A Polarized Church. A Divided Nation.
Pope Francis calls for “a better kind of politics.” …https://www.usccb.org/civilizeit
The Justice, Peace, and Human Development Office at the US Catholic Conference of Bishops invites us to take to heart Jesus’ invitation to follow the example of the Good Samaritan, who challenges us to “become neighbors to all” (no. 80). As a Church and a nation, we are polarized and divided. But as Pope Francis writes in Fratelli Tutti, we can seek “a better kind of politics, one truly at the service of the common good” (no. 154). We can see ourselves as members of one family. We can seek to encounter and to grow. We can identify common values. We can listen to understand. We can seek the truth together. We can jointly come up with creative solutions to the problems that face our world.
Civilize It: A Better Kind of Politics responds to Pope Francis’ call in Fratelli Tutti to “seek the good of all people” (no. 182) by encountering our neighbors and entering into a dialogue that seeks the truth across perspectives. This new initiative challenges Catholics and people of goodwill to cultivate a sense of solidarity with our brothers and sisters that transcends our differences.
Let’s pledge ourselves to charity, clarity, and creativity to promote the common good, go to Civilize It: A Better Kind of Politics Click HERE.
An App for Prayer!
HALLOW is a sleek, Spotify design-inspired package that provides enriching content and hundreds of prayer options. Traditional guided prayer techniques give you a partner with whom to recite the rosary, novenas, and the Divine Mercy chaplet. There are also more open-ended prayers like Christian meditations and the Examen. Hallow also organizes prayers by theme in “Praylists,” so you can focus on cultivating a disposition of gratitude, patience or forgiveness.
Some of their content features familiar Catholic faces. Bishop Robert Barron offers “Sunday Sermons,” Fr. Mike Schmitz gives homilies, Emily Wilson tells St. Paul’s conversion story, Jason Evert reads “Psalms of Hope” (Psalms 40-46,) and Chika Anyanwu reads the “Comfort, My People” passage from the Book of Isaiah (Isa 40-44). The app runs for $8.99 per month or $59.99 per year ($4.99 per month), but you can access about a third of their content without paying any subscription fee. After using the app, you might find the subscription very worthwhile for access to morning offerings, sleep meditations and acoustic worship music, along with other locked content. Go to your App store and download this prayer resource!
An App for Prayer!
Laudate is the all-inclusive buffet of Catholic apps, and it is completely free! It includes the daily readings, the Liturgy of the Hours, the Order of the Mass, the rosary, Stations of the Cross and links to live Catholic media. It also includes the entire New American Bible and the Catechism!
It would be helpful to use Laudate before or during Mass to read explanations about the priest’s actions, or before confession for an examination of conscience. If you are interested in learning about the saints, Laudate also offers thorough information about the saints on each of their feast days. Laudate is the very essence of a prayer app. Go to your App store and download this prayer resource!
An App for Prayer!
Pray As You Go is a free app that offers a refuge from information overload. It provides one practical prayer session per day and each prayer session includes introductory music, the day’s Gospel reading and a reflection. A ministry of the British Jesuits, the prayers are written by Jesuits and others trained in Ignatian spirituality. The 10 to 13 minute audio sessions encourage you to consider moments throughout the day where you found or could look for God’s presence, and they fit easily into a daily walk or commute.
Pray as You Go also offers reflections on specific struggles like loneliness and addiction. You can find audio retreats for married couples, health care workers, and people spending time in nature and other groups or situations. These series provide space to step out of day-to-day life and into a deeper prayer experience. Go to your App store and download this prayer resource!
A website for daily prayer!
Sacred Space (https://www.sacredspace.ie ) is a free prayer website created by the Irish Jesuits. The site is updated daily, guiding users through a ten-minute session of prayer centered on a passage of scripture. If you click on the bottom of the site, More Sacred Space, you will find Praying with the Pope, Retreats, Commentaries, and Novenas. Click HERE.