"To a great extent the level of any civilization is the level of its womanhood. When a man loves a woman, he has to become worthy of her. The higher her virtue, the more her character, the more devoted she is to truth, justice, goodness, the more a man has to aspire to be worthy of her. The history of civilization could actually be written in terms of the level of its women."
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen
For Reflection:
To what extent am I raising the level of our culture and civilization?
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"Fear not, I have called you by name: you are mine."
Isaiah 43: 1
For Reflection:
How are these words meant for me today?
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"Women are called to bring to the family, to society, and to the Church, characteristics which are their own and which they alone can give: their gentle warmth and untiring generosity, their love for detail, their quick- wittedness and intuition, their simple and deep piety, their constancy."
St. Josemaria Escriva
For Reflection:
In what specific ways have I/do I demonstrate the feminine qualities listed by St. Josemaria Escriva?
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
Pressure and outrage from alumni and other supporters has forced administratos at Northwestern University to reverse themselves and condemn a live demonstration of sex that occurred in a "human sexuality" class on Feb. 21 on their Evanston, Illinois campus.
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JH writes:
"I have a friend who had a conversion and has become close to Jesus and Mary. He prays daily, including the Rosary and The Divine Mercy Chaplet. Lately, however, I have become concerned because he started to get messages in dreams to write a book. It is a novel that takes place after the chastisements. He gets all of the information in dreams. He cannot continue to write until he has another dream, so he looks forward to the next dream. It is consuming his life. I am concerned that it is the devil because it seems to me that he is putting more emphasis on the dreams than on God. I cannot discern whether the book is from God or from the devil until it is finished, but I know there are mystical characters in it; in other words, characters that are getting supernatural messages.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
Last Saturday's much touted "Walk for Choice" rallies, which were designed to take place in various cities throughout the country to show support for Planned Parenthood in the face of national efforts to defund it, turned out to be poorly attended.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
While reporting on an Ohio bill that would forbid abortions after a baby's heart has begun to beat, MSNBC guest host Cenk Uygur said if a fetus was able to speak, it would oppose restrictions on a woman's right to choose.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
A representative of the National Education Association (NEA) has asked the UN to do more to combat "homophobia and transphobia" in schools by mandating "inclusive" sex education in U.S. schools that do not teach abstinence or allow students to opt-out.
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By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
The Florida judge who ruled that the individual mandate in ObamaCare renders the law invalid has given the Obama Administration seven days to appeal his ruling or states can consider the law invalid.
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Feast of St. Casimir (1461 - 1484)
Daily, Daily Sing to Mary -
Omni die dic Mariae
A copy of this hymn by Bernard of Cluny was found beneath the right temple of St. Casimir's incorrupt body when his grave was opened.
Daily, daily sing to Mary,
Sing, my soul, her praises due:
All her feasts, her actions honor
With the heart's devotion true.
Lost in wond'ring contemplation,
Be her majesty confessed:
Call her Mother, call her Virgin,
Happy Mother, Virgin blest.
She is mighty in her pleading,
Tender in her loving care;
Ever watchful, understanding,
All our sorrows she will share.
Advocate and loving mother,
Mediatrix of all grace:
Heaven's blessings she dispenses
On our sinful human race.
All our graces flow through Mary;
All then join her praise to sing:
Fairest work of all creation,
Mother of creation's King.
Sing in songs of peace unending,
Call upon her lovingly:
Seat of wisdom, Gate of heaven,
Morning star upon the sea.
For Reflection:
This song by St. Bernard of Cluny, treasured by St. Casimir, provides a catechesis on the Blessed Mother as well as listing some of her most well known titles. Make a list of what this song teaches us about Mary, and then list the various titles of Our Lady that are both stated and implicit in it.
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