Wonderful Day

I can only get to Mass if someone takes me, due to the physical problems mentioned in an earlier post. Well, this morning Mom walked me to Church, and picked me up after Mass. She's going to do so every week, weather permitting. {We walked home in a lovely sun shower.}
There was no music, and we didn't even have the Alleluia before the Gospel {when there's no music, the Alleluia is optional}.
How shall I describe how I felt when I received Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, without sounding as if I'm exaggerating? But how can we exaggerate what happens in our souls when we receive Jesus, GOD, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity? Our huamn language is too limited; nobody can fully describe the wonder. All I can say is that, when I received the Eucharist this morning, I felt as if I were levitating.
Of course, I taped the Mass on EWTN to watch later today.

If There Had Been a Recorded Music Industry

Sometimes I like to speculate on what would have happened if there been a recorded music industry when David wrote what we now know and love as the 23rd Psalm. The recording company executives might have had the foresight to say, "Davy, baby, that's a hit!" Then again, they very well might have said, "Sorry, Dave, but that will never sell."

Triple R

No, that's not a reference to the "Spin and Marty" series on the original "Mickey Mouse Club. :) It stands,
in this instance, for "Reading, Relaxing, Reflecting." Actually, the order I put the words in doesn't matter all that much.
At some time every day, usually around one in the afternoon, I pause, and take time to go over the Bible readings from that day's Mass. I have coffee (not regular coffee, but one of the International Coffees; Suisse Mocha or Vienna Chocolate Cafe, or French Vanilla) or hot chocolate,
or what Bridget on "Another World" used to call "A nice cuppa tea" (regular, herbal, or jasmine).
Click here to see the mug I use.
I may or may not also have a light snack; perhaps a piece of fruit, a slice of
cake, a few cookies, or just a simple slice of bread and margarine, or jam, or cream cheese. Some breads, such as raisin bread or 12 grain bread, can be eaten plain.
I use two Bibles; the Ignatius Holy Bible, RSV Catholic Edition, for the readings, and the Catholic Women's Devotional Bible, for the devotions (if there are any). The reason I don't use the Catholic Women's Devotional Bible for the readings is that it uses the NRSV, which I don't care for very much.
I read, I sip, I nibble, I ponder, and I pray. Not formal prayers, not at this time. Just a loving talk with Jesus. Just a nice, quiet
break in my day.

Today's Bible Verse

For which is easier, to say
'Your sins are forgiven'
or to say 'Rise and walk'?
Matthew 9:5, RSV Catholic Edition

Today's Bible Verse

Today I've chosen the response from the Responsorial Psalm, because it fits my Twitter account picture so well. :)
O Lord, your mercy is before my eyes.

Today's Bible Verse

Hear, O LORD, and be gracious to me!
O LORD, be thou my helper!
Psalm 30:10 RSV Catholic Edition

Today's Bible Verse

How great is your name, O Lord
our God, through all the earth!
Psalm 8:1
{Taken from the Liturgy of the Hours, Saturday, Week IV, Morning Prayer}

Daily Bible Verse

Blessed are they who observe justice,
who do righteousness at all times!
Psalm 106:3 RSV Catholic Edition

Daily Bible Verse

For thou didst form my inmost parts; thou didst knit me together in my mother's womb.
Psalm 139:13, RSV Catholic Edition

Daily Bible Verse

I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your descendants also can be counted.
Genesis 13:16, RSV Catholic Edition

Daily Bible Verse

From today's readings
Our soul waits for the LORD;
he is our help and shield.

Psalm 33:20 RSV Catholic Edition

Interesting Article

In an as-yet unsuccessful search for the oldest chaplet used in Catholic devotions, I came across a very interesting article. Here is the link.
Use of Beads at Prayers
I think I'll post a query at the Catholic Answers site.

Adapting the "Glad Game"

This post is taken from a blog I write occasionally under another name. It is also published in my grab.com blog, "Hello! It's ExKidd!"For anyone unfamiliar with the Pollyanna books or movies,
{there have been several film adaptations}the idea of the Glad Game is to find something to be glad about when things go wrong, or if you don't like the situation you're in.
Hate Mondays? Well, according to Pollyanna, you can be glad because it'll be a whole week before you'd have another one. {In the Disney movie, "Monday" was changed to "Sunday.}
It's a good game as far as it goes. The problem however, is that before you can play it, there has to be something wrong. Pollyanna herself points this out in Pollyanna Grows Up.
"Always, before, there have been bad things for folks to play the game on, and the badder they are the more fun 'tis to get them out-find the things to be glad for, I mean. But where there aren't any bad things, I shouldn't know how to play the game myself."
So how did I adapt this game? Instead of looking for things to be glad about,I look for things to be thankful for. This is why I've named this blog "In All Things Give Thanks." In other words, thank God for WHATEVER happens, good or bad. This helps make the bad things seem not quite so bad. Even better, it helps me to notice the good things, the little, everyday blessings.

Today's Bible Verse

Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wonderful works to the sons of men.

Psalm 107:31 RSV Catholic Edition

Today's Bible Verse

Bible verse from today's readings:

For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities; for when I am weak, then I am strong.
2nd Corinthians 12:10

Daily Bible Verse

Starting today, I'm going to post a verse
from the readings at Mass each day. However, I'm going to be using the Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition, rather than the New American Bible.

Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust and will not be afraid, for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.

They've GOT to Be KIDDING!!!

This post is DEFINITELY on a secular topic. It is taken, slightly modified, from my grab.com blog. I am ExKidd over there.
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I grew up reading, and loving, the "Archie" comic books. Even now, I have several reprint collections which I still read from time to time. I will probably more in the future.
As a teenager, I often pondered the great question, "Would I rather be Betty, or Veronica?" After some serious consideration, I
came to the conclusion that I would like to be as WEALTHY as Veronica, and as NICE as Betty. In other words, I wanted to be a teenage female version of Richie Rich!
Well, as you may have heard by now, Archie is getting married.
To Betty? To Veronica? Who CARES???? Archie getting married would be the end of an era, and, IMO, there are some eras that should not end.

The Rosary

I remember that when Pope John Paul the Great added
the Luminous Mysteries to the Rosary, I was delighted,
absolutely delighted. I had felt for a long time that there
was too great a gap between the 5th Joyful and the 1st
Sorrowful Mysteries. A BIG chunk of Our Lord's life on
Earth was missing.
Another change was that, while formerly certain Mysteries were prescribed for certain days, we now were given more flexibility. Of course, many Catholics stick to the traditional days, and some choose not to pray the Luminous Mysteries, and that is their right.
I like to pray the Mysteries in their proper order, Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful, Glorious, one set at a time, regardless
of the day of the week.
How do I pray the Rosary? How do I meditate? There are
several ways. Sometimes I use a book of Rosary meditations,
and sometimes I use one of the many websites available. Other
times I might simply meditate before each decade, or perhaps
add a few words to the Hail Mary. For instance, if I'm praying
the Mystery of the Nativity: "And blessed is the fruit of thy womb,
Jesus born in poverty. Sometimes I pray the Rosary while looking at pictures depicting the Mysteries, and sometimes
while watching The Holy Land Rosary with Fr. Mitch Pacwa. I
love actually seeing the places where these events took place.

Making Some Additions

I started out by showing the predominantly Catholic side of myself. WHOA! Back up there! As I've said before, I am a Catholic, 24/7. So what I should say is that I started out by posting about my predominantly Catholic interests and activities. However, since this blog is about being a Jewish convert to Catholicism, it's about time I began posting about Judaica, and about some of
my Jewish memories.
I'm also going to post about my secular interests, and I'm now going to use my full name, both here and on TWITTER.

Catholic 24/7 (slightly revised and reposted)

I am a Catholic, 24/7, awake or asleep. Whatever I do, I do as a Catholic. Of course, not all activities are in themselves Catholic per se. Eating, for example, is not predominately Catholic; it is a universal, and universally necessary activity. :) Making the Sign of the Cross and saying the "Bless us, O Lord" prayer before eating, and the "We give Thee thanks for all Thy benefits" prayer after is Catholic.
Reading, in itself, is not Catholic. Reading the Holy Bible [I prefer the Revised Standard Version], books by or about Saints, or any Catholic devotional and/or instructional book is Catholic. Watching TV is another activity not Catholic in and of itself, unless the programming is Catholic, for example, everything on EWTN. Saying a few Hail Mary's or some other prayer while I fast-forward through the commercials and/or scenes I don't care to watch on the secular programs [and thank God for tapes and fast-forward!]is Catholic.
Just one or two more examples. Being on my computer is not particularly Catholic; visiting Catholic websites is.
Singing, just plain singing, is not especially Catholic. Singing something like "Hail, Holy Queen", however.... aw, you know!
In other words, whatever I do, I do as a Catholic, but there are certain things I do specifically because I am a Catholic.
If I have to separate something in my life from the fact that I am a Catholic, then that thing doesn't belong in my life.

Remote on The Fritz

The first thing I heard this morning was "MEOW!!!" Winky, the cat, was up early! So I got up; no sense trying to sleep when he's running around playing.
At 7:00, I prayed the Office of Readings and Morning Prayer as I always do.
Winky and I usually go upstairs after that; he likes looking out the upstairs windows. Most of the time, I open the windows, then leave the upstairs apartment and close the door. This morning was different; Mom was already up and in the kitchen. Winky had also awakened her early.
And then Winky went into the bathroom and used his litterbox. He even did his morning poop earlier than usual!! I cleaned it out and took it downstairs to our garbage can.
Well, it turned out to be a good thing that Mom was already up! I changed to my good clothes, (see post below this one) and reached for the remote. IT WASN'T WORKING. I tried a few times; nothing. And my TV is the kind where you need a remote to change channels, and it wasn't set to EWTN. And there was no time to turn on the computer and watch the Mass online.
I went upstairs and told Mom I'd have to watch the Mass in her living room. That really wasn't a problem as far as her own TV viewing was concerned; she watches in
her bedroom because the tv screen in there is bigger.
Winky went back downstairs, and I turned on the TV in the living room.
During Fr. Mitch Pacwa's homily, Mom came into the kitchen to take her pill with a cup of coffee. Then she called to me, "I hate to bother you, but I dropped my pill."
{Mom can't bend any more}.
"Don't worry," I told her. "Winky's downstairs."
If my remote hadn't gone on the fritz, Winky would've been upstairs with Mom when she dropped the pill, and he might have eaten it. I began to wonder if that was WHY the remote went on the fritz!
I went back downstairs and tried the remote again. Sure enough, it was now working just fine! I am convinced that God used that remote to protect our beloved cat.

Dressing Up

I once read {can't think where offhand; might have been in a work of fiction. :)} about a woman who used to dress up to listen to the opera on the radio. So it may be a bit silly, but I dress up to watch the live Mass on EWTN.

Something About Me

Time to reveal a bit more about myself. I am a middle-aged {I never liked that expression, because to me middle-aged is half as
old as one is GOING to be)single woman. I still live with my mother due to a
physical disability. We have separate apartments; mine is downstairs, and Mom's is upstairs. The computer is upstairs.
I have poor eye-hand co-ordination, and a perceptual-motor problem. To put it as simply as possible, this means that my hands cannot copy what my eyes see. This is why I took exception in a review on amazon.com to something Beverly Cleary wrote in one of her books.
In one of her notes to the principal, Maggie's teacher, Mrs. Leeper, writes:
"Maggie is now reading cursive. I saw her reading what I had written on the chalkboard. If she can read it, she can write it."
Not necessarily. There are children (and adults) with perceptual motor handicaps, poor eye-hand co-ordination, and other, often unrecognized, disabilities, who CANNOT write well, even though their reading skills may be at grade level or higher. I feel that Beverly Cleary (who has been one of my favorite authors since I was in the third grade) does a disservice to these people with this passage.
I was reading at an early age, but I still can't write legibly. How many times was I scolded by my teachers who felt that since I read so well, my sloppy penmanship was due to carelessness and laziness? "She's just not trying!"
My poor co-ordination also gives me a problem with my balance. I can walk all right in my own home and my own yard, where I don't have to worry about people in a hurry pushing into me. So I only go out and about if I have someone to hold on to.
Another aspect of my perceptual problem is that I cannot see where things are in relationship to where I am. I can see WHAT it is, but I won't be able to point to it accurately, nor can I tell what other people are pointing to. This meant that I saw the teacher pointing to me when, in reality, she was calling on someone else, and vice-versa. I can't remember how many times I had to write:
"I will not call out." or "I will pay attention."
I was also one of the kids other kids picked on and called "REE-tard!" I'm sure that some, at least, wish they could apologize. They can't, but they CAN teach their children and grandchildren not to make fun of people.
After I had become a Catholic, someone told me that Purgatory would be much worse than anything that happened to me in school.
I responded, "No, I think it will be better, because it will be FAIR. I won't suffer anything I don't DESERVE in Purgartory."
And as I type this, it occurs to me that Purgatory won't only be FAIR; it will be MERCIFUL, because God is merciful. I'll suffer in Purgatory much LESS than I deserve.

My Schedule

6:00 AM: Rise, make morning offering, start coffee, dress.

7:00 AM: Office of Readings and Morning Prayer (Liturgy of the Hours)

8:00 AM: Watch live Mass on EWTN

After Mass: Daytime Prayer: Midmorning (LOTH)

before 11:00 AM: St. Therese Chaplet

12:00 PM: Daytime Prayer: Midday (LOTH)

3:00 PM: Chaplet of Mercy and Daytime Prayer: Midafternoon (LOTH)

[Since I pray all three Daytime Hours, I vary the Hours at which I use the

Current Psalmody. Unless otherwise prescribed:

Sunday: Midmorning

Monday: Midmorning

Tuesday: Midday

Wednesday: Midafternoon

Thursday: Midmorning

Friday: Midday

Saturday: Midafternoon]

6:00 PM: Evening Prayer (LOTH)

10:30 PM: Night Prayer (LOTH)

11:00 PM: bed

Except for Mass and Chaplet of Mercy, times don't have

to be exact.

Also, I pray the Rosary and at least one other chaplet,

and read the Bible and some other spiritual works, but

at no set times.

And I have plenty of time for secular activities as well!

My Friend Tony

And yep, I mean St. Anthony of Padua, whose Feast is today!

How many times have people prayed some version of the prayer:

"Tony, Tony, come around.

Something's lost and must be found"?

I know St. Anthony is ALWAYS helping me find stuff.

Years ago, when I had just recently converted to Catholicism, I called

Mom at work (It was her usual break time.)

Mom said, "I can't talk right now. We're missing an important file and

we've looked all over for it."

"Okay," I said, "call me back when it turns up."

Well, within five minutes she called me. The file had been found.

"Aren't you going to thank me?" I asked.

"Thank you? What for? You're not even here."

"I know," I said, "but who do you think prayed to St. Anthony?"

More recently, I was chatting with a couple of my online friends, and

one of them was going slightly nuts because she had misplaced something, and couldn't find it anywhere. I said a prayer to St. Anthony, and then typed,

"Try looking again."

She didn't want to, but I persuaded her. And then she typed, in caps

"I FOUND IT!!!!!!"

I wasn't a bit surprised!

Does St. Anthony ALWAYS get lost articles back for me? Well, almost! One morning I couldn't find my Rosary. I looked. I prayed. To my surprise, I still did

not find it. But later that morning, I received a brand-new, beautiful Rosary from a Catholic organization. I'm almost SURE I heard St. Anthony chuckling.

BTW, the lost Rosary did turn up eventually.

Of course, there's much more to St. Anthony than just running the Lost and Found! :)

St. Anthony of Padua

AWESOME!!!!

Sometimes I get overwhelmed, blown away, by the thought that since Our Lord instituted the Holy Eucharist, more than 2000 years ago He has been received by more people than we could ever possibly imagine. More than that, He is present, fully, totally present, in the Blessed Sacrament in countless Tabernacles in countless Churches and Chapels all over the world right now and at every moment. AWESOME!!!! Moreover,
every day, at every Mass, the priest breaks the Consecrated Host. Every day, at every Mass, Communion is distributed to the faithful. And yet, Christ is not divided, not multiplied, not diminished, not increased.
Side note: More than once, people have said to me that all this is mathematically impossible. My usual, highly theological reply :) is:
"Mathematics, schmathematics!"

Starting Over

I had a blog called The Lord Is My Shepherd,
but I abandoned it because there were already several blogs with that title. I preferred to start a new one rather than rename the old one.
I chose those VERY familiar words as the title for my earlier
blog for several reasons:
I love the 23rd Psalm.
My Hebrew name is Rukel, which means Ewe.
I love the image of The Good Shepherd.
{This post is taken, slightly modified, from my old blog.}