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Celebrating the Impact of Fathers in Our Lives
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Fatherhood
A Father and Son out for a walk, sharing (coffee and) bullet points and nuggets about life.
A Dad's job is to balance out what Mom says, because there is something about the voice of Dad that determines in our children the image they see of themselves as a person and member of society.
In other words, Moms do the nurturing, but it is Dad who provides mission, respect, and stability in our families through, not long conversations but, little snippets of (Godly) wisdom.
Bless Our Fathers
Heavenly Father,
Today we ask You to bless our earthly fathers
for the many times they reflected the love, strength, generosity, wisdom and mercy that You exemplify in Your relationship with us, Your children.
We honor our fathers for putting our needs above their own convenience and comfort;
for teaching us to show courage and determination in the face of adversity;
for challenging us to move beyond self-limiting boundaries;
for modeling the qualities that would turn us into responsible, principled, caring adults.
Not all our fathers lived up to these ideals.
Give them the grace to acknowledge and learn from their mistakes.
Give us the grace to extend to them the same forgiveness that you offer us all.
Help us to resist the urge to stay stuck in past bitterness,
instead, moving forward with humility and peace of heart.
We ask your blessing on those men who served
as father figures in our lives
when our biological fathers weren't able to do so.
May the love and selflessness they showed us
be returned to them in all their relationships,
and help them to know that their influence
has changed us for the better.
Give new and future fathers the guidance they need
to raise happy and holy children,
grounded in a love for God and other people -
and remind these fathers that treating their wives
with dignity, compassion and respect is
one of the greatest gifts they can give their children.
We pray that our fathers who have passed into the next life
have been welcomed into Your loving embrace,
and that our family will one be day be reunited in your heavenly kingdom.
In union with St. Joseph,
whom you entrusted with Your Son,
we ask Your generous blessings today and every day.
Amen.
- Tony Rossi
From Prayers for Father's Day
Photo "Father and Son Wisdom Walk' - frankjcasella.pixels.com
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Words from Bishop Bartosic.
(These words were recently shared with the men attending the CMCS Men's Forum. We'd like to share an excerpt with the rest of you here.)
Thank you men for delving into your faith. Thank you for the leadership you provide in your families and in your parishes. Research suggests that it’s the father whose practice of the faith has a defining influence on the practice of children. Spread the word! May the Lord bless you ..... and give fruit to your efforts ..... I look forward to meeting you soon.
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Living the Christian Lifestyle by Bishop Joseph N. Perry
One practical reason for a religious focus in life is to build up the kind of inner strength required to prevent the unsavory features of the popular culture from swallowing us up. We live in a time of tremendous cultural pressure that is, in a number of respects, anti-Christian. The spirit of the world is powerful and unrelenting and there is little society support for those who choose to reject the spirit of the world and embrace the spirit of God. This is not a popular choice and as a result it can often lead to certain loneliness in our lives. If we are going to be true to our values, if we are going to celebrate and defend a virtuous life we need to build up certain strength within us. This inner strength will allow us to resist the culture pressures to abandon our values, our true selves, and God. We do this by the study of God’s Word, the reception of his anointing in the sacraments, solid spiritual reading and from wise persons who are already living the Christian life. |
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Please Help Support the Mission of Catholic Men Chicago Southland |
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Each year, we connect with thousands of individuals and numerous parishes across Chicagoland through our transformative Catholic manhood program and online resources, often at little to no cost. How do we achieve this? It’s made possible by individuals like you who choose to contribute $10 each month. When enough people participate, remarkable things can happen. |
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