Monday, January 24, 2022

Expecting Miracles

 

It has been my experience that most people who lose their Faith do so over emotional issues rather than intellectual ones. When you read the Bible, it is full of miraculous accounts. In the New Testament alone, Our Lord Jesus Christ performs no less than 37 specifically recorded miracles, not including His Resurrection. Jesus Christ:

  • Turns Water into Wine at the Wedding in Cana (St. John 2:1-11)
  • Cures an Official's Son at Capernaum in Galilee (St. John 4:43-54)
  • Drives Out an Evil Spirit From a Man in Capernaum (St. Luke 4:31-36)
  • Cures Peter's Mother-in-Law Sick With Fever (St. Mark 1:29-31)
  • Cures Many Sick and Oppressed at Evening (St. Matthew 8:16-17)
  • Produces The First Miraculous Catch of Fish on the Lake of Gennesaret (St. Luke 5:1-11)
  • Cures a Man With Leprosy (St. Luke 5:12-14)
  • Cures a Centurion's Paralyzed Servant in Capernaum (St. Matthew 8:5-13)
  • Cures a Paralytic Who Was Let Down From the Roof (St. Mark 2:1-12)
  • Cures a Man's Withered Hand on the Sabbath (St. Matthew 12:9-14)
  • Raises a Widow's Son From the Dead in Nain (St. Luke 7:11-17)
  • Calms a Storm on the Sea (St. Mark 4:35-41)
  • Casts Demons into a Herd of Pigs (St. Luke 8:26-39)
  • Cures a Woman in the Crowd With a Hemorrhage  (St. Mark 5:25-34)
  • Raises Jairus' Daughter Back to Life (St. Luke 8:40-42; 49-56) 
  • Cures Two Blind Men (St. Matthew 9:27-31)
  • Cures a Man Who Was Unable to Speak (St. Matthew 9:32-34)
  • Cures an Invalid at Bethesda (St. John 5:1-15)
  • Feeds 5,000 Plus Women and Children (St. Luke 9:10-17)
  • Walks on Water (St. Mark 6:45-52)
  • Cures Many Sick in Gennesaret as They Touch His Garment (St. Matthew 14:34-36)
  • Drives the Demon Out of a Gentile Woman's Demon-Possessed Daughter (St Mark 7:24-30)
  • Cures a Deaf and Mute Man (St. Mark 7:31-37)
  • Feeds 4,000 Plus Women and Children (St. Matthew 15:32-39)
  • Cures a Blind Man at Bethsaida (St. Mark 8:22-26)
  • Cures a Man Born Blind  (St. John 9:1-12)
  • Exorcises a Boy With an Unclean Spirit (St. Luke 9:37-43)
  • Produces a Miraculous Temple Tax in a Fish's Mouth (St. Matthew 17:24-27)
  • Cures and Exorcises a Blind, Mute Demoniac (St. Luke 11:14-23)
  • Cures a Woman Who Had Been Crippled for 18 Years (St. Luke 13:10-17)
  • Cures a Man With Dropsy on the Sabbath (St. Luke 14:1-6)
  • Cures Ten Lepers on the Way to Jerusalem (St. Luke 17:11-19)
  • Raises Lazarus from the Dead in Bethany (St. John 11:1-45)
  • Restores Sight to Bartimaeus in Jericho (St. Luke 18:35-43)
  • Withers the Fig Tree on the Road From Bethany (St. Mark 11:12-14)
  • Heals a Servant's Severed Ear While He Is Being Arrested (St. Luke 22:50-51)
  • Produces a Second Miraculous Catch of Fish at the Sea of Tiberias (St. John 21:4-11)

(N.B. Some of these miracles are recorded in more than one Gospel. For sake of brevity, I cited only one reference for those miracles.---Introibo)

Traditionalists will often pray, make novenas, have Masses offered, etc. for some urgent necessity. Many times, they are asking God to prevent a loved one from dying of a disease or prevent a calamity, such as losing their house in a hurricane. When the loved one dies, or the calamity is not averted, they become bitter. "God raised Lazarus from the dead, so why couldn't He stop my (mother/father, wife/husband, sibling, best friend, etc.) from dying?" "Christ calmed the storm and walked on water but couldn't prevent my house from being destroyed?" This will often lead to anger at God, and they will cease to practice the Faith--or what's worse--lose their Faith to become agnostics or atheists.

The atheist publisher of Skeptic magazine, Michael Shermer, was once a devout Protestant. He relates how the paralysis of his college girlfriend lead to his atheism. She was in an automobile accident that broke her back and rendered her paralyzed from the waist down. Shermer declared, "If anyone deserved to be healed it was her, and nothing happened, so I just thought there was probably no God at all."(See wsj.com/articles/michael-shermers-skeptical-eye-1504279779).

When something like this happens, some well-meaning Traditionalist (layman or clergyman) will usually say something unhelpful, such as, "We must accept this as God's Will." The statement is true, but intellectually unsatisfying. "Why was this God's Will? Why is everything some 'mystery'?" To be certain, some people are so overwhelmed with emotion, no amount of reason can reach them. In this post, I will attempt to give some reasons as to why miracles don't always happen, no matter how sincere our prayers and how laudable our intentions. Perhaps by being well-informed prior to an experience of this sort, someone can come to peace and keep the Faith. 

Church Teaching on Miracles in Brief

The definition of a miracle. According to theologian Parente, the word miracle comes from the Latin word miror---I wonder. In the broad sense, it is an extraordinary event which calls attention and excites wonder. Theologians explain it is: (a) done by God as principle cause; (b) done in the world; (c) in a way superior to all forces of nature; and outside or above, but not in violation of the laws of nature, but by an exceptional happening brought about by a divine power that intervenes in created things, producing an effect superior to their natural power. The possibility of the miracle rests chiefly on the absolute dominion of God as the First and Free Cause of the Universe, Whose laws are subordinate to Him and cannot limit either His freedom of action or His power. Only the logically impossible and that which violates His Nature (sin) are impossible to Him. (See Dictionary of Dogmatic Theology, [1951], pg. 188).  

Miracles are an effect wrought in nature by the direct intervention of God. They are proofs of the truth of the Catholic religion.

Proof: From the Oath Against Modernism promulgated by Pope St. Pius X for all clerics on September 1, 1910:

Secondly, I accept and acknowledge the external proofs of revelation, that is, divine acts and especially miracles and prophecies as the surest signs of the divine origin of the Christian religion and I hold that these same proofs are well adapted to the understanding of all eras and all men, even of this time. (Emphasis mine)

From the Vatican Council (1870):

If anyone shall say that miracles are impossible, and therefore that all the accounts regarding them, even those contained in Holy Scripture, are to be dismissed as fables or myths; or that miracles can never be known with certainty, and that the divine origin of Christianity cannot be proved by them; let him be anathema.

While we must believe in miracles (especially those contained in the Holy Bible), we are not bound to believe in every specific event claimed to be miraculous. We should only give credence to those events considered miracles by the authority of the Church. 

The Argument From Evil and Miracles
There are those who claim God cannot exist because of the evil in the world. The free will defense claims that moral evil must be allowed for humans to be moral agents and not automatons. However, what about physical evils, such as diseases, starvation, and natural disasters? Why doesn't God stop them, or stop them more often? Even moral evils can have their consequences vitiated by God's miraculous intervention. For example, if someone tries to murder an innocent person by shooting them, God can hold the would-be murderer accountable for his attempted act and murderous intention while deflecting the bullet or turning it into jelly. The argument is usually formulated thus:

1. The Church says God is all-good (Omnibenevolent) and all-powerful (Omnipotent).
2. If God were Omnibenevolent, He would want to stop evil.
3. If God were Omnipotent, He would be able to stop evil.
4. However, evil exists and has not been stopped.
5. Therefore, there is no Omnibenevolent, Omnipotent God as the Church teaches. 

Those who understand Church doctrine know that evil is the result of the Fall of our First Parents, and evil will be defeated for good at the Parousia (The Second Coming). The argument can be given a defeater by adding the word "yet" at the end of premise number 4. "However, evil exists and has not been stopped yet." Hence, God has reasons for permitting evil, and it will ultimately be defeated. There are still those who wonder why God can't intervene more often to stop evil. Below, I will offer several possible explanations for non-miraculous intervention. It is by no means intended to be exhaustive.

Reasons Why God Does Not Always Miraculously Prevent Evil

1. It is not possible to have constant miracles. 
Since evils occur all the time, God would need to intervene constantly to prevent them. However, the definition of miracles, given above by theologian Parente, makes it clear that miracles are "an exceptional happening." If God constantly intervenes, such intervention would no longer be exceptional, but ordinary--ceasing to be miracles since this constant intervention is the "norm."

2. Constant miracles would hinder the full use of moral freedom.
God is not directly known by our senses, in the way we see, e.g., trees and other physical objects. This is necessary for Faith and morals. If there were constant miracles, no one could doubt the existence of God, and many people would do what is right based on "being watched" rather than love of God. Moral development would be stopped because evils are necessary in our fallen state to become virtuous. We develop courage through facing our fears. We develop patience and trust in God through trials and tribulations.

There was a story (perhaps apocryphal) pre-Vatican II of a young girl involved in an accident that left her in a wheelchair. The people in her parish prayed and had Masses said for her cure. When no cure was forthcoming, one cruel man said to her, "You don't have enough faith to be healed and get out of that wheelchair." The pious girl replied, "It is you who don't have enough faith to be able to get into this wheelchair and accept God's Will." The truth is that God delivers some people from their sickness, and others through their sickness. The infinite wisdom of God knows what is better for us, even when we don't. 

3. Constant miracles would destroy the regularity necessary for rational decisions and intellectual progress.
People made and wear seat belts because they want to be safe in case of a car accident. If God would intervene, why bother? Everything we do depends on constant laws of nature (like gravity) uninterrupted by constant miracles. We could never be certain what would happen next given a set of circumstances if God constantly intervenes. 

4. The problem of contradictory needs and miracles.
What if two people need something altogether different? Two men are in the same geographical region; one needs it to rain tomorrow for his crops, the other needs it to be sunny for his important meeting in the line of work he performs. God cannot do the logically impossible by making it rain and not rain at the same time and place. Someone cannot be saved by a miracle.

5. God cannot give credence to false beliefs via miracles.
What about people who hold false beliefs? Not all miracles will induce conversion and some will think miracles performed for all (regardless of belief or moral disposition) is an endorsement of holding any belief/moral system. Furthermore, if God makes everyone conform to the truth to avoid this result, free will is negated. 

6. Even making miracles more frequent may disrupt the ideal plan for maximum salvation of souls.
God, in His Omniscience, knows all possible future contingencies. He wants all to be saved, yet not all are saved by the choice of their own free will. No one but God can know how miraculous intervention would affect people, perhaps causing more pain, suffering, and even (counterintuitively) more disbelief. "He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead." (St. Luke 16:31; Emphasis mine). Only an Infinite Mind knows how much intervention is enough.

Conclusion
It is sad when we believe our prayers have not been answered. Actually, God's answer was, "This I cannot do for you, it is not ultimately for the best." Traditionalists should respond, "God knows better." Easier said than done, I know. Hopefully, this post will equip people with reasons why God does not miraculously intervene all the time, or with greater frequency. God's Will is always directed towards our good, as I hoped I have demonstrated; it's not something haphazard we must just accept. Given our limited knowledge of God's plans we can (and should) pray for miracles, but never demand them. “For My thoughts are not thy thoughts, neither are thy ways My ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than thy ways and My thoughts than thy thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9). 



51 comments:

  1. There are also the false miracles announced in the Scriptures as a sign of the end times. Judging by the number of "saints" canonized by the false popes of the V2 sect, there seems to be a lot of them!

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    Replies
    1. Simon,
      Yes, there shall be false signs and wonders!

      God Bless,

      ---Introibo

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  2. A statement was made in the article: "Miracles are an effect wrought in nature by the direct intervention of God. They are proofs of the truth of the Catholic religion."

    I would like to see a part 2 to this article. Why the Novus Ordo Church isn't producing real miracles. There are many so called "miracles" in the Novus Ordo such as Eucharistic miracles, bleeding statues, healing through the intercession of John Paul II, etc.

    While I'm a most firm believer in miracles in the Catholic Church before the 60's, there are many today who stay in the Novus Ordo religion precisely because they think the modern miracles prove that Christ is with the Novus Ordo Church as if it is the same Catholic Church as it has always been.

    What do you think?

    Lee

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    Replies
    1. I second Lee's suggestion, it would make for a very interesting topic!

      God Bless,
      Dapouf

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    2. Lee and Dapouf,
      I will do a follow-up post on false signs and wonders in the next few weeks (maybe even sooner)! Thanks for the suggestion!

      God Bless,

      ---Introibo

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  3. Introibo,
    Excellent article!
    My Mother suffered from multiple sclerosis. She ended up leaving the Church in the 1950's to follow so called faith healers like Oral Roberts. I was only a child when she left the Church to follow these fakes and it grieved me deeply. It still grieves me to this day.
    JoAnn

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    1. Some people no longer even trust medicine to cure their illnesses, preferring to trust charlatans. No wonder they don't even trust God and the Church.

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    2. Simon,

      What kind of medicine are you referring to and who do you consider to be a charlatan?

      Lee

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    3. I am talking about a medicine recognized by science. Charlatans are fake doctors who advocate unscientific stuff.

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    4. Would Ivermectin which was recognized in 2015 by a Nobel Committee of Physiology and Medicine as a drug for treating infectious diseases such as Covid 19 be considered a medicine recognized by science or an unscientific drug advocated by charlatan quack doctors who don't know the difference between the oral form used by humans and the paste form which is used for animals?

      Should we just get the "safe and effective" vaccine along with its boosters and wear three masks over our face until Mr. Science himself (Dr. Fauci) says you don't have to any more?

      Yes I agree with you, we shouldn't follow charlatans or fake doctors but it all depends on who you consider a fake doctor and fake science. It certainly goes against my principles to follow the scientism which is a sin against faith according to the Baltimore Catechism I was reading last night. Ironically it it had a picture of what the first commandment forbids and the picture a had a person bowing down towards Buddha, Money, Scientism, and Public Opinion. So true.

      Lee

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    5. Intro
      This one on miracles is one of your best posts to date. You've provided some great responses that I never even thought of. There are so many souls now who are depressed, ill, and looking for miracles from whatever quarter they think will provide them.
      And I agree with Lee, that whenever you can manage it, there ought to be a part 2, maybe taking on the false miracles we will see as the end times approach, and pointers on how to discern the difference between the authentic and the false.

      Jo Ann, I was sorry to hear your Mom's story. You loved her so don't cease praying for her, don't give up hope; but remember, prayers no longer needed for another's intention are applied for the spiritual merit of those who offer them.
      And I hope your knee heals without surgical intervention (though it may be necessary to get you back up and running). The other day I experienced something similar, I wrenched my knee badly and am braced up and icing it...not really able to walk. We could be prayer buddies! 😊

      God bless you all, here.

      Jannie

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    6. Jannie,
      I will indeed do a follow-up post soon re: false miracles. I'm also praying especially for you and Joann to have a speedy and complete recovery!

      God Bless,

      ---Introibo

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    7. Jannie and Introibo,
      Thanks to everyone who prayed for me. Thankfully the cortisone shot worked and I have been up and walking. Dr. says I have bad osteoarthritis and will need a knee replacement down the road.
      Praying for you Jannie. Prayer buddies indeed!!
      JoAnn

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  4. Introibo,

    This was a great article! I loved your reply to the problem of evil with the "yet"; it was intuitive and succinct!

    One critique I have on no. 4 (under "Reasons Why...") is it would seem that it would have to be the EXACT same location (rather than the relatively close, same geographical location) for it to violate non-contradiction. It feels weird writing this, but it doesn't seem impossible that God be able to make it everywhere sunny except exactly over the farmer's crops. In such a scenario, it seems miraculous intervention CAN succeed. Perhaps I'm misunderstanding something?

    God Bless,
    Dapouf

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    Replies
    1. Dapouf,
      The upshot of reason #4 was that in certain instances God may not be able to grant a miracle for one person without denying a miracle to another person due to logical impossibility. I didn't pick the best scenario. Let's say two people want the same job (and the job cannot be duplicated or shared without destroying the object of their need/desire) then to grant one person the job via some kind of miraculous intervention would mean denying a miracle to another, and his needs are not met. I'm sure there's a better hypothetical, but I hope you understand my point!

      God Bless,

      ---Introibo

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    2. Introibo,

      Yeah, I get what you're saying. That's what I took away from #4 as well, I just felt that the example didn't exactly illustrate the principle in the best way. Thanks for the clarification!

      God Bless,
      Dapouf

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  5. Dear Friends,
    my mother is to undergo a serious surgery this Wednesday. Given how hospitals work nowadays, with all the testing, no family visiting, and covid-brainwashed inmates, sorry patients, I'm quite scared for her since she's very much emotionally dependent upon me and my brother.
    Could you please spare a prayer for her?

    Thank you most kindly and God bless you,
    Joanna S.

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    Replies
    1. Joanna,

      I have you and your family in my prayers.

      God Bless,
      Dapouf

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    2. Dapouf,
      much obliged!

      God Bless,
      Joanna S.

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    3. Joanna,
      I will certainly pray for her, too.
      God will keep her in His care.
      Stay strong.

      Jannie

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    4. Joanna,
      Special prayers tonight for your mom! I ask all my readers to pray for her too.

      God Bless,

      ---Introibo

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    5. Joanna,
      It is a scary time to be in any hospital. Be assured of my prayers.
      JoAnn

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    6. Joanna S.,
      I promise to pray for your Mom.

      God Bless,
      Paweł

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    7. Jannie, Introibo, JoAnn,
      thank you so much!

      God Bless,
      Joanna S.

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    8. Paweł,
      thank you most kindly!

      God Bless,
      Joanna S.

      Delete
  6. A curious phenomenon I've noticed is the few times I've experienced great pains, when I resign myself and offer my sufferings explicitly to God, my pain, unbearable as it may have been and definitely still there, becomes so much more tolerable right after. And this is without me praying to be relieved (on the contrary, I wish it to last more to make reparation for offenses). Is there anyone else who has had a similar experience?

    God Bless,
    Dapouf

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    Replies
    1. Dapouf,
      Yes! I can attest to that as well. Catholic ascetism is a fascinating subject.
      I'm no ascetic by any means and have to fight against my strong inclinations to physical comfort but what you describe did happen to me a few times.

      God Bless,
      Joanna S.

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    2. Dapouf,
      I totally agree with your impression.
      It never worked for me to be angry and fight against pain.
      But as I've started to learn to be calm and consider certain discomforts as a penance for my wrongdoings, I also noticed that pain would become much less.

      Jannie

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    3. Joanna,

      A fascinating subject indeed!


      Jannie,

      It truly is interesting to observe. I'm left partly disappointed because I want to be able to offer greater sufferings, but on the other hand somewhat relieved.

      God Bless you both,
      Dapouf

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    4. Concerning acestisim, I think prudence and temperance is indicated. Otherwise it could become a morbid obsession to relish in one's pain. The truth lies in the middle. Just my 2 cents.
      JoAnn

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    5. JoAnn,

      I agree with you. I certainly don't like pain and I definitely don't go looking for it, but when the Lord wishes to try my patience with sufferings, I try my best to offer them to him. My comment was referring to the fact that at times I wallow too much in my own suffering, and when I finally realize that I should be offering it to God, the pains tend to lessen, which in a sense disappoints me because I had finally understood the best way to take advantage of the situation and merit from it.

      God Bless,
      Dapouf

      Delete
  7. God deals with us the same way our parents did when we were children. A child asks his parents for something, for example such a toy or whatever. Sometimes parents agree to their children's request, sometimes not. Parents know what is good for their children, just as God knows what is good for us. When I recite 5 decades of the Rosary, I ask God for certain things and I don't demand to have them under pain of no longer believing in Him. We must pray and submit to the will of God.

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    Replies
    1. Simon,
      That is the correct Catholic attitude!

      God Bless,

      ---Introibo

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  8. Interesting article! One of those facets of metaphysics we ought to revisit more.

    If there were miracles all the time, then there would not be need for Faith, really. "Blessed are they who have not seen, yet believed". If it were obvious to the whole world, then I think the Last Judgement would have to arrive very soon (hard to explain that; it's intuitive. As if the veil between this world and that is not much by then).

    Aside: Of all the miracles in the list at the start, one of my favourites is the miraculous catch of fish. That's a lot of fish :)

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    Replies
    1. cairsahr__stjoseph,
      A lot of fish indeed! I wonder if a couple of those caught were used to feed the 5,000?

      God Bless,

      ---Introibo

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    2. Would I be wrong in thinking that thousands of miracles occur daily in the holy Sacrifice of the Mass? Witnessed by a very privileged few (in relation to the world population)?

      Delete
    3. Francis,
      According to theologian Tanquerey, A miracle is a (1) deed that is sensible, (2) extraordinary, and (3) of divine origin. Hence, since transubstantiation is not sensible, it cannot be considered a miracle in the strict sense. (See A Manual of Dogmatic Theology,[1959], 1:40-45)

      God Bless,

      ---Introibo

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    4. Thank you for the clarification.

      Delete
  9. Great work! I look forward to seeing a follow-up on the fake miracles of Vatican 2.

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    Replies
    1. Saddlery Tack,
      Thank you my friend!

      God Bless,

      ---Introibo

      Delete
  10. What's the difference between a beatified blessed and a canonized saint?

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    1. @anon7:07
      When a person's cause for canonization was opened (pre-V2 of course), the last step before canonization was "beatification." Given the title "Blessed" before his/her name by the pope, a martyr may be declared such without a miracle. Non-martyrs, (in addition to heroic virtue) must have had one miracle (verified by the pope) to have occurred by his/her intercession. When someone is declared “Blessed," it is morally certain they are in Heaven and public ecclesiastical veneration is PERMITTED by the Pope, but only in the Diocese or Country, or Religious Community to which the Blessed belonged. Churches may be dedicated to the Blessed but only with the permission of the Vatican.

      After another miracle and further investigation (no miracle for martyrs) the pope may decide to canonize the Blessed. Canonization is an infallible decree addressed to the universal Church declaring as a fact that the soul of the departed is in Heaven and REQUIRES ecclesiastical veneration of him/her--no permission is necessary to honor the newly declared "Saint (Name)." It would be heretical to deny a canonized saint is in Heaven, as you would be accusing the Church of requiring Her members to venerate a damned soul. This is a de facto denial of the Indefectibility of the Church, for She cannot give that which is evil or erroneous to Her members.

      God Bless,

      ---Introibo

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    2. We can be sure that Roncalli, Montini and Wojtyla are not in Heaven because it is impossible for heretics, apostates, sodomites, freemasons, communists and idolaters to be saints.

      Delete
    3. Is Charlemagne a blessed? (Yesterday was his feast day, by the way)

      Dom Gueranger writes:

      "Charlemagne was held as a Saint by the people, and the decree of his canonization was given by the Antipope Paschal the Third, in the year 1165, at the request of Frederic Barbarossa; on which account, the Holy See has permitted this public veneration to be continued in all those places where it prevailed, though it has never given its approbation to the informal procedure of Paschal, nor made it valid by its own sentence, which it would, in all probability, have done had the request been made. At the same time, the many Churches, which, now for seven centuries, have honoured the memory of Charlemagne, keep his Feast under the simple title of Blessed, out of respect to the Roman Martyrology, where his name is not inserted."

      So is he a blessed? Is it morally certain that he is in heaven?

      Delete
    4. @anon2:31
      Yes, because he has a permitted local cultus, Charlemagne is a beatus--"Blessed Charlemagne." It is morally certain he is in Heaven. He is NOT a saint, the decree of canonization was promulgated by an antipope and is invalid.

      God Bless,

      ---Introibo

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  11. Great post, Introibo!

    Regarding the acceptance of the holy will of God, this little aspiration quoted below has hepled me quite a bit.
    A plenary indulgence in articulo mortis (at the hour of death) may be gained by those who during life shall have frequently recited the following ejaculation, provided they accept death with resignation as coming from the hands of God:
    "May the most just, most high, most adorable will of God be in all things done, and praised, and for ever magnified."

    Taken from: the 1857 edition of the Raccolta (pp. 319-320) found under this link: https://books.google.pl/books?id=DeoCAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA320&lpg=PA320&dq=fiat+laudetur+atque+in+aeternum&source=bl&ots=NVnEFGqgU9&sig=ACfU3U0bMtYV-gIrBTdwvLsayAjyq4miGw&hl=pl&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi2-_HO4tf1AhVDtIsKHdgMA9QQ6AF6BAgfEAM#v=onepage&q&f=false

    Also, in one of his sermons posted online, Fr. Michael Oswalt shared his advice on how to constantly remind ourselves that God indeed knows better. When we fold our hands piously, our thumbs will be pointing towards us and the rest of the fingers will be directed upwards, towards Heaven, so as to say "Thou art God, I am not".

    God Bless You All,
    Joanna S.

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    1. Joanna,

      That advice by Fr. Michael Oswalt is great!

      God Bless,
      Dapouf

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    2. Joanna,
      Wonderful aspiration to be recited and thank you for the link! Continued prayers for your mother. I hope she is home now and recovering quickly to full health!

      God Bless,

      ---Introibo

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    3. Dapouf,
      absolutely agree! I can only tell from what's available online, but Fr. Oswalt comes across as a very humble, pratical, and down-to-earth priest, and he's been through a lot in his Novus Ordo days. It's such a blessing that his sermons are available online: https://soundcloud.com/frmichael-oswalt

      Introibo,
      thank you so much for your prayers!
      My mother is indeed home now. The surgery was successful and we hope her hernia will heal well.

      Thank you all, my friends, for your prayers and kind words. God Bless You always!

      Joanna S.

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    4. Joanna,

      It's great news that your mother is home now. Thank you for the link, I'll be listening to some of his sermons! :)

      God Bless,
      Dapouf

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