Dominican friar; Promoter General of the Rosary; sharing my own photos of sacred art & architecture daily since 2006. Views my own; RTs are not endorsements.
We thank God for the Vocations we receive for the English Dominicans, making us currently the fastest-growing religious Order in England & Scotland. This new video introduces you to our brothers, and to our mission, and our Formation Fund needs:
https://t.co/A2W6vKUb6l
If there is one Dominican saint who wants to be your friend, it is St. Pier Giorgio Frassati.
While the Church raises up saints as models because of their “heroic virtue,” Christians can learn from St. Pier Giorgio how virtue is practiced in ordinary ways, like the witness of joy or simply a smile.
St. Pier Giorgio (1901-1925) was a magnetic character, attracting a wide circle of devoted and loyal friends. Reading their letters to each other when he died suddenly at age 24 reveals just how much they were captivated by him: by his teasing, his antics, his kindness–and especially by his faith.
His faith was nurtured, in no small measure, by the witness of the Dominican Order. He made his profession as a Lay Dominican in 1922, at the young age of 21. St. Catherine of Siena–another Dominican known for cultivating a circle of devoted followers–inspired him, and he avidly read her Dialogue, a lengthy conversation between her and God the Father on Divine Providence. He also undertook a systematic study of St. Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologica. St. Pier Giorgio often carried a 15-decade Rosary, praying it loudly while walking around his hometown of Turin, Italy.
St. Pier Giorgio continued to inspire his friends after death. As Clementina Luotto wrote in a letter two days after his death, “He will give us the active love we ought to have, above all because he gave us the priceless gift of his friendship. Let us cling to the cross and love each other in his memory as if and more than if he were still with us. Perhaps that way we shall see his smile shine among us again.”
Read more here: https://t.co/si0n1p9H99
Illustrating today's Gospel at Mass:
"At that time: Sadducees came to Jesus, who say that there is no resurrection. And they asked him a question, saying, ‘Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. There were seven brothers; the first took a wife, and when he died left no offspring. And the second took her, and died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. And the seven left no offspring. Last of all the woman also died. In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife.’
Jesus said to them, ‘Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God? For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, “I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob”? He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong.’"
– Mark 12:18-27, which is today's Gospel for the 9th Wed in Ordinary Time.
https://t.co/VxaMRMxbun
📷Mosaic detail from the Rosary Basilica, Lourdes.
@VivaImmaculata@AuditeInsulae Read The Voices of Morebath by Eamon Duffy. Extraordinary diary of a priest and his country parish who lived through it all!
📢 Breaking news!!!!!
FOURTEEN Catholic bishops will be attending this year's annual March for Life on Sept 5th in London. The Church is standing firm on the issue of life - make sure you're there to stand alongside.
Illustrating today's Gospel:
At that time: They sent to Jesus some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians, to trap him in his talk. And they came and said to him, ‘Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone’s opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?’ But, knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, ‘Why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.’ And they brought one. And he said to them, ‘Whose likeness and inscription is this?’ They said to him, ‘Caesar’s.’ Jesus said to them, ‘Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.’ And they marvelled at him.
- Mark 12:13-17, which is today's Gospel at Mass (9th Tuesday in Ordinary Time.
https://t.co/jHl8TfMpOs
📷 Roman coins displayed in the British Museum.
The @BBCWorld is pathetically & quite disgracefully timid in the face of pro-Israeli lobbying. They are spectacularly failing to tell truth to power
June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
First Friday: June 5
First Saturday: June 6
About First Friday Devotions to the Sacred Heart:
https://t.co/wO6QZekgHM
About First Saturday Devotions to the Immaculate Heart:
https://t.co/6vlaH0C5Yt
The Litany of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is a traditional Catholic prayer that invokes the various attributes and mysteries of the Heart of Jesus, seeking His mercy. It is one of the approved litanies of the Church, enriched with a partial indulgence.
This litany dates back to the 17th century and was formally approved for public use by Pope Leo XIII in 1899. It consists of 33 invocations to the Sacred Heart, corresponding to the 33 years of Christ’s earthly life. It is often recited during June, the month dedicated to the Sacred Heart, or on the Feast of the Sacred Heart (this year occurring on June 12).
June is the month of the #SacredHeart.
Today, fittingly, we have this Gospel for the 9th week in Ordinary Time:
"At that time: Jesus began to speak to the chief priests and the scribes and the elders in parables. ‘A man planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a pit for the wine press and built a tower, and leased it to tenants and went into another country. When the season came, he sent a servant to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. Again he sent to them another servant, and they struck him on the head and treated him shamefully. And he sent another, and him they killed. And so with many others: some they beat, and some they killed. He had still one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, “They will respect my son.” But those tenants said to one another, “This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.” And they took him and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others. Have you not read this Scripture: “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes”?’
And they were seeking to arrest him but feared the people, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them. So they left him and went away." (Mark 12:1-12)
Christ the beloved Son, the heir, was killed by Man, the sinful tenants. He allowed this to happen so that he might pay the ransom for Man's sins by his death on the Cross, and so, indeed, give to repentant sinners a share in his heavenly inheritance, ie, eternal life. "Behold the Heart which has so loved Man, but which has received only ingratitude and neglect!" Behold him, who takes away the sins of the world. Come, in this month of the Sacred Heart (June), let us adore him and give him our love and devotion and so, by acts of penance and reparation, console Christ's most Sacred Heart.
https://t.co/Y3I5Wr99Kn
📷This altarpiece is from the museum of the Loyola monument where St Ignatius lived and was converted.
A few months ago, I was arguing with people quite regularly on X, particularly about politics.
It became a bit of a bad habit for me.
So, I went to my priest during confession and admitted that I was spending too much time and harboring too much bitterness and anger toward people that I disagreed with.
Of course, Father acknowledged and pardon me of my sins. And as penance, he told me that I should write a list of every person that I argue with and pray for them.
Now this may sound silly, but it was actually a ridiculously wonderful penance. In part because it's good to pray for people, especially people that you don't necessarily feel like praying for — but also I found myself pausing when I was about to engage with somebody negatively.
Do I really want to add another name to my list?
I've carried this practice forward, and I'm still doing it today.
🔴 Lebanese Ministry of Public Health:
3,433 civilians killed and 10,395 wounded in Israeli attacks on Lebanon since March 2nd.
Israel has killed over 1,000 people per month in a country smaller than the state of Connecticut.
What does Pope Leo really say about Artificial Intelligence in 'Magnifica Humanitas'? Why did the Pope choose AI as the subject of his first encyclical? And Is Artificial Intelligence a threat to human dignity?
Don't miss the CTS Roundtable discussion on 'Magnifica Humanitas', Pope Leo’s groundbreaking encyclical on Artificial Intelligence, technology and the future of humanity: https://t.co/Zh2I4gVcoc
@DomSrStJoseph@Counteredlogos
Visited St. Thomas More Cathedral in Arlington, Virginia today and was pleasantly surprised by this niche dedicated to Korean Catholic saint Paul Chung.
We're heading to Walsingham on our annual Dominican Pilgrimage this Trinity Sunday, and this is the Homily I'll be preaching in the National Shrine of Our Lady at noon:
https://t.co/qCNzgIUhfI
Pope Leo XIV prays a Rosary for peace at the Grotto of Lourdes in the Vatican Gardens, reminding all that “God seeks peacemakers!” And praying that Mary might “help us to answer him each day with our own “Here I am,” not only in words but in deeds.”
Faithful at Marian shrines around the world, including Fatima, Lourdes, Knock, Loreto, and others, joined Pope Leo XIV via livestream in praying the Joyful Mysteries, specifically remembering those living in areas affected by war and violence.
I am no longer a sedevacantist.
For the last month, I have been praying the rosary with the petition that Our Mother would save me from heresy, schism and error.
I beg everyone to do the same.