Ash Wednesday Traditional Latin Mass.

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You're all excited for Ash Wednesday. Admit it.
Lent: The best love/hate relationship ever.

What could make the beginning of Lent even better? a TLM Mass you say?
You happen to be in luck.

Wednesday, February 22nd. 6:30am. St. Felix Catholic Church in Wabasha, MN.
The Rev. Thomas E. Cook will be celebrating a Traditional Latin Mass.
The priest knows his Latin.

It may be early, it may be a bit of a drive, but it is so worth it.

Traddy Tuesday

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Happy Tuesday! We are almost to Lent!  Awesome.
Today seems like a good day to start something.  Like posting traddy religious communities.  As someone discerning the religious life (and a hardcore traddy), I thought it was SO hard to find good solid communities. It turns out once you get into the circle a little bit, you find a ton.  So, I want to share them.

The first community I want to share is the Handmaids of the Heart of Jesus.
These women are SO beautiful.

The Handmaids are a baby community in the Diocese of New Ulm.  Can I get an Amen for awesome religious communities in Minnesota? They were formed in the heart of Mother Mary Clare in response to Bl John Paul II's call for the new evangelization.  Their apostolate consists of serving and praying for priests in whatever way they can.  Some of the sisters teach CCD, help out in the Catholic school, sing in the church choir, and do sacristan work.  Hold on, I just want to mention these women can SING!  They sing the most beautiful Litany to the Sacred Heart of Jesus I've ever heard in my entire life.  Anyway, their life is centered around the Eucharist. They pray two holy hours a day (on the wooden floor, no kneelers!) and have a prayer day once a week.  My friend from a different community fondly calls the Handmaids the "Oreo sisters" because they wear a black habit with white scapular and white veil.  Mother Mary Clare said that their habits are a reflection of the priesthood.  No, they don't want to be priests. At all.  But, they desire to serve the priesthood, and their habits reflect that.

So, why do I love these sisters?
-They are absolutely faithful to Holy Mother Church.
-They love the Eucharist.
-They love Mary.
-They have a hardcore prayer life. Hardcore.
-They are so incredibly joyful. Not just happy, but joyful.
-They're a smaller community (8 Sisters + 1 Postulant)
-They have a great love for tradition.  They don't attend the TLM, but they are incredibly focused on bringing out and educating the truth of Vatican II, not the fluffy junk.

These sisters have had an incredible year!  In August they moved into a new convent right in New Ulm next to the Cathedral.  Bishop Levoir gave them his middle school.  Oh yeah, something I forgot to say...the Handmaids live off Divine Providence. Awesome.  They turned an old school into a beautiful convent for practically nothing, the Lord provided tons of super generous people.  It's still a work in progress, but it is gorgeous.

So, I'm sure all of the women want to join now. Haha.  Okay, maybe some of the women want to visit them and check them out.  You want the website. Well, they don't have one.  Ha!  I think that makes them even traddier! But....they do e-mail people. And...it just so happens they have a Come and See in the near future.

Wow. Isn't that nice?
I'm not sure you can read that.
Don't worry, I'll tell you.

March 23-25, 2012
3:30 pm Friday to 1:00 pm Sunday
Young women 18-30

Dying to go?
Email Sr. Regina Marie, ACJ at handmaids1@gmail.com
You won't regret going.
If nothing else they are just a super beautiful community.

Oh yeah, my bragging right to the Handmaids.  My best friend is their postulant!

So...get out there are be Traddy!  Have a great week!


Update:
The Handmaids now have a website!  If the front page picture doesn't depict religious life, I'm not sure what does.  Check it out here

Fight for Freedom of Religion

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The HHS mandate is sending a message loud and clear to Catholics (and Pro-lifers everywhere) that the government is not willing to honor the freedom of religion our country was founded on.  Most people can at least recognize that.  But, what many people miss are the implications this mandate will have on every person, whether they work in healthcare or not.  Many people mistakenly believe they will not be affected by the mandate directly because they do not work in healthcare, and therefore lack an interest in fighting against it.  It's true--this bill may not directly squeeze the throats of everyone just yet.  But it's a slippery slope we are heading down.

The implications of the mandate are HUGE. There are thousands of pro-life and Catholic organizations in the US, and every single one of those does not perform abortions or provide birth control for their employees .  A Hospital found violating these policies (as well as others) can lose their Catholic status, as one hospital in Arizona found out the hard way.  If the government forced these hospitals to be compliant with  abortions and giving out birth control, the only logical conclusion is all of the Catholic hospitals would have to shut their doors (remember the statement from the US Bishops in 2008 with FOCA?).  

There is something even more grave about the HHS mandate: it breaks the walls that have protected religious freedom from the government since the founding of our country. If Obama succeeds in passing this, it sends a message that the government can impose any law they desire on the country without regards to religious freedom.  Why?  This is a blatant attack on religion--there is absolutely no one you could find on the street with any sort of common sense or logic that would be able to disagree with you what this is about.  Once the walls of protection around religion are broken down, who's to say that they won't force people to comply with all kinds of other laws violating Christianity? We aren't just talking about Catholicism here!  Laws that most people were able to relativistically sidestep before will be slammed on people. 

Today it's the HHS mandate.  If passed, anyone and anything is fair game for the government to attack, regardless of religion.  If we don't stand up now (whether we think it will affect us or not), we could get slammed in the face in a few years. Today, it's about healthcare.  Next time, it can be about any field or aspect of life.  Anyone who values their religious freedom (whether Christian, Bhuddist, Muslim, etc.) should attempt to force Obama to rescind the mandate. 

Oh wait, it just so happens we have to opportunity to at least get noticed:

https://wwws.whitehouse.gov/petitions/fb/petition/petition/rescind-hhs-dept-mandate-requiring-catholic-employers-provide-contraceptivesabortifacients-their/lBxr7SdP

I recommend everyone to post the link on their Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, or whatever social outlet you use.  Remind our brothers and sisters this isn't just about birth control and abortions--this is about religious freedom in our country.  

 If we are truly Catholic, we must stand up for what is right and defend the dignity of every human life.  Catholics do not give out birth control, do not support abortion, and do not support this bill.  There is no gray area here: you are either Catholic and stand with the Church, or you are against the Church.  Sign the petition, get out there, and PRAY FOR OUR BISHOPS AND GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS!

This is only the beginning. 

Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, Have Mercy on Us.

Sorrowful Heart of Mary, Pray for us.

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam.