Ten Catholic Things that Caught My Eye Today (Feb. 5, 2015)

1.

We are all sinners. We are all called to a conversion of heart.

— Pope Francis (@Pontifex) February 3, 2015

2. On the feast of St. Agatha, Fr. Steve Grunow writes:

Will it be said of us that while our brothers and sisters in Christ were crucified, that we were distracting ourselves with a pseudo Christianity that we created to serve our needs and that demanded little or no sacrifice and no real cross?

3. Pray a Novena for Nigerians.

God the Father our creator, God the Son our Redeemer, God the Holy Spirit our Sanctifier!
We praise and thank you for the precious gift of Nigeria, which was and still remains a cosmopolitan, multi- cultural, multi- ethnic as well as multi-religious society. Your gift of tolerance, moderation, accommodation and Love for one another were the traits that made great this people and this society.
Sadly though, in recent times, they have been plagued by political, ethnic and religious crises and have suffered the destruction of lives and property. We humbly ask for the gift of reconciliation, that we forgive each other. Heal the wounds with the radiance of your love and mercy. Teach us to live in peace and harmony.
May their leaders be instruments of love, peace, tolerance, social and economic development. Help them to be selfless in service and to lead their people in the path of dialogue and reconciliation, so that they can truly be one family, working for the common good. May dissenting views be a source of harmony and peaceful coexistence! Bless and provide for their youth and help them to be peace loving.
Lord may the weapons of evil, hatred and violence be silenced by love. May we enjoy unity and stability as your children who live, move and have our being in you.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
O Jesus prince of peace: be merciful, restore permanent peace to the world and, these days especially, to Nigeria, from north to south.
Our Lady Queen of Peace: Obtain for us peace in our hearts, peace in our families, peace in our countries.
Amen

4. Pope Francis:

there are many wounded, how many wounded! How many people who need their wounds to be healed! This is the mission of the Church: to heal the wounded hearts, to open doors, to free [people], to say that God is good, God forgives all, that God is our Father, God is tender, that God is always waiting for us …

5. Fr. Lawrence Lew:

When threatened by death, the faithful disciple such as today’s virgin martyr St Agatha, knows that she need not fear for God is a faithful shepherd who will guide her through the valley of death and evil to share the life of the Risen Lord. We need this faith, this trust in God’s promises, if we’re to set out on Life’s journey.
But we also need to trust in other people. And this, I believe, is what God wants us to learn in life. Again and again, we’re taught that we need to trust and rely not just on him, but also on others. Indeed, when we have faith in men and women, then we can have faith in God too; often we can see that where our trust in other people has broken down then faith in God becomes difficult.
Hence the twelve are sent out in pairs – they have to trust one another – and without bread, bag or money; no food, or resources, or savings. As such, they’re utterly dependent on others for survival, for their living. So, the disciple of Christ learns to rely on the goodness of men and women, to trust other people, to come out of the comfort zone of self-reliance and independence and, instead, to experience the vulnerability of needing the help of another.
It is in this way that one learns to trust, to have faith in Man, and so, he learns also to have faith in God and his goodness, his Providence, his grace. And in asking for help from another, in learning to beg, as Pope Francis said to the youth in Manila, we “allow others to give you from their riches”; we allow others to grow in God’s grace and to form a relationship of trust and even of love with us. For it is God’s grace which empowers men and women to behave with generosity and kindness and welcome. So, through a participation in divine hospitality and a restored relationship of trust between people – a kind of friendship – we glimpse heaven.

6. Kevin Cotter’s list of Catholics to follow on Twitter. (I link to despite being on it!)

7.

On feast of St. Agatha, pope prays church “humbly acknowledges, repairs past injustices, protects those closest to the heart of Jesus."

— Catholic News Svc (@CatholicNewsSvc) February 5, 2015

8. Six practical steps to Catholic joy from Randy Hain.

9. Christopher West:

Christianity is the religion of desire. It invites us on a journey that passes through the agony of the Cross but leads us, through that, to the infinite bliss and ecstasy of being filled “with all the fullness of God.”

10. Did you know that lots of Catholic religious sisters are having open houses on Sunday? Over 100 convents are participating.

Visit the #ReligiousSisters! Find out more http://t.co/FdhzbjtHjV #nunsrock #YCL2015 pic.twitter.com/VWaYElSUuh

— CMSWR (@WomenReligious) February 4, 2015

Check out the map here.

Here’s a N.Y.-area guide.