I will bless the LORD at all times;

His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

My soul will make its boast in the LORD;

The humble will hear it and rejoice.

O magnify the LORD with me,

And let us exalt His name together.

I sought the LORD, and He answered me,

And delivered me from all my fears.

They looked to Him and were radiant,

And their faces will never be ashamed.

Psalm 34:1-5 NASB

__________________

And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord,

and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

For he has looked on

the humble estate of his servant.

For behold, from now on all generations

will call me blessed;

For he who is mighty

has done great things for me,

and holy is his name.

Luke 1:46 - 59 ESV

__________________

Thanks be unto God for His wonderful gift:

Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God

is the object of our faith; the only faith

that saves is faith in Him.

I’m in Vegas now…just to let know all my friends out there!! anybody in my friendster list near from here??? have a great day!!

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (UPI) — Choline, a nutrient found in foods such as
eggs, is associated with a reduced risk of breast cancer, U.S.
researchers said.

The study of 3,000 adult women found the risk of developing breast
cancer was 24 percent lower among women with the highest intake of
choline compared to women with the lowest intake.

Women who consumed the most choline had a daily average of 455 mg of
choline or more — mostly from coffee, eggs and skim milk. Women with
the lowest intake consumed a daily average of 196 milligrams or less.

"Choline is needed for the normal functioning of cells, no matter your
age or gender," study

author Dr. Steven H. Zeisel of the University of North Carolina in
Chapel Hill said in a statement. "Increasing evidence shows that it
may be particularly important for women, particularly those of
child-bearing age."

Most Americans don’t meet the recommended intake for choline. The
Institute of Medicine says adequate choline intake is 550 milligrams
per day for men and breastfeeding women, 425 milligrams per day for
women and 450 milligrams per day for pregnant women.

The findings are published in the June issue of The Journal of the
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.

Copyright 2008 by United Press International
www.arcamax.com

"There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation,
hard work and learning from failures."

Colin Powell

You say, "tuh-MAY-toh," and your husband says, "tuh-MAH-toh." Don’t
call the whole thing off! Even respected authorities disagree over the
pronunciation of many words.

Can you select the pronunciations preferred by most (but not all)
pronunciation experts?:

1. demur (to object, take exception to) — a. di-MYOOR; b. di-MUR

2. forte (a person’s strength) — a. FOR-tay; b. FORT

3. grievous (causing grief, dire) — a. GREE-vus; b. GREE-vee-us

4. Realtor (a member of the National Association of Realtors) — a.
REEL-tur; b. REE-luh-tur

5. niche (a cranny; a suitable area of talent or comfort, or a segment
of a market) — a. NITCH; b. NEESH

6. conch (a marine gastropod mollusk or its shell) — a. KAHNCH; b.
CONK

7. pastoral (of or relating to rural life, or being a church pastor)
– a. pa-STOR-ul; b. PAS-tur-ul

8. sorbet (frozen dessert) — a. SOR-bit; b. sor-BAY

—-

Answers and explanations:

1. b. di-MUR. Here "mur" is pronounced as in "murky," not as in
"mural." The adjective "demure" (shy, reserved) is pronounced
"di-MYOOR."

2. b. FORT. The musical direction "forte," an Italian word meaning
"loudly," is pronounced "FOR-tay," but "forte," meaning "strength," is
derived from the French word "fort," meaning "strong."

3. a. GREE-vus. "Grievous" has two syllables, not three.

4. a. REEL-tur. I mispronounced this word for many years.

5. a. NITCH. While both pronunciations are common and acceptable, most
authorities prefer "NITCH." Because "niche" entered English from
French during the 1600s, they say, its pronunciation has been fully
Anglicized.

6. b. CONK. Purists want to conk people over the head for saying
"KAHNCH."

7. b. PAS-tur-ul. "Do pastures have stores in them?" the purists
angrily ask. "Then don’t put a ’store’ in ‘pastoral’"?

8. a. SOR-bit. The fact that "sorbet" shares the same Turkish root as
"sherbet" provides a clue to its historically accurate pronunciation.
But because "sorbet" entered English through French, it acquired the
fancified "ay" pronunciation that has been adopted by just about
everyone. Just as sorbet cleanses the palate, pronunciation experts
have tried for decades to cleanse "sor-BAY" from English-speaking
palates. Nice try.

The History of Saint Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day started in the time of the Roman Empire. In ancient
Rome, February 14th was a holiday to honour Juno. Juno was the Queen of
the Roman Gods and Goddesses. The Romans also knew her as the Goddess
of women and marriage. The following day, February 15th, began the
Feast of Lupercalia.

The lives of young boys and girls were strictly separate. However, one
of the customs of the young people was name drawing. On the eve of the
festival of Lupercalia the names of Roman girls were written on slips
of paper and placed into jars. Each young man would draw a girl’s name
from the jar and would then be partners for the duration of the
festival with the girl whom he chose. Sometimes the pairing of the
children lasted an entire year, and often, they would fall in love and
would later marry.

Under the rule of Emperor Claudius II Rome was involved in many bloody
and unpopular campaigns. Claudius the Cruel was having a difficult time
getting soldiers to join his military leagues. He believed that the
reason was that roman men did not want to leave their loves or
families. As a result, Claudius cancelled all marriages and engagements
in Rome. The good Saint Valentine was a priest at Rome in the days of
Claudius II. He and Saint Marius aided the Christian martyrs and
secretly married couples, and for this kind deed Saint Valentine was
apprehended and dragged before the Prefect of Rome, who condemned him
to be beaten to death with clubs and to have his head cut off. He
suffered martyrdom on the 14th day of February, about the year 270. At
that time it was the custom in Rome, a very ancient custom, indeed, to
celebrate in the month of February the Lupercalia, feasts in honour of
a heathen god. On these occasions, amidst a variety of pagan
ceremonies, the names of young women were placed in a box, from which
they were drawn by the men as chance directed.

The pastors of the early Christian Church in Rome endeavoured to do
away with the pagan element in these feasts by substituting the names
of saints for those of maidens. And as the Lupercalia began about the
middle of February, the pastors appear to have chosen Saint Valentine’s
Day for the celebration of this new feaSt. So it seems that the custom
of young men choosing maidens for valentines, or saints as patrons for
the coming year, arose in this way.

Jesus is back in Nazareth and attends the Sabbath service in the synagogue. He is asked to read one of the readings. Was it accidental or intentional that He read the 66 long chapters of Isaiah? Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit who appeared upon Him during baptism. Jesus was so Spirit-filled that nothing was accidental in His life.

The passage Jesus reads contains the program of His ministry. In His life and ministry, Jesus fulfills what the prophet wrote centuries ago. Luke answers our question about Jesus clearly: He is the fulfillment of the prophecies of old. He did not come without having been announced centuries ago. The prophets actually spoke about their time and the imminent future; they did not think of Jesus Christ yet. But they were inspired by God’s Spirit so that the oracles they uttered turned out to have a much more profound meaning and would be fully fulfilled only in Christ.

Jesus came to proclaim the Good News. He came to free us from the captivity of sin. He opened our eyes and freed us from our spiritual blindness. He saw to it that people would be reminded of Isaiah’s prophecy and recognize Him as the One mankind was waiting for. Jesus started the fulfillment with His ministry.

As Jesus’ disciples, we are challenged to continue proclaiming the Good News. He needs us to open the eyes of those who are spiritually blind. He needs us to bring those bound by sin into His presence to liberate them. This effort even goes beyond spiritual liberation. In Latin America, the Church has contributed much to a social and political liberation of the poor and oppressed.

The Holy Spirit we received in baptism and confirmation is upon us. St. Paul goes a step further and speaks of us Christians as temples of the Holy Spirit, meaning the Spirit is in us. This enables us to continue the great work of Jesus. His program has become ours. Fr. Rudy Horst

Reflection Question: Am I aware that I am called to make Christ’s program my program in life? How can I do this effectively? Lord, You have given us a great task, the task to continue Your work on earth. With the Holy Spirit in us, we are able to do this. Make us more aware of this great responsibility and enlighten us to make Your program our own.

St. William of Bourges, bishop,pray for us.

the Good shepherd offers spiritual nourishMent

A week before Christmas, I went to Makati and walked through Glorietta. How I wished to be out of the chaos as soon as possible! All those rushing and running people, some doing window-shopping, others with heavy shopping bags
and all the restaurants so full that I could not find a place for a cup
of coffee. I began to think about whether these people are really
happy. Some looked so tired, so stressed while others rushed aimlessly
through the mall. Suddenly, the first sentence of the Gospel of Mark
today flashed through my mind: “Jesus saw a large crowd, and He took
pity on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd.”

Jesus came into the world because He knows how pressured and
stressed we are. He knows how aimlessly we often rush through life. He
knows that many have lost track of their goals in life. He knows that
many of us are “like sheep without a shepherd.”  Jesus
is the Good Shepherd who wants to give us rest and nourishment, and to
lead us safely through the confusing times and periods of life.

Adoration
chapels in churches are wonderful places of rest where you can come in
the presence of the Good Shepherd Who knows how harassed you are by the
worries and problems at home or at work.

Mark
also tells us that Jesus nourished the crowd — He took the loaves,
praised God, broke them and satisfied the hunger of all. This event
foreshadowed the Eucharist. Today, priests continue to do what Jesus
did then in the Consecration during Mass.

The Second Vatican Council
proclaimed: “The Eucharist is the source and summit of Christian
life.” It is here that Christ enters our very being and strengthens
us. It is here that the Good Shepherd, continues to lead us through the
turmoil and frenzy of daily life towards our goal: eternal life in the
presence of His Father forever. Fr. Rudy Horst

Reflection Question:

What can I do this year to find more peace and strength in the Lord who offers me all this for free?

Lord,
in our hectic life You offer rest. Why do I not make more use of it?
Lord, often I feel spiritually dry, empty and hungry – why do I not
accept You, Who are present in the Eucharist? You are there for me, for
all of us. Thank You, Lord.

St. Thorfinn, bishop, pray for us.