Story here.

Coming to the U.S. on June 1.  Timely message about religious (and therefore, any) freedom.

This is what Obama is making for the U.S. in the future.

Catholics will not bend our knee to Thugs like him.

It’s the same government thugs. Just different era.

Vivo Cristo Rey!

VERY timely movie to come out now with the assault on the Catholic Church and religious liberty…

WASHINGTON – In the upcoming movie “For Greater Glory,” Catholic actor Andy Garcia plays a Mexican Revolution-era general lured out of retirement a decade later to head the insurgent “Cristero” forces doing battle against their own government’s severe curbing of religious freedoms, which included the murder of priests, the desecration of churches, and laws designed to reduce the visibility of the Catholic Church in the overwhelmingly Catholic country….more

Past blog post on this film here. 

(This movie has subsequently changed its name from Cristiada to For Greater Glory.)

CAT. CHAT LIVE FAMILY CONCERT @ John Paul II School
1500 Beaverpond Drive, Ottawa, ON

Sat. April 28th, 2012
Concert at 1:00 PM Doors open at 12:30 PM

Ticket prices:
In advance $7/person $25/family
At the door: $10/person $35/family Children 2 and under free

Contact:
Jane Prini 613-741-3828 or Matthew.Dineen@ottawacatholicschools.ca
Visit; www.Catchat.ca for trailer of show.

Check out this great interview here.

I loved the Dukes of Hazzard when I was growing up.

8:00PM, Friday nights. With Roscoe P. Coltrane.

More here with Couter and Boss Hog.

God Is Good Flash Mob – Vancouver, Canada from yabbadabbadoo on GodTube.

Video interview with Little Drummer Boy.

Online.

Must see film for men.

In Ottawa, SiverCity in Gloucester is showing it.

Fathers!  Listen to the message:  step up and answer the call.

Go and watch it.  Support Christian films hitting the mainstream.

Every year, my parish has a “Vacation Bible School” for the kids of the parish in the first week of July.  The “school” covers more than just the bible, of course.  The kids learn about the faith through 5 different ”stations”:  Music, Snack, Craft, Activity, and Faith along with a Drama skit at the beginning of the day.  The week long school runs in the mornings from Tuesday – Friday, and it’s staffed with plenty of volunteers to manage the 50 kids who are enrolled this year.  I decided to stay awhile before going to work yesterday since I loved being there so much.   Below are a few pictures of Day 1 of the VBS.  The first one is a picture of the opening “prayer song” at the beginning of the day.  You’ll notice our pastor, Fr. Tim Devine, on key boards in the background and Seminarian Brian Sabourin on guitar.  At the Music station, the kids will help learn about the Faith from the Donut Man (a convert to the Catholic Faith from Evangelical protestantism).  I have to admit that in burning some of his songs on CDs as part of the registration package for the kids (legally of course), I am becoming a secret fan of his music.  He’s just so darn happy, it’s infectious!  If you play the music enough, you start to become optimistic and happy yourself.  I think I have found some medicine when I get too depressed when blogging or reading the news.  Second pic below is my Emmie with her chocolate, edible rosary. Third pic is the artistic abilities of the kids at the Craft Station in constructing their holy water fonts (plastic cup on wooden base).

And remember everyone, just like the Donut Man says,

Life without God’s love is like a donut ’cause there’s a hole in the middle of your heart.

Long ago there was an old patriarch who wandered about the desert with his kinfolk and their flocks of sheep and their herds of goats. They led a simple life, but God always provided for them. They would graze in one place while the grass was green, and then they would move on to new pastures.  Read the rest of this entry »

No, this isn't the Middle East

Fortunately for Ottawa, the Senators won’t be making the Stanley Cup finals anytime soon.

The only thing worse than an anarchist is a drunk anarchist. They’ll use any excuse to rouse a crowd into madness.

As I write this, my eyes are stinging, my is throat sore, having breathed in some sort of dispersal chemical that police deployed — in desperation, and perhaps too late. There could be some residual effect from having inhaled acrid, toxic smoke from burning cars, exploding cars, destroyed by lunatics still running crazy on the city’s downtown streets.

Blood in our streets. I saw people on the ground, bleeding. Shattered glass everywhere. Police cars set alight. Major bridges are now closed, preventing public access into the downtown core. Transit is plugged up, there’s no way out. More police and fire crews are arriving, from the suburbs, but again, it seems too late.

And as I write this, the sun has just set. Vancouver, what a disgrace.

Read the rest of this article here.

It was nice to see the Vancouver fans in the arena tonight give a loud applause to the Bruins following their win.

They generously applauded Tim Thomas when he hoisted the Connie Smythe trophy (very much deserved). They also applauded the Bruins players as they circled the ice with the Stanley Cup.

Well done, fans. True sportsmanship, class and dignity.

That’s how you do it.

That said, some fans outside the arena have not been so classy. As I write these lines, they had already overturned a car and set it on fire. I pray that it doesn’t get any worse. Let’s not let those losers spoil the moment.

Congrats to the Bruins and also to the Canucks for a great season and playoff run.

These first-rate Catholic movies are popping up everywhere. Thanks be to God.

I’m not a big hip hop fan, but I can recognize the beauty in that form of art. Once in a while, a really good hip hop song is released that appeals to many people who aren’t into hip hop. A recent example of such a song was Background, by an artist named Lecrae. The  song also features a singer that goes by the name C-Lite, who sings the refrain.

Although the song has a catchy refrain, what really caught my attention was the depth of the lyrics. Background is the humble plea of a music star who is begging God to not allow him to become prideful and self-absorbed amid his growing fame. He wants God to remain the centre of his life, while he stays in the background.

Read the rest of this entry »

Jason Jones, the producer of the wonderful film Bella, is putting the finishing touches on a new film called Cristiada. You can watch the trailer below. John and I had the honour of dining with Jason during a recent visit to Ottawa in early May.

The movie relates one of the saddest episodes in Mexico’s history, when the communist government was trying to exterminate the Catholic Church from the country in the 1920s. The persecution was severe and many Catholics were killed.  Some courageous Catholics fought back, however. Known as Cristeros, they had few weapons but lots of heart.  Their rally cry was Viva Cristo Rey! (Long live Christ the King!).  The resulting civil war is known as the Cristiada.  Both the words Cristeros and Cristiada and derived from Cristo, the Spanish word for Christ. Read the rest of this entry »