A Charming Compendium of Pithy Quotations About Writing

This has nothing to do with my intention for this blog! I figured since I never write a darn thing here and I truly do want to write, I should write about ANYTHING I find interesting. I figure something is better than nothing and since nothing seems to be what I’ve been producing for the past year and a half I’ll give this idea a go!

I was at the library today, paying another fine for not returning items on time and as usual I made my way over to that dusty corner we call the “Friends of the Library” section. Housed here are books donated for sale to raise funds for the library. I rarely leave these shelves without finding a gem or two or three. Well today was no exception! I found a tiny little paperback, actually my daughter found it, called “The Writer’s Quotation Book” edited by James Charlton. As the title suggests, it contains pithy quotes from writers, editors, booksellers or commentators who are interested in writing. If you love reading and have the lofty notion that someday you’ll write, you’ll LOVE this book! Even if you don’t care for reading and have no interest in writing you will find this book amusing.

One of my favorite quotes from the book:

“Writing is easy; all you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until the drops of blood form on your forehead.” ~Gene Fowler

Hey, I’m halfway there!

And another:

“If you want to get rich from writing, write the sort of thing that’s read by persons who move their lips when they’re reading to themselves.” ~Don Marquis

Hilarious!

The Holy Father’s Prayer Intention for July 2009

General: That the Christians of the Middle East may live their faith in full freedom and be an instrument of peace and reconciliation.

Mission: That the Church may be the seed and nucleus of a humanity reconciled and reunited in God’s one and only family, thanks to the testimony of all the faithful in every country in the world.

Catholic Vote

Infanticide and a would be U.S. President!

I’m sure it’s quite noticeable that I don’t often post. I guess it’s just that I don’t usually feel that what I have to share would be all that important to the rest of the world. But today is different, very different. Today, I feel compelled to share this video, to proclaim from the rooftops (or the internet) what is happening in a particular hospital in Illinois and what is happening in our Congress.

You see, I believe we as human beings are all made in the image of God. I believe that babies, pre-born as well as those who have survived an abortion along with the rest of us, the wanted and the unwanted alike, have a right to life. God has a plan and a purpose for each and every one of us-we have no right to intervene in that process!

The video I am posting not only broke my heart and brought me to tears, it provoked a righteous anger in me, and sickened me to the point of nausea! I cannot let another day pass without doing what I can to stop the infanticide-to get the word out that this, as difficult as it is to believe, really *is* going on in this country!  

I feel it is important to know what the leaders of this great country stand for and believe in. We need to know who those politicians are who will stand for life and those who stand for death, even the death of the most vulnerable of our society-helpless babies!

 If you feel so compelled, please get the word out!

August 2008 is Officially “Pray for PZ Myers Month”

I think this is a very important post and so I am passing it along, albeit in a very primitive manner.

It is from:

St Peter Canisius Apostalate

http://catholic-teaching.org/2008/07/august-2008-is-officially-pray-for-pz-myers-month/

 

I’m sure you’ve heard about the outrageous sacrilege committed by PZ Myers. If you haven’t, Jimmy Akin sums it up here. I’m not going to comment on what he did. You don’t need me to do that.

But I will encourage you to make August a month of prayer for PZ Myers. But let’s not just pray for his conversion. Let’s be a little more daring. Let’s pray that he will become our next St. Paul — not an the Apostle to the Gentiles, but an Apostle of the Eucharist.

This isn’t as odd as it might sound. One theme running throughout the lives of the saints, espeically saints that lives worldly lives before their conversion, is this: Their greatest sins became the foundation of their holiness. St. Paul persecuted the Church, and so God used him to build up the Church. St. Augustine lived a life of fleshly pleasure, so God made him the one to clarify the Christian view of conjugal love and made him the model of acesticism. St. Ignatius of Loyola longed to be a military man, and so God made him the head of, at one time, one of the most influential religious orders in the world. And little Therese Martin was extremely selfish in the smallest things of life, so God used her to teach the world how to become extraordinarily holy by giving Jesus the smallest of our acts.

So beginning next Friday, August 1, let us all join in prayer for the conversion of PZ Myers every day, until Sunday, August 31. Let us pray Rosaries for his conversion, offer up the Mass for his conversion, engage in abstinence and fasting for his conversion, and spend time in Adoration for his conversion.

In other words, let’s treat the man as Christ would have us treat him — with profound love.

So get the word out. Email your friends and relatives. Put it on your blogs and websites. Maybe one of you could made a flier that we could put in our parishes (contact me, and I’ll make it available through the Apostolate).

How Beautiful

Since becoming a Catholic, I have truly tasted the beauty of Christ! 

An Empty Vessel

I came across a letter in a book about Mother Teresa called “Come Be My Light”. Imagine that, Mother Teresa actually wrote me a letter! I was so moved by her letter I thought others might be as well. 

A letter from Mother Teresa to me (and to you):

“Dear Co-worker of Christ,

You had said ‘Yes’ to Jesus-and He has taken you at your word.-The Word of God became Man-Poor.-Your word to God-became Jesus-Poor and so this terrible emptiness you experience. God cannot fill what is full.-He can fill only emptiness-deep poverty-and your ‘Yes’ is the beginning of being or becoming empty. It is not how much we really ‘have’ to give-but how empty we are-so that we can receive fully in our life and let Him live His life in us.

In you today-He wants to relive His complete submission to His Father-allow Him to do so. Does not matter what you feel-as long as He feels alright in you. Take away your eyes from your self and rejoice that you have nothing-that you are nothing-that you can do nothing. Give Jesus a big smile-each time your nothingness frightens you.

This is the poverty of Jesus. You and I must let Him live in us and through us in the world.

Cling to Our Lady-for she too-before she could become full of grace-full of Jesus-had to go through that darkness ‘How could this be done?-’ But the moment she said ‘Yes,’ she had need to go in haste and give Jesus to John and his family.

Keep giving Jesus to your people not by words but by your example-by your being in love with Jesus-by radiating His holiness and spreading His fragrance of love everywhere you go.

Just keep the joy of Jesus as your strength.-Be happy and at peace.-Accept whatever He gives-and give whatever He takes with a big smile-You belong to Him-tell Him I am Yours and if you cut me to pieces every single piece will be only all Yours.

Let Jesus be the victim and the priest in you.

I have started going round our houses in India-so I have beautiful time alone with Jesus in the train.

Pray for me as I do you. “

                                                                                                                  Yours in Jesus,

                                                                                                                 M. Teresa, M.C.

 

Are You a Heretic?

Are you a heretic?created with QuizFarm.com

You scored as Chalcedon compliantYou are Chalcedon compliant. Congratulations, you’re not a heretic. You believe that Jesus is truly God and truly man and like us in every respect, apart from sin. Officially approved in 451. Chalcedon compliant 67% Pelagianism 67% Nestorianism 50% Monophysitism 33% Apollanarian 33% Socinianism 0% Monarchianism 0% Donatism 0% Albigensianism 0% Modalism 0% Arianism 0% Adoptionist 0% Gnosticism 0% Docetism 0%

Half Converts

I read an article about extremes today that really struck a chord with me. The article talked about certain Catholic converts that were not fully converted. The description of the first sort, of which I really zeroed in on, are the “fundamentalists/traditionalists” who are described as being paranoid, with a conspiratorial attitude about anyone to the left of them. In practice it is characteristic of and largely confined to a large sub-group of the “conservative” or “traditionlist” Protestants. It is ultimately anti-intellectual and psychologically paranoid, with a huge fortress mentality. You could say these are the modern day Pharisees!

This quote is powerful!
I think fundamentalism is at bottom a psychological malady and a failure of the intellectual imagination; a difficulty in understanding the criteria of plausibility, credibility, and in building or espousing intellectual systems; theological or otherwise. The hyper-dogmatism often observed in the insufficiently-converted Catholic “fundamentalist/traditionalist” is a combination of both the private judgement principle and (usually) some sort of radical, profound psychological insecurity (characteristic of many anti-Catholics as well).

My inclination as far as “conversion” to a Catholic mindset is to live the life of the turtle! My goal is to finish the race, not race to the finish!

Be Brave and Confident

I thought this devotion from St. Frances De Sales very appropriate for my first entry:

“Simplify your judgement, do not reflect on yourself so much nor argue inwardly, but go on your way simply and with confidence. As far as you are concerned there is nothing in this world except God and you; all the rest should not touch you except insofar as God may command and as he commands. I beseech you not to look about you so much but to keep your gaze fixed on the relationship between God and you. You willl never see anything but goodness in God or neediness in yourself, and you will see his goodness supplying your need, and your poverty the object of his bounty and compassion. So do not look at anything at all except that – I mean of deliberate intent – and glance at all the rest only in passing.Moreover, do not analyze what other people are doing or speculate what will become of them, but look upon them simply, generously, with kindness and affection. Do not demand more perfection from them than you do from yourself and do not be surprised at the various forms that imperfection may take, for imperfection is not more imperfect for being unusual and odd. Be like the bee and gather your honey from every flower and herb alike.
“You should be like a little child who while it knows that its mother is holding its sleeve walks boldly and runs all round without being distressed at a little fall or stumble; after all, it is as yet rather unsteady on its legs. In the same way, as long as you realize that God is holding on to you by your will and resolution to serve him, go on boldly and do not be upset by your little set-backs and falls; there is no need to be put out by this provided you throw yourself into his arms from time to time and kiss him with the kiss of charity. Go on joyfully and with your heart as open and widely trustful as possible; and if you cannot always be joyful, at least be brave and confident.”