Why You Should Read The Catholic Bard

If you haven’t already, Consider reading

The Catholic Bard

The Catholic Bard is the one blog I love to read. I recommend everyone read it. -Pope Francis (Leader of the Catholic Church)

Who Are We?

Mark is the Catechist and his Wife Kristin is the Carmelite.

At The Catholic Bard

we talk about Books, Movies and other forms of Entertainment 

Mark: Kristin what do you think the book  The Ickabog (2020) is about.

The Catholic Bard provides wonderful Catholic Resources such as

 Surfing the Catholic Web.

The Catholic Bard likes to highlight and focus in on our  fellow

 Catholic Patheos Writers.

Someone told me that Patheos was just another Catholic blog site. I said if it is then to heck with it. I’ve learned not to meddle in the affairs of Patheos writers, for they are subtle and quick to anger. But I couldn’t think of a better bunch of writers to go on a adventure of reading with.-Flannery O’Tolkein, Letters to Malcolm, Chiefly on Blogging The Catholic Bard’s Guide to Patheos Writers

The Catholic Bard likes to highlight and focus in on

Different Catholic Personalities.

In some stories you have a certain character set aside for comic relief. In the Catholic world you have set aside Lino Rulli for comic relief. He is not a theologian or catechist. He is an entertainer who is Catholic and makes his living bringing out the beauty and humor of the Catholic faith. He is the Catholic Guy and has been entertaining radio listeners on Sirus XM’s Catholic Channel since 2006.  Funny, reverent and a whole lot of fun is Lino Rulli.

Some dude who lived in Transylvania in the 1200s and died of the plague might have been holier than holy, but unless he converted Count Dracula, he’s not inspiring the majority of us these days. So I say, canonize me. In spite of my shortcomings and horrible mistakes (known in Church circles as “mortal sins”), you could identify with a St. Lino: A guy who does and says lots of stupid things. A saint who took seven spring breaks, though he was in college for only four years. A saint who isn’t interested in converting a count — though he does have, oddly, recurring dreams of Count Chocula chasing him with a lawnmower. A saint who celebrates his oddities and failures in the hope that he can encourage his brothers and sisters to join God in heaven. That’s me. That’s a saint you can relate to.
Lino Rulli, Saint: Why I Should Be Canonized Right Away (2013). Franciscan Media

New Media Catholics

On Being a Nun
People have many misconceptions about what living in a convent is like. One assumption people have is that religious sisters are so much easier to get along with than other people, (because a habit must be some kind of magical, automatic saint cloak). We put it on and BAM, we’ve got a saint on our hands.

I wish.

But unfortunately, religious life is not some kind of magic silver bullet to sanctity. The convent is a saint-making factory, and all of us are in various stages of completion.
Sr. Theresa Aletheia Noble Jesus and the Secret to Dealing With Difficult People (February 2, 2016) Pursued by Truth @ Patheos Catholic

My Badass Post of Feminine Genius

The Catholic Bard will sometimes use, very often, thoughts other than our own to express ourselves.

Sometimes we will illustrate this for a whole blog post.

Joking With Immortals is an example of that.

“I love quotations because it is a joy to find thoughts one might have, beautifully expressed with much authority by someone recognized wiser than oneself.”
― Marlene Dietrich

The Catholic Bard likes to point out good things about 

Catholic Personalities that we strongly disagree with.

As a follow up to my previous post, here are a few examples of quotations from some of the writers from OnePeterFive and Patheos Catholic. They are not necessarily directly taken from either site, but the author is definitely featured on either site. My whole goal in the last post and this one is to show each side that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ. If we focus on what divides us will miss what actually unites us. My theological opinion is that we will all be in purgatory (if we make it that far) till we learn to get along and love our brothers and sisters that we find deplorable for their less then perfect way they fail to live up to our understanding of how Catholic faith works. I choose 12 topics and found an appropriate quote for each.  My hope is that these two posts will help us to see each other in the light of Christ and that each is striving to love God and to share that love in the best way that they can. A Taste of First Peter Five and Patheos Catholic 

 The Catholic Bard likes to talk about

Catholic Saints.

Chiara Badano (October 29, 1971 – October 7, 1990 : Aged 18)
Beatified   September 25, 2010, Our Lady of Divine Love in Rome by Pope Benedict XVI
Feast October 29th

Chiara Badano  was born the same year I was and if she was alive she would be the same age as I am. If I had known her when she was alive, I probably would have had a crush on her. She is beautiful and loves Jesus. What more could you ask for.  I have asked for her intersession and I think she has helped us out with our daughter when she in some less then good circumstances.  She was part of the Focolare Movement and corresponded with the founder of the movement Chiara Lubich on a regular basis. The Focolare Movement works to foster unity and universal fraternity at all levels of society. Like Pier Giorgio, Chiara enjoyed sports including tennis and swimming. She also liked listening to pop music, singing and dancing.

When she was dying of a rare form of bone cancer she didn’t want to comforted with morphine or pain relief medicines because she wanted to be aware of her pain and offer up her sufferings.   She said, “It reduces my lucidity and there’s only one thing I can do now: to offer my suffering to Jesus because I want to share as much as possible in his sufferings on the cross.

21 Young Saints and Their Companions  

 The Catholic Bard likes to talk about

Catholic Spirituality, Teaching and Theology

Being a Secular Carmelite is a vocation, not half of a vocation, but a real one.  To be a Secular Carmelite is a joy.  I am married so I have these two vocations and find ways to roll them into one.  My husband sometimes does prayers with me or goes to Mass with me.  He often drives me to our monthly meetings. That is when we had our monthly meetings which have been temporarily cancelled due to the corona virus.

It was harder to keep up with the prayer life of a secular Carmelite when I was working.  As that is no longer an option for me, I have thrown myself into a deeper Carmelite lifestyle, but also see room for improvement.  We are always called to a deeper, and ever deeper life with Christ.

We are a Discalced (It is a term that means-without shoes) Carmelite Community; I wear sandals most of the year.  We spend the rest of our lives in formation. As OCDS Carmelites we are called to be contemplative.  Our groups specific, chosen mission is to help take care of the cloistered nuns in whose building we meet.  Of course, we have to be charitable toward anyone just as any Christian would.

I would encourage all Catholics to look into religious life, or secular, sometimes called third order communities, and see where God may be calling you.

Ode to An Imperfect Carmelite

 The Catholic Bard likes to

Be Creative with Humor and Satire.

Well readers, I looked into the archives of Patheos Catholic and read some of the people whose blogs have been rejected for one reason or another. I have withheld their names to protect their fragile personalities that had been denied a voice in the greater Catholic world of online blogging. Also some of them are just several pages short of the Summa Theologica.  Like this first guy…

Single True Catholic

Let’s face it ladies, finding a True Catholic to marry is as hard as finding a bad republican. There aren’t many around. That is why if you read my blog you will find many good reasons to want to have me as your future spouse. I’m a good man who is good at being the head of the house. I’m a man you will want to submit to. If you follow my headship you could be my wife. If you wanna be the boss, look elsewhere baby.  We are going to home-school our many children because we are going to make lots of em. Whenever I want sex, you will be so enamored with the overall maleness dripping from my body, you will open yourself to me every single time even if your not in the mood, you will be.  And please if you’re the type of woman who wears pants, you might want to read another blog cause if you read mine, you will change your mind about it. This is a guarantee.  I don’t expect this blog to last long. 50 posts top. By then I will make a decision about who gets to be my subjected subject. Get ready ladies, for the blogging greatness of Single True Catholic.

Rejected Patheos Catholic Blogs 

 The Catholic Bard keeps up to date with 

 Current Events, Personal and World History    

1993 was a monumental year of my life.

Bill Clinton became the 42^nd president of the United States.
Pope John Paul 2 was pope.
Teresa of Jesus of Los Andes was canonized a saint.

The first World Trade Center got bombed for the first time.
The ATF faced off against the Branch Davidian’s in Waco Texas.
Czechoslovakia ceases to exist as the Czech Republic and Slovakia separate in the so-called Velvet Divorce.
The public gots to see Buckingham Palace for the first time, for a small fee.

The New Kids disband.
Michael Jorden Retired.
Cheers aired its last episode.
And Andre the Giant, Vincent Price and Audrey Hepburn died.

Donald Trump’s 4^th Child Tiffany Trump was born.

At the movies we got to see
Jurassic Park
Mrs. Doubtfire
Schindler’s List
Dave

For books we got to read
The Giver (The Giver, #1)
A History of God: The 4,000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam by Karen Armstrong
Christianity for Modern Pagans by Peter Kreeft
Mr. Murder and Dragon Tears by Dean Koontz

As of 1993, Nancy Drew book sales reached 80 million copies and were printed in 14 languages

On the radio we got to listen and dance to
“I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” by The Proclaimers
The Sign by Ace of Base
River of Dreams Billy Joel
“I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That)” by Meatloaf

All these things happen in this most monumental year of my life.

During my 2^nd year of attending Fitchburg State College
I meet my future wife and future co-Catholic Bard Author, Kristin Nealon.

 The Catholic Bard reflects on 

                     Death                         

Pattie Goodale worked as a CNA at a nursing home.  So, she was on the front lines of the whole pandemic war. Her refusal to leave her job for a safe environment caused her to contract the coronavirus.

Her whole family was wiped out to this disease.  It seems that Mercy is not taken into consideration by Death. Even the hamster died. Snoopy the  Dog is still alive. This makes it clear to me that Tragedy can strike anywhere at anytime. All the cards can fall on the table without a moment’s notice. Cleaning Up After Death 

 

  The Catholic Bard offers 

Personal and Spiritual  Reflections about our lives and life in general

Questions for Mother Mary

But what was your life really like?

Did women read and write?

How old were you when Joseph died?

How old was he?

How old was Jesus?

Did you go listen to Jesus preach to the crowds?

Did you have a favorite food?

Did you suffer from morning sickness when Jesus was inside of you?

Where was Jesus when he took his first steps?

You love your kids no matter what.
You give them instructions on how to live well and they don’t listen.
Not only do they not listen to you they completely ignore you and even direct anger at you.
No matter what you do in love for them, their only response is ingratitude, contempt and apathy.
But you keep reaching out anyway… just because their yours.
They want to do their own thing no matter what.
No matter how hurt they get.
No matter how miserable and unhappy they are.
They insist on having their own way all the time.

If they would only listen to you and trust you, you could help them out.
You could save them from the predicament they got themselves into.

This is God’s relationship with sinful humanity.
This is our relationship with our  daughter.

Understanding God the Father

 The Catholic Bard offers 

 Lecta Divina  and  Open Letters

 Come with me as I use Lectio Divina (Divine Reading) as a way of reflection and prayer.

It is a form of prayer that dates back before Saint Benedict, the father of western monasticism, around 547 AD, who made it part of His communities rule and whose community still uses it. Today it is used not just by people in many different religious communities, but by many devout Christians. I’m going to pick a Bible reading, share it with you, suggest you meditate on what sticks out or seems to have spoken to you. Reread it, or a portion of it as many times as you want, and quietly meditate on the words. I will do the same and then share my reflection. (Feel free to share any thoughts you have or use it on your own.)

 Very Small Thing Beyond Your Power: Lectio Divina Reflection

Dear Mister President Biden,

I just read a piece from Newsweek about just how far to the other side you have gone.

As someone who like you goes to Mass and has a devotion to the Rosary my stomach turned and I nearly cried.

I voted for you.

Sometimes I ask myself why and then look at your opponent and remember.

Really though!

 

 The Catholic Bard

also brings you original poetry…

As I was laying down my head in bed

One cold wintery night looking for insight
And pondering
With my mind wondering while wandering
This thought like an itch
Of what exactly is my niche
In my illustrious carrier as a writer.

I sought and came up with this thought
Foaming up in my head like a broth
As a possible answer
Springing to life like a high energy professional dancer.

After reflecting, detecting and dissecting my
Writing life
Since Mother’s Day, May 10, 2020,
I came up with…

The Tremendous Truth

The Bountiful Beauty,

The Grandiose Goodness

of God’s world present in our reality and in the
Unseen reality yet to come for us.
As what I have been and like writing about.

And Now the Catholic Bard has been Alive
As Long as it takes a Baby growing to arrive.

She was tired
No, knackered
How about weary, yes very weary
She knew she would never work again
Or hold down a volunteer job
Not really, not long term

She knew it all came down to the seizures
That would never stay away long enough
And the overdosed medication they keep adding on
Their side effects are as bad as the seizures

She told God long before these visitors ever became part of her everyday life
That what ever suffering came her way in her life she would offer it up.
God took her up on it.

Jesus suffered a lot worse.  This is a gift.
Not everyone takes the daily trials and gifts them back
For those who suffer, or those with no faith
For the souls of the unfaithful departed
For what ever will somehow help the most and for the will of God.

 The Catholic Bard has also had some 

Guest Posts

I think some Christians get so focused on winning the argument that they lose the soul. The problem is that when one is hammered with apologetics, it just makes the person defensive and creates physiological flooding. How are you supposed change someone’s heart when their veins are pumping with adrenaline and their cortisol level is through the roof? This same principle holds true in marriages, when couples spend years arguing about fundamental differences.

Most importantly, Mark and Kristin truly lived out the Gospel. Many Christian’s are only Christian so long as it’s convenient for them.

Mark and Kristin lead very simple ordinary lives but they love others in an extraordinary way. They very much live out the “Little Way” of St. Therese of Lisieux. To these hidden saints, I owe my conversion.

Jackson Werner, Gaining Faith in College 

The Catholic Bard is also the only place you’ll find an exclusive interview with

Jimmy Akin about his Mysterious World Podcast…

CB: What is the Mysterious History of Mysterious World? Where did it begin?

JA: About 15 years ago, I was taking a road trip around the desert Southwest, and I visited Roswell, New Mexico. I started thinking about writing a book called Jimmy Akin’s Book of the Weird, which would look at things like UFOs, Bigfoot, and the Kennedy Assassination and evaluate them from the perspectives of faith and reason. Because of various factors at the time, that didn’t come together, but it was the core concept of what became Mysterious World.

By 2018, I had gotten into podcasting and been invited to join the board of the StarQuest network. The network was at a turning point at the time, and we had some big decisions to make if we were going to continue podcasting. Among other things, we needed ideas for new podcasts that would be popular and that would allow us to fulfill our mission of evangelizing the culture. I mentioned the idea of doing one that looked at mysteries from the faith and reason perspectives. The board was very enthusiastic, and so we set to work.

Jimmy Akin’s Mysterious Interview 

The Catholic Bard is Faithful to Church Teaching and to the Pope.

We believe that Pope Francis is the Pope and that Vatican 2 was a legitimate ecumenical council.

We also focus in and highlight Holy Days, Seasons  and Special Secular Days.

We’ve been doing a week in review about all the important News going on in the church and the world.

So why should you Read The Catholic Bard?

Because you can have fun

Learning about

Fascinating Cool Catholics, and Catholicism, 

and

The Tremendous Truth

The Bountiful Beauty,

The Grandiose Goodness

of God’s World

present in our reality and in the

Unseen reality yet to come for us.