Hello There and Welcome to my Blog! It's Been a Minute...

It has been quite a while since I posted anything on here, since October actually, but it's not because we are winding down or closing Glory Glory Gifts. It's due to a myriad of reasons most of which were technical issues due to old equipment.

Sometime mid last year, Google Chrome started to block many of the sites that we use daily to contact our distributors, log onto the website or eBay, where our biggest store resides. Safari did as well. No problem. We just switched to Firefox and used that instead, but little by little the things we could do on the eBay store were whittled down. Eventually the only thing that we could do, was create shipping labels and I had to use my tablet or phone to do everything else. That becomes quite burdensome when you have a store with 2,000 products on it that you have to maintain and daily sales to ship. Searching on it became a nightmare to update inventory and out of stocks, sending offers, listing new items, etc.   No way was I going to download an app on either of my handheld devices to get into the website, and Godaddy, our host, wasn't really allowing access. So I decided to shut the store down on there and use it solely as a gateway to the eBay store. Long story summarized: We no longer have products for purchase on the website BUT there is a link to the eBay store so it's one step further but so much better! I was personally never thrilled with the layout of the website store anyway. I much prefer the format of the eBay marketplace store. If you have never visited it, I suggest that you do! The link is to the right of this post and we have hundreds of items to choose from! We look forward to your visit. 

At the same time this was happening, I got very sick for all of February into half of March first with RSV, then bronchitis, then pneumonia, then it went back into some other kind of URI. It was a nightmare and an extremely upsetting time for me. For weeks I struggled with handling the business and keeping things as status quo as I could with customers and I prayed on it. I asked God if it was maybe time to close down and I also prayed to our newest millennial saint, Carlo Acutis (aka my tech guy) for guidance and my prayers were answered!! I found a REALLY sweet deal on a 7-year old Mac on MacSales (highly recommend!!!).  A month after we got the new computer, the old computer completely died and so did the printer. Thankfully I found a new one on Target and had it delivered the next day. PTL we are 100% back in business until the good Lord tells me otherwise. Thank you Saint Carlo. You never steer me wrong. 

This is our 18th year in business! I can't believe how incredibly fast that time has flown. Our goal is the same and that is to teach people how to pray and to preach the Gospels of Jesus Christ. Every item that we sell has a prayer attached to it, so it is included either physically, via a prayer card(s) or printed on the invoice. Our main prayers are The Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet more specifically. The Divine Mercy Chaplet is for the conversion of souls, even those most hardened of hearts, so it's important that I share it as it IS the reason why Glory Glory was instituted in the first place. It's an amazing prayer! Say it daily. Say it often.

On May 4th I  entered The People's Artist contest, through a Facebook ad. I'm not a full-time artist but do enjoy painting and have sculpted in the past. I even had an art exhibit back in the late 70's early 80's with my sculpted works. Anywho, you know how things are with Facebook and bots, they flagged my account, for a bogus charge (as were hundreds of other artists just looking for votes) and I'm not allowed to run any ads (boo hoo), monetize my account (again boo hoo), create or share any videos (SAY WHAT???), until mid-July. Not a big deal that I can't run ads on there since they basically said that targeting  Christians or Catholics is not inclusive so it is not allowed. That IS my target audience isn't' it? So yeah, haven't advertised in  quite a few years, but don't expect any videos until July. 

I received the most amazing gift for my birthday this year and have actually wanted it for the longest time. You know how things go... You really want something but there is always a reason why you have to put it off. Murphy's Law shows his ugly little head. My present? The Ethiopian Bible in English. I believe that it is the earliest version of the Bible dating back to the 300's and was originally written in the Ge-ez language (classic Ethiopian). I love how it is written, especially the additional books. It's very straight forward without the thees and thous and point blank says things like:  Jesus healed a leper.  Jesus healed Kepha's (Peter) mother from a fever, so she got up and started to serve them. I love that about it, but it doesn't stop me from reading my other Bible that I've had since 1989. (That one is filled with markings in the margins and highlighted sentences.) Anyway, I know that the protestants always attack the Catholics about our veneration of Mary as the Mother of God and how it isn't Biblical and guess what? It is CLEARLY stated in the Ethiopian Bible. Not only that, it also says to pray TO her to ask her Son's intercession. So the veneration of Mary is very much Biblical and has been since a Bible was first written. Also, there are separate books called Täˀammərä Maryam (Miracles of Mary) and also Ta'amra Iyesus (Miracles of Jesus). Miracles of Mary (English name) includes not only veneration of her as the Mother of God, but also her assumption into heaven. The Miracles of Jesus are actually the missing years from birth to 12 and includes several stories about Him. I haven't actually read them yet, but, I have read the Gnostic Gospels and it sounds like they are the same or very similar. We have a toddler running around our house, and he is a handful, so I can't imagine poor Yosef and Miriam admonishing a God child.  Whew. That takes some divine intervention 😇. I know that the Ethiopian Bible can be found on the internet, so look it up for yourselves. (I read Enoch on here years ago.) I highly recommend it and especially enjoyed the Book 83, The Covenant II, which includes the Mary passages and Book 88 The Canticles, which is just lovely.

Another fascinating book to read is Jesus in Egypt. That is filled with stories handed down through the Coptic generations of the Holy Family's time there after their flight from Bethlehem. It's written by Paul Perry and has some truly amazing tales of the infant Jesus. Check it out.  

The United States is going to be consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on June 11th. To prepare for this, the Novena to the Sacred Heart has begun (as of yesterday) and will be said for the 9 days leading up to the consecration. I'm sure EWTN will have some kind of coverage on it, so check your listings! Also, you can have the novena delivered right to your email daily, which is a terrific reminder, from the good folks at PrayMoreNovenas.org. Check them out!

Last, we have so many new and beautiful collections at the store! Here are just a few of our newest so get on over to Glory Glory Gifts eBay store!  The link is to the right of the post. 

Have a blessed and beautiful day in the Lord and don't forget to say your prayers!

Mare

 

 

  

 

 

Communion and Confirmation items Available!

We have quite a few beautiful items available at both the website and the ebay store! Check them out today and get your shopping done early!

We also have lovely items for St. Patrick's day. Give a gift of the green to your loved one.

Here are some examples of what is available. Just click on the logo cross on the right to access the website. The ebay store link is: https://www.ebay.com/str/gloryglorygifts. Happy shopping from the comfort of your couch or anywhere!

$31.50, 6 piece gift set for boy

$31.50, 6 piece gift set for girl

$13.99, 5 piece set

$13.99 5 piece set for girl

$67.99, Sterling Silver with Red enamel, gift boxed

$99.99, Sterling Silver & red enamel Holy Spirit center & crucifix, red crystal

$44.99, Sterling Silver medal & Celtic cross, Swarovski crystal bracelet

$39.99, Gold over Sterling Silver Claddaugh Cross with crystal accents. Gift Box

What Are You Doing for Lent?

St. Josemaria Escriva said, "Lent should suggest to us these basic questions: Am I advancing in my faithfulness to Christ, in my desire for holiness, in a generous apostolate in my daily life, in my ordinary work among my colleagues? … What better way to begin than Lent? Let’s renew our faith, hope and love."

I've decided that I'm tuning out and dropping off of a few social media sites this Lent. It is doing absolutely nothing for my soul, nor my temper, and sometimes I find myself getting into the stupidest arguments. Life is too short to be spent arguing with people on social media, that I don't know nor will ever meet, over inane things. Let me just interject something here though, I am giving up perusing my own personal Facebook and Twitter accounts, but I will still be updating the Glory Glory Gifts Facebook and The Word of God Bible Study Pages daily. Also, what I am mainly doing as far as preparation for Easter is between me and God. That's how your own personal prep should be ~ between you and God and nobody else.

Ash Wednesday is this week and just a reminder for you it is a day of abstinence from meat for those 14 years or older (and items made with meat) on Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and all the Fridays of Lent. Every person between the age of 18 and 59 (beginning of 60th year) must fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. If you are unable to fast for health reasons there are quite a lot of other things you can fast from, i.e. gaming, social media, treats like a trip to Starbucks for the latte of the month, movies, t.v. shows, dinners out,  or any other thing that you find that you have a hard time divorcing yourself from. The point of fasting is to share in the suffering of Christ on the cross, but it has another side to it as well. The money usually spent on those little extras that you are giving up should be given to the poor. 

Just as I love Advent, I love Lent too because I add to my daily routine of prayers and readings and it makes me feel so much closer to my Lord and my love. 

In addition to the fasting and alms giving that you will be doing say extra prayers daily too.  You can get daily reflections for Lent from many on-line sites. Say the rosary and the Chaplet of Divine Mercy daily. Go to Confession. Contemplate the Stations of the Cross, every day. Go to Mass daily and on the Sundays of Lent. Receive Communion. Give to the poor. Feed the hungry. Be kind to people that you meet in person and on the roads. Instead of checking on your elderly or disabled neighbors invite them into your home or surprise them with a meal or two. Just be kind and gentle with people or, in other words, be Jesus’ hands, heart and embodiment here on earth. As you feel the suffering from your fasting, unite it with Christ crucified. Find quiet time every day to spend with him in prayer and contemplation. Read the Bible every Day. The Gospels of Mark and Luke combined have 40 chapters, so that's a chapter a day. Matthew (my favorite at the moment) has 28 chapters, which gives you time to read and contemplate at a more leisurely pace. The Gospel of John has 21 chapters so you can even squeeze in a few of the Pauline epistles. The point is, just read the Bible every day. It's a wonderful way to immerse yourself in the life of Jesus and to remind you of the sacrifice that he made. BTW, Acts of the Apostles has 28 chapters.

Have a very blessed and beautiful Lenten season. I am looking forward to growing in faith and love this year and hope that you will join me in this beautiful season as we prepare for Easter and Our Lord's glorious resurrection.

Peace and love to you.

Mare

Going to the Chapel......

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Last Sunday, when I was walking home from church, there was a family with young children walking beside me. The Mother asked the boy, who looked to be about 7, how he liked going to church. He said, “well, we went there once before.” The Mother responded, “yes, but today we went for real. “ It made me sad to hear the brief conversation. Of course, it may have been continued out of my earshot, but I don’t think that it was.  I really, truly, hope that the last time they were there wasn’t for his Christening and that now he is preparing for his First Communion, but sadly that is the case with many families.

The reality is that many families do just that and I personally think that they are not only short-changing their children but that they are also short-changing themselves. They christen their children and then don’t come back to church again until it is time for the child to receive First Communion, which is perplexing to me, but I won’t get into that. Faith building and religious instruction should be from birth, through life. Not just when you need it to make a sacrament.

Original work of art by Jean Keaton

When I went to grade school we were not only taught the Catechism but we also went to Confession and Mass on the first Fridays of the month. We started each school day with a prayer (and the Pledge of Allegiance) and a blessing. I was a good little girl, for the most part, and even taught religious instruction when I was in the 7^th and 8^th grades, to the 1st graders. Even though I knew all of the teachings of the church, I still struggled with them when I got older and had to re-educate myself on my faith, which I did when I was in my late 30’s. It wasn’t until then that my eyes were opened and I began to truly live my faith and understand the doctrines that I had learned from such an early age.  The thing is, though, that I had a very good basis and understanding of the faith and even I struggled. Is it possible to provide a good, solid, religious instruction to your child if they go to a public school and only attend religious instruction once a week? Of course it is.

I will admit, I did a terrible job of it, but I did at least get Tom to church every week and to religious instruction until he was about 12. His first 6 years of life were steeped in it too from us living with my parents and from our full-time baby sitters, Betty and Bob (God bless them both). He didn’t get confirmed but that blame lies squarely on my shoulders. I could make a whole bunch of excuses about it from my Mom dying, to our Pastor telling him that he didn’t have to come to church to pray for his Grandma, but the fact is I didn’t want to drag him there because we did have a battle royal every Sunday after that Pastor made that stupid remark. I caved because I freaking hated screaming and yelling and then sitting in church boiling over; that was just ridiculous. So on Sunday mornings, Tom would pop out of bed and go to our friend’s house up the street where, as he put it, everyone slept late and ate bagels for breakfast and I went to church to fulfill my obligation and nothing more. Even though I was lacking in my parenting skills when it came to religious instruction I do know quite a few families that now have adult children that continue in their parent’s footsteps, which is refreshing to see in this day and age.  Even Tom has made his peace with God and visits the chapel with me once in a while.

I guess what I am trying to say is two things. It’s never too late to find Jesus in the scriptures and to embrace Him. I’ve written about my own reversion to Him through the Rosary on here. Prayer will lead you to Him; reading the Bible will too. Ask for His help and guidance. Ask the Holy Spirit to open your eyes, ears and heart to the scriptures as He is the one that increases our faith and hope.

Glory be to the Father who created me.

Glory be to the Son who redeemed me.

Glory be to the Holy Spirit who sanctifies me.

Read the Catechism regardless if you are a Catholic or not. Either way it will strengthen you in faith, hope and charity and thus, prepare you to teach your children well. Share it with your children. The other point I'm trying to make is to make your faith a huge part of your family life from the womb to the tomb. Pray with your children. Read the Bible with your children. Attend Mass and services regularly with your children, as a family. Receive the Sacraments as a family. Do the same with your grandchildren, if you are able. Let go of the material things in this world, which are fleeting and immaterial in the long run, and embrace the spiritual.  Your child needs to know that not only are you always there for him/her, God is ALWAYS there for them too. As Jesus taught us in the parables of the mustard seed and the fruits of the vine, faith in God is something that needs to be planted, but it also needs to be nurtured to grow throughout life. Not only the child, but the adult needs to continue to change and grow with the ever changing tides of life and a strong faith will give them the tools to make it through all those periods of life. Never stop nurturing that faith, through continuous learning and prayer, and your faith will never fail you when it is needed most. That's why it is so important to nurture our children during the formative years. Otherwise, just like the untended grapes on a vine, that faith will wither up and cease to exist.

As a grown up I know that when I was younger that I rarely listened to others' opinions and suggestions, but I do hope that in some small way my own shortcomings may help someone else. One of my only regrets is that I did lose my connection with God in my younger years and didn't bother to provide a substantial faithful upbringing for my own child. My own experience has taught me that my relationship with God and my family has gotten me through many horrible things in my life and it has made me stronger. I do now see that my faith was always strong, even if I didn't think it at the time. It was because of the positive upbringing and strength of conviction of my formative years.   It is true that a family that prays together stays together. Remember that the next time you go to church “for real.”

Peace * Love

Mare

Communion Gift Sets Will be Available!

Hopefully by the end of the week, we will have three different types of Communion Sets available. I'm just waiting for them to be delivered!

This year, we are not getting the big, boxed ones, as we have had in the past. We found that the shipping cost on them was way too high and we like to keep the costs down for you all when we can. One of the sets will include the same items as the big boxes; the packaging will be different. The smaller sets will not include the prayer books, but they can be purchased separately for $6.00 each.

Available will be:

Clear Case Gift Set - Girl, with Missal, Rosary, Pin, Scapular and Clear Vinyl Book Cover $13.99

Clear Case Gift Set- Boy, with Missal, Rosary, Pin, Scapular and Clear Vinyl Book Cover $13.99

Hot Stamped Vinyl Snap Case with Plastic Rosary, Pin and Scapular in White or Black $7.50

Brocade Satin Snap Pouch With Pearl Rosary, Pin and Scapular $10.99

Black, Hot-stamped squeeze case with Oval Wood Rosary, Pin and Scapular $10.99

Also, we will have a new crucifix available! It is 1 3/4" and has soil from the Vatican catacombs in the foot of it. Comes on an 18" chain and in an organza pouch.

From Italy, 1 3/4" with Catacomb Soil $4.99

We will also have missals available in both black and white, which you can purchase with other items or alone ($6.00). We combine shipping.

We will also be getting in more of the very popular 4-way crosses and the plastic holy water bottles, both of which are almost sold out.

Have a great day and God bless.

Peace & Love,

Mare

Jesus Said....

Gorgeous depiction of Our Lord called 
"Jesus II" by adryan 

Gospel Lk 6:36-38

Jesus said to his disciples:
"Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

"Stop judging and you will not be judged.
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you."

...definitely words to live by. May we all find the strength and courage to BE the people that God wants us to be and to love one another.

Have a beautiful week.

Mare

Healing Through the Eucharist

Jesus Christ in the Eucharist- 12/25/11

Luke 8:43-48English Standard Version (ESV)

⁴³ And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and though she had spent all her living on physicians,^[a] she could not be healed by anyone. ⁴⁴ She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, and immediately her discharge of blood ceased. ⁴⁵ And Jesus said, “Who was it that touched me?” When all denied it, Peter^[b] said, “Master, the crowds surround you and are pressing in on you!” ⁴⁶ But Jesus said, “Someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me.” ⁴⁷ And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling, and falling down before him declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed. ⁴⁸ And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.”

Can you imagine yourself having such pure and unshakable faith that you would reach out to Jesus and be completely healed of anything ~ spiritually, emotionally, physically? Can you imagine all of the heavy burdens that you carry being lifted from your shoulders, so much so that your feel as light as a feather? That is what the healing of the Eucharist can do for you. Jesus Christ is present in the Eucharist. To receive Him in the Eucharist is to open yourself up to incredible healing and blessings. 

So many people today do not believe that He is present in the Eucharist, including many that profess to be Catholic. All I can say about that is what a shame. They don't know what they are missing. Do I believe it? No. I know it. There is a distinction between the two. Carl Jung, the father of modern psychology will agree with me on that.  I know that He IS present in the Eucharist because He revealed Himself to me on a Christmas day in 2011, but I believed it prior to that.

When you receive Communion a few things happen.

All of your venial sins are remediated. Venial sins are those that are lesser than mortal sin. Mortal sins need to be confessed to a priest.

You will be protected from evil entities. Those that go to Mass, receive the sacraments and pray often have incredible strength against them. The holier one becomes, the more they flee from you. 

You may experience healing of the spirit, the mind or the body, if it is God's will. There have been cases of spontaneous healing from receiving Communion.

Some mystics and saints of the church have subsisted only on the body of Christ. You may want to read up on them. St. Catherine of Genoa, St. Joseph Cupertino, St. Catherine of Sienna, Blessed Alexandrina de Costa are some of them. Surely, it is the grace of God that allowed them to do that, particularly since many did it for years. You may be interested in reading more on Alexandrina, as that occurred in the last century, as a result of the Fatima Marian apparitions. On this most holy Eucharist in the Blessed Sacrament Padre Pio said:

"My heart feels as if it were being drawn by a superior force each morning just before uniting with Him in the Blessed Sacrament. I have such a thirst and hunger before receiving Him that it's a wonder I don't die of anxiety. I was hardly able to reach the Divine Prisoner in order to celebrate Mass. When Mass ended I remained with Jesus to render Him thanks. My thirst and hunger do not diminish after I have received Him in the Blessed Sacrament, but rather, increase steadily. Oh, how sweet was the conversation I held with Paradise this morning. The Heart of Jesus and my own, if you will pardon my expression, fused. They were no longer two hearts beating but only one. My heart disappeared as if it were a drop in the ocean." (Bl. Padre Pio)

In order to receive the Eucharist, one must be in a state of grace. To be in a state of grace you must go to confession regularly and reveal all of your sins, showing remorse and asking God for forgiveness. Approach the Eucharist with reverence, bow before it, and return to your seat and contemplate being one with Christ. 

If you receive Communion, in an irreverent way, or not in a state of grace, your sins will be MULTIPLIED. 

There has been a number of Eucharistic miracles. The most famous of which is the Host of Lanciano, Italy. It is a direct sign of divine intervention and supernatural occurrence during the celebration of a Mass.   In the 700's during the consecration, the Eucharist and wine were converted into flesh and blood. What is remarkable about this is that the monk that was saying the mass was a man of science and was struggling with his faith in the true presence of Christ. Upon the miracle, the monk called those in attendance to the altar and said, "O fortunate witnesses, to whom the Blessed God, to confound my unbelief, has wished to reveal Himself visible to our eyes! Come, brethren, and marvel at our God, so close to us. Behold the Flesh and Blood of our Most Beloved Christ." The Eucharist is still in existence, has not deteriorated and is housed in the same church, however it is now the Franciscans that are in charge of it. (The monks of St. Basil ran the church when the miracle occurred.) The flesh is in a silver and crystal monstrance. The blood globules are in a chalice. The most recent tests were conducted on them in 1970. The flesh is that of a human heart, the myocardium and endocardium sections and the blood is human, AB. All are fresh. That is mind blowing when you consider that the 700's were a very long time ago.

I urge you to return to Jesus in the Eucharist at the celebration of the Mass. Just as the woman that touched His cloak was healed, so can you be. I recommend that you find Him in your local perpetual adoration chapel. He is waiting for you to return to Him so that He can wrap you in His embrace and fill your heart with peace and joy. I can tell you from my own experience, it is heaven on earth to be with Him.

Have a peaceful week.

Mare

**The photo is a forensic analysis of one of the Eucharistic photos taken on 12/25/11. It has been enlarged and blurred, as blurring it softens the picture and makes it easier to see the bowed head of Our Lord. For more on that picture look at our Youtube channel (Link above) and at the promoted post.




















 

The Kid Inside

Two things happened when I went to church last week. The first was a little girl skipping into the church. She was wearing a white Summer dress with eyelet design and white sandals and her long, blonde, pony tail swung back and forth each time her feet hit the floor.  It put a smile on my face; I wish that everyone entering the Father's house were that excited about visiting Him. It was refreshing to see her and I hope that her enthusiasm does not wane as she gets older.

The other thing happened to me. I was very fidgety and could not sit still. Usually I am very focused on what is being said and done and tune out everything happening around me, but not that day. I could not sit still. It was funny, but for half of the mass I felt like I was a child. No time had passed since I was skipping around town.  That day, though, I looked at my nails, straightened my hair, scratched non-itches, plucked a piece of lint off of my pant leg, made sure my earrings were securely hugging my lobes, and I even put on lip balm. (I pity those sitting next to me.) As unsettled as I was, though, I did actually listen to the homily and readings and it did sink in. It was half way through that gorgeous homily that I recognized the fact that hiding in this 57 year old body was the child I have always been. I still feel EXACTLY the same as I did as a kid, but that is a secret that we old folks don't tell the young. In truth, we are their age but we have to act like adults. I still have the same insecurities and phobias, likes and dislikes; I still hate lima beans and ham still makes my teeth squeak. The only difference now is that I eat it without complaining (the ham that is - still can't get a lima past my lips). I still go to church, arrive early and stay when the priest leaves the altar and the last chord of music is played.

During Communion when I was on line I spied the little girl who had just received the Host and was settling onto the kneeler. She bowed her head into her hands as I looked away. Sadly when I returned to my own pew it had one other man on the opposite side of the bench. The pew in front of me was pretty much the same, except for one woman. Both were filled with people that had gotten on line ahead of me and then split. Two feelings swept over me when I saw this, sadness and anger. Now I know that I was a total fusspot during the homily but I heard the priest talk about Jesus being present in the Host. He had us repeat the word Transubstantiation. He said, and I quote, "the people would be overflowing the churches if they truly believed Jesus was present in the Eucharist." Yes, they would and they should be. They should be falling on their knees in gratitude that He is present with them here on earth. It is pretty sad when a 7 year old shows more reverence than those of us that are supposed to be older and wiser. There is absolutely, positively, no reason why anybody should leave a church with a Eucharist on their tongue yet at least two rows of people did just that. Why can't they see that they are disrespecting Jesus by doing that? They can't wait 5 more minutes for Mass to end? You are taking the body and blood of Jesus Christ into your own body and are running to your car two seconds later. I just do not get it. It breaks my heart to see Him treated that way. It makes me angry to see Him treated that way. I am probably judging those that left but so be it. That is probably part of the reason why Jesus told us we should become more like children to enter the gates of heaven. It is because adults can be pretty stupid. If you are a Catholic and you are doing this, shame on you. Rethink your actions.


God bless and have a good week,

Mare

Oh When the Saints, Come Marching In......

While updating our Facebook page the other day I started to think about saints. Roman Catholics, as well as the Orthodox and Episcopalians, believe in them but many Christians do not. There is confusion and debates over why Catholics pray to saints. Some think it is because we revere them above other people or that we pray to them instead of Jesus or God the Father, cutting God out to ask for interventions and an answer to our prayers. None of that is true. Instead a saint is used more as a conduit to increase prayers to God for an intention.  Catholics do not worship saints but acknowledge them as people that lived an exemplary life that was Christ-like. I will take a wonderful woman, Mother Teresa, as an example. She was born into a wealthy family yet she gave it all up to work with the poorest of the poor in India. What she accomplished on earth was magnificent as far as being a humanitarian and a woman of peace. She was the epitome of love. Catholics believe that Mother Teresa was Christ-like and the definition of a saint while here on earth and that she is now in heaven.

Ten years ago this month I lost my young, beautiful, niece to cancer. She, too, led a Christ-like life while here and I believe that she is in heaven. She is a saint in the eyes of the Catholic church if she is in heaven. All souls that are in heaven are saints.  Her family and friends think of her often and love her and because she is close to God will ask her to watch over them and guide them. She will pray for them and, as God hears all prayers, he will hear her prayers as well as those that have reached out to
her. In this way God is hearing prayers from multiple sources. You may have heard of the Communion of Saints? Well, the Communion of saints is made up of ALL the souls that are in heaven. When one person (or lots of people) on earth prays with the Communion of saints just think of how many prayers God is hearing. It is a multitude praying for the same intention.

How many people have you told, or have told you, that someone they loved was an "angel" watching over them? You pray for your loved ones and they pray for you. It is the same with those recognized as saints. We pray for specific reasons to them and they, in turn, pray for you. Again, just like my niece, the saint is praying to God for you and you are praying to God so he is hearing double the prayers.

That brings me to Mother Mary. It is the same for our Queen of heaven and earth. Catholics pray to her and ask for her prayers for special intentions or blessings. She prays for us and together our prayers are heard by God. You ask your friends to pray for special intentions so why not ask our Mother in heaven to do so as well? Surely Jesus will listen to His Mother.

As far as statues and photos are concerned I have many of them of my niece in my house. They are reminders of a beautiful soul that blessed my life for a short time. I don't sit and pray to her picture. I don't need a picture to pray for her or to ask her to pray for me but it is nice to have her face around me. The same with a depiction of a saint - Catholics do not pray to a statue or picture. They are simply reminders of someone that they love or admire. It's a visual reminder for them to live their own lives as Christ would have them do. It is not the same as the golden calf referred to in the Bible. Those stories are referring to pagan gods. There is a vast difference between a reminder of someone and falling to your knees and worshipping a pagan god. I hope this lends some clarity to that issue.

So here's the thing. You do not have to believe in saints to say prayers that some of them wrote. They were inspired to write them, after all, and were followers of our beloved Jesus. All of them are poignant and uplifting and you do not have to be a Catholic to appreciate and say them. One of my favorites is one by St. Therese of Lisieux:

"May today there be peace within
May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be
May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith
May you use those gifts that you have received
and pass on the love that has been given to you
May you be confident knowing that you are a child of God
Let this presence settle into your bones
and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love
It is there for each and every one of us."

Beautiful and to the point regardless of your belief in her as a saint. May you find the peace within.
Enjoy your weekend and God bless.

Mare