October 1, 2006

Marian Meditation of the Day:

Verse
Hear the sound of my prayer, when I cry to you, lifting up my hands toward your holy sanctuary.

-- Ps 28:2

Reflection
The Blessed Virgin never shall fail to protect me when I call upon her.

When I am troubled, I quickly turn to her.

And like the most tender of mothers she looks after me.

Prayer
O Mary, you are Protector of your people.

In times of affliction,

let me always turn to you

with the confident assurance that you will come to my aid.

Amen.

Today's News Headlines:

Bob Woodward's book State of Denial is attracting international attention. Read about it here - from AlJazeera.com.

A South Carolina politician has an interesting take on the "right to life/right to choice" debate. He wants to help stop crime by forcing individuals who are "bad parents" to be forcefully sterilised.

"We pick up stray animals and spay them," Larry Shirley said in a story published Saturday by The Post and Courier of Charleston. "These mothers need to be spayed if they can't take care of theirs. Once they have a child and it's running the street, to let them continue to have children is totally unacceptable."

The complete story from CBS News.

Get the Official Catholic teaching here:

His Holiness, Ioannes Paulus PP. II. Evangelium vitae. Or "On the Value and Inviolability of Human Life" Mar. 25, 1995.

and

His Holiness, Paulus PP. VI. Humanae vitae. Or "On the Regulation of Human Life". July 25, 1968.

http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html

Democrats are expressing anger over "not being kept in the loop" about the actions of Rep. Mark Foley that have been made public this week.

Read more here.

Israel's withdrawl from Southern Lebanon is almost complete. Hopefully this will be the beginning of a period of peace for the region.

More here.

Baylor University has released a "report" on the religous beliefs of Americans. As a religious studies scholar and person active in ministry, I questioned some of their intital conclusions; after finding out that "Eastern Orthodox Christians, Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, Muslims, Buddhists, and Hindus" were all lumped into the category of "Other" and that the [conductors of the survey] seem to have tried to get as many individuals as possible to be classified as "Evangelical" Christians. It also seems that they are trying to get support for the ideas that all Christians are Republican Evangelicals and that "God favors America" and "God is partial to a political party".

Read for yourself here.
A more accurate picture of Religion in America can be found in the CIA World Fact Book.

Today is the the feast day of :

Theresa of the Child Jesus, virgin


St. Therese, beloved friend, you promised to spend your heaven doing good upon earth. We come before you in our need. We believe that you listen to us and approach God for and with us. You are love in the heart of the Church. You are love in the heart of God. Please accept these petitions, hopes, needs, and dreams I list below. Please present them to our Loving Father so that God may do what is best for us, for our loved ones, and for the fulfillment of God's Kingdom. Continue your shower of roses in our lives. We ask you, dear friend, with the bold confidence and loving surrender you taught us. We make this prayerful petition in the name of Jesus and through the power of His Spirit.
Amen.

Remember to Pray the Rosary for Peace!

Today's Mystery - Glorious Mysteries