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On April 23, 2018, when attempting to make a new post in a Facebook group, for the first time ever, suddenly while posting, I received the following message: Action Blocked - You're temporarily restricted from joining and posting to groups that you do not manage until Thursday at 12:39am. (which is exactly 3 days later) - If you think you're seeing this by mistake, please let us know. (Note: When pasting this document into Free Republic, it seems that most of the special formatting is lost, such as bold, italics, underlined words and embedded links. To read the document with...

On the Worthy Reception of Holy Communion, Part One Msgr. Charles Pope • April 22, 2018 • credit: J. Lippelmann, Catholic StandardLast week in the Office of Readings of the Liturgy of the Hours we read from St. Justin Martyr who said:No one may share the Eucharist with us unless he believes what we teach is true; Unless he is washed in the regenerating waters of baptism for the remission of his sins, and unless he lives in accordance with the principles given us by Christ (Apologia Cap 66: 6, 427-431)St Justin may also have in mind a text...

Bishop Athanasius Schneider was a “model child” who developed a deep love and reverence for the Eucharist, thanks to deeply devout parents and having been starved of the Blessed Sacrament under Soviet communist rule. This is the picture obtained from family and friends of the auxiliary bishop of Astana in Kazakhstan who is becoming one of the leading voices of fidelity, continuity and tradition in the Church today. Most recently, Bishop Schneider took the lead in issuing a “Profession of Immutable Truths About Sacramental Marriage” in a bid to resolve the confusion over interpretations of Pope Francis’ 2016 post-synodal apostolic...

Dear friends, This will be my last email from me sent to all my friends together as I have done up to now. I hope I succeed in sending this email to everyone using this new email address. Masonry has control of just about everything now; Microsoft, Twitter and Google are selectively blocking some of my Web sites and emails. On September 18, 2015, I discovered for the first time that with the browser Explorer of Microsoft, there no longer appeared the contents of my two principle web sites which are the indexes of my more important articles in English...

Eucharist in the creed? Msgr. Charles Pope Question: The true presence of Christ in the Eucharist is central to our Catholic faith, and many converts say it was essential to their conversion. If this is so, why is the true presence not mentioned at all in the Nicene or Apostles Creeds? Should it not be added at the end where we state things like our belief in the Communion of Saints, the resurrection of the body and so forth? — Jerry Roventini, via email Answer: There are many things that are not mentioned in the Nicene Creed. There is no...

Are You a Mouse or A Man? A Homily for The Feast of Corpus Christi Msgr. Charles Pope • June 17, 2017 • In many places this Sunday, the (moved) Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ Our Lord is celebrated.While you may puzzle over my title for today’s blog, allow me to delay the explanation to a bit later. On a solemn feast like this, many things might be preached and taught. Let’s look at three areas for reflection: the Reality of the Eucharist, the Requirement of the Eucharist, and the Remembrance of the Eucharist.I....

June 18, 2017 Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ Reading 1 Dt 8:2-3, 14b-16aMoses said to the people:"Remember how for forty years now the LORD, your God,has directed all your journeying in the desert,so as to test you by afflictionand find out whether or not it was your intentionto keep his commandments. He therefore let you be afflicted with hunger,and then fed you with manna,a food unknown to you and your fathers,in order to show you that not by bread alone does one live,but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of the LORD. "Do...

Remaining in the Lord Msgr. Charles Pope • May 16, 2017 • The text from today’s Gospel (Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Easter) speaks of the need to remain in the Lord.Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing. Anyone who does not remain in me...

St. Catherine of Siena: Saint of the EucharistCynthia Trainque “O Catherine, Sweet Catherine” is what I call this very powerful saint. She has captured my heart like no other. Born in 1347 in Siena, Italy she was the 25th of 26 children of Giacomo and Lapa di Benincasa. Many of her siblings—including her twin, Giovanna, died at a few months old. Her father was a dyer of cloth; his business was on the ground floor of his great big house with his family and employees living upstairs.From age six, Catherine began to receive many mystical graces and made a vow...

The priests and helpers came on horses and bicycles carrying red, white and blue Chilean flags and metal crosses. Their mission: to pray and give Communion to the old and infirm, parishioners who could not get to church on Easter Sunday. In Chile, it is known as “La Fiesta de Cuasimodo” (Quasimodo’s Festival), and it takes place every year on the Sunday after Easter, Divine Mercy Sunday. This year on April 23, Santiago Cardinal Ricardo Ezzati and 4,000 other helpers went to the foothills of the Andes, to the city of Colina, about 20 miles north of Santiago, to help...

Thousands of New Catholics to Be Welcomed by Catholic Church in the United States at Easter Vigil April 10, 2017 WASHINGTON—A married couple in their golden years, a couple inspired by their late daughter's legacy, and a salesman who heard Jesus' call to conversion on a stranger's porch, are among the thousands who will be welcomed into the Catholic Church on Easter Vigil, April 15, in parishes across the United States. All have participated in the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA), a process of conversion and study in the Catholic faith for catechumens and candidates coming into full...

Although she had been sickly ever since the typhoid fever, she seemed to be enjoying her teenage years. She was happy-go-lucky, loved dancing and laughed heartily at Grandma’s funny jokes. But in 1918 she fell ill again and was bedridden. Doctors thought it might be a brain tumor or encephalitis. They really did not understand what her illness was until one of them diagnosed her as having Hysteria. She had been “labeled.” By 1928, Marthe’s lower body was paralyzed and by 1929 so were her arms. It was not a result of hysteria. Finally, without proof, her condition was called...

Soon No More Eucharist! Dear friends, Things are beginning to accelerate and to precipitate rather quickly now! As I wrote in my article, “Satan Apes Christ” (http://spir-food.blogspot.it/2016/09/satan-apes-christ.html): “There are various indications that the peace promised by Our Lady of Fatima will be fulfilled on the CENTENARY OF THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE GREAT MIRACLE OF THE SUN, October 13, 1917 at Fatima, Portugal, which will be October 13, 2017!” Three weeks before this date, on September 23, 2017, we will see “the woman clothed with the sun” (Rev 12:1-2) in the heavens (“Signs of God vs. Signs of Satan”; http://spir-food.blogspot.it/2016/12/signs-god-vs-satan.html). “The...

An International Exhibition Designed and Created by Servant of God Carlo Acutis [1991-2006]

Missionaries of Charity The community of the Missionaries of Charity in Mar del Plata, Argentina, became the target of criminals late last week, as three men broke in, beat the sisters and desecrated their chapel. According to reports, three unidentified men entered the house of the community – which was founded by Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta – at around 7:30 p.m. Thursday, August 25. After beating and gagging the five sisters who reside there so they could not cry for help, the criminals ransacked every corner of the house and finally took 50 Argentinian pesos (approximately $3.30), which was...

If We Understand the Sacrifice of the Mass to Be a Meal, We Must Clarify What Sort of Meal It Is Msgr. Charles Pope • August 8, 2016 • There been much tension regarding the Mass as both a meal and a sacrifice. A necessary corrective was introduced in the past twenty years to rectify the overly strong emphasis, heavily advanced during the 1970s and 1980s, on the Mass as a meal. The purpose of the corrective was to bring back needed balance with the root of the Mass: the cross and the overall paschal mystery.While we cannot dismiss...

Learn the Latin of “O Salutaris Hostia” and “Tantum Ergo Sacramentum” Msgr. Charles Pope • May 31, 2016 • As a further reflection in the wake of Corpus Christi Sunday, permit me to offer a reflection on the two great Eucharistic hymns of Benediction. I sometimes get requests for help in understanding the Latin texts of these very familiar hymns for Eucharistic Adoration and Benediction.“O Salutaris Hostia” and “Tantum Ergo Sacramentum,” though familiar to many Catholics, remain only vaguely understood in terms of a word-for-word translation. They are sometimes referred to as just “O Salutaris” and “Tantum Ergo.” Most...

On the Need to Receive the Eucharist Worthily Msgr. Charles Pope • May 30, 2016 • In light of Sunday’s Feast of Corpus Christi, I would like to recall the need for the reverent and worthy reception of Holy Communion and to develop an explanation for the Church’s practice of what some call “closed Communion.” Not everyone who uses this terminology means it pejoratively, although some do. But to some extent it is fair to say that we do have “closed Communion.” For the Catholic Church, Holy Communion is not a “come one, come all” event. It is reserved...

The patriarch Jeremiah Al Amchiti was born in Amsheet, Lebanon, where he grew up and received education until God called him for his service in the religious life. In fact, he became a monk, and with the help of his brothers David and Joseph, he lived for a while as a hermit in Amsheet’s hermitages. Those hermitages included vast and high cellars and three churches: Our Lady of the Sea, Saint Zakhia, and Saint John. They are all known as Saint Zakhia’s churches, and are considered today among the most important ancient ruins in Amsheet.In 1199, Jeremiah Al Amchiti was...

Early Church Teaching on the Eucharist How many times have you (Catholics) been confronted by Protestants who claim that Catholicism started long after the death of Christ and His Apostles? Below are a couple of references that put such claims to shame. In the quote from the Didache we see that the name of "Eucharist" referenced (eu = true, charist = charism = Grace or Gift) which means literally, "True Grace or True Gift." This Eucharist is considered to be something "sacred" and not to be given to the infidels (dogs). It references "The Lord's Own Day" which is...