Saint Joseph

The foster father to Our Lord is often overlooked by faithful Christians.  This is unfortunate indeed.  Tradition holds that Joseph's wife, the mother of Jesus' brothers and sisters, had died.  Joseph was in the line of David and so he was entitled to mothering of his children via the temple.  He was betrothed to a consecrated virgin, Mary, who would care for his household and mother his children.  He never intended for their relationship to be a sexual one.

When Mary was discovered to be pregnant, Joseph resolved to divorce her quietly.  This means that he was not vindictive.  He did not want her publicly punished or stoned.  Joseph's complete love of his deceased wife, his  openness to God, and his humble heart, made him the perfect spouse for Mary and earthly father of Our Lord.

Saint Joseph is the patron saint of a "good death" because his own death was so beautiful.  Jesus suffered the loss of Joseph before the beginning of His ministry.  When Jesus wept, we can only imagine him remembering the loss of his own beloved father.

May God bless you as you mourn and support others who mourn.  Please avail yourself of this prayer to Saint Joseph.  This chaplet of Saint Joseph is short and sweet.  For more prayers and devotions, click here.  There are also prayer apps that include chaplets and prayers to Saint Joseph available for free or a few dollars.

Mary The Mother

Mary, Miriam, The Most Holy Blessed Mother, Theotokos, Panagia, Our Mother, Our Lady, Queen of Heaven, Mother of God, Full of Grace, Advocate of Eve, Star of the Sea, Seat of Wisdom, Cause for our Joy, Our Hope, She who shows the Way, Mother of Mercy...

the list goes on and on.

Protestants are confounded by Catholic devotion to her.  Catholics cry to her again and again in the rosary.  Orthodox Christians allow her to be the only woman in their alters and on the Holy Mountain.  

What is it about this woman that so compels billions to love and adore her?  

God chose her to be the mother of His Son.  He told her about His choice and she said, yes.  

Above, you will find the first in a series of videos by Archbishop Fulton Sheen on Our Mother, the reason for Mother's Day.  She held the creator of the universe in her womb.  She gave flesh to God and brought him into a temporal world to live as one of us.  She cared for him and loved him.  She suggested His first miracle.  She stood by the cross.  She committed his body.  She rejoiced in His resurrection.  She was at Pentecost.  She was assumed into Heaven.  She is with Him now.

I'd like to reflect on her motherhood.  This is the month of mothers, and I've been quite miffed at several commentaries made by men with regard to the birth of Our Lord.  

I have heard several Catholic speakers discuss Mary's birth experience.  They describe it as "painless" and "making no physical difference."  It is quite difficult for women to listen to this and maintain their faith in these priests! (Our faith in Jesus remains.)  In this post, I call on all men, who wish to speak authoritatively on the sensations of childbirth, to take a moment and realize that they will never have a woman's body.  No man will ever be privy to the culture of women.  No man will ever posses a feminine genius!  Perhaps such speculation should not be made by men.  

My experience with childbirth is quite limited.  I've had one child and only been at the birth of one other.  Mary was much more experienced than I.  As a small child, she would have helped with simple preparations for births in her family.  As a temple virgin, she would have been called to many births.  She would be well-acquainted with the process, description of sensations, and the mental process of giving birth.  

We must assume that Mary's relationship with her own body was the most healthy.  For an American woman, this is practically impossible to imagine.  She had no shame, guilt, dissatisfaction, fear, anxiety, or loathing of her body.  She accepted herself and her physical being as a gift from the Lord.  Her outlook on her body was a major reason why she did not fall into sin.  It was also a major reason why she was chosen to be The Mother of God.  

When Mary was pregnant, she did not experience implantation cramping, round ligament pain, kicking, and Braxton Hicks contractions as pain, but as joy.  I myself enjoyed these pains of pregnancy because of my joy to be a mother after a lifetime of waiting.  

Just because something is painful, does not mean it is negative.  Pain can be glorious and wonderful.  There is good pain and there is bad pain.  Mary had no fear or anxiety about the birth of Jesus, her sensations during birth were welcomed and therefore not experienced as pain.  As to the hymen of Mary, it's not beyond God's power to keep it in tact, but it offends me that men talk about it at length.  Such talk seems disrespectful of Our Lady.  If She were here, would we ask for an internal exam as Thomas put his fingers in the wounds of Jesus?  Certainly not!  We can assume that Mary's body was kept safe and miraculously whole for her entire life.

I dedicate this month to my own mother, whom I recently lost to death.    

1 Degree

As mentioned in the Anonymous Girl post, Pope John Paul II had a great devotion to Mary.  He gave his life to her care and loved her with all his heart.  On this, the day of John Paul The Great's beatification, I celebrate Mary.

Susan B. Anthony

Susan B. Anthony

Men - Their rights and nothing more

Women - Their rights and nothing less

Elizabeth Cady Stanton and her
daughter

- Susan B. Anthony

I grew up with this woman's profile on my dollar coins.  I knew that she was a feminist, but I am just now learning what Susan B. Anthony brought to my world.  A Quaker, Mrs. Anthony was dedicated to all people living with dignity.  While not quite as enlightened as her good friend, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony fought for the downtrodden, especially women.  Both women were married.  Both women became mothers.  Both women were champions for women's suffrage.  And both women were staunchly pro-life. 

As we teach our sons and daughters about the founding mothers of feminism, let us teach how they fought for the dignity of women's bodies, and their natural ability to bear children. 

  

"When we consider that women are treated as property, it is degrading to women that we should treat our children as property to be disposed of as we see fit."  - Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Letter to Julia Ward Howe, October 16, 1873, recorded in Howe's diary at Harvard University Library

"Guilty? Yes. No matter what the motive (for abortion), love of ease, or a desire to save from suffering the unborn innocent, the woman is awfully guilty who commits the deed. It will burden her conscience in life, it will burden her soul in death; But oh, thrice guilty is he who drove her to the desperation which impelled her to the crime!" 

- Susan B. Anthony

11 Degrees 

Let's link the founding mothers of American feminism to Pope John Paul II via degrees of good works!  I realize that 11 is more than usual, but they are wonderful degrees and I learned a lot while writing them.  Enjoy!

(11th Degree,) Susan B. Anthony and (10th Degree,)  Elizabeth Cady Stanton
late in the 19th Century

Elizabeth Cady Stanton worked closely with
(9th Degree,) Frederick Douglass
to end slavery and promote the rights of all Americans

Frederick Douglass escaped slavery in Maryland via ship.  He came to New Bedford, Massachusetts
by way of New York.  He then connected to the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society, becoming a public speaker.  He had a close association with a Quaker and fellow abolishionist,...

William Lloyd Garrison.  (8th Degree,) Mr. Garrison
published a book by the former slave woman, 

Sojourner Truth.  (7th Degree,) Ms Truth is shown here in a portrait with (6th Degree,)
Abraham Lincoln.
We linked President Lincoln to Pope John Paul II
by 6 and 7 degrees in February.  Here is that post.

Where did your Christ come from?

"Ain't I a woman?"  - Sojourner Truth
and
The Theotokos!

Anonymous Girl

March is Holocaust Remembrance Month 
and 
Women's History Month

Little Girls who suffered
and died in the Holocaust

So much of women's history is lost because it was not written down or was oppressed.  This first story of the month is a perfect example of that.  It also speaks to the indomitable spirit of womankind and the love within her that transcends history books.   We'll explore several fascinating women this month.  Let's start with one whose name we'll never know.

Second Degree: Anonymous Girl

These words were written on the wall of a Gestapo cell by an 18-year-old girl.  Take a moment to pray for this girl's soul and for the millions of women who died in the Holocaust, calling on the Most Blessed Mother to protect and guide them.  No doubt, She did and still does.

First Degree: Henryk Gorecki

Polish composer, Henryk Gorecki was inspired by the writings of the 18-year-old girl and used her words as the libretto to the second movement of his third symphony, Sorrowful Songs.  You can buy it by clicking here.

Henryk Gorecki

Below is an excerpt from the Suffering With Joy blog.  It is used here with permission.  

Pope John Paul II and composer Henryk Gorecki had much in common.  Both were Poles, both lost their mothers at young ages, both resisted and thwarted the Communists oppressing their country,  both experienced deeply the anguish of World War II and the Holocaust, both became great because of strength of character and moral authority.

Cardinal Wojtyla’s motto, Totus Tuus, spoke of his great love for the Blessed Mother both personally and as a Pole.  She is intimately tied to the Polish people whose devotion to her is unexcelled by any other nation. They weave Mary into the tapestry of their daily, ordinary life, their spiritual life, their family life. Shrines to Our Lady dot the countryside along the many pilgrim paths.

The Pope's parents on their wedding day.

12-year old Karol Wojtyla
he lost his mother 4 years
earlier

Certainly as boys who had lost their mothers early in life, Mary as tender mother held a special place in the hearts of Gorecki and Wojtyla.  When he became Pope John Paul II, Wojtyla kept this motto and love of the Blessed Mother for the rest of his days, a counterpoint to those in the Church who strove to scrub her from notice.

Pope John Paul II
visiting Auschitz

Gorecki’s life and the Pope’s life intersected at several points, their relationship speaking of a high regard for one another.  The first notable event was the commissioning of Beatus vir by Cardinal Wojtyla for the celebration of the 900th anniversary of the martyrdom of St. Stanislas, bishop of Krakow, who was assassinated by King Boleslaw I over sins the King didn’t want to give up.  I will write more about this in my next post on Gorecki.

Pope John Paul II traveled to Poland several times.  For the 1987 pilgrimage to his native land, the Pope’s friend Gorecki composed the hauntingly beautiful Totus Tuus in the his honor.  Written for mixed choir, Gorecki immortalized in music the Pope’s life theme:

Totus tuus sum Maria,
Mater nostri Redemptoris.
Virgo Dei, virgo pia
Mater mundi Salvatoris.
Totus tuus sum, Maria!

I am completely yours, Mary,
Mother of our Redeemer.
Virgin Mother of God, loving virgin,
Mother of the Saviour of the world.
I am completely yours, Mary!

To purchase Gorecki's music or the CD of the music, click here.
 
Henryk Gorecki died in November of 2010.  May his memory be eternal.

King Tut, #3

The intellectual high-ground of xenophobia

When famine, earthquake, or other disaster struck, this group of people fled to their neighbor, the richest, most powerful nation on earth.  There, they worked, lived, loved, and learned from their powerful neighbors.  Cultures merged as new ideas were brought to both sides.

Germans dealing with Turks?

French dealing with North African and Middle Eastern immigrants?

Americans dealing with Mexicans?

No

Ancient Egyptians and the Jewish people.  

The Jews and the Egyptians have a history with one another going back to at least 1000 before the birth of Tutankhamen.  After the death of Joseph, a Pharoh, who was unfamiliar with Joseph and his story, enslaved the Jews, subjecting them to great cruelty.  

Donny Osmond as Joseph
and his coat of
many colors

Several generations later, another Pharoh did not like the high birthrate of the Jewish people.  This Pharoh saw Jews as vermin who were taking over Egypt.  He decided to control their population and demoralize them by murdering their first-born sons.  God intervened to save His chosen people.  God saw to it that Moses was saved by Pharoh's daughter.  He then saved them via a series of plagues, and finally, His Passover.  

Today's connection to the papacy is through Jesus' family, the Jews.  There's lots of video in this one.  Let's get started!

5 Degrees

King Tutankhamun with 3000 pounds of gold make-up

Fifth Degree: King Tutankhamun

King Tutankhamun without his 3000 pounds of make-up

Fourth Degree: Amenhotep II

Amenhotep II, the most likely candidate for the pharoh of the Exodus
The Great-Great Granpa (and uncle) of King Tut

Third Degree: Moses

Although he is not a direct ancestor of Jesus, Moses and Jesus have a common ancestor, Abraham.  The Jewish people have brought many wonderful things to the world.  Besides the Messiah, they have given us a wonderful sense of humor.  

Second Degree: Abraham, Joseph, Mary, and Jesus Christ

For a full genealogy of Jesus' foster father click here.  You can also see Exodus 2:1-2 and Matthew 1:1-17.

Since Abraham is father of all Jewish people, he would be a common ancestor for both Mary and Joseph.  

First Degree: Saint Peter

Saint Peter was Pope #1.  John Paul II was Pope #265

Dr. Zahi Hawass has figured prominently in all the Tut reckonings.  Here he is discussing the restoration of a Jewish Temple in Egypts history.  To deny the history of all the people of a region is to deny history itself.  For my post about anti-semetism click here.  Enjoy!