For me St. Thomas More.  He’s a great reminder that there are those who strive to serve God in government service.  And that we must always be the Lord’s good servant first.  Also to be willing to accept whatever the Lord sends our way good and bad, He will be there to guide us.  That and it was a timely viewing of “A Man for All Seasons” that finally ushered me into the Church.

These Saints have been my constant companions, each individual appearing in my life when I needed guidance, hope and courage: Saint Thomas More, Saint Therese Liseux, Saint John of The Cross, Saint Thomas Aquinas.

Pray for us!

I’ve long had an admiration for St. Margaret of Scotland for being a mother and transforming a country (though some Scots would disagree!).  I have hopes her husband, Malcolm is with her and my dh and I often ask their help in raising our kids. 

I also have a love for the ‘not easy to remember’ saints - such as St. Zita (from Italy) patron of servants to help me remember the special role of servants in God’s plan - makes the jobs of being a mother easier.  Another favorite is St. Roch - apparently believed to a spy - pretty cool for boys.  I like finding these ‘forgotten’ saints who might be waiting to be hired to watch over our children, find our keys and help us in the struggles of every day life.  St. Jude is always getting called on but not so much any of the saints whose names begin with “Qua…” - many of whom are African martyrs.  I like to think they’d love to hear their names called once in a while…

Lot’s of them, they are amazing people. I’m sure many of helped me but I just didn’t know it. Those who have, St. Mary Magdalene. St. Joseph, and St. Josefa Manendez. Probably the most influential for me the last few years - St. Faustina Kowalski, the secretary of the Divine Mercy Devotion. And, of course, the Blessed Virgin Mary, even though I don’t believe she is categorized as a saint.

On this 60th anniversary of the proclamation of the dogma of the Assumption I invoke our Blessed Mother who paved the way for all who are called to sainthood.

It is hard to choose. One of my favorites is Margaret of Castello. (Blessed)  Born blind, hunchback, unwanted by her parents, kept in the castle cellar, alone, except for a priest who came to her everyday, she remained gentle, pleasant natured, humble and patient with her distress.  Her prayers to Jesus were simple and sincere. She was left on the steps of a church far away from home by her parents, when the healing they sought for her did not happen. She lived with the poor of the town, begged and brought hope to those who had none, visited the prison and touched their lives with love. Eventually, she was received into a convent, but, her stay was short because she would not go along with the liberalities.  Encouragement and love was her gift to all she met. When asked why her parents abandoned her, she would only say how much they loved her.  Invoked as the patron of the unborn, handicapped, unwanted.

Expand our petitions!  In my daily prayer I petition all the saints I can think of for our family.  I use a rosary to keep me focused, but start with:

God the Father, please protect us
God the Son, please teach us
God the Holy Spirit, please guide us
The Holy Family, please pray for us
Blessed Mother Mary, Virgin most prudent and wise, please pray for us
Saint Joseph, worker and provider please pray for us.

We have four children, a son-in-law, a daughter-in-law to be and two grandchildren.  I include them in the litany with their baptismal saint, middle name saint, confirmation saint (if they have one) and a vocational saint (St. Raphael for a doctor, St. John Bosco for a teacher, St. John Baptiste de la Salle for my husband school principal, St. Paschal Baylon for our student chef, etc., etc.  I love these saints!).  If their Christian names don’t lend themselves to a Saint’s name, just pick one with a similar sounding name, particularly one you are fond of.  One of our grandchildren is autistic, so he gets extra - St. Dymphna, St. Philomena, St. Zechariah, St. Katharine Drexel . . . The patron saint of children is Saint Nicholas.

Then I end with:
All Holy men and women, pray for us
All the Angels and Saints, pray for us
Mary, Queen of All Saints, pray for us

You can add all sorts of others of your favorites, especially newly beatified/canonized saints and John Paul II because we all know he’ll be named a saint soon.  Ending with the Guardian Angel prayer is nice.

Believe it or not this takes less than 10 minutes - sometimes I use all the beads and sometimes I run out!

St. Augustine, St. Monica - -smart son, troubled mother; St. Benedict and St. Scholastica—holy brother and sister, good for large families!; St. Rose of Lima, St. Martin de Porres, St. Martin of Tours, St. Maximillian Kolbe, St. Francis of Assisi, St. Claire, Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, St. Isaac Jogues, St. Theresa of Avila, St. Therese of the Child Jesus, Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta, St. Gianna Molla, Venerable John Paul the Great, St. Elizabeth of Hungary, St. Paul, St. Dominic, St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. John Bosco, St. Jean Marie Vianney—our priests need many many prayers and protection from the devil!; St. Michael the Arcangel, St. Bernadette Soubirous, St. Thomas More, and our favorite family patron saint, St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, or Edith Stein, a convert from Judaism who was a seeker for the truth and who died at the hands of the Nazis. Shalom and peace be upon you this day! May all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace!

My hero was and is Mother Teresa. She continues to inspire me to be a better Christian: Little works count too. Don’t walk past a person in need. America’s greatest illness is loneliness: in the streets, in nursing homes, especially the the home-bound. I am, as it were, Christ’s “little pencil”, virtually a stub, but a pencil nonetheless. Deus, Caritas, Est.

We are leaving out part three of the Communion of Saints.  The Communion does consist of the Church Triumphant in heaven (the saints) and the Church Militant on earth (that’s us).  There is also the Church Suffering in purgatory—those who don’t yet deserve the Beatific Vision.

My son just did a paper on Maximilian Kolbe for his high school religion class.

Those who are interested in seeing a supercharged, modern day witness to the cross and to charity owe it to themselves to become acquainted with this holy man.

St. Maximilian Kolbe, pray for us!

I personally like padre Pio , Saint Gerard Majella and saint Charbel Maklhouf.

I have been aware Our Lady takes special care for me.  The coincidence that when my parents were baptized they chose the names Joakim and Anna has always fascinated me and made me have a special place in my heart for the Mother of Christ. That after bearing 8 boys I landed on this earth as their only daughter - whom they had longed for - and the last born, must have played a part in their deciding me to have me baptized Mary.  So,I have a very special Patron, a twinkling Angel in heaven in the person of my first-born boy, Bernard who died aged 3 months.  These two have been there for me and my entire family.  And now that I am 72 years and a widow, I have my late husband Celestino and my son James - along with my late parents - interceding for us all.  Eternal Rest Grant unto them, Oh Lord, and may Your Perpetual Light shine upon them.  May they rest in peace. Amen

my personal saint is Bernadette.  i like that she was faithful to answer the call, and loyal, and persistent in that she would fulfill her promise.

I like St. Joseph ,What a courageous man, to willingly and obediently take on such a burdon. And Saints Anne & Joacim. These devout Hebrews, how they must have been bewildered by their grandson and his new ideas and life style. ( Just like us in so many ways)

Oh, Mary Scott, I am sure these two - who no doubt were dotty grandparents like most of us - are now the happiest Saints in Heaven and in all Creation!!!!  What a precious Grandson they gave mankind.  We actually should give them the honoured Titles of Patrons of all Grandparents, don’t you think?

St. Maximilian Kolbe - His intercession has impacted my life in tangible ways. As a courageous Polish priest, he accomplished so much in his short time as part of the Church militant. What a great model for us all, and what a great saint to have praying for us. For more defenders of life, as the Patron Saint of the Pro-Life Movement, St. Maximilian Kolbe, pray for us!

After attending 8 years of catholic grade school and 4 years at a very well know Catholic High school on the South side of Chicago I hate to tell all of you that I am no longer catholic.  I am very deeply Christian and more committed to my faith than at any time i my life. 

And all of you would have called me a “good catholic” too

i have to tell you that during a very depressed point on my life I did something very strange to most catholics.  I opened the Bible and read it and prayed the Lord to help me understand it and to get me over my depression.

I cannot begin to tell you how scripture was opened up for me. 

” seek and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened to you” 
  ABSOLUTLEY TRUE.  I’m really not in the business of knocking catholics.

We all believe in the same one true Savior our LOrd Jesus Christ. 

if you think about the following verse.

“I am the way, the truth and the life, no man comes to the father except through me”  I believe you’ll direct your prayers to the only one that lives to make intercession on our behalf. 

Al these saints, I believe they are good examples and I believe they’re all with the Lord.  I also believe that they would now tell you the same thing .

Please take no offense at this

YOurs in Christ

Ken Kaz

To Ken Kaz
Surprise. Most of the Catholics I know READ their Bible too, but I truly felt very saddened by your words because they show a surprising lack of understanding about the Catholic faith.  I am praying to you, for you that when the time is right, that the Lord will guide you to understand all that He has to reveal.

I too had crisis of faith in my college years, but I am still a very devout avid cradle Catholic.  I find so much richness not only with scripture reading/meditation, but in reading what our saints have to say about their own scripture readings, prayer lives, church traditions, etc.  I take so much comfort in drawing upon different saints for various occassions.

I am named after St. Theresa the Little Flower and I’ve grown to love her, but I also love reading St. Teresa of Avila, St. Theresa Benedicta , St. Therese of Courderc and Mother Teresa.  I love St. Maximilian Kolbe, St. John of the Cross, St. Monica, St. Augustine, St. Mary Margaret Alcoque, St. Padre Pio and so many others.  I love the communion of saints because I realize I belong to one great big Holy Family of God.

Dear Ken, using the logic that the Bible is the only means by which we can communicate with or get to know Jesus Our Savior, then, you have to exclude all of the men and women, besides Jesus, who make up the Bible accounts in O.T. and N.T., you would have to put Him in a vacuum, disconnect Him from the human family.  Jesus is Our God, Savior and Brother in the spiritual life.  The family of God, the Communion of Saints, in heaven, on earth and in purgatory, are still connected in the Person of Jesus in the Holy Spirit. We can, through Him, with Him, in Him, communicate His Love through prayer. We cannot see the Holy Spirit, but He works through time and space, bringing our earthly existence into the supernatural mysteries of eternity. The Saints in Heaven can pray for us, we can pray for the souls in purgatory and they for us. There is no separation in the Sacred Heart of Jesus.  As children in the family of God, He is Our Father, Jesus is Our Brother, Mary is Our Mother. How awesome! May Jesus bless you and Mary Our Mother guide you. everywhere

My Dear Theresa and Patricia
first of all thank you for not taking offense with my comments and for the explainations you provided. 

Theresa.  I too find a lot of inspiration in the lives of the saints that went on before us.  WHen I look at the level of faith and selflessness that they all displayed it causes me to re-evaluate my own life.  I can get caught up in work and material possesions rather than living by faith. Unlike Patricia, you do not insist on praying to saints or recogizing souls in purgatory. 

I truly believe that I came to know the Lord on Good Friday in 5th grade. Sister Melvina( Sisters of ST. Casimir)spent a good deal of time discussing the roles of all the individuals involved with The Crucifixtion of our Lord.  I can clearly remember how much I related to the repenitant thief and how i understood that Jesus was taking my place. 
I just needed to say that my relationship with God and with everyone else has grown exponentially since I have concentrated on the Bible and keeping it in perspective.
Patricia, I am not an expert by any stretch, but I can’t find anywhere in scripture where God annoints anyone else (including Mary the mother of Jesus)as intercessor.  Neither can I find anywhere where Christians are instucted to pray for the dead. 

I truly believe that the Bible is the inerrant revealed Word of God, which gives it a prominent position in the heirachy of communication with God. Prayer would be next. Jesus is surely not in a vacuum in the Bible.  It his his interaction with all those other men and women in the bible, and thier response to him, is how he is connected to the Human Family.

Further Jesus told us that he would not leave us alone in this world, but would send the HOly SPirit as Comforter and Counselor to work in the lives of all believers.  But Jesus also said that this HOly SPirit would speak of HIM. 

Jesus is Our God, Savior and Brother in the spiritual life. 100% agreement on that one Patricia. I am pleased that you have taken this opportunity to express your points.  Again, I am not criticizing the Catholic Church.  ASK my MOM.  I have to tell you that I am much closer to my Lord through the study of his word.

I am priveledged to lead a Men’s Bible study each week.  I have a small group of 15 out of the total 450 men that meet each week. 6 of the men in my group are current practicing catholics.  We have over 29 denominations represented.  All for one purpose.  Intense study of the scripture (this year the entire book of Isaiah in 34 weeks.) and genuine fellowship and prayer. All ages, Godly upright men and broken men looking for hope.  WE all meet in one place each week in the name of Jesus and all are blessed.

I’m sure we can go on and on.  I suggest to all my close Catholic friends who are looking for further understanding of GOd’s word to begin at the Gospel of Luke.  Saint Luke as you would call him was actually a physician and chronicled the life of Jesus in acute historical and Physical detail.  After a very funny story of how God made the father of John the Baptist,a Jewish High Priest,deaf and dumb, we are introduced to Elizibeth and then Mary the mother of God.  The first half of the “Hail Mary” is actually in this scripture.  Mary’s immediate and beautiful response ““her Magnificato” is next.

Makes you want to go and read it, right?

talk to you soon
I love you both in the name of Jesus

Ken Kaz

Dear Ken, if I may ask a question, what are your thoughts on the account of Jesus healing the ten lepers and why he sent them to the priest, when He could have instantly healed them on the spot?  Why did Jesus use the priest as an instrument in their healing? Isn’t that taking away from Himself as our Healer?  Why did they need the intercession of the priest when they had Jesus Himself right there?  If you will indulge me one more question, when a loved one dies, would you pray for their soul?  I will do my homework to bring the teaching of the Catholic Church to your questions.  I too am not an expert, but I thank God as a catholic I have over 2000 yrs. of holy wisdom in Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition to rely on and teachers to help me fully understand the Gospel message. God bless your bible study and all involved.

Patricia thank you again for your thoughts comments and prayers.  I am going tp provide my comments in the hope that discussion increases faith for all involved.  I am very serious about not suggesting anything that might be construed as demeaning.  We are all brothers and siters in Christ.

what are your thoughts on the account of Jesus healing the ten lepers and why he sent them to the priest, when He could have instantly healed them on the spot?  My thought would be that Jesus was trying to achieve two/three goals with one miracle.

1.  To see if the lepers who were looking for forgiveness and healing would be obedient to him
1a.  Even though the response may not be immediate, God still hears our prayers
2.  To Make sure that the Chief priests witnessed and received testimony of yet another of his miracles.  I can’t see how they contributed to the healing at all.  That might have taken some measure of honest “belief” on their part. They refused to believe that jesus had any authority at all

3 and finally to see how many would come back and give him the thanks and ‘praise he deserved “TO GOD BE the GLORY.. How often to we remember to thank God for prayers heard and answred.
I wish I could have been in the temple on the sabbath day when Jesus told the cripple that “his sins were forgiven ” and to “rise pick up his bed and walk”  ON the Sabbath no less.  ANd then looked the chief priests in the eye and boldly informed them that he could well have told the cripple that he was healed, but that he wanted them all to know that he had been give authority to forgive sins and decided that it was appropriate on the sabbath.

Patricia. I sincerely regret having to give you the answere to the next question.
Why did they need the intercession of the priest when they had Jesus Himself right there?  THey didn’t and neither do we. Hebrews 4:14-16 about Jesus our great high priest.
    ” For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the felings of our infirmites…Let us threfore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” When Jesus died, his last word’s were “It is FInished” which spoke of the end of the sacrificial duties and the necessity of any priestsas intercessors on our behalf.  That is why the curtain in the temple was torn in half.  From the top down. 

Patricia I too will get the specific answere for yo on this.  but the scripture goes like this.  ” It is appointed unto man to live and die and then face the judgement.  I believe that an individual’s fate is sealed throughout his lifetime when thay have had ample opportunity to repent an accept the lord as Savior.

There is nothing more grievious than to be unsure of any loved one’s salvation.  I really become upset when people attempt to “decide” whether or not anyone is in heaven or not.  I know several loving individuals who were far from church members but yet lived there lives in honesty and humility in the image of Christ.  At that point I step aside and say “it’s not my call”  ANd i thank God agian for his grace and mercy.

Thank you again.. I pray others are reading this dicussion and are serching there own souls and growing in faith in Jesus.  And Patricia and Theresa, please know that i and 50 other men will include you in our prayers on saturday morning at about 7:00AM Central time (in case you want to join with us wherever your at) and at 7:00PM monday night too

  Ken KAz

I wonder what the Saints in heaven do before they get a prayer request and how they snap into action when they do?

I imagine that they are delighted to hear from us, including the rarely invoked ones. 

God is kind to let us have friendships now with these living souls.

Our time with them now will be a foundation for conversation if we make it up there after we depart here.

Joel P.

Hi Ken.  I am grateful for the intercessory prayers of the men’s bible study group on my behalf.  Our world is in desperate need of men praying and seeking the Lord’s will, for men are supposed to be the leaders of their families and society in godly ways.  I do wonder, though, why you would discount the intercessory prayers of men and women who have fought the good fight, run the race and attained the prize, life on high with Christ Jesus. It is our holy catholic faith that teaches us their prayers are very effacacious before the throne of God united to Him in heaven.  That makes such good sense and the Church has invoked the saints in glory from the beginning days of the Church.  On the holy sould in purgatory, in the Book of Maccabees.(OT) Judas Maccabees instructs, “it is a holy and wholesome thought to prayer for the dead.”  This, also, was the practice of christians in the earliest days of the Church and has continued down through the ages.  Unfortunately, Martin Luther, removed the Book of Maccabees from the Bible, one of seven books he removed, that were included since the late 3rd century.  Looking forward to your reply.

I ask St. Francesco Di Paolo (Italy) to pray for me and my family.  He founded the order of the Minims.  The name refers to their humility as the “least of all religious” and is derived from a passage in the Vulgate, specifically Matthew 25:40.  He is the patron saint of Calabria, my ancestral home.  Charitas.  Pray for us San Francesco

Excommunication:391,512
United States Catholic Catechism for Adults

DANIEL 12:1-13
The New American bible

I sometimes wonder if people really believe in the Communion of Saints.
Being a convert I always taught my children the meaning of the Creed as in “we believe”... they are never alone and there is always a witness to wrong doing and God deals with it.
But with all the denials of guilt with the issues surrounding us and the covering up including bishops; it leaves one speechless and always on the defensive.
To turn the other cheek and walk away is wrong and sets a bad example.

Reading various comments on this Post, I am surprised we have some Catholics who believe the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church bases its Teachings and Faith solely on the Bible ONLY.  They are wrong. Any cradle Catholic will tell you that we were taught, we know, believe and agree with the Church’s teaching that our Faith is based on the Scriptures, The Tradition and the Magisterium.  These are the three Pillars upon which the Catholic Church stands.  We are also taught, and believe firmly that the Church Faithful has three active and supportive elements which complement one another:  The Church Militant, The Church Suffering and the Church Triumphant. Catholics who have converted into Catholicism as adults may find this confusing because the Protestant Churches rely solely on the Bible.  We do not. The incessant challenge a Catholic is hit with in any discussion about our Faith by non-Catholics is - “where is it written in the Bible???”  In the Tradition of the Church, one finds the writings of the Church Fathers, the Doctors of the Church and the various writings and teachings on the Catholic Faith and Doctrine which was in the Church before the Bible was complied. People seem to forget the Bible was compiled by the Catholic Church. Very sad, indeed. Another misconception is the belief by non-Catholics that cradle Catholics are ignorant about the Bible.  We are certainly not ignorant of the Bible. The Weekly and Sunday Holy Mass Readings during for the Church’s Liturgical Years, are all derived from the Bible. All the Popes’ writings, Encyclicals and teaching Documents are based on the Bible, the Church’s Tradition and the Magisterium.  We read the Bible just like other non-Catholic Christians, but our Faith is further enriched and complemented by the Tradition, the teachings of the Magisterium and the Writings of the Church Fathers, Doctors of the Church and the Saints. On the question of the intercession by the Saints, this has been recognized in the Church from its infancy when martrydom and persecution of the early Christians and the entire Church gave birth to a whole Army of Saints. These Holy Members of the Church Triumphant, led by the Mother of Christ, the Apostles, the Grandparents of Jesus, the Patriachs of the Old Testament and all the other canonized and uncanonized Saints whose lives have been recorded, are powerful intercessors for the Church Militant and the Church Suffering.  The Doctrine of seeking their intercession is a tenent of the Catholic Faith.  On our part,we the Church Militant, are called upon to pray for one another, the Universal Church, its Leaders from the Pope to the Religious and the Lay Faithful and in a special way, to the Church Suffering - the holy souls in Purgatory - because these souls are no longer able to help themselves.  Hence the Tradition of the Month of November which Mother Church set aside to pray for the holy souls in Purgatory.  In short, Lynne and others, we firmly believe in the Communion of Saints and it is included in the Creed and the prayer which we call “The Act of Faith”. We also have special Prayers for the Souls in Purgatory of each day of the week. To Joel Peddle, if you want to know how the Saints in Heaven pray for us, read the Diary of St. Faustina - “Divine Mercy in My Soul” or her Biography, to understand how the Saints in Heaven pray continuously for the Church Militant and, indeed the whole mankind and the Souls in Purgatory. Their intercession on our behalf is not that we pray to them as we pray to God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit but we ask them to pray and intercede for us in our various needs. No doubt you will find in the Bible the exhortation that we must pray for one another and the prayers of those who have already attained Eternal Life for us are most efficacious.

Thank you Mary42 for your sharing the Good News with everyone, our Holy Catholic Faith, centered on Holy Scripture and most especially on the Real Presence of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist.  We are so blessed with so many treasures of the Kingdom of God.  Truly, Jesus gave to us the Communion of Saints, to build up His Kingdom in His Love. Even a lowly computer becomes an instrument of His Truth when we seek Him in the needs of our brothers and sisters.  I hope Ken is still on board and will be blessed with the treasures you have so generously shared with him. May His Sacred Heart be adored and loved.

Sorry Lynne, but I feel compelled to respond to the last paragraph of your Post on 1st December where you are still harping on the Priests’ unfortunate falls which happened 40 and 50 years ago as if they are the only sinners in the Catholic Church.  I herebelow copy the comments I posted elsewhere to show you that all this incessant crucifixion of the Catholic Church has a hidden Agenda and not what the shrill secular media and the Catholic-haters would want us to believe is an honest exposure of clergy sins in the Church. And I end by saying that this persecution MUST NOW COME TO AN END. THE HOLY SPIRIT IS THE CAPTAIN OF ST. PETER’S SHIP AND THE UNWORTHY PERVERTS WITHIN WILL BE PRUNED OUT OF THE CHURCH BY OUR HEAVENLY FATHER,
“I did state earlier that we MUST STOP the incessant attack on Catholic Priests’ scandals on the wrong Post but for the sake of those who have refused to accept the fact that the REAL SEX ABUSE OF CHILDREN LIES ELSEWHERE, I copy herebelow to-day’s Article on the problem in Public Schools and homes which the shrill secular media and Catholic-haters always swept under the carpet, concentrating on dragging the Catholic Church and its Priests though the mud for hidden Agendas.  So, after this, I hope to hear the last of castigating my Church and demoralizing the entire Priesthood for the sins of a very minute minority who have fall into Satan’s attacks over 50 years ago and need our prayers from now onwards. Let all note that there has not been any new cases of Priests’ abuse for the last 30 years because the Catholic Church tightened the vetting process to lock our the sexual perverts and phaedophilies from joining our Seminaries!!!!!!

Child Sex Abuse in Public Schools Dwarfs Problem in Catholic Institutions
November 29, 2010 12:46 pm SBrinkmann Breaking News

By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist

An editorial page editor for Colorado’s Gazette says the media’s focus on sex abuse within the Catholic Church has left little space for reporting about institutions where the problem is far worse - such as public schools.

In an editorial appearing in today’s Gazette, Wayne Laugesen says that according to statistics, more children have been sexually abused this year in public schools in Colorado than have been abused in Catholic institutions in all 50 states combined.

For instance, data from the Rape and Incest National Network shows that one in 14 girls in grades five to eight, and one in nine high school girls, are sexually abused in public schools every year. Boys are molested at about half the rate of girls.

However, in spite of these alarming numbers, most cases of school employees having sex with children go unreported, even though sexual misconduct is the largest single cause of teacher discipline by the Colorado Department of Education, Laugesen explains.

“Sherryll Kraizer, executive director of the Denver-based Safe Child Program and a professional witness in sex abuse trials, has informed The Gazette about a phenomenon in public schools known as ‘passing the trash’ — a practice in which known abusers are quietly passed along to other schools with glowing referrals or silence,” he reports.

Kraizer said principals and school teachers mostly ignore laws that require them to report sexual abuse of students, even though any serious examination of evidence shows that the sex abuse scandal in public schools dwarfs anything that ever occurred in Catholic institutions, Laugesen says.

“Today, based on a study by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice and the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University, the number of reported sexual abuse cases in Catholic institutions nationwide is fewer than 10. That means more children have been sexually abused this year in public schools on the Front Range of Colorado than have been abused in Catholic institutions in all 50 states combined.”

However, the public is being left in the dark about the true scope of the crisis of child sexual abuse in the U.S. by a media that seems fixated on only those cases that involve the Catholic Church while giving every other institution a pass.

For instance, when the Hare Krishnas in California settled the largest child sex abuse lawsuit in history in 2001, it generated 44 stories in California over a six-month period. During the same period, Californians were treated to 17,310 stories about sex abuse in California Catholic institutions. That’s 39,341 percent more coverage than was generated by the most serious sex abuse case in history, Laugesen reports.

In another example, two simultaneous lawsuits in Dallas — one against the Episcopal diocese and one against the Catholic Diocese — resulted in 1,232 percent more coverage of the Catholic lawsuit.

“A surplus of alarming evidence and data . . . pointing to a sex abuse crisis in public schools has been met with a shortage of comprehensive coverage in the press and public outrage that underwhelms,” Laugesen writes. “It’s almost as if nobody cares.”

He goes on to applaud the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops for establishing a child protection agency in Washington and enforcing strict guidelines in every diocese in the country for protecting children that includes screening and fingerprinting of all adults who work with children in church institutions.

“Today, sexual abuse of children is clearly out of control in public schools and is even more prevalent in homes. Society needs to stop acting as if it’s a problem caused by priests and look to the Catholic Church in the United States for answers. Due in part to public outrage regarding its mistakes and misdeeds of the past, the church appears to have emerged as the one organization with a formula for nearly eradicating sexual threats to children.”

A civilized society should be outraged by any incident of an adult sexually exploiting a child, he says, and clergy should be held to the highest standard - but so should teachers.”

© All Rights Reserved, Living His Life Abundantly®/Women of Grace®  http://www.womenofgrace.com
Posted by Patricia Cornell on Wednesday, Dec 1, 2010 8:57 AM (EDT):”

Thank you, Patricia for your comments on my post.  I feel humbled by your encouraging words. And I thank God that He decreed that I be born in a staunch Catholic Family, brought up and educated by the Catholic Nuns. Again, after working in the Corporate world for 35 years, raising a family with my exceptionally loving husband, He sent me to work for the remaining 10 years of my working life in a Catholic University.  In short, the Catholic Faith is my Life.  And now, I serve Him as a Member of the Eucharistic Apostles of the Divine Mercy as we witness and proclaim His Mercy to the world through this Devotion which He renewed through St. Faustina way back in 1930’s and which culminated in the Holy Father fulfilling His Desire and Command and instituting the 1st Sunday After Easter as the “Divine Mercy Sunday”. Patricia, you are absolutely right.  The Apex of our Catholic Faith is the Sacrament of the Eucharist.  Here, Jesus Christ Himself comes to us physically in this Holy Mystery in His Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity upon Consecration during the Holy Mass. And the outpouring of His blessings and Graces are poured onto us when we receive Him during Communion.  Every Catholic awaits this momentous union with pulsating heart and this is where we obtain maximum Graces which strengthen and intensify the Sanctifying Grace in our souls - the mandatory state which makes a soul worthy to enter Eternal Life. The other Grace-filled moment is when - depending of one’s commitments in life - one spends time with Jesus Christ during the Holy Hour Adoration before the Blessed Sacrament, talking to Him, listening to His advice and enveloped in His Loving Presence.  How I wish Ken was still a Catholic!!!  The richness of our Catholic Faith is immense and awesome - what with the seven Sacraments all pouring Graces and the strength to overcome our imperfect human nature and the Evil One’s temptations.  After initiation in the Body of Christ through Baptism and Confirmation, the healing, sustaining and strengthening Sacraments of Reconciliation and the Holy Eucharist accompany us throughout our lives in our Spiritual journey to Eternal Life. I would recommend to Ken to take time and study the Catechism of the Catholic Church.  He will come understand fully just how the Catholic Church - the true Mystical Body of Christ - made up of all the Faithful, joined together with His Vicar on earth, the Holy Father, in communion with the College of Cardinals, Archbishops, Bishops, Priests and the Religious all proclaiming His Teachings and Doctrine of Love and Mercy and living His Truth under the direction of the Holy Spirit.  It is in the Sacrament of the Eucharist that the words of Jesus are fulfilled: “Behold, I shall be with you until the End of Time”.  Jesus is physically Present in all the Tabernacles and Adoration Chapels of the Catholic Churches throughout the World and from there He showers His blessings and Mercy upon mankind for whom He died so that we might gain salvation through Him, with Him and in Him. Holy Mary Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen

Praise God for the Light of His Truth and the Communion of Saints.  Thank you Mary42 for this wonderful and informative post defending the holy priesthood.  It says it all. God bless you.

Thank you, dear Mary42, what a blessing to read your beautiful post. Our Good God has given to us the gifts to build up His Kingdom. Amen,The Eucharistic Heart of Jesus is His promise, “Behold, I shall be with you until the End of Time”.  His Mercy endures forever!  I received a copy of “The Divine Mercy Chaplet for the Sick and the Dying”.
Jesus comes to them as their Merciful Savior when the Chaplet is prayed for them.  His Unfathomable Mercy! Divine Mercy, gushing forth from the bosom of the Father, I trust in You.  Divine Mercy, unfathomed by any intellect, human or angelic, I trust in You. Divine Mercy, descending to earth in the person of the Incarnate Word, I trust in You. Divine Mercy, unfathomed in the institution of the Sacred Host, I trust in You. Isn’t this Litany so beautiful!  Praise God for St. Maria Faustina of the Most Blessed Sacrament.  Ken, our brother in Christ, have a blessed Advent.
May The Sweet Mother of God show us Her Divine Son.

Once again, Patricia, thank you for appreciating my humble Posts in defence of our Catholic Faith and our Shepherds, Bishops and Priests in particular - the vessels through whom Jesus comes to us personally and physically to grants us His healing, Graces and blessings on our Spiritual Journey Home. I am calling upon all faithful Catholics to rise up now as one, and defend our Holy Mother Church and our Shepherds from these malicious attacks by the powers of darkness.  No doubt our Church Triumphant - the Saints in Heaven - are fighting with us as we call upon them to join us during our prayers. I am also happy to hear you have obtained some materials about the Eucharistic Divine Mercy Devotion. May I recommend that you try to obtain a copy of the Diary of St. Maria Faustina “Divine Mercy in my Soul” her Biography and His Image of Divine Mercy with the Signature “Jesus I Trust In You”. These will give you the full and awesome and saving revelations of Mercy Jesus communicated to this lowly and humble young Nun. Yes, the excerpts from the Divine Mercy Litany you quote are precious. Please begin to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet at 3.00 O’Clock - The Hour of Great Mercy - when Jesus died on the Cross. These are His Promises for those who pray the Chaplet at this hour for sinners and the dying in the world and for their own needs: “In this hour you can obtain everything for yourself and for others for the asking; it was the hour of grace for the whole world - Mercy triumphed over Justice”. I would also recommend that you obtain the Divine Mercy Novena which Jesus Christ dictated to St. Faustina to be prayed, beginning on the Good Friday in preparation for the celebration of the “Divine Mercy Sunday”. Our Lord promised those who would pray this Novena, go to Confession within that period, attend Mass on the Divine Mercy Sunday and receive Him in the Holy Communion, He would bestow a Plenary Indulgence in that, all their sins and punishment thereof, would be forgiven and their souls would be restored to the pure, holy state they were in at Baptism!!!! This Devotion has been given to mankind by Jesus Christ Himself especially for these difficult and dangerous times in the history of mankind and He has opened the floodgates of His Divine Mercy to all mankind. And as He had promised and commanded, the Divine Mercy Sunday was formally instituted for the Universal Catholic Church by the Holy Father in Year 2000 when St. Faustina was also canonized as the First Saint of this Millennium. This is one Saint whom Jesus specifically promised that, her Intercessory Prayers as His Secretary of Divine Mercy for the salvation of souls, would begin in earnest, after her death - certainly an emphatic and equivocal affirmation regarding the Catholic Doctrine of the Communion of Saints.  Please get more information about this Holy Devotion on Google - “Divine Mercy Devotion”.  May God bless you and all people of goodwill on this Website.

Mary42, today as we celebrate the First Friday of the month, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, I pray that anyone who reads these posts, will be inspired to learn more about the devotion to The Sacred Heart of Jesus as given to St. Margaret Mary in France and to the Divine Merciful Heart of Jesus.  It is all about Jesus and His Adorable Heart so full of Love and Mercy for us, poor sinners.  Can anyone have an objection to this devotion if you want to love and serve Jesus?  His Divine Mercy comes to us because we have neglected and forgotten Him in so many ways.  His Divine Mercy is our last hope in this troubled, sad and dangerous world today. Isn’t that why He founded and built up His Church, the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church?  Our home away from home, the Mother that gives birth to us(Baptism), nourishes us,(Holy Eucharist), reconciles and cleanses us (Confession), strengthens & confirms us (Confirmation), heals us (Annointing of the Sick) teaches us (Magesterium), sends us to serve (Holy Orders & Holy Matrimony), and give her children the Love Letter from the Hand of God, to instruct us and to be a Lamp Unto Our Feet, to show us from where we have come and to where we are going. Further thoughts please if you have time.

Thank you, Patricia.  Here in Nairobi, Kenya - East Africa, the Devotion of the Sacred Head of Jesus is thriving. It is one of the strongest Organization in our Holy Family Minor Basilica, the Seat of the Head of the Catholic Church in Kenya, His Eminence John Cardinal Njue.  Thankfully, this Devotion has never died in our Catholic Church in Kenya since I was a toddler, 70 years ago!!!!!  As a Member of the Eucharistic Apostle of the Divine Mercy, the Divine Mercy Image He gave us through St. Maria Faustina, shows us the Ocean of Mercy in the form of His Blood and Water which gushed forth when His Heart was pierced with a lance on the Cross, streaming as the Ocean of Mercy and enveloping the whole world. You may be pleased to know that, to remind myself of the Adoration of the Sacred Heart of Jesus when I was young, I privately adore Him every Friday during the 3.00 O’Clock Holy Hour of Mercy with the Stations of the Cross followed by the Divine Mercy Chaplet at our Divine Mercy Spiritual Centre. I then proceed to the neighbourhood Parish Adoration Chapel for the ordinary Holy Hour Adoration before closing my day with the Holy Mass and Communion. And that is my daily routine for Mondays to Thursdays and Saturdays.  My Sundays are also preceded by the Holy Hour Adoration in the Adoration Chapel at the Basilica - my Parish - before the Holy Mass. Please join me in praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet at 3.00 O’Clock.

Mary42, my friend in the Merciful Heart of Jesus, I feel a loss for words right now and amazed at how we connect from miles away.  Yes, I will join you in praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet at 3:00 o’clock.  I am going to St. Rita’s Church here in Bellmawr, N.J. to spend time with Our Eucharistic Lord. I will remember you and your intentions, please remember mine.  Also, Lucas Ogbonna, a seminarian in Africa (where?) I will get back to you. He has a cancerous finger and needs treatment that is available in other countries. He needs a place to stay too.  Please pray for him.  O Blood and Water which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus, I trust in you.

Hi Mary42; I have just caught up wih my mail.
I can give you a site to look up too, one will do.. Broken Rites; many of these cases have been covered up by relevant Bishops, Religious Superiors, Judical Vicars and Vicar Generals and not that long ago either.
There are still cases coming up before the Courts and those who the church has paid out and confidentialities have been signed will never make the news obviously.
I’m afraid you don’t know what your talking about Mary.
Oh and by the way did you take the time to read the Ryan Report on the disgraceful abuse of our beautiful innocent Irish children, of course you didn’t.
You won’t receive any laurels from our Lord with your mentality he expects more from us as Catholics; the Light to the world.
He said “Suffer the little children to come unto to Me” yes but not descrated at the hands of our clergy.
There has been no fear of God here, or belief in the Communion of Saints and it would be blasphemous to consider otherwise.

My Dear Sister in Christ, Patricia.  It is not an accident that we met on this site.  That is how the Holy Spirit works. Praise be Jesus Christ.  It is such a joy to know how, just like me, you are devoted to our Lord through His Merciful Pierced Heart. We shall continue to pray for each other every day especially during the Holy Hour Adoration where Jesus invites us for a person-to-person conversation!!!! Do you love that Hour like I do? It sure prepares one on how to be in the proper, prayerful Spiritual Disposition during the Holy Mass as the heartbeats quicken as the moment to receive Him and be united with Him in His Body, Blood Soul and Divinity nears.  I know you experience the same Love from His Heart enveloping you as I do during those very holy moments. Yes, Patricia , I will remember, and pray for Lucas Ogbonna and Jesus will heal him.  Let us also ask the intercession of my Personal Patron, the Blessed Virgin Mary to ask her Son to Heal Lucas. God bless you, Patricia

Now to you,Lynne Newington, I have no wish to exchange any further conversations with you on this or any other subject on the Net. You sound obsessed with mercilessly condemning to Hell the very few unfortunate Priests who succumbed to the Evil One’s temptations and fell. But I hope you can - though I doubt you have got it in you - spare a merciful thought for them because of the misery and mental torture they live with, knowing that they failed in keeping the one single most solemn promise they made to God on Ordination to offer their virginity and remain celibate - an offer that Sublime Purity as a Holy Gift to Him Who is the Giver of Life. No doubt most of them failed because of the pre-disposition of their disordered and perverted sexual orientations. But you are so cruel and unforgiving it is quite frightening from one who professes to be a Catholic.  The final thing I humbly wish to tell you, Lynne - since I have no wish to respond to you gain - is that I am a 72-year old cradle Catholic, born of very staunch Catholic parents, brought up from infancy by the Catholic Church, educated by Catholic Nuns and Priests and ended my 46-years’ working career with a 10-year tenure among them at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa.  Purely and solely by the Grace of God, I understand my Catholic Faith, very, very well and I also understand and highly respect those God has chosen as His Anointed and Consecrated “Workers in His Vineyard”. I scrupulously obey the exhortations of the Blessed Virgin Mary who called upon all Christ’s Faithful to pray for her Son’s Priests unceasingly and never, ever scandalize them because when we scandalize them, we hurt Jesus Christ Himself.  And we all know why she gave us that very firm and Faith-filled Advice.  It is because Christ’s Priests are, and remain mortal enemies of the Evil One who torments them throughout their lives and attacks them viciously because it is through them that Her Son comes to us through the Seven Sacraments and especially in the two Healing and Nourishing Sacraments of Reconciliation and the Eucharist. He comes to us during the Holy Mass celebrated by the Priest and remains with us in the Real Presence in all the Tabernacles and Adoration Chapels throughout the world in all Catholic Parishes. He is worshiped and glorified by the Church Militant, the Church Suffering and the Church Triumphant along with His Holy and Immaculate Mother, all the Hosts of Heaven and all the Angelic Powers, all the Cherubims and the Seraphims in unending Song of Praise Praise to Him with the Father and the Holy Spirit, The One Holy Almighty God for Eternity.

Amen!  As Padre Pio said, “It would be easier for the world to exist without the sun than to exist without the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass’. No priests, no Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.  It is so true that Satan wants to take out as many of our beloved priests as he can because they are the ministers of His Mercy to us.  More souls for him without the Sacraments of Confession and the Most Holy Eucharist. That is why they are the object of his vehement, relentless and merciless pursuits and accusations.  Mary42, everything you said is right on.  Too many catholics are, aware or unaware, acting just as Satan would have it and jumping on the bandwagon of accusations, some of which are calumny.  There are many priests and bishops suffering unjustly because of this. We must, as members of the Mystical Body of Christ, not join or contribute to the evil spirit of the age, rather, uphold one another, especially the weak, in charity and prayer. Pray for the priests who have fallen into sexual sins, most in need of God’s Mercy, remembering there but for the grace of God go I. Who of us doesn’t need His Mercy?  Our Lady of the Most Precious Blood, watch over the living chalices of the Blood of Jesus.

God Bless you Mary42, and keep your head in the sand and your eyes on your grandchildren.

Lynne, read again the information Mary42 has posted to show where the REAL SEX ABUSE OF CHILDREN takes place, virtually unreported, and if you still hold the same opinions, well, it would seem that you need to examine your conscience for prejudice and rash judgment against the holy priesthood. Especially in light of the very small number of priests who have been guilty of sexual misconduct, to persist in condemnation would be a spiritual problem.  Thank God we can repent with the Sacrament of Penance and the help of a Minister of God’s Mercy, the priest.

Paricia, I understand where your coming from but we are not referring to joe blogs of the street or family members; we are referring to mother’s sons who’s vocations were faithfully fostered, with problems not addresed by their Bishops and Superiors, heinous acts, and moved around exposing more innocent children, to protect the priesthood and the image of the church.
How many although initially protesting their innocence, are relieved when found guilty and set free as only the truth can do.
Do gooders in this area only add to their despair and adding further anquish to those who have suffered at their hands.
More clergy are now breaking ranks and speaking out for their brother’s sake and good for them, the ones with no skeletons as such in their cupboards are the only ones who can do it, not those using the Confessional as a crutch.

St. Joseph - pure and gentle, guardian of the Sacred Child.

St. Maximillian Kolbe - I purchased and read “A Man for Others: Maximilian Kolbe, Saint of Auschwitz, In the Words of Those Who Knew Him.”  The many sacrifices of his life before his arrest and internment at Auschwitz are a withness of faith and truth to those engaged in many of the arguments/presentations in comments above.  I am a Protestant drawn to the Catholic church by many things.  Chief among these are the lives of the saints, inspired and sustained by pure love and devotion to Christ.  They are a living history of the power of Christ when we allow him to fill our lives.  Christ embodied God’s love, washing the feet of his disciples and calling us to do likewise as servants of our fellow human beings…as servants all the way to the cross.  St. Maximilian Kolbe did the same, giving up his life in exchange for the life of a fellow prisoner, St. Maximillian singing praises to God during the long days of starvation that ended in his death.  Pray for us, St. Maximillian Kolbe.