Fr. Barron on the Queenship of Mary
In his newest video commentary, Fr. Robert Barron unveils the biblical basis for the Queenship of Mary, which stems from Revelation 12:
"A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars." (Rev 12:1)
Do Catholics worship idols?
In their newest video, Spirit Juice Studios and Fr. Pontifex use art and spoken-word poetry to answer a common question: do Catholics worship idols?
"We gave this video the title of "Idol Worship" because many times that is exactly what Catholics are accused of without really knowing what we believe. This video is an attempt to creatively give expression to what the Catholic Church teaches about the Communion of Saints and our relationship with Mary the Mother of Jesus our savior.
We are not idol worshipers. Catholics know very clearly who they worship and that is one God in three persons; the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. We do honor the saints including Mary and we believe that through Jesus Christ we are connected, we have a communion."
"Because when the hero is here, all is well."
Last year Jen Fulwiler asked a groups of bloggers to reflect on the "Our Father" prayer one phrase at a time (I had "Art" and "As It Is").
"My third grade basketball team had just one superstar, and his name was Deon.
The rest of us were a goofy mix of driveway legends and playground wanna-be’s, but Deon was the real deal. He had a Herculean 4’9” frame and skills honed on the notoriously rough courts of suburban Orlando.
With Deon at the helm, our whole season was a breeze. He led us in scoring each game as we collected win after win, sailing smoothly into the playoffs.
There things got a little more challenging. The first playoff game came down to the wire, yet Deon’s late-game heroics produced a win. The next game was even tighter. But once again, channeling his inner Jordan, Deon willed us to victory.
But the third game was different. It was about five minutes before tipoff, and the whole team stood in a huddle. Everyone was quiet—even the coach. We exchanged nervous glances as we all noticed the same thing.
Deon wasn’t there."
"That image converted an entire nation…"
Yesterday was one of the greatest Marian feast days in the Church calendar, the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. What's amazing about this icon, besides its mysterious origin, is the fact that this one image effectively converted almost all of Central America from barbaric paganism to Christianity.
Listen to Fr. Robert Barron (who else?) explain its significance.
Yesterday, our parish had a vibrant, 4:00am Mass to celebrate the feast. I didn't make it, but I heard the worship was loud and vibrant and was followed by singing, dancing, and the characteristic passion of our Spanish-speaking community.
It's hard to explain how much this event means to Latin American Catholics. To get a sense, head over to The Frame, a photo blog operated by the Sacramento Bee. They have a great photo essay of pilgrims making their way to Mexico City to celebrate the feast.
See all the pictures at The Frame.
(Image Credit: Our Lady of Guadalupe from Wikipedia)
