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This is a quiet reflection by Andrew Peterson - I told you I really like him and I was going to post more of his music! He mentions "a monastery in Kentucky" - that would be the Trappist monastery of Gethsemane.

Vocations Reflection by Franciscan Sister of Christian Charity Sr Mary Teresa, with questions you might ask yourself about the life you are called to live. Since 1869, Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity have served in Catholic Health Care, Education, Campus Ministry and Parish-Community Service in Dioceses in Michigan, Wisconsin, the Midwest, Central and Southwest U.S. God Calls You. We Invite You Dios te llama. Te invitamos. https://fscc-calledtobe.org

Mississippi John Hurt with the classic "Lonesome Valley" played in Hurts classic Delta guitar style.

Jesus has been teaching in the temple courts. Now, on his way out, he pauses over and against the treasury to watch as offerings are made. Each person would walk up to one of the thirteen trumpet-shaped receptacles, which were lined along the wall of the Court of the Women. As they tossed in their offering, the person was expected to say aloud the amount and purpose of the gift in order to be heard by the priest overseeing the collections. It would have been an impressive sight to see people in fine clothes tossing in large sums, calling out to all how much they gave. And in such a group, who would notice the widow tossing the two smallest coins into the offering? Yet, in a move that is so like him, Jesus notices and calls attention to this act of faith. Jesus calls his disciples together and says, “ I tell you solemnly, this poor widow has put more in than all who have contributed to the treasury; for they have all put in money they had over, but she from the little she had has put in everything she possessed, all she had to live on..” Jesus knows that these are not any two coins, but the woman’s last two coins. The text says, “All she had to live on,” but the Greek is starker still. What is really said is that she put in her bios. It’s the word from which we get “biology,” the study of life. For Jesus tells us that the widow put her “life” into the temple treasury that day. These were her last two coins and rather than keep one back, she tossed both into the temple treasury’s coffers. The widow gave 100 percent of her money. The widow is down to two practically worthless little coins, and she trusts it all to God. It would be nice if Mark filled in more details for us. Was Jesus’ arm around the woman as he said, “This poor widow has put in more …” or was the woman blending back into the crowd, never to be seen again? Or perhaps Jesus asked his own keeper of the purse, Judas Iscariot, to give something to this woman so that she would not go hungry that evening. Or better still, did she join with the other women who journeyed with Jesus from Galilee to the cross and beyond? The Gospel never answers these questions. The nameless widow who gave two small coins fades into the background. We may want to know her name in order to name churches, schools, and hospitals in her honour. We may want to give her a place of honour in Jesus’ stories alongside disciples whose names we know, though their trust in God wasn’t always so exemplary. But perhaps namelessness is appropriate for this living parable. And maybe it is best, too, that we don’t find out how her story ends. The nameless woman whose ultimate fate we never know is perhaps an even better icon of trust, for her story was a precarious one. She went to the temple that day not knowing if she would ever have two little coins to call her own again. It could have been her path to a life of begging or even a station on the road to starvation. But in facing an uncertain future, the widow reached out to God. She trusted that if she gave everything she had to God, even the little she gave would be honoured. And whether she was repaid handsomely by Jesus himself, or God cared for her in some other way, we, too, have to trust. We trust that the widow’s story turned out all right. We trust that whether she lived or died, she was God’s. And by her example, Jesus shows that what we withhold may matter more than what we offer. The widow was a woman of great faith, who held nothing back. She knew what Jesus’ disciples were just learning: we are to give, knowing that everything we have is God’s already. We can’t give God anything. But we can offer our very selves to the Kingdom of God, holding nothing back. She was a woman. She was poor. She was a widow down to her last two coins. She was a child of God who placed her whole life back in her loving creator’s hands.

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Today's Gospel tells the story of the shepherd leaving the 99 to find the lost sheep. There are lots of Gospel songs and hymns that retell this story, some of which are cheesy indeed! This one is by One In Him. I can't find anything about One In Him except a YouTube page that has lots of music - all a cappella - but no explanation. I think it's one guy who records all the the harmony parts. This particular song's lyrics have that old-fashioned syntax that twists phrases around, the way a lot of the 18th & 19th century hymns do. But the music sounds even older than that - almost like a madrigal or something. OF all the songs I've posted, this isn't my favorite, but it has an interesting sound.

The Apostles of the Sacred Heart might be open to this. They have a lot of Sisters who are accomplished professionals in different fields. If she's open to a community that doesn't wear a habit, the Missionary Servants of the Bl. Trinity have Sisters who are mental health professionals.

Revelation 13: 1-10

Does she mean she wishes to continue to use her qualification in a professional way?

Hey! I thought of the Little Sisters of the Poor and then also remembered an episode of Abiding Together podcast which featured a nun from the Holy Family of Nazareth congregation https://podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/s12-e18-family-systems-with-special-guest-sr-josephine/id1206416686?i=1000611284898 and I remembered her talking about working with mental health services and psychotherapy. Honestly though, any community, even contemplative, will benefit from her having experience as a mental health therapist. The Lord will use it somehow, in terms of facilitation or reconciliation or understanding behaviours in mediation and building community. If she just listens to her hearts desire, the Lord will speak through that no matter what her particular inclinations might seem to be now. Would love to hear how her journey develops! Maybe the Hawthorne Dominicans too? Hospice care I think? But probably a lot of mental health and accompanying services needed alongside palliative.

Discerning wherever you are called in life. Fr. Nathan Linton OFM Cap, Midwest Capuchin Franciscans from the Diocese of Superior speaks with Franciscan Sister of Christian Charity Sr. Pam Biehl, OFS from the Archdiocese of Chicago. “The more I learned about our faith… what we believe and why we believe it as Catholics. The more I could see the beauty of our faith and the more I could see the beauty of our faith and the more I could see giving my life to that.” Fr Nathan also reflects on the similarity of vocation guidance with spiritual direction: ”…walking with someone… coming to understand how God is moving in their life” https://fscc-calledtobe.org/2024/11/04/discerning-how-god-calls-you-a-franciscan-reflection/

Spiritual Companioning with Others in Discernment: A Zoom Series for You Spiritual Director Sr Anne Marie Lom explains the process and value of spiritual direction, especially as it relates to discerning religious life. “Try to see how God may be working… see what is going on beneath the feelings…. a good experience of self care.” Founded on the gospel for upcoming Sunday, and time to ask and explore your questions with other discerners Sr Anne Marie also reflects on how, as a Franciscan Sister of Christian Charity, she tries with her congregation to ‘Rebuild’ God’s Church as Francis was called. https://fscc-calledtobe.org/vocation-discernment-events/

From St. Jude monastery, Dominicans of Perpetual Adoration: October 30, 2024Vocation News A New Novice The Dominican Nuns joyfully announce the vestition of their postulant, Sister Karina, on October 27, the vigil of the feast of Sts. Simon and Jude. In a simple ceremony marking the beginning of her two years of novitiate, Sister Karina received the holy habit of the Dominican Order, and her new religious name: Sister Mary Catherine de la Guadalupana, O.P. Please keep Sister Mary Catherine in your prayers as she sets out on this new stage of her Dominican vocation, that she may fulfill the words from the ceremony’s concluding prayer: “May you apply yourself assiduously to following our Holy Father St. Dominic so that you may be ready for the day of your espousals to Jesus Christ.”

This is Keith Green's 1982 setting of the Twenty-Third psalm. I posted one or two of his other songs previously. Most settings of this psalm are calm, peaceful, pastoral, maybe even saccharine. This one is not.

I have a friend who is studying her masters to be a clinical mental health therapist, and has begun to discern a religious vocation. She asked if I could help her look into communities, and I knew my phatmass phamily would be able to help as well! She is 33, and would like to join a community where she could finish and use the masters degree she is working on. She is already looking at the Religious Sisters of Mercy Alma, but what other communities should I recommend?

Sister Shirley Caesar sings "One More Battle to Fight," which is a 19th-century spiritual, but her version is almost Dixieland what with the clarinet, trombone, and the whoopee whistle. And in my mind it sort of relates to All Souls.

A Gospel song that so classic it's practically trite, but it's appropriate for All Saints Day. Louis Armstrong et alia with a straight-up Dixieland version of "When the Saints Go Marching In." There's only one verse - or is it a chorus? - so there are lots of instrumental solos. Write it off as making a joyful noise unto the Lord.

Love is the only law we are to live by. And love is the fulfillment of the Law that God reveals through Moses in today’s First Reading. We love Him because He has loved us first. We love our neighbour because we can’t love the God we haven’t seen unless we love those made in His image and likeness, whom we have seen. When Jesus was asked by members of his community, “ Which is the first of all the commandments?” Jesus redirects part of his answer to the words contained in the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy. He says, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” And then Jesus adds the second instruction: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” That was a very straightforward and familiar statement. This was a part of the daily practice of those who were listening to Jesus. Members of the Jewish community prayed a daily prayer called the Shema, which incorporates the first statement that Jesus quoted to them. That tradition continues to this day. The commandment that Jesus gives to the scribe seems pretty simple. He tells him that the most important rule is that they must love God above all things and with every fibre of their beings. While the scribes and the Sadducees may have been somewhat sceptical about the true identity of Jesus, they had been formed by God’s teachings and requirements for a holy life. Still, they were still struggling with these ideals. As contemporary faith followers, the struggle to live fully these commandments is apparent throughout our society. If loving God with all your heart, soul, and mind were easy, there would be no room for doubt when difficulties would arise. Yet, there are times for many when doubts arise – especially when prayers are not answered as quickly as one would want or in the way one would hope. It is common for regular churchgoers to question the existence of God at very challenging points in life. There have been many books written about this subject. Some of you may have read When Bad Things Happen to Good People by Rabbi Harold S. Kushner. Trust is a main source of love. Jesus reminds us that when God is fully trusted, there cannot be any room for second-guessing. When there seems to be no explanation for occurrences in life, those are the moments to let your faith sustain you and lean on God for support and strength, instead of turning away from God. There is more to this assignment than loving God with all your being. Jesus takes it a step further and says, “Love your neighbour as yourself.” In the Gospel of Mark, the scribe agrees with Jesus and understands the requirements. But take a look at the discussion Jesus had with the Pharisees in the account from Luke about the greatest commandment. When Jesus says to them, “Love your neighbour,” they immediately push back by asking, “Who is my neighbour?” This is where things seem to get a little tricky. Jesus demonstrates the answer with the parable of the Good Samaritan. He tells the story of the man who was robbed, injured, and left in the road for dead. A priest saw the incapacitated man and walked right past him. A Levite encountered him and actually crossed the street away from him. It was the Samaritan, the unlikeliest person of all, who stopped, offered aid, and even got him to a place where someone could care for him. Jesus’ admonition to the Pharisees was that love for your neighbour is wrapped tightly in care, compassion, and mercy. When we love God completely, we are bound to find ways to answer the call to love our neighbours also. We will be accepting of people who look different from us and those whose lifestyles are not the same. More importantly, there is a willingness to trust God enough to believe that neighbours are the same as we are. They have the same dreams and desires to love the Lord and to follow God as faithful disciples. They, too, have picked up their crosses and have made the commitment to follow Jesus. What greater love is there? The Good News from Jesus is that this kind of love is achievable. It is possible to love others so much that polarization ends, and healing begins.

Just a brief update. Thank you to all of you who listened. We have had MANY more people come forward and know what went on. And, for the record, this is NOT SPAM. If anyone here chooses to deny what has been stated in both the Huffington Post and the podcast, not to mention the absolute need for such things to be written down to allow people who choose to join the religious life now avoid something evil, I leave that up to free will. This is not spam. If anyone chooses to pray for this post, I thank you. This situation needs prayers. The Russian spam of chemical contents of drugs, well,, I will leave that up to those those who care for this site. Phatmass has done much good. May it forever stay that way.

All Souls Day is a day when we, as a faith community, set aside time to pray for the souls of the departed, particularly those who may still be on their journey towards God’s eternal presence. It is a day of hope, remembrance, and reflection. On a personal note, we remember souls of our family members and friends who have passed away. It’s an occasion to reflect on the impact they had on our lives and to offer prayers for their eternal rest. We especially remember those who departed in the past year, keeping their memories alive in our hearts. All Souls day calls us to a deeper understanding of the communion of saints and the promise of eternal life. Today we are reminded of the “communion of saints,” a beautiful and profound teaching of the Christian faith. This communion transcends the boundaries of time and space, connecting the Church on Earth, the Church in Heaven, and the Church in Purgatory. We are all part of this one, great family of faith. We, the living, are the Church on Earth. We are called to support and remember those who have gone before us. Through our prayers and acts of love, we can be instruments of God’s grace for the souls who still need our help in their journey toward heaven. The Church in Heaven are the saints and blessed who have already reached their eternal reward. They are our intercessors, and they continue to pray for us. Their lives serve as examples of faith and holiness that we can aspire to emulate. The Church in Purgatory is where the souls of the departed who are being purified and prepared for heaven reside. Our prayers and sacrifices can assist them in their purification process, helping them reach their final destination. And so, we remember and honour the faithful Departed: This day is an opportunity for us to reflect on the lives of our loved ones, to cherish the memories we shared, and to give thanks for the blessings they brought into our lives. Our prayers for the departed are a powerful and loving way to offer support. As we remember them and pray for their souls, we help alleviate their suffering in Purgatory and bring them closer to God’s presence. Naturally, while we grieve the loss of our loved ones, we can find comfort in the hope of their ultimate salvation. God’s mercy is boundless, and He desires the salvation of all souls. On All Souls Day, we find hope in the midst of sorrow. We believe in the resurrection and the promise of eternal life, and we trust in God’s infinite love and mercy. Just as Christ triumphed over death, we too have hope in the resurrection of the dead. Our departed loved ones are not lost to us forever; they are merely on a different part of the journey. We believe in a God of boundless love and mercy. His desire is to bring all souls into His loving presence. Our prayers and acts of charity can aid in this divine mission. We gather on All Souls day, to remember all the faithful departed with gratitude and love. We pray for them, trusting in God’s mercy, and find comfort in the hope of eternal life. All Souls Day reminds us that our faith transcends this earthly existence and that we are connected with the saints in heaven and the souls in Purgatory. As Christians we live lives in a way that honours the memory of the departed and keeps the flame of hope burning brightly in our hearts. May our prayers and actions reflect the love and mercy of God, as we journey together toward our eternal home. Be still my soul the Lord is on thy side Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain Leave to thy God to order and provide In every change He faithful will remain Be still my soul thy best, thy heavenly friend Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end. Author: Kathrina von Schlegel

Statement to the Faithful of the Diocese of Fort Worth 28 October 2024 Saints Simon and Jude Praised be Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary, His Mother! Today with sorrow I address you, the Priests, Deacons, Religious, and Faithful of the Diocese of Fort Worth, bringing you a message you have been awaiting with anxious concern, that is, news of our beloved Carmel of the Most Holy Trinity, our cherished sisters in Christ. May God reward each of you for the prayers and sacrifices you have offered on their behalf, as well as for the support you have shown to me and to the Order of Discalced Carmelites, as we have sought to help our sisters in Arlington bear to Christ the full and true witness of their noble vocation, according to the mind and heart of Saint Teresa of Jesus. On a lovely spring morning in mid-May, 1985, I, then a young girl, knelt among you, the Faithful of Fort Worth, in prayer, at the Mass of Dedication in the Chapel of the newly-completed Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity. With you, I traversed the halls and crossed the grounds of the monastery complex, as together we enjoyed the privilege of touring the Carmel during Open House, before the enclosure was sealed and the nuns commenced their cloistered life within their new monastery. On that sunny and joyous day, never could I have imagined this sorrowful day, and that I would be charged with writing you this message, not of a bright beginning, but of a painful ending. Six months ago, the Holy See entrusted the Arlington Carmel to the Association of Christ the King, for the sole purpose of preserving and furthering "the spiritual health and longevity of the Arlington Carmelite Monastic Community." As you know, this entrustment has been met with resistance and opposition by the majority of the members of the community. Whereas last year, the Carmel opposed the Holy See's appointment of their local Ordinary, as Pontifical Commissary, this year, they rejected Rome's appointment of me, as their major superior. In both cases, the Carmel publicly attributed bad motives to each of us, such as greed for the monastic property and a desire to disperse their community. These claims are unfounded and untrue. In making religious profession, a Carmelite nun vows to live according to the Rule and Constitutions of the Order of Discalced Carmelites. When the Arlington Carmel petitioned to join our Association at its inception four years ago, our relationship with the nuns became closer, and we had hoped that they would share our common aspiration to an ever-deeper fidelity to our profession of vows. Unfortunately, in the course of our developing relationship, and through the testimony of the nuns themselves, we learned that their religious life, in many respects, deviates from multiple points of the Rule and Constitutions, and so we strove to lead them into a more faithful adherence to these. If our efforts had been met with openness by the nuns, the Carmel would already, today, be upon a sure path to restored autonomy. The nuns would be living and praying in accordance with all the sound traditions of Carmel and in accord with their preferred liturgical form, all under the aegis of the one, holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church, founded by Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. However, the nuns have chosen otherwise, and their choices have brought upon themselves the different status which is now theirs. Specifically, the nuns have chosen to break faith with their Mother, the Church of Rome, by a triple denial: 1) of the authority of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, a Dicastery whose authority springs directly from the Supreme Pontiff himself, and 2) of their Bishop, and 3) of me as their Carmelite superior, and by extension, of the Order of Discalced Carmelites, whose Rule and Constitutions they have spurned in praxis in multiple ways. To these foregoing breaches of ecclesial union, the nuns added, on September 14th, unlawful formal association with the Society of Saint Pius X. These wrongs are exacerbated by their illicit expropriation of the juridic person of the Carmelite Monastery, in which the nuns, utilizing civil law, entrusted to lay people, both Catholic and non-Catholic alike, the patrimony and property of the Arlington Carmelite community, which had been entrusted to them by countless benefactors, for the purpose of serving Christ in the Church through the Discalced Carmelite life. By the above acts, the nuns have been ipso facto dismissed from the Order of Discalced Carmelites, according to canon 694, § 1, 1 º of the Code of Canon Law. Therefore today, the 28th of October, 2024, I declare with great sorrow that the nuns of the Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity are no longer members of the Order of Discalced Carmelites. I ask for your continued prayers and sacrifices on behalf of these seven women, who have reverted to the lay state by their own actions. Their claim that the Association of Christ the King would disperse their community has, in a sense, become a self-fulfilled prophecy, actualized by their own choices and actions. In fact, however, the Association of Christ the King is not stepping in to disperse them, but rather, is leaving it to their own consciences, to admit the reality of their status as dismissed from religious life, and to behave accordingly. They had claimed that the Association of Christ the King would seize their property and assets, but in reality, neither the Association nor the Diocese make any claim to the property, nor have we ever done so. Our only wish is that the dismissed members of the Carmel would repent, so that the monastic property could again be rightly called a monastery, inhabited by Discalced Carmelite Nuns, in good canonical standing with the Church of Rome. Please join me in prayer for this intention. May God reward you. In the Wounds of Christ and Mary, Mother Marie of the Incarnation, O.C.D. Major Superior of the Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity President of the Association of Christ the King

Besides today, Solemnity of All Saints A.K.A. All Saints Day, (November 1st) , the following days must also be observed: The following feast days are holy days of obligation in the U.S. for 2024: Solemnity of Mary: Monday, January 1* Ascension of Jesus: Thursday, May 9 — Celebrated on the sixth Thursday after Easter Sunday* Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary: Thursday, August 15 Solemnity of All Saints: Friday, November 1 Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary: Monday, December 9** Christmas: Wednesday, December 25 These six holy days of obligation are celebrated in the U.S., besides Sundays