Who would choose a curse? You'd be surprised

Feb 27, 2020thefriarwebmasterHomilies, Podcastsblessing, Catholic, choice, choose life, curse, death, homilies, Lent, Lent 2020, Lenten, lenten novena, Moses, prayer, relfections

Moses sets before the people today a blessing and a curse. It is hard to imagine that anyone would really choose a curse, but every time we sin we do. Why? How is it we can turn our back on God’s gift of life and choose the curse? Well, choosing life has consequences. Standing up for what is right and true can be hard, we can be persecuted for it. For this reason Jesus tells his disciples about his death, or warns his followers about self-denial and taking up a cross. Lent is a time where we are called to remember to take up a Cross so that we choose the blessing.

Lent 2020

Feb 26, 2020thefriarwebmasterLentCatholic, homilies, Lent, Lent 2020, Lenten Reflections, podcasts, prayer

Lent. The DePorres Pages has a few things planned for this season. We get ourselves ready with the Preparing for Lent Novena. Then, each day during the season of Lent there will be reflections for each day to get us thinking about how we might grow closer to Jesus. There will, of course, homilies, episodes of Going Behind the Word and The Catholic Schoolhouse. We will also suggest, thoughout the season, ways in which you can better your prayer life, seek to serve others, and sacrifice to better see the loving presence of God in your life, and his desire to forgive and to save.

Getting Ready for Lent Novena: Day Two

Feb 18, 2020thefriarwebmasterLent, Podcastsalmsgiving, fasting, Genesis 1:26, goodness, Imago Dei, Lent, Lent 2020, Novena, prayer, Preparing for Lent Novena

We have been made by God in a way that makes us different from any other creature here on earth. We are made in God’s image and likeness. Today’s novena prayer focuses on how we need to allow God to make us more like him in grace.

Preparing for Lent Novena 2020

Feb 13, 2020thefriarwebmasterLent, Podcastsalmsgiving, exercise, fasting, get ready, Lent, nine day of prayer, Nine Days, Novena, prayer

Be sure to check out all the resources The DePorres Pages has for Lent. Today’s Prayer, High School Lenten Reflections, Homilies, Going Behind the Word, The Catholic Schoolhouse and Commentary. You can also Ask for Prayer and Pray for Others. On Wednesday, February 26, 2020, the Church begins the season of Lent. It is a…

Why do we bless throats today?

Feb 3, 2020thefriarwebmasterCatholic Schoolhouse, Podcastsbishop, blessing of throats, hermit, holiness, martyr, prayer, protection, Saint Blaise

You may be in a parish who blessed throats this past weekend, or even today. February 3 is the day we celebrate Saint Blaise, and a long tradition in the Catholic Church has associated him with the blessing of throats. This is because of a story told where a mother brought her young boy to Saint Blaise when he was choking on a fish bone. Saint Blaise, who was a physician when he was made bishop, miraculously save the boy. A holy man committed to the faith, when told to renounce his faith, he would not do so. Tortured and killed, his prayers were seen as a powerful protection against diseases of the throat. Perhaps less known was his life as a hermit and a deep man of prayer. The prayer of blessing is this: “Through the intercession of St. Blaise, bishop and martyr, may God deliver you from every disease of the throat and from every other illness, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

Nine Days for Life Novena: Intro

Jan 15, 2020thefriarwebmasterPodcastsNine Days for Life, Novena, prayer, prolife, protect all human life

9 Days for Life is a multi-faceted novena for the respect and protection of human life. Each day, a different intention is accompanied by a short reflection, suggested actions, and related information. Sign up to receive the novena by email, text message, or an app at http://www.9daysforlife.com.

More lessons on prayer

Oct 10, 2019thefriarwebmasterHomilies, Podcastsask, find, knock, pray, prayer, relationship with Jesus, seek

Today’s gospel from Luke continues lessons on the topic of prayer, which we have been focused upon this week. The emphasis today is about the power of perseverance, which might seem to be undone by the words at the end of the gospel which can be seen as suggesting prayer is really easy. “Ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” But the rub is that while the one who asks, receives, they may get something different than what they asked for. The one who seeks might find what they did not expect. The one who knocks may find the door opens to a different place. But prayer is first and foremost about Jesus. And by asking, seeking, knocking, we know we are never alone.

Tag: prayer