Quote:Again it is the Apostle St. James the Less, who speaks to us in today’s Epistle; and could any words be more appropriate? One of the motives for the institution of the Rogation Days is the obtaining from God the blessing of weather favourable to the fruits of the earth; and St. James here adduces the example of Elias, to show us that prayer can stay or bring down the rain of heaven. Let us imitate the faith of this Prophet, and beg of our heavenly Father to give and preserve what we require for our nourishment. Another object of the Rogations is the obtaining the forgiveness of sin. If we pray with fervour for our brethren who are gone astray, we shall obtain for them the graces they stand in need of. We shall perhaps never know, during this life, them whom our prayer, united with the prayer of the Church, shall have converted from the horror of their way; but the Apostle assures us, that our charity will receive a rich reward,—the mercy of God upon ourselves.

Quote:Could anything show us the all-powerfulness of Prayer more clearly than do these words of our Gospel? By thus putting them before us, holy Church shows us the importance of the Rogation Days, since it is during them that she shows us the efficacy of supplication, which triumps over the refusal of God himself. The reader, who has followed us thus far in our Work, must have observed how the passages of Holy Writ, selected by the Liturgy, form a continued series of instruction appropriate to each day. During these three days, we are labouring to appease the anger of heaven; could there be a more fitting occasion for our being told that God cannot resist persevering prayer? The Litanies we have been chanting in Process are a model of this holy obstinancy, or, as our Gospel terms it, this importunity, of Prayer. How often did we not repeat the same words! Lord, have mercy on us!—Deliver us, O Lord!—We beseech thee, hear us! The divine Paschal Lamb, who is about to be offered on our Altar, will mediate for us; a few moments hence, and he will unite and join his ever efficacious intercession with our poor prayers. With such a pledge as this, we shall leave the holy place, feeling sure that these prayers have not been made in vain. Let us, therefore, make a resolution to keep aloof no longer from the holy practices of the Church; let us always prefer to pray with her, than to pray by ourselves; she is the Spouse of Jesus, she is our common Mother,—and she always wishes us to take part with her in the prayers she offers up. Besides, is it not for us that she makes these prayers?

Quote:Gregory, a Cappadocian nobleman, surnamed the Theologian, on account of his extraordinary learning in the sacred sciences, was born at Nazianzum in Cappadocia. He, together with St. Basil, went through a complete course of studies at Athens; after which, he applied himself to the study of the Sacred Scriptures. The two friends retired to a monastery, where they spent several years over the Scripture, interpreting it not according to their own views, but by the sense and authority of the earlier Fathers. Owing to their reputation for learning and virtue, they were called to the ministry of preaching the Gospel, and became the spiritual Fathers of many souls.

After Gregory had returned home, he was made Bishop of Sasima, and afterwards administered the Church of Nazianzum. Being called, later on, to govern the Church of Constantinople, which was infected with heresy, he converted it to the Catholic Faith. This success, far from gaining him everyone’s love, excited the envy of a great many. This caused a great division among the Bishops, which led the Saint to resign his See. He said to them those words of the Prophet: “If this tempest be stirred up on my account, cast me into the sea, that you may cease to be tossed.” Whereupon he returned to Nazianzum; and, having got Eulalius made Bishop of that Church, he devoted his whole time to the contemplation of divine things, and to the writing treatises upon them.

He wrote much, both in prose and verse; and in all, there is admirable piety and eloquence. In the opinion of learned and holy men, there is nothing to be found in his writings which is not conformable to true piety and Catholic truth, or which anyone could reasonably call in question. He was a most vigorous defender of the Consubstantiality of the Son of God. No one ever led a more saintly life than he; no one was to be compared to him for eloquence. He led the life of a monk, spending his whole time in solitude, occupied in writing and reading. Having reached a venerable old age, he died during the reign of the emperor Theodosius, and entered into the blessed life of heaven.

Quote:EXPLANATION. True piety, as St. James here says, consists not only in knowing and recognizing the word of God, but in living according to its precepts and teachings: in subduing the tongue, the most dangerous and injurious of all our members; in being charitable to the poor and destitute, and in contemning the world, its false principles, foolish customs and scandalous example, against which we should guard, that we may not become infected and polluted by them. Test thyself, whether thy life be of this kind.

ASPIRATION. O Jesus! Director of the soul! Give me the grace of true piety as defined by St. James.

Quote:ImmunaBand is a blue silicone bracelet that has two purposes — first, it has a built-in QR code that carries your COVID-19 vaccination card’s information that can be used as a back-up for people who lose or misplace their CDC vaccination card. ImmunaBand’s second function is to show an outward display that a person has been fully vaccinated, thus making them safe to be near.

So how does it work? Wearers have to upload their vaccination cards for review before they can receive the band. The documentation is stored on a server compliant with medical privacy laws and the process is end-to-end encrypted, the company said in a news release.

The company makes two bands — one with just the QR code, and another with the QR code plus the wearer’s name and type of vaccine they received. The bands are both priced at $19.99. That code can be scanned with a smartphone to prove vaccination, the company said.

Well dear friends, 

It seems we are moving into the next phase of global vaccination efforts and in order to differentiate between the 'saints' (vaccinated) and the 'sinners' (unvaccinated), it would appear that simultaneous efforts are underway globally to track the 'saints' and grant them privileges the 'sinners' won't have. At least that is what we are being told. And... we all know that tracking people is only done with the very best of intentions!

So to help organize articles and information relating to the planning and implementation of any and every type of COVID vaccine verification system, a sub-forum has been added to The Catacombs, simply entitled COVID Passports - HERE.

May God have mercy on us all!

Quote:Green insects

As well as being a nutritious food source, insects consume fewer resources than traditional livestock. There are, of course, many parts of the world where insects are already part of everyday diets. Industrializing their production and consumption could open up new routes to feeding the world’s growing population and alleviating some of the environmental pressures caused by conventional agriculture.

Ensuring access to safe, healthy sources of food is a key part of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) drive. From zero hunger to climate action, from ending poverty to ensuring responsible use of resources, many of the 17 SDGs relate to the food people eat, how it is grown and how it is distributed.

According to the World Economic Forum’s Meat: The Future report, keeping up with the demand for animal-derived protein could put meeting the SDGs and Paris Climate Agreement targets in jeopardy.

Quote:That the blessed Archangel Michael has often appeared to men is attested both by the authority of sacred Scripture, and by the ancient tradition of the Saints. Hence, the memory of these apparitions is commemorated in divers places. As, heretofore, Michael was honored by the Synagogue of the Jews as Guardian and Patron, so is he now by the Church of God. A celebrated apparition of the Archangel took place, under the pontificate of Gelasius 1st, in Apulia, on the top of Mount Gargano, at whose foot lies the town of Siponto.

A bull, belonging to a man who lived on the mountain, having strayed from the herd, was, after much searching, found hemmed fast in the mouth of a cave. One of its pursuers shot an arrow, with a view to rouse the animal by a wound; but the arrow rebounding, struck him that had sent it. The circumstance excited so much fear in the by-standers and in them that heard of it, that no one dared to go near the cave. The inhabitants of Siponto, therefore, consulted the Bishop; who answered, that in order to know God’s will, they must spend three days in fasting and prayer.

At the end of the three days, the Archangel Michael intimated to the Bishop, that the place was under his protection, and that what had occurred was an indication of his will that God should be worshipped there, in honor of himself and the Angels. Whereupon, the Bishop repaired to the cave, together with his people. They found it like a Church in shape, and began to use it for the celebration of the divine service. Many miracles were afterwards wrought there. Not long after, Pope Boniface dedicated a Church in honor of St. Michael, in the great Circus of Rome, on the third of the Kalends of October (September 29th), the day on which the Church celebrates the memory of all the Angels. But today’s feast is kept in commemoration of the apparition of Michael the Archangel.

A few examples - for your consideration:

Quote:“God created us male and female, different yet complementary, in order to form a ‘we’ destined to become ever more numerous in the succession of generations. God created us in his image, in the image of his own triune being, a communion in diversity,” the Pope recalled. But in subsequent comments, he added, “When, in disobedience we turned away from God, he in his mercy wished to offer us a path of reconciliation, not as individuals but as a people, a ‘we,' meant to embrace the entire human family, without exception: ‘See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them.'”

Quote:“The truth however is that we are all in the same boat and called to work together so that there will be no more walls that separate us, no longer others, but only a single ‘we,' encompassing all of humanity. Thus I would like to use this World Day to address a twofold appeal, first to the Catholic faithful and then all the men and women of our world, to advance together towards an ever wider ‘we.'”

Quote:“The Catholic faithful are called to work together, each in the midst of his or her own community, to make the Church become ever more inclusive as she carries out the mission entrusted to the Apostles by Jesus Christ: ‘As you go, proclaim the good news, The kingdom of heaven has come near. Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. You received without payment; give without payment’”.

Quote:“In our day, the Church is called to go out into the streets of every existential periphery in order to heal wounds and to seek out the straying, without prejudice or fear, without proselytizing, but ready to widen her tent to embrace everyone. Among those dwelling in those existential peripheries, we find many migrants and refugees, displaced persons and victims of trafficking, to whom the Lord wants his love to be manifested and his salvation preached.”

Quote:“Our societies will have a ‘colorful’ future, enriched by diversity and by cultural exchanges. Consequently, we must even now learn to live together in harmony and peace. (…) This is the ideal of the new Jerusalem (cf. Is 60; Rev 21:3), where all peoples are united in peace and harmony, celebrating the goodness of God and the wonders of creation. To achieve this ideal, however, we must make every effort to break down the walls that separate us and, in acknowledging our profound interconnection, build bridges that foster a culture of encounter. Today’s migration movements offer an opportunity for us to overcome our fears and let ourselves be enriched by the diversity of each person’s gifts. Then, if we so desire, we can transform borders into privileged places of encounter, where the miracle of an ever wider 'we' can come about.”

Quote:“I invite all men and women in our world to make good use of the gifts that the Lord has entrusted to us to preserve and make his creation even more beautiful. ‘A nobleman went to a distant country to get royal power for himself and then return. He summoned 10 of his slaves, and gave them ten pounds, and said to them, 'Do business with these until I come back’ (Lk 19:12-13).

"The Lord will also demand of us an account of our work! In order to ensure the proper care of our common home, we must become a ‘we’ that is ever wider and more co-responsible, in the profound conviction that whatever good is done in our world is done for present and future generations. Ours must be a personal and collective commitment that cares for all our brothers and sisters who continue to suffer, even as we work towards a more sustainable, balanced and inclusive development.

"A commitment that makes no distinction between natives and foreigners, between residents and guests, since it is a matter of a treasure we hold in common, from whose care and benefits no one should be excluded.”