NCR: New RISE Program: Men, Be Who You Are

The last 50 years have been hard on men and even harder on the idea of masculinity. One group of guys have decided to do something dramatic for themselves and for other men to reclaim their call as sons, brothers, husbands and fathers.

Posted on February 26, 2018 by Carrie Gress.

Introducting "Marian Consecration for Children"

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Two years ago, I tried to find a book like this for my own children. When I came up short, a priest friend suggested that I write this book. I drew from my experience as a homeschooling mom and my work on The Marian Option to bring together a book that will hopefully help children understand who Mary is and how much of a Mother she is to them.

Tan Books has further details available here.

It should be released in March. Stay tuned for more details about pre-ordering.

Posted on January 11, 2018 by Carrie Gress.

NCR: Beware of the Poisoned Apple of Feminist Ideology

Snow White, Cinderella, The Little Mermaid, Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty; these are the stories that have animated the imaginations of little girls for centuries. Popularized by Disney, different versions of these stories, particularly Cinderella, have crossed the divides of cultures and time throughout much of history. There are many lessons that can be extracted from such fairy tales, but the primary issue is the timeless vice of envy.

Posted on December 19, 2017 by Carrie Gress.

NCR: School Shootings, C.S. Lewis and the War on Children

I've recently been reading children's books from bygone eras and marvel at the freedom the children had to be away from their parents. In All of a Kind Family, by Sydney Taylor, the five daughters navigate their 1910 neighborhood of New York City without giving their mother the slightest concern. I can't even navigate Gymboree without that kind of freedom. What has changed?

Posted on December 7, 2017 by Carrie Gress.

Want Good Fruit, Start with the Soil

By Carrie Gress, Ph.D.

By nick v from washington dc (Flickr) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Dirt is making a comeback. For decades, farmers and consumers took it for granted, but now people are realizing how vital it is for healthy crops and healthy humans.

Joel Salatin may not be a household name, but he is a man that knows a lot about farming. Called the world’s most innovative farmer by TIME magazine, Salatan has been featured in books and films like The Omnivore’s Dilemma, and Food, Inc. for his practices that are changing the way people think about food. While his approach may seem radical (such as, no antibiotics, no growth hormones), his farming practices emphasize working with nature instead of against it. And all of it starts with soil. Salatin, like most farmers, know that soil health is crucial. “Stimulating soil biota is our first priority,” says Salatin, “Soil health creates healthy food." Farmers are relearning how “to foster what nature grants.”

Like Salatan, one farmer-turned-priest took his Midwestern know-how and applied it to the idea of growing vocations. Instead of starting with young men directly, this priest went to the heart of where vocations are born; he went to the soil. He first started a women’s Bible study; then a couple’s prayer group; then a men’s group, then a father and son group; a mother daughter group; and finally, he started a group for young men and women to discern their vocations. This farmer-priest knew he had to start at the source - with women. Not surprisingly, his efforts yielded great fruit. He fostered what nature grants.

What is interesting about this is to consider that if women and mothers are the real "soil" of the family, of communities, then what does the devil have to do to get to everyone? Take "the soil" out at the knees. And how have we seen this happen? Convince "the soil" to sterilize herself, or terminate anything that starts to grow. And eventually, everything else rots, or doesn't grow as it should.

Like farmers around the world, people are beginning to realize that there really is something important about soil.

Posted on December 1, 2017 by Carrie Gress.

NCR: Have Women You Love Left the Faith? Here’s Why

I recently spoke on Catholic Answers about Mary and the modern woman. A man called in asking about his daughter, saying that although he homeschooled her and taught her the catechism, at 17, she now had little regard for the Church. It was clear he was struggling with how he had failed her. Based on what he told me, this concerned dad was not the problem.

Posted on November 20, 2017 by Carrie Gress.

ANGELUS: In a Chaotic World, a Simple Solution: The Rosary

In our complex modern world, our problems look terribly complicated, so it is easy to assume that their solutions must be equally complex. The Marian option might appear to be simple — perhaps too simple — but simplicity is not the same as superficiality. Many things that seem simple can be incredibly powerful, efficacious and surprisingly profound. The love between a mother and her children is one of these things. We understand this on a human level. How much greater it must be when Mary — the Mother of God — is also our mother.

Posted on October 4, 2017 by Carrie Gress.

NCR: Catholicism Brings Order to Your Soul, But Only If You Let It

Most people living outside of deep faith have a negative perception of what it means to be a Catholic: strict, stuck in past, rigid, medieval, and hypocritical are some the kinder terms often used. Others use more unprintable descriptions that generally say more about those who have been unfaithful to Church teaching than faithful to it. Sadly, the view from the outside is dramatically different than the view from the inside.

Posted on September 29, 2017 by Carrie Gress.

Litany of Light in Spanish: Letanías de la Luz

Dr. Luis Del Valle in Guatemala has kindly translated the Litany of Light into Spanish.

Letanías de la Luz

V. Señor, ten piedad de nosotros.

R. Cristo, ten piedad de nosotros.

V. Señor, ten piedad de nosotros. Cristo, escúchanos.

R. Cristo, escúchanos con gracia.

Dios, Padre celestial, Ten piedad de nosotros

Dios, Hijo, Redentor del mundo, Ten piedad de nosotros

Dios, Espíritu Santo, Ten piedad de nosotros.

Trinidad Santa que sois un solo Dios, Ten piedad de nosotros.

Cristo, Luz del Mundo, escúchanos.

Santa Madre de Dios, ruega por nosotros.

Madre del Nuevo Amanecer, ruega por nosotros.

Santísima Trinidad, fuente de toda luz, ilumina la oscuridad en nuestro mundo.

A las mentes de aquellos que están oscurecidos por el pecado, tráeles tu luz.

A los corazones de los que están atrapados por la pornografía, tráeles tu luz.

A aquellos que sufren depresión o enfermedad mental, tráeles tu luz.

A las almas esclavizadas por el abuso de sustancias, tráeles tu luz.

A aquellos que están sobrecargados por la atracción por el mismo sexo, tráeles tu luz.

A aquellos dominados por la ansiedad y el miedo, tráeles tu luz.

A los corazones de los que lloran, tráeles tu luz.

A las almas y cuerpos de los abusadores y los abusados, tráeles tu luz.

A aquellos que no tienen lugar para llamar a casa, tráeles tu luz.

A los que intentan matar en el nombre de Dios, tráeles tu luz.

A las clínicas de aborto, tráeles tu luz.

A los burdeles y lugares de tráfico humano, tráeles tu luz.

A los hospitales, farmacias y residencias de ancianos, tráeles tu luz.

A las aulas donde se propaga desesperación, confusión y falsedad, tráeles tu luz.

A las calles violentas e infestadas de drogas, tráeles tu luz.

A territorios devastados por la guerra, tráeles tu luz.

A las tierras oscurecidas, inundadas o destruidas por desastres naturales, tráeles tu luz.

Dondequiera que haya confusión, desesperación, soledad e ira, tráeles tu luz.

San José, ruega por nosotros.

Santa María Magdalena, ruega por nosotros.

Santa Lucía, ruega por nosotros.

San Agustín, ruega por nosotros.

Santa Hildegarda de Bingen, ruega por nosotros.

Santa Clara, ruega por nosotros.

San Alberto Magno, ruega por nosotros.

Santo Tomás de Aquino, ruega por nosotros.

San Buenaventura, ruega por nosotros.

Todos los coros de los ángeles, rueguen por nosotros.

María, Luz en la oscuridad, ruega por nosotros.

V. Luz del Mundo, que quitas los pecados del mundo,

R. perdónanos, Señor.

V. Luz del Mundo, que quitas los pecados del mundo,

R. Escúchanos con gracia, Señor.

V. Luz del Mundo, que quitas los pecados del mundo,

R. ten piedad de nosotros, Señor.

Amen

Imprimatur: The Most Reverend Liam Cary, Bishop of Baker, Oregon

Posted on September 27, 2017 by Carrie Gress.

NCR: This Litany is a Remedy for the Darkness of the World

So there in the darkness in the wee hours of the night, the thought hit me that even if I can’t go to these places and help, I could ask the Source of all light to go to them. I realized that I could send Christ to illuminate the very dark corners of the earth. The Litany of Light below is the fruit of these meager prayers.

Posted on September 25, 2017 by Carrie Gress.

NCR: We All Suffer, but Not All Suffering is the Same

Recently, on EWTN’s Franciscan University Presents, Regis Martin and Scott Hahn said lovely things about an analysis on suffering that I’d written in my book Nudging Conversions. “Where did you steal that?“ Martin asked, with a smile on his face.

Surprised by his question, I gave credit for the idea to the Holy Spirit. It was a framework I’d come to see suffering through over many years and sort of thought it was obvious. But as I learned from Martin and Hahn that day, it isn’t as obvious as I thought.

Recently, on EWTN’s Franciscan University Presents, Regis Martin and Scott Hahn said lovely things about an analysis on suffering that I’d written in my book Nudging Conversions. “Where did you steal that?“ Martin asked, with a smile on his face.

Surprised by his question, I gave credit for the idea to the Holy Spirit. It was a framework I’d come to see suffering through over many years and sort of thought it was obvious. But as I learned from Martin and Hahn that day, it isn’t as obvious as I thought.

Posted on September 12, 2017 by Carrie Gress.

NCR: Women Don’t Need to Look Far to Know God’s Will

There is a deep chasm today between the cultural understanding of woman and the Church’s model of the ideal woman, the Virgin Mary. The gap between the two is so wide that it is almost laughable to suggest in secular circles that Mary isn’t an obstacle but a guide to true happiness. How, then, can we narrow this gulf? How can we recapture Mary as a model?

Posted on September 8, 2017 by Carrie Gress.

The Federalist: The Patriarchy Has Been Replaced By A Stifling Matriarchy

We women appreciate that others work hard to provide us new selections every season. What we may not realize, however, is that the marketplace of ideas works like the fashion industry. Instead of elite designers, the political and social elite—the matriarchy—provide the parameters about what we think. Instead of skirt lengths and eye-shadow hues, they suggest intellectual trends that we scarcely know are being dictated to us through every possible avenue, from women’s magazines to popular daytime television and, especially, mainstream media.

Posted on September 7, 2017 by Carrie Gress.

NCR: You Can’t Be Both Pro-Choice and Anti-Racist

When pro-abortion rhetoric is replaced with pro-slavery concepts, it becomes quite clear that the arguments simply don’t hold water. Who among us would believe that you can both be for Black people and yet somehow think slavery is a good thing? And yet, millions each day are convinced that it is somehow okay to be pro-child and pro-choice while totally missing the logical inconsistency.

Posted on August 28, 2017 by Carrie Gress.

The Federalist: How Acting Like a Feminist Can Ruin Your Marriage

While it is tough to overlook real character flaws in men, a missing piece from these discussions is any consideration of the dramatic changes that have taken place in women over the last five decades. Perhaps females have become less marriageable? Women today are supposed to “be bold and assertive,” but could all this girl-power actually undermine our best efforts at finding marital bliss?

Posted on July 29, 2017 by Carrie Gress.