22 So the men turned from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the LORD.
23 Then Abraham drew near and said, "Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?
24 Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it?
25 Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?"
26 And the LORD said, "If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake."
27 Abraham answered and said, "Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes.
28 Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?" And he said, "I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there."
29 Again he spoke to him and said, "Suppose forty are found there." He answered, "For the sake of forty I will not do it."
30 Then he said, "Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there." He answered, "I will not do it, if I find thirty there."
31 He said, "Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there." He answered, "For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it."
32 Then he said, "Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there." He answered, "For the sake of ten I will not destroy it."
33 And the LORD went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.
Genesis 18:22, ESV

On the Annunciation and the Perpetual Virginity

Dixit autem Maria ad angelum: Quomodo fiet istud, quoniam virum non cognosco? Mary said to the angel, How can that be, since I have no knowledge of man?

The tense used in verse 34, "I have no knowledge of man" is a present, which must in the nature of the case be translated either as a perfect or as a future. If the Angel had said anything to suggest (what was in fact, tradition assures us, the case) that the conception of our Lord in the womb was to take place immediately, it would have been natural to give the verb a past significance, "since I have never yet had knowledge of man". But there is no such indication given in verse 31; and the straightforward explanation of the Blessed Virgin's bewilderment is thereby automatically excluded.

It is unthinkable that an engaged woman should be puzzled by a prophecy, undated, about the future career of her son, merely on the ground that the marriage has not yet been consummated. Thus there can be no satisfactory explanation of the passage except a fixed determination on the part of the betrothed woman that her marriage shall not be consummated; "I have no intention of the kind," she says, using the same formula as that used by our Lord in John 7:8. That she had taken a vow of virginity is thus made extremely probable, without being actually asserted.

-Msgr Ronald Knox's Commentary on the Gospels (The Annunciation in the Gospel of St Luke Ch 2)

Today is the Feast Day of Christ the King
First, a Prayer to Christ the King
O Christ Jesus, I acknowledge Thee King of the universe. All that has been created has been made for Thee. Exercise over me all Thy sovereign rights.
I renew the promises of my Baptism. I renounce Satan and all his works, and all his pomps, and I promise to live a good Christian life and to do all in my power to procure the triumph of the rights of God and They Church.
Divine Heart of Jesus, I offer Thee my poor efforts in order to obtain that all hearts may acknowledge Thy Sacred Royalty, and that thus the Kingdom of Thy peace may be established throughout the universe. Amen.

And also the indulgenced prayer
Act of Consecration of the Human Race to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Most Sweet Jesus, Redeemer of the human race, look down upon us humbly prostrate before Thine altar. We are Thine, and Thine we wish to be; but to be more surely united to Thee, behold each one of us freely consecrates ourselves today to Thy Most Sacred Heart.

Many indeed have never known Thee; Many too, despising Thy precepts, have rejected Thee. Have mercy on them all, most merciful Jesus, and draw them to Thy Sacred Heart. Be Thou King, O Lord, not only of the faithful children, who have never forsaken Thee, but also of the prodigal children, who have abandoned Thee; Grant that they may quickly return to their Father’s house lest they die of wretchedness and hunger.

Be Thou King of those who are deceived by erroneous opinions, or whom discord keeps aloof, and call them back to the harbor of truth and unity of faith, so that there may be but one flock and one Shepherd.

Be Thou King of all those who are still involved in the darkness of idolatry or of Islamism, and refuse not to draw them into the light and kingdom of God. Turn Thine eyes of mercy towards the children of the race, once Thy chosen people: of old they called down upon themselves the Blood of the Savior; may it now descend upon them a laver of redemption and of life.

Grant, O Lord, to Thy Church assurance of freedom and immunity from harm; give peace and order to all nations, and make the earth resound from pole to pole with one cry; praise to the Divine Heart that wrought our salvation; To it be glory and honor forever. R. Amen.

Sirach 2:14-16

Woe to the duplicitous heart, and to the wicked lips, and to the hands that do evil, and to the sinner who walks the earth by two ways!

Woe to the dissolute in heart, who do not trust God! For, as a result, they will not be protected by him.

Woe to those who have lost endurance, and who have abandoned upright ways, and who have turned aside to depraved ways!

A good read ahead of the solemnity of the Mother of God tomorrow, I strongly recommend that we all consecrate ourselves to Our Lady, the Mother of God

the 7 deadly sins

An excerpt from St Louis De Montford’s “True Devotion to Mary”

“24. God the Son has communicated to His Mother all that He acquired by His life and His death, His infinite merits and His admirable virtues; and He has made her the treasurer of all the at His Father gave Him for His inheritance. It is by her that He applies His merits to His members, and that He communicates His virtues, and distributes His graces. She is His mysterious canal; she is His aqueduct, through which He makes His mercies flow gently and abundantly.”

Me on right btw

Causes of ignorance about the faith and truth include:

- Indifferentism: A lack of concern or interest in religious matters.
- Cognitive Bias: Preconceived notions or mental shortcuts that distort understanding.
- Lack of Resources: Limited access to materials or guidance for learning and deepening faith.

"Truly, it is a deplorable thing that such a widespread profanation of the Name of God, of Christ, and even of the Blessed Sacrament has been introduced among Christians; most sacred Names, which, if not formally blasphemed, are nonetheless taken in vain without any respect or reverence, used as an expression, as an exclamation, or even as an outburst of impatience. However, the Confessor should not judge that they sin mortally every time such irreverent individuals, toward the divine Name or the most august Sacrament, burst out with these words like "God! Holy God! Sacrament!" For although this is a detestable abuse, nevertheless, when these words are uttered without an outburst of anger that implies contempt or rage against the Lord, it cannot be judged that they are guilty of a grave fault. Certainly, they are to be reproved greatly, and all means should be sought to ensure their effective amendment; but the Confessor should not tell them that they sin mortally, nor should he deny them absolution. For these words alone, they would not be guilty of blasphemy, but merely of a vain invocation of the Name of God, which is not a grave sin. Let us hear from the Most Reverend Gousset: “Nor is it properly a blasphemy to pronounce in vain the holy Name of God, saying for example 'for God! by the holy Name of God!' These words, which are more frequently uttered in a moment of impatience, are not against God in the intention of the speaker, but against men, animals, or inanimate beings, towards which anger transports us… On the other hand, if there were any doubt about the existence of blasphemy, a Confessor in practice should behave as though there were no blasphemy.”

-St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori, (from the Compendium of the Moral Theology of St. Alphonsus Vol I by Ven. Joseph Frassinetti)

You should not say, "I sinned, and what grief has befallen me?" For the Most High is a patient recompensor.

Do not be willing to be without fear concerning a forgiven sin, and you should not add sin upon sin.

And you should not say: "The compassion of the Lord is great; he will take pity on the multitude of my sins."

For both mercy and wrath go forth quickly from him, and his wrath sets its gaze upon sinners.

You should not delay being converted to the Lord, and you should not set it aside from day to day.

Sirach 5:4-8