Catholic New Media Conference Boston

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CATHOLIC NEW MEDIA CONFERENCE BOSTON
SPEAKERS ANNOUNCED
REGIONAL EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION NOW OPEN

CNMC BostonEarly bird registration for attendees from the Massachusetts area to the 7th annual Catholic New Media Conference is now open. The conference will be held on October 19 at the Pastoral Center of the Archdiocese of Boston and will bring together new media experts from all over the world to share their experiences and knowledge with anyone interested in using new media for the New Evangelization.

An extra day will be organized for those who register for a VIP ticket and will include a special evening with the conference speakers, a tour of Boston and a media training on Sunday, October 20.

There is a limited number of tickets available, and attendees from the Archdiocese of Boston and the Massachusetts area will be able to register first. Then on June 17, registration will open to the rest of the world.

Tickets are available on the website http://CatholicNewMediaConference.com

Theme of the Conference

This year’s conference focuses on the question of how new media and social networks can help Catholic parishes reach out to inactive Catholics and to those who are not yet members of their community. How can blogging, social networking, internet radio and video and the use of mobile devices like smartphones and tablets help grow local parishes and motivate people to become active in their faith?

“This is an exciting opportunity for us in the Archdiocese of Boston, and we’re happy to welcome the Catholic New Media Conference back after our successful collaboration in 2010,” said Domenico Bettinelli, Creative Director of New Media for the Archdiocese of Boston. “With the advent of Cardinal Seán’s ambitious multi-year pastoral plan, ‘Disciples in Mission’, we know that the use of these new media tools and techniques will be essential to helping parishes and Catholics to reach out to share the Gospel and welcome friends and neighbors back to the practice of their faith.”

The Catholic New Media Conference is aimed at both beginners and experienced users of new media, and welcomes young adults (18+), ministry leaders, parish volunteers, priests and religious, bloggers, podcasters, vloggers and others.

Program and registration

Talks and demonstrations will cover topics such as internet audio and video production, writing for blogs and websites, photography and the latest trends in mobile communication. In addition, a unique spiritual track will focus on communication lessons from Pope Francis, the spirit of new media evangelization and the art of living a balanced online life.

Speakers include well-known Catholic blogger Elizabeth Scalia, Social Media strategist Pat Padley, Catholic Media experts Scott Landry, George Martell and Dom Bettinelli of the Archdiocese of Boston and established Catholic podcasters like Fr. Roderick Vonhogen, ‘Catholic Foodie’ Jeff Young and William Newton.

A full list of topics and speakers can be found on the website:

http://CatholicNewMediaConference.com

The Conference is organized by the Archdiocese of Boston in collaboration with the Catholic New Media network SQPN.com.

Some people are beyond help

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There are some people in our lives that constantly complain, yet they are not open to listen to a solution. Of course not all problems are obvious, but there are those that just stare us in the face.

Are you and I the people who won’t take any criticism, especially constructive criticism? Someone just might have a solution to the problem in your life. That criticism might have some truth to it.

I think this video nails the problem!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4EDhdAHrOg&feature=player_embedded

Surprise in St. Peter’s Square

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You might have heard that Pope Francis was given two Harley Davidson motorcycles and a leather biking jacket. Many blogs and news outlets have called Pope Francis “unpredictable.” His homily are very refreshing. He speaks from the heart and follows where the Holy Spirit moves him. Many pilgrims were surprised today by an unexpected, but short, visit from Pope Francis.

Pope Francis on a motorcycle ride

If I could talk to the animals

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St. Anthony preaches to the fish

The movie featured the song “Talk to the Animals” by Bobby Darin.

If I could talk to the animals, just imagine it,
Chattin’ with a chimp in chimpanzee,
Imagine talking to a tiger, chatting with a cheetah,
What a neat achievement it would be!

Today, we celebrate the feast of St. Anthony of Padua. He was a man known for his miracles. Among them are his many interactions with animals and their response to him. One story about the great saint took place when he was preaching to a group of heretics. The heretics mocked and provoked him, making fun of the Catholic Faith.

With this, St. Anthony walked to a local river that flowed into the sea. He looked out over the water and called on the fish to listen to him preach, since the heretics had closed their minds and hearts. Suddenly, the heads of fish came out of the water and looked in his direction as if they were listening to him preach.

There are many stories of animals responding to saints. Nature responds to grace. When a soul has become united to God through mystical union, all of nature responds to this union. It is as if the saints give us a taste of heaven, when the “The sucking child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den.” (Isaiah 11:8)

St. Anthony’s miracles were so well know, that St. Bonaventure wrote what is known as St. Anthony’s Responsory:

If, then, thou seekest miracles,
Death, error, all calamities,
The leprosy and demons flee,
The sick, by him made whole, arise.

Ant: The sea withdraws and fetters break,
And withered limbs he doth restore,
While treasures lost are found again,
When young or old his help implore.

All dangers vanish from our path,
Our direst needs do quickly flee:
Let those who know repeat the theme:
Let Paduans praise St. Anthony. (repeat antiphon)

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. (repeat antiphon)

V. Pray for us, O blessed Anthony,
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

More on devotion to the Sacred Heart

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Sacred Heart DevotionThere is nothing so moving for a person of deep faith, than to look upon a beautiful image of the Sacred Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Now don’t get me wrong, it’s not the statue itself. We Catholics don’t worship statues. It is what the statue represents that moves us. The statue makes the incarnation present to us.

Our faith is very incarnational because God became man. We human beings are very incarnational. God gave us five senses and He uses these to touch our very being. In Catholic worship, all of our senses are used to captivate the whole person. Catholic worship is meant to be beautiful, we should be captivated by what we see. The way in which the readings are proclaimed and the various parts of the Mass are read should also engross us. Taste is also affected in the Mass when we receive the sacred Body of Our Lord. Smell is all encompassing through the use of incense and our sense of touch is influenced through the many gestures we make throughout. All of the senses helps us to take part with “full, active and conscious participation.”  Of course there are those who may not have one or more of the five senses, but the others  usually compensate for what we may lack.

So back to the point. The statue helps make present the incarnation. God became a man. What Jesus did for us can only be explained by love. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.” (Jn 3:16) We cannot receive a physical hug from Our Lord. Yet, these external images and signs express a supernatural reality, something we need in our humanity. They all help us to realize, “God loves me!”

So why devotion to the Sacred Heart?  The object of our devotion is not some physical piece of flesh, but the immense love that induced Him to die for us and to give Himself entirely to us in the Blessed Sacrament. Blessed Mother Teresa summarized it so well in saying: “We all know, when we look at the cross how Jesus loved us. When we look at the Eucharist we know how much He loves us now.”

This devotion is our return for this love. As St. Therese wrote: “Love is repaid by love alone, and nourished by sacrifice.” We need to have a passionate love for Jesus, who is always with us in the Most Blessed Sacrament. We must show this love by our sadness at seeing the neglect and abuse that He suffers for us by being present in the Blessed Sacrament. And finally, we need to make acts of reparation for contempt and want of love.

Devotion to the Sacred Heart is not some pietistical sap. It is a devotion to the Real Presence of Jesus hidden in the Most Blessed Sacrament. It is a loving adoration and reverence shown by our visits and Holy Hours before Our Lord’s presence. This devotion is a way of making reparation for unworthy Communions, for poor treatment of the Holy Sacrament, for Masses offered sloppily and for neglect of the Real Presence.

The sad reality of our times is that the Most Blessed Sacrament is treated with contempt by many a Catholic and even many a priest. Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament must be cared for like a helpless new born baby. We must show Him great love, care and selfless concern. This is what a concrete devotion to the Sacred Heart is all about. Let us strive to love Jesus, “for He first loved us.” (1 Jn 4:19)

May the Heart of Jesus, in the Most Blessed Sacrament, be praised, adored, and loved with grateful affection, at every moment, in all the tabernacles of the world, even until the end of time. Amen.

Do you have the courage of this Valedictorian?

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A high school Valedictorian arrived at the podium, ripped up his approved speech and did his own thing. He began by talking of his good Christian upbringing and then went on to recite the Lord’s Prayer. With that he received an ovation from the gathered crowd. I did notice that not one of the faculty on the stage had the courage to join in the ovation. If they though he did right, why didn’t they have the same courage he displayed? That is the problem with today’s world, most believes don’t have the courage to take a stand like this young man who went against the secular humanist grain. God bless him for his courage! That is what we mean by the gifts of the Holy Spirt, but we need to correspond to the grace, just as dis the Valedictorian.

Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

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Sacred Heart of JesusToday is the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. Have you made the 1st Friday Devotions? Even if you haven’t, be sure to make the Act of Consecration of the Human Race to The Sacred Heart of Jesus and Act of Reparation to the Sacred Heart.

Our Lord made many promises to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, to all who practice the 1st Friday Devotions. Jesus requested of St. Margaret Mary that we practice this devotion for nine consecutive months on the 1st Friday of those months.

“In the excess of the mercy of my Heart, I promise you that my all powerful love will grant to all those who will receive Communion on the First Fridays, for nine consecutive months, the grace of final repentance: they will not die in my displeasure, nor without receiving the sacraments; and my Heart will be their secure refuge in that last hour.”

Jesus also gave twelve promises to those who practice this devotion. They are all very awesome promises. I especially like the promises to priests. These promises are so pertinent today. If all Catholics practiced this devotion, from the heart, our world and Church would change radically. I say from the heart, because, it is not enough to go through the motions. All of our prayers have to be from the heart, even when we don’t feel like it. Response to God is not dependent on our feelings and emotions.

  1. I will give them all of the graces necessary for their state of life.
  2. I will establish peace in their houses.
  3. I will comfort them in all their afflictions.
  4. I will be their strength during life and above all during death.
  5. I will bestow a large blessing upon all their undertakings.
  6. Sinners shall find in My Heart the source and the infinite ocean of mercy.
  7. Tepid souls shall grow fervent.
  8. Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection.
  9. I will bless every place where a picture of my heart shall be set up and honored.
  10. I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts.
  11. Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart, never to be blotted out.
  12. I promise you in the excessive mercy of My Heart that My all-powerful love will grant to all those who communicate on the First Friday in nine consecutive months the grace of final penitence; they shall not die in My disgrace nor without receiving their sacraments; My Divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment.

Act of Consecration of the Human Race to The Sacred Heart of Jesus

Most sweet Jesus, Redeemer of the human race, look down upon us humbly prostrate before Thy altar. We are Thine, and Thine we wish to be; but, to be more surely united with Thee, behold each one of us freely consecrates himself today to Thy Most Sacred Heart. Many indeed have never known Thee; many too, despising Thy precepts, have rejected Thee. Have mercy on them all, most merciful Jesus, and draw them to Thy Sacred Heart. Be Thou King, O Lord, not only of the faithful who have never forsaken Thee, but also of the prodigal children who have abandoned Thee; grant that they may quickly return to their Father’s house lest they die of wretchedness and hunger. Be Thou King of those who are deceived by erroneous opinions, or whom discord keeps aloof; call them back to the harbor of truth and unity of faith, so that soon there may be but one flock and one Shepherd. Be Thou King of all those who are still involved in the darkness of idolatry or of Islamism; refuse not to draw them all into the light and kingdom of God. Turn Thine eyes of mercy toward the children of that race, once Thy chosen people: of old they called down upon themselves the Blood of the Savior; may it now descend upon them a laver of redemption and of life. Grant, O Lord, to Thy Church assurance of freedom and immunity from harm; give peace and order to all nations, and make the earth resound from pole to pole with one cry: Praise to the Divine Heart that wrought our salvation; to It be glory and Honor forever. Amen..

Act of Reparation to the Sacred Heart

Most sweet Jesus, You have bestowed on men the benefits of Your charity, but their ingratitude only responds with forgetfulness, negligence and spite. Thus here we prostrate ourselves before Your altar, inspired by the desire to make reparation through a special homage for their culpable indifference and the outrages which, in all ways, they oppress Your most loving Heart.

Nevertheless, we remember that we ourselves have been guilty of unworthy conduct in the past, and filled with profound sorrow, we implore Your mercy for us first of all. By voluntary expiation, we are ready to atone for the faults we have committed, ready also to expiate for those who, led astray from the way of salvation and remaining obstinate in their infidelity, refuse to follow You, their Shepherd and chief, thus throwing off the yoke of Your law and trampling the promises of their Baptism.

We would like to expiate for too many lamentable faults, making reparation for each of the following: our disorderly conduct, indecent fashions, scandalous corruption of innocent souls, profanation of Sundays and feasts, detestable blasphemies against You and against Your Saints, insults to your Vicar and to Your priests, reckless violations and odious sacrileges to the divine Sacrament of Your love, and finally the public sins of nations who revolt against the rights and authority of Your Church.

If only we could erase so many offenses with our own blood! At the least we wish to make reparation to Your outraged honor. We present to You even the satisfaction that You have offered to Your Father on the Cross, and the offering You have renewed each day on the altar. We present that sacrifice to You, accompanied with all the acts of atonement made by the Most Holy Virgin Your Mother, the Saints, and by faithful Christians. We promise You with all of our hearts, with the help of Your grace, to use all our means to do penance for our past faults and those of our neighbor. By the fervor of our faith, the purity of our life, and by perfect docility to the precepts of the Gospel, we desire to atone for the indifference toward such a great love, to which belongs all charity. We also promise You to make every effort to spare You new offenses and to lead the most souls possible to follow You.

Seven Beautiful Shrines You Will Want To Visit

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These are seven beautiful shrines that everyone should visit. The only one I have not gone to is Santiago de Compostela because I didn’t want to make the seven hour bus ride, but if I had to do it over again, I would drive anywhere to visit Compostela. I didn’t list them in any particular order and there are many more I could have added, but there is enough here to keep you captivated for a while.

1. Santo Cristo de Limpias

A shrine to the Christ in Agony, located in northern Spain a stones throw from the Bay of Biscay.  This is the site of extraordinary phenomena surrounding the beautiful corpus of Christ in Agony.  Between the years 1914 and 1921, the eyes of Christ closed and the mouth and eyes moved.  The Limpias crucifix is actually one of the most beautiful I have ever seen.  For more information, visit the Spanish website, or the Google translation.

2. The Monastery of Santo Toribio

This is the site of the “largest preserved relic of the True Cross.  Santo Toribio is nestled within beautiful mountains of Cantabrian, Spain.  The monastery is home to the Order of Friars Minor (O.F.M.).  You can see some pictures on the official website, but the site is in Spanish and cannot be translated through Google, because the site is based on Flash.  There is however some information on Wikipedia.

3. Nortre-Dame-du-Cap

The shrine of Our Lady of the Cape is another beautiful setting.  It is dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary. The first church was built and the bishop dedicated it as a shrine on May 13, 1714. In the early days, people of the area had a great devotion to Our Lady and were very faithful Catholics. However, through the years, and because of no priest, the people almost completely fell away from the faith. When they did finally receive a priest, his job was to reawaken the faith. Our Lady’s shrine shows the providential care of God for His people. Two miraculous events helped to restore the people’s faith. The first took place in 1967, when the new priest found a pig in the church, with a rosary in it’s mouth, staring at the statue of Our Lady. The second was Our Lady’s response to the prayers of the same priest. It is called the Miracle of the Ice Bridge” in March of 1879. The shrine’s official website has information about making a pilgrimage and the shrine hotel. You can read the whole story of Our Lady of the Cape in Michael’s Journal.

4. Our Lady of Covadonga

In 722, Our Lady brought victory to the Christians who were at battle with the Morrs. Victory is attributed to a statue that a hermit had hidden in one of the caves. Pelayo, and his army hid in the cave and besought the protection of Our Lady. It is said that she appeared with legions of angels, and the Morrs departed in fear. Today, there is a beautiful chapel hidden in the side of the mountain, that contains a miraculous image of Our lady of Covadonga, and above the city lies a basilica dedicated to her honor.

More information on the shrine can be found here. The shrine’s official website has information on making a pilgrimage and other information.

5. Fatima, Portugal

It is in Fatima that Our Lady appeared to three shepherd children for six consecutive months beginning in May of 1917 and concluding with the famous Miracle of the Sun on October 13 of the same year. Her message is one of repentance, penance, praying the rosary, devotion to the Immaculate Hear of Mary and offering sacrifices for sinners. Fatima is the most renowned Marian shrine in the world. It is estimated that 4 – 5 million people visit the shrine each year. The official website of the shrine has a multitude of information. EWTN has a section of their website dedicated exclusively to the apparitions Fatima.

6. Santiago de Compostela

The shrine in the resting place of the relics of St. James the Greater. It has been a major place of pilgrimage dating back to the 9th century. The pilgrims have walked to the shrine, seeking the intercession of the Apostle saint along a route called Camino de Santiago (The Way of St. James). In 2010, The Way, a film directed by Emilio Estevez and staring Martin Sheen, helped to make this great shrine and pilgrimage known to a wider audience. The cathedral is also know for having the largest “Botafumeiro” or censer in the world. You can visit the official website of the Cathedral of St. James (difficult to navigate, too heavily flash based). To find information about the many routes of the Camino, visit this pilgrimage website. There is also a lot of information on Wikipedia.

7. Shrine of Our Lady of the Martyrs

Auriesville, New York is home to the Shrine of the North American Martyrs and the birthplace of St. Kateri Tekakwitha. The shrine was the site of a Mohawk village where three Jesuit missionares were martyred in the 1640’s. Fr. Isaac Jogues, Fr. Rene Goupil and Br. John Lalande. St. Kateri was born right up the street in Fonda, NY in 1656, where the Shrine of Saint Kateri is located. The shrine in Auriesville is made up of 400 acres of rolling hills. In 1931, the shrine built a church in the round, known as the “coliseum”. The coliseum can seat 6,500 people and has additional standing room for another 3,500 people. The shrines official website has a lot of great information and pictures. The Shrine of Saint Kateri is only 4 miles to the west.

Extreme Weather May 2013

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A friend of mine sent me a link to these two Youtube videos on strange weather patterns throughout the world during May 2013. It’s pretty interesting. There were a few things that really surprised me, and some just weird. It’s all just freaky!