The Best Teen TV Producers are Teens

WATERTOWN, MA (OCTOBER 31, 2008) - According to the U.S. Department of Education Website, teenagers watch an average of 22 hours of television per week. “Roughly 90 percent of the time children watch programs that are not specifically designed for them.”

The point is, young people watch a lot of television and often times, parents and even the viewers themselves agree that the quality of television is poor or immoral.

A group of over 100 teenagers, mostly from the New Jersey area, produce a faith-friendly show called Real Faith TV. Unlike many faith-based shows, the cast consists of all young people and teenagers do most of the talking. The music is upbeat and issues are real-world including, drugs, voting, driving, the internet, and partying and how to be faithful young Catholic.

CatholicTV, at television station from Boston airs Real Faith TV every week on Verizon channel 296, RCN 85, Comcast 268 and live at CatholicTV.org. Watching online is free.

Show times are Saturday at 4:30 PM, Sunday at 9:00 PM, Monday at 3:30 PM, Wednesday at 3:30 PM

Many teenagers and parents consider Real Faith TV amongst the best television shows available to young people. For this, Real Faith TV has received 2 Gabriel Awards.

About CatholicTV:
CatholicTV provides family-friendly, religious, news, and educational programming 24 hours daily. Founded over 50 years ago, CatholicTV is available in selected areas on cable in the United States and Canada, via Sky Angel IPTV and online via a live stream anytime, everywhere at the station's web site. Father Robert Reed, a priest of the Archdiocese of Boston, is the Executive Director of CatholicTV.

Roman Catholics for Obama/Biden '08: Catholic Voters?

Catholics who support Obama have presented voters with websites that
cite compelling reasons why we as Catholics should vote for Obabma. Secular interpretations of the election issues present us with economic and social challenges that appear to take primacy over the life issue.

From the homepage of the website Roman Catholics for Obama/Biden '08, members of this site declare:

We are real, honest-to-goodness, practicing Catholics who embrace and call
attention to Catholic Social Teaching, which the U.S. Conference of
Catholic Bishops describes as "wisdom about building a just society and
living lives of holiness amidst the challenges of modern society."

Click the link Life and Dignity of the Human Person
a principle of Catholic Social Teaching, though, and you will find only two references to abortion, both of them videos.

Can we as Catholics vote for Obama in good conscience? Will a candidate who
promises the Planned Parenthood Action Fund that the first thing he'll
do is sign the Freedom of Choice Act--an act which would remove limits
to abortions--a candidate who can protect the most innocent of human
life?

Please feel free to comment. More resources at Faithful Citizenship.

Baker Academic Publishes Catholic Commentary on Scripture

Grand Rapids, Michigan — The Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture (CCSS), published by Baker Academic, has officially launched.

The CCSS responds to the desire of Catholics to study the Bible in depth in a way that integrates Scripture with Catholic doctrine, worship, and daily life. Each volume draws on the best of contemporary Catholic biblical scholarship and are written from a standpoint of lively faith. The authors implement the theological principles for interpreting Scripture taught by Vatican II, reading Scripture in its canonical context and interpreting it in the light of Catholic tradition.

Accessibly written yet substantive, the CCSS fills a gap in the available literature by offering commentaries that provide more than brief study guides but are less daunting than academic works. The seventeen-volume series will appeal to lay and ordained Catholics involved in pastoral ministry as well as lay Catholics interested in serious Bible study, professors and students wanting an accessible theological and pastoral commentary from a Catholic perspective, and libraries.

The CCSS is supplemented by features designed to help readers use the Bible more effectively in teaching, preaching, evangelization, and other forms of ministry. Each volume provides exegesis as well as “Reflection and Application” sections to help readers apply Scripture to Christian life today. Interspersed throughout the commentary are sidebars that present information on the background of the text and on how the text has been interpreted by the Church. Abundant quotations from saints and Church Fathers enable readers to glimpse the continuity of the Catholic tradition. An Index of Pastoral Topics at the end of each volume allows readers to quickly locate passages that are relevant to Christian life and ministry. Their rich content and engaging style makes these commentaries desirable not merely for reference but also as books to be relished for personal study or spiritual reading.

The inaugural volume, "The Gospel of Mark" by Mary Healy and "First and Second Timothy, Titus" by George T. Montague SM are now available.

Visit the official website at www.catholicscripturecommentary.com

Visitors to New Jersey Shrine Witness Miracle of the Sun

DENVILLE, NJ (OCTOBER 23, 2008) - On October 13, 2008, I would estimate over a thousand visitors attended the National Blue Army Shrine of the Immaculate Heart of Mary to celebrate the 91st anniversary of the Fatima apparitions. The Catholic shrine is located in scenic Warren County on 674 Mountain View Road, Washington, NJ. The shrine has the distinction of being known as the World Apostolate of Fatima, USA.

In 1917, the Blessed Mother appeared in Fatima, Portugal to three shepherd children and conveyed God�s message for salvation and conversion. The Blessed Mother also disclosed that an era of peace would eventually be granted to the world through prayer. For additional information about the Fatima message, please visit the website of the National Blue Army Shrine at the following link: http://www.wafusa.org/fatima_message/fatima_message.html

The anniversary celebration included a lovely rosary procession with display of the Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Our Lady of Fatima. A speech was given by Reverend Lawrence Joseph Schroedel while Father Andrew Apostoli spoke on the sanctity of life for the unborn. Other events included Holy Mass with Father Anthony M. Sirianni as well as Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament with farewell prayers and brown scapular enrollment.

A short time after the celebration, I walked into the parking area and observed numerous people appearing in awe as they looked directly at the sun. Margie Penkala of Hopatcong, NJ, said she was �watching the sun dance and change colors.� The time was somewhere between 3:00 and 4:00 PM. Margie also took an interesting photograph of the Cross of Reconciliation. She was kind enough to provide me with a copy of the image. To view photographs, please visit the following link: http://www.christian-miracles.com/njvisitorswitnessmiracle.htm

Although I did not observe the solar phenomena, I decided to walk over and introduced myself to two priests standing nearby, and recognized Father Frederick Otieno Nyanguf, AJ of the Blue Army Shrine. I brought the matter to their attention and gave them some details on what people were seeing. Both did not observe any sun phenomena but agreed to look into it.

I am reminded of John 20: 29, when Jesus said, �Blessed are those who believe without seeing.� On a personal level, I witnessed the Miracle of the Sun on September 8, 1991 in northern New Jersey. Recalling my own experience, faith does not necessitate seeing the same sign over again. However, for many people a sign from Jesus and the Blessed Mother is an affirmation of God�s continued love for humanity. Moreover, I have seen other signs and wonders from our Lord Jesus Christ. For information regarding my personal testimony on the matter, please visit my website at the following link: http://lenarpoetry.com/MiracleoftheSun.html

In order to corroborate the recent sun phenomena, I called Fran Zucchetto of the Immaculate Conception Rosary Society. She helped organize a pilgrimage to the shrine from the parishes of the Immaculate Conception and Assumption Church, both located in Tuckahoe, NY. Unavailable at the time; however, her Husband Vincent allowed me to speak to Tina, their 20 year old daughter. Tina Zucchetto confirmed that she attended the shrine with her sister and mother, part of a group of 30 from both churches. She said the group all observed �the sun dancing and changing colors.� She described the colors as �changing from pink to yellow and blue to green.� Without question, the Lord provides a special grace in order to allow people to observe the solar event without creating eye injury. However, eye contact with the sun should be avoided otherwise.

I also contacted Betty DeFusco; she coordinated a trip to the shrine through Saint Anne Church, Fairlawn, NJ. She indicated that no one in her group noticed any solar phenomena.

However, my telephone conversation with Lina Sumanga of Our Lady of Fatima Holy Rosary Crusade confirmed that she saw a visual phenomenon. She conveyed that a group of 40 came to the shrine on October 13, 2008 from the Sacred Heart Church, Mount Holly, NJ. Lina said her entire group saw the �sun dancing or spinning while changing colors.� She also gave details about her daughter Roxanne using a cell phone camera to photograph the sun and described the subsequent image appearing as the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

I called Judi Ritchie, a supervisor at the National Blue Army Shrine; she confirmed "sporadic" reports of some visitors observing a solar phenomena.

The following scripture is conveyed in Luke 8: 16-17, �No one who lights a lamp conceals it with a vessel or sets it under a bed; rather, he places it on a lamp stand so that those who enter may see the light. For there is nothing hidden that will not become visible, and nothing secret that will not be known and come to light.�

We are witnessing signs, wonders, and miracles in order for God to create a reaction in our society for constructive change and hence prepare the world for an era of peace.

By Loci B. Lenar