Category Archives: Lourdes

Our Lady of All Help

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Imagine being deaf all of your life and the first sound you hear is the voice of the Blessed Virgin Mary. That is what happened to Jeanne Courtel, a 12 year old sheperdess who had been deaf and unable to speak her entire life until August 15, 1652, when the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to her in Querrien, Brittany, France. 

Mary appeared to Jeanne , who was tending to her familiy’s flock of sheep. Mary appeared to her in a manner strikingly similar to how she would appear two  centuries later to St. Bernadette Soubirou, in Lourdes, France. Jeeanne reported feeling the wind, and then seeing a beautiful young lady of about 12-15 years of age dressed in white. The first thing that happened was that Jeanne was cured of her deafness and inability to speak; for she heard the Lady speak:

“I choose this place to be honored. Build for me a chapel in the middle of this village and many people will come.” 

The Lady continued, “Charming shepherdess, give me one of your lambs.”

Jeanne  replied, “These are not my sheep. They are my father’s. If he wants to give one to you, I am happy to agree.”

The Lady pressed on: “Return to your parents and tell them that I require a lamb.” 

Jeanne asked Our Lady, “But who will keep my herd?” 

Mary replied, “Myself. I will keep your sheep!”

Jeanne returned to her parents who were astonished when the little girl told them, “A Lady came to see me, and she asked me for one of your lambs.” 

The father, overjoyed at his daughter’s miraculous recovery, replied, “Ah, my daughter. Because this Lady has made you speak, we will give her all the flock.” 

Her father asked Jeanne if the Lady told her who she was.

“She said that she was the Virgin Mary, and we need to build a chapel in the village so many pilgrims will go there to honor her.” 

The father agreeably replied, “If this is true, we will ask the bishop to allow us to build a shrine to the Virgin Mary.” 

The next day, Jeanne sees the Virgin again, who tells her: “I am the Virgin Mary. I chose this place to be honored. I want you to be built a chapel in this village. I want you to see the rector and ask him to work towards building a sanctuary for me here in Querrien.” 

Mary also said, “To prove that the message that comes from heaven’s command, I tell you that you will discover a few steps from the fountain of Saint-Gal an image that was honored in ancient times.”

In the year 610 A.D., St. Gall had visited the region to erect a hermitage. He had personally sculpted a wooden statue of the Virgin Mary, which was eventually lost when the chapel was destroyed. However, on August 20, 1652, it was found to be exactly where Our Lady said it would be: buried beneath a pond and in a miraculously preserved in excellent condition.

On September 11, 1652, Msgr. Denis de La Barde, the bishop of Saint-Brieuc, visited the area and was told all about the events. After investigating the happenings, he formally recognized the validity of the apparition on September 20th. He also blessed the first stone to be used in constructing the chapel. Construction soon began and it was completed in 1656. It was enlarged in 1759 to accommodate the crowds of pilgrims visiting the chapel.

Jeanne Courtel was entombed within the shrine after she died in 1703 at the age of 63. All in all, Mary appeared to her 15 times during the period of August-September 1652.

The title of Mary in this apparition in French is “Notre-Dame de Toute-Aide,” which in English is “Our Lady of All Help” or “Our Lady Who Helps in All Things.” It is also often known as “Our Lady of Eternal Aid,” which is nice, but inaccurate, as it gives theologians who prize accuracy and precision in such matters the heebie-jeebies. 

Mary was known by this title from the Querriens apparition because it denotes her motherly care for people. Consider: Mary cured a young girl of her deafness and speech defect, without having been asked. Only a loving, tender Mother who loves her children so much would do this. That a statue was found, still in excellent condition despite being buried for nearly a millennia, also harkens to her ability to care for ‘all things.’ 

 

Sources: Divine Mysteries: Our Lady of Eternal Aid, Querrien, France, 1652

 

Miracle Hunter: Querrien, Bretania, France (1652)

 

Sensus Fidelium YouTube Channel: The Forgotten Marian Apparition That Foretold Mary’s Triumph: Our Lady of Eternal Aid

 

Sanctuary Our Lady Of All Help (In French, but translatable in many browsers.)

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!!)

The LORD looks into the heart

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This excerpt from the First Reading for the Mass of the Fourth Sunday of Lent is taken from 1 Samueal 16:7.

Not as man sees does God see, 
because man sees the appearance 
but the LORD looks into the heart.”

Courtesy: USCCB

I just love this. People habitually see just the exterior: a person’s race, gender, economic status, health. But God sees the whole person, and He knows the underlying causes for the exterior appearances judged by others. 

It’s shame that people cannot do similar; while we can never see into the heart of someone, we can look at other people and not just see them as typical representatives of their race or gender; or we can choose to not see them as an objective thing to use or judge or disregard.

This is a common theme in my book, Building a Civilization of Love: a Call to Creative Catholics:

 

 

Building a Civilization of Love: A Call to Creative Catholics is a call to arms, or rather, a call to pens, paintbrushes, and video cameras, for creative Catholics to take up St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe’s call to infiltrate pop culture and help alleviate the ills that pervade contemporary society. St. Maximilian saw back in the 1920s how the use of cinema, radio, and mass-market books was corrupting society. He thought that those same tools could be used as a countercultural force to overcome this corruption.

Furthermore, it explains through the example of three critical apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Guadalupe, Lourdes, and Fatima how she herself suggested strategies and alternatives to the dehumanizing and increasingly pagan contemporary culture we have today.

Building a Civilization of Love: A Call to Creative Catholics concludes by showing how the Catholic Faith can be used to provide a road map out of our current morass and a blueprint to build a more just and fair society constructed according to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy and other elements of traditional Catholic Social Teachings.

“Chapter III: Following Mary’s Example” dives into this.

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!!)

Lourdes, the Immaculate Conception, the Militia of the Immaculata and Sobriety

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Reblogged from several years ago and edited slightly:

This is a story about a Marian feast day, its significance; a saint and what he did with it; and what all this meant for yours truly.

Today is February 11th, day when  Our Lady appeared to St. Bernadette Soubirous in a grotto near Lourdes, France in 1858.

The apparition was significant in several respects: the most important was that Our Lady identified herself with the words, “I am the Immaculate Conception.” Not that she was “immaculately conceived,” but rather she was the essence of the immaculate conception. As St. Maximilian Kolbe later pointed out (this is a paraphrase) “To be white is one thing, to be whiteness is another.”

For another, it seemed as if Heaven was endorsing the definition of the Dogma of Mary’s Immaculate Conception in 1854 by Pope Pius IX in Ineffabilis Deus:

“We declare, pronounce and define that the doctrine which asserts that the Blessed Virgin Mary, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God, and in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, Saviour of the human race, was preserved free from every stain of original sin is a doctrine revealed by God and, for this reason, must be firmly and constantly believed by all the faithful.”

And one more: that Mary’s self-identification as the Immaculate Conception was utterly fascinating and mysterious to St. Maximilian Kolbe, who meditated and pondered on it his entire life. It inspired his “Militia of the Immaculata” and associated media enterprises and friaries.

I discovered St. Maximilian Kolbe and the Militia of the Immaculata in 2002, after I had sobered up sufficiently to search online for what the Catholic Church has to offer me in recovery. As I had stated in my Reversion story, “I had been going to AA meetings, but I knew early on that the brand of spirituality offered there was not going to do the job.” And so I explored the religion of my childhood and never looked back. That St. Max was a patron of addicts helped. When I learned that, I explored more about him.

So I found out about St. Max and the M.I. The M.I. calls for consecrating oneself to the Blessed Mother as her “possession and property” so she can “make of me, of all my powers of soul and body, of my whole life, death and eternity, whatever most pleases” her. That she will use me as “a fit instrument in your immaculate and merciful hands for introducing and increasing your  (note: God’s) glory to the maximum in all the many strayed and indifferent souls, and thus help extend as far as possible the blessed kingdom of the most Sacred Heart of Jesus.” I figured if that’s true (and I never doubted the Blessed Mother) then this may help in my recovery. I doubt that remaining a drunk would be of use to her. This blog post Marian Consecration and the Guarantee of Eternal life expands on how Marian Consecration can help your sobriety. In short, when you become Mary’s possession, she guides you along the path to Jesus. Consecration can heal you, not in any miraculous way (but that could happen!) but it can help you focus and give a new dimension to your prayer and devotional life. I firmly believe that if you consecrate yourself to Mary, the probability of relapse should vanish (your willing cooperation with the graces received through Mary’s interession is assumed.)

And so on October 7, 2002, on the Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary, I gave myself to Mother Mary. I joined the M.I. which “is a universal and international public Association of the faithful, erected by the Holy See. The MI was founded by St. Maximilian Kolbe, OFMConv., in 1917, is open to Catholics, of all walks of life, and encourages all people of good will to develop a trusting relationship with Our Lady. The aim of the MI is to win the whole world for Christ through the Immaculata, Mother of God and of the Church.

“The MI is a global vision of Catholic life under a new form, consisting in the bond with the Immaculata, our universal Mediatrix before Jesus.” -St. Maximilian Kolbe.

The MI offers programs that: -Provide formation in the teachings of the Catholic Church
-Foster love for Jesus in the Eucharist and for the Sacramental life
-Promote a deep understanding of the Blessed Virgin Mary’s role in the plan of Salvation and of the gift of consecration to her in the spirit of St. Maximilian Kolbe.
-Ignite with the zeal to become generous instruments of evangelization in one’s own environment, giving witness to the Truth and promoting the sacredness of human life. M.I. members, mindful of their call to evangelize, strive to give witness to the Faith everywhere. They seek to reach out to their own families, friends, co-workers, fellow parishioners, the sick and elderly, youth, adults, and whomever they meet, in order to lead every individual with Mary to Christ, Our Savior and Our Hope.

(Above quote courtesy of M.I. You can also visit that link to learn more about the MI and St. Maximilian Kolbe, along with possibly joining yourself!)

I think Mary started using me right afterwards. She strengthened me against what I perceived as attacks against my Faith in my AA Home Group as well as giving me the courage to stop attending meetings regularly in 2004. Not that I am advocating everyone should stop going to meetings; on the contrary, if you enjoy and need regular meeting attendance, by all means do it. It just wasn’t for me.

Once I drifted from AA, I began looking into what recovery resources the Church offers. You can read about that here: “About this blog.” After a whle I just decided to start Sober Catholic; I mentioned in some earlier post that I believe the Blessed Virgin Mary “inspired” me to do it. A “fruit,” if you will, of of my M.I. Consecration. Not that I received any interior locution or some such thing, just a desire that since no one else was doing this at the time, I might as well. I doubt I’d have the courage on my own.

So here’s the story: A apparition of the Blessed Mother; a saint’s taking that apparition and message and developing it; and a marginal ex-drunk finding a personal mission in it – Trudging the Road of Happy Destiny and taking whoever bothers to read this stuff along with him.

So that’s that! The sanctuary or Our Lady of Lourdes in France is famous for miraculous healings wrought there. Over 7,000 miralulous healinga have been reported since 1858; only 72 (so far) have been confirmed by the Church to me truly miraculous.) Because of that, Pope St. John Paul II also declared today to be the “World Day of the Sick” in 1993. We alcoholics, even though we may be sober, are still “sick.”

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!!)

Living the Message of Lourdes

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Reblogged from last year:
Tomorrow is the Feast Day of Our Lady  of  Lourdes, commemorating the first apparition Our Lady to a young sheperdess, St. Bernadette Soubirous, in this date in Lourdes, France, 1858. You can learn all about it here: The official website of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes as well as: Lourdes Sanctuary.

Given the significance of this Apparition to us alcoholics and addicts (recovered or not) I wrote an entire chapter on it in  “The Sober Catholic Way.” 

00000 TSCWBookCover 1 scaled e1727404661851.

From Chapter XVI: “Live the Message of Lourdes:”

How is the Apparition of Our Lady at Lourdes related to the Sober Catholic Way? We are sick people, regardless of the length of our sobriety. Our Lady of Lourdes is our special channel of healing graces. Jesus is the Divine Physician and He works through His Mother at Lourdes.

Furthermore, Our Lady told Bernadette several times about the need for penance. This strikes at the heart of who we are. For we have hurt and damaged others through the sins we committed against them during our active years of addiction. Penance is something we desperately need.

Therefore:

We should also willingly “take up our Crosses” and accept those trials, troubles, and tribulations that come into our lives every day and offer them up in reparation for our sins and those of others.

You could rephrase a part of that in Twelve Step language as a type of ‘making amends.’

And one last thing: it’s OUR FEAST DAY, TOO!!

Pope St. John Paul II had declared February 11th as the “World Day of the Sick,” a special day for healing Masses and prayers for anyone suffering from any illness, malady, or disability. It’s our feast day!

Donations to support my work are appreciated!

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!!)

The SIx Decade Rosary of Lourdes and St. Bridget

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A six-decade rosary was held by Our Lady when she appeared to St. Bernadette at Lourdes, France in 1858. The peasants around that area of France commonly used this kind of rosary; it differs from the the more common six-decade Brigittine Rosary (see below) only in the Mysteries prayed. The peasants used the accepted mysteries of the common everyday rosary that Catholics pray (known as the “Dominican Rosary”) but added a sixth decade for the Holy Souls in Purgatory. 🙏 From what I can find out online, the residents of the area still practice this devotion.

I’ve been obsessed with a book I’ve started reading: Champions Of The Rosary: The History And Heroes Of A Spiritual Weapon by Fr. Donald Calloway. (I’ll write up a review of it soon.)

I have learned quite a lot about the Rosary and while I have deeply loved it from my reversion through today, reading nearly 200 pages on its history and the saints who’ve championed it has really made me appreciate the extent by which it is critical for Catholics to pray the Dominican Rosary, especially every day. Its role in the salvation of souls is underappreciated and perhaps even little known. Anyway, and more to the point of this post, after reading a few chapters of the heroes of the rosary, I suddenly became obsessed very needful of having my own six-decade rosary, which is odd considering the book doesn’t mention it much. It must be some sort of God-incidental thing where my subconscious mind connected Calloway’s book to my increasing devotion to Our Lady of Lourdes and the lore surrounding the Apparition that I finally thought “I must have one of my own!”

I started looking online for “six decade rosaries” and discovered they’re called “Brigittine Rosaries.” (OK, so I forgot that Calloway did mention those.) They’re just like the cDominican Rosaries except there’s the additional sixth decade. Many online stores sell them; often for a lot more money than I’m willing to spend. I did find one nice source from Canada that offers quite a huge variety, and many are very affordable; but I was turned off by the high shipping costs (tariffs? 😡🤬 ) (If you’re curious, they are Discount Rosaries. They offer a great selection of rosaries and chaplets and other resources for Catholics. If I had a longer shopping list, I might have risked the shipping fees. Please patronize them to make up for my not having done so! 🥺😇 )

So then I thought, “I’ve got a lot of broken and busted rosaries around here. Maybe I can salvage parts from some and make my own!” My first attempt was succesful for about 2 minutes (if that) before it fell to pieces. 😢 After the typical feeling sorry for myself period ran its course, I thought, “There’s a LOT MORE parts left, let me try again!” 💪🏻

SUCCESS! 🎆🎉

It looks a little odd, but after much trial and error (and squinting,) I managed to make a six-decade rosary out of three damaged or broken ones. Saves me money in not having to buy one. 😃

Mine’s a far cry from the gold chain-and-white-beaded rosary Mary held, but I’m happy with it. 😇😃 Like I said above, you pray the Lourdes Six-Decade Rosary using the same Mysteries as the regular rosary, just that the sixth Mystery is for the Holy Souls in Purgatory.

Just two months ago I made a St. Rita Chaplet from busted rosaries! 🤜🏻🤛🏻 There will be a post on that soon!

The “Brigittine Rosary” is named after St. Bridget of Sweden who propagated it. It was often referred to as the “peasant’s rosary” which had no assigned mysteries to it. The peasants made up whatever suited their fancy.  However, the Brigittine Rosary does have formal, assigned Mysteries. (I guess the peasants didn’t care. 🫤 )

The Brigittine Rosary was instituted and propagated by St. Bridget of Sweden. She was favored with visions and extacies but remained profoundly humble with a deep devotion to the Passion of Our Lords and His Holy Wounds, and great love for the Blessed Virgin and made a rosary in her honor. When describing the rosary she constructed, she explained it was 63 Hail Mary beads to honour the 63 years of life the Blessed Virgin lived on earth. This is why it has 6 decades.

How to recite the Brigittine Rosary:

The Eighteen Mysteries of the Brigittine Crown Chaplet

Joyful Mysteries:

 

The Immaculate Conception

The Annunciation of Gabriel to Mary

The Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth

The Birth of Jesus

The Presentation of Jesus In The Temple

The Finding of Jesus In The Temple

 

The Sorrowful Mysteries:

 

The Agony of Jesus In The Garden

Jesus Is Scourged At The Pillar

Jesus Is Crowned With Thorns

Jesus Carries His Cross

The Crucifixion

The Body of the Lord was placed in the Arms of His Sorrowful Mother

 

The Glorious Mysteries:

 

The Resurrection of Jesus

The Ascension of Jesus

The Descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost

The Assumption of Mary into Heaven

The Coronation of Mary as Queen of Heaven and Earth

The Patronage of Mary, Mediatrix of All Grace (Brigittine Rosary)

or

The Patronage of Mary, Queen and Beauty of Carmel (Carmelite Rosary)

 

To St Bridgett, Queen of Sweden

 

WITH confident hearts we fly to thee, blessed Bridgett, and ask, in these times of darkness and unbelief,

thy intercession on behalf of those who are separated from the Church of JESUS CHRIST. By the clear

knowledge which thou hadst of the cruel sufferings of our crucified SAVIOUR, the price of our

redemption, we beg of thee to obtain for those who are outside the one fold the grace of faith, so that the

scattered sheep may return to the one true Shepherd.

Through CHRIST our LORD. Amen.

St Bridgett, fearless servant of GOD, pray for us.

St Bridgett, patient in sufferings and humiliations, pray for us.

St Bridgett, wonderful in thy love towards JESUS and Mary, pray for us.

PATER, Ave, Gloria.

Source: Discover a Lost Devotion of Brigittine Crown Chaplet

This source has the Luminous Mysteries: OCDS Tulsa.

If you are curious as to how it became a part of the Carmelite tradition:

How Did it Become Part of the Carmelite Habit?

St. Teresa of Avila prayed the rosary daily and it is believed that when she was traveling throughout Spain founding her monasteries of the reform, she would visit the Brigittine Monastery. It was there that she learned about their six-decade Rosary. As time went on, the six-decade Rosary became part of the Carmelite Habit, with a large medal of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in addition to, or even in place of, the crucifix found on the Dominican Rosary.

Source: The little Brown Scapular Coloring Book

I hope you liked this!

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!!)

WATCH ME on the new Mission Revive podcast!

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WATCH ME on the new Mission Revive podcast! Anne Costa is rebooting her podcast for her Revive-Hope and Healing Ministries! 

Quote: “Join Mission Revive’s hosts Anne Costa for a an informative podcast with our guest Paul Sofranko.

Paul is a sober alcoholic and revert to the Church who found continued sobriety in the Sacraments, devotions and prayer life of the Church.

He started Sober Catholic  back in 2007 after he had unsuccessfully searched all over for a blog or discussion site that focused on alcoholism and sobriety/recovery from a Catholic perspective. He created what he was looking for: a site that discusses how the Catholic Church, with Her rich traditions of Saints and miracles, and especially with Her Sacraments such as the Holy Eucharist and Confession, can help you maintain your sobriety.

He has also written several devotional books for sober (or sobering) Catholics. “The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts,” and “Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics” and more recently “The Sober Catholic Way.”

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!!)

Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes

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Today is the Feast Day of Our Lady  of  Lourdes, commemorating the first apparition Our Lady to a young sheperdess, St. Bernadette Soubirous, in this date in Lourdes, France, 1858. You can learn all about it here: The official website of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes as well as: Lourdes Sanctuary.

Given the significance of this Apparition to us alcoholics and addicts (recovered or not) I wrote an entire chapter on it in  “The Sober Catholic Way.” 

00000 TSCWBookCover 1 scaled e1727404661851.

From Chapter XVI: “Live the Message of Lourdes:”

How is the Apparition of Our Lady at Lourdes related to the Sober Catholic Way? We are sick people, regardless of the length of our sobriety. Our Lady of Lourdes is our special channel of healing graces. Jesus is the Divine Physician and He works through His Mother at Lourdes.

Furthermore, Our Lady told Bernadette several times about the need for penance. This strikes at the heart of who we are. For we have hurt and damaged others through the sins we committed against them during our active years of addiction. Penance is something we desperately need.

Therefore:

We should also willingly “take up our Crosses” and accept those trials, troubles, and tribulations that come into our lives every day and offer them up in reparation for our sins and those of others.

You could rephrase a part of that in Twelve Step language as a type of ‘making amends.’

And one last thing: it’s OUR FEAST DAY, TOO!!

Pope St. John Paul II had declared February 11th as the “World Day of the Sick,” a special day for healing Masses and prayers for anyone suffering from any illness, malady, or disability. It’s our feast day!

Donations to support my work are appreciated!

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!!)

Our Lady of Lourdes Novena begins February 2!

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One of the more pertinent and relevant novenas for us sober Catholics is the Novena to Our Lady of  Lourdes. 

Here are some good sites with novenas for you to pick from if you don’t have one in a prayerbook of your own:

Novena to Our Lady of Lourdes | EWTN

Our Lady of Lourdes NOVENA PRAYERS – Pray More Novenas – Novena Prayers & Catholic Devotion

Most Powerful Our Lady of Lourdes Novena and Prayer Catholicnovenaprayer.com

Prayers & Novenas | Lourdes

Novena to Our Lady of Lourdes from America Needs Fatima

The Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes is important to me for a number of reasons. As I said in my book, “The Sober Catholic Way,”

How is the Apparition of Our Lady at Lourdes related to the Sober Catholic Way? We are sick people, regardless of the length of our sobriety. Our Lady of Lourdes is our special channel of healing graces. Jesus is the Divine Physician and He works through His Mother at Lourdes. Even if you cannot get to France, you can avail yourself through prayer and meditation of requests for spiritual healing. Adopt Our Lady of Lourdes and St. Bernadette Soubirous as your special patrons. 

Also, it is a key day for those devoted to Our Lady as the Immaculate Conception. For it was at Lourdes in 1858 that the Virgin confirmed Pope Pius IX’s infallible declaration in 1854 that Our Lady was conceived without original sin. Also, Lourdes is about healing. I’ve been sickly most of my life, especially as a youngster and then with alcoholism in my 30s. And now I am beset with afflictions of joints and muscle and all sorts of things. And lastly, it was St. Maximilian Kolbe’s favorite Marian apparition. He was dedicated and focused on Mary’s self-declaration as “I am the Immaculate Conception.”

And if you’re reading this and are a Sober Catholic, then it must be an important feast for you, too! Our healing and recovery from addictions is never really over. Place yourself within Mary’s mantle.

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!!)

“The Sober Catholic Way” is available!

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I have a new book out: The Sober Catholic Way is a basic handbook on how anyone can live a sober life and helps Catholics by describing the many ways in which their faith can assist in maintaining sobriety. Drawn from nearly two decades of blogging at SoberCatholic, “The Sober Catholic Way” shows the importance of the sacraments, the Bible, the Catechism and other books. It continues on with the various ways one can “live” out Catholicism by nurturing devotions to the Sacred Heart, Blessed Virgin Mary, and other saints. All of these contribute to sobriety as well as one’s spiritual progression! 

Discover the importance of the Real Presence, the Rosary, the Stations of the Cross, St. Joseph, St. Therese (the “Little Flower”) and Matt Talbot. You’ll get ideas on how to apply the Beatitudes, the Divine Mercy Message, as well as learning about the Apparitions of Our Lady at Guadalupe, Lourdes and Fatima and how they can guide one’s life.00000 TSCWBookCover.jpg.It is currently available through Amazon on Amazon Kindle, as well as a paperback: click here to buy as a paperback. It is also available as a paperback through Barnes and Noble: Order The Sober Catholic Way as a B&N paperback! as well as an ebook for your Nook! It is also now available at numerous other ebook retailers like Apple Books and Smashwords.

 

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!!)

What I’ve done with my Marian Consecration

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Twenty-two years ago today I made myself the property and posession of the Blessed Virgin Mary when I consecrated myself to her accordng to the method and formula of St. Maximilian Kolbe and so became a member of the Militia of the Immaculata.

This has meant different things to me over the years. For the first decade or so, it was merely a pious devotional act. “I belong to Mary! Yay!” And nothing beyond that. At times, it didn’t mean much of anything and was something on the periphery of my devotional life. 

However, within the past decade it has taken on a more substantive meaning. It had partly to do with the centennial anniversary of the MI in 2017. I became more interested in what it actually meant to be an MI and consecrated to Mary. The sudden availablity of Mary’s Knight,an epic biography of St. Maximilian that I long had my eye on, but had been out of print, helped with that. It is a very comprehensive biography with incredibly detailed information, presented in narrative (it reads like a novel) form. Toss in the Complete Writings of St. Maximilian Kolbe and I was on fire.

This lead to me also consecrate this blog to Mary.

In more recent times my consecration has lead me to try and implement the teachings and life of St. Maximilian Kolbe in my blog and writing as well as to figure out how to work out my consecration in a practical, concrete form. I had written a few posts on ‘Marching Orders from Mary’ which, after a fashion, became fleshed out as a book, ‘Building a Civilization of Love: A Call to Creative Catholics.’

BuildingaCivilizationofLoveCover81224-4.1 copy.

(This is the second version of the book, the earlier version “The Catholicpunk Manifesto,” is now unpublished and pulled from circulation; “Building…” is a revised and retitled edition. The Catholic Punk material is still present, but I’ve added several chapters on Our Lady of Guadalupe, Lourdes and Fatima. Why? Read on…)

I really thought that at this time in my life I should have something to show for it. “It” being my life. Or, more precisely, “it” is more like “proof” that Marian Consecration has made a significant impact and difference in my life. I wanted to show some sign that that Marian Consecration impacted my thinking and that I have something important and useful to suggest and share with others. 

Marian Consecration via St. Maximilan’s method contains and outward evangelican dimension. That’s the fundamental difference between it and DeMontfort’s. With St. Maximilian’s, you become a tool of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a “pen” or “paintbrush” in her hands. You take your consecration and do something with it to change the world. And in writing that book, “Bulding a Civilization of Love: A Call to Creative Catholics,” I had thought to provide some inspiration and motivation to other Catholic creatives. The book is NOT a ‘how to write,’ or ‘how to do a podcast,’ or anything else like that. It is directed at people who are creatives, have done something about it, but may need encouragement and inspiration to ‘get them through’ tough times when they might doubt their efficacy or purpose. It is also directed at people who aren’t ‘working creatives’ but who have the dream of writing or filming and so forth, but like established creatives, might need a ‘manifesto’ to help them ‘get going.’ (Not to mention page after page at the end of “creative prompts” derived from litanies to St. Max Kolbe. The prompts aren’t just for writers…)

One reason why I unpublished the original version is that it was  made known to me that calling it “Catholicpunk Manifesto” may be offputting. But that also inspired me in another way: I had gotten some ideas on expanding it. Hence, the first half is now on Our Lady of Guadalupe, Lourdes and Fatima. Why? Because in studying their messages and lessons I detected some themes that serve as blueprints for a ‘new world order’ (oh, my!) but based upon Catholic social and moral teachings. Mary, in those apparitions, has the answer to today’s slide towards cultural and social moral decadence and decline, plus the antidote to the negative and demeaning identity politics that are rampant today. I used those chapters to exhort Catholic creatives and creative “wannabes” to apply the lessons the Blessed Mother taught us in Mexico, France and Portugal. 

Again, the book is not a how-to on writing, filming or painting. It assumes you know your craft and how to perfect it. What it hopes to accomplish is to inspire you to more effectively connect your Catholic faith to your creativity and change the world.

For information on how to order, visit: ‘Building a Civilization of Love: A Call to Creative Catholics” or visit my Amazon Author Page. Direct link to Amazon: Kindle version and paperback version.

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