The Last Nightmare
A Short and Terrifying Story by Steve Ray

Everything went blank for a moment, but that moment seemed like eternity. He felt a motion, not with wind and breeze, but a motion none the less. He was traveling, moving, floating, transcending-he wasn’t really sure. The sudden blackness gave him time to regain his thoughts, just enough time to recapture the last moments.

Though his first thoughts were garbled and dreamlike, they slowly began taking shape, like a tree seen through a thick fog, slowly it all came back to him out of the swirling, traveling, blank void. Utter confusion was giving way to bits of clarity.

They had rushed him to the hospital. He remembered the sirens and the cold hands of the paramedics. Cold hands all over his body, probing and poking. Yes, there had been screams, he remembered now—and the sound of sobbing.

Then the horrendous sound resurfaced, a sound that could be felt. It was a sound that had subsumed his whole being, wrapping itself around him, ripping through him. Then the sound of crunching metal, broken glass, and twisted carnage. What must have lasted only seconds seemed to him a long and troubling nightmare—then the dark, foggy void.

For the rest of the 12-page story, click here.

…to chose the Jew; but odder still are those who choose the Jewish God but hate the Jew.

Ignoring U.S. bishops, the Catholic university will honor an abortion-rights supporter on Monday.

 By ANNE HENDERSHOTT (moving to Franciscan University of Steubenville in the Fall)

At Boston College’s commencement ceremony on Monday, Cardinal Sean O’Malley won’t be in attendance. The leader of the Boston archdiocese announced on May 10 that he would not deliver his traditional graduation benediction at the Catholic school because the college had invited Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny—a supporter of abortion rights in Ireland—to deliver the graduation address and receive an honorary degree.

 Read the entire article HERE.  Bravo Cardinal O’Malley!!

In his homily May 16 Pope Francis preached on the uncomfortable zeal of St. Paul. Zenit.org reports,

“St. Paul exhibited a “healthy madness” that made him an effective evangelist, Pope Francis said in his homily at a Mass on May 16.

“Paul is a nuisance,” the Pope told the congregation at the Domus Sanctae Marthae. “He is a man who– with his preaching, his work, his attitude–irritates others, because testifying to Jesus Christ and the proclamation of Jesus Christ makes us uncomfortable.”

“St. Paul was “not a man of compromise,” the Pope continued, but a man consumed with apostolic zeal. This zeal, he explained, is not a form of ambition, but a dedication to the mission of preaching, which finds its origin in a personal encounter with Jesus Christ.

“He was always in trouble–not in trouble for trouble’s sake, but for Jesus,” Pope Francis said. The zeal of the Apostle was a sort of “spiritual madness, of healthy madness.”

“The Pope contrasted this zeal with the attitude of “backseat Christians,” who live quietly, bother no one, but cannot convey the faith to others. The Holy Father urged his congregation to pray for apostolic zeal, for the ability to be effective evangelists.

“Let’s be Christians with apostolic zeal,” Pope Francis said. “And if we annoy people, blessed be the Lord!”

I was recently asked why Evangelicals cannot see the Eucharist and Real Presence in the Bible. This person said that when they read the Bible it seems so clear — especially John 6 where Jesus says “Unless you eat my Flesh and drink my Blood . . .” and at the Last Supper when he said, “This IS my flesh.”

“Why is it so easy to see for me,” she wrote, “while Evangelicals miss  it?”

There are a good number of explanations for this, but I tried to put it in simple terms. I responded:

“In answer to your question it all depends on what kind of glasses you are wearing. If you wear dark colored glasses you see things differently than if you wear clear or red shaded glasses. Every tradition, whether it is Catholic, Baptist, Mormon, or Lutheran has a tradition or grid through which they read and interpret the Bible. No one approaches the Bible objectively without any preconceived ideas or convictions.

“If one wears Baptist glasses and is convinced of the Baptist teaching, then they will see everything they read through their own Baptist ideas or tradition; they read their tradition into the text. Since they are told the Eucharist is only symbolic, they twist and tug to make Scripture fit their perspective.

“Also, as Evangelicals we (or at least I) was convinced the Catholic Church was wrong and we didn’t even understand what they believed or the basis for it. I also didn’t know that ALL Christians for the first 1500 years believed what Catholic’s now teach. And that even now ALL Christians around the world believe in the Real Presence except for a very small sliver of the Christian pie — the Evangelicals, Fundamentalists and a few other newly invented groups.

“The Catholic also has a tradition which has been handed down from the apostles. We can trace it with full confidence back to Jesus himself. When we read the Bible we have on our Catholic glasses which enables us to understand the Scriptures the way the apostles wrote it and the early Church understood it. We trust Scripture and the Tradition and this tradition is that which was taught by the apostles (2 Cor 11:2; 2 Thess 2:15; 3:6).

Be proud, yet humble, to be Catholic!”

Hurry, Early Bird Price Discount Ends May 24th!!

For all our other exciting trips and pilgrimages visit www.FootprintsOfGod.com

It was another fun show. Good questions and lively discussion. The discussion turned especially lively when and ex-Catholic, now Southern Baptist pastor came on to show how little he really understood the teaching of the Church (though he thought he was the defined expert.)

Here is the link to listen on-line and the MP3 download link here.

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1) David (Jewish) asked “My sponsor in AA is deeply Catholic and my kids were baptized into the Catholic Church. Am I making God angry that as a Jew I am thinking about and praying sometimes to Jesus?”

2) Jonathan (Marabian – Methodist) asked “Can you explain the infallibility of the Pope? Where did that come from?”

3) Mark (Eastern Orthodox) asks, “Why do Catholics believe the Holy Spirit from the Father and the Son when Orthodox believe the Spirit was sent only from the Father?”

4) Yosef (Coptic Orthodox) ask “Why do Catholics use unleavened bread for communion?”

5) Ron (Southern Baptist pastor) said, “I was a Catholic for 30 years – Why do Catholics worship and adore Mary?” (Actually this turned into a bit of a heated discussion about saints, tradition, Mary, and much more. He typically did not want to stay on one topic.)

6) Amy (Lutheran) asked, “My son is in kindergarten at a Catholic School. What resources can I use to help him understand the Catholic teachings which will be different than our Lutheran practice?”

I also promised to post an answer to “Why do Catholics use unleavened bread while Eastern churches us regular leavened bread.” I found an excellent article on this matter HERE..

The room was pretty full. It was warm but a gentle breeze was blowing—that would change. There was fear in the room. The Roman army was a thing to be feared, they had just crucified Jesus and it was a dangerous thing to associates of an executed criminal.

They were also anxious about the promise. The only thing they knew about God descending in fire was the experience of their ancestors at Mount Sinai. When that happened they all ran and hid and said to Moses, Never let God speak to us again; you go talk with Him and come back and tell us what the said.

Pentecost was approaching. Pentecost means “the 50th day.” Fiftieth day from what? From the Passover. Almost fifty days ago the Passover lambs had been slain, and so had THE Passover Lamb. Then there was the forty mystery days when Jesus was gone but not gone—with them but not with them, at least not like before. And he kept just appearing and then disappearing.

He taught them a lot in those forty days, He had breathed on them, gave them power to forgive and retain sins, fed them loaves and fish, appointed Peter as his shepherd, commanded them to go out from Jerusalem to the world. He explained to them much about the Kingdom of God and their tasks as His emissaries.

The last meeting was the most unusual of all. He answered a few questions, gave a few instructions and without even a formal Good-bye He started going up—and continued going up until all they saw was the bottom of his sandals as he disappeared into a cloud. Daniel 7:13-14 says he went back to the glory of heaven.

They looked at each other with obvious concern on their faces—they were fearful. They locked themselves in the Upper Room to pray as He had commanded. They were praying for what they feared—fire upon a mountain, Mount Zion. They prayed for nine days, the first Novena, before the promise of the Holy Spirit fell.

We are specifically told that there were about 120 people in the room. Actually the word is “names” not people. How strange. Can you imagine me saying, “About 120 names came on our pilgrimage to the Holy Land”? This made me curious so I looked up 120 in early Jewish literature and law. Sure enough, my research paid off.

In Israel is a group of Jews desiring to leave the big city and start their own new community they needed a minimum of 120 names on a list. What was happening here in the Upper Room? A new community was being started. The word “church” in the New Testament is ecclesia which means “a group of people called out.” Even today the Knessett (lawmaking body in Israel) is made up of 120 representatives.

Mary is listed among the believers in that Upper Room. It was important that she is listed among the names with others. She is the mother of Jesus. She gave birth to him in Bethlehem as was, in a sense, giving birth to him again on Pentecost. What is our affectionate term for Pentecost? Can you sing “Happy Birthday, to you…”? Yes, it is the Birthday of the Church. What is being born? The Mystical Body of Christ. Who is there for the birth? The mother of course. Mothers have to be present when their child is born. Mary is the mother of Jesus the God-Man and Mary is the Mother of the Church, the Body of Christ. She was necessarily present at both births.

Mary was also there because the others were afraid of the descent of God in fire on this new mountain. I am convinced they trembled in fear not only of the Jews and Romans outside, but of the prophesied “baptism of fire” within—as they wondered and feared that might be. The gentle breeze was about to become a rushing wind.

But Mary was there to calm their anxieties. I bet she said something like, “Don’t be afraid my friends, the Holy Spirit has already overshadowed me and He was pure love. Just wait until you are bathed in His love!” The gentle breeze became a rushing wind but it was warm and

After nine days of praying the Holy Spirit fell in fire on the tenth day—which was the 50th day from the death of the Passover Lamb Jesus on the cross. The Jewish festival of Pentecost also celebrated the first fruits of the harvest.

Remember, Jesus said he was like a grain of wheat that would be buried in the ground. The grain must be buried and die to bear its fruit. Jesus died, was buried in the ground and rose from the dead as the first fruit. Now on the “Feast of First Fruits” the first of the harvest is brought to God. We learn that 3,000 people were added to the Church that day—all in keeping with the tremendous symbolism and deeper meaning to all these events.

And with these deep mysteries and truths we are just scratching the surface. Come to the Holy Land with us, get out your Bibles and study books (or Verbum Catholic Bible Study software) and dig deeper. “There is gold in them there hills” for those with eyes to see and ears to hear and hearts and minds to learn.

Yes, the first Christians had a difficult time with the technical transition from scrolls to books. You will certainly appreciate the need for the first “tech guys”. Enjoy!

I laughed so hard I had tears in my eyes!

Truth & Life just created a sticker encouraging people to “Download Jesus!”

It is a easy way for people to get the FREE Truth & Life Bible app. (Endorsed by the Vatican).

Click on the image below or scan the QR Reader.

Click on the image to go to the free Ap download

As we all smile at ourselves:

CHARISMATICS: Only 1 – Hands are already in the air.

PENTECOSTALS: 10 – One to change the bulb, and nine to pray against the spirit of darkness.

PRESBYTERIANS: None – Lights will go on and off at predestined times.

ROMAN CATHOLICS: None, they only use candles.

BAPTISTS: At least 15 – One to change the light bulb, and three committees to approve the change and decide who brings the potato salad and fried chicken.

EASTERN RITE CATHOLICS: Don’t know yet. They’re still waiting for permission from Rome to change the bulbs.

EASTERN ORTHODOX: None. Orthodoxy never changes, and, in addition to burning candles like the RCs, they use oil-burning lamps. Electricity is for those Gregorian calendar-using, liberal ecumenist jurisdictions.

ANGLICANS: Eight. One to call the electrician and six to say how much they liked the old one better. Plus one dissenter saying they should steal the RC’s candles.

ANGLO-CATHOLICS: At least eight as well: crucifer, torch-bearers, thurifer, boat-boy, sub-deacon, deacon and priest carrying the new bulb on a silk pillow…

EPISCOPALEANS: 3 – One to call the electrician, one to mix the drinks, and one to talk about how much better the old one was.

MORMONS (non-Christian of course): 5 – One man to change the bulb, and four wives to tell him how to do it.

JEHOVAHS WITNESSES: (non-Christian, of course) None, too busy knocking on doors telling everyone they have the wrong lights.

UNITARIANS (non-Christian of course): We choose not to make a statement either in favor of or against the need for a light bulb. However, if in your own journey you have found that light bulbs work for you, you are invited to write a poem or compose a modern dance about your light bulb for the next Sunday service, in which we will explore a number of light bulb traditions, including incandescent, fluorescent, 3-way, long-life and tinted, all of which are equally valid paths to luminescence.

METHODISTS: Undetermined – Whether your light is bright, dull, or completely out, you are loved. You can be a light bulb, turnip bulb, or a dim bulb. Bring a bulb of your choice to the Sunday lighting service and a covered dish to pass.

NAZARENES: 6 – One woman to replace the bulb while five men review church lighting policy.

LUTHERANS: None – Lutherans don’t believe in change.

AMISH: What’s a light bulb?

JEWS: Where’s Jacob’s ladder when you need it?

UNBELIEVERS: None, they’d rather sit in the dark

Listen to this letter and you will understand why we were emotional – and you’ll know if it is safe to come to the Holy Land. Comments from our wonderful pilgrims.

Great last day, part one. Mass to bless religious items. Driving down 4,250 feet to the lowest place on the face of the earth. Renewal of baptismal vows where John the Baptist ate grasshoppers. Jericho and much more.

Be sure to read Robyn Lee’s Report in Catholic Digest HERE.

Qumran, Floating in the Dead Sea (Paul reading a newspaper on his back), and camel rides.

St. Paul traveled through Thessaloniki and Berea in modern day Greece (Macedonia). The account is recorded in Acts 17:1-15. Many Protestants consider the Bereans as proto-Protestants holding to a “bible alone” theology. But they are sadly mistaken.

Here is my article “Why the Bereans Rejected Sola Scriptura” which was published in THIS ROCK Magazine a while ago.

When you read this article you will discover that the Bereans were actually Catholic in their view of Scripture, tradition and authority.

When schadenfreude turns into demonic delight   by Dr. Edward Peters The glee being expressed in open comboxes (modern near occasions of sin, if you ask me) over Bp. Robert McManus’ (Worcester, MA) arrest for drunk driving goes far beyond the schadenfreude that one has come to expect in the wake of a Catholic bishop’s fall. Much, nay most, of the public commentary on this matter is pure, unadulterated hatred of the Catholic Church. But let’s try not to allow what is little less than demonic delight at the disgrace of a prelate cloud our observations of the event itself. For the event itself is very, very serious. Bishop McManus Folks recall from several months ago San Francisco Abp. Salvatore Cordileone’s arrest for drunk driving; I think the parallels between that case and McManus’ are thin. Cordileone was stopped at a check point (not at the scene of accident, and certainly not after fleeing the scene) and he cooperated fully with officers (instead of refusing a breathalyzer). If Cordileone was surprised to learn that he was driving under the influence, McManus’ flight from an accident and refusal to submit to alcohol testing is, in the court of common sense, seem clear evidence that he knew he was driving drunk and fleeing responsibility for his actions. McManus’ legal problems are much worse than Cordileone’s and whatever personal slack folks might cut a Cordileone are not likely to be extended to one in McManus’ situation. The cases seem just too disparate. Which brings us back to the schadenfreude-qua-demonic-delight erupting around McManus: the Devil knows that Catholic bishops teach with the authority of Christ, but that they rule largely by dint of their personal reputation for integrity. When that reputation is stained, as it was for Cordileone, it takes time to wash clean; but when that reputation is actually and gravely damaged, as it seems to be for McManus, the recovery process is much slower in coming and the pastoral costs incurred along the way tend to be much higher. Those costs might not, in the end, be payable.

For the whole article, click HERE.

Another great day. Lots going on in Jerusalem as they celebrated the unification of Jerusalem. So we revised our itinerary and it worked great!

We started with Mass at Gethsemane. Do you know why Jesus was arrested in a garden, crucified and buried also in a garden?

We then prayed at the Pater Noster Church at the top of the Mount of Olives where Jesus taught his disciples to pray and from which he ascended into heaven.

Then the Dormition Abbey where Mary fell asleep, the Upper Room, the Church of Peter in Gallicantu (cock crow) where Peter denied Jesus and where Jesus was imprisoned over Holy Thursday. Then lunch at a Jewish kibbutz – great lunch!

We even ended up with free time in the afternoon which some enjoyed by visiting Bethany, others walking into the Old City and others resting and talking on the patio of the hotel overlooking Jerusalem. I think a few even took a nap :-)

Here is Robyn Lee’s Catholic Digest report.

In response to the show I did with Drew Mariani on Relevant Radio:

I thought it would be a good time to respond to an e-mail I received a while ago. It was a questions from a friend wrote to ask me for my take on Mary. He was corresponding with someone that said Catholics worship Mary and got this practice from pagans who had worshiped Artemis in Ephesus. He asked what I thought. Here is my response:

Dear Friend: Catholics are often accused of “worshiping” Mary, the Saints, icons, statues and the like. Your friend mentions several example which he assumes, based on his Protestant tradition, his lack of familiarity with the ancient Christian traditions and customs, and his Protest-ant reading of the Bible, that these actions are inherently acts of worship and therefore idolatry.

“Bowing before a statue must certainly be worship,” says the Evangelical who has not only abandoned the idea of images (only of a certain kind, as we shall see later) and is very inconsistent in his own practice, but has never taken the time to understand Catholic and liturgical Christianity.

Have the vocal opponents of statues, icons and the like ever asked the little old lady in her babushka if she is actually worshiping the statue in front of which she kneels? Does this holy, and wrinkled woman in Poland believe she is worshiping the icon of the Black Madonna? Does the Mexican mother surrounded by her kneeling children consider her veneration of our Lady of Guadalupe the same as her worship of God? Of course not. It would only take a few such questions, should the wondering Protestant care to learn the truth–that these common folks would be shocked at such a thought of worshipping Mary in the place of God.

To read the whole letter, click here.

It was a rich day, very full. It started with a wake-up call at 4:15 so we could leave at 4:45. Everyone thanked us later :-)

The streets of Jerusalem are like a huge flea market with all the crowds and hustle and bustle. Sometimes you can hardly move. It is much better to pray the Stations of the Cross along the Via Dolorosa when the streets are abandoned. We arrive at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre while it is still empty (during the day it is wall-to-wall people).

We arrived to have Mass at the top of Calvary. When finished I checked the Franciscans and the group that was scheduled to have Mass in the Tomb of Christ never showed up so we got the slot and our whole group had Mass INSIDE the Tomb of Christ. Everyone touched the stone and prayed.

Our group picture was next on our way back to the Notre Dame for breakfast. After re-couping from the early morning start we visited St. Ann’s which is the birthplace of Mary and the location of the Pools of Bethesda where Jesus cured a crippled man.

Then to the Western Wall to pray and learn the history and biblical significance of this site, the most holy for Jews in the world.

The Holy Shroud Exhibit is not to be missed then free time in the afternoon, a personal meeting with the Bishop of Jerusalem, confession available and a free evening.

BE SURE TO READ ROBYN’S REPORT ON DAY 6 IN CATHOLIC DIGEST

Everyone loves the comments. Keep them coming!

Part I: Via Dolorosa, Mass at Calvary, Mass at the Tomb

Part II: All the other Great Events of the Day

• Dying 8-yr-old bomb victim denied priest 
• Harrisburg Bishop McFadden, 65, dies  
• Massachusetts bishop earns DUI 
• Pentagon ban on proselytizing  Report 2 
• Abortion drug OK’d over counter for teens   
• Abortionist: I won’t aid babies born alive  
• UN abortion activist laments 20-yr failure 
• Columbus bishop risks jail for the faith 
• Gay ‘marriage’ or religious freedom?  
• Gay activist’s goal: Marriage destruction 
• RI OKs gay ‘marriage,’ Bishop: courage! 
• Rep. Paul Ryan flip-flops on gay adoption 
• Billy Graham: America is diseased by sin  
• Half-nude college woman mocks Pope  
• Detroit archdiocese to sell off chancery 
• Victory for the Cross at Ground Zero  
• Court takes homeschool child from parents 
• Pope: Worldly Church is biggest threat 
• Heretic Brazilian priest excommunicated 
• Pope to canonize 800 slaughtered by Muslims 

A young man stood up at my conference in the Philippines a while ago and parroted (yelled out) the Fundamentalist mantra: “The Pope is a sinner like everyone else; why do you call him ‘HOLY Father’?”

I leaned into the microphone and said to the young man in front of 2,000 people, “You should really read your Bible more carefully and do your homework before you stand up and embarrass yourself in front of 2,000 people.” I then explained why we call the Pope our Holy Father.

There are several meanings for the word “holy” and that is what the young man did not understand. If holy simply means without sin, it is hard to see why “things” are called holy. For example, the HOLY OF HOLIES is a place. Is it called holy because it has not sinned?

And what about HOLY GROUND? God told Moses to remove his sandals — he was standing on HOLY GROUND. I guess that means that this dirt had not sinned but the dirt in the next gully had sinnned. HUH?

The word HOLY in Hebrew is kodesh and means apartness, holiness, sacredness, consecration, separateness. Holiness can mean without sin. It can also means dedicated or set apart for God.

So, is the Pope holy in the sense of being completely sinless? Of course not. But the Pope is set apart for God in a special way as the HOLY Father, the Vicar of Christ, the Bishop of Rome and the Successor of Peter.

Bottom line, he is the HOLY FATHER and this fits perfectly with the Bible.

So much for a dumb challenge at a conference.

PS Remember that even WE who are called holy. Paul considered all of us saints (literally “holy ones” with a small “s”). He writes,

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother. To the church of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints (literally: “holy ones”) who are in the whole of Achaia: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 1:1-2).