As an additional bonus for this year's Year End Issue, see Best of 2003 for outstanding literary contributions from each writer this past year.
Please don't be a scrooge this Christmas. Please give for the love of the Lord and His flock! Please! So that we may ramp up our efforts to reach more souls in 2004. Throughout these past years we have endeavored to bring you the unmitigated Truths and Traditions of what Holy Mother Church truly teaches in sorting the wheat from the chaff that interferes so with souls and peace of mind. So many are confused because of the whole blind obedience issue that prompts the vast majority of Catholics to follow a false religion and a blasphemous rite, veering from what was professed for nearly two millennia. If you agree that The Daily Catholic is necessary to provide proof of this and help convert the lost, we would greatly appreciate any donation you can afford. If you are in the Christmas giving mood or need to make a year-end donation for tax purposes, we stand ready and grateful for whatever you can send. Send your checks or money orders to: The Daily Catholic 46 Hummingbird Lane Kimberling City, MO 65686
All donations to The Daily Catholic are tax deductible. If you have any questions, call us at 417-230-0273. God bless you for your generosity and active role in saving more souls, a guiding light to the lost.
From Michael and Cyndi Cain... At this time of year, the refrain so often heard in this society - so overwhelmed by the wave of commercialism - is 'what do you get somebody who has everything?' Well, we thought about that. What could we, who are so materially poor, give to those who have so many temporal things that would be valuable, precious, yes, even priceless? Lo and behold, through the trials of suffering, the answer came from Our Lord to Cyndi
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From Fr. Louis Campbell...
A Blessed and Holy Christmas to All! This year more than ever we must announce to the world our faith in Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, Who alone can give peace to the world. While His Holy Name is being deleted even from Christmas carols, and "the princes conspire together against the Lord and against His Anointed" (Ps.2:2), we must shout from every rooftop: "Jesus Christ is the King to Whom the Father said: 'I will give you the nations of the earth for an inheritance and the ends of the earth for your possession'" (Ps.2:8). May all with fear and trembling rejoice before Him (Ps.2:11), and may every tongue proclaim, to the glory of God the Father: Jesus Christ is Lord! (Phil.2:11). Fr. Louis
From Ed Ciaccio...
With all the symbolism and meaning bandied about this time of year, above all Christmas means family, especially the greatest role model we have - the Holy Family. Yet it is sometimes lost on us as we wrap the gifts and buy the food and spirits, trying to make it the merriest Christmas ever. Christ's Mass is the mass of the nativity of Christ, it commemorates His incarnation in a cold and snowy and windswept manger under the care of His parents Mary and Joseph, through the power of the Holy Ghost, with Joseph being His foster father. At Christmas it would be prudent to remember the words of continued
From Mario Derksen...
Those who know me privately know that I love children very much. It comes perhaps as no surprise to them that my favorite devotional title of our Blessed Lord, Jesus Christ, is the Divine Infant. Our Blessed Lord has countless different titles. He is the Messias, the Redeemer, the Son of Man, the Sun of Righteousness, the King of kings and Lord of lords. He is the Word Made Flesh, the Revelation of the Father, the Holy Savior. He is the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Prince of Peace. continued
From Dr. Thomas A. Droleskey...
The angels announced news of great joy to the rugged shepherds who were tending their sheep near Bethlehem on the night Our Divine Redeemer was born for us of His Most Blessed Mother. They announced these words from the Gospel of Luke 2: 14, which have been so misconstrued in modern times: "Glory to God in the highest, and peace to men of good will." The peace of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is not the peace of this passing world. Our Lord specifically told us that He continued
From Gabriel Garnica...
Our senses have received their yearly assault of clamoring bells, ringing cash registers, bright greeting cards, and clamoring commercials demanding, nay, imploring us to purchase "the perfect present". Once again this most serene and beautiful of Holydays has seen its y turned into an i. The yearly tradition that is Christmas has turned into a yearly excuse to drown out the peace, love, and glory of that Bethlehem long ago with materialism, stress, and commercialism. continued
From Atila Sinke Guimarães...
The treasure of the traditional piety surrounding Christmas is immeasurable. I dug a bit into it and found some thoughts of St. Ignatius of Loyola that I adapt to our days. St. Ignatius showed that the birth of the Divine Word in the Manger of Bethlehem signified the defeat of the egoism of man. He said that the self-love of men could be divided into three major types of idolatry: the love of wealth above everything; the love of pleasures above continued
From Dr. Marian Therese Horvat...
One of the great joys for Christmas for me each Advent is setting up my Christmas crèche scene. I always admired the richly dressed crèche figures that are popular in many Latin countries, and some years ago decided that I would try to have one of my own. I started humbly enough, with three clothed figures, St. Joseph with his brown felt robe and sheepskin cloak, Our Lady in a rich sapphire satin gown and burgundy brocade mantle, and continued
From Dr. Frank Joseph...
As we celebrate the Birthdate of our Savior, please pray for the souls of the 4,000 children in the United States, who are killed every day in their mother's womb -- that they are all cradled in the all powerful arms of God. They never had the chance to be born. Also, pray for the 51% of Catholics who vote for political candidates, who subscribe to the proposition that women should have the right to have their unborn child killed, if they so choose -- that they finally put God first and politics last. If these Catholics would vote for life -- just think, the American holocaust would soon be history and what a great present this would be for our Savior in future birthdays. God bless and Merry Christmas. Frank
From Catharine Lamb...
With joy we gather round the Crib; filled with His warmth, despite the cold; secure, in His love, despite the instability of the world. It is in the gift of a tiny Babe that we rejoice, no matter the noise and clatter of a society entangled in mistletoe, ribbons and pretty colored paper. As the end of another year approaches, I am reminded of the many blessings I have received through the Traditional Roman Rite of the Mass. To grow in holiness and virtue, to be challenged to live a Godly life, to be continued
From Jacob Michael...
As the Holy Feast of Christmas approaches, I wanted to offer you a few thoughts to assist in your Advent preparations for this great holy-day. This sort of more "pastoral" or "homiletic" approach is somewhat different from my usual apologetic/polemic approach, so I trust you'll bear with me. As I sifted through the various texts of Sacred Scripture that I might use as my springboard text, it slowly became clear to me that I could have the best of all worlds if I just used the Rosary itself as my guide. continued
From Father Al Svobodny, OMI...
The years have been kind to me but, in my autumn ones, my eyesight has grown poorer due to Macular Degeneration. Therefore, I am not able to write very often and have difficulty reading as well. May I wish you all the blessings of the New Born Savior and please pray for the spiritual success of this wonderful apostolate of The Daily Catholic. Always remember the true Reason for the Season. May the Christ Child bless you abundantly this Christmas and all through the coming year of 2004. That is my wish, my hope, my prayer. Fr. Al
Meaning of the Twelve Days of Christmas
The "Twelve Days of Christmas" were actually a secret catechism code sung by Roman Catholics after the Reformation in countries such as in England and during the French Revolution where they were not allowed to practice their Faith. To communicate with fellow Catholics and truly celebrate the Birth of Jesus Christ as the Savior in the Catholic tradition without fear of reprisal, they formed this "carol" which represented "religious reality" in symbols. The day is coming when loyal Catholics may have to revert to such a code once more to uphold the Truths and Traditions of Holy Mother Church. For their meanings, see Twelve Days of Christmas.
The Angel Choir
Derek Becher provides a special poem first published last year in The Daily Catholic
While cradled in His Mother's arms,
With lowly sounds from creatures near,
And father Joseph watching humbly
In a cave, with mild revere,
The infant Jesus - from a manger -
Rests with shepherds watching nigh,
And smiles, slightly, to the sounds
Of angels singing praise, nearby.
He's lulled to sleep with lullabies
Of sweet and gentle harmony,
As angels from the star above
Exalt the Child with melodies.
'Twas the Night of the Clutter'
With apologies to Clement Moore we present our annual 33-stanza parody of his traditional poem "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" to show that nothing is traditional anymore in the post-conciliar Church; very little is still Catholic. We also hope, through this traditional parody, you will understand more fully why, if you have not already, you must abandon the Novus Ordo and return fully to the bosom of Holy Mother Church and all she taught for nearly two millennia prior to the disaster known as the Second Vatican Council. We tell the story in 'Twas the Night of the Clutter!
Traditio
Father Moderator separates the wheat from the chaff with no-holds barred candidness in keeping the faithful abreast daily with feedback and comments of all that is happening in the Church today. Besides the best available list of Latin Masses throughout the country, Father tells it like it is, never pulling punches in punching holes in all the charade that is the Vatican II church as you'll see in Traditio.com
Announcement: We return to publishing Daily beginning January 1, 2004!
See you January 1st. Happy New Year!
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