Stephen K. Ray's Blog, page 519

Today I took off for a run through a VERY crowded Jerusal...

Today I took off for a run through a VERY crowded Jerusalem. Americans tend to be afraid to come to Israel but if is an unfounded fear. Millions are here and not one hotel has a free room.

Anyway, if you are inclined to see the map and pictures and video on my run today, click here http://t.co/vaqcTAj

"Christian" School Textbooks

There are many Catholics who send their kids to "Christian" (READ: Protestant) schools. This is of course their right, but not all of them know what their children are being taught.

Here are a few pages from a textbook we used for our kids before we became Catholic.

This is typical of "Christian" school textbooks. What does this kind of bigotry against the Catholic Church do to kids?

They read it as gospel truth and it is taught by the teacher without even blushing.

The arrogance and anti-Catholic bigotry fills the pages of many of these textbooks. It is good for Catholics to realize what some schools teach about the Catholic faith.

Our Ship for Following St. Paul

But not only St. Paul! We will also visit the Island of Patmos where St. John wrote Revelation, and Ephesus where Mary lived, and Istanbul where councils of the Church convened, and Rome where the Martyrs died.

It is not too late to join us. We have only a few cabins left. You could still sign up in the next week. It will be a great pilgrimage and I am looking forward to teaching all along the way and having daily Mass at incredible sites with marvelous priests.

This is our ship!!!   For more info, contact Corporate Travel at 800-727-1999 and ask for Jeanine. Hope to see you on board!

Mass in Ramallah

Ramallah in the Palestinian West Bank was once completely Christian. You can still see the crosses above the doors of the older homes. But Christians are now a small minority.

(Picture: Deacon Christoff from Germany and Fr. (Abuna, Father if Arabic) Vincent Nagel, Jewish convert from California, now priest in Ramallah)

Many have emigrated to countries like America or Canada. The Muslims have moved in and built mosques in front of all the old churches. Their minarets always have to be taller than the churches' steeples.

My good friend Fr. Vincent Nagel is a Jewish convert and now Catholic priest. He is assigned to the Church of the Holy Family in Downtown Ramallah. We joined the friendly local Arab Christians for Mass and Adoration on Tuesday evening.

It is good to see young people at Mass along with the stalwart older folks. Their faith is strong even in adversity and oppression on Islam and the limitations of the Jewish state.

Pray for them and all the living stones of the Church in the Middle East as they maintain the holy sites and the fire of the faith.

Running through Ramallah Palestine with Pictures

Check out my running trip on EveryTrail.com: 2010-10-12 Ramallah, Palestine here http://t.co/svTo5fi

Running Around Walls of Jerusalem and thru Ramallah

Check out my running trip on EveryTrail.com:

2010-10-11 Around Walls of Jerusalem here http://t.co/POM50wL

Check out my running trip on EveryTrail.com:

2010-10-12 Ramallah, Palestine here http://t.co/svTo5fi

Running Around Walls of Jerusalem with Pictures

Check out my running trip on EveryTrail.com:

2010-10-11 Around Walls of Jerusalem here http://t.co/POM50wL

How to Slow Down an Economic Recovery

"One cannot raise a recessed economy from its knees by putting more government on its back."

-U.S. Representative Thaddeus McCotter

Ed Peters on Women Priests

My friend and Canon Lawyer Ed Peters writes:

Care to see just how many errors one AFP article on "women priests" can contain? Check it out my Dissection of Baloney Journalism, here: http://canonlawblog.blogspot.com/2010/10/dissection-of-baloney-journalism.html.

It's got me seeing red!

Will the Real Jesus Please Stand Up?

If you haven't purchased the United States Bishops' little booklet entitled The Authentic Jesus: Catholic Belief versus Modern Fiction, then I recommend you go to the USCCB website and purchase a few copies along with their DVD.

This booklet takes 20 minutes to read but it is an EXCELLENT short rebuttal to the DaVinci Code and a nice review of what we believe about Jesus and the Gospels. Click on the image of the book.