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An Angel Appears at Fatima — Part 1 Welcome, and thank you for joining me for America Needs Fatima’s series “Stories of the Angels.” In this series we will be exploring the incredible angelic encounters found within scriptures, transcripts, stories of the saints and more, in an effort to understand their God-given mission. Come with me as I share the messages, prayers, and warnings these angels have brought to us and discover the many complexities that make them the most fascinating creatures to ever exist! Join us in this exploration of the mysteries surrounding God’s most faithful ministers, the admirable...

We Protestants certainly have a problem when it comes to Mary–so allergic are we to any sign of Marian devotion that we flip out and run the other way at any sign of it, including thoroughly orthodox phrases like “Mother of God” and “Hail Mary, full of grace.” The first phrase is of course part of the touchstone of orthodoxy the Definition of Chalcedon, and is the proper translation of Theotokos–the preferred Protestant version (for those who even bother to recite it) is “God-bearer,” ... To call Mary the “Mother of God” was a truth that many Christians actually gave...

Two New Jersey homeowners are being fined by their condominium association for placing an 18-inch-tall figurine of the Virgin Mary on their porch. Thomas More Society Special Counsel Christopher Ferrara is representing Mary Jeanne Vassallo and her co-owner in what he describes as a “clear cut case of religious discrimination in housing.” On March 7, 2020, the not-for-profit, national public interest law firm sent a demand letter to the managing agent of the condominium association and the association’s board members seeking appropriate resolution on the owners’ behalf. “I am confident that we can prevail on the claims in this...

[Catholic Caucus] Fatima and the Immaculate Conception May God grant you a joyful and blessed Feast of the Immaculate Conception! Although the Church’s faith in the Immaculate Conception is of apostolic origin, the dogma was explicitly defined with infallible petrine authority (ex cathedra) on December 8, 1854. In his apostolic constitution, Ineffabilis Deus, Pius IX teaches: “We declare, pronounce, and define that the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of Her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of...

August 15 is the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary, the mother of Jesus, into Heaven, body and soul. Though the Assumption was dogmatically defined in 1950 by Venerable Pope Pius XII in his apostolic constitution, Munificentissimus Deus, the traditional belief in the Assumption of Mary goes back to the earliest days of the Church. Originally, the feast was called the "Dormition" or falling asleep of Mary, and is still referred to as such by our Eastern Orthodox brethren. Here are some passages from ancient sources that indicate that this belief existed from antiquity and was widespread. The first is...

Next to the Most Precious Blood of Jesus there is nothing more touching and effective than the tears of our heavenly Mother! How many tears she shed on the Way of the Cross and when she stood beneath the Cross! She shed bitter tears in reparation for the many insults her Divine Son then and which He would receive in the future. She wept bitter tears for the many souls who would not submit to the Commandments of God, and so would be lost forever. In recent centuries, too, she wept tears of sorrow: The account of the apparitions of...

What is it with abortion activists getting naked to promote abortion? Do they not understand that the rest of the world knows what the human body is? Do they not get that abortion involves an unborn child too? Does somehow being naked and exposing themselves accentuate the argument for destroying the lives of babies before birth? Whatever the reason, abortion activists and pro-abortion feminists frequently take off their clothes to promote abortion around the world. They did it again this week in Argentina, where a massive battle is being fought over legislation to legalize abortions killing unborn children. These kinds...

Why Was Christ Born of a Woman? Msgr. Charles Pope • December 20, 2016 • As Christmas draws closer, we continue to ponder the approaching mysteries. Today we will consider some of the things St. Thomas Aquinas taught regarding the Incarnation.Why did the Lord choose to come to us through a woman, Mary? He could have come in any manner He pleased. Yesterday, we pondered why He took true flesh and a human nature to Himself rather than just coming as a kind of ghost or simply as God. But even in becoming truly and fully man, He could...

In addition to being Good Friday for Western Christians, last Friday was March 25, the Feast of the Annunciation of the Archangel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary, recounted in the Gospel according to Luke (1:24-38). This event is pivotal, marking the beginning of the Incarnation and God’s plan of salvation. From Luke’s Gospel: Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And having come in, the angel said...

Unveiling the Beauty of Our Lady of Help  The Madonna del Soccorso, a revered fresco that is considered the preeminent Marian icon in St. Peter’s Basilica, is pictured before and after its restoration. (photos by M. Falcioni, Fabbrica di San Pietro) During the Year of Faith, following the February restoration of the Vatican’s Madonna of the Column, the Knights of Columbus was proud to support a sister initiative to refurbish the most important and beloved image of Mary in St. Peter’s Basilica. Situated above the altar of the Gregorian Chapel, the freshly unveiled Madonna del Soccorso (Our Lady of Help)...

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary CUF Issue: What does the Church teach concerning the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary? Response: The teaching is aptly summarized in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 974: The Most Blessed Virgin Mary, when the course of her earthly life was completed, was taken up [“assumed”] body and soul into the glory of heaven, where she already shares in the glory of her Son’s Resurrection, anticipating the resurrection of all members of His Body.

December 8th is the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.It celebrates an important point of Catholic teaching, and in most years it is a holy day of obligation.Here are 8 things you need to know about the teaching and the way we celebrate it. 1. Who does the Immaculate Conception refer to? There’s a popular idea that it refers to Jesus’ conception by the Virgin Mary.It doesn’t.Instead, it refers to the special way in which the Virgin Mary herself was conceived.This conception was not virginal. (That is, she had a human father as well as a human mother.) But it was special...

Students say it is no coincidence that Benedictine College was chosen to lead the March for Life in the year of its consecration. “I think Mary has definitely had a hand in us taking eight buses and the overall success of our trip to the March for Life,” said Kathryn Brown, the college’s Ravens Respect Life student coordinator. The signs of Mary’s involvement are everywhere, she said. Taking a quarter of the student population more than 1,000 miles is expensive, but Kathryn  said she got a call over Christmas break from the college’s advancement office that they had found...

Reflecting on this evening of the great feast of our Lady of Guadalupe, I am mindful of the first reading we had today from the book of Revelation the 12th chapter. A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was with child and wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth. Then another sign appeared in the sky; it was a huge red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on its heads were seven diadems....

Pentecost marks a time when Mary's presence is of singular importance, says a specialist in Marian studies.  In this interview with ZENIT, Discalced Carmelite Father Jesús Castellano Cervera, who is also a consultor for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, elaborated on the Blessed Virgin's presence at the arrival of the Holy Spirit. Q: The time we are now living is the conclusion of Eastertide and of the month of May. Is it of special Marian relevance? Father Castellano Cervera: I think the time extending from the Ascension to Pentecost is a particularly Marian time.  The fact emphasized...

This summer marks the 40th anniversary of the publication of Pope Paul VI’s encyclical Humanae Vitae. It is hard to believe that so many years have passed, more than a generation. How swiftly it has gone, and how changed is the face of our world. Let us not blame war or economic trouble or abortion for the current state of the world, for this would be to blame symptoms and ignore the source of the disease. It is, in fact, contraception that is destroying Western civilization. In many of the documents of Vatican II and in subsequent papal encyclicals, the...

The 3:30 Beads A few days back, on May 10, Irisshlass commented to me; Maybe we Catholics here can form a prayer group and at a certain hour of the day or night, we all say our rosaries in our home. Even though we are not together we are in heart ... Although I am not a speck Irish, my husband's roots (he's a "Grogan-O'Toole") have worn off on me a bit, and I could hardly think of denyin' the suggestion of an "Irisshlass." So without further ado[s], here are the "rules." Join us in saying a Rosary every day...

For the first day of the month of Mary, ponder this beautiful passage from the Sermon of Saint Germanus on the Dormition of the Holy Mother of God. I have added a few comments in italics. Just as Our Lady was in communion with heaven during her life on earth, so too is she in communion with the earth -- that is, with her children in this valley tears -- from her place in the glory of heaven. Saint Germanus says that Our Lady continues to communicate with us spiritually. Could it ever happen, most holy Mother of God, that...

As you probably know, this is our third installment in a series of five sessions that we are spending together discussing how to answer common objections, questions regarding key tenets that are distinctive to the Catholic Church. We have focused upon the Pope and yesterday we looked at purgatory. This morning we want to focus on Mary and the Marian doctrines and devotions of the Catholic Church to see where in scripture do we see, not necessarily logical demonstrations that are brought forth from proof texts that kind of force the mind against the will to give in and...

For decades, children have enjoyed singing about the little donkey which is said to have carried the pregnant Mary to Bethlehem.   The calendar features Lord Nelson forced to wear a life jacket But one group of young singers was ordered to change the traditional lyrics of the Christmas song - because they were said to be "too religious".Instead of "Little donkey, carry Mary safely on her way", the youngsters were told to sing "carry Lucy" for fear of offending non-Christians. The incident, at the school's Christmas concert, appears on a new calendar alongside 11 other examples of extreme political...