How the Liturgy is Healing Medicine for Strident Times

07-25-2021Weekly ReflectionFr. Charlie Goraieb

It is hard to describe our times as anything but contentious. Loud, strident protests often predominate over reasoned discourse and thoughtful argumentation.

To be sure, every era has had, and has needed, protest and public opposition to injustice. There is a time and a place for loud protest and the use of memorable sound bites.

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The Eucharist and the Parts of the Mass—Part 1

07-25-2021Fr. Charlie's Homilies & Teaching NotesFr. Charlie

According to a recent poll, 1/3 of Catholics who go to Mass weekly don’t believe in the real presence of the Eucharist.

We can ask what was the wording of the questions on the survey? When a Catholic responded that the Eucharist was a “symbol,” did he or she understand the theological distinction? In other words, the respondent may have answered symbol, but meant the real presence even if they couldn’t express it precisely.

But allowing for all of that, the report is very distressing.

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The Virtue of Obedience

07-23-2021Recommended ResourcesRetired Archbishop Chaput

We live in a turbulent time; a time that’s similar, in some ways, to the various Reformations of 500 years ago. History, of course, doesn’t repeat itself. History is a creation of unique and unrepeatable people. So the gulf between Europe in 1521 and our circumstances today, in 2021, is huge.

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Quotes from The Power of Silence by Robert Cardinal Sarah

07-22-2021Recommended Resources

Published by Ignatius Press in September 2018

“Although speech characterizes man, silence is what defines him, because speech acquires sense only in terms of this silence.”

“Solitude and silence are guests of the soul. The soul that possesses them carries them with it everywhere. The one that lacks them finds them nowhere. In order to re-enter silence, it is not enough to stop the movement of one’s lips and the movement of one’s thoughts. That is only being quiet. Being quiet is a condition for silence, but it is not silence."

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Prayer to Help Make Decisions

07-22-2021Recommended Resources

At one time or another we all are faced with difficult and important decisions. We know that we need God’s help and grace to make the right choice. Here is a prayer by Pope St John Paul II that articulates our plea for guidance. You might want to cut it out and put it in your bible or book of prayers.

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Grandparents

07-18-2021Weekly ReflectionFr. Charlie Goraieb

Attention all Grandparents: Next Sunday is YOUR day. In May we have Mothers’ Day, in June we have Fathers’ Day and now, thanks to Pope Francis’ recent declaration, each year on the fourth Sunday of July we will honor all Grandparents. The official name is World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly. The Pope chose that day because it is the closest Sunday to the Feast of Saints Joaquim and Ann, the parents of our Blessed Mother. This year it will fall on July 25th.

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Spiritual Warefare

07-11-2021Fr. Charlie's Homilies & Teaching NotesFr. Charlie

Today’s Gospel (Mark 6:7-13) tells us that, being sent out by Jesus, the apostles preached repentance, which led to driving out many demons and curing the sick. Their power and authority to do so came directly from Jesus, the Son of God who uses clay vessels like us, to show His love and His mercy for all mankind.

I want to focus on the driving out of demons. Many today think that the Devil is simply a medieval holdover that is either a mythological creation or (as I’ve read some critics of the Church say), is a ruse that the Church uses to maintain a hold on people.

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Bishop Olmsted Announces Lifting of the Dispensation of the Sunday and Holy Day Obligations, Effective July 1, 2021

07-10-2021Weekly ReflectionBishop Olmsted

June 6, 2021 – The Feast of The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
In the Gospel of Saint John, the Lord Jesus tells us, “If you love me, keep my commands.” Participation in Mass on Sundays is one of the most practical ways Catholics respond to the Lord’s love.

Therefore I wish to announce the restoration of the obligation for Sunday and holy day Masses in the Diocese of Phoenix, effective July 1, 2021. On this day we commemorate Saint Junipero Serra, the great missionary and evangelist. He is a shining example of the Church’s mission to announce the joy of the Gospel to all the nations.

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Homecoming

07-02-2021Weekly ReflectionFr. Charlie Goraieb

Dear Friends,
With this, my inaugural letter, I greet all of you on my first weekend at Our Lady of Mount Carmel. If you were able to attend Mass this weekend, you heard me say that being here is very much home-coming. This was my parish when I first moved to the Valley in 1983. Msgr. McCready guided and encouraged me through my seminary years, and it was here that I celebrated my First Mass on June 2, 1991. I don’t wish to dwell on these sentimental realities, but they are a big part of my joy and my gratitude to Bishop Olmsted for allowing me to serve as your pastor.

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My Testimony

07-01-2021Weekly ReflectionFr. Charlie Goraieb

Forward

What follows is the story of my encounter with Jesus Christ and some of the ways in which that event has changed my life. I have two reasons for doing this. The first is to give glory and thanks to God for choosing me as a recipient of his love and forgiveness. It would also please me greatly if others reading this story should be inspired to allow God to do the same for them.

In telling the story I have selected those people and events that were most significant for me in this journey. There are many that I’ve omitted in order to move the narrative along. There were also some details that I have omitted because of good taste or because they were too painful to recount. But what follows is my story represented as accurately as my memory allows.

Fr Charlie Goraieb
January, 2007

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