Today is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.

What does that mean?

Today we celebrate the awesome power of God and how He saved Mary from being tarnished by the stain of sin so she could be made worthy to carry His Divine Son within her womb.

And this isn’t something new. I’ve been reading these books:

Awesome Reading about Mary

And

More Awesome Reading on Mary

They are so cool! Like it takes you through history and shows you what the Saints and Church Fathers wrote about our Blessed Mother! INCLUDING how most of them believed that she was free from sin.  It’s not a new belief we made up recently. It’s not something that was unheard of or shot down in the Church at any point.  It’s been a belief for thousands of years.

And that’s not all.  This belief of Mary being Immaculately Conceived is rooted in the Bible. Mary is the New Ark of the Covenant, read below to see what I mean:

“Also, could Jesus have been born from a sinful woman? No, I don’t think so. Mary is the new Ark of the Covenant.  In the Old Testament the Ark of the Covenant was a gilded chest, commissioned by God, to carry the staff of Aaron, a jar of Manna, and the stone blocks on which the Ten Commandments were written.  It was also the way God communicated with the people.  In a way, the Ark contained the Spirit of the Lord.  It was revered, shown reverence, and people celebrated it!

If you think back to the Old Testament, there is a story of King David going to retrieve the Ark of the Covenant.(2 Samuel 6) The actual wording is, he arose and went. Why is that important? Take a look at what St. Luke says in his Gospel: Mary arose and went to visit Elizabeth. When Mary arrived, Elizabeth was in awe and filled with joy; much like David when he stood before the Ark. Elizabeth’s baby (John the Baptist) leapt for joy in his mother’s womb. Guess what David did? He danced and praised God with excitement before the Ark. And finally, Luke adds that Mary stayed with Elizabeth for three months. The Ark was temporarily stationed in the “House of Obededom” for a waiting period of three months.

Add all these parallels together and it’s really clear that Mary is now assuming the role that was once the role of the Ark of the Covenant. Like that golden chest, she’s a sacred vessel where the Lord’s presence dwells with His people.  We revere and celebrate Mary because she is the new, pure Ark of the Covenant.  (This idea came from the Ignatius Study Bible, Biblical commentary by Schott Hahn and Curtis Mitch.)”

Now you know why we say Mary is without sin. 😉

If you want to learn more about Mary and what the Catholic Church believes, get those books I mentioned earlier and don’t forget to read about it in chapter 7 of my book – How to Become a Heroic Catholic.

Here’s how my interview on the radio this morning went! 😀

Guess what?

Tomorrow morning, bright and early at 7:30, I’ll be Catholic Community Radio – a local radio station – discussing the book! Follow link below to be able to listen live or tune in at the station listed!

http://catholiccommunityradio.org/listen/#player1?catid=0&trackid=0

Isn’t that cool?! I’m excited.

Also, since Christmas is coming up in just over a month – I’m running a sweet sale on hard-cover books! Just $20 each, plus shipping, and you can get them signed with a personalized message!

God is working amazing things!  How much more awesome can it get than to be able to do what He is calling me to do? I love it.  Keep up the prayers – and I pray for y’all all daily.

~

Catherine

Want to order a book today? Find it here! https://howtobecomeaheroiccatholic.com/purchase-a-book/

Don’t forget to like my Facebook page! https://www.facebook.com/HowToBecomeAHeroicCatholic 

Today is the Solemnity of All Saints. It’s a Holy Day of Obligation usually – this year, due to it falling on a Saturday, it is not a Holy Day of Obligation – however it is still a Holy Day and special.

But why on earth do we have a whole day dedicated to the Saints?  Why do we dare to honor them and ask them to pray for us?

Here’s a peek at what I say about the Saints in How to Become a Heroic Catholic:

….We look to the Saints for assistance and guidance since they are already in heaven. They are closer to God than we are, and they can pray and intercede for us if we ask of them. I ask people to pray for me and I think that it’s pretty common among people of all faiths to ask that a fellow believer prays for them. Look at what St. Paul says in 1st Timothy:

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life, godly and respectful in every way. This is good, and it is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, the testimony to which was given at the proper time.

 (1 Timothy 2: 1-6)

He opens up that letter asking for prayers to be offered for everyone. He is telling us to pray for each other. So why then does it become an issue when I ask someone in heaven to pray for me? If we’re in heaven with Christ, can’t we still pray for people?

St. Dominic said, as he was dying in the year 1218 A.D., “Do not weep, for I shall be more useful to you after my death and I shall help you then more effectively than during my life.”

 He told his brothers that after he died on earth he would be able to help them more from heaven. If the Saints can’t help us, why would he say that?

            St. Therese of Lisieux said something similar around the year 1825 A. D., “I want to spend my heaven in doing good on earth.”

            The Saints want to help us here on earth. We can ask them to pray for us, just like I’d ask you to pray for me. They are our brothers and sisters in heaven and they want to lead us to eternal life with Christ. I pray to them, or ask them, to give me guidance, and to help me be like them. They help us find our own paths to holiness.

Why do we honor the Saints?

Do we honor them more than Christ? No.  We honor the saints, we greatly honor Mary as Queen of Heaven, but worship is something given to God alone. [Fun fact: Something neat I learned about not too long ago is the contrasting terms of Dulia vs. Latria. Dulia is honor. Honor is what we give to the Saints in their glory. Hyperdulia is highest honor, which we show to Mary, the mother of God. Latria, on the other hand, is worship. Latria is given to God alone.]

            The Saints are role models for everyone, and come from all walks of life. We pray for them to intercede on our behalf, or on a friend’s behalf, to God. They are our friends. We do not worship them. We show them honor because they are beautiful examples of holiness and because they are already in heaven with Christ.

…

Even when the Church was still very new, she was teaching that we can ask the Saints to pray for us.

St. Augustine once said:

“It is true that Christians pay religious honor to the memory of the martyrs, both to excite us to imitate them, and to obtain a share in their merits and the assistance of their prayers.” [Reply to Faustus the Manichean 20:21 {c. A.D. 400)]

Want to read more? go here to purchase How to Become a Heroic Catholic:

https://howtobecomeaheroiccatholic.com/purchase-a-book/

Already read it? Want to post a review?

https://howtobecomeaheroiccatholic.com/book-reviews/

Yeah…I kinda have to change the release date.

I know, I said the 21st, but God decided that TODAY would be better!

That’s right! TODAY.

You can go buy it on Amazon!

And it couldn’t have happened on a better day.

You see, today is St. Ignatius of Antioch’s feast day.

He’s one of my favorite apologists and Saints. He learned at the feet of the Apostle John, and was the first to use the term “Catholic” to describe our faith.

He’s awesome.

And so is the book. 😉

So go check it out! All praise and glory goes to God!

http://www.amazon.com/How-Become-Heroic-Catholic-Catholicism/dp/1502706520/ref=la_B00OLZEJ7A_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1413556779&sr=1-1

The Proof Copies are in! 😀 LOOK!

Now it’s time for a tough review…going through it page by page, word by word, making sure it’s as close to perfect as can be! It’s exciting 😀 To be holding a physical copy of my book is surreal. I can’t explain how amazing it feels to be able to hold this in my hand and realize that this is really happening. Praise God. That’s all I can say. He is awesome.

Last post, I also said that “How to Become a Heroic Catholic” wasn’t the original title. What was?

To be honest, I didn’t have a title for it for a while. Then it was “In Defense of Catholicism” and “How to Defend your Faith” and a couple others. Titles are tricky! But I think I decided on the *perfect* one, don’t you?

Check back on Friday for a sneak peek of the first chapter!

Keep up the prayers, God has big things in store and it’s gonna be great.

Thanks!

Catherine