Maccabean Uprising – Recommendation!!!

A relatively new occurrence has happened in the last two-years, Glorious God has revealed to us that the books of the Old Testament – that of the Jewish people – completely pre-figures, and in chronological order – the history of God's New Testament people, the Catholic Church.

Do have a look; watch my short 1-minute video post about this AMAZING website!

Glory to God in the highest!

The STORM that's NEEDED

As we celebrate with friends and family it comes to the close of another year. We reflect on the previous 12-months and aim to do better with the next twelve, whilst also hoping for a less traumatic year to be had by all. Whether 2017 will be one of the good years or not we can only tell with time – though I believe this will be one big shake-up of a year for everyone. Get ready, world, to experience events of massive disruption to everyone: young and old, rich and poor, religious and atheist, slave and free.

During the last year the Church celebrated an extraordinary jubilee year of mercy. Divine mercy. This year, 2017, is a landmark year for many reasons, notably the centenary of the Fatima apparitions of Our Lady and the "miracle of the sun" but also 500-years since the "Protestant Reformation" ripped through Europe, fracturing western Christendom.

In the Jewish calendar we are currently in the year 5777. Those schooled in Biblical studies will know that the number seven is a divine number to indicate "perfection." The number five is to signify grace. 5,777 = grace + perfected. Have a read of this article on "Mystic Post".

So not only in the Church, but the Jewish mind also, we are at a cross-roads of sorts. Coincidence? According to Jewish Rabbi's, "coincidence" is not a "kosher" word. To many Catholics, coincidences are actually signs from God, or angels, which are signs from God, none-the-less.

Throughout the next nine and a half months there will be "signs in the heavens" culminating towards the end of 2017, near the centenary of the "miracle of the sun". Sadly, most of the world will not look up at the night sky to witness such events unfold before our eyes because they are too glued to their phones and computer screens.

"And a great portent appeared in the heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars." – Revelation 12:1

For too long, God has been despised, hated, reviled, ignored, replaced. The whole world is wallowing in sin. In the west we have created a world without God. But God still exists, whether you want to claim he is a fable of antiquity, a moral guiding force for our ancient, illiterate, uneducated ancestors – as though we have the monopoly on knowledge! Perhaps, people in the past had things more spot-on than we have the world at this very moment.

Catholic prophecy speaks of a time when the "Immaculate Heart shall triumph" – I believe it will be soon, in the next twelve months. The prophecy also speaks of an "Illumination of conscience" where we will all experience a deep inward reflection of our lives and actions as they appear to God. Everyone. Not just Catholics. Not just Christians. EVERYONE. Some will take these signs for what they are, a warning from God, and choose to repent and mend their relationship with the Eternal Father. Many will have other excuses and grow harder in heart, becoming more wicked and evil.

Following this "illumination of conscience" there shall be an outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon all who reflect and repent. Think the first Pentecost, but on a much, much larger scale. What an exciting time to be alive! The Lord is more-or-less giving us all a second chance, allowing us to know for certain He is real, from personal experience. An admonition. That shall be God's great mercy to us pilgrims here on earth.

Twelve-months ago I experienced my own personal "illumination" – though it wasn't THE "illumination" prophesied. Finally I understood the world in a different way. I understood why certain behaviours of mine were in fact evil. Sinful. I chose to take all that on board, renouncing the gay lifestyle I had been involved in since I was a teen. I broke-up the relationship I had with my now best-friend. Things have been going steady since, though I for one am not without sin, even now. The prophesied "illumination" may have to occur before I drastically change my ways, but I have started. Trust me, the sooner you know the truth, the better for your soul!

"Repent, and believe in the Gospel!" – Mark 1:15

Nine Prayer Novena

to St. Maximilian Kolbe – Patron of people suffering addictions to illegal drugs.

Last Saturday I started a novena to St. Maximilian Kolbe, I thought I'd publish it here as there are some good short prayers. I like it as it's nice and easy, particularly if you falter in your prayer life quite often, like me!

To read more about St. Maximilian Kolbe check out my post here!

FIRST DAY: 

Dear St Maximilian, when still a child you entrusted your future to the Mother of God and accepted the crowns of purity and martyrdom. Help us to learn to be generous with our lives in the service of God. We pray especially for (mention your request).

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be

SECOND DAY:

Dear St Maximilian, you had a great love of the military and thought of joining the army but instead began the Militia Immaculata to work for the conversion of sinners. We remember all those who serve in the armed forces and their families. We pray especially for (mention your request).

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be

THIRD DAY:

Dear St Maximilian, you began a small religious newspaper which led to an upsurge of faith amongst your countrymen. May we too realise that nothing we do is too small for God to use. We pray especially for (mention your request).

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be

FOURTH DAY:

Dear St Maximilian, you had such a zeal for the proclamation of the Gospel that you went to Japan with no money and no word of the language and what you built is now the centre of the Franciscan province there. May we share in your zeal to announce the Good News through our words and our lives. We pray especially for (mention your request).

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be 

FIFTH DAY:

Dear St Maximilian, when the Nazis had invaded your country and you were under suspicion you said, “No one in the world can change truth”. May we hold firm to the one who is the Truth, Jesus Christ. We pray especially for (mention your request).

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be

SIXTH DAY:

Dear St Maximilian, in prison you were asked whether you believed in Christ and were beaten every time you said you did. You persevered in your witness. May we still hold fast to Christ even in suffering or pain, and if we are persecuted for that belief may we have the courage not to desert him. We pray especially for (mention your request).

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be.

SEVENTH DAY:

Dear St Maximilian, even when you were sent to Auschwitz you did not abandon your vocation as priest. Although you were beaten almost to death you still heard confessions and spoke of Christ’s love. We ask you to give us something of your conviction and courage in the face of the sufferings of our lives. We pray especially for (mention your request).

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be.

EIGHTH DAY:

Dear St Maximilian, when a fellow prisoner was sentenced to death by starvation you volunteered to take his place: to die so that he had a chance of life. May we always remember the words of our Lord, “he who loses his life for my sake shall find it” and give us the courage to lose our lives in whatever way is asked of us. We pray especially for (mention your request).

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be.

NINTH DAY:

Dear St Maximilian, because you were killed by an injection of carbolic acid, you are the patron of drug users. We pray for all those who suffer this terrible addiction and for their families. May they have the courage and help they need to turn their lives around. We pray especially for (mention your request).

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be.

TEN-YEARS TODAY

Ten-years today since that deadly crash.
Ten-years since I last talked to Samantha.
Only to see her again in photos. Memorys. Dreams.
Why waste time getting upset,
Wishing this were an on-going nightmare I can't wake from?

Time to be thankful; count my blessings.
Look at the positives to come from such trauma.
Finding FAITH in Almighty God,
Ten-years since that too!
As sore as I can be - physically, emotionally, mentally;
Thank-you God for restoring my faith in you.

For showing me different ways of dealing with my sufferings,
The different crosses we all must bear,
To unite them with our crucified Lord,
Who died for us all,
Purely our of love.

If not for my faith,
I would probably disregard my life.
As time goes on,
I start understanding
Your Will a fraction more;
Though I will never fully understand,
I trust your plans.

A decade ago, I questioned
"Why did this happen to me?"
Though now I understand a little better,
I'm not quite so upset.

Thank-you Lord for the Holy Spirit,
Teaching me to understand Your Truths better;
For giving me a humble spirit ready to be guided,
Not seeking a way to condone my sins.

Your truths never change,
But the world always does.
Thank-you for PERSEVERANCE
Especially when I experience
Darkness of the soul.

Thank-you for a loving family; for my parents,
Who were my first teachers,
Raising me in the Catholic faith.
Thank-you for a stable home;
A peaceful land of natural resources
Wish room to move around.

Thank-you for showing me different faiths;
But ultimately bringing me home
To the one true Church, thank-you, Lord!
I haven't many friends, but for the ones I do have,
Again I thank-you, Lord!

Thank-you for showing me my life has meaning
For revealing yourself in Jesus Christ,
Inviting me to a personal friendship with you.
Thank-you for your love,
Your mercy, your forgiving ways.

Especially for Holy Mass and the Blessed Sacrament,
Sharing yourself with us, thank-you Lord.
For the blessing of life and all that is in it,
And my hope to spend eternity with you;
Thank-you, Lord.

Novena for Iraq: Day SIX

Sixth Intention: RIGHT BALANCE

Immaculate Mother of God, conceived without Original Sin, never touched by the slightest stain of sin, "tainted nature's solitary boast," we the beloved of thy Immaculate Heart come to thee on this sixth day of this Novena to pray for the grace of right balance.

O Spotless Virgin-Mother, Mother of God and our Mother by grace, obtain for us right balance as a foundation of candor, or tranquility, of clearness and holiness. may there be no duplicity in our thoughts and actions. Obtain for us a right balance in the order of our interior life, O Immaculate Heart of Mary, according to the well-ordered interior life thou lived in the perfection of holiness when thou lived on earth. Lead us to grown in holiness with a balance of spirituality so that our wills here below are in harmony with the Kingdom of God in heaven, where thou, as Queen and Mother reign with Jesus Christ thy Son Who is our King, and our Lord. May we avoid all extremes, as thou did, O Mother of God the Son, Daughter of God the Father, and Spouse of the Holy Spirit. Thou were subject to thy loving husband St. Joseph and to the laws of God. May we never be more Catholic than the Church, nor less Catholic than this same Holy Church thy Son Jesus Christ founded. May we seek to live a Catholic life and follow the teachings of the Church in faith and morals without compromise in a harmonious balance. May there be no conflict between what we believe and what we do. May we not demand of others what we decline to practice ourselves. May we never compromise right principles by subtle reasoning. May our speech be "Yes" when we mean "Yes" and "No" when we mean "No." - Mt. 5:37

Obtain for us by thy powerful intercession, O Holy Mediatrix of all Graces, a right balance in living the spirit of poverty, chastity and obedience according to our state in life, so that the wiles of Satan never succeed in getting us to succumb to the spirit of the world, the weakness of the flesh, or the pride of life. Send forth thy Holy Angels, O Queen of Angels, Cause of our Joy, Mother of Mercy. Intercede that we be open to the glorious Spirits of Heaven who are powerful to bring right order in our lives. Amen.

Novena for Iraq: Day FIVE

Fifth Intention: SILENCE

Immaculate Mother of God, our Mother by grace, we the beloved of thy Immaculate Heart come to thee on this fifth day of this Novena to pray for the grace of silence.

Blessed Mother Mary, Queen of Peace, exalted above all Angels and Saints, thou partakes in the Heavenly glory of the Beatific Vision of the Blessed trinity; thou sees God "face to face" even as He Is. 

- 1 Cor. 13:12 

Obtain for us the grace that everything we speak may be spoken in love and every silence we keep is kept, not in anger, obstinacy, vengefulness or deceitfulness, but in the sacredness that opens hearts to God's Word. As thou pondered the Word of God in thy Immaculate Heart, O Ever-Virgin Mother of God and Mother of men, obtain for us the grace of silence so that we are not bound to the distractions of the world. Rather, emptied of the world, we desire to be filled with the treasures of Divine Grace. It is in holy silence that we can comprehend Divine treasures and the secrets of the King's Sacred Heart.

Good St. Joseph, Foster Father of Jesus Christ and true husband of Mary, thou loved silence upon earth. The Bible does not record a word thou spoke. Yet, in thy silence, thou had the holiest state in life next to Jesus and Mary. By intercession in union with thy sweet spouse, obtain for us, O Glorious St. Joseph, the grace to imitate both interiorly and exteriorly the spirit of thy silence.

O Holy Family, Jesus, Mary and Joseph, in imitation of the silence which reigned in thy home, empty us of worldly noise and distractions so as to hear the voice of the Lord more clearly. Open our hearts to the work of the Holy Angels, who will lead us to faith in and love for the Most Blessed Trinity, the Word made flesh, the Church as the Mystical Body of Jesus and to the highest veneration of God's Mother, the Mother of the Church. May the spirit of materialism never more touch our lives, Heavenly Mother. Help us to be detached from the things of this world, opened in silence to the magnificent melodies of the supernatural. Where our hearts are, there also is our treasure. In the silence of our hearts, "Speak Lord, for thy servant is listening." - 1 Sam. 3:9.

Novena for Iraq: Day FOUR

Fourth Intention: CHARITY

Immaculate Mother of God, our Mother by grace, we the beloved of thy Immaculate Heart come to thee on this fourth day of this Novena to pray for the grace of the holy virtue of charity.

Let rays of light from thy Immaculate Heart penetrate our souls with the love of God. Mary, Mother of Christ, Mother of Holy Love, form us according to the Heart of thy Son. His love of the Father and all mankind was so great that He lay down His life for us, even to death on the Cross. Obtain for us the grace of the infused supernatural virtue by which we love God above all things for His own sake, and love others for the sake of God. In devotion to thy Immaculate Heart, O Mary, we will acquire the virtue of supernatural charity by the Divine power of charity infused into our souls together with sanctifying grace.

St. John, Apostle of Love, who received the Mother of Love into thine home and thereby into thy heart according to the word of Jesus Christ from the Cross, we look to thy intercession to obtain for us knowledge of God Who is Love so that we may abide in God, and God in us. Mary, Souse of the Holy Ghost, it is through thy powerful intercession that the Holy Spirit sanctifies souls and enables us to say "Lord Jesus" in faith and love. Invoke, O Immaculate Heart of Mary, the Spirit of Divine Love to fill us with ever grater love of Jesus Christ and of the Father. Teach us to have faith as thou had faith upon earth and to love as thou lovest. Share even now the flames of the intense love which radiates from thy Heart. Enkindle in us the fire of the Holy Spirit. Help us to serve the Church lovingly and faithfully. In a world grown cold to love, a world divided, unite us through the power of thy prayers, O Immaculate Mother of Love, into one fold under one Shepherd. In drawing us to Jesus, possess our souls, our very lives. Enlighten our every thought, word and deed, so that our lives reflect thy own.

As Our Lady of the Holy Eucharist, illuminate and purify us so that we may approach the Sacrament of Love to receive our loving Savior fruitfully to final glory. In this way, one day we will come, O Loving Mother of Grace, to be in Heaven both body and soul with Jesus as King and thou as Queen and Mother. Amen.

Sunday Snippets: #08

SUNDAY SNIPPETS: A Catholic Carnival. 

Week starting Sunday 19th Week in ORDINARY TIME

We are a group of Catholic bloggers who gather weekly to share our best posts with each other. 

I've written quite a few posts this week, guess you can say I'm back blogging more than ever.

• A have a good old rant on belief and believing in God.
• Another rant on the power of the devil.
• This week was the Feast of St. Maximilian Kolbe: Here is some info I him.
• Some information on my Patron Saint: St. Stanislaus Kostka.
• I also write about my Patron Saint, Stanislaus Kostka and my own life.
• This week I started a Novena for the persecuted in Iraq.
• Day ONE and Day TWO of the Novena.

Enjoy reading! All comments are greatly appreciated and welcomed!

Novena for Iraq: Day THREE

Third Intention: OBEDIENCE

Immaculate Mother of God, our Mother by grace, we the beloved of thy Immaculate Heart come to thee on this third day of this Novena to pray for the grace of obedience.

Obtain for us, O Holy Mother of God, the spirit of obedience found in responding to the grace of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in our souls. May we always realize that obedience comes from the desire to unite our wills with the Will of God.

O Spouse of the Holy Ghost, by thy intercession grant us the grace to be open to the ministrations of the Holy Spirit with us and to our Angels who influence us to think and act in harmony with the Divine Will. We desire to submit to all lawful authority, inwardly and outwardly, so as to avoid having those rebellious, dissenting attitudes, which cause the spirit of revenge in our hearts. By union with the Divine Will, with thy Immaculate Heart as guide, O Mother, we will obtain the true peace of the Holy Spirit and union with the Most Blessed Trinity.

Obtain for us, the beloved of thy Immaculate Heart, O Mother Mary, the grace of obedience to all lawful authorities which are in harmony with the laws of God and His Holy Church. In this way, the grace of humility for which we pray will accompany the doing of God's Will and all of the commands we obey will turn out for the greater glory of God and the salvation of souls.

Intercede, O Glorious Mother, that we may always remember that obedience as a virtue is pleasing to God because it means the sacrifice of our wills out of love for God. May our spirit imitate thine, O Holy Mother, when you answered God's Angel: "Behold the handmaid of the Lord; may it be done to me according to Thy word." - Luke 1:38

Grant us, O Loving Heart of Mary, the grace of rendering a special respect and undivided obedience to our Holy Father, the Pope and to bishops who speak and teach in union with him as Vicar of Christ on earth. By always being obedient, may we, with the refuge of thy Immaculate Heart, live in uprightness as in the discipline of a well-ordered army, for the sake of Jesus Christ and His Holy Church. Amen.

Power of the Devil

Many people will laugh at me when I say this, but do read on - Satan and his minions are real, not imaginary. All the issues going on in the world at the moment, also the ones that have been going on for quite some time now, some before I was even born. We are living in a very faithless, thus Godless, age. There are many people who have faith, many who "pretend" to have faith or have an obscure belief to "something of this world" and an increasing majority of those who simply have no faith and don't seem to want it, rejecting every opportunity as it arises.

Wars in the Holy Land; genocide and persecution of religious minorities in Iraq and Syria. Legalisation of abortions and euthanasia in Western countries; U.S.A's first public Satanic Mass. These are all under Satan's power! But none of these are his worst of powers, affecting people without faith, as well as many with faith, making you believe he doesn't even exist. He is simply an archaic creation of religious institutes in order to keep us for being evil. Nothing could be further from the truth.

I felt his power yesterday, and nearly gave into it. Since I've been reading more spiritual books, attending Mass more often and gradually trying to change my sinful ways, Satan doesn't like that, and will try to stop me reuniting with my Heavenly Father. Yesterday was the Feast of the Assumption of Our Lady, which is one of two Holy Days of Obligation in Australia - very important, for obvious reasons! I have known the Mass times for more than a week and planned to make the half-hour walk to my favourite local church for the event.

However, when I woke up in the morning, I was simply too tired. Felt like I hadn't slept properly. I got out of bed, came to the lounge room to start getting ready for my day... but just couldn't. So I curled up on the couch and when to sleep again. I woke up several times, checked the time, then kept on going back to sleep.

By the time I finally got up, made a coffee and told myself to get ready, it was quite late in the morning. I almost shrugged it off, telling myself I'd go to Mass on Sunday, don't worry about it! But with all the things I've been reading of late, many little dots have reconnected in my mind, and I realised this was all the power of the Devil!

Our Lady is Satan's greatest enemy, other than God Himself, so wanting me to be excessively tired that I would shrug off the greatest Feast Day of Our Lady is just what he wanted! He will employ the same techniques whenever I go to pray the Rosary or some other powerful praying technique!

Looking at the time, I realised I had better jump in the shower and get ready - FAST! Ive done it all too often in the past, where the smallest excuse would be the reason I don't go to Mass. Some days its too wet, other days too hot. Today was simply because I was tired when I really shouldn't have been! Getting ready as quick as possible, I had to then keep telling myself if I am late to Mass, whilst not preferably, I'm sure it's not any where near as bad as missing the whole celebration!

I left my house and walked into town, listening to some Holy music to get myself more in the spirit of the day and I made it to church with about one-minute before it actually started! I was quite hot as it was quite a Spring-type of day, but at least I made it. Everything after that was fine, my day ran quite smoothly and went to plan, making the most of such a Holy Day calling into the Catholic store next door for the second time in two-weeks. I didn't have a lot of money, but I thought I'm much better off spending it on things that will help my Spirit, as opposed to things that will slowly kill my Spirit.

Novena for Iraq: Day TWO

Second Intention: HUMILITY
Immaculate Mother of God, and our Mother by grace, we the beloved of thy Immaculate Heart, come to thee on this second day of this Novena to pray for the grace of humility.

Mary, our Mother, our Confidence, we invoke thy most sweet Heart that we may be thy humble servants and thereby servants of thy son, our Lord Jesus Christ. May we live in humility within the refuge of thy Immaculate Heart, as members of the Holy Catholic Church. Obtain for us the grace to live in true faith with courage to serve readily and joyfully.

Intercede, O Holy Mother of God, Mediatrix of All Graces, so that we may have a joyful acceptance of our trials. May the holy virtue of humility, in which thou excelled to the highest degree, O Ever-Virgin Mother of God, guard us against suspicion, jealousy, envy, against self-sensitivity, against the bearing of grudges, against all thinking of superiority over others. With the fire of thy Heart warm the coldness of our hearts. May we humbly serve Jesus in souls everywhere possible with a spirit of helpfulness, cheerfulness, and strength, without compromise to truth, but in total consecration to thy Immaculate Heart which is at one with the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ. May the humility we acquire and ask for gain us confidence in the power of thy intercession for our salvation and for the protection and growth of Holy Mother Church. Assist us so that we serve in the present, faithful to Tradition, and look toward the future with undiminished trust in the power of thy Immaculate Heart.

Guard us, O Holy Immaculate Mother, from the spirit of quarrelsomeness, so that we may live in peace and harmony with our families and others and thereby lead those not now in the Church, to unity in the fullness of the One True Faith, the Holy Catholic Church.

O Mary, thou prayed, "My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Savior. Because He hath regarded the humility of His handmaid; for behold, all generations shall me blessed." - Luke 1:47-48
It was thy humility that made thee great in the divine Light. Send forth now thy Angels and our Guardian Angels, in particular; also the Angel that guards our nation, that we may always live by truth. Amen.

Novena for Iraq: Day ONE

Starting today, on the Feast of the Assumption, finishing on Saturday August 23, join in praying this "Novena to the Immaculate Heart," for the Christians and other minorities facing death and persecution. First, pray the opening prayer, followed by the daily intention, followed by the Rosary. Each day I will re-post the daily intention. 

Opening Prayer

Immaculate Virgin, by the holy will of your Son my Lord Jesus Christ, you are my Mother in Heaven. Your Immaculate Heart is full of love, mercy and compassion for sinners like me. I ask that you intercede for me today for…

(mention your prayer intentions)

I trust in your intercession before the throne of God for my needs. Please pray also that if my requests are not in accordance with the will of God, that I may be, like you, conformed to His will and not my own.

Immaculate Heart of Mary. Pray for us!

Amen.

First Intention: FIDELITY

Most Holy Mother of God, our Mother in the order of grace, we the beloved of thy Immaculate Heart come to thee this first day of this Novena to pray for the grace of fidelity.

Mary, Mother of holy Love, our Confidence, we invoke thy most sweet Heart, that we may always be faithful to God, the Holy catholic Church, the Good Angels, our Guardian Angels in particular, and to the Saints in Heaven of which Thou are the Queen.

Mother Mary, Model of Faith while thou was on earth, may we have a fidelity that avoids any depreciating criticism, not only in thoughts, but even more in words. Grant us the strength of self-control so that in all matters or questions of integrity, we may act and answer as thou Mary and our Guardian Angel would answer. May we be steadfast in the service of Holy Mother Church until death and adore the Most Blessed trinity in communion with thee and all Angels and saints for all eternity.

O Virgin most faithful, Scripture declares thee "blessed among women;" again it says, "Blessed art thou that hast believed, because those things shall be accomplished that were spoken to thee by the Lord." - Luke 1:45
Obtain for us a faith so strong that we will accept the Word of God through His Holy Church, even when it it is difficult and seems contrary to the way of the world.

Loyal to the very end, Mother Mary, thou stood beneath the Cross on calvary with John the beloved disciple. Thou heard with him the words of the redeeming Savior as He completed His public ministry, "Woman, behold thy Son... Behold thy mother." - John 19:26-27 
It was thy noble role to be Mother and Heart of the infant Church, sustaining the disciples of Christ in courage and prayer, drawing down the power of the Holy Ghost as they gathered around thee after the Ascension awaiting the first Feast of Pentecost.

Mother of the Church, it has ever been thy part in the Holy Church to invoke for us the virtues of Faith and Hope so that we might live in love, patterned after thy Immaculate Heart. Thou believed, Mary, not only when things were easy; thou continued to believe in Jesus in his darkest hours. With thee as mother, we shall persevere in fidelity until the very end. Amen.

Novena for Iraq

Starting this Friday, 15th August, on the Feast of the Assumption of Mary, join me and fellow Catholics in praying a novena to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Living so far from Iraq, being unable to physically help the persecuted, we can help them with the power of prayer!

I thank the Lord that I was able to live in a country of freedom, free from persecutions that the Iraqi Christians and other minorities are facing with their lives. Pray for these martyrs, as well as those who have escaped with their lives, that there will be an end to this conflict and that they may be reunited with our Father in Heaven.

You can find some info and opening prayers for the novena here and follow these prayers with the Rosary.

Show your support by joining this novena on FaceBook: Novena for Iraq.

Please spread the word and invite family/friends to join us!

NEW Catholic iPhone App

In my news feed today on FaceBook I found a video from "Rome Reports" about a new Catholic iPhone App, created by Emanuel Estrada who is just sixteen years old. Naturally I do a search for it on my iPad and download it. I'm quite impressed! Though it's not the most technical app out there, it has enough features and information, especially given someone so young made it.

You can read the daily Mass readings, find nearby Churches, read the Bible (NRSV) as well as pray the Rosary (and other prayers!) and read a bit of Catholic news. Best of all, it's free and less than 5MB in size!

It's called "Eucharist and Truth" and though it's only available on iPhone/iPad, an Android version is coming. A website is also available @ EucharistAndTruth.com

Well done Emanuel, and keep the great work up!

#WeAreN - Forced exodus, genocide in Mosul, Iraq

#WeAreN #PrayForIraq #PrayForPeace

A quick look at Australia's main newspapers will be full of the usual: bad politicians, gang-land figures, the recent Malaysian Airline plane shot down over Ukraine - but there will be no mention whatsoever of the very real crisis happening in Middle Eastern countries such as Syria and Iraq. There may be some tidbit of information, but one must actively search for the results, it won't be on the front cover or following pages. Seems no one cares about it here in Australia, or in other western countries.

What is happening is very real indeed. Christians have been forced out of Iraq's second largest city, Mosul, by the Islamic militant group ISIS (also known as ISIL and Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant). First told to convert to Islam or die - previously there was the option of paying a tax to be able to stay, but the militants changed their minds over the weekend. Convert, or die. This, all because the leader of ISIS wants to establish an Islamic Caliphate in Iraq/Syria (a Caliphate is a theocracy, headed by a Caliph who is believed to be the successor of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad).

Mosul was once filled with Christians and had been for the past 2,000 years. Now they are all gone. Forced to leave everything behind: their homes and jobs. Militants were taking things from them as they were leaving, from precious family keep sakes handed down through generations and even Christian necklaces torn from their necks as well as wedding bands - sometimes with the finger still attached. In the past six-weeks, 500,000 people have been forced to leave.

Why is there no coverage of this in the Western media? I don't really care about some former politicians lies and indiscretions in my own country when mass genocide is happening to my Christian brothers and sisters on the other side of the world. To find any information on this topic, one has to actively search for it.

Shame on the Western mainstream media for trying to get everyone to think of something that really means nothing to anyone, and not reporting on something very real and scary happening. Fill your newspapers with biased stories on what television program to watch. After all, we're in Australia - nothing like that happens over here. Some of those in Iraq/Syria fighting for the Islamic terrorist organisation ISIS are Australian born - now that is concern people raised in a country like Australia can jump on a plane and fight alongside barbaric extremists.

Thank God for the internet where one can search and try to find out the REAL NEWS not the so-called news the mainstream media wants us to be interested in.

In solidarity and support of the forced exodus and genocide of the Iraqi Christians, I have changed my FaceBook profile picture to the Hebrew letter "nun" and continue to add the hashtag "#WeAreN". I urge the rest of you to do something similar and get people talking about this issue. Seems like it's the only way anyone finds out about this very real, very sad crisis which mainstream media will keep ignoring.

#WeAreN