I have long felt that the Feast of the Annunciation should be held in much higher importance than it currently is.  In fact, given the dearth of Holy Days of Obligation right now, and our cultural needs, I’d propose adding the Feast as a Holy Day of Obligation.  Yes, it falls within Lent….so be it.

It’s a very important feast day for the pro-life movement.  Was Jesus Christ present within Mary’s womb from the moment of conception?  Yes, he was!    Elizabeth, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, sensed his presence.  She said, “who am I that the mother of my Lord should come to me?”   She did not say, “that clump of cells will someday become my Lord.”

The feast is also important in that it provides us an opportunity to honor the Blessed Virgin Mary for following God’s will, and pondering….praying that we too will have the grace to be aware of, and to do the Will of God in our lives.

If you somehow missed the news, the University of Notre Dame has invited President Barack Obama to give their commencement speech this year.  On top of that, they are awarding Pres. Obama an honorary law degree.

OUCH!   Why is a supposedly Catholic school bestowing high honors on a man that holds a viewpoint diametrically opposed to that of the Catholic Church on a key moral issue (and indeed against natural law and common sense)?

This could be a key battle for the future of life issues, and even more so against the Catholic universities in our country that have so badly watered down and even betrayed their Catholic identity.

Please sign the petition protesting Notre Dame’s actions here.

Check out my latest at Southern Appeal.   Archbishop Chaput is a mensch.  We need many, many more bishops like him in order to turn back the culture of death.  Please pray for our bishops and priests!

God is good!  Thanks to donations and the Holy Spirit’s leading, the website is undergoing a complete redesign.   If there is any special content you’d like to see on the site, please suggest it via E-mail or by commenting here.

Prayer is needed more than ever, as the current Administration in DC, and in state houses across the country are trying to enshrine abortion on demand and destroy the Church.  The Obama administration has taken an even more offensive turn, selecting “Catholic” governor Kathleen Sebelius, who has been cozy with the infamous abortionist George Tiller, to be his secretary of Health and Human Services. In the same article, it is mentioned that President Obama rescinded the conscience exemption put in place by the Bush Administration.

This has convinced us more than ever that we need to expand our operation, to get more visibility both online and offline.  We would like to have parish representatives taking pledges from every parish, as well as a lot more visibility online.   We will need everyone’s help with that, but we are waiting until the site relaunch to start the push.

First of all, I must apologize.   I have been somewhat scarce lately.   We have been having a critical problem at work for which I am the main person assigned to solve it, and this has been going on since mid-December.  We’ve also got enough health problems for two or three families, and have been spending a lot of time in doctor’s offices the past month or so.   All of this is no excuse, though.  I should have been able to manage to at least update the main site, but I fell short of even that quite a few times.  The good news is that things have improved somewhat on both the work and family front, and I am still 100% committed to this.

I thank those who are still around, still praying with us,  and still concerned about this effort.  My next step is to send out an E-mail to everyone who registered for any of the novenas, to see if they are interested in expanding this as I outlined in my previous E-mail.  I would also like to update the site to a more modern, readable look.  The original site was put together quickly by two relative novices.  If anyone knows anyone who could help us make the site more readable and expand it, please let me know.

We are up to almost 44,000 rosaries pledged now!  God bless you all!

It’s been a while since the last update….I hope all of you have had a very joyous Christmas season!  We are nearing the end of the road on our novenas, whether we are praying the Inauguration Day Novena or the Conversion of America novena, and I hope that everyone is persevering, whether or not circumstances caused you to miss a few days…

Before I announce some plans, I’d like to ask everyone to pray for the repose of the soul of Fr. Richard John Neuhaus.  He was a great man, and a great Catholic leader.  We feel his loss keenly, and now we can (privately) ask for his intercession.  Please see the First Things website for more details on Fr. Neuhaus and his life.

Now….for the plans….it’s been great to see almost 40,000 rosaries pledged, and I’m sure that our pleas have been heard, through Our Lady’s intercession.  However, to save America, with all of her current problems, will require much more.   To this end, I’d like to announce two plans, one short-term and one long-term.

1) Another 72 day Conversion of America novena will START on the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul and end April 6th.   Join this effort, if you feel so called.  Try to get others to sign up!

2) Wouldn’t it be great to have an organized effort in parishes across America to get people to pray the rosary and/or offer Masses for the twin intentions of converting America, and the triumph of the Culture of Life?!?!  (Of course, other intentions could be included as well)    If you think so, let me know…I’d love to have a representative in EVERY parish in America trying to recruit for this campaign.  Many already pray the rosary for these intentions every day and just need to be counted.  Many others feel fear about the direction America is taking, and we are already feeling the effects of God’s protection being withdrawn.  These just need a gentle nudge to join.  Others still need to know about the powerful effects of the Rosary….and all too many need a spiritual wake-up call.   The exact shape of the effort is still very much open to your input, and of course the success, or even the beginning of the effort, depends on the response of many here.

I don’t presume to speak for God, or that this effort is any better or worthier than any of many efforts that people are making.  God will determine, via the response, whether this is something that should go forward or not.   Please just say a short prayer to ask God’s will, and together we’ll discern whether this is something worthy of pursuit!

God bless you all – it has been a privilege to pray with all of you!

Well, we’re one-third of the way through the initial “Inauguration Day Novena”….almost as many are praying the “Conversion of America” novena, either a 54 or 72 day version.  Thanks to all of those who have spread the word about this effort – we seem to have gotten a “second wind” and we’re almost up to 36,000 rosaries pledged at this point.

If you do happen to miss a day, don’t give up!   Just continue on your way, say 2 rosaries a day to make up for it, or end a bit later.  The important thing is not to get discouraged.

The pro-life news section of the site is working now, so everything on the main site should now be working.  If you notice anything that’s not working or have some great ideas for the site, please contact either Kat or I.

I hope to add a US map at some point showing how many rosaries have been pledged from each state.   So far, I’ve noticed a high number of pledges from the following states – California, Texas, Louisiana, Indiana, Wisconsin, Virginia, Ohio and Washington.

God bless all of you!

If you’re like me, this is the time in the novena when it gets tempting to let it slide.  Especially with the busy time of year, it can be easy for thoughts like, “I don’t have time for this”, to slip in.   Let’s redouble our efforts, and remain firmly committed to the battle.   As a side effect, the novena can help us keep our focus on the spiritual.  We now are closing in on 34,000 rosaries pledged, and that is just among those who have pledged online.

Hopefully, after this novena is over, we can keep this army of prayer going in some form.   I will share some of those ideas as the end of the novena approaches, and I definitely welcome any ideas that any of you have!

The main website URL is www.rosariesforlife.com

The old post with this information has slipped off the front page.

If you want to E-mail me, you can do so at davidwmueller at hotmail.com

There is now a Facebook cause for Rosaries For Life, thanks to webmaster Kat.  If anyone is on Facebook, please join the cause!