LAST CALL - Carmelites at St. Joseph Center in Alhambra Host Men's Conference

This Saturday, February 20, the Carmelite Sisters of the Sacred Heart in Los Angeles will hold their first men's conference. It will take place at the St. Joseph Center next door to their retreat house on Alhambra Rd. and Granada Ave. in Alhambra. The conference is titled "UPSTREAM ~ LIVING RADICAL CATHOLIC LIVES"

Advent

Advent continues. We continue to wait. We continue to hope. We continue to trust. We are an Advent people, a people who wait excitedly for the coming of our Lord, for the light that will shatter darkness.

The people that walked in darkness

have seen a great light;

on those who lived in a land as dark

as death

a light has dawned.

You have increased their joy

and given them gladness;

They rejoice in your presence

as those who rejoice at harvest

Is. 9:1-2

Here are some good Advent resources as we proceed toward Christmas.

Catholic.org offers the meditation "Why We Need Advent" among many other Advent themed articles and resources.

The website "Stumbling After Francis, Learning to Live a Capuchin Life "offers weekly Advent Meditations.

Giving Thanks

The men of Our Lady of Refuge Catholic Men's Ministry would like to wish you and your families a holy and happy Thanksgiving.

Our Thanksgiving meditation is excerpted from the web page of the Brothers and Sisters of Charity, the monastic community founded by John Michael Talbot. The community suffered a devastating fire in 2008, and the struggle to rebuild and carry on with their various outreaches continues. God has not abandoned them, and instead has visited upon them a renewed conviction in the work He has called upon them to carry forward. John Michael's Thanksgiving message can be found in it's entirety at the site, as well as news on the fire, the rebuilding, and information on the communities work and life.

"The bible says that we are what we think. If we think good things we are better people, and do good things. If we think negative thoughts we are negative people, and accomplish far less then what we would otherwise.

Scripture also says that we enter into God's presence through either repentance, or thanksgiving and praise. Repentance turns us from an unhealthy sorrow to a healthy sorrow that leads us from the negativity of sin to the positive joy of forgiveness. Praise and thanksgiving are positive thoughts that stir up the Spirit of God in our life. This makes us grateful for even the smallest blessings in life. This is all a choice. We can choose whether or not to repent of sin, or to be grateful.

In effect we either see the glass as half full or half empty. Those who see it as half full do not deny that we need to work to fill the glass, but they remain positive and therefore productive in filling it. Those who see it as half empty lose sight of the part that is half full, become sad and despondent, and unable to do anything to fill the rest of the glass.

This Thanksgiving let's remain filled with an attitude of gratitude to God and to people. Then we can respond to today's very real troubles in a way that can really make life better for everyone and for us. I believe that this is God's challenge, and God's will for us in these times." John Michael Talbot

November 2009 Breakfast meeting - Saturday 11/14/2009

Our November CMF Prayer Breakfast Guest Speaker will be Jose Adrian Gaviña, C.F.O. of F. Gavina and Sons Inc., makers of Gavina Gourmet Coffee, will be our keynote speaker at the November CMF Prayer Breakfast on Saturday November 14. The Gaviña family has been in the coffee business for over 135 years. A strong sense of family is at the heart of F. Gaviña & Sons, Inc., more commonly known as Gaviña. Jose will be speaking on the role of his faith and family in his life and work. The morning begins with Mass at 8 am in the Church, followed by breakfast at 8:30 in the Cafeteria. The fellowship concludes at 10:00. It will be a morning of inspiration, fellowship and great food. All parish men and women are invited. Bring some hungry friends. RSVP to Rob Eagan at (562) 682-5186 or Tom Silva at (562) 938-1677, or email olrcmenf@ourladyofrefuge.org.

Priesthood Sunday - October 25, 2009

Sunday, October 25th, is Priesthood Sunday. How will you celebrate?

Priesthood Sunday, the thirtieth Sunday of Ordinary Time, is a special day set aside to honor the priesthood in the United States. It is a day to reflect upon and affirm the role of the priesthood in the life of the Church as a central one.

This nationwide event is coordinated by the USA Council of Serra International. It is sponsored by the USA Council of Serra International and the Serra International Foundation.

What happens on Priesthood Sunday?

The lay faithful of all parishes in the country develop their own special way of marking the day and honoring their parish priests both at Mass and other parish events, such as social celebrations and school activities.

Priesthood Sunday was designed to be an event led by the laity, but your parish priest can participate by talking about how he experienced and answered his own calling, the need for vocations to keep the priesthood vital, and about priests who have inspired him.

Priesthood Sunday will also offer an opportunity for priests and their parishioners to build a stronger working relationship for the future. Together, they can dialogue to take an honest look at the challenges of the future and how they can collaborate to meet those challenges as a united force. - from PriestSunday.org

For more information, and some ideas on Priesthood Sunday, visit the following sites:

PriestSunday.org

Worldwide Marriage Encounter's dedicated page

Discerning the Contents of Your Cellar

"Surely what a man does when he is taken off his guard is the best evidence for what sort of a man he is? Surely what pops out before the man has time to put on a disguise is the truth? If there are rats in a cellar you are most likely to see them if you go in very suddenly. But the suddenness does not create the rats: it only prevents them from hiding. In the same way the suddenness of the provocation does not make me an ill-tempered man; it only shows me what an ill-tempered man I am. The rats are always there in the cellar, but if you go in shouting and noisily they will have taken cover before you switch on the light." C. S. Lewis Mere Christianity

October 2009 Breakfast meeting - Saturday 10/10/2009

Our October guest speaker will be Art Maramba, Music Director at Our Lady of Refuge Long Beach Parish and School. Art will lead us in a consideration of the place and importance of music in our worship and liturgy. He will be speaking from his extensive experience in liturgical music, and using Cardinal Roger Mahoney's Pastoral Letter on the Liturgy, "Gather Faithfully Together" asa guide. Join us for an inspirational morning of fellowship and music. Our morning will start with mass at 8 am followed by breakfast & fellowship in the cafeteria. This meeting is open to all parishioners. Please bring your wives, sisters, mothers and friends as we celebrate with Art our call to worship, drawing us closer to Christ who is our song.