years later on Facebook.)

Bob was a Catholic Worker, with “‘‘hair on fire’ rants on politics, economics, food, permaculture, sustainability, peak oil, climate instability, cooperatives, local foods, and etc.,” that afflicted the comfortable and comforted the afflicted. He lived the Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy. He was truly a disciple of Servant of God Dorothy Day and her colleague Peter Maurin (co-founders of the Catholic Worker Movement in 1933). He believed in Jesus with a passion and adhered to the Church’s orthodox teachings. One might think that with his stance on social issues he would be a “cafeteria Catholic” and pick and choose what he preferred amongst the teachings, but his sites on the Church’s social justice teachings, from politics and economics, to war, the pro-life movement, poverty and human suffering, migrants and such, exuded orthodoxy with supporting documentation from Scripture, the Saints, Popes and the Catechism. This makes people uncomfortable, particularly those who prefer a quiet and tidy Christianity of Sunday Mass or ‘worship service’ followed by secular activities. “Just let me worship and pray once in a while, and please don’t remind me of my obligations to serve others.” Bob’s faith was an active Catholic Christianity.

Well, one of the things that he introduced was this thing called the “Novena of Novenas.” Nine consecutive individual Novenas, thus stretching across 81 days. He began them annually on the Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (the Saturday immediately after the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart.) This year it begins today, and ends on the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in September. (I don’t think they always end on another important liturgical event, but I think it is way cool when they do as to me, it signifies a God-incidence.)

I will borrow (copy/paste) from Bob’s work on the Novena’s particulars, but I have included links directly to his sites so you can access the complete information (just be aware that when you do go there, dates are incorrect as he died during the last one, and no one is in charge of maintaining or updating his sites. All of the links are to the Internet Archive’s version of his sites. I will address that issue at the end of this post, so do not be concerned about the links.) One thing: I have never prayed this before, and so I do not know if the intentions change every year. I am going with the last one from 2019, as that was Bob’s last and he died during it.

OK, here we go (Bob’s writing is italicized. When I interrupt, it’ll be back to non-italicized font.)

“A Novena of Novenas
for Justice, Peace, & Creation

This “novena of novenas” is 81 days of intercessory prayer, reflection, and orthopraxis (“right action”) for peace among nations, justice for all people, and the care of Creation. We start on the Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, — June 20, 2020 and end on September 8, 2020. Our novena dates wander around from year to year, since we always begin on the Immaculate Heart of Mary, a movable feast, the date of which is dependent upon the date of Easter. (It’s the Saturday after the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart, which is the Friday after the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ.)“

“A novena is 9 days of prayer, and recalls the 9 days that the Apostles spent praying in the “Upper Room” between the Ascension and Pentecost. This call to prayer consists of nine consecutive novenas -81 days!

Each novena has a general intention, the prayers, thoughts for the Journey, and an act of caring for Creation.“

All right, Paulcoholic here, and you might be wondering what this all has to do with the typical focus of Sober Cat, which is sobriety. Quite some time ago I changed the subtitle of this blog to “Catholicism, Recovery, Sobriety, Conversion, Prayer, Fasting, Repentance, Penance.” Mainly because I wanted to gradually expand beyond writing about “how to maintain sobriety and recovery by means of Catholic spirituality etc., etc., etc.,” And Bob’s stuff is within the realm of the subtitle. Also, and this is important: if you are reading this blog, then there’s a good chance you are or were an alcoholic or addict, or you know and love one. Recovery, to me, isn’t just about staying clean and sober. I firmly believe that once we establish our sobriety from booze and drugs, we continue that work, only extending outward from ourselves and to our neighbors. It does mean in part that we reach out to others we know or suspect are trapped by addictions, but it also means that we recognize the inherent sickness of the world around us and the fact that human society today, everywhere, is addicted to something. Just look around. There are power struggles everywhere leading to violence, intolerance and injustice. People make demands rather than appeals. We are addicted to materialism and the acquisition of more goods. Many people, including myself at times and perhaps you, root our identity in what we do for a living, how much money we earn and what we spend it on. Too many secular distractions abound that take us away from God. The Church is under attack from without and within. Face up to it: humanity today is sick and in dire need of a massive makeover that can only come from embracing the Gospel. “Mankind will not have peace until it turns with trust to My mercy.” (Words of Jesus in the Diary of St. Faustina Kowalska, “Divine Mercy in My Soul,” paragraph 300.) Peace is not found in perpetuating injustices, in acquiring more material goods, using up the natural resources of our planet with little regard for future generations. Peace is not found in aborting future generations! Peace will not happen unless justice is established and in Catholic social teachings, justice means that everyone receives what is their due based upon the individual’s intrinsic dignity of being made in the images and likeness of God and in being His adopted children through Christ. All human life is sacred and unique, from womb to tomb, and was not put on this Earth to be exploited, enslaved, or oppressed for narrow political and economic goals. A Mercy-based culture.

And so we have the essential themes of the Novena of Novenas. Each one focuses on separate issues. But, back to Bob:

“Each novena is dedicated to one of the titles of Mary and one or more of the saints of justice and peace, whose prayers of intercession we invoke for our various intentions. It’s like calling up a friend and saying, “Please pray for me.” The “Works of Justice and Peace” of the first seven Novenas are from the statement of mission of the…Saint Oscar Romero Catholic Worker House.

Each of the 81 days we will also pray the Novena to St. John Chrysostom on behalf of the conversion of the United States Catholic Bishops, so that they will come to a better understanding of the necessity of authenticity in leadership. We think the orthodoxy (“right teaching”) of the Gospel of Jesus Christ calls us to a certain way of living. That’s known as “orthopraxis” — or right action..”

Me, again. Yes, the Bishops of the United States (and perhaps in your country, as well) are in need of conversion. Too many lack the courage and fortitude to be true shepherds of the Church in these times of Spiritual Warfare. The bishops should lead us towards a ‘certain way of living,’ but when they don’t the Holy Spirit raises up the laity to compensate for when the Bishops lack. The Spirit did that when He brought Dorothy Day into the Catholic Church, just in time for her to meet Peter Maurin and establish the Catholic Worker. The work of the Movement was seen by some to have been a major reason for the failure of Communism to gain traction in the United States in the 1930s. It seems we have come full circle. In the 2020s we are back to battling the forces of Marxism; forces we thought were defeated when the USSR collapsed. It wasn’t, it just metastasized. Oh, Bob wants to speak again:

“The spirit of this novena may be found in these words of Saint Oscar Romero. . . “It is very easy to be servants of the word without disturbing the world: a very spiritualized word, a word without any commitment to history, a word that can sound in any part of the world because it belongs to no part of the world. A word like that creates no problems, starts no conflicts.”

“What starts conflicts and persecutions, what marks the genuine church, is the word that, burning like the word of the prophets, proclaims and accuses; proclaims to the people God’s wonders to be believed and venerated, and accuses of sin those who oppose God’s reign, so that they may tear that sin out of their hearts, out of their societies, out of their laws – out of the structures that oppress, that imprison, that violate the rights of God and of humanity. This is the hard service of the word.”

“But God’s Spirit goes with the prophet, with the preacher, for he is Christ, who keeps on proclaiming his reign to the people of all times.”

At this point you may be asking, “OK, Paulcoholic. Enough already. Where’s the actual, you know, NOVENA? Helllooooo?”

Bob’s got you covered. Here he goes:

“Getting Started.

Begin each novena prayer with a time of quiet prayer. You may find it helpful to pray some repetitions of the Jesus Prayer (Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner), a decade of the Rosary, the Chaplet of Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin, or a time of spiritual reading or lectio divina that will prepare your mind and your heart for the prayer to come. This could be a time for a daily examen, where you consider your actions of the day and how they relate to God’s call in your life. 

All right. That’s it. You know about Bob Waldrop, you’ve been introduced to a whole muncha buncha things to think about; I am not now going to load you down with the actual First Novena itself. “What?!?!?!” you scream in horror. “After all this…”

“Hang on.” I interrupt. “That will be in the next post, almost immediately after this one. This blogpost is long enough, dontcha think?. But if you can’t wait a few minutes or so before I post the intentions and prayers of the First of the Nine, here’s a link to the whole kitten kaboodle:” The Novena of Novenas for Justice, Peace and Creation

(Update! The First Novena is now up: A Novena of Novenas for Justice, Peace, & Creation I: to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin

NOTE: all of the links that I gave for Bob’s sites are to their last versions that have been scooped up by the Internet’s “Wayback Machine,” also known as Internet Archive. This is because his domains are going dark or becoming security risks from lack of updates, or are being coopted by squatters. So the only reliable place to get what Bob taught and shared is in the Wayback Machine. Thankfully, all links are self-contained, so that if you click on something in one site that links to another page of his, it remains within the Archive even if the link is to a different site of Bob’s.

Since his death, his work in helping the poor, the marginalized, and all those considered “expendable” by society is being carried out by other groups since, as far as I can find out, the Romero House has since shut down. (I was informed last Autumn by someone who knew him very well that the House’s operations were transferred to the Dorothy Day Center in Oklahoma City. The Romero House itself was on the verge of being condemned. My information may be dated, but the Romero website’s domain name has been abandoned and subsequently taken over by a website squatter hawking goods. This person, who is as unique an individual as Bob was, and who is a dedicated Catholic Worker, wrote a nice obituary on her blog. Please go here: GOD’s Garden Gnome Gone Home.) Perhaps if she reads this she can post an update on the Romero House and legacy, in the comments.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)