Celebrating Candelmas

Candlemas, which occurs 40 days after Christmas on February 2nd, celebrates the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple. This was the day that, in keeping with Jewish law, Mary and Joseph brought the baby Jesus to the temple for the first time. When Holy Simeon saw the baby, he had a lot to say, but we’ll focus on the end part: “For my eyes have seen your salvation which you prepared in sight of all the peoples, a LIGHT for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel.”

From these words comes the traditional Catholic practice for the day, which is the blessing of candles. Families would bring a supply of candles for the year to Mass, and the priest would bless all of them. Some churches do this still. And even if they don’t, there’s no reason why you can’t bring your candles and ask Father to bless them for you after Mass.

Resolved: Celebrate Life!

As a Church family, we’re witnesses to the beauty of life, even in the midst of life’s messiness: caring for sick family members, puzzling over our family budget, rushing to get to hockey practice, shushing our toddlers at Mass. (Go on, admit it - I’ve done my share of shushing.) God calls us to affirm life’s goodness in the midst of a skeptical culture. That sounds tough to do, when the skepticism takes the form of seeing abortion as a “right.”

We can do it.

The Twelve Days of Christmas

This post is reprinted with permission from The Catholic Education Resource Center

The partridge in a pear tree is Christ. In nature, a mother partridge will feign injury to lure predators away from her defenseless nestlings. In the same way, our Lord protects us, vulnerable human beings, from Satan. The pear tree symbolizes the salvation of mankind, just as the apple tree symbolizes Adam and Eve's Fall from Grace.

Two turtle doves represent the Old and New Testaments.

Memento Mori for Kids: Other People Died and You Will, Too. Or, A Very Catholic Hallowtide

Let’s talk about Hallowtide, shall we? All Hallow’s Eve (Halloween), All Saints’ Day (Nov. 1), and All Souls’ Day (Nov. 2) make up what is traditionally called Hallowtide.

How to Pray the Family Rosary

Don't worry about how "well" you pray the Rosary. Just pray it. As with anything new, you may stumble at first but it will soon become natural and you'll begin to miss it if you skip it! Give the Rosary a try and pray one decade today!

The Family Rosary: Why is it SO Hard?

Happy October! In honor of the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary on October 7th, and the whole month of October, which is dedicated to the Rosary, this month’s Catholic All Year Liturgical Living video is about . . . saying a family Rosary. We know we should be doing it, but why is it so hard to actually, ya know, do it?

Attention and the Sacrament of the Present Moment

God is here. Now. In this moment. He is closer to us than we are to ourselves. Indeed, if he ceased to be present, we would cease to exist. How rarely we feel or experience this truth! Yet, holy men like Jean-Pierre de Caussade or Brother Lawrence, who both wrote wonderful books about finding God in the present moment, tell us with full conviction that we can learn to do so. How? We must train ourselves to see and perceive God’s presence.

Faith & Prayer, Marital, Parenting and Family LifeSam GuzmanAugust 27, 2019prayer, present, attention, presence

Prayer To St. Monica

Exemplary Mother of the Great Augustine,

you perseveringly pursued your wayward son,

not with wild threats but with prayerful cries to heaven.

Intercede for all mothers in our day

so that they may learn to draw their children to God.

Vocations and Sacrifice

“If He asks much of you, it is because He knows you can give much.” St. John Paul II

How appropriate this proclamation by St. John Paul II for Sunday, May 12, 2019 as we commemorate mothers and also observe World Day of Prayer for Vocations. Vocation, be it marriage and family or religious life, while calling us to heroic sacrifice also brings the great privilege of participating in the work of Christ.

The Vocation of Protector--monitoring our children online

For the past six months I have spoken with many parents, young people, and couples about the dangers of the internet and technology. More directly, I have been speaking to them about the danger of internet pornography. Pornography poses a grave threat to individuals, couples and families, and society.

Lenten Resources

Are you ready for Lent? Check out our Lenten resources!

"The fast of Lent has no advantage to us unless it brings about our spiritual renewal. It is necessary while fasting to change our whole life and practice virtue. Turning away from all wickedness means keeping our tongue in check, restraining our anger,

Celebrate National Marriage Week 2019

Spend a little dedicated time in prayer and reflection by participating in our seven-day virtual retreat (also available in PDF) focused on marriage. This year the retreat theme is “Marriage: Made for a Reason.”

Faith & Prayer, MaritalKaren HettrickFebruary 8, 2019National Marriage Week, husband and wife, love, sacrifice

Catholics, Sex, and Marriage: The Elevator Pitch

Sex is good. It isn’t dirty or naughty or some kind of half-hearted concession to our fallen animalistic nature…it is good, just as it was good in the beginning. Be fruitful and multiply, He said. And so we are, and we do.

Faith & Prayer, Marital, Parenting and Family LifeJenny UebbingFebruary 8, 2019marriage, sex, family, sacrifice

Labor, Delivery, and Our Sick and Sorry Church

“Maternity is a natural eucharist...The mother says to her child: “As I live because of Christ, so you will live because of me.”

Motherhood, a natural eucharist. This, the reality of pregnancy, the reality of motherhood, the reality of bringing a baby into the world...a woman says to the life that comes from within her, “This is my body, given up for you.”

Why God Gave Us Bodies

Faith & Prayer, Life Challenges, Marital, Parenting and Family Life, Pre-Marital, TeenagersFr. Mike SchmitzJanuary 18, 2019Theology of the Body, respect life, man and woman, sacrifice

Faith, Reason, Life

By Robert Royal

FRIDAY, JANUARY 18, 2019

Today’s 46th March for Life in Washington is not a Catholic thing. It’s been gratifying over the years to see the growing numbers of Evangelicals, mainstream Protestants, Jews – you gotta love the blowing of the shofar from the stage just before marchers set out – Mormons, Muslims, and others. All of whom have come to realize that killing the smallest and most vulnerable of our human kind is not humane, and no favor to women,

2 Minute Audios: Steve’s 6 Rules for Dealing with Non-Catholic Family & Friends

Faith & Prayer, Life Challenges, Marital, Parenting and Family Life, Pre-Marital, TeenagersSteve RayDecember 21, 2018family, friends non-catholic, lapsed Catholic, apologetics, charity

Fr. Matt Mason Shares His Vocation Story

Share this inspiring message from Fr. Matt Mason, Diocese of NH Vocation Director, with the young men in your lives. We need good, holy priests!

Bring on the Righteous Anger

We’re angry because this is sin, and sin always hurts people.

Now maybe once again we can understand why God hates sin. He doesn’t hate sin because he’s big and nasty and judgmental. He hates sin because it breaks hearts, breaks lives, breaks families, breaks the church and breaks true love.

So bring on the righteous anger, and let’s think again about sin and why its wrong.

Bishop Barron Comments on Pope Paul VI, Prophet

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Pope Paul VI’s deeply controversial encyclical letter “Humanae vitae.” But I would like to draw particular attention to a remarkable passage in this encyclical, namely section 17, in which Paul VI plays the prophet and lays out, clearly and succinctly, what he foresees as consequences of turning away from the Church’s classic teaching on sex.

St. Joseph Catholic Family Center @ Ste. Marie Parish, Manchester, NH