Bella - Review

http://www.bellamoviesite.com/

Bella, released in 2006 at the Toronto International Film Festival, is one of those movies that I really meant to see, but never got around to it.  Thanks to Netflix, I finally did, and wow, what a great movie!

The story, which takes place in one day, may get a little confusing as the backstory unfolds in flashbacks.  Jose, a soccer star who has just signed a lucrative contract, accidentally kills a small child and serves time in prison.  After his release, he works in his brother's restaurant as a chef, where he meets Nina, a waitress who has a brief affair (not with Jose) which ends in an unplanned pregnancy.  Nina's solution is to end the pregnancy, but Jose has other ideas, and Nina changes her plans (as shown in flash-forwards, confused yet?).  The subtle anti-abortion message is so powerful, that I can see why pro-life groups adopted this movie and helped to heavily promote it.  

I enjoyed the portrayal of Jose's family and particularly his interaction with his brother Manny, whose compulsive reactions Jose responds to with calm dismissal.  Such as when Manny fires Jose, who simply walks out the back door of the restaurant, then returns the next morning and cooks Manny breakfast as if nothing happened.

My favorite scene has to be Jose, sitting with a rosary in his hand, while Nina is taken into the back of the abortion clinic.  It's something you might miss, if you weren't Catholic, but to me, it screamed the power of Our Blessed Mother's intercession.

Bella is a story about imperfect people, living sometimes difficult lives and facing complicated choices.  It's about the power of God bringing awesome good out of our human weakness.

Ireland's Rich Religious History - Guest Post

Ireland, known by many as the “Island of Saints and Scholars” has a rich, inspirational and sublime spiritual heritage.  Monastic settlements were founded in many different parts of Ireland.  The fame of these monastic settlements, the quality of their education, their saintly and prayerful way of life attracted many from Europe to come and spend some time in Ireland.  Many of these monks established monastic settlements in many different parts of Europe.  It has been said many times that the Irish monks rescued Europe from the ravages of the vandals who plundered much of Europe during what is often known as the “Dark Ages”.

There is hardly a place in Ireland which does not have a close association with an Irish saint.  The locals are very conscious of their links with their local saints and celebrate these links with great devotion at specific times during the year.   They are very conscious of the heritage they have inherited.  It is not unusual for a community to have its local schools, one of its streets named after its local saint.  Local football teams and clubs are also named after the local saint, such is the awareness of their identity with their local saint.

 Saints such as St. Patrick and St. Bridget need no introduction.  Others almost as well known include St. Brendan, St. Kevin, St Columba, St. Ciaran, St. Enda, St. Finbarr, St. Gobnait, St. Oliver Plunkett, St. Mel and St. Malachy.  Theirs is a heritage which is richly cherished, valued and treasured by the locals in those parts of Ireland which are closely associated with these respective saints.

Many of the most scenic parts of Ireland are very closely associated with the saints in Ireland. Places such as Knock, Lough Derg, Glendalough, Croke Patrick and Clonmacnoise are enchanting, captivating, picturesque and prayerful.  What about a day’s retreat on Lough Derg, the island so closely associated with St. Patrick, the island to which so many Irish people return each year to their renew their faith?  Or what about Mass out in Inishfallen, one of the many islands in the Lakes of Killarney?  Maybe one would like to visit Knock in Co. Mayo?   Knock is one of the most important Marian Shrines in the world and draws huge numbers of pilgrims each year. Maybe one would like to visit Ballintubber Abbey or Holy Cross Abbey, places of worship which have barely changed despite their antiquity. All these sights can be seen on an O’Connor Autotours Religious tour program either tailor made or by taking part in their popular Celtic Cross program.

 Combine all this with the opportunity to see the Green Isle and have a relaxing holiday.  Whether the sun shines, the fog lies low on the mountains or the rain falls, the vista constantly changes as one travels around the shores of this beautiful country one calls the Emerald Isle.  And there will also be opportunities to do some shopping if so wished by the members of the group. 

One will return home, invigorated and renewed, refreshed and energised, revitalised and strengthened in one’s faith and beliefs.  One will view life from a more affirmative and more positive perspective.

The list of places to visit is endless, the choice is yours.  Every effort will be made to accommodate the wishes of the group. The aim will be to make sure that all the members will value the time spent on pilgrimage and will recall their pilgrimage as one which will have a bearing on their lives in the years ahead.  In all cases the group will have their own Spiritual Director which will add immeasurably to your pilgrimage experience in Ireland.  For further details of the service provided by O’Connor Autotours please view the following link www.oconnorautotours.ie/ireland_tour_religious.html   or contact them by email oconnorautotours@eircom.net

Guest post courtesy of Michael Clifford, O'Connor Autotours, Religious Tour Director/Driver-guide, Killarney, County Kerry, Ireland.  O'Connor Autotours website includes details on all their tour packages, including day trips, rail and private tours.  They also have links to many other Ireland travel resources.  

No compensation was received by Catholic Traveller or O'Connor Autotours for this guest post.  

Theotokos!

Theotokos.  The very word conjures up a fiery, terrifying Galadriel-like image that exudes power.  Not the humble, Middle-Eastern peasant maiden, lying on the hard barn floor, next to a manger in which she has just lain her swaddled newborn, that she may have a few moments rest from the labors of childbirth.

Theotokos, Greek for "God-bearer", is one of the titles we Catholics give to Jesus' Mother.  The one we celebrate on January 1st.  Though my own image of Mary is far more human.  

There is a theory that Mary did not experience labor pains, but that Jesus issued forth from her womb painlessly, closing it back up behind Him, angels attending them, while Joseph was off doing something foster-fatherly.  I have a problem with that.  I have far more respect for a Mary who experienced all the physical, emotional and hormonal difficulties that we women do, yet, in her perfection, was able to master her responses and act in a holy fashion.  The Mary who stood in agony at the foot of the cross, dying inside as her son died physically.  The Mary who "pondered these things in her heart" for 3 days and was the first to rejoice in the resurrection.  The Mary whose only goal has ever been to lead us to her Son, not to garner worship and praise for herself.  This is the woman I can call to when I am suffering.  The woman whose life I can meditate on when I need direction in my own.  The queen whom I follow.

My Theotokos.

Happy New Year!!

The Family Rosary

Lately my 9 year old has been wanting to say the Rosary as a family.  I am thrilled with this new development, as I have been trying to encourage it for years, but I wonder what has brought it on.  Naturally, he has several fairly nice rosaries, as well as some funky plastic ones.  He knows how to say the Rosary, as we frequently say it in the car (with or without his participation) and it is said before Sunday Mass at our church and at the holy hour we attend on Thursdays.  Yet, this family Rosary has been instigated at his request.

He does have a special intention - the healing of his 9 year old cousin who is having open-heart surgery in a few weeks.  But why this particular prayer method?  I can only think that, in addition to divine inspiration at work in his heart, all our family discussions, in which there are many disagreements, seem to meet in agreement on one thing - the power of praying the Family Rosary.  Thanks be to God!

First Saturday Devotions - Substance or Superstition?

Today is the first Saturday of June.  My dad's roses are blooming profusely.  After so many Marian celebrations last month, my thoughts have turned to the First Saturdays and how they got started.  It's been a few years since Catholic school, and I live out in the sticks, where we're lucky to have "daily" Mass once a week.  So I did a little research on the First Saturdays.

The "official" First Saturday Marian Devotions with their attendant "promises" originated with the apparitions of Our Blessed Mother to the children at Fatima.  But Saturday had already long been a special day of devotion to Our Lady.  According to Marian Devotions in the Domestic Church, by the ninth century, Saturday devotion to Mary had already become popular.  Marian Catechist explains that, according to several theologians of the 12th and 13th centuries,  " Mary continued to believe, demonstrating her deep faith by never doubting for a moment her Son’s promise of resurrection".  They also give several other reasons and traditions for Saturday Masses being dedicated to Mary before Fatima.  So, long tradition.  

Okay, what about post-Fatima?  My favorite take on our current practice of this devotion is at the Bearing Blog.  I can totally relate to the author's reference to superstition and selfish intentions.  I returned to wearing the brown scapular and the chapel veil a few years ago.  As I put on or remove my scapular, I dedicate myself to Mary, and ask her to help me to practice modesty, purity and holiness (I need LOTS of help!).  As I put on my chapel veil for Mass or Eucharistic Devotion, I ask for humility and to remember to try to be of service to the other members of Christ's body.  It really irritates me to hear the scapular promoted as a talisman to protect a person from harm and/or hell.  The scapular in itself is just a piece of brown scratchy cloth.  It is what it symbolizes that is sacramental and only in that is it nourishing to the spiritual life.

In the same way, to complete the Five First Saturdays, including Holy Communion, Confession, fifteen minutes meditation, and five decades of the Rosary, just to benefit from the Promises - that Our Lady will "assist at the hour of death with all the graces necessary for salvation",  seems abhorrent to me.  On the surface.  More on that in a few lines.  For one thing, there is a fifth requirement to the fulfillment of the Promise - that the devotion be performed "with the intention of making reparation for the sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary".  Someone who isn't sincere, will not be able to complete all Five Saturdays without this intention.  Even if one starts without that intention, it seems to grow on you in the practice.  Secondly, look at the promise.  What are the "graces necessary for salvation"?  Ponder that.  This devotion is not just another easy ticket into heaven.

So what about the superficial motive of performing the devotion just to benefit from the Promise?  When I was a child in Catholic school I performed many of the various recommended devotions our rich and ancient tradition makes available to us.  I was sincere and devout about them at the time.  I stored up a few treasures in heaven.  Then I became a teenager and then an adult.  I finally went the way of the world, and even left the church for a few years.  What's my point?  I came back.  I returned hungry for the Eucharist.  Starved for teaching and direction for following Jesus.  I came back with a desire to amend my life and be a better person.  Was it because of all those novenas I made as a child?  Was it because of all the prayers of my parents and loved ones?  

Certainly I'm not any more special than any other child of the Father.  I can't offer any tangible proof, but I'm certainly not going to discount the power of a Promise.  I hope I have a ways to go before I have need of that final assistance.  Making another round of Five First Saturdays would undoubtedly benefit me now, as well as later.

Glory to God in the Highest and...um...The Feast of the Annunciation

One of the few things I enjoy when I'm in the Big City is being able to attend daily Mass.  I usually go early, and the nuns and postulants are among the regulars, as well as several working, retired and possibly 1 or 2 homeless persons.  Today, the Feast of the Annunciation was celebrated, which means we said the Gloria and the Creed.  Now, on Sundays, many of us hold onto the missal so we have the new wording in front of us and our "autopilot" memorization of the old prayers is less likely to kick in.  Today, however, just as on the Feast of St. Joseph last Monday, I found myself scrambling for the right page in the missal.  I was not alone.  It was a bit humorous, really, to hear everyone start out strong at the beginning of the Gloria, then stumble, fumble with their missals, and join back in.  Perhaps another 10 years and we will have all the new wording programmed into our memories.

Today's readings struck me in regards to the interfaith debate about the "Virgin" birth.  I could not help but wonder why there should be any doubt, after careful study of the verses in Isaiah and Luke. 

Isaiah 7:14 - "...the virgin shall be with child and bear a son..."

Luke 1:26-38 - read the whole passage of the angel Gabriel's conversation with Mary.  In particular, verses 34-35:  "But Mary said to the angel, 'How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?' And the angel said to her in reply, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.'"  That does not sound to me like she is going to get pregnant in the usual way.  And why not?  Cannot the all powerful God, who can do all things, cause a virgin to conceive and bear His son?  If He can create the world out of nothing, create a man out of dust, He can surely do that.   

I thought maybe it might have to do with our different translations.  I looked in the King James version.  It says fairly the same thing as I have quoted here, from my New American Bible, St. Joseph Edition.  King James also uses the word "virgin" in the verse from Isaiah.  The Revised Standard Version uses the words "young woman" instead, but the passage from Luke reads much the same as the Catholic translation, including calling Mary a virgin.  

In light of this, I find it hard to believe that anyone could think otherwise, when the Bible clearly states that the "virgin" Mary was "overshadowed by the power of the Most High" in order to conceive Jesus.  Perhaps one day we will reconcile more of our differences and become more truly "one body in Christ".  I hope so.

The Third Secret, by Steve Berry

I enjoy Steve Berry's books.  He is definitely a gifted historical/mystery/suspense writer.  I don't even mind his frequent digs at the Catholic Church.  Heaven know, we deserve some of it.  But it goes way too far in "The Third Secret", based on the mysterious Third Secret of Fatima. 

Whether you believe in the apparitions of Mary the Mother of Jesus at Lourdes, Fatima, La Salette and Medjugorje or not, to even concieve of the woman who carried our Savior in her womb would even suggest that abortion was a woman's choice ("know that your body is your own") is repulsive.  Mary's entire story (the biblical one) is about the sanctity of life.  Without Divine intervention, Mary's life would have been seriously hampered by the birth of this baby.  In fact, she should have been stoned to death when the pregnancy was discovered.  Even Mr. Berry's statement in the author's notes, that the "second half" of the Third Secret, upon which the book centers, is completely a product of his imagination, does not redeem this novel in my eyes.

My advice, don't even waste your time.  Cotton Malone doesn't even appear in this book, and though it does give structure to the character of Colin Michener, who finally reappears in the Venetian Betrayal, you won't be missing out on anything  by skipping "The Third Secret".

Our Lady of Sorrows

Every year on my birthday I look at the parish calender and see it there. The Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows. How apropos, I used to think, with an ungrateful heart. Let's have a pity party. I felt sorry for myself and what I percieved as my sorrowful life.

In recent years, I have come to feel blessed and honored instead. To share my special day with Our Lady in all her Blessed Motherhood. I received a little pamphlet in the mail once, that explained the seven sorrows.

Simeon's Prophecy - imagine bringing your baby to be baptized and some old coot comes up and says "oh, what a cute baby - a sword of sorrow will pierce your heart". And Mary pondered this.

The Flight into Egypt - just at the most vulnerable time in both thier lives, Jesus and Mary, with Joseph, have to flee the country to save Jesus' life. To have to leave all their friends, family, home and jobs and live in a foreign country, with a different language, for an indeterminate period of time.

The Loss in the Temple - what parent would not panic and be consumed with anxiety over the loss of their child for even a few hours, much less several days?

The Carrying of the Cross - to watch her son, of whom she must have been so proud, undergo such shame and humiliation; the precious life she had protected for so long, bleeding out of him. And she was powerless to do anything but stay near him and watch.

The Crucifixion - as far as we know, Mary was not privy to God's plan. What faith, what trust, to watch her son die a criminal's death, yet to stay near him, trusting that there WAS a plan, and that it would be eventually revealed.

The Taking Down from the Cross - what paralyzing grief she must have felt as she held her son for what she may have thought was the last time. What questions plagued her? What struggle did she overcome to stay strong and faithful?

The Burial of Jesus - in what must have been a moment of great despair for her, Mary had only her trust in God and her Son to cling to. Mercifully, we have Mary, Jesus, the Father, the Holy Spirit, and all the angels and saints to comfort and strengthen us to go on.

Her trust, her faith, her strength in all her uncertainty, trials, sufferings, and misunderstandings. And her joy! The glory of her risen Son, and her special mission to lead us closer to Him. What a woman to look up to and emulate! What an honor to share my birthday with her feast!