US Bishops Call for a Special Day of Prayer and Fasting

The following is a quote from the USCCB's Respect Life office, during all the faithful to pray and fast this Friday: 

 

May 10, 2022 WASHINGTON - In response to the leak of a draft opinion in the U.S. Supreme Court case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, some abortion advocates are calling for nationwide demonstrations, disruptions of church services, and the personal intimidation of specific Supreme Court justices. Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore, chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Pro-Life Activities invited the faithful to unite in fasting and prayer:   “In the midst of current tensions, we invite Catholics around the country to join us in fasting and praying the Rosary on Friday, May 13, the Memorial of Our Lady of Fatima. Let us offer our prayers and fasting for these intentions:   ·     For our nation, for the integrity of our judicial system, and that all branches of government be dedicated to seeking the common good and protecting the dignity and rights of the human person, from conception to natural death. ·     For the overturning of Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey in the Supreme Court’s final decision in Dobbs v. Jackson. ·     For the conversion of the hearts and minds of those who advocate for abortion. ·     For a new commitment to building an America where children are welcomed, cherished, and cared for; where mothers and fathers are encouraged and strengthened; and where marriage and the family are recognized and supported as the true foundations of a healthy and flourishing society. ·     For Our Blessed Mother’s intercession and guidance as the Church continues to walk with mothers and families in need, and continues to promote alternatives to abortion, and seeks to create a culture of life.   As Catholics, let us witness to the beautiful gift of life with civility and love, and with our peaceful prayers and our compassionate service to all those in need.   Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us.” The NCCW Rosary Call will be held Friday at 6:30 pm Central time.  You can find call in information HERE.

"Sharing the love that God has given us."

On April 29th, the Feast Day of St. Catherine of Siena, the Peoria Diocesan Council of Catholic Women gathered to honor 44 women volunteers from across the diocese.  Everyone was happy to be together again, not just in the Cathedral but afterwards at the Spalding Pastoral Center for a luncheon and awards.

Bishop Louis Tylka presided at the Holy Mass and offered these words in his homily: 

"Let us raise or eyes, open our eyes, and see the way God is calling us today, at this time, this moment, reading the signs of the times, so that we can be effective in our discipleship and sharing the love that God has given us."

Learn more about the honorees in The Catholic Post.  Thank you, Jennifer Willems, for your coverage of our event! 

Happy Easter!

On behalf of the Peoria DCCW Board of Directors, we wish you a very Happy and Blessed Easter Season!

A Day of Prayer & Fasting for Peace

 

On February 23, 2022 during his general audience, Pope Francis called on all believers (and non-believers!) to pray and fast for peace in Ukraine. 

“I invite everyone to make March 2, Ash Wednesday, a day of fasting for peace,” he said. “I encourage believers in a special way to devote themselves intensely to prayer and fasting on that day. May the Queen of Peace protect the world from the folly of war.”

Pro-Life Voices in Jeopardy at the UN

URGENT!!!  Pro-life Advocates may be barred from the UN

(This letter was sent to the NCCW Board and is used with permission.)

Dear Friends,

I learned today from a pro-life group that has had a presence at the UN in New York for 25 years that they were recently informed that their values do not coincide with the values of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) and that pro-life groups have been barred from hosting a panel at the CSW this year.  The CSW is scheduled to be held from March 14-26.

A few days ago, there was a Zoom meeting that determined the course of work for the CSW.  A woman who leads a very powerful group actually said that pro-life groups should not only be barred from presenting at the CSW but should lose their credentials at the UN!  Recall, please, that the UN is supposed to promote inclusive civil society engagement.

Accordingly, C-Fam, a group that is strongly pro-life at the UN, is circulating a world-wide petition to be presented to the Secretary General of the UN asking that the pro-life position be given voice at the upcoming CSW.  We ask that you please consider joining in this petition by completing the information found in this link:

https://c-fam.org/stop-the-un-from-blocking-pro-life-groups

Our NCCW stands strong today in support of pro-life as it has throughout its nearly 102-year history and prayerfully requests that you discern your participation in this effort to protect the most defenseless and consider adding your name to this petition.  Doing so will send a message that there are women world-wide who support protecting the fragile and beautiful gift of life from conception to natural death.

Thank you and may Our Lady of Good Counsel guide your decisions and actions always,

Maribeth Stewart Blogoslawski

NCCW UN Representative

 

URGENT!! NCCW Prayer Vigil against Satanic Conference!

To combat the darkness of the occult and Satanic practices in all its forms, the National Council of Catholic Women is organizing a nationwide prayer vigil for the weekend of February 11-13, 2022. During these three days, The Satanic Temple will be hosting an event titled “SatanCon” in Scottsdale Arizona. The group promotes so-called “reproductive rights” (i.e., abortion) and their After-School Satan Club, a chapter of which began in January 2022 in the Moline-Coal Valley school district in Illinois. (Addendum: another club began in Lebanon City Schools (OH) on January 27^th.)

To get involved, people of faith are encouraged to set aside a specific time each day to pray against the demonic forces that are descending upon Arizona, Illinois, and anywhere else they are invited in. This is not some casual Halloween prank, but an intentional spiritual attack launched by The Satanic Temple and its supporters. If the event organizers feel they are successful in any way, they will continue holding these events. We must respond with boldness, with confidence, and with a unified voice to stop them!

As Catholics, we have the BEST tools for spiritual battle! We have the Rosary, and we have Jesus Himself in the Most Blessed Sacrament! Because of this, we invite people to make a special Holy Hour at least once during this weekend before the Blessed Sacrament if you can. We recognize some people are unable to go into their Church for reasons of health, transportation, etc., so please know that we welcome ALL prayers from wherever you are!

We are asking that people sign up for slots to help us cover all the hours. If you do not sign up formally but decide to pray intentionally for this Vigil, we welcome you, too! The time slots on the online list are set to the Eastern time zone, but Scottsdale AZ is in the Mountain time zone.

NCCW offers these tools to help you get involved as an individual, with your family, parish, or diocese:

·         Online sign-up at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0e4dadab2ca1f4c61-prayer

(You must sign up for a free account at Sign Up Genius to use this tool.)

·         OR contact NCCW Spirituality Commission Chair, Kim Padan by email to kim (at) gabrielsmom (dot) com to select a time slot. You can also use the Contact Us form in the right  column of this page.  --->

·         Announcements suitable for parish bulletins and social media use.

·         List of suitable prayers and specific intentions to help your hour bear fruit.

·         Photos with verses suitable to post on social media.

NCCW was founded by the US Bishops in 1920 to provide a common voice for Catholic women across the country. Our leadership team is reaching out to other Catholic groups and parishes, as well as non-Catholics to spread the word. We believe this is an important battle worthy of the attention of every Christian. It is important to note that we wish no harm would come to any person involved in this conference, so we ask that all prayer be respectful of the dignity of these people, misguided though they are. Pray for their conversion, not their demise.

Spread the word. Join us in prayer. Share the Light of Christ in our darkened world.

 

Our Lady of Good Counsel, pray for us.

Former PDCCW President, Betty Sullivan, dies at 90

 

Betty Sullivan, long-time PDCCW Board member and past President, died on January 7th at the age of 90. She attended our diocesan events in recent years, representing her parish in Kewanee. 

A full obituary marking her excellent service to the Church will be published in the January 30th edition of The Catholic Post.

Addendum:  Link to the obituary: https://www.thecatholicpostnewspaper.com/Catholic-Post-01302022-e-Edition/10/ 

May the angels lead her into Paradise.