BIG HOUSE

Our friend Alex Jones told this story last year when he came to Texas for the Life in the Spirit Conference. Its a great parable of how the Catholic Church is a big house and some of the kids decided to go camp in the back yard instead of live in the big house. See our Kerygma Teams USA to learn more about the next one at the end of the month!

Justice Revival

Justice Revival

HEALING MASS JANUARY 20, ST. MARY MAGDALENE, FLINT- PRAYER MEETINGS!

Come and be touched by the Holy Spirit!
Fr. Michael Scherry and members of the Houston Charasmatic Center will be ministering at the monthly Charismatic Healing Mass, held at St. Mary Magdalene, Flint, TX on Wednesday, JANUARY 20. Under the direction of Parish Priest, Father Tim Kelly, the Mass with Adoration begins at 6:00PM. Sacrament of Reconciliation is available. Laying on of hands and anointing for healing with personal ministry will follow. Come and encounter a fresh wind of the Spirit. The Church is located at 18221 FM 2493, Flint, TX 75762. For more information call the parish office at 903-894-7647 or Lori Harris at 903-343-3567. Feel free to forward this to your friends. All are invited and welcome!

MONDAY, January 11,  will be the day of the Diocese monthly  prayer meeting. (Second Monday of the Month) The Charismatic prayer meeting will start at 7:00 PM at St. Paul's Chapel,  behind the Diocese of Tyler office. 1015 ESE Loop 323. Tyler. For more information call Lori Harris at 903-963-7146 or St. Mary Magdalene, Father Tim Kelly at 903-894-7647.
There are two in home prayer meetings as well that we invite you to join:

Healing & The Holy Spirit PRAYER MEETING at Dorothea Wiegman, January 19, (3rd Tuesday of the month) 10:00 AM  Call Dorothea for directions 903-825-3406 or Lori Harris 903-963-7146 for more information.

Healing & The Holy Spirit PRAYER MEETING at Terry & Sherry Pettit's House, January 25 (4th Monday night of the month) at 605 Shiloh Ridge, Tyler, TX. Phone Terry for directions at 903-239-3455 or Alan Harris at 903-963-7146.

Anne Rice is Called Out of Darkness

Called Out of Darkness is a beautifully written book of one woman's journey to a personal relationship with Jesus as her Lord and Savior. An intimate story that isn't overly syrupy and does not justify any of the personal choices author Anne Rice has made in life makes this book very readable to a vast audience that might not otherwise pick up a testimonial book of this type.

Her descriptions about the importance of family and moral values as well as church attendance forming character can be read between the lines. The truth and value of the "little things" that others do for and to you and how they make a lasting impact on character formation are subtle traits within the context of the story.

We are all pursued by the Hound of Heaven and the use of the poem by Francis Thompson fits into Anne's story perfectly. Her longing for the Eucharist has a depth of understanding that even protestants can relate to.

The scandals plaguing the Church did not keep her from choosing to pursue Jesus through the Sacraments that were familiar to her from her childhood. Her embracing of the modern Church service versus the Latin Mass she had grown up with are evident. She speaks with joy at not being ridiculed by those in her family who had never left the Church but instead loved her back to Jesus.


As a convert to the faith, I was overjoyed that she looked with awe at many of the same things I loved when I converted: The Nicene Creed, the Gloria, the prayers of consecration and the Agnus Dei. Her descriptions of these standards of the Church echo my own sentiments and show a woman who has come to terms with what she chose to walk away from and what she now chooses to embrace.

I have never read Anne's "vampire writings," and probably never will, but I see an amazing openness and frank love of truth and sense of justice in her clear and eloquent writings. I look forward to many more descriptive and faith conveying books to come from a woman whose obvious vocation is writing for the glory of God.

In Genesis, Joseph reveals himself to his brothers with the words, "Even though you meant harm to me, God meant it for good, to achieve his present end, the survival of many people." ( Gen. 50:20) I look forward to Ms. Rice's future work to draw on the past she came from to lead many to the Lord. He knows her name, as He knows each of ours and He has called her out of darkness.

CALLED OUT OF DARKNESS
By Anne Rice
ISBN:978-0-307-39759-1

For more book reviews see http://keamusa.com

You can walk the Road to Cana with Christ the Lord

In Christ the Lord: The Road to Cana, we take up Anne Rice's bold attempt to continue the story of Jesus as a young man who knows who He is and what is going to happen to Him in the near future.

Jesus is a man, strong, virile and desirable.

Anne does not make him weak or un-masculine in anyway. He is a stud and those around him know it. He is a hard working and important part of a working class family and as such, has the girls giving him the eye. He is obviously marriage material.

His emotions are dealt with in a genuine manner. There is no pretense here that Jesus the man isn't a human being attracted to the opposite sex. The emotions of Jesus are dealt with honestly and you see that He was in all manners, tempted such as we. (Luke 4:15)

The sub story woven throughout brings life to Jesus the Man as we watch him die to his flesh and desires while choosing the highest good for others. The temptation during his forty days and forty nights in the desert is superb as Jesus is tempted with all the emotions that every man feels. Ms. Rice covers them all in a way that makes the reader look at his own faults and failures.

When Jesus returns to his own, there is no turning back. He is the Son of God and a man on a mission. He calls fishermen to come follow him and begins to speak as only the Son of God can. Ms. Rice's writing is captivating as she weaves the love story of Christ the Lord for His Bride, the Church against the story of the wedding at Cana. The wedding at Cana shows Jesus honoring his mother, just like all good boys do. As Mary tells those around her to obey her son and do as He asks, the turning of the water into wine, is recorded for us in a story that is satisfying as any beautiful wedding should be. The emotions of Jesus the Man make this book a treasure you won't soon forget.

CHRIST THE LORD: THE ROAD TO CANA
By Anne Rice
ISBN: 978-1-4000-4352-1

For more book reviews see http:// kteamsusa.com

BOOK REVIEW: CHRIST THE LORD: OUT OF EGYPT

Don’t jump the gun.

In Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt, Anne Rice creates a very real little boy who happens to be Jesus of Nazareth. Ms. Rice writes like a mommy as she explores a little boy she loves and knows was born to die for the sins of mankind.

What a different twist she brings to the ordinary! The setting of a child and family leaving Egypt to return to their people of Nazareth provides background that is interesting and fresh. Whether we are seeing Jesus deal with His feelings and knowledge of who He is and who He is going to be or looking through the eyes of Mary, his mother, Ms. Rice has taken a very “family” perspective on the whole process.

The Jewish perspective is eloquent without being trite as we see families gathering and passing down the stories of the Torah in the traditional manner. The historical perspective is intact as the people struggle with oppression brought on by the Roman invasion of the country amidst the traditional life cycles of the Jewish calendar.

As the little boy tells his story and then grows into puberty and reaches Bar Mitzvah age, you see a child learning how to reason and ask intelligent “God questions,” knowing all along, what the answers are.

The book leaves you wanting more, as it should.

The real treat is the conversion story of Anne at the end of the book. You can’t jump the gun to get to this seventeen page Author’s Note. It won’t mean nearly as much if you haven’t read this reverent and captivating take on the child Jesus.

CHRIST THE LORD: OUT OF EGYPT
By Anne Rice
ISBN: 0-275-41201-8

For more book reviews see http://kteamsusa.com

BOOK REVIEW: REDISCOVERING CATHOLICSM

In Rediscovering Catholicism: Journeying Toward Our Spiritual North Star, Matthew Kelly gives a compelling picture of what a Christian should be. With a clear voice, he shows how each area of society should and would inculcate a biblical worldview if those who claim to be Catholic lived what they say they believe.

Divided into readable sections, Kelly explores the need for a Savior, the relevancy of Christ today and the call for holiness that  a personal relationship with Jesus requires. His look at seven pillars of Catholic spirituality is an objective take on what makes us Catholic and how, if applied, will renew the inner life of the individual. His section on fasting and discipline is a real slap on the hand to most of us, as it should be.

Kelly makes a passionate plea for a return to virtue and calls on all who claim the Catholic faith to look to Jesus and emulate His call to evangelization. Through servant leadership, courage, and Christian character that comes from a personal and growing faith in Jesus, we as a people, will draw the sinner to Christ.

This book will challenge even the weakest to become more bold in what Christ and His Church would look like if we all hungered and thirst after righteousness.

REDISCOVERING CATHOLICISM: JOURNEYING TOWARD OUR SPIRITAUL NORTH STAR
By Matthew Kelly
ISBN: 1-929266-08-1

For more book reviews see  http://kteamsusa.com