Pope Francis waves from a window of the Apostolic Palace at the crowds gathered in St. Peter's Square for his weekly Angelus address on Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024. | Credit: Vatican Media.

On Sunday, Pope Francis recalled Jesus’ teaching that true power is found by taking care of others, not by exploiting them or using them.

“With a word as simple as it is decisive, Jesus renews our way of living. He teaches us that true power does not lie in the dominion of the strongest but in care for the weakest,” the pope said in his weekly Angelus address Sept. 22.

“True power,” Francis emphasized, “is taking care of the weakest; that makes you great.”

Continued below.

Dan Perez said:

And is Acts 17:30 speaking to Israel ??

Or is it speaking to us today , since we are in the Dispensation of the Grace of God , in Eph 3:2 ?

dan p

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For everybody. They have to accept Christ. Jew first and also to the Greek. Yes you are correct. For us today in this current dispensation.

Praying for peace at Mass today!

Blessings

Arcangl86 said:

Being related to Jewish people doesn't prevent somebody from being anti-semitic. He's not peddling conspiracy theories against them to the best of my knowledge, that's true. But he is still doing things as treating Jews as a single mass of people with united values instead of individuals and he's equating being Jewish with political support for Israel, regardless of whether an individual has any connection to the state at all. He probably wouldn't look at it that way, but I know some Jews who consider it a rehash of the old anti-semitic trope of Jews being disloyal and having dual loyalties.

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He probably wants attention as usual. You’re completely right though. My mistake and apologies.

May God fill you with his inner peace. Amen.

Take a walk with Jesus through your childhood neighborhood this Sunday, in the readings for the 25th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B. Be yourself around him, acting just as you always do — too willing to ignore Jesus and too willing to assert your ego.

That is what the Apostles do, and they learn a remarkable insight about spiritual childhood.

This Sunday’s Gospel passage would be funny if it didn’t sting.

It begins with Jesus and the apostles going on “a journey through Galilee, but he did not wish anyone to know about it.”

Last Sunday, Jesus told the Apostles where this journey was headed: He was going to Jerusalem to die, and each would have to “take up his cross and follow me” and be willing to “lose his life for my sake.” Then, a lot happens in the 30 verses we skip between last Sunday’s Gospel and this Sunday’s. First, Mark tells the story of how, with three apostles present, Jesus literally glowed while God himself said “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him!” Meanwhile, other disciples failed to expel a demon from a child and argued with scribes instead, making Jesus complain, “O faithless generation, how long will I endure you?”

So they should have been on high alert and listening when he said, “The Son of Man is to be handed over to men and they will kill him, and three days after his death the Son of Man will rise.” We can imagine what the discussion should have been like:

Continued below.

It would seem that we are not free in heaven. If there is not even a possibility of falling from heaven, then can we say that we are there freely or are we there against our will?

To navigate this paradox, we can look to Dante Alighieri’s masterpiece, The Divine Comedy. In the poem, Dante’s guide, Virgil, bids farewell after leading him through hell and purgatory. His parting advice to Dante is enigmatic at best and scandalous at worst:

From now on, let your pleasure be your guide;
…
your will is free, erect, and whole—to act
against that will would be to err: therefore
I crown and miter you over yourself.”
(Purgatorio XXVII, 131, 140-142, trans. A. Mandelbaum)

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To understand Virgil’s advice, we must re-examine human nature. We freely make choices; some are good for us, others are bad. Putting a hand on a hot stove, for instance, is harmful regardless of the immediate and mistaken desire to do so. Even if we were to undergo a special surgery or take medication to numb the pain, the painless heat is nevertheless damaging. This is true for us not only physically, but also psychologically and spiritually. Our desires and pleasures are properly ordered insofar as they lead us to our ultimate happiness and the fulfillment of all desire: loving union with God.

Even so, Virgil’s advice to “let your pleasure be your guide” seems dangerous. Our desires are frequently disordered and lead us away from God. It is also not always clear whether a choice is truly good for us physically, psychologically, and spiritually. As Dante ascends up through the levels of purgatory, there is a process of healing and re-ordering in his will, damaged by sin. This process is meant to take place not only in purgatory but throughout our life on earth. The commandments of God and the precepts of the Church are not random. They are an expression of Divine Wisdom in conformity with our nature, helping us to learn and re-order our desires for what is truly good for us. The Church’s teachings are not imposed to constrain our will, but to set it free. Once we desire what is truly good for us, then our will is free. We can do whatever we desire because we will only desire what leads to endless, unrestricted happiness. We will not need an external law telling us what not to do, because we will not even have the slightest desire for harmful choices. As God himself says, “I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts” (Jer 31:33).

Continued below.

I doubt they will reunify in my lifetime. Praying for it one day.

What is the ideal for the meaning of the sexes and for the ordering of family life? It can be found in understanding authority and submission.​

For years, I’ve taught biblical submission to women—and to men. Even writing this seems like exposing a bad secret. Yet I go on because resolving the meaning of submission and authority brought this Protestant minister’s family into the Catholic Church.

The idea of wives’ submission came to me, granddaughter of a Baptist preacher, wife of a Baptist and, later, Presbyterian minister, as a thunderbolt from the blue. I was struck by the power of the Bible’s admonition—that is, without a cloud of such a concept in sight, I was struck by the power of the Bible’s admonition, “Wives, be submissive to your husbands as to the Lord” (Eph. 5:22).

I had read these words as flat syllables, without an ounce of meaning, for as long as I could remember, but on this particular day they were emphatically presented as something I could no longer ignore. Before this, I had accepted marriage as something like a football game. My husband and I were two teams who tried to gain yardage from each other or score goals by getting past each other’s defenses. Sometimes the competition was amiable, sometimes it was vengeful, but there was always competition, with the gaining or giving of ground.

The very thought that I should be on his team was revolutionary. All the assumptions about our relationship were up for review and reform.

Continued below.

Members of the African Synodal Digital Youth Influencers who graduated recently from the African Digital Faith Influencers Formation program of the Pan African Catholic Theology and Pastoral Network(PACTPAN) were told to “brace for the challenges that lie ahead of [them] in the digital peripheries [they] seek to evangelize.”

In his keynote address at the Sept. 12 graduation ceremony, Bishop Godfrey Igwebuike Onah of Nigeria’s Diocese of Nsukka warned the 56 participants in the PACTPAN program of the complexities that exist in digital spaces.

Onah reminded the graduates that in the Church, the digital world is still at the periphery needing to be evangelized.

Continued below.

The Catholic maritime charity Stella Maris is urging the U.K. government to take action to protect fishermen following a BBC program that shows cases of modern-day slavery on fishing vessels.

Stella Maris is the maritime agency of the Catholic Church in the U.K.

Last month, BBC One Scotland aired the documentary “Disclosure: Slavery at Sea,” which accuses Scottish fishing company TN Trawlers of modern-day slavery and human trafficking.

Continued below.

chevyontheriver said:

So has this former Planned Parenthood executive repented and come to faith? And is speaking because she has something to say about values and repentance?

Er, um, no?

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Unfortunately not. It sends the wrong message. Ugh

some countries also are thinking of a six day work week, more and more I see this on the internet it could have repercussions on the true sabbath day also.

Likewise for godly woman as well. Seek strength in love from the Lord. As a matter of routine practice, hear his voice and depend on Him.

Paidiske said:

It's a term originating in 16th-century ecclesiastical court hearings about canonising saints. The lawyer arguing against the desired outcome was said to be arguing "for the devil." The lawyer arguing for the desired outcome was called "God's advocate."

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The irony is that dissolution of the bond is the devil's desired outcome, not God's.

go to Liturgy, pay attention as best you can, talk to the priest afterwards.

....and welcome! This is a nice place to fellowship. May you be blessed here.

This Week's Prayer Guide


September 22 - This week, we conclude our month of prayer for Lanzhou by praying for specific requests of Christians there and the needs of their neighbors.

September 23 - A pastor in Lanzhou remarks that there is a "poor spiritual state of many second-generation Christians in this city. Of course, faith cannot be inherited, but the spiritual atmosphere that Christian families create for their children makes it difficult for them to inherit their faith. Many second-generation Christians in China, those who experienced the previous revival, whether in rural or urban churches, are experiencing a rapid decline in their faith. I don't think this is a good sign. Families who already believe are failing to pass on their faith."

September 24 - Pray for Christians in Lanzhou to be empowered by the Holy Spirit to invest in and maintain relationships with their neighbors, families, and coworkers. As a pastor shares, "We pray that the Holy Spirit would really help us in this area where we are weak and where we don't have the time and energy to match."

September 25 - Pray for a pastor's wife in Lanzhou who is helping children at a local school through a new lunch program. Pray for her to be a witness of Christ through this lunch program.

September 26 - One pastor in Lanzhou shares frustration that, "Because many intellectuals have left this city, the brothers and sisters who remain in the church are very passive when it comes to thinking about and knowing God. This often frustrates me, as I wonder how to deepen their faith and help them grow. Of course, this is just from an intellectual perspective. In [other cities I have been to], people were interested in discussing theology and the Bible. But here, no one is interested in talking about these things. This process has been very, very lonely for me."

September 27 - A pastor in Lanzhou says, "We have a lot of children in our church, and everyone values children very much. We are actively running a youth ministry. But there is some concern that in the future, because Lanzhou doesn't retain people, that we are essentially raising these children for other churches because they will all leave Lanzhou. Sometimes I wonder, 'We're putting so much effort into the children's ministry, but what happens when they grow up and leave? Will it be sustainable?'" Pray for churches in this situation, that they will raise their children well and minister Christ to them. Pray that the children who leave can bring the gospel to new places, and also pray for God to raise up some who will stay and invest in Lanzhou's future.

September 28 - A pastor in Lanzhou asks, "Please pray that the Gospel will renew more churches in our city, so that the Gospel can renew the city."



9月22日--本周，我们为兰州基督徒具体的要求和他们邻舍的需要祷告，以此结束为兰州的祷告月。

9月23日--兰州的一位牧师说，"这个城市的许多第二代基督徒灵命状况不佳。信仰当然不能遗传，但基督徒家庭为子女营造的属灵氛围却使他们难以继承信仰。中国许多第二代基督徒，那些经历过上一次复兴的基督徒，无论是在农村教会还是城市教会，他们的信仰都在迅速衰退。我认为这不是一个好兆头。"

9月24日--为兰州的基督徒祷告，求圣灵给他们能力，让他们能够服侍于邻居、家人和同事，并维持他们之间的关系。正如一位牧师所分享说："我们祈求圣灵在这我们软弱、缺乏时间和精力配合的领域中真正地帮助我们。"

9月25日 - 为兰州的一位师母祷告，她正在通过一个新的午餐计划帮助当地学校的孩子们。为她祷告，让她能够透过这个午餐计划成为基督的见证人。

9月26日--兰州的一位牧师分享他的挫折感："因为许多知识分子离开了这个城市，所以留在教会里的弟兄姐妹在思考和认识神方面非常被动。这常常让我感到沮丧，因为我不知道如何加深他们的信仰，帮助他们成长。当然，这只是从知识的角度来看。在其它我去过的城市，人们对讨论神学和《圣经》很感兴趣。但在这里，没有人有兴趣谈论这些事情。这个过程对我来说非常、非常孤独。"

9 月 27日--兰州的一位牧师说："我们教会有很多孩子，每个人都非常重视孩子。我们正在积极开展青少年事工。但有人担心，将来因为兰州留不住人，我们基本上是在为其他教会培养这些孩子，因为他们都会离开兰州。有时我会想，'我们在儿童事工上投入了这么多精力，但当他们长大离开后怎么办？这样的事工能持续吗？'" 为处于这种情况下的教会祷告，求主帮助他们能够好好抚养孩子，并向他们传讲基督。为离开的孩子能够将福音带到新的地方祷告，也求神兴起一些人留下来，为兰州的未来献身。

9月28日--兰州的一位牧师请求："请为福音能够更新我们城市中更多的教会祷告，让福音能够更新这座城市。"

Thank you, Riley! It’s truly a blessing to be part of this community.

There's a saying that if you give everyone a million dollars the money would end up in the same hands. It's meant to illustrate the reality of financial illiteracy and the likelihood the majority would go towards consumerism. The way you figure out where you stand is by answering the question. What would you do?

For the majority their first thought is what they'd give, buy or payoff. That's why it wouldn't last.

~bella

Dimly lit, the darkest night,
Is the light of truth inside?
Masqueraders all around,
Many turned now into clowns.

Charlatans now lead the sheep
Who are falling fast asleep.
Nill endeavor truth to find,
They are very truly blind.

Many hardened hearts to truth
They live wicked lives, uncouth.
Masquerade as righteousness,
But they live in wickedness.

Foolish hearts turn to their sin,
High on sin, and drunk on gin.
Self-control went out the door.
Not their sins do they abhor.

Hate the truth, prefer the lies,
‘spite the heralds and their cries.
Selfish, cruel, love their tricks.
Truth not to their lips does stick.

Leading many now astray,
Follow man, not God obey.
Needing now, oh, to repent,
Give up sins to which they’re bent.

Follow Jesus every day.
Bow before Him, don’t delay!
Sins forgiven if you dare
Follow Jesus everywhere.

Now surrender life to Him.
Live pure life, proper and prim.
Holiness be your desire.
Let God set your heart on fire.

An Original Work / July 21, 2022

Now these words, like many others of like kind, were written to the church, to those making professions of faith in Jesus Christ. All throughout the New Testament we have warnings, such as this, to those professing to be Christians, many of whom truly were legitimate people of faith in the Lord. And these warnings were to let the church be aware that if any of them continued in deliberate and habitual sin, and if sexual immorality was their practice, et al, that they would have no inheritance in the kingdom of God.

There was not even to be a hint of such things among them. But what about today? There is way more than just a hint of sexual immorality, and the like, among those calling themselves Christians. If you read statistics on how many “Christian” men (including pastors) engage somewhat regularly in the viewing of sexually explicit material, and who are involved in various perversions of sex, the numbers are fairly high, like in the majority range. And there are women and children who follow suit, as well.

Now, everyone is responsible for his or her own behaviors. But there are factors involved here which I believe have contributed to the massive number of people within the gatherings of “the church” who are sexually immoral, and who are living in adultery, if only in their own minds. One of the major factors is that many pastors have diluted the gospel message. So, many preachers are no longer teaching God’s requirements for death to sin and obedience to God, as required for genuine faith which saves.

Thus, many people have the impression that they can “believe” in Jesus, have all their sins forgiven, be guaranteed heaven when they die, while they continue in sin and pursue what is immoral and wicked and against God and against his commandments, in practice. And then the internet and smartphones have just made it so convenient for people to look at whatever and to talk with whomever and to flirt and to cheat and to lie, etc., where no one else can see what they are doing, even in a crowded room.

This should not be!


So, we need to understand that the Scriptures do not give us permission to keep living in sin just because we made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ. We are not forgiven of our sins so that we can go on living in sin, only now without punishment, without remorse, and without genuine repentance (turning away from our sins so we can now follow Jesus in obedience). For if we do not die with Christ to sin, we are not reborn of the Spirit of God. And if we do not follow Jesus in obedience, we do not have eternal life in him.

So don’t believe those who are telling you that all you have to do is just receive Jesus Christ into your heart, or to acknowledge him for who he is and for what he did for us on that cross, and now you are saved, sanctified, and on your way to heaven, and no one can take that away from you. Jesus said if anyone would come after him he must deny self, take up his cross daily (die daily to sin) and follow (obey) him. For if we keep on in our sin, and if we do not obey our Lord, in practice, we don’t have salvation from sin.

So, if disobedience to our Lord and to his commands is our habit, and if obedience and holy living and dying to sin daily is not our practice, then we will face the wrath of God, not inherit eternal life with God. So we are not to be partners with those who are walking in disobedience to the Lord and who are living to please the flesh and not God. We are not to be in agreement with these altered “gospel” messages. But we are to walk in obedience to our Lord, no longer addicted to sin, and live lives pleasing to Him.


Now, not only are we not to be partners with those for whom sin is their practice, and not only are we not to partake in sinful practices (the works of darkness), but we are to expose the fruitless deeds of darkness for what they are so that others don’t get entrapped by them. All of us who believe in Jesus Christ are to be doing this! All of us are to be teaching that genuine faith in Jesus Christ results in us dying with him to sin and us now walking in obedience to his commands, in practice. And if sin is what we practice, and not righteousness, we will die in our sins and face the wrath of God.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2]

Walking in The Light

An Original Work / November 16, 2011
Based off 1 John 1-2

When I lift up my voice, and
Sing praise unto God,
I will fellowship with my
Lord and Savior, King.
In Him there is no darkness.
He is in the light of truth.
If we walk in His light,
From sin He purifies.

If we repent of our sins,
He’ll forgive us now,
When we humble ourselves, and
Before Jesus bow.
The man who says, “I know Him,”
But does not obey His truth,
There is no truth in him.
In darkness still he’s found.

Do not love the world of sin,
For it is hell bound.
If you follow the world, you’ll
Not in Christ be found.
The world and its desires
Will not last; they’ll expire.
The one who does God’s will,
Receives eternal life.

See that what you have heard from
Christ remains in you.
Then, you’ll remain in Christ, and
In His Father, too.
This is what He promised us –
His eternal life with God.
So, continue in Him, and
You’ll receive a crown.

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Hans Blaster said:

This is the first of the false claims VD Hanson makes:

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I'm not really a fan of VD Hanson.

Hans Blaster said:

"A near decade ago, we witnessed the 2015-2016 Hillary Clinton/Democratic National Committee/FBI-assisted effort to plant the false accusation of Trump-Russian collusion to warp the 2016 election.

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Yeah.

Hans Blaster said:

That gambit centered around the fraudulent Steele dossier and nearly fatally crippled the Trump 2016 campaign. That hoax would later sidetrack 22 months of his presidency before being proven a fantasy."

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Well it didn't really sidetrack his campaign but it did hamstring the first 2 years of his presidency.

Hans Blaster said:

This is not true. The FBI investigation into Trump's associates in Summer 2016 was started because they had all sorts of their own hinky connections to Russia (the campaign manager received his payments from a Putin oligarch via money laundering;

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Manafort was convicted of all sorts of stuff....I don't think much (if any) was campaign related. He got accused of the same things Hunter did....only difference was an investigation.

Hans Blaster said:

the "coffee boy" who bragged about being offered Russia supplied dirt on Clinton to an Australian diplomat; etc.)

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Right. The Australian diplomat....who never tipped off the FBI before and was somehow treated as a solid gold informant.

Hans Blaster said:

None of them were dependent on the "Steele Dossier".

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Well FISA warrants were. After all the wires had been tapped, associates had been threatened, and money wasted...they still had zilch. That didn't sit well with 2 of the lead investigators....who were texting each other fantasies of heroism for taking down Trump. The only thing in their way was this pesky lack of evidence.

Hans Blaster said:

The "Dossier" had virtually *no* impact on the campaign itself.

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Probably, but that would be difficult to test. We can say the same of "Russian interference".

Hans Blaster said:

The first reporting based on copies reporters had gotten hold of occurred just a week or so before election day. Almost no attention was given to it.

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Well....

Twitter was still in the hands of far left activists back then. I don't recall when the sordid contents of the "dossier" (dossier sounds so much better than lies on paper)....I'd thought it was earlier than a week though.

Either way.

Hans Blaster said:

(This was the time of the Access Hollywood tape, the wikileaks story after story from the hack of the Clinton campaign, and the endless stream of sexual harassment and assault accusations against Trump. One of those accusations that flared up at that time, but didn't become public was the Stormy Daniels affair that was suppressed by a large cash payment.)

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Didn't she go on Bill Maher?

Hans Blaster said:

As for lengthy impact on the Trump Administration, that flared up not because of any "Dossier", but because the incoming NSA had an unsecured conversation with the Russian ambassador to the US and when questioned about it, lied to the FBI in his WH office.

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Didn't that go nowhere?

Hans Blaster said:

The investigation and firing of General Misha that resulted from that encounter angered Trump who fired the FBI Director for it and *THAT* lead to the appointing of a special counsel.

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That's at least the third explanation for Comey's firing and imo....the least likely.

Hans Blaster said:

VD Hanson is either woefully ignorant or he knew what he wrote was false. The editors of "Townhall.com" are either negligent or complicit in the lie.

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If he's ignorant....it's not lie.

Have you given thought to your life –
To why you were even born?
Have you thought about your purpose?
Or is your purpose now forlorn?

Do you know your life has meaning –
That you are not here by mistake?
Do you know your life has purpose?
And it is not that you be fake?

Do you know you were created
With God’s purpose now in mind?
To believe, you would, in Jesus,
And his righteousness to find?

Do you know that he has purpose,
And has meaning for your life?
That you would follow Jesus Christ,
And you’d not give up to strife?

Now He wants to bless you richly
With his treasures now in store,
To give hope now for your future,
And, that Him you’d now adore.

Gave His life for your salvation,
So from sin you’d be set free,
To follow Jesus only now,
Bowing now on bended knee.

He has given you direction
Through the teachings of His Word,
To follow Him in purity,
And do nothing, though, absurd.

So, give your life to Him today,
Follow Him where’er He leads.
Tell others of His saving grace,
And for others, their needs meet.

An Original Work / April 12, 2019