2010 Ordination Video

http://youtu.be/7oJTL8YgDbY?hd=1

Technical Difficulties

Ok, so the photos aren't uploading as expected. We will look into this minor technical difficulty and will post our photos on here as soon as possible.

We Found Her

Thats right folks, we thought that the Blessed Mother was lost but in reality she was just hanging out in Lourdes. And so we thought we would join her.

After almost 30 hours of travel, we've finally arrived in Lourdes. Everything went very smooth and the drive through the Pyrenees Mountain range was spectacular.

Within 30 hours time, we traveled across the Atlantic Ocean and arrived in Barcelona on Thursday morning. Boarding our beautiful motor coach, we drove through the hills of Catalan Country and stopping at a small restaurant for lunch. After a delicious lunch we continued the remaining 4 ½ hours of our bus ride to Lourdes where we checked in to our hotel. Tonight Fr. Michael Berry celebrated Mass at the Convent of St. Clare which is significant, since we celebrate the Feast of St. Clare today. A round faced Franciscan sister answered the door and was very glad to see we had arrived to celebrate Mass in their chapel. A group from Australia joined us as Fr. Michael Berry celebrated Mass and was assisted by seminarian Michael Steger and Deacon Ryan Pruess. We enjoyed a wonderful dinner at the hotel

Not letting their sleep deprivation get the best of them, a group of 15-20 pilgrims just left the hotel to explore the streets of Lourdes and locate the closets gilatto stand that seem to appear as much as a Starbucks Restaurant in New York.

God is in the whisper

Family members young and old gathered on Sunday to pray for their loved ones making the journey to the 2011 World Youth Day in Madrid Spain. This morning over 40 pilgrims from the Archdiocese of Milwaukee's 2 pilgrimage groups gathered at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist for Mass and to receive a pilgrims blessing from Archbishop Jerome Listecki.

After close to 20 months of preparation, it was obvious that all of the pilgrims were very excited to be making the epic journey to Madrid. Youth pilgrims from the Tyme Out Youth Center showed off their new tie-dye shirts which they hope will set their group apart from the rest of the 700,000 pilgrims in Madrid. In reference to the shirts one pilgrim simply proclaimed "They are awesome, why wouldn't you want one!"

Pilgrims from the young adult group, otherwise known as the "Milwaukee 2 Madrid" group which is being led by a joint effort between the Carmelite Friars at Holy Hill, St. Francis de Sales Seminary, and the Archdiocese of Milwaukee John Paul II Center, were donning spanish red shirts with a large outline of the State of Wisconsin and a quote from St. Theresa of Avila on the back. "St. Theresa is an important part of our trip because she is one of the patron saints of World Youth Day and she is very dear to my heart", commented one pilgrim as they put on their new t-shirt in preparation for the Mass.

At Mass, Archbishop Jerome Listecki welcomed the pilgrims to Mass and in his homily encouraged all present in the Cathedral and those listening to the radio Mass to listen for the many ways in which God communicates to us in the quite whispers of life. He concluded Mass with a blessing for all pilgrims and encouraged the participants to remember they are to "take with them the spirit of our great Archdiocese."

Pilgrims were also welcomed with donuts, coffee and juice in the Cathedral Atrium where group leaders addressed any final concerns or questions at a brief meeting.

With the pilgrimage starting in less than three days, pilgrims are packing their things and getting ready to head off to Madrid.

Packers new Sideline Hat

The 2011-2012 season is going to begin soon and the World Champion Green Bay Packers have unveiled their new look for the season. Tell me what you think. . .

http://cnsblog.wordpress.com/2011/07/27/vatican-nuncio-to-u-s-archbishop-sambi-dies/

Fr. Don Hying named New Auxiliary for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee

http://www.archmil.org/ArchMil/News/DJH/hyingbishopreleaseF1-20110526-.pdf

The 101 on Divine Mercy Sunday

The 101 on Divine Mercy Sunday

By: Deacon Ryan J Pruess

Indeed the message [St. Faustina] brought is the appropriate and incisive answer that God wanted to offer to the questions and expectations of human beings in our time, marked by terrible tragedies.

- Pope John Paul II – Divine Mercy Sunday Homily, Sunday April 22, 2001

This weekend, the Catholic Church celebrates Divine Mercy Sunday. We celebrate God’s infinite mercy on this Sunday because of the message that St. Maria Faustina Kowalska of Poland received from our Lord on Good Friday in 1937.

St. Faustina was a nun who grew up in Communist controlled Poland. It was in a small convent in Warsaw where our Lord appeared to St. Faustina and directed her to pray a novena (a nine-day prayer) beginning on Good Friday through the Octave (Octave is the eight days of Easter) of Easter ending on what is now known as Divine Mercy Sunday.

While the formal name is relatively new to the Churches calendar (proclaimed by Pope John Paul II in 2000), the concept of divine mercy is not new to our tradition. In fact, if you paid close attention to the readings at Mass today, you would have noticed that our response to the first reading includes the line “his mercy endures forever.” In our Gospel reading for this Sunday, Christ appears to his apostles and grants them the power to forgive sins. In other words, Christ entrusted the treasury of mercy to His Church! I just listed two ways in which we celebrate God’s mercy at Mass; there are many more ways in which we recognize God’s love and mercy at the liturgy.

Along with all of the beautiful ways in which our Liturgy points to God’s love and mercy, our tradition invites us to participate in the Chaplet of Divine Mercy which is a prayer that is traditionally prayed on Friday’s throughout the year at 3:00pm; though it may be prayed at any time.

Another style of prayer is the veneration of the image of the Divine Mercy. It was at the request of our Lord Jesus Christ, that St. Faustina designed the image of our Lord offering us His Divine Mercy that is flowing from our Saviors Heart. In her journal, St. Faustina writes that our Lord spoke to her saying “I want the image to be solemnly blessed on the first Sunday after Easter, and I want it to be venerated so that souls may know about it” (Diary of St. Faustina, 341).

Divine Mercy Sunday is a beautiful way our Catholic tradition highlights the love and mercy God has for each of us. As sinners, we are utterly dependent on God’s mercy and love. No good can be done in this life apart from that love. So as we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ this Easter Season, let us give thanks to God for allowing us to be the beneficiaries of His incredible love and mercy.

How to Pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy

If you are using a rosary: Start on the Crucifix and pray an Our Father, a Hail Mary and the Apostles' Creed. Skip ahead to the centerpiece and pray the following: "Eternal Father, I offer You the body and blood, soul and divinity of Your dearly beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world." You will say this same prayer on each Our Father bead. On each Hail Mary bead pray the following: "For the sake of His sorrowful passion have mercy on us and on the whole world." On the last Our Father bead, pray the following prayer three times: "Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world."

Our Father:

Our Father, Who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

Hail Mary:

Hail Mary, Full of Grace, The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of death. Amen.

The Apostles Creed:

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son Our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into Hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into Heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God, the Father almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. Amen.

JESUS CHRIST IS RISEN TODAY!

Are there any who are devout lovers of God?
Let them enjoy this beautiful bright festival!

Are there any who are grateful servants?
Let them rejoice and enter into the joy of their Lord!

Are there any weary with fasting?
Let them now receive their wages!

If any have toiled from the first hour,
let them receive their due reward;
If any have come after the third hour,
let him with gratitude join in the Feast!
And he that arrived after the sixth hour,
let him not doubt; for he too shall sustain no loss.
And if any delayed until the ninth hour,
let him not hesitate; but let him come too.
And he who arrived only at the eleventh hour,
let him not be afraid by reason of his delay.
For the Lord is gracious and receives the last even as the first.
He gives rest to him that comes at the eleventh hour,
as well as to him that toiled from the first.

To this one He gives, and upon another He bestows.
He accepts the works as He greets the endeavor.
The deed He honors and the intention He commends.
Let us all enter into the joy of the Lord!

First and last alike receive your reward;
rich and poor, rejoice together!
Sober and slothful, celebrate the day!
You that have kept the fast, and you that have not,
rejoice today for the Table is richly laden!

Feast royally on it, the calf is a fatted one.
Let no one go away hungry. Partake, all, of the cup of faith.
Enjoy all the riches of His goodness!

Let no one grieve at his poverty,
for the universal kingdom has been revealed.

Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again;
for forgiveness has risen from the grave.

Let no one fear death, for the Death of our Savior has set us free.
He has destroyed it by enduring it.
He destroyed Hell when He descended into it.
He put it into an uproar even as it tasted of His flesh.

Isaiah foretold this when he said,
"You, O Hell, have been troubled by encountering Him below."
Hell was in an uproar because it was done away with.
It was in an uproar because it is mocked.
It was in an uproar, for it is destroyed.
It is in an uproar, for it is annihilated.
It is in an uproar, for it is now made captive.

Hell took a body, and discovered God.
It took earth, and encountered Heaven.
It took what it saw, and was overcome by what it did not see.

O death, where is thy sting?
O Hell, where is thy victory?

Christ is Risen, and you, O death, are annihilated!
Christ is Risen, and the evil ones are cast down!
Christ is Risen, and the angels rejoice!
Christ is Risen, and life is liberated!

Christ is Risen, and the tomb is emptied of its dead;
for Christ having risen from the dead,
is become the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

To Him be Glory and Power forever and ever. Amen!

The Easter sermon of John Chrysostom (circa AD 400)

Archbishop Listecki on the New Roman Missal

http://www.chnonline.org/herald-of-hope/archbishop-jerome-e-listecki/10181-new-roman-missal-invites-us-to-enter-into-life-of-christ.pdf

The Krell Corner: A Deacon In The Family

The Krell Corner: A Deacon In The Family: "Today was a very neat day for the family. One of my cousins (Ryan) was ordained as a Deacon. Our family rented a bus and ventured to the ..."

Our youth sports obsession: Don’t let sports take over family time :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Our youth sports obsession: Don’t let sports take over family time :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Polar Bear Blung

I cannot help but wish that every year I could work up enough courage to try this. This photo was taken yesterday at Bradford Beach in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I found this photo on www.jsonline.com. It was taken by AP photographer Dave Chidley. What an amazing photo!