Sunrise over the Gulf of Mexico:

is there a more famous site at Pcola Bch?







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Priests' Retreat: 2011

Church of the Assumption on Pensacola Beach:





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This Mission Church of St. Ann in Gulf Breeze is where our conferences were held and our meals were eaten in the church hall.

Archbishop Thomas Wenski, the Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee, celebrated Mass with us on Wednesday afternoon and joined us for dinner.

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Prayer is easier than you think:

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Benedictine Sisters visit St. Joseph:

First, there is (l-r)Sr. Barbara, Sr. Maureen and Sr. Ellen, ah hum,
then: (not in this order): Sr. Bertha, Sr. Eleanor, Sr. Mary Ruth, and Sr. Regina:







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Sacrament Prep: outdoor style -

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Listening to First Communion Candidate recite his prayers:




Listening to Confirmation candidate recite his prayers:




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A Nebraska elementary school has ruled that a 6th-grade girl will not be allowed to wear a Rosary around her neck, because the beads are identified as a gang symbol.

Father Joseph Taphorn, the chancellor of the Omaha archdiocese, commented: “I don’t think Christians should have to forfeit what is the symbol for the love of Christ because a few people want to misuse that symbol.”

and it continues!

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Sunday: October 2, 2011

The Lord planted a Vineyard.

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How is your portion of the Vineyard today?

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In our second Scripture reading for today, St. Paul writes: "Have no anxiety at all". That's a tall order don't you think? But faith, especially the faith expressed in prayer really can move us beyond all anxiety to the supreme peace God offers.
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Think about the sources of anxiety in your life and how faith can help you get through them.
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What has been or should be the way you turn back?

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To be spiritually weeded means to have renounced the love of material things and attachment to possessions ... freed from the profitless burden of earthly aspirations, that persoon can breathe again.
St. Basil the Great
330-379

Eat at Chili's Today: Monday Sept. 26

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All the profits made through the

Chili's franchise

today will be donated to St. Jude's Children Hospital.
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A delicious way to help children.


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Today is the feast of Saint Matthew

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St. Matthew, one of the twelve Apostles

is the author of the first Gospel. This has been the constant tradition of the Church and is confirmed by the Gospel itself. He was the son of Alpheus and was called to be an Apostle while sitting in the tax collectors place at Capernaum. Before his conversion he was a publican, i.e., a tax collector by profession. He is to be identified with the "Levi" of Mark and Luke.

His apostolic activity was at first restricted to the communities of Palestine. Nothing definite is known about his later life. There is a tradition that points to Ethiopia as his field of labor; other traditions mention of Parthia and Persia. It is uncertain whether he died a natural death or received the crown of martyrdom.

St. Matthew's Gospel was written to fill a sorely-felt want for his fellow countrymen, both believers and unbelievers. For the former, it served as a token of his regard and as an encouragement in the trial to come, especially the danger of falling back to Judaism; for the latter, it was designed to convince them that the Messiah had come in the person of Jesus, our Lord, in Whom all the promises of the Messianic Kingdom embracing all people had been fulfilled in a spiritual rather than in a carnal way: "My Kingdom is not of this world." His Gospel, then, answered the question put by the disciples of St. John the Baptist, "Are You He Who is to come, or shall we look for another?"

Writing for his countrymen of Palestine, St. Matthew composed his Gospel in his native Aramaic, the "Hebrew tongue" mentioned in the Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles. Soon afterward, about the time of the persecution of Herod Agrippa I in 42 AD, he took his departure for other lands. Another tradition places the composition of his Gospel either between the time of this departure and the Council of Jerusalem, i.e., between 42 AD and 50 AD or even later. Definitely, however, the Gospel, depicting the Holy City with its altar and temple as still existing, and without any reference to the fulfillment of our Lord's prophecy, shows that it was written before the destruction of the city by the Romans in 70 AD, and this internal evidence confirms the early traditions.


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We Remember: God Bless America

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The first recorded death at the Trade Center:

Catholic Priest: Father Mychal Judge:

Pictures taken in July, 2011, of the rebuilding:

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Let's return to work.

Sunday, September 4 ... ... Are You Wicked?

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One of the most successful musicals playing on Broadway these days is a prequel based on what happened before the events of the movie: The Wizard of Oz. The name of the musical is Wicked.

It's a great title reminding us of the Wicked Witch of the West. It is both foreboding and nostalgic.

We don't use the adjective "wicked" to describe anyone very often. Rarely do we call politicians or felons or tyrants "wicked". And when we do it sounds vaguely archaic.

SO .... who are the "wicked ones"?

They are the ones who choose not to love.

To keep ourselves from a fate far worse then melting like the Wicked Witch of the West, we need to love more often, care more often, be there more often. All for others.

The forces of love and faith are far greater than any wickedness that may be around us.

This is both comforting and challenging.
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Sister Rose Marie takes her Final Vows:

I have been following this young woman as she has been preparing to become a Passionist Sister in the Monastery of St. Joseph in Owensboro, KY.

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Hope you enjoy her journey to a new beginning:
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Kneeling before her Superior to make her Final Vows:

Receiving the Black Veil sign of her profession:

Black veil is placed on her head:

Receiving the "insignia" of her Order:

Receiving the Crucifix she will wear as part of her habit:

Crown of Thorns placed on her head:

Receives the Cross and the Crown of Thorns:

Wearing the crown of thorns:

After receiving Holy Communion:

Her family:

Her brothers:

It's time for bed:

but I thought you might enjoy this:
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don't take it personally ... well, unless the "shoe fits"
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have fun:


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Oh, and pass it on! hahaha

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Feast day of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassiati

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Happy Independence Day: July 4, 2011

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Celebration in the Parish Hall after Mass, cake and ice cream for this special Birthday celebration.

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