Mandisa – Stronger

I’ve been journeying through the past a lot here. But I’m not stuck in it. One of the nicer surprises that I’ve come across in the past few years is the ripening of Christian pop music. With exceptions on either side, I often find it more uplifting than mainstream pop. I say “with exceptions” because there are some new mainstream radio hits that I do like, and there are some Christian pop tunes that get a bit too fundamentalist for my liking (sometimes a good tune can be soured by fundamentalist lyrics). And yeah, I do have to be in the mood. But that’s true for any type of music, n’est-ce pas?

Anyhow, I hope you “dig” this just as much as I do…

Today’s reading at Mass

The Resurrection Mass in Stavropoleos, oil on canvass via Wikipedia

I was talking on Facebook earlier this morning about synchronicity, magic and spirituality. Then later at Mass, this reading sort of stood out:

⁸ See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces^[a] of this world rather than on Christ.  ⁹ For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, ¹⁰ and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority.

Source: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Colossians+2%3A6-15&version=NIV

It seemed like a funny kind of synchronicity in itself.

Related articles

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• At closing Mass, Pope tells youth to follow Christ through his Church (onecatholicnews.wordpress.com)
• Colossians 2: 9 , 10 (jantzika.wordpress.com)
• The Reintroduction of Jesus Christ (Part Two) (lifebrook.wordpress.com)
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• What are you called? (nathangilreath.wordpress.com)
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shadow play

shadow play, originally uploaded by earthpages.

that’s right… real shadows as the sun came in our front window today… looks like Jesus or Mary and two angels to me…

Pope Benedict XVI setting up exorcism squads…

Pope Benedict XVI setting up exorcism squads to fight rising

From… The Life of St. Teresa of Avila

Last night I was finishing up The Life of St. Teresa of Avila by Herself and came across this rather striking passage: 

29. Once, when I was going to Communion, I saw with the eyes of the soul, more distinctly than with those of the body, two devils of most hideous shape; their horns seemed to encompass the throat of the poor priest; and I beheld my Lord, in that great majesty of which I have spoken, held in the hands of that priest, in the Host he was about to give me. It was plain that those hands were those of a sinner, and I felt that the soul of that priest was in mortal sin. What must it be, O my Lord, to look upon Thy beauty amid shapes so hideous! The two devils were so frightened and cowed in Thy presence, that they seemed as if they would have willingly run away, hadst Thou but given them leave. So troubled was I by the vision, that I knew not how I could go to Communion. I was also in great fear, for I thought, if the vision was from God, that His Majesty would not have allowed me to see the evil state of that soul.

30. Our Lord Himself told me to pray for that priest; that He had allowed this in order that I might understand the power of the words of consecration, and how God failed not to be present, however wicked the priest might be who uttered them; and that I might see His great goodness in that He left Himself in the very hands of His enemy, for my good and for the good of all. I understood clearly how the priests are under greater obligations to be holy than other persons; and what a horrible thing it is to receive this most Holy Sacrament unworthily, and how great is the devil’s dominion over a soul in mortal sin. It did me a great service, and made me fully understand what I owe to God. May He be blessed for evermore!

Source: http://www.ccel.org/ccel/teresa/life.viii.xxxix.html

I thought this was a nice video

Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church

I’m dreaming of a Virtual Christmas…

This year I don’t think I’ll be sending out cards by snailmail. But I will be doing something with the web site…

That may seem like a cop out to some but, actually, making a nice holiday image takes a fair amout of time, especially because I usually want to get it ‘just right.’