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Fix Me, Jesus; Fix Me – Three Reasons Why Even Our Spiritual Life Needs Fixing Msgr. Charles Pope • June 18, 2018 • When I was a good bit younger, in college actually, I had to take a few economics and marketing courses. At that time I thought to myself, “God has a bad marketing department,” since things like Scripture and prayer were often so difficult to understand and do. God seemed to insist that we pray, but everyone I ever asked admitted that prayer was difficult. And while many had reasons they offered as to why prayer was...

There are so many religions, let alone Christian denominations, how can anyone know what to believe?  And even if Jesus is the truth, which denomination can honestly claim to be the "closest" to the truth?  Who are the real Christians? Everything is Counterfeit Christianity For starters, it is important to understand that Judeo-Christianity predates all modern religions, beginning in the 20th century BC when Abram heeded God's call to migrate to Canaan.  His monotheistic faith not only set the stage for the Bible to be written, but also for the coming of the Messiah (the Redeemer of mankind).  Judaism proper—adherence to the...

1 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, 2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: 3 How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, 4 Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) 5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit; 6 That the Gentiles should...

In a ruling that is sure to send shock waves through the nation, Canada's Supreme Court ruled 7-2 against Trinity Western University's (TWU) Law School. In effect, what the court declared is that universities must choose between biblical standards and accreditation. Put another way, the court ruled that Christianity and higher education are incompatible. I am not exaggerating in the least. Here's a brief summary of the case for those who are not familiar with it. Trinity Western is a Christian university that requires its students and faculty to live by basic Christian standards. This means that to be a...

Ross Douthat published a column late last May with the imperious title "The Baptist Apocalypse." Rather than prophetic piece, this seems to have served as a guidebook. Following Douthat's column, a new coterie swept into power in the Southern Baptist Convention during its annual meeting in Dallas (June 12-13). The apocalypse Douthat predicted did not lead to the coming of a lord and savior. What the Baptists got was a changing of the guard. The old guard was white, male, conservative, Southern, and charming. The new guard is white, male, conservative, Southern, and cold. I have interacted with both groups....

Proverb 19 (NKJV) The Fear of the Lord Leads to Life 01 Better is the poor who walks in his integrity 00 Than one who is perverse in his lips, and is a fool. 02 Also it is not good for a soul to be without knowledge, 00 And he sins who hastens with his feet. 03 The foolishness of a man twists his way, 00 And his heart frets against the LORD. 04 Wealth makes many friends, 00 But the poor is separated from his friend. 05 A false witness will not go unpunished, 00 And he who...

Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem The Shared Meal 
 (New Testament) Matthew 26 The Last Supper 17 On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?” 18 He replied, “Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, ‘The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.’” 19 So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover. 20 When evening came, Jesus...

There is an oft-neglected principle taught in the New Testament. I call it the principle of “graduated responsibility.” This principle is taught by Jesus in Luke 12:48: “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded” (NIV). This saying is part of the parable of the faithful steward. It underscores the terms of the judgment the lord in the parable renders to his servants. The punishment meted out is given in direct proportion to the prior knowledge each servant had: “That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his...

Join with fellow FREEPERS to pray for PRESIDENT TRUMP and VICE PRESIDENT PENCE and for AMERICA: Government, Family, Military, Business, Education, Churches, and the Media. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 1 JOHN 5:14 Religion Forum threads labeled [Prayer] are closed to debate of any kind. But I am poor and needy; may the Lord think about me. You are my help and deliverer. My God, do not tarry too long! (Psalm 40:17)

June 19, 2018 Tuesday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 1 Kgs 21:17-29 After the death of Naboth the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite:"Start down to meet Ahab, king of Israel,who rules in Samaria.He will be in the vineyard of Naboth,of which he has come to take possession.This is what you shall tell him,'The LORD says: After murdering, do you also take possession?For this, the LORD says:In the place where the dogs licked up the blood of Naboth,the dogs shall lick up your blood, too.'"Ahab said to Elijah, "Have you found me out, my enemy?""Yes,"...

White Double THIS DAY WITNESSES the close of the pilgrimage of the one who was miraculously supplied with the divine Viaticum. Juliana presents herself at heaven’s gate, showing upon her heart the impress of the Sacred Host. The lily emblazoned on the city escutcheon of Florence glistens with fresh radiance today, for it was she gave birth to our Saint, as well as to so many others, some of whom have already beamed across our path, and some are about to follow,—all of them brilliant in sublime virtues practiced within the ancient walls of this “City of Flowers,” under...

Red Commemoration THERE BEING but a simple commemoration made to day of these two glorious brethren, whose names were formerly so celebrated throughout the West, must not lessen their merit in our eyes. The Holy Spirit, whose function it is to maintain within the Bride of Jesus that divine mark of Holiness, whereby she is to be, up to the day of doom, forever recognisable both to angels and to men, ceases not in every generation to raise up new saints, who more especially attract the devout homage of that particular period to which their virtues have served as...

Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord: (Ephesians 3″9-11)The Bible...

"My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism" (James 2:1). Your true worth is based on the value of your soul, not on external considerations. Jesus is "our glorious Lord" (James 2:1)—the Sovereign One who rules over all His creation, and the One in whom the fullness of God's glory is revealed. John said, "The Word [Jesus] became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:14). Paul said, "In Him all...

“Then [Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego] were tied up in their trousers, their coats, their caps and their other clothes, and were cast into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire. For this reason, because the king’s command was urgent and the furnace had been made extremely hot, the flame of the fire slew those men who carried up Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego. But these three men, Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego, fell into the midst of the furnace of blazing fire still tied up” (Daniel 3:21-23). When God doesn’t deliver you from a trial, He refines you through the trial....

Moscow, June 18, Interfax - Celebrations dedicated to the 55th anniversary of the first flight of woman-cosmonaut to space were held in the Yaroslavl Region on Saturday. According to the information of the Yaroslavl regional government, the celebrations started with consecration of St. Nicholas Church built in the native village of Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman-cosmonaut. A park has already been set up near the church in the Nikulskoye village. The Space Museum opened in Nikulskoye after reconstruction. Its guests can feel the atmosphere of the 1960-s, paint the placards, learn more about fashion of the epoch, visit the retro...

'When the state tries to intervene on our religious freedom, undermine the essence of what it means to be a Catholic, we will resist'South Australian priests have said that they would rather go to jail than break the seal of the confessional to report child abuse. South Australia has passed laws extending mandatory reporting to priests notified of paedophilic actions, even if it would require them to break the seal of confession. After a recommendation from the Royal Commission, other states are considering enforcing the law as well. However, many priests are rejecting this idea, stating they will not do...

In Ronchi v. State of Florida, (FL App., June 15, 2018), a Florida state appellate court held that it would violate Florida's Religious Freedom Restoration Act to require a Catholic priest, Fr. Vincenzo Ronchi, to testify about a sex abuse victim's statements made during a confession, even though the victim had waived the priest-penitent privilege. The alleged abuse occurred when the victim was 7 and 13. She was 18 when the trial of her abuser was to take place. In quashing the trial court's order that the priest testify, the appellate court said in part: .. [I]f Ronchi complies with...

WEST BLOOMFIELD, Michigan, June 14, 2018 (LifeSiteNews) — A Michigan judge sentenced two pro-life advocates to 45 days in jail on Thursday. Monica Migliorino Miller, executive director of Citizens for a Pro-Life Society, and Will Goodman were arrested June 1 outside the Women’s Center of Michigan, run by abortionist Jacob Kalo at 6765 Orchard Lake Road in West Bloomfield county. They were charged with breaching 48th District Court Judge Marc Barron’s probation order to not go within 500 feet of any abortion center in the United States. Barron told the two Thursday they were “anarchists” who followed their own laws,...

(Note that this is from the point of view of a LGBT publication in the U.K.) Pope Francis has condemned same-sex parents and abortion in a series of scathing comments. It had been hoped that the Pope was in the process of softening the Catholic Church’s position on LGBT rights, particularly as it was just last month that he told Juan Carlos Cruz, a gay survivor of sexual abuse by a prominent Chilean priest: “God made you like this and loves you like this and I don’t care.” However, during unscripted remarks at Forum delle Famiglie, an Italian group for...