Manliness Personified; Joseph of Nazareth: The Saint Who Saved the Savior (Feast Day, March 19)

Joseph & Mary going to Bethlehem   stjosephnewpaltz.org

IT MAKES SENSE TO ME

By Larry Peterson

So little is known about Joseph of Nazareth. There is not even one word he ever said that was recorded.  But his quiet life resonated as if huge cymbals were being smashed together, their vibrating sounds marching over the ages of history and into the center of our 21^st-century existence. For it was Joseph of Nazareth who saved the Son of God so He could live to save us all. I call Joseph, the "Savior Saint."

Joseph, a carpenter from Nazareth, was obviously humble and egoless and gave of himself. He was a real MAN.  And it was this man, this quiet, savior saint who single-handedly saved the life of our Savior, Jesus Christ when He was still an infant. Imagine if he had not been available to protect his wife and child.

As a man, I try to imagine having to confront what Joseph had to deal with. As Mary’s betrothed, he quietly accepted her pregnancy at a time when the scandal of such a thing oftentimes meant execution for the woman. When Mary was almost full term, he was forced to put her on the back of a donkey and take her 80 miles over rocky, dirt roads to Bethlehem for the census; a journey that would have probably taken three to five days. (I would have been sick to my stomach praying we could make it).

Then, upon arrival, his wife, Mary, goes into labor. There were no ERs, no cell phones, no 911 calls, and no paramedics. You are a stranger in town and do not know anyone. Unable to find shelter, you realize you on your own. Being a man, you try to appear calm and cool, but your insides are knotted in fear.

He was probably trembling and telling his wife, “Stay calm sweetie, it will be all right. Don’t worry. Don’t worry.”  He is forced to bring her to a dirty, smelly stable that is an animal shelter. Here she has to give birth to her child who is the Son of God. As a man, Joseph must have felt so inadequate, so un-manly. His heart must have been breaking.

The miracle of the Virgin Birth takes place, and mother and child are fine. But then Joseph discovers that King Herod wants to kill his baby boy. Okay guys, think about it. You have made it this far, and now you learn the army has been ordered to find your child and kill him.

The soldiers, unflinchingly following orders, are out in force searching for YOU and YOUR family. They are killing all boys two years old and under so as not to miss killing your son. But it is you and your wife and child they want.

Those other children are ‘collateral damage,’ an after-thought to Herod’s vicious orders. The fear and anxiety within Joseph must have been overwhelming, yet he did his best to remain upbeat.

Somehow, someway, with his resolve of faith and trust in God propelling him forward, he made it to Egypt and saved his family.

I have no idea how he managed to do it. Egypt was three hundred miles away, but he got them there safe and sound. He saved not only the Redeemer and probably the Blessed Mother from death, but he also made it possible for all of us to be saved too.

One final thought about this incredible person; Joseph of Nazareth was the only man who ever lived who could point to the Son of God and say, "That's MY boy." And that Boy would look up at him and call him, “Daddy.”  Imagine that.

St. Joseph, thank you and please pray for all of us. HAPPY FEAST DAY

                       Copyright Larry Peterson 2018

The 19 Martyrs of Algeria---including The Monks (Seven Trappists) of Tibhirine

IT MAKES SENSE TO ME

Seven Martyrs of Tibhirine (Part of the 19 Algerian Martyrs from 1994 thru 1996 

By Larry Peterson

The bloody Algerian Civil War erupted in 1993 and among the victims of this persecution were 19 monks and nuns. They were assassinated between 1994 and 1996. The “positio” (the report documenting all information about the cause for beatification) has been completed, and the elevation of these courageous, selfless, Catholics into the ranks the Beatified, should happen by the end of January, 2018.

Among the 19 murdered was a group of seven, known as the Monks of Tibhirine. These men were members of the Cistercian Order  (aka Trappists). On March 27, 1996, these holy men were kidnapped from their home at Tibhirine, taken away and executed. They died “in odium fidei” (in hatred of the faith) as did the other twelve martyrs. What follows is a short peek into the life of one of these people. His name was Christian de Cherge, and he was the priest representing the others in the fruitless negotiations with the terrorists.

Christian was born in Colmar, France, on January 17, 1937. Christian's dad was a military man, and the boy spent part of his youth in French Algeria where his dad was the commander of the 67^th Artillery Regiment of Africa. Upon the families return to France, they settled in Paris.

 Christian was enrolled in a school run by the Society of Mary, better known as the Marists (these men were my teachers when I was in high school and, trust me, they were “all business”). Christian de Cherge did have a secret; by the time he was eight-years-old, he knew he was called to the religious life. He said nothing, but as time passed by, he would be undeterred from that calling.

One event had a profound impact on the life of Christian de Cherge. In 1959, during the Algerian War, a Muslim by the name of Mohamed, selflessly saved Christian's life during an attack. Christian did not know how to thank the man so he told him he would pray for him. Mohammad responded telling Christian “not to bother because Christians do not know how to pray.”

The next day Mohammed was found brutally murdered. Christian never forgot how this Muslim man, knowing the consequences of saving a Christian, did so anyway. Later in his life Christian said, “: "In the blood of this friend, I knew that my calling to follow Christ meant to live, sooner or later, in the country where it was given to me the greatest gift of love."

Christian de Cherge went on to study the Arab language and Arab culture at the Pontifical Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies in Rome. He finished studying there in  1974 and in 1984 became the Prior of the Abbey at Tibhirine.

Approximately 1 a.m on March 26, 1996, masked terrorists belonging to the AIG (Armed Islamic Group) surrounded the monastery at Tibhirine. Father Christian, knowing that his life and those of his compatriots were now perched on a tenuous rim, walked stoically out to the blood-thirsty, Jesus haters. He stood in front of the armed and masked gunmen and said, “This is a house of peace. No one has ever come in here carrying weapons. If  you want to come in and talk to us, you must leave your weapons here.”

It was a very brave move, but the frightened priest did his best to look calm and collected. The invaders demanded that the monastery support the rebels with money; that the Trappist doctor goes and tend to their wounded men; and that the monks should give them all the medicine they had.

Father Christian agreed to supply all that he could. Then he reminded the terrorists that it was Christmas Eve and a very important Holy Day for Christians. Amazingly, the leader of the terrorist group, Emir Syat-Attya, apologized. They agreed to leave but said they would be back.

Father Christian went back inside and gathered together all the supplies and medications that he could. The monks knew that they would no longer need them. He handed them over to the terrorists. He went back inside and the seven had their “Last Supper” together.

On March 27, the AIG returned and took the seven monks hostage. They were all beheaded on May 22, 1996. Father Christian left these parting words in letter form:

“If I were one day to become a victim of terrorism, I would like my community, my church, and my family to remember that my life was given to God and Algeria.”

This following link will connect to the 19Martys of Algeria . Each and every one of them was a true “lover” of Jesus Christ, so much so that they emptied their blood for Him.

We ask them all to pray for us so that we too, may have the courage to stand tall for our faith.

                                       copyright©Larry Peterson January, 2018

About Pro-Choice: Baby Turtles vs. Baby People—and the Winner is?

IT MAKES SENSE TO ME

By Larry Peterson

Loggerhead Sea Turtle   wikipedia2common

In Florida, sand as white as snow curls up the Gulf Coast from Naples north to the panhandle area with some of the most beautiful beaches on the planet. People come from all over the world to visit these beaches and bask in the brilliant Florida sun and fish and swim in the calm and clear Gulf waters. But there is one thing these folks and all folks had better not do while visiting these beaches. If they do not want to wind up in jail, they had better avoid the Loggerhead Sea Turtles. They are on the Endangered Species List and they nest on the beaches.

We have in place in this country a law called the Endangered Species Act. Under this act wildlife considered "endangered" are protected by law from being killed, maimed or harmed in any way. There are many good points to this law as some of our most revered wildlife, like the Bald Eagle, have been saved from possible extinction. But, what about the "Baby People"? Don't they count?

The Loggerhead Sea Turtle is one of these protected turtles. It can be found (like baby people) all over the world. However, its primary habitat is the Florida coast north to Virginia. It is estimated that these turtles build 67,000 nests a year along the beaches. The female lays her eggs in the sand and buries them. After two months they hatch, crawl to the sea and begin their lives. Of all the hatch-lings maybe 8000 baby turtles survive.  They will live close to 60 years.

It is illegal to harm, harass, or kill any sea turtles, their eggs, or hatchlings. It is also illegal to import, sell, or transport turtles or their products. It is perfectly legal to kill baby people who have not been born. In the United States, since Roe vs. Wade was passed in 1973, over 58,000,000 abortions have been performed. Fifty-eight million baby people have been vanquished from existence, many of them burned alive via the Saline Abortion method. That extrapolates out to 1,348,837 baby people a year killed in America.

In 2014 there were 3.93 million births in the United States. That means that approximately one out of every four pregnancies in our country results in a life extinguished. Sea turtles are given every chance to survive with the government going so far as to put people in prison who might interfere with their survival. On the other hand, baby people are welcomed into legalized and sweetly painted extermination camps and, unmercifully and without fanfare or emotion, eradicated.

Whatever are we doing? We civilized people have allowed a portion of our past to be destroyed. We are allowing our present to be vilified by what can only be called a great lie fabricated as the virtue of "helping" women. We have short-circuited the future of our children and grandchildren by taking away from them the possibility of another Rembrandt, or a Mozart or a Jonas Salk, or a Martin Luther King Jr., or even an Abraham Lincoln living among them.

There is a world wide abortion counter that ticks off the abortions around the world as they happen. Look for yourself. More than one life a second is being aborted. Genocide of the innocent, living in and out of the womb, is rampant on planet Earth. Whatever have we wrought?

As the great St. John Paul II said, “A nation that kills its own children is a nation without hope.”                     

                                 copyright©Larry Peterson 2017