The Net

Official Twitter account for The Net, a monthly publication covering faith activities in parishes throughout the Derry Diocese.

[Eamon Martin @ArchbishopEamon]

AI cannot replace humanity, conscience, truth, Irish archbishop says - OSV News https://t.co/5AhgyK5KnV

[The Net @editorthenet15]

“I will send you the Spirit of truth, says the Lord; He will lead you to the complete truth.” (Jn 16:5-11)

[Catholic Arena @CatholicArena]

'I would tell people with a cigarette in one hand and a beer in the other, 'so guess what I'm gonna be a nun'

Sister Clare Crockett on her decision to leave acting to become a nun

She died in an earthquake 10 years ago today, aged just 33

[The Net @editorthenet15]

Life in the Spirit seminars beginning in the Parish of the Three Patrons, Derry…

[The Net @editorthenet15]

https://t.co/DxedRzdqG2

[Anna Lulis @annamlulis]

Meet Jordan Barlow.

He was born with an extra chromosome.

Most babies diagnosed with Down syndrome are aborted.

Jordan’s brother got a tattoo of a chromosome as a visible reminder: an extra chromosome does not determine someone’s humanity.

[Mr PitBull Stories @MrPitbull07]

For nine months, my wife, Brooklyn, carried our baby boy. And for nine months, we lived in a place between hope and heartbreak.

Early in the pregnancy, we learned something was terribly wrong. Around the three- to four-month mark, doctors told us our son had severe hydrocephalus — fluid building so rapidly in his brain that it pushed everything aside. They used to call it “water on the brain,” but the simplicity of the name didn’t soften the reality.

We were eventually referred to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, where some of the best fetal specialists in the country met with us. And they gave us the kind of news no parent is ever prepared to hear.

His condition was so severe, so extreme, that they stopped measuring. There was no point, they said. The MRI images were devastating. We were told there was a greater than 90% chance our son would either:

• Die shortly after birth, or
• Survive with such profound cognitive impairment that life — real life — would not be possible.

We sat through meetings no parent should ever sit through. Conversations about breathing tubes. About how long to try. About the moment we might have to make the decision to let him go.

Brooklyn moved to Cincinnati to be close to the hospital. I drove back and forth — working, caring for our daughters Sophie and Lily, and trying to keep our home standing while our world felt like it was falling apart.

Then came July 8th.

Just 15 minutes before Brooklyn’s C-section, we sat with doctors again and discussed when — not if — we might have to remove life support and let our son go to heaven.

I don’t have words for that kind of pain.

And then — Charlie Edward Schnarr entered this world crying.

A strong, loud, defiant cry.

The most beautiful sound I have ever heard.

He stayed in the NICU until yesterday… and now we are home. Together. Holding him. Loving him. Watching him breathe. Watching him live.

He has mild ventricular enlargement we will keep an eye on — but otherwise?

He is thriving. Eating. Wiggling. Yawning. Gripping our fingers. Looking around at a world that was never supposed to be his.

The doctors have no explanation. They said his brain somehow cleared the blockage on its own — something none of them have seen in a case this severe. The word that kept echoing through the NICU from seasoned nurses and top specialists was the same:

“Miracle.”

“Divine intervention.”

They said it. Not us.

We know thousands of people — family, friends, coworkers, strangers — were praying for our son. I believe with everything in me that God heard those prayers. That He placed His hand on Charlie. That He said, not this one.

I will spend the rest of my life thanking Him.

To every person who prayed for us — every text, every message, every whispered intention — thank you. You carried us when we were too exhausted to carry ourselves.

Prayer is real.
God is real.
And miracles… they still happen.

With a full and grateful heart,

—Nick

[The Net @editorthenet15]

“God did make man imperishable, He made him in the image of His own nature; it was the devil’s envy that brought death into the world, as those who are his partners will discover.
But the souls of the virtuous are in the hands of God, no torment shall ever touch them.” (Ws 2:23)

[The Net @editorthenet15]

“May we empty purgatory with our prayers”…

[Deacon Nick Donnelly @ProtecttheFaith]

Among the boxes of religious items I inherited from my Aunty Mary

I found this handwritten prayer of spiritual communion to be prayed last thing before sleep

Just as we pray a morning offering, this is a beautiful night offering

Please share

[Catholic Sat @CatholicSat]

Right now in Fatima, Portugal

[EWTN Global Catholic Network @EWTN]

“I die serene because I have not wasted even a minute of my life in things God does not like.” – Saint Carlo Acutis

Carlo, the teenager who loved Jesus in the Eucharist and used his talents to share the faith online, is remembered as a model of youthful holiness. His feast day is celebrated on October 12.

May his example remind us to live every moment for God and to keep our eyes fixed on eternity.

[Eamon Martin @ArchbishopEamon]

Let’s say “Yes” to Pope Leo’s call to pray daily Rosary for Peace in October - Vatican News https://t.co/yiMcnfbCXC

[Catholic Sat @CatholicSat]

Incredibly powerful testimony from Diane Foley in St. Peter’s Basilica today. She is the mother of US photojournalist James Foley, who has decapitated in the Syrian desert by ‘Jihadi John’, Mohammed Emwazi, a British member of the so-called Beatles of the Islamic State. Do watch

[The Net @editorthenet15]

https://t.co/5orSsgwpce

[Waterside Parish @WatersideParish]

Anyone considering a vocation to the diocesan priesthood is invited to an afternoon of prayer and discussion organised by the diocesan vocations team - tomorrow 24th August. https://t.co/Bc5bkMVXU7

[Badoney Lower @BadoneyLower]

Please join us in praying for peace in the world this Friday night in the Mother of God Oratory in Newtownstewart between 6:30 and 9:30pm