The Christian Mother

My Son is an Altar Boy… here are my thoughts.

February 12, 2024 No Comments

(Fall, 2006) by Mandy Drabick A Catholic mother’s life holds many joys, and without a doubt, one of the greatest is watching her son serve at the altar of God. A priest once told me that a mother could recognize her life to be a success when her children say, “I love you, Mom,” and are also able to add, “and I love God.” What greater reward can a mother receive than to watch her son reverently serve at the foot of the Cross? Garbed in the black cassock and white surplice, he kneels with profound reverence, his hand on his heart and his head bent humbly before the Divine Savior, while the words flow softly from his lips: “…ad Deum qui laetificat juventutem meam…” — “to God who giveth joy to my youth.” For a mother it is hard to describe the pride and love that she feels; it

Flowers and their meanings: Beauty in Our Catholic Altars

January 1, 2024 No Comments

(Originally titled “Beautifying God’s House” by Barbara Day and Helen Abbenzeller) (Spring, 2007) Flowers for the Altar A biographer of the French priest Blessed Peter Favre once stated that when Adam and Eve were punished for their fall, God did not allow three things to change: the stars, flowers and the eyes of a child. Flowers are one of God’s loveliest creations and there are frequent references to them in Scripture alluding to their beauty. Christ said: “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they labor not, neither do they spin. But I say to you, that not even Solomon in all his glory was arrayed as one of these” (Matt. 6: 28-29). It is a joyful privilege to adorn the altar with flowers, God’s own handiwork. Ecclesiastical legislation governs the use of floral arrangements on the altar during feasts and liturgical seasons, and there is evidence in

Connoisseur Kids a manual for manners

March 22, 2023 No Comments

“Connoisseur Kids” A manual for manners “God is great, God is good, let us thank him for our food,” we first graders recited with Miss McIntosh at our public elementary school. Then she lined us up boy, girl, boy girl, and we proceeded to the cafeteria. All the girls wore dresses, so it was easy to see at a glance that we were in the right order. We filed inside the cavernous lunchroom and stood solemnly facing each other across the long tables. Bubbling with excitement, some of us suppressed giggles. “Boys, pull out the chair for the girl to your right,” Miss McIntosh instructed while raising her right hand. And so we began our school year with this awkward but thrilling introduction to manners. It was 1965, and Wright Elementary was doing its part to uphold the cultural norms that our parents were teaching at home. Apparently, the widespread

The True Role of Women in God’s Plan.

May 10, 2022 No Comments

by Rev. Father M. Benedict Hughes, CMRI(This article originally appeared as “The Feminization of the Conciliar Church in “The Reign of Mary”) As a young priest I was assigned to travel on lecture tours throughout the United States, speaking about the situation in the Church and the message of Fatima. The goal was to alert Catholics to what was happening in their churches. In the course of these travels I met with many Catholics who were alarmed at what had taken place with the Novus Ordo. What particularly struck me – it was in the early 1980s – was that so many older Catholics were quite incensed about the altar girls! You would think that their main complaints would be about the “guitar Masses” or Communion in the hand, or the handshake of peace, or whatever, but no, it was the girls in the sanctuary. That particularly bothered older Catholics

The example of Joan Catherine Hughes

May 8, 2022 2 Comments

Reflections on her life by Father M. Benedict Hughes, CMRI July 19, 2020 In the book of Tobias in the Old Testament, we read that the younger Tobias exhorted his wife Sara: We must practice virtue “for we are the children of saints” (Tobias 8:5). Indeed, we are who we are, to a great degree, because of the upbringing we received from our parents. Although we must not discount the workings of grace and free will, it remains true that our upbringing by our parents exerts a powerful influence upon who and what type of persons we become. We must practice virtue “for we are the children of saints” (Tobias 8:5). For that reason, I would like to share with you some recollections of my mother, hoping thereby to discharge some of my great debt to God for all I have received through her. I will begin these brief reflections

Chapter Meeting: Forging the Links of a Circle of Friends

December 18, 2021 No Comments

Nine eager ladies converged on Our Lady of Fatima Chapel in Chelsea, OK, on the First Saturday of December, to attend Mass and participate in the first meeting of their newly-organized chapter of the Confraternity of Christian Mothers. Invigorated by the sacraments, they retreated to the hall for a delightful brunch with gracious helpings of convivial conversation and happy introductions. Fr. Carlos Zepeda breakfasted with them and then delivered instructive talks, beginning with the history of the Confraternity. As the members are mostly new to Christian Mothers, Father took care to help them envision all that the Confraternity can be for them, both spiritually and materially, if they live up to the possibilities it offers. In “The Virtues We Should Practice,” Father began by urging the ladies to see themselves as having a duty toward the other women, “to lead them to heaven, to help them save their souls and