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Unforgettable by A Simple Soul

The day started out for me in Watertown Square cold and very wet as drizzling and rain persisted throughout the duration of this solo street evangelization outing. When I arrived to proclaim the good news, I noticed a man walking up and down the square screaming at the top of his lungs towards passing cars. For a moment, I was a bit worried, because I thought I might be challenged for the duration of my visit – something like a thorn in the side. But to my delight, when I entered the square and could hear what the man was yelling, the sweet words of “Find Jesus,” and “Don’t listen to satan,” began to be heard and I knew right then and there that I found a friend. In all honestly, the man seemed like John the Baptist with his zeal for souls and proclaimed Christ and the Kingdom of God out loud to passing cars for about 20 minutes until he came up to my table. When he saw me, he was shocked and excited. He even had a live stream going on his phone being recorded with an unknown amount of people observing. When we locked eyes, I said to him “Hey man, I like your preaching. Praise Jesus!” His eyes lit up with love, so he came up to me and said, “I didn’t know what you were doing out here, Praise the Lord!” Then he put his hands on me and prayed over me in the name of Jesus!” I also gave him a rosary and a few crucifixes with necklace chains. His name is Wayne.

Right then and there I thought to myself – even though we may think we are alone, we are never alone, because the person of the Holy Spirit is there and He always comes out to help you and encourage you when you need it! Me and the man talked for a bit before he went on his way praising God out loud for all to hear.

Evangelization Encounters:

EE1 – James came up to my table and expressed interest in the Catholic faith. He informed me that he was Mormon and was considering different religions and wanted to learn things about God. After a discussion about the Church and apostolic succession, I gave a brief witness about my own conversion from atheistic Judaism. James also explained to me how he is Jewish as well. I also talked a bit about the Eucharist being the literal flesh and blood of Lord Jesus Christ. Before James left, I gave him a rosary, a pamphlet on the topic of “Why be Catholic?” and a crucifix neckless. Please pray for James to find his path towards the Lord!

EE2 – Anthony (AKA Soul) and his two younger brothers came up to me to talk about the table I had out in the square and religion. Anthony told me that he is Wiccan and that he was raised into it by his family. He also practices magic and claims that he can see things deep into the future including himself and the things he does. Concerned for him, I explained to Anthony that when we practice divination and sorcery, that we open up doors that shouldn’t be open. Anthony assured me that he practices “good magic” and not “bad magic.” I explained to Anthony that all “magic” is sourced through satan who wishes to harm us and it should be avoided. Anthony respectfully disagreed. I then proceeded to explain to Anthony how divination is a serious sin in the sight of the Lord, but also reassured Him that there is no door that is open that the Lord Himself cannot shut if we turn to Him. From there, Anthony accepted a Holy Rosary, a crucifix neckless, and information pamphlets on the faith. His younger brothers were also very interested in the crucifix necklaces and decided to wear them. I also gave a book I wrote to them on Christian apologetics. Before Anthony and his brothers left, I got a chance to tell them a bit about my conversion, where Anthony also revealed to me that him and his family are Jewish as well. I assured all of them that Jesus loves them and that they should seek Him out. Please pray for all of their conversions and for them to put aside magic arts for the sake of Jesus and their own salvation.

EE3 – A man on a scooter came by the table and quickly grabbed a rosary before heading off. He explained to me how he is Catholic and might be interested in street evangelization in the future. I pointed out where he could find me online. Please pray for this potential evangelist!

EE4 – Cameron who is battling addiction to drugs came up to my table and talked with me about going back to Church. He is of the Lutheran faith. He is also aware of how Jesus cures those suffering from addiction as he explained to me how he knows people who stopped being addicted to harmful substances after turning to Christ. After some talk, I gave him information about the Catholic Church and some sacramentals. Cameron explained to me how somebody recently stole all of his stuff. I also let him use my phone to call his father who did not answer. Before Cameron left, I prayed over him with laying on of the hands through the ACT method for the Holy Spirit to heal his heart and free him from addiction, in the name of Lord Jesus Christ! Before he left, I gave him a bottle of water to drink for the road. Please pray for Cameron to conquer addiction.

EE5 – Nicholas came up to my table the first time on the way to do his laundry and was very quiet. He explained to me that he had a question about the faith but was hesitant to ask. I told him I would be here when he returned if it came to him later. Before he walked off, I gave him a cross. After some time passed, on his way home, he came back to the table and asked me what the Church teaches about homosexual temptations. I explained to Nicholas Church teaching on sexual morality and that we as Christians believe sex is good. We also believe that it is between a man and woman in marriage for the purpose of children. I also explained to Nicholas that just because someone has a same sex attraction does not mean they are sinning, but rather when the act is carried out, then it is sinful. I also explained to him that I too have succumbed to temptation of sexual immorality in my own life with other women such as strangers and other people’s wives and that if I remained in this sinful conduct it would be just as bad for me as the rest even though they were heterosexual relationships. I also explained to him that the world should not revolve around our “orgasm” as it becomes a false god to us and that although we are composite of spirit and body and ordained to take wives and husbands the purpose is for children but not sexual immorality or vain pleasures which do not make us feel good after the fact. I also explained to him that the angels were made to serve God in glory, just as we are, and that love is not sex, property, or ownership of things along with fleeting pleasures, but to wish and will the good of another for its own sake without expecting anything in return! Before Nicholas left, I asked him if I answered his question, and he nodded his head in agreement quietly as he looked down at the ground. He also accepted an information pamphlet on “Sexual Purity” and what the Church teaches on this. Nicholas thanked me as I told him I would be out here again if he ever wanted to talk, on just about every Saturday. Before he left, Nicholas warned me, “the rain is about to come down hard, you should pack up and get out of here,” before he went on his way.

EE6 – Before I left, it took me a while to notice the three homeless people hanging out in front of one of the apartment buildings in the square. They were bundled up in thick coats and seemed very sad. I approached them with three rosaries, three instructions on how to pray the rosary, and a pamphlet explaining “The Good News.” Before I left, I assured them that Jesus was with them.

Great start to the 2025 fighting season! Although cold, wet, and rainy, I luckily packaged each subject of Christian information pamphlets in water resistant ziplocked bags so I was able to keep a display up of information on the faith along with rosaries and crucifix necklaces. Before I left, I witnessed somebody walking down the street in a suit wearing a TV on their head. Some people in neighboring businesses got a kick out of it and filmed the person. I too walked up across the street and asked the person if he/she wanted to come over and “talk about Jesus.” But the person wearing a television on his/her head ignored me and walked off. Now, at first, I thought this person might have been playing around or being silly for the sake of a stunt, so I laughed about it. But later on, I considered that this person might be suffering from a mental illness, as I never got a chance to talk to them. Either way, we should pray for all of those we come across for healing both mind, body, and soul. Please pray for the person I saw in the square wearing an actual television set on their head!

I am blessed to be a Third Order Lay Dominican. However, the ideas expressed in this post are my own and do not represent the endorsement of or position of the Order of Preachers as a whole.

Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Paul-Patrick

To proclaim the gospel to atheists (because I was one), satanists, witches, pagans, and members of the occult. For the salvation of souls.

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AN AIRBORNE STORY

5/5/2025

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“His angels are like the wind while His ministers are like flames of fire!”

My son graduated Airborne school this week and I got to see him jump out of a plane outside of Fort Benning, GA. During the week he almost died twice:

1st time - he fell onto someone’s parachute on the way down and was plummeting to the ground because he lost his air in the path of the other paratrooper. Just before it was too late he was able to kick out of it and deploy his chute.

2nd time - on a night jump, he felt something was about to go wrong and he was having doubts and became scared - then suddenly the plane became silent (it is normally very loud) and he became very calm as the fear went away. He heard a voice inside his head say “You are going to jump.” My son described it as a deep and stern voice. He could see the Jump Master by the door and everyone else was silent, and the voice seemed like it came from all around him, as he described. When he jumped out of the plane into the darkness, the jump went well and he landed. While he was laying on the ground trying to disconnect his canopy, another paratrooper was heading right for him with his legs fully extended at about the speed of 15mph.

My son did not have enough time to get out of the way as the paratrooper above him was about to spear him feet first into his diaphragm while he was laying on the ground looking up helpless; nor could he roll out of it in time.

Keep in mind; there was ZERO wind the whole jump and after - then suddenly, the wind kicked up and dragged my son across the ground 20 feet to safety, narrowly missing the other paratrooper by less than a second. My son says he knew it was God or an angel, as it felt like something was dragging him.

Sunday at Mass during the responsory prayer with me and my son in attendance, the church sang:

“I WILL PRAISE YOU GOD, FOR YOU HAVE RESCUED ME!”

Behold the power of the Lord! Glorify Him alone and don’t forget that He is the one who can make us or break us!

paul-patrick

To proclaim the gospel to atheists (because I was one), satanists, witches, pagans, and members of the occult. For the salvation of souls.

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WE AS THE AROMA OF CHRIST FOR GOD

4/15/2025

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These pictures are of me fitted on a wall in Strong Memorial Hospital located in Rochester New York which was revealed on Lazarus day, Saturday 12 April 2025, the day before Palm Sunday. After I donated my kidney, I got a chance to be honored on a wall exposed to the general public for the next year. At first I wasn't going to do it because of pride, then I realized in prayer that this would be a great EVANGELIZATION moment.

After all, I am an Evangelist, right? You bet!

A little back story leading up to this:

In the year 2019, I found out that my wife had kidney failure due to complications from Type 1 Diabetes. At the time, I did not take it that seriously because I did not fully know what kidney failure entailed. Surely, as I have always thought, this new medical condition could be treatable and do-able like the other illnesses and health complications she experienced in the past through the normal scheduling of doctor's appointments and new medications. Oh, so little did I know!

For one, I was still an atheist; no faith in any higher power other than my own subjective view and personal opinion of things around me. Two, I was very focused on work and earning a living during this time, so I figured like all of her medical issues in the past, she could deal with this one on her own. In late 2019, I was working in the warehouse at UPS when I came down with Covid-19 before anybody knew what it was. I was put up in the hospital for a few days and almost died due to a softball sized fluid ball in my lungs (severe coughing up blood life-threating style pneumonia) . I remember laying in the bed considering my own mortality and not really caring what was to happen to me because I was so used to the thought of death from the past due to my military service and prior deployments. In other words, my atheism trained me to be very cold and uncaring of such things as I was ready to die in the past and could have very well died then and I would have been okay with it at the time in that spiritual state! Sure, missing my children and my wife was a thought, but I really felt nothing on the matter - just a piece of blank darkness when the thought entered my mind.

Now, by the grace of the Lord - He who loves those who do not love Him back - He given me another chance at life. As before, I did not think anything of it, and I continued to persecute my wife's faith so as to mock and ridicule it, even going so far as attempting to smash a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary which belonged to my wife. She always held firm in her faith though and would not budge to my assaults on it. Towards the end of the year 2020 after I recovered from Covid-19 and my life was spared by God's grace, He just so happened to bring me to conversion to the truth of his existence. Many people did not believe me at first; especially my family and friends.

As the years went on and I attempted to enter Christ's Church, my wife's kidney condition worsened and a new reality set in; I could lose my wife before her 40th birthday. Around the time leading up to my baptism; I was being assaulted by demonic entities through horrific nightmares and visions discouraging me of pursuing baptism, to outside influence of others attacking my new found faith. Something that tormented me for the longest time was the vision I had of my wife being taken away on an elevator by a group of men in suits who said to us - "you need to come with us now." When she went with them I was left alone to wander this world by myself as a man without the glory and comfort of a wife. I did not want her to leave this world, and I promised to her and God that I would never be with anyone else ever again, even if she did pass away.

At the time after my baptism and entering a religious order, I was working in the human social services field visiting people throughout my area who had mental health diagnosis. Yes, the presence of the demon was there too - some practiced the occult while others were in need of prayer and intercession. To see people afflicted in this manner was very eye opening and tough to see; especially in a secularized world that seems to only solve problems with pills and patient notes that are stored in a software program. In other words, I really liked my job! Serving the Lord in this way was very good; for I saw the fruits of my work in others and best of all I could look at myself in the mirror in the morning (unlike sales jobs I had in the past like Real Estate). Now, in this job that I enjoyed, I started noticing something - my wife getting weaker. As the days went on, the color on her face would leave and she would be struggling with the tasks she was normally used to doing without any problems. After some months and some kidney transplant appointments, I realized something very shocking; my wife was dying!

Yes, the doctors had a tough time saying it bluntly, but it was obvious what was going on - she needed a new kidney or else she would not be around much longer.

Realizing this, you the reader, should also realize something about me - for my entire life I was never a deceased organ donor nor have I ever intended on donating an organ either living or deceased. In fact, the very thought of this seemed like insanity; I was way too selfish, I loved my body and I loved mirrors - especially when I was really in shape at some point in my life during military service - added, I also liked nicotine such as smoking and dipping. I also liked drinking and I never would have given up these things for anyone in the past. I enjoyed my habits because they controlled my anger a bit which served my selfishness. Furthermore, as an atheist, my world view was this; I do what I want. Seriously - the highest principle was me and the only thoughts and opinions that mattered were that of myself. Surely, when I was an atheist, I did whatever I wanted to do and I did not feel bad about it. In other words, I was my own god and my scripture was my ever changing passions. My altar was my possessions and my idols and my morality was whatever I wanted it to be at the very given moment which served my interests. This was before Christ Jesus converted me and showed me the truth; He Who Is can be known by the intellect and we can choose to be for Him or against Him and He honors our decision, whichever it may be!

I chose to be for the Lord my God.

Now that I was in Christ Jesus; how could I sit there and watch my wife perish? Surely, I needed to do something! The day I decided to donate my organ I was at work and it crossed my mind that I must vow to God to see this work through - not by my strength, but by His! So, I quit my job and went to the VA clinic in my area to get seen to figure out what I needed to do in order to donate my kidney to my wife. Unfortunately, my experience was very frightening because the only staff members who would see me directly were the ones who checked my blood pressure, height and weight. I was told by the VA that a Physician's Assistant would reach out to me by email. To me, this was unacceptable. At another time, they would not even reach out to me on telephonic phone calls they setup for me and then would mark me as a "no show" for the appointment.

So, in my fear, I went to a local health care provider in my area who was a Nurse Practitioner and she was very good. She explained to me how I would need to lose a lot of weight before I would even be eligible to donate a kidney because of how overweight I was after service (I was on many painkillers, sleep, and muscle relaxer medications when I got out of service and ended up putting on over 100 pounds even while routinely going to the gym). This healthcare professional suggested that I look into getting a sleeve gastrectomy which means they would cut out a portion of my stomach to reduce my food intake (a permanent procedure which has lifetime ramifications).

In other words, in order to donate my kidney, I had to lose my stomach. I decided to do it because I didn't want to find myself in a situation I would have regretted. Obviously, my wife didn't have much time as her condition was gradually getting worse. To make it worse; she was a harder match to find on the deceased donor list because of her high anti-body count, so a routine 3 to 5 year deceased kidney on the waiting list would be longer for her. To make it worse, we were not a match, so I had to go the chain donation option (which means I give my kidney to someone else which creates a voucher based debt for my wife who would receive a stranger's kidney at a later time after my recovery). Time was of the essence, so better get moving I thought!

While this was going on, I wanted to bide some more time for my wife. I tried to get her to join the religious order I was in - the Third Order of St. Dominic (Lay Dominicans) - but she said this wasn't for her. Shopping around, I linked her up with some Franciscans in our areas and they hit it off. Yes, I had selfish reasons for this; maybe God would give her more time as she goes through religious formation in service to Him?

Anyways, when it came time for me to begin assessment for my weight loss surgery; a few issues arose. One, I had sleep apnea so that needed to be addressed. Two, I needed to quit nicotine (which was horrible for me - I have always done some form of nicotine, especially during my three deployments to Iraq). Three, I had to get my blood pressure under control through two medications. I quit the nicotine and brought my blood pressure down through medication use. When I received my CPAP machine (requires me to wear a mask when I sleep to record my breathing) to treat the sleep apnea, I needed to provide 90 days worth of data showing myself in compliance before they would book my stomach surgery date. Now, my beard and my hair were in the way, and just like the military when wearing a Pro Mask for chemical warfare, one usually shaves their head and face to get a good seal. So, like the Apostle Paul who shaved his head because of a vow he took, I too vowed to see this work through which led me to having to shave my head (and face) as well for the sake of pursuing my stomach removal which would ultimately lead to my kidney removal. To my embarrassment in Church, I received the funniest looks from people I knew when they saw me and noticed who I was. I had to approach a few of them and say, "hey, I swear I haven't lost my mind, I just got a CPAP machine..." Yes, the Lord our God has a fine way of refining us in the furnace and molding us into what He wants us (something better) to be if we are just so willing!

So, I did these things. After many months, I came into compliance. My surgery date came on 15 August 2023 - the same day as the Feast day of the Assumption of Mary. On that day in my recovery, I had a very holy Priest come visit me who given me communion - he was a former prisoner in Sudan and built many Churches while preaching the gospel in that dangerous part of the world. Leading up to my surgery, I had to fast for two weeks (during this period I lost about 20 pounds alone). The last three days leading up to the surgery, I had to completely abstain from food all together. I thought this was ironic because years ago, I made a vow to someone that I would not take food for three days in prayer in order to drive out an evil spirit I knew was afflicting her, but I succumbed to temptation and took food at the end of day two. I was always hurt over this because I failed miserably in my effort to help someone close to me. Now, God was leading me on a path to fulfill this even if it was for a different reason! Great is His works, His designs, and His plans!

After my stomach surgery, I happened to contract Covid-19 again (a lesser version of it). Although not as dangerous to my lungs, the coughing fits were very hard on me after my stomach removal, even to the point I had to wrap my arms around my torso like a bear hug and brace for the pain every time I coughed. Once I recovered, the devil came to me in the form of ambition - he wanted me to seek a different path in the form of a very admirable (and much needed) job - a New York State Trooper! Yes, I took the exam and scored in the mid 80's and was placed about 257 on a list of 6,000 candidates throughout the state of New York. My new found fitness (as from before) had put my mind in a place it used to be while I was in the military - I wanted to go back into action! Now, I could run again, I could do push ups again, I could do many things I used to do (not fully like before), and my mind was clearer now that I had the light of faith! My vision even improved, and I no longer needed my sleep apnea machine or the blood pressure pills (leading up to my second surgery)! Since I was an 18 year old boy, I needed glasses, even in basic training! But not now; for when I took the State Trooper physical, the doc said I was 20/20 vision, no glasses needed. This never happened to me before...

But it did not surprise me! As an atheist my entire life, I always suffered from a speech impediment - much to my own shame and embarrassment. Ask anyone who knew me in the military; as a stutterer, you wouldn't want me calling for fire on the objective! As I have said earlier; the Lord who is the God of EVERYONE knows how to give and take at the right time for our building up and not tearing down! When I was a young boy; in the privacy of my own home, I demanded the Lord "prove" Himself. He never appeared. I even cussed at Him - nothing! I can attribute this time as a young child around the age of 7 to when my speech impediment and stutter began! Rightfully so, for these youthful lips insulted the Lord my God and put Him to the taste, so it is only just my speech be confused for a time! How many today do you know in this world who should be silent for their own sake when it comes to the truth?

Too many!

Now, my ambition to become a State Trooper, even when I broke the news to my Doctor who removed my stomach whom I referred to as "Angel Hands" after my surgery, gave me sad eyes when I told him about this new goal. Was I forgetting about my wife and the purpose of why I pursued having my stomach removed in the first place? Surely, if I were to do nine months of police training, how would I have time to donate a kidney? Yes, selfishness creeped back in....

When we are called to serve God in ways most people don't understand, the devil will come at you with some persuasive arguments through other people (and yourself) which calls your worth into question (pride), and he is most definitely there, for Pride was his first sin! For example:

-You need an honorable job!
-What are people going to think about your career progression?
-Focus on your own health! Who is going to take care of those children?
-Oh, somebody asks you "what do you do?" When I say, "State Trooper," their eyes light up!
-The money is really good - you'll never find a career like that again!
-You need to be a MAN and provide your family with things they don't need!
-You need a boat, a better car, a bigger house, stocks and bonds, more status STUFF!
-I want people I know to respect me; even STRANGERS who don't care about me!
-You look sexy and attractive again and WOMEN are paying attention to you again, just like when you were in the active duty Infantry! What do you need that sick lady for? HA!

Sure, let's say I get these things - then my wife dies because I forgot about my original mission - will those things make me happy? Absolutely not!

Each and every person has a task and purpose from the Lord for their greater good and glory. In my unique situation, serving in the honorable position as a State Trooper would have strayed away from my purpose and new found health the Lord has given me - in other words - I would have squandered His gifts for the wrong reasons! But the Lord makes good come out of evil, for while I was training up to go to the academy and getting stronger everyday because of my own selfish ambition, He was preparing my body for my next surgery through His plan that has to be revealed in increments to men who are hard headed and stubborn like me!

Thank be to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit who raises the intellect up to the knowledge of Him and who trains the heart to stay on the right azimuth through the dark woods of idols and temptations!

Through other events I am not willing to get into, I backed out of this police endeavor. Once in a lifetime shot! Now, I was on path to continue going out in the streets to evangelize and draw closer to God by bringing Him to others who need Him! By the Lord's goodness to me and His Divine Providence, He showed me signs indicating I was on the right path - for He Who Brings Everyone to their Calculated End is trustworthy and true and He will not let you down, even if you don't understand it at the moment!

On the feast day of the Transfiguration of Lord Jesus Christ on Mt. Tabor, 6 August 2024 and on the same day Ukraine invaded Russia, was the day I had my kidney removed from my body and put into a stranger in Rochester. Like last time, I didn't schedule it; the hospital did! How they scheduled it? By a number of different factors unknown to me. I believe this was God showing me that I was on the correct path He ordained for me. Furthermore, during the pre-operative appointment in Rochester, I was waiting in the lobby to be seen before the surgery. While I was waiting to be seen in the lobby, a sickly looking teenager came in with his mother - you could tell by the eyes (my wife had the same draining look). He was wearing a t-shirt that said "kidney warrior" as it appeared he was in there for a pre-operative appointment as well. As I was sitting there minding my own business, I had this weird feeling and realization come over me - something made me know something I probably shouldn't have known, and I came to the irrational conclusion that this kid sitting near me I was looking at for a moment was literally going to get my kidney! Hey, looks like he needed it too! After all, I got another one, right? Right!

Although it didn't seem likely, because anyone in the entire nation of the USA could receive my kidney, at the appointment, the Surgeon revealed to me that we have found ourselves in a rare circumstance that the one who is going to receive my kidney was right here in the city of Rochester! In fact, I would have to be put in a different recovery unit after the surgery because they would literally remove my kidney in the same building the new kidney recipient would receive it in! I am sure this had something to do with the surgery date too....talk about Divine Providence!

Now, the day comes and my kidney is removed and put into someone else. While I am recovering, another holy Priest comes to visit me to give me communion, and it just so happens to be the same Priest who was the religious assistant for the Rochester Dominican fraternity who was there when I was received into the Dominican Order in Rochester a few years ago! He too was like an angel who came to visit me on my bed of pain. Furthermore, my friend and Regional President of the Upstate Lay Dominicans also came to visit me and comfort me with warming words. Now that I donated a kidney - even though me and my wife wasn't a match - my wife could now cash in a chain donation voucher and the National Kidney Registry would start searching for a live kidney from someone else in the country through the live chain donation system - almost like she would be receiving my ghost kidney - I give someone a kidney and she is owed a live one with a voucher - a real SWITCH A ROO!

That was a joke...

Anyways, everything seemed copacetic, right? Wrong! For one, my wife's anti-bodies increased, so now they said it would go from a three month wait for a live kidney for her to a one year or longer wait. Not the news we wanted to hear, especially as her condition worsened as she would sleep more throughout the day. She would also eat less and less as the weeks went on along with waking up in the morning to throw-up fits. In other words, she needed me around more. To add insult to injury, I came down with an infection after my surgery that wasn't caught and dealt with for many weeks, ultimately reforming a hole in my abdomen after being drained of the infection. I think it was a miracle I didn't get sepsis because the infection went on for weeks before it was drained and treated! While I was recovering from it, I had went to the emergency room in my area on a unrelated matter and had to receive an MRI for a potential hernia. Luckily, there was no hernia, but the hospital staff gave me a very vague sheet of paper that said - "Found 3 CM mass on kidney, consult physician immediately."

The hospital staff wouldn't elaborate any further or answer any of my questions. Now, most people would probably say - "Great, your kidney was cancer free from any tumors a few months ago (pre-donation imagery), now all of a sudden you formed a 3 CM mass on your only kidney in just a few months - sounds like aggressive cancer!" Yes, most people would probably say that. Furthermore, it might be logical to wonder why God would allow this to happen? You do a good deed and now you get punished for it! Anyone with a 3 CM mass that grew in a few months on their only vital organ doesn't have much time to live, in any respect!

Now, potentially planning my funeral and breaking the news to my upset wife, I was actually happy. Why? Because the Lord Who is Great answered my prayer - so I thought! Long ago, I asked the Lord to take my time and give it to my wife - so now that I found out I was going to die soon, He must have answered my prayers! Glory be to God who is Great for He gives us what we ask for, No?

Not always....

Christ Jesus once said: Watch and pray that you may not undergo the test!

So, I did what the hospital staff said and I got my appointment with my Nurse Practitioner - the same awesome lady who suggested I seek the stomach surgery and who did my State Trooper physical many months prior (like Doctor Angel Hands, she too looked upset and disappointed in me). What was the only date available? Behold - the feast day of Cosmos and Damien - the only Patron Saints of ORGAN DONORS in the entire history of the Catholic Church!

On that day, I found out that there was nothing wrong with me - in fact, I just had a pool of blood that appeared as a mass on the MRI machine. Furthermore, it wasn't even on my kidney side, but on the side they removed my kidney and stapled up the end of the artery so I wouldn't bleed out! No cancer or tumor, my one kidney was fine! Would have been nice of they elaborated a bit? Sure!

See, God isn't evil and cruel, I am just stupid!

Anyways, before I found out the good news, some holy women I knew from the Church told me that the "kiss of God" was upon me and that "He already took care of it." It comforted me greatly.

See, even when one gets tested, The Teacher provides a pen, paper, and a desk!

Now, the wait was on. Eventually, seven months later, my wife gets a call for a live kidney. What day do they schedule her surgery for? None other than 5 March 2025 - ASH Wednesday! Yes, some more Divine Providence! The day of surgery we took ashes to remind us that we are dust and ash. Her surgery was a success and she recovered quite nicely - a new lease on life!

See, the goodness of the Lord? He is good, as He calls into being what is not and He makes good come from evil! I was a wicked and selfish man when I detached myself from My Maker and I could have easily made the excuse "Well, my family needs someone who is healthy," and just refrain from not going on this medical/spiritual journey. I could have easily done this and people would have accepted it! But the Lord Who Knows the heart gives us our desires and wishes if there are good intentions there as we can choose to cooperate or rebel! I think it is good that we offer it up the Lord for the sake of others and His glory, as it is written:

2 Corinthians 2:15 - For we are the aroma of Christ for God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing...

Lord my God, see, I proclaimed and glorified you to them by my life, please accept my sacrifice as a pleasing aroma in your sight and forgive me of my transgressions to you and your creation! For it is you who accomplished all of this - not us! You could have taken, but you chose to still give! Either way, the Lord gives and the Lord takes - Blessed Be the Name of the Lord Forever!

AMEN!

Summa contemplation:
https://syracuselaydominicans.org/summastudy

Street Evangelization Watertown, New York
https://streetevangelization.com/team-page/...

Street Evangelization Syracuse, New York
https://streetevangelization.com/team-page/...

paul-patrick

To proclaim the gospel to atheists (because I was one), satanists, witches, pagans, and members of the occult. For the salvation of souls.

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HE VISITED - HOW ABOUT YOU?

1/23/2025

1/1/2025

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After recently reading the familiar Gospel story about Lazarus and the rich man, I saw the following internet headline: “Pastor who does not believe in hell fired!”  God’s timing is impeccable, isn’t it?

My immediate thought after reading this headline was: “and this pastor was caught off guard by his dismissal?”  The sad reality is that it is not just this specific minister, but so many other Christians, including many Catholics (even some of their priests), who have abandoned the fundamental truth that there are eternal consequences to a life lived in unrepentant and unconfessed sin (see Catechism of the Catholic Church, Sections 1033-1041).

“Our God is far too merciful,” these dissidents argue, “than to banish anyone to an eternity in hell.” What Scripture and what Catechism do they read?

How have we arrived at this state of confusion on such a crucial article of faith? When was the last time you heard a sermon on sin, death, hell, and the last judgment?  Chances are not too recently. Been encouraged to go to confession regularly? How many funerals have you attended where the decedent’s arrival in heaven has been happily and definitely announced?  - far too many, probably.

The only way you can subscribe to a theory of universal salvation is to assume that  God, His Church and the many individuals He has used over the centuries to teach and guide us never really meant what He or they said. You would have to conclude, for example, that the story of Lazarus and the poor man (Luke 16:19-31), the description of the Last Judgment (Matthew 26:31-46), and the Catechism references set forth above were never intended to be taken seriously. Maybe that is why verses 41-46 of Chapter 25 in Matthew are so often excluded when that Gospel is proclaimed in our Churches.

Of course, St. Augustine didn’t really mean it when he said: “God made you without yourself; God redeemed you without yourself; but God will not save you without yourself.”

I am equally as certain that St. Bernard was faking it when with tears he said that “there was hardly one ship out of ten lost on the sea, but on the ocean of life there is hardly one soul saved out of ten.”

What was Ven. Louis Granada, O.P. thinking when he opined that “Men have eyes as keen as those of an eagle in discerning the things of this world, but they are as blind as beetles to the things of eternity?”

Finally, I suspect that the late Father Winfrid Herbst, S.D.S. must have been hitting “the sauce” before he was foolish enough to write the following: “I am sure many lost souls in hell right now would cry out to preachers and writers if they could: Oh, why did you not tell us more about the horrors of hell? Why did you not strike such fear into our hearts by your realistic description of hell that we would have made greater efforts to avoid it?...Why did you spare our feelings in a matter of such eternal moment? Oh, why did you not make hell a thousand times hotter than you did, then perhaps we would not be here today? ”

Where is the zeal for the salvation of souls?

God made us to be with Him eternally. He gives us all the graces we will need to join Him there. We can believe what He teaches, respond to His graces, humble ourselves by confessing and seeking forgiveness for our sins and enjoy eternity in His Presence, or we can reject what He teaches and offers us here on earth and discover to our eternal regret that God never lies. The choice seems so obvious, doesn’t it?

St. Thomas Aquinas reminds us that no one “is in hell who did not have, time after time, the chance of taking heaven in his grasp”.  Father Leo Rudloff, O.S.B. reinforces the Angelic Doctor, when he stresses “that hell is not a blind destiny into which the sinner plunges unawares, but is his self-chosen and fully deserved portion.”

We are entitled to the truth. Our priests and bishops must not hesitate to teach that truth, no matter how uncomfortable it may make them or us.

Oh, how our priests and bishops need our prayerful support and encouragement!

https://harvestingthefruitsofcontemplation.blogspot.com/2011/03/to-hell-with-you.html

I am blessed to be a Lay Dominican. However, the ideas expressed on this blog are my own and do not represent the endorsement of or position of the Order of Preachers as a whole. I am neither responsible for, nor endorse content (e.g. banner ads, pop-up ads, etc.) that may be linked to this blog.

There can be no authentic Eucharistic Revival until we reestablish the sense of the Sacred in our Churches.

Few people warm up to lepers or prophets.

In Jesus’ time, lepers were shunned. Rarely would they show themselves in public and when they did so they kept their distance from the rest of the community – warning those nearby of their diseased presence by their voices and/or by ringing bells.

What great courage and faith it took for them to seek Jesus out. They knew He was the source of mercy, forgiveness, healing and eternal life. They begged Him to have mercy on them and cleanse them physically. Jesus, defying the norms of His day, not only approached them, He touched and healed them. Unfortunately, true to human nature, not all of those cured expressed their thanksgiving and gratitude for the opportunity at a new life.

Man’s ingratitude toward His God has continued over the centuries.

As the undeserved beneficiaries of God’s mercy and spiritual healing, how have we expressed our gratitude to Him? What portion of the 168 hours in each week that He gives us, have we given back to Him by talking to Him, listening to Him, adoring Him and spending time in His Presence?

As best as I can recall from my reading of Scripture over the years, prophets fared little better than lepers in the reception they received. It was an important but difficult and painful task for those chosen to share God’s words. Not many of the Lord’s prophets were willing ones. Can you blame them? No one wants to constantly hear “Here’s trouble. All he ever does is focus on the negative. He’ll have nothing positive, to say.” Much of what these messengers had to share were predictions of captivity, destruction, doom, eternal damnation and war. Few were thrilled about serving in that capacity. One became so discouraged, he sought death rather than the treatment to which he was subjected. They rarely felt welcomed; they were often despised, ignored, imprisoned or killed. Some tried to flee from their duties.

Let me ask you: Who are the reluctant and ignored lepers and prophets in our midst today? Who are those who are criticized for being negative, for scolding, and for upsetting the feelings of those to whom they share God’s messages? - anyone who points out the obvious but ignored Truth - that we have lost the sense of the Sacred in our Churches and reverence for and belief in our Lord’s Eucharistic Presence here among us!

On Mount Horeb, God the Father told Peter, James, John and all who would hear of that event to listen to His Son. Over the ensuing centuries, so many souls have refused to hear. So, the lepers and prophets among us, must proclaim the following truths to God’s often reluctant and deaf creatures:

We don’t love God as we ought and as He deserves. We fail to provide Him the reverence to which He is entitled. We ignore Him and act like He is not really and substantially present here with us as a prisoner in the tabernacles of His churches. We offend Him and cause Him pain. We pierce His side with the lances of our indifference, disbelief and irreverence.

Why is this message so important? Because such conduct offends God, destroys priestly vocations, desecrates and devalues the Eucharist, and causes countless souls to be lost!

The fastest growing group within religious denominations are those who have left the Catholic Church. It is commonly accepted that less than twenty-five percent of those identifying themselves as being Catholic attend Sunday Mass and among those that do, it is estimated that as many as seventy-five percent of them no longer believe that the Eucharist is the actual Body, Blood Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ.

The first step in solving the problems I have described is to acknowledge their existence and make their eradication priority number one. For some time now, our Church has been unwilling to do so. Do you want a forum, for example, to promote illegal immigration, universal health care, or the acceptance of the active homosexual lifestyle – no problem. Desire to address the irreverence in our Churches and lack of belief in the Real Presence of our Lord among us - not so much.

Our Church buildings are sacred places “designated for divine worship… Only those things which serve the exercise or promotion of worship, piety, or religion are permitted” there. “Anything not consonant with the holiness of the place is forbidden.” The Ordinary may, however, for individual cases, “permit other uses, provided they are not contrary to the sacred character of the place” (See Canon Law, Canons 1205 and 1210).

Just look around and ask yourself how does any of following conduct conform to these Canon Law provisions, or promote a sense of the sacred or reverence for and belief in the Blessed Sacrament?

No tabernacle in the sanctuary, but organs, pianos, drums and an army of what were supposed to be rarely used extraordinary minsters of Holy Communion abound

No reverent silence before and after Mass but loud raucous and inappropriate chatter tolerated

Little or no silent time after Communion for thanksgiving

Widespread acquiescence to sacrilegious reception of Holy Communion.

Disobedient priests who celebrate Mass irreverently, not fully vested and contrary to the rubrics of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal

Failure to promote Eucharistic Adoration or visits to the Blessed Sacrament

Unwillingness to have Benediction and Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament

Locked Church doors so no one can ever visit the Blessed Sacrament

Secular movies and concerts of secular music allowed in our Churches

Slideshow presentations highlighting the lives of the parish’s high school graduates in lieu of homily or at the end of Mass

Coffee and snacks in the main body of the Church for a social hour

The obvious answer to the questions I posed above is they don’t and they never will!

Tragically, there are countless other horrific examples one could share, all of which would further contribute to the loss of belief in and reverence for our Eucharistic Lord. Not enough of our bishops and priests have addressed these destructive abuses.

What then are we lay folk going to do about this? Our continued silence is not an acceptable option.

We need more lepers and prophets – those willing to speak the Truth, to challenge souls and to encourage and assist our priests and fellow parishioners in restoring a sense of the Sacred within our Churches, in the manner in which Holy Mass is celebrated and the Sacred Eucharist is treated. And, of course, the willingness to suffer the consequences for having the courage and faith to do so.

Any volunteers?

Mr. Michael Seagriff, OP

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Hanover square evangelization

6/23/2024

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This evangelization event was our first for the Syracuse, New York St. Paul Street Evangelization team. The event took place in Hanover Square in downtown Syracuse. Please welcome our new evangelists:

-Dave (Lay Carmelite from the Watertown SPSE team).
-Jeramyah (Discerning a Dominican vocation).
-Allison (Discerning a Dominican vocation).

Dave is a lifelong Catholic who is very educated in the faith and strong in his convictions. He teaches the faith in a way that is understandable, non-threatening, and friendly. He is a great asset to both teams.

Jeramyah has a deep passion for the salvation of souls and the Catholic faith. He is a recent convert like me, and has a very unique story. From being raised a muslim, running with gangs and dangerous crowds (such as the occult), the Lord converted him and put His Holy Spirit upon him to take the gospel to the streets for the preaching of truth, even in places most do not wish to go. He has been doing this for some time before joining our team and is not afraid to proclaim the truth of the faith to hostile crowds, often at the sacrifice to his own safety.

Allison also has a deep passion for the salvation of souls through sound teaching of the faith and doctrine. She is very caring and humble and willing to put herself out there in the streets for the edification of strangers who may someday come to the Lord.

We are blessed to have these evangelists called to help others as it took some time standing up this team. We also had some roadblocks with city permitting, insurance needs, and finding a suitable site for such a ministry with adequate foot traffic that is not intrusive to local businesses. This downtown setting worked perfectly as a meeting place for those in the public to share ideas, such as the concrete steps that also provide seating around the park, stone tables and chairs setup with chess tables and many restaurants in the area with foot traffic for sidewalks.

We will be planning more outings at this location in the future to build up rapport in the area.

Anyone driving through Syracuse at any point will notice a homeless population. Our team planned for this by providing necessities to those we may encounter in need such as providing food and drink while also making available a community resource list for food pantries, shelters, parish information in the Syracuse area, and crisis hotlines. Furthermore, my wife Leanna, who will be entering the Lay Franciscan Order on 23 June 2024, made twelve loaves of homemade bread (what a great number) for our team to pass out to those in need. At the end of the day, all the bread was gone. What a very Franciscan thing of her to do!

Now, I am very dedicated to the Church’s Liturgy of the Hours Morning and Evening prayers along with the office of readings from the Saints. Many times I have found what I needed in them depending on the situation I may be in at the moment, along with teachings, experiences, writings, and similar situations that collided with the design in my own faith life. On this day, 22 June 24, it was the feast day of three important Saints: Bishop Paulinus of Nola, Bishop John Fisher (Martyr), and Thomas More (Martyr). After reading one of Bishop Paulinus’ letters from the proper of saints, I found some similarities to this day that weighed upon my heart:

-Paulinus talked about his cousin coming from Carthage to deliver a letter. Our street evangelist today Dave was coming from Carthage, New York to meet up with me for the drive down to Syracuse.

-Paulinus talks about how not long ago he was “led out of darkness and the shadow of death, and only recently began to breathe in the air of life,” as in the case with myself and Jeramyah (who explained to me how the Catholic faith changed him and given him a new lease on life).

-Paulinus mentioned “only recently have I put my hand to the plough and taken up the cross of Christ,” so it was for us on this day putting ourselves out there for Lord Jesus Christ officially in a major city to preach the gospel.

-Finally, Paulinus mentioned in his letter “loaves of bread being a token of unity symbolizing the substance of the Holy Trinity,” along with our alms of bread to the needy to compliment our evangelization mission.

I encourage all of you to make the Liturgy of the Hours part of your prayer life in conjunction with any action you take in matters of the faith because the unity of the world wide prayer of the One Holy and Apostolic Church has much power. This is just what I personally needed to get the day started.

Unfortunately, bad weather was scheduled for the entire Upstate New York area. Along the way from Watertown to Syracuse, we came across torrential rains, but we pushed through it anyway, for Dave and I concluded that the Lord died for our sins upon the cross, so it is no matter to us that we become soaking wet out in the square today. We were also praying the rosary from our respective vehicles during the trip. Fortunately, to our delight, once we got to Hanover Square, the sun came out and it stopped raining just in time.

Evangelization Encounter:

EE#1.) As Dave and I were setting up in the square, a Bosnian lady by the name of Cynthia (I could only make out the first part of her long name) came up to greet us and ask us about our table. We handed her a rosary and information on the faith, along with a miraculous medal, books I wrote on Christian apologetics, and some food and water. She was very kind and accepted all of this, while also telling us some things about her own country. She then walked to the top of the steps in the square with the stuff we gave her. Then, she decided to sit down on a bench in the grassy area under a tree behind us with her back facing us where she resided to feed the pigeons that flocked to her feet.

Dave and I continued setting up our table with street evangelization items we would be passing out when she returned to us at the backside of our table crouching at the top of the concrete steps which towered over us. She handed us back the Rosary and miraculous medals we gave her, as she tore them to pieces. She then demanded that we sell the “jewelry” we gave her. We couldn’t do this because they are blessed objects. She then held up the crucifix from the Rosary that she tore off, and began to instruct us saying, “this is not the correct crucifix.” She then proceeded to turn it upside down and boldly proclaimed, “this is the correct crucifix, you give me the wrong one!”

Me and Dave stared at her for a moment in disbelief. Once I snapped out of it, I plainly told her in a stern voice that Christ Jesus was crucified upright, and that the upside down crucifix is a false satanic mockery of the Christian faith. Furthermore, the Apostle Peter chose to be crucified upside down so he could “run to Heaven” upon death and in that he felt that he was not worthy to die in the same manner Christ did. Cynthia began to challenge me in this, but I interrupted her and asked her about generational curses and occult activity in her family. She told me in an aggressive voice/tone that her mother practiced witchcraft. From there I pulled out holy water and began sprinkling it. From there, she began to cuss and swear at me and Dave. We reminded her that we would pray for her.

Throughout the day, she would leave and come back to observe us. One of our evangelists attempted to talk to her without knowing what happened earlier. When I tried to shut down the conversation, she would respond with the waving up of her middle finger and profane language.

Please pray for Cynthia’s conversion and for her spiritual protection.

EE#2.) Chris Jr. approached our table. He is an older gentleman and decided not to wear a shirt today because of the heat. As he was flexing and showing us his “guns,” he told us a little bit about his situation being homeless and how he is going through a rough patch taking care of his family members, teaching them faith, and not being able to afford some necessities. Luckily, he managed to be held up in a city “tiny housing” program until he gets back on his feet again. He also mentioned his service in the military. After we gave him some food, water, and sacramentals from our table, he thanked us and began praising the Lord out loud. Me and Dave reminded him that God was with him and will never leave him and how Christ was also poor and the first Christian prisoner.

Before Chris went on his way, he mentioned that he was going to tell his friends about us, because this is exactly what he needed. He also told us that he was grieving the recent loss of his father, Chris Senior. Me and Dave prayed with Chris for the Lord to help him in his current housing situation, for him to remain strong in faith and to protect him on the streets, and for the Lord to to comfort his deceased father and to let him shine in the perpetual light of the Lord forever, and for God to bring comfort and peace to him and his family. Chris began crying after this. I reminded Chris that his father isn’t truly dead, for even though the body dies, the spirit still lives, and he will see his dad again, although he does right by mourning.

Please pray for Chris, his family members in the faith, and for the soul of his father.

EE#3.) Christine and her young son came up to our table. After some discussion, she informed us that she works for the Diocese of Syracuse. We gave her son a miraculous medal that he specifically wanted to wear around his neck. He also wanted many sacramental items, but his mother wouldn’t let him take it all. However, we did try to encourage him, that if he was going to use it, he should try to evangelize his school buddies. Christine was very nice to us and expressed interest in Saint Paul Street Evangelization. We gave her an information pamphlet on the organization. Later on in the day, she came back offering us a donation and we directed her to the organization’s website www.streetevangelization.com.

Please pray for Christine’s important work in the Diocese of Syracuse and for her son to be strong in the faith.

EE#4.) A group of young adults approached our table. Jeramyah had a long fruitful discussion with them about the faith, and they were very motivated to learn more about salvation and the Catholic Church. They accepted various pamphlets on the faith from the Catholic perspective, including the topic “sexual purity,” along with rosaries and miraculous medals. We also prayed together as a group to foster fellowship. They seemed hungry for God and the hope of something higher, probably something they have not received in their own lives from older adults they were surrounded by growing up.

Please for these young adults to grow in the faith and draw closer to Lord Jesus Christ.

EE#5.) Anthony approached our table (he is featured in this photo). He is battling throat cancer, and was very grateful to receive information on the faith, sacramentals, and food items. Jeramyah led us in prayer over him with holy water for his healing and spiritual growth. He also accepted a Saint Anthony medal.

Please pray for the Lord to heal his cancer.

EE#6.) Two young ladies were walking along the sidewalk, and Jeramyah approached them with sacramentals and food. He had a long discussion with them about the faith and invited them back to our table where they had a discussion with the group about finding God in their lives. Jeramyah led us in prayer with them for God to become more active in their lives and for the healing of one of the lady’s grandmother who is dying. She was very hurt about this but enjoyed the prayer. At the end, both ladies allowed me to do the sign of the cross in holy water over their foreheads.

Please pray for these women to have the Lord become more active in their lives and for the healing of their grandmother.

EE#7.) An older lady approached our table. She declared that she was from the Saint Paul Episcopalian Church in Syracuse and asked us, “who are you?” We explained that we are a Catholic Evangelization organization. In confusion, she must have thought we were representing her church in some way. Once we cleared that part up, in response, the woman said, “we are pretty much the same then, we just don’t have a Pope and have less rules.”

Before I could respond to this, I had to answer a phone call, so Allison, Dave, and Jeramyah stepped in to talk about the Catholic faith with her. Nancy, our Syracuse Lay Dominican formations director pulled up to Hanover Square in her car to check up on us to see how we were doing. While on the phone with her, I directed her to a parking spot. To our delight, she got out and joined us for a little while in the square. Allison and Jeramyah know her because she is doing their Lay Dominican formation. She also recently completed mine and is a very good teacher.

When I returned to the table, before the lady from Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church was about to leave, I asked her if she wanted any information on the Catholic faith. She was not interested. I then proceeded to ask, “Can I give you one good reason why I became Catholic?” She agreed and I briefly explained my conversion and what led me to the Church. She was not impressed, and in response she said, “I believe in women Priests and homosexuality, and that I should love everybody, so I can never become Catholic,” as she began walking away.

I thanked her for her time and told her I would pray for her and asked her to pray for me.

Please pray for this woman to be drawn into the fullness of worship and to someday accept the hard teachings and truths of the Christian faith.

Now, Allison, Jeramyah, and Dave talked to many people; homeless, those in distress, young people coming from the polish festival just across the street, families, and people coming from the LGBTQIA pride parade that was a few miles away from our location. Some of those we greeted responded with, “Happy Pride!” However, most of the people we encountered were very friendly, some were indifferent, and others seemed a bit cautious or defensive. Even one gentleman turned out to be high on drugs, and began chewing on a cross we gave him. When we realized someone was intoxicated or dealing with an altered state of mind, we did not engage them for our safety and theirs.

I concluded this event with a story about how I received my two prayer cards I always keep on me (photos featured in this posting) and by saying the prayers on them as a group, in thanksgiving to the Lord for giving us the opportunity to serve His people:

The story began about a year ago, around this time of year after I was brought into the Lay Dominican Order. The Lord was stirring me at night often, and I was trying to figure out the best way to go about preaching on the streets in the city of Syracuse, because I heard from someone in the faith around the time of my conversion that demons were all about this city. Now, I knew evil spirits hated the Rosary, and how I knew about this was through my experiences with my own mother - who cried out in pain to the prayer of the Rosary - so I knew like Saint Dominic I needed to preach the rosary to others, but I did not know how to do this or in what format I should do this. For one, I was thinking about walking up and down the streets shouting out all the mysteries, or coming up with some different format to proclaim the mysteries (which is also the gospel message). Keep in mind, this was all before I discovered St. Paul Street Evangelization through some very holy people who were active in it and from some who knew of it. Anyways, what I was thinking about doing was very different, and probably wouldn’t have turned out well for me (and others), so, being the good Lay Dominican formation director Nancy is, we were driving around Syracuse during this time talking about how to go about this.

That is when she told me to stop the car we were driving in at random (we happened to be on Salinas Street right down the street from Hanover Square) and for me to get out of the car and start preaching out loud up and down the street to see whether or not it was for me. So, I followed her orders; however, not exactly. Once I got out of the car I began walking down the street (between Epicuse Food Market and Parthenon Books by the Landmark Theatre). But for some reason, I didn’t understand what she wanted me to do fully. So I started walking down the street until I came across a homeless man stopped in the middle of the sidewalk in my path who began staring at me. I approached him and gave him money with the Apostle Paul prayer card (it's the name I took at my baptism because of my conversion). We prayed the “Our Father” together. He did not say a word to me, but looked at me intently and then walked away. So, I kept walking up Salinas Street. Moments later, a younger gentleman approached me and asked, “Do you have any money?” So, I gave him some money, along with the other prayer card of Saint Patrick (this is the name I took when I entered the Lay Dominican Order because of a dream I had about Saint Patrick’s purgatory around the time of my conversion) I had in my pocket. After I gave him this, the man asked, “what’s your name?” I replied, “Scott.” Then the man paused for a second in silence, like he was expecting me to say something else, then I corrected myself and added, “Paul-Patrick.”

I also told him if he was ever feeling down or in any trouble to look at the prayer on the card. He nodded and walked off. As I did my loop around the block, I was walking along the stores observing the neon lights in front of the windows. Suddenly, I decided to glance back over my shoulder. The man whom I had given the Saint Patrick prayer card to was across the street walking along with me with his hands in his pockets observing me. I did not think anything of it and went about my business. When I returned to the driver's seat of my car where Nancy was, she asked me “why didn’t you do what I asked?” That is when I remembered what she told me to do. I explained to her how I got distracted and gave up my Paul and Patrick cards. I was also kind of saddened by this because I always had those prayer cards on me and didn’t know how I would get them again because they aren’t easy to find. Being the kind person Nancy is, she ordered me to drive over to the Catholic Gift shop in Syracuse and that she would get me new ones. While we were discussing this, the man whom I gave the Saint Paul prayer card to came back across the street in front of us with a hot coffee in his hand and began acting crazy, even though I knew he wasn’t crazy. He was pulling trash out of a garbage can and tossing it at some driver who was sitting in his car on his phone trying to ignore him. The man with my Paul card and the hot coffee was definitely acting, for he was definitely of a sound mind.

So, we drove to the Catholic gift shop in Syracuse. Nancy bought me new Paul and Patrick cards and they looked much different from the original ones I had. They also had more applicable prayers to what I intended to do, while also having Saint Patrick’s famous breastplate prayer.

Later that night, after we parted ways, alone in prayer, I realized something and began to giggle in disbelief as I was staring at these prayer cards. The exact two men I saw on the street near Hanover Square looked just like the two men standing in the new Paul and Patrick cards Nancy got for me at the Catholic Gift shop in Syracuse. And here are those prayers on them:

Novena to St. Paul

O St. Paul, great Apostle of the Gentiles, intercede for us to God. You are God’s special vessel of election. Through your intercession we hope to receive from Him this special grace (here make your request.)

O St. Paul, glorious disciple of Christ, with great zeal you spent yourself to proclaim the Truth of the Gospel to a pagan world. Move hearts to conversion as you were so powerfully moved so that they will spread light instead of darkness.

May we never contribute to or be part of any communication that is contrary to our Faith. May we seek, instead, to promote, read, hear and view only those materials whose beneficial contents will bring greater glory to God, the exaltation of His Church or the salvation of souls. Amen.

St Patrick’s Breastplate

Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I sit down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

Please pray for these souls and their deceased loved ones we encountered today. Thank you!

Summa contemplation:
https://syracuselaydominicans.org/summastudy

Street Evangelization Watertown, New York
https://streetevangelization.com/team-page/?team-chapter=watertown

Street Evangelization Syracuse, New York
https://streetevangelization.com/team-page/?team-chapter=syracuse

PAUL-PATRICK

To proclaim the gospel to atheists (because I was one), satanists, witches, pagans, and members of the occult. For the salvation of souls.

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Solar eclipse evangelization

5/29/2024

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An evangelization story

6/25/2023

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by Ms. Mary Kay Welgoss, OP

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St. Paul Preaching in Athens, by Raphael, 1515. Wikimedia Commons

It was a Saturday in early June. The day was perfect for a local festival–sunny and warm with a light breeze. I felt the knots-in-my-stomach kind of trepidation I usually experience when setting out for a day with St. Paul Street Evangelization. Sharing my faith in Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church with strangers and acquaintances always feels daunting at the outset. I imagine crumbling under anticipated hostility or proving totally inadequate in my effort to explain the truths of the Gospel and of Church teaching in on-the-spot encounters. But God always encourages me. Somehow, he lets me know that there is value in trying. With a group of dedicated team members from my church, we set about preparing our table among all the other not-for-profit groups. We displayed an array of colorful rosaries, holy medals, prayer cards, pamphlets, note cards and the wooden box for prayer intentions made especially for us by a fellow parishioner. We prayed the rosary together before the festival started with the special intention that the Holy Spirit would help us to plant many fruitful seeds that day.

Things started out amicably enough; we met many people who were cordial and receptive, people with a wide variety of religious experiences who were genuinely interested in connecting with the Catholic Church on some level. We also experienced a few scoffs and mild jeers, but these people tended to move on quickly. Then, sometime in the early afternoon, a beautiful young woman walked up to the table and started looking at the rosaries. My colleague–who excels among us at being the welcoming presence that draws people into conversations about faith and religion–began talking with her, asking if she would like to take one of the rosaries and whether or not she knew how to pray it. The young woman was quick to inform us that she knew all about rosaries. She had attended Catholic school until sixth grade and knew all about Catholicism. Her manner was not hostile or angry, just very matter-of-fact. But as she continued to speak, it was clear there was something more on her mind. There was an earnestness about her, a sense of being owed an explanation for something that was important to her. She began by informing us that she just graduated from high school and was heading off to an ivy league college in the fall. She said she thought that intelligent people didn’t believe in religion because they have the capacity to apply reason to solve problems rather than turning to God. Never being one to walk away from a debate, I jumped into the conversation. I asked her whether or not she believed in God, and she said yes, she did. It was the first of many answers she gave that seemed to logically contradict her stated positions. It wasn’t long before she was asking about hot button issues, like the Church’s teaching on abortion, contraception, and same-sex attraction. I tried in my best educator way (I am a retired high school teacher of 32 years) to answer her questions as clearly as I could. But they kept coming–-one after another. Again, it was not an angry exchange; she was respectful throughout. But she wanted answers. We talked intensely for over an hour. Every time I was sure the conversation was coming to a close, she would take up another question. It was not that I wanted it to end, but I have never experienced this level of intensity in a conversation with someone I just met. Without a doubt, she was a person of great intelligence who thought deeply about the world around her. Something happened along the way that severed her connection with the Catholic faith, but I am convinced that deep down she still believed it to be true or desperately wanted it to be true. The conversation finally ended when her father appeared at the table and told her he wanted to get something to eat. So, I shook her hand, wished her well and sat down, exhausted and unsure if anything I had said to her actually made any sense. As I debriefed with my colleagues, I realized that this conversation had been a bit of a spectacle among people at nearby booths. The young woman and I were so engaged in our conversation, that we didn’t notice others listening around us. The woman at the table next to ours said, “It sounds like you were having a therapy session rather than talking about religion!” This seemed like an apt description of what just happened. So this is where you might think the story ends, but you would be wrong!

About forty-five minutes later, I was completely dumbfounded to see the same young woman standing in front of me, this time with two of her friends. One was another young woman of 18, originally from El Salvador, who had been adopted by an American family shortly after birth. The other friend was a young man who was grappling with questions of gender identity. Initially all three of them launched into a debate about abortion rights that sounded rehearsed. But quickly the conversation turned. The woman who was adopted said that being given up by an impoverished mother had left her feeling unwanted all of her life. Despite the love and opportunities afforded to her by her adoptive parents, she felt abandoned and unloved by her birth mother–and these feelings drove her to depression and despair. Then she made two statements that absolutely horrified me: she said she wished her mother had aborted her, because it would have made life easier for both of them. Because her mother was Catholic, she did not believe in abortion or did not have access to the procedure in her native Catholic culture. She went on to say that she recently attempted suicide, because she could not imagine ever getting over this feeling of being unwanted. It was then that I truly felt the presence of the Holy Spirit giving me the words this young woman needed most to hear: I told her, “God wants you. God loves you. He made you in his image and likeness. He conceived his idea of you and your unique life path long before he knit you in your mother’s womb. He knows the number of hairs on your head. Your life is infinitely valuable to him. And it seems much more likely to me, especially because I am a mother myself, that your mother made two extreme acts of loving sacrifice for you, her beloved child. First, she cooperated with God to give you life, and second, she gave you up to be raised by others in the hope that you might have a fuller and happier life than she could provide. This was not an act of someone who didn’t want her child. This was an act of a woman who loved her child more than she loved herself.” At that point the young woman turned away in tears. It was clear to all of us standing there that she was in deep pain.

The conversation continued for a few more minutes before the three friends left. It was obvious we were no longer debating an abstract social issue. We were witnessing what a life without God is like; it is a life full of pain, loss, confusion, hopelessness and a lack of meaning and purpose. It is a devalued life. While there is no guarantee that a life with God in this world won’t have its share of pain and loss, the confusion, hopelessness, meaninglessness, and lack of purpose are gone. With God we experience the joy that comes from knowing we are deeply loved and deeply valued. His love gives meaning to all things. In the inspired words of Saint Paul, “It [Love] bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” (1 Corinthians 13:7-8) This is the good news! God loves us so much that he sent his only son, Jesus Christ, to reconcile us with God and so to save us from a life of sin, a life without God. This is the message all of us on the evangelization team so fervently hoped these young people would hear. We prayed as they left that the Holy Spirit might open their minds and hearts to receive it.

Jesus tells all of us to go forth and spread this good news. My experiences with St. Paul Street Evangelization have convinced me in a very personal way of the absolute necessity of doing this, especially in our current culture that is so dominated by nihilism and hedonism. Our neighbors are carrying heavy burdens, and they do not know that God can alleviate them. They do not know of his infinite mercy and love. Evangelization is work that can be intense and demanding, but so wholly satisfying too. To connect with fellow travelers and to share what Christ has done is truly a great blessing and a great gift.

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Silence Slays Souls--The Souls of Individuals and the Souls of nations

5/23/2023

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by Mr. Michael Seagriff, OP

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Homily of St. Dominic in Recanati by Lorenzo Lotto, 1508. Wikimedia Commons

The Gospel of Matthew (8:16-20) which commands us “to make disciples of all nations baptizing them in name of the Father, the Son and Holy Spirit”, prompts this question: Have we Catholics abandoned our Christ-given mission?

For years, our Church has downplayed the importance of conversion and the salvation of all souls, choosing instead the promotion of social justice and worldly objectives. We act as if the solution to the world’s problems remains in the secular realm, when in fact, it can be fought and defeated only on the spiritual plain.

Our silence in light of such misguided efforts slays souls and emboldens Satan.

We have limited our ineffective evangelization efforts (for the most part) to just those calling themselves Catholic, thereby reinforcing the secular belief that one religion is just as good as another. Most Catholics do not know their Faith and few live it – because they have often not been taught it. Even though God’s Truth will set a soul free, far too often we insist on substituting His full and complete (and no doubt challenging) Truth for a watered down, pastorally comforting non-truth, that can never nourish and foster authentic spiritual growth.

Our silence in light of such misguided efforts slays souls and emboldens Satan.

God’s law and commandments are applicable to all human beings, whether they be Catholic or not or whether they believe in a supreme being or not. God’s Truth is implanted in the hearts, minds and souls of all whom He has created. We humans know intuitively what is right and what is wrong. Why have we not shouted this Truth from the rooftops and reflected it in the way we live our lives?

Our silence in light of such inaction slays souls and emboldens Satan.

No one (relatively speaking) comes to Church on Sunday. We, our bishops and priests, for the most part, remain silent about the eternal consequences for those souls who do not participate in Sunday Mass.

Our silence in such situations slays souls and emboldens Satan.

We are told that of the few Catholics who come to Sunday Mass, upwards to seventy-five percent no longer believe that Jesus Christ is really truly and substantially present, Body Blood Soul and Divinity in the Eucharist hidden behind locked tabernacle doors and in the Sacred Host placed on their tongues.

Our silence in light of such non-belief slays souls and emboldens Satan.

We wonder why so many Churches have been closed and abandoned. Surely, if we believed that Jesus is present in our Churches we would act with the reverence such belief requires and spend time with Him. Obviously, our catechesis and example have failed to teach that essential and fundamental Truth.

Our silence and poor example slay souls and emboldens Satan.

Rarely are our Churches the silent, reverent, sacred spaces they were intended to be and which our Lord deserves – unique places where one can in quiet, adore, worship and speak to the God who longs to be loved. Yet we do little or nothing to correct this tragic state of affairs.

Our silence in light of such irreverence slays souls and emboldens Satan.

When was the last time the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops spoke with one uniform, persistent, fearless and endless voice, not just condemning such evils as abortion, contraception, euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research, fornication, active homosexual lifestyle and transgenderism, but with love and in fraternal correction, explaining to everyone (not just to Catholics) why such conduct is evil and leads to eternal punishment?

Our silence in light of such failures slays souls and emboldens Satan.

How many more lives will be brutally ripped out of the wombs of their mothers before we, our Bishops and our priests will call this evil what it is – murder not health care, not the right to choose, but murder? If the harvesting of human body parts from aborted human beings and the use of taxpayer funds to support such evil will not receive the universal, persistent and unending condemnation of all God-fearing people, priests and bishops of our Church, what will?

Our silence in light of such evil slays souls and emboldens Satan.

How do we save souls if we, our priests and our bishops create or acquiesce to ambiguity in Church doctrine where none had heretofore existed? Let me offer a few examples.

The Church has taught that there are eternal consequences to those who have rejected God’s grace and die in the state of mortal sin unwilling to repent and seek forgiveness. How can any Catholic now accept the suggestion that “No one can be condemned forever because that is not the logic of the Gospel?” Such a concept appears contrary to all that the Church has taught (see Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) 1033 and 1035).

Our silence in light of such error slays souls and emboldens Satan.

It has always been undisputed Church teaching that it is a mortal sin to receive Holy Communion if you are a divorced and remarried Catholic who never sought or obtained annulment of one’s marriage (CCC 1650). How can we support assertions to the contrary today?

Our silence in light of such error slays souls and emboldens Satan.

The Church’s constant teaching has been that a soul in mortal sin receives no spiritual benefit from receiving Holy Communion, but rather eternal condemnation if such conduct is left unconfessed. (CCC 1384-1385) Why would we, our bishops or priests encourage others to commit such sinful acts?

Our silence in light of such conduct slays souls and emboldens Satan.

It has been the teaching of the Church that we MUST strive with God’s grace to overcome our sinful behaviors and that with His grace all things are possible, including abandoning long-standing sinful acts. Even if we are never fully successful in overcoming our sinful behaviors, we are never exempt from trying to do so. How can we now teach that such a standard is too high and those who have been unsuccessful in striving to free themselves from entrenched sin, are no longer obligated to do so?

Our silence in light of such erroneous teaching slays souls and emboldens Satan.

How can we have a reasonable hope that all souls will be saved or that atheists (who die not knowing Jesus) are in heaven, or that God makes a person gay, or that gay sexuality can be “in some way be Eucharistic,” that “it can be expressive of Christ’s self-gift” or that “it can be expressive of mutual fidelity, a covenantal relationship in which two people bind themselves to each other for ever” or that it is licit for a non-Catholic spouse to receive Holy Communion?

Our silence in light of such false assertions slays souls and emboldens Satan.

Who would ever have thought that the administrators of a Catholic College would fail to unequivocally support a well-respected tenured faculty member and a student who were attacked for simply proclaiming and defending the teachings of their Church against those who promoted error and sinful conduct?

Our silence in light of such failures slays souls and emboldens Satan.

Were you shocked that a once vibrant and faithful Catholic nation approved the killing of children in their mother’s womb and celebrated this tragedy joyfully and unashamedly? You shouldn’t be. That is what happens when we remain silent and don’t engage in spiritual combat. When the Church and its members fail to teach and defend the Truth, Satan offers a counterfeit substitute truth – one that leads only to hell.

Our silence slays souls and emboldens Satan.

Is it not time for we silent souls to defend God’s Truth, to fulfill our baptismal obligation to be the Gospel to those we meet and to more fully engage in the spiritual battle for the salvation of all souls?

Or do we want to remain silent and slay souls and embolden Satan?

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I Kissed His Feet

5/21/2023

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by Mr. Michael Seagriff, OP

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God calls all of us to walk the Via Dolorosa with Him, to spend time at the foot
of His cross, to be there as He is nailed to it, to be there throughout the entire
three hours of His agonizing death, to be there as He is taken down from the
cross, to be there as He is placed in His mother’s arms and to be there at the
tomb.

I have tried from time to time to obey Him. But I have found it hard to do.
Painful would be more accurate. I don’t want to be reminded of the price He
paid for my sins. I don’t want to acknowledge how ungrateful I have been for
such an undeserved sacrificial gift. I am afraid of what other things He might
ask of this obstinate sinner and of the additional disappointment, pain and
anguish my refusing to change may cause such a loving and merciful Lord.
Yet, if I am ever to succeed in abandoning my will for His, of allowing Him to
make of me the new creation He intended, and of spending eternity in His
glorious and magnificent Presence, I must obey. I must daily walk that road
and spend time at the foot of His cross.

I am hopeful that as a result of my visit to St. Joseph's Oratory in Montreal –
the work of Saint Andre Bessett, more commonly known as Brother Andre – I
will be successful in this most difficult but necessary exercise. Let me tell you
why.

Shortly after arriving at the Oratory and during a casual conversation at lunch
with other pilgrims, I heard for the first time of a Crucifix in the Grotto Church
at the Oratory to which a great devotion had developed. Over the years, many
answered prayers and miracles have been reported by those who spent time
at the foot of that Cross and who left their written prayers and petitions there.
I wanted to find that special place.

I had never been to the Oratory but went to look for that Crucifix. I had not
walked very far at all when I saw the Grotto’s entrance just feet from where I
stood.

I entered with joyful expectation. Mass was about to begin but there was still a
line down the side aisle in front of a Crucifix that was in the sanctuary next to
the altar rail.

My wife and I got on the line. At first I was unsure whether I was disrespecting
our Lord and the priest who had just begun Mass but felt compelled to remain
in the line, joining in the hymns and Mass responses. I was moved by the
depth of emotion others displayed as they approached the Crucifix and held
on to our Lord’s nailed feet while praying silently.

When it was my turn, I snapped a quick picture of the crucifix and then
reached up and put my two hands on Jesus’ crucified feet. I rested my head
there as well, pleading for the salvation of my soul and the souls of my loved
ones. I shed a few tears. I did not want to leave or remove my hands but knew
I had to do so. Others were waiting.

Link for St. Joseph’s Oratory:
https://www.saint-joseph.org/en/

Link for St. Andre Bessett:
https://holycrosscongregation.org/holy-ones/st-andre-bessette/

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canticle of a catholic scientist

3/15/2023

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by Mr. Benjamin Dominic

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As a Catholic scientist, I fortunately have not struggled with reconciling my scientific profession with my Catholic faith. Truth cannot contradict truth, as Pope Leo XIII wrote in his encyclical Providentissimus Deus. Hence, whether truth comes from the use of reason (including the sciences) or Divine Revelation, it cannot contradict itself merely based on its source. This inspires confidence in any Catholic that the Catholic religion and science are ultimately harmonious, despite any seeming contradictions that may currently be present.

However, one obstacle I have faced as a Catholic scientist is of a vocational rather than intellectual nature. How can writing computer code, solving mathematical equations, or conducting laboratory experiments serve our Lord, lead others to Him, and foster my own growth in holiness? When I was discerning this vocation, it certainly felt that more “explicitly religious” choices (such as being a Catholic missionary or a teacher in a Catholic school) could serve our Lord and His will better.

I found consolation in a Catholic astronomer whose cause of canonization has been opened. Paraphrasing his self-reflection on being a Catholic astronomer, he said, “I have the ability to take the stars into my hands, give them a voice, and make them praise their Creator.” [1] Something from this quote echoed the Canticle from the Book of Daniel (Dan 3:57-88, 56), which is prayed in the Liturgy of the Hours and includes invocations such as:

Sun and moon, bless the Lord.
Stars of heaven, bless the Lord.
Nights and days, bless the Lord.
Light and darkness, bless the Lord.

Like the Catholic astronomer quoted above, is it not possible for every Catholic scientist -- astronomer, physicist, chemist, biologist, and more -- to similarly give voice to the natural objects they study, to praise and bless the Lord?

Black holes and exoplanets, bless the Lord.
Protons and electrons, bless the Lord.
Hydrogen and helium, bless the Lord.
DNA and RNA, bless the Lord.

When viewed this way, pursuing a vocation to be a scientist may not appear to be “explicitly religious.” But, echoing the sentiments of St. Albert the Great (the patron saint of scientists) as well as Dominican priest-scientists I know personally, scientific research can be approached as an act of prayer, of praise, of worship of the Lord who made all the things I study.

As a physicist, I too have the ability to take electrons and atoms “into my hands, give them a voice, and make them praise their Creator.” In this way, I can say with the writer of Wisdom, “For from the greatness and beauty of created things comes a corresponding perception of their Creator,” (Wis 13:5) or with St. Paul, “Ever since the creation of the world God’s eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been seen and understood through the things God has made.” (Rom 1:20)

As I have found time and again, there is no real contradiction between being a Catholic and being a scientist. Even in this vocation, I can find a way to serve our Lord, bring others to know His grandeur through His creation, and grow in holiness through prayerful study myself.
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[1] Unfortunately, despite my best efforts, I cannot relocate the article in which I read this! I believe it was from the official Vatican website. If it rings a bell and you find it, please let me know!

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St. John, St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Therese on the little Way of Love

3/15/2023

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by Mr. Benjamin Dominic

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St. Therese of Lisieux is a well-beloved saint of our modern times. Perhaps it is because she is the most recently living saint to be declared a Doctor of the Church. Perhaps it is a selection bias within my friend circle; they are mostly around the same age St. Therese was when she passed away, and might therefore be inspired by her combination of sanctity and youth. I think it is more likely that she is attractive because of her personality: simple, charming, endearing, and boldly confident in the Father’s love for her.

All of these aspects of her personality are reflected in her characteristic path of holiness, the “Little Way,” described as doing “small things with great love.” It is an inspiring truth for any person: holiness -- great holiness -- can be achieved by the simplest and smallest of us. It is the greatness of our love in even the smallest deed, and not necessarily the greatness of the deeds themselves, that matters most in light of eternity.

Since this idea is so enlightening and inspiring for so many people, you can imagine my shock when I felt I had no idea what the Little Way really meant. In particular, I recall reading St. Therese say that “to pick up a pin for love of God can save souls,” but I did not understand what it meant (practically speaking) to “pick up a pin” with love. Did it mean to pick up a pin with the loving intention that someone else does not step on it and get hurt? That did not seem quite right!

In my efforts to understand this, I found the letter of St. John and the philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas to be helpful. St. John famously writes, "Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. [...] God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them." (1 Jn 4:7-8, 16) In parallel, consider the teaching of St. Thomas Aquinas that God is Ipsum Esse, Being Itself (ST I, q.4, a.2). God is the First Cause; that is, no created thing is sufficient to explain its own existence. No created thing caused its own existence. Rather, any created thing is held in existence by the First Cause, by Being Itself, by God, without Whom it would cease to exist.

And yet, putting the two together, Being Itself -- God -- is love. Every created thing that exists in the world is held in its existence by God’s continual love. In this way, everything we touch, see, and experience can serve as a constant reminder that God is loving us and holding all these things in existence through His love. And what is the proper response to this perpetual love?

In my view, the Little Way is the proper response. If all that we are and all that we do is sustained by God’s perpetual love, the Love in which “we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28), then there is no action that cannot be offered back to God as a sign of our love for Him. [1] Every action, no matter how small, is simultaneously a reminder of God’s infinite love for us, and can be offered with great love back to Him.

The Little Way is the presence of mind and will to say, with any action, “God, in this act I am aware that I am sustained and surrounded by Your infinite love for me. And, I respond by consecrating and offering my whole being, my whole self, and this act, back to You out of love for You. In this way, I abide in You and Your love, and invite You to abide in me and my acts.”

Perhaps this drawn-out exposition has marred the simplicity of St. Therese’s writings and the Little Way. But, I hope it may be fruitful for those of you who think like me.

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[1] Of course, we cannot offer an act of sin out of love for God. As St. Thomas Aquinas teaches, evil (such as sin) is a privation of the good (ST I, q.49, a.1).

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