Fulton Sheen Beatification: September 24, 2026

  

 Below is an excerpt from the introduction to Praying in the Presence of the Lord with Fulton Sheen , edited by Michael Dubruiel, originally published in 2002. 

Excerpts from the book will be published in this space over the next few weeks, in honor of Archbishop Sheen's beatification on September 24, 2026. 

Reflection (1)

Bishop Sheen often quoted St. Paul’s boast that what Paul preached was Christ and Him Crucified. Bishop Sheen imitated St. Paul in his preaching and in his writing. Here in this Passage taken from Calvary and the Mass we see again the centrality of the cross of Jesus for the bishop.

Jesus spoke from the cross that His mission was finished and so it is, but Bishop Sheen invites us to not think of our lives as finished just yet.

It is an ancient spiritual practice to meditate on one’s eventual death not out of a macabre sense but in order to better understand our lives. We project ourselves into the future and examine how we are living our lives toward that end.

The inventor of dynamite was privileged in his life to read his obituary one morning after a mistaken re- port circulated that he had died the night before. It turned out that if he had indeed died on that night he would have been remembered as the founder of a destructive element that led to the ruin of countless lives,

This was not the way that the inventor wished to be remembered, so for the rest of his life his aim was turned to making a positive contribution to humanity. The faulty obituary was a moment of grace for him. We now remember Alfred Nobel each year as recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize are announced.

It is not too late for you. What does the Lord want you to do?

Michael Dubruiel: OCIA Resources on the Mass

     

The How-To Book of the Mass by Michael Dubruiel is the only book that not only provides the who, what, where, when, and why of themost time-honored tradition of the Catholic Church but also the how.
In this complete guide you get:

• step-by-step guidelines to walk you through the Mass
• the Biblical roots of the various parts of the Mass and the very prayers themselves
• helpful hints and insights from the Tradition of the Church
• aids in overcoming distractions at Mass
• ways to make every Mass a way to grow in your relationship with Jesus

If you want to learn what the Mass means to a truly Catholic life—and share this practice with others—you can’t be without The How-To Book of the Mass. Discover how to:

• Bless yourself
• Make the Sign of the Cross
• Genuflect
• Pray before Mass
• Join in Singing the Opening Hymn
• Be penitential
• Listen to the Scriptures
• Hear a Great Homily Everytime
• Intercede for others
• Be a Good Steward
• Give Thanks to God
• Give the Sign of Peace
• Receive the Eucharist
• Receive a Blessing
• Evangelize Others
• Get something Out of Every Mass You Attend

"Is this not the same movement as the Paschal meal of the risen Jesus with his disciples? Walking with them he explained the Scriptures to them; sitting with them at table 'he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them."1347, Catechism of the Catholic Church

-Amy Welborn

Find more about The How to Book of the Mass here.

Fulton Sheen Beatification: September 24, 2026

  

 Below is an excerpt from the introduction to Praying in the Presence of the Lord with Fulton Sheen , edited by Michael Dubruiel, originally published in 2002. 

Excerpts from the book will be published in this space over the next few weeks, in honor of Archbishop Sheen's beatification on September 24, 2026. 

His Work Is Finished, Ours Is Not

When Jesus had taken the wine, he said, "It is finished.” And bowing bis head, he banded over the spirit — John 19:30 (NAB)

Bishop Sheen:

Our Blessed Lord’s work is finished. But is ours? When He said, “if is finished?’ He did not mean that the opportunities of His life had ended; He meant that His work was done so perfectly that nothing could be added to it to make it more perfect — but with us, how seldom that is true. Too many of us end our lives, but few of us see them finished. A sinful life may end, but a sinful life is never a finished life.

If our lives just “end,” our friends will ask: “How much did he leave?” But if our life is “finished,” our friends will ask: “How much did he take with him?” A finished life is not measured by years but by deeds; not by the time spent in the vineyard, but by the work done. In a short time a man may fulfill many years; even those who come at the eleventh hour may finish their lives; even those who come to God like the thief at the last breath, may finish their lives in the Kingdom of God. Not for them the sad word of re- egret: “Too late, O ancient Beauty, have I loved Thee.”

Our Lord finished His work, but we have not finished ours. He pointed the way we must follow. He laid down the Cross at the finish, but we must take it up. He finished Redemption in His physical Body, but we have not finished it in His Mystical Body. He has finished salvation, we have not yet ap- plied it to our souls. He has finished the Temple, but we must live in it. He has finished the model Cross, we must fashion ours to its pattern. He has finished sowing the seed, we must reap the harvest, He has finished filling the chalice, but we have not finished drinking its refreshing draughts. He has planted the wheat field: we must gather it into our barns. He has finished the Sacrifice of Calvary; we must finish the Mass.

The Crucifixion was not meant to be an inspirational drama, but a Pattern act on which to model our lives. We are not meant to sit and watch the Cross as something done and ended like the life of Socrates, What was done on Calvary avails for us only in the degree that we repeat it in our own lives.

— From Calvary and the Mass

Fulton Sheen to be beatified, September 24, 2026

 

    Below is an excerpt from the introduction to Praying in the Presence of the Lord with Fulton Sheen , edited by Michael Dubruiel, originally published in 2002. 

Excerpts from the book will be published in this space over the next few weeks, in honor of Archbishop Sheen's beatification on September 24, 2026. 

Sharing in the Work of Redemption

What? Could you not watch one hour with me? — Matthew 26:40 (Douay-Rheims)

Jesus spoke these words to His disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane, yet as I read them I hear them with the voice of Archbishop Sheen, who was able to bring passages such as this alive with his unique style. Also carried with his intonation is the meaning that he gave to them, that the words that Jesus spoke to His disciples some two thousand years ago in that garden on the Mount of Olives echo through- out history and are spoken again and again to each disciple — in other words, to you and to me.

The Lord asks us to watch with Him, to share in His work, which although complete on Calvary long ago is ongoing in that the tree of the cross continually bears new fruit in us, His disciples. The work of redemption then continues and will not be complete until all of us are brought to the foot of the cross and believe that Our Lord has the power to Save Us.

Our Lord speaks to us as we come into His presence and asks us to join Him.

In this section we reflect with Archbishop Sheen on how Our Lord wishes us to share in His work, which is the work of redemption.

Fulton Sheen Beatification: September 24, 2026

    Below is an excerpt from the introduction to Praying in the Presence of the Lord with Fulton Sheen , edited by Michael Dubruiel, originally published in 2002. 

Excerpts from the book will be published in this space over the next few weeks, in honor of Archbishop Sheen's beatification on September 24, 2026. 

How to use this book (part 2) 

Readers should use whatever parts of the meditations are helpful to them during any particular prayer period. Following the ancient practice of Lectio Divina (“divine reading”), readers should stop when- ever some word or passage strikes them and dwell upon it for awhile. Readers are encouraged to ask the Lord what it is that He wants to reveal to them in these words.

Readers may find that they are able to use the same meditation over and over. Whatever the Lord wishes should be their desires.

The reflections and questions are my invention and should not be confused as that of Bishop Sheen’. I have attempted to draw upon his thought in these sections, but clearly the focus of the book is the great writing that is his own.

I have tried for the most part to present material in this book that is drawn from books of Bishop Sheen’s that are currently out of print. The archbishop wrote so many books during his lifetime on such a wide variety of subjects that what is presented here is merely a a taste. I hope for you, the  reader, a good taste, one that leave you hungry for the Bread of Life.

Mother Teresa - September 5

      

The Cross of Christ Restores. . . The Image of God 

-Michael Dubruiel

And the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and every one who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent, and set it on a pole; and if a serpent bit any man, he would look at the bronze serpent and live. NUMBERS 21:8–9

“When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority but speak thus as the Father taught me. And he who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what is pleasing to him.” JOHN 8:28–29

 Once when my wife and child were touring a large cathedral in the United States, a famous archbishop passed us by; a high-ranking cardinal, visiting the United States from the Vatican, followed him. The archbishop completely ignored us, but the cardinal stopped and took our baby in his arms, talking gibberish to him. We were moved by the actions of the cardinal, who had taken the gospel to heart. It is amazing how often Jesus took time to notice someone his disciples had passed by or ignored. In the kingdom of God, the first are last and the last are first. No one exemplified this principle better than Christ himself: the Prince of Heaven  became a helpless infant, was raised in obscurity, and died like a criminal.

People who have seen Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ are shocked by the violence. What should shock us more is the idea that the all-powerful God would subject himself to being treated in such a fashion by mere mortals. Yet Jesus said in the Scripture that people would realize that he was from God when men “lifted him up” on the cross. The way of the cross is the path of humility. So often we seek perfection in how we look, the way we dress, the way we speak, or in what we possess. Jesus told his disciples not to worry about any of these things but to seek God’s kingship over them first. Jesus then showed them how to do this. Then he took up his cross and invited them to follow. It is in those who accept that invitation that the divine image is most perfectly restored.

 When Blessed Mother Teresa would visit one of her communities, the first thing she did was to pick up a broom and begin to sweep. Revered during her life as a saint, she sought no special treatment within her community; no task was beneath her. People who met Mother Teresa often remarked at the beauty of her deeply lined face. In her presence, they felt like they were in the presence of God. In the Image of the Father Jesus perfectly reveals to us what God is like. By following the way of the cross, we receive a divine “extreme makeover.” The path is not an easy one; our ego constantly tries to exert itself over us. Serpents in forbidden trees will whisper of easier paths. However, there is only one way to fulfill what God has planted in our hearts. “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven,” Jesus warned his disciples (Matthew 18:3). Some people will go amazing lengths to retain their youth. Sadly, these same people will assiduously avoid the spiritual childhood that the gospel demands, the only sure path of eternal life.

Wandering in the desert, the Israelites complained about their lot, and God sent poisonous snakes. As people died around him, Moses prayed to God for mercy. God told Moses to make a fiery bronze serpent and to put it on a pole; all who looked upon this bronze serpent were healed of snakebite. This bronze image foreshadowed the healing tree of Christ; just as Moses had lifted up the serpent in the desert, Jesus told Nicodemus, so would he be lifted up on the cross, and all who would look upon him would be saved. We need to look at the cross of Christ to rediscover our soul’s inner beauty. God loves us so much that he died for us on that cross. As we gaze upon the cross of Christ, what really matters comes to the forefront in our lives, and we find we can let go of all the trivial pursuits that seem to dominate our time and thoughts. As the psalmist reminds us time and again, what matters is not to seek and be driven by the desire to please other people but to seek what pleases God. We will discover that not by hiding behind fig leaves, as our first parents did, but by coming to him whenever and wherever he calls us.

The Power of the Cross  by Michael Dubruiel is a book well-suited to daily reading during Lent. 

Fulton Sheen Beatification: September 24, 2026

   Below is an excerpt from the introduction to Praying in the Presence of the Lord with Fulton Sheen , edited by Michael Dubruiel, originally published in 2002. 

Excerpts from the book will be published in this space over the next few weeks, in honor of Archbishop Sheen's beatification on September 24, 2026. 

How to use this book (part 1) 

This book is arranged into three main sections, each of them dealing with three immense blessings that Bishop Sheen believed we would receive if we practice regularly praying in the presence of Our Lord. These blessings include:

* Sharing in Our Lord’s work of redemption.

 * Fulfilling Our Lord’s desire for our companionship.

 * Growing into the likeness of Our Lord.

Each of these sections contains ten meditations drawn from Bishop Sheen’s works. Along with the bishop’s words, the following are included: Scripture, a reflection, points to ponder, and a closing prayer.

There are two appendixes in the book.

The first is dedicated to Bishop Sheen’s thoughts on war and the power of God that presents material in a similar style as the rest of the book. This section was added after September 11, 2001, when foreign terrorists hijacked four American commercial air- liners, ramming two of them into the World Trade Center towers in New York, another into the Pentagon, and crashing a fourth in Pennsylvania when some of the passengers evidently fought with the hijackers. Bishop Sheen penned the material in this appendix over sixty years ago; but like the other material in the book written by him, it is as relevant today as it was then and to whatever the future might hold.

The second appendix contains two prayers. One is a prayer to be used in order to obtain a favor through the archbishop’s intercession, while the other is for his canonization. This appendix also includes contact information to report any favors received or any material the reader might have to offer in the investigation into Bishop Sheen’s life.

Gregory the Great - September 3

      

Gregory the Great's feast is today, September 3.

And he’s in The Loyola Kids’ Book of Saints by Amy Welborn.

More on The Loyola Kids’ Book of Saints

Over 40 saints’ lives,written at a middle-school reading level.

I. Saints are People Who Love Children
St. Nicholas,St. John Bosco, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, Blessed Gianna Beretta Molla

Saints Are People Who Love Their Families
St. Monica,St. Cyril and St. Methodius, St. Therese of Lisieux,Blessed Frederic Ozanam,

Saints Are People Who Surprise OthersSt. Simeon Stylites,St. Celestine V,St. Joan of Arc,St. Catherine of Siena

Saints Are People Who Create
St. Hildegard of Bingen,Blessed Fra Angelico,St. John of the Cross,Blessed Miguel Pro

Saints Are People Who Teach Us New Ways to Pray
St. Benedict,St. Dominic de Guzman,St. Teresa of Avila,St. Louis de Monfort

Saints Are People Who See Beyond the Everyday
St. Juan Diego, St. Frances of Rome, St. Bernadette Soubirous, Blessed Padre Pio

Saints Are People Who Travel From Home
St. Boniface, St. Peter Claver, St. Francis Xavier, St. Francis Solano, St. Francis Xavier Cabrini

Saints Are People Who Are Strong Leaders
St. Helena, St. Leo the Great, St. Wenceslaus, St. John Neumann

Saints Are People Who Tell The Truth
St. Polycarp, St. Thomas Becket, St. Thomas More, Blessed Titus Brandsma

Saints Are People Who Help Us Understand God
St. Augustine of Hippo, St. Jerome, St. Patrick, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Edith Stein

Saints Are People Who Change Their Lives for God
St. Ambrose, St. Gregory the Great, St. Francis of Assisi, St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. Camillus de Lellis, St. Katharine Drexel

Saints Are People Who Are Brave
St. Perpetua and St. Felicity, St. George, St. Margaret Clitherow, St. Isaac Jogues, The Carmelite Nuns of Compiegne, St. Maximilian Kolbe

Saints Are People Who Help the Poor and Sick
St. Elizabeth of Hungary, St. Vincent de Paul, St. Martin de Porres, Blessed Joseph de Veuster

Saints Are People Who Help In Ordinary Ways
St. Christopher, St. Blaise, St. Anthony of Padua, St. Bernard of Montjoux

Saints Are People Who Come From All Over the World
Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, St. Paul Miki, Blessed Peter To Rot, Blessed Maria Clementine Anuarite Nengapeta

Michael Dubruiel's Books:

Fulton Sheen Beatification: September 24, 2026

    Below is an excerpt from the introduction to Praying in the Presence of the Lord with Fulton Sheen , edited by Michael Dubruiel, originally published in 2002. 

Excerpts from the book will be published in this space over the next few weeks, in honor of Archbishop Sheen's beatification on September 24, 2026. 

I, of course, wan not alone in my appreciation of Archbishop Sheen. Millions were touched by him from the time of his birth in 1895 until his death in December 1979, and many more are discovering him anew now some twenty years after his death. His “Life Is Worth Living” series (both the original black-and- white show of the 1950s and a later version that the archbishop made in color) is once again broadcast nationally, this time on the Eternal Word Network (EWTN). His books are being reprinted at an astonishing pace. Books like the one you hold in your hand compile his writings on certain subjects.

And there is talk of sainthood. In December of 1999, on the twentieth anniversary of his death, Cardinal John O'Connor authorized the private investigation into the life of Archbishop Sheen by the Archbishop Fulton John Sheen Foundation.

A bishop recently told me that he was privileged to meet Bishop Sheen when he was a young priest. He said that Bishop Sheen had taken him aside and given him a very personal message about the future. What Bishop Sheen had told the young priest had come to pass in his life, He now says that he has no doubt that Sheen was a mystic.

When you read the passages he wrote years ago included in this book, you too will reach that conclusion. I have been amazed as I chose various texts from his writings, some written over sixty-five years ago, to discover how relevant they are to the present.

More.  

Fulton Sheen Beatification: September 24, 2026

  Below is an excerpt from the introduction to Praying in the Presence of the Lord with Fulton Sheen , edited by Michael Dubruiel, originally published in 2002. 

Excerpts from the book will be published in this space over the next few weeks, in honor of Archbishop Sheen's beatification on September 24, 2026. 

I still remember walking into the living room of our family’s home in Winchester, New Hampshire, and seeing my father transfixed in front of the television set watching a bishop preach. My father, not easily impressed, clearly was, by this man’s preaching. The year was 1975. A local station out of Massachusetts was broadcasting reruns of the famous “Life Is Worth Living” series of Bishop Sheen’s that had originally aired from 1951 to1957, first on the DuMont Network, and later on ABC to a national audience. At the time I do not remember personally being that taken by the bishop; but the fact that my father was, left its impression on me.

My introduction to Archbishop Sheen came about in the last year of his life. At that time I was serving in the United States Army and had just been sent to serve a one-year tour of duty in Turkey at a small military outpost there. Upon my arrival I went to the Chaplain’s Office and inquired if he might have any Catholic reading material. He replied that he did not but that the previous chaplain who happened to have been a Catholic priest had left behind a set of tapes. I was free to have them if I wanted them.

The tapes were recordings of a retreat that Archbishop Sheen had given to priests. 

Bored at the time, I figured that I would give them a hearing, | could never have imagined the effect they would have on me, From the very first talk 1 found myself won over. Here was a Catholic who knew the Scriptures and preached with authority. Here was a man of God!

1 listened to the tapes over and over, amazed that no matter how many times | played them how new the material seemed to me, From that day forward I sought out every book and tape by Bishop Sheen that | could get my hands on, devouring them in my spare moments in that faraway land, I made a vow that upon my return to the United States in December of 197,9 1 would search out Bishop Sheen.

 Ironically, upon my assignment to a military base in Virginia, the first night there | was shocked to hear on the news that Fulton Sheen had died. I would never get the chance to meet him in person, on this earth anyway. But I felt that he was now more present to me than he ever could have been while still alive. 

Even though no one had declared him a saint, I often sought his intercession and found that this often met with favorable results. | had no doubt that Fulton Sheen was someone who had used his God- given gifts to the greater honor and glory of God, ‘Truly he was a modern-day golden-tongued preacher like St. John Chrysostom,

More.  

Michael Dubruiel: 73 Steps to Spiritual Communion with God - 42b

  This is a continuation of the 73 Steps to Spiritual Communion with God by Michael Dubruiel. The previous posts are below and in the archives to the right. This is the 42nd step part 2:

(42) To refer what good one sees in himself, not to self, but to God.






When the rich young man called Jesus, "Good teacher," Jesus corrected him, "Why call me good? Only God is good." Here we have an application of this counsel by Jesus Himself.



Yes, only God is good, but He has shared that goodness in His creation. We are part of God's creation. Therefore when we worship Him, we come to know ourselves as we truly are and we come to see the goodness that is at the heart of who He has created us to be.

Michael Dubruiel: 73 Steps to Spiritual Communion with God - 42a

  This is a continuation of the 73 Steps to Spiritual Communion with God by Michael Dubruiel. . The previous posts are below and in the archives to the right. This is the 42nd step:

(42) To refer what good one sees in himself, not to self, but to God.



If we have lived long enough, and are in touch with what motivates us, I think we will come to see the truth that there is a great good that is essential to who we are at our deepest core. God created us and as God says in the Book of Genesis when he looked upon his creation-He saw that it was "good."



God is responsible for the goodness that is at the core of every human being. It is there and we can both see it in others and in ourselves.



When God became Man, He had no problem recognizing the "good" that was in all of creation. Where some saw prostitutes or tax collectors, the Son of God saw precious creatures that had the same basic goodness as all who have been created by God.

Michael Dubruiel 73 Steps to Spiritual Communion with God - 41 a

     

 This is a continuation of the 73 Steps to Spiritual Communion with God by Michael Dubruiel.  The previous posts are below and in the archives to the right. This is the 41th step part 1:

(41) To put one's trust in God.



As if to remind us what all this is about, in the middle of these counsels, Saint Benedict gives this counsel that refocuses on the real issue here. Going through the counsels we can lose sight again that almost everything that is negative, not to do this or not to be this is all about a positive to "do this," to put our trust in God.



Most of us probably would say that we put our trust in God. But our reaction to all of these counsels of Saint Benedict is like a giant mirror that reveals whether we really do or not.



There is a story that I have heard so many times that it has lost it's punch for me, but perhaps not for you-so here it is. A man is walking along a mountainside when suddenly he hits some lose soil and goes tumbling over a steep precipice. Luckily he grabs on to a tree branch as he falls down.

Michael Dubruiel 73 Steps to Spiritual Communion with God - 40

     

 This is a continuation of the 73 Steps to Spiritual Communion with God by Michael Dubruiel. The previous posts are below and in the archives to the right. This is the 40th step part 1:

(40) Not to be a detractor.



The Christian is to be someone who builds people up, not someone who tears others down. Often detraction is a sign of our own insecurity or feelings of inadequacy.



Someone who puts God first in their lives will recognize their own self in an entirely new light as well as all others.

If we see someone who seems less in our eyes, it is we who have the problem not them.

Michael Dubruiel 73 Steps to Spiritual Communion with God - 39b

      This is a continuation of the 73 Steps to Spiritual Communion with God by Michael Dubruiel.  The previous posts are below and in the archives to the right. This is the 39th step:

(39) Not to be a murmurer.





We should not murmur because we are not addressing the people that should be addressed. We should however speak out "unconfidentially" against injustices, against wrongdoing that harms others. But sometimes the things we complain about in whispered tones hardly rise to that level.



If God is God for us, there is less to murmur about. Many of the events of life that we might normally complain about will be seen to be part of a plan that is much larger than us. What we might perceive as the "wrong way of doing things" might actually lead to "God's way of doing things" being done in the long run.



Again the story of Joseph in the Book of Genesis provides an excellent meditation for us on this issue.



Feel like complaining, go to the chapel instead and complain to the boss. He can do something to remedy the situation while your co-worker will only add to your misery.

Michael Dubruiel 73 Steps to Spiritual Communion with God - 39a

     This is a continuation of the 73 Steps to Spiritual Communion with God by Michael Dubruiel.  The previous posts are below and in the archives to the right. This is the 39th step:

(39) Not to be a murmurer.



I like how the dictionary defines a murmur, "a confidential complaint." Of course the complaint being offered confidentially is never directed at the person who is responsible for the complaint.



There are murmurers in the Gospel. When Jesus says to the paralytic "your sins are forgiven" the people present begin to murmur amongst themselves about what they perceive to be the presumption of Jesus to do something that is reserved to God alone, (this brings to mind the modern tendency for everyone to forgive sins or at least dismiss them as not really all that serious). Jesus hears the murmurs and addresses them directly.



If you have ever been caught murmuring by the person you are murmuring about--you probably know how they felt.

Queenship of Mary - August 22

      Today is another Marian feast - the Queenship of Mary.  It's also one of the mysteries of the Rosary, and so it's appropriate to talk about the Rosary as we contemplate the feast. Michael Dubruiel conceived and put together the small hardbound book, Praying the Rosary.  Click on the cover for more information.

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Also, check out this post from 2003, in which Michael Dubruiel narrates the events of one of his "rosary walks."

August 20 - St. Bernard

 

From Pope Benedict XVI

I would now like to reflect on only two of the main aspects of Bernard's rich doctrine: they concern Jesus Christ and Mary Most Holy, his Mother. His concern for the Christian's intimate and vital participation in God's love in Jesus Christ brings no new guidelines to the scientific status of theology. However, in a more decisive manner than ever, the Abbot of Clairvaux embodies the theologian, the contemplative and the mystic. Jesus alone Bernard insists in the face of the complex dialectical reasoning of his time Jesus alone is "honey in the mouth, song to the ear, jubilation in the heart (mel in ore, in aure melos, in corde iubilum)". The title Doctor Mellifluus, attributed to Bernard by tradition, stems precisely from this; indeed, his praise of Jesus Christ "flowed like honey". In the extenuating battles between Nominalists and Realists two philosophical currents of the time the Abbot of Clairvaux never tired of repeating that only one name counts, that of Jesus of Nazareth. "All food of the soul is dry", he professed, "unless it is moistened with this oil; insipid, unless it is seasoned with this salt. What you write has no savour for me unless I have read Jesus in it" (In Canticum Sermones XV, 6: PL 183, 847). For Bernard, in fact, true knowledge of God consisted in a personal, profound experience of Jesus Christ and of his love. And, dear brothers and sisters, this is true for every Christian: faith is first and foremost a personal, intimate encounter with Jesus, it is having an experience of his closeness, his friendship and his love. It is in this way that we learn to know him ever better, to love him and to follow him more and more. May this happen to each one of us!

-Michael Dubruiel 

OCIA Resource on the Catholic Mass

  OCIA - the process for becoming Catholic - is gearing up in many parishes. 

  The How to Book of the Mass  by Michael Dubruiel would be a great resource. 

The How-To Book of the Mass is the only book that not only provides the who, what, where, when, and why of themost time-honored tradition of the Catholic Church but also the how.
In this complete guide you get:

• step-by-step guidelines to walk you through the Mass
• the Biblical roots of the various parts of the Mass and the very prayers themselves
• helpful hints and insights from the Tradition of the Church
• aids in overcoming distractions at Mass
• ways to make every Mass a way to grow in your relationship with Jesus

If you want to learn what the Mass means to a truly Catholic life—and share this practice with others—you can’t be without The How-To Book of the Mass. Discover how to:

• Bless yourself
• Make the Sign of the Cross
• Genuflect
• Pray before Mass
• Join in Singing the Opening Hymn
• Be penitential
• Listen to the Scriptures
• Hear a Great Homily Everytime
• Intercede for others
• Be a Good Steward
• Give Thanks to God
• Give the Sign of Peace
• Receive the Eucharist
• Receive a Blessing
• Evangelize Others
• Get something Out of Every Mass You Attend

"Is this not the same movement as the Paschal meal of the risen Jesus with his disciples? Walking with them he explained the Scriptures to them; sitting with them at table 'he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them."1347, Catechism of the Catholic Church

Find more about The How to Book of the Mass here.

Free Catholic E-book

 From the Power of the Cross by Michael Dubruiel, which is free today. 

     

The Cross of Christ Illumines. . . Death

-Michael Dubruiel

But we would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 1 THESSALONIANS 4:13–14 

“Truly, truly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself, and has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of man.” JOHN 5:25–27 



 Hope 

The modern world fears death. Because we exist in a post-Christian world, the resurrection of the dead is still accepted as fact, yet apart from faith in Christ the resurrection of the dead lacks any scientific basis. No one ever points this out, but it should be before it is too late for those who do not know Christ. In the Gospel of John, Jesus states clearly that he can give life to the dead. This is the hope of every believer in Christ. At the moment of his crucifixion, Jesus gave life to one of the criminals nailed with him. No such promise is given to the unrepentant thief. Jesus and Paul both make it clear that, while Our Lord is a life giver, he also is a judge. For some, eternal life will lead to eternal hellfire. My friend’s statement, “What to say. . .” is a poignant reminder that the death of any human being causes us to face the ultimate fall of our first parents. It startles us into the reality of the fragile hold we have on our own lives and the lives of those we love. Every present moment is a gift; so is every future hope. We exercise that hope by continuing to pray for our loved ones. If God has welcomed them into his kingdom, our prayers will come back to us. There is great comfort in knowing that this communication goes on—those without faith sense this too and often act upon it. The Gospel of John tells us that those who “hear his voice” will rise to life (John 5:28). Focusing on the cross of Our Lord  helps us to hear his voice. The horrible effect of sin is death; the saving effect of the cross is life in Christ. What death takes away from us, the saving death of Jesus can restore. May we never forget that truth, neither when a loved one dies nor at the hour of our death.

Michael Dubruiel

--an excerpt from  The Power of the Cross by Michael Dubruiel is a book well-suited to daily reading during Lent.