The CatholiCity Message
Volume XX, Number 6 – June 15, 2016
Why You Are Reading This Today
Dear CatholiCity Citizen,
Today I have a dynamic new free CD, "Knowing Jesus," the date for my pilgrimage to bring your written intentions to the Vatican, plus a blast from the past.
You Definitely Do NOT Have to Get This
A Catholic priest gave a talk about Jesus in front of a packed evangelical Protestant Church. Fr. John Riccardo blew them away. His talk is our new CD, Knowing Jesus.
At Mass less than an hour ago (where I pray for you every day) and during my Rosary afterward I calmly asked Jesus to let me know what He wanted me to write to you about this new CD.
What came to me, in gentle peacefulness, was unexpected. He wanted me to emphasize that you do not have to order this new CD. And his goal was not some kind of reverse psychology. It was a peaceful reminder of the original charism He and his mother gave me in October of 1991 when He "downloaded" the principles of the Mary Foundation—free stuff, using technology, imitating St. Maximilian Kolbe—into my heart and floored me with a vision of many millions of people being changed forever by our free materials.
And together we reached millions because you and people like you who also care about souls were sent to us by Jesus, gave away the materials, and donated the money to pay for it all. Unlike other Catholic apostolates (which are great and which I support), you do the real work. Our mission depends on Jesus sending you to us to do the work. I am not kidding when I tell you that I do practically nothing here: we make the stuff and you give it others.
Which means that to some mysterious degree, you have the charism I received. Please use it. Ask Jesus if He wants you to get our new CD. Be free, my beloved brothers and sisters. Jesus started all of this. He is why you are reading this Message today. And Jesus is the subject of this amazing talk by a modern-day St. John Vianney from Michigan.
So no matter how excited I am to offer this unique tool for evangelization, I am never going to tell you that you have to get our new CD. Maybe Jesus wants you to take a pass. Maybe He wants you to send a donation so others can give the CD away. You decide.
Ordering online takes just a few minutes. Order in bulk (by cases of 100 CDs) here. If you prefer ordering by mail, cool. You can print out this form. Donations are appreciated but optional. Here's the address if you want to send an old-fashioned letter (which we love):
The Mary Foundation
(Knowing Jesus CD)
PO Box 26101
Fairview Park OH 44126
Easy Ordering on Your Smartphone or Tablet
You may have noticed we recently launched a new version of our website—the first in over a decade—and we spent the most effort in making online ordering using your smartphone or tablet super-easy. If you're reading this on your phone or device, give it a try.
I added a helpful listing of suggestions for distributing "Knowing Jesus" and our other CDs after my signature below. Thank you so much.
Bringing Your Petitions to Rome on July 14
Last year I went to Fatima with thousands of your petitions on print-out. These are still there, in a secret hidden place, just a few steps from where Our Lady appeared to those little children.
As I mentioned in my last Message, this year I am going to hand-carry your petitions to Rome on Thursday, July 14, Feast of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, our beloved North American saint.
After that miserably long flight I will head directly to the Vatican. I will walk into Saint Peter's, go to Confession, attend Mass, and receive Communion with you in my heart. Then I am going to pray a full Rosary and Divine Mercy Chaplet for your intentions as physically close to the remains of Saint Peter as humanly possible. I am going to do something that hurts my body (have not decided what yet). I am going to put everything I have into it, with good cheer, of course, because I'm a big lovable lug. But I mean to be focused and serious about your intentions. No sightseeing or tourist stuff. I'll send you a report and photos.
And your prayers will be answered—some with astounding miracles. Your prayers are already beginning to be answered because God dwells in the fullness of time and already knows how this will all play out.
You can start sending me your petitions now by using this online form. (Although I always love hearing from you about the CatholiCity Message, we received many thousands of petitions for Fatima last year, so please use the online form and do not reply to this email with your petitions. This also keeps them private.)
I give you my word: we won't read any petitions and will keep each one confidential (including destroying all electronic copies after print-out). Pour out your heart. Think of whatever it is you and the people you love need most. Then ask for even more. Be bold!
If you live in Italy, meet me there. I am also hoping the rest of you will join me by going to a Marian Shrine within driving distance of your home or even at you own church if you have no other options on July 14. The interwebs should help you find a shrine.
I'll have an update in the next CatholiCity Message. Next up is a Blast from the Past first published in my May 2007 Message:
When in Doubt, Laminate
One way to help your school-aged children memorize and pray morning prayers is to print out the prayers of your choice on a small piece of paper, laminate enough copies for all your children, then keep these "cards" on the breakfast table. (We put the boys' daily vitamins on the card.) Most Catholic adults have memorized the Nicean Creed, but it still helps us to read it along as we recite it at Sunday Mass. The same principle applies for our children. You can find the full text of some excellent morning prayers at this link, but here are a few prayers I recommend (for kids and adults alike):
- Morning Offering
- Saint Michael Prayer
- Act of Contrition
- Miraculous Medal Prayer
- Guardian Angel Prayer
Quotes from 2007 CatholiCity Messages
We must love them both: those whose opinions we share and those whose opinions we reject. For both have labored in the search for truth and both have helped us in the finding of it.
– Saint Thomas Aquinas
It is not enough that you suffer with the Church, or for the Church; no, faith requires that you must suffer from the Church.
– Fr. Sertillanges, French Dominican
There are therefore three states or steps of truth. We ascend to the first by the toil of humility, to the second by the emotion of compassion, and the third by the ecstasy of contemplation.
– Saint Bernard
All truth wherever it is found belongs to us as Christians.
– Saint Justin Martyr
I heard an old story long ago, and I have forgotten everything else in it, except for a part wherein a farmer and his teenaged daughter are walking down a dirt path in the summertime next to a wind-flowing field of golden wheat. She was talking to him about her decision to become a nun. He stopped walking, turned to her, then took her hands into his own. He told her something along these lines: You will learn in a short time what always takes a long time here in the world. You cannot have God and not have truth, and that you cannot have either without silence and simplicity.
– Joe Wood
Some Upcoming Catholic Feast Days
- Sunday, June 19. Father's Day. Okay, not a feast day. Still, not a bad day to pray to Saint Joseph.
- Wednesday, June 29. Ss Peter and Paul, Apostles. So different, yet so manly, those two.
- Friday, July 1, Canada Day. Okay, not a feast day, but not a bad day to pray to Saint Joseph, patron of our beloved brothers and sisters up north.
- Wednesday, July 6, Saint Maria Goretti, Virgin and Martyr. So start your novena on June 28 (no special prayer needed—God is not a bureaucrat).
Praying Not Twittering
I was going to tell you the true story of how I invented an analog version of Twitter at Notre Dame in 1983 and how everybody loved it and how it became horrible for my soul, but this Message is already long enough. Next time. I promise. Let us all, tens of thousands of us, recollect ourselves (and old Catholic term, meaning, to shoo distractions and concentrate on connecting with God, avoiding just mouthing the words...), in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit...
Soul of Christ, make me holy
Body of Christ, be my salvation
Blood of Christ, let me drink your wine
Water flowing from the side of Christ, wash me clean
Passion of Christ, strengthen me
Kind Jesus, hear my prayer
Hide me within your wounds
And keep me close to you
Defend me from the evil enemy
And call me at the hour of my death
To the fellowship of your saints
That I might sing your praise with them for all eternity. Amen.
And...amen. I love you guys. You're the best.
With Immaculate Mary,
Bud Macfarlane
Founder
Evangelizing with CDs
- Place a free CD display at every exit of your church.
- Don't forget Protestant churches in your area.
- Supplement parish ministries (RCIA, Bible Studies, etc.) with CDs.
- Order bulk quantities online or by mail (50% discount).
- Order sets of all of our titles for priests, parish educators, etc.
- Insert this flyer into your church bulletin.
- Donate a space ad for your church bulletin.
- Offer CDs at conferences, weddings, and sporting events.
- Keep several sets of CDs in your car.
- Ideal for Catholic retailers, parish bookstores, and libraries.
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