Latin-English Rosary eBooklet Cover

April 25, 2022


This is the cover for my new Latin-English Rosary ebooklet. 

The Latin-English Rosary ebooklet will be an expanded version of my shop's Latin-English Rosary trifold.  The ebooklet will be available for digital download and formatted for Kindle or other ereaders.  I decided to create a second Latin-English Rosary resource because, while people like the trifold, it really only works as a printable.

This will be my next nonfiction project and my first self-published ebook.  Please look for it in my Etsy shop over the summer.

I also wanted to let everyone know that my new 54 Day Novena printable booklet is finished.  I will be listing it in the shop next week! 

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If you're interested in the Latin-English Rosary trifold, please click here:  Rosary Trifold

If you want to stay updated on new blog posts and shop items please sign up for my email list here.  If you're only interested in shop updates, please follow my shop, Catholic Book And Card, on Etsy!

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Are Crystals Evil? (Video)

April 19, 2022


Crystals in the Occult  

In this video I talk about the common perception of crystals as a harmless or even silly superstition and why this is simply not the case.  

I don't feel I presented this information as clearly as I should have in the video. So I wanted to summarize the main points:

  1. The connection between New Age ideas about the "power" of crystals and witchcraft.
  2. The absence of true supernatural properties within inanimate objects.
  3. Blessed objects and cursed objects.
  4.  How crystals are used in spellcasting and ceremonial magic.
  5. The true nature of magic and how our ancestors had a better handle on this than we do.
  6. My own personal experience of the demonic through the application of crystals.

The Smoke and Mirrors Effect

I believe that one of the reasons I struggle to present content like this in a clear and coherent way is because anything to do with demons is, almost by definition. confusing.  Satan does not want us to really understand this stuff - even to the limited degree that we (as humans) are able to grasp it.  

That's why everything about the occult is obscure or secret or deceptive!

The occult has become SO mainstream, however, it is important that we do try to understand and discuss it.  Even if it can be challenging.  This is what I try to do here in the blog and on YouTube - and hope to eventually, God willing, explore further in my testimony ebook.

Please feel free to share any observations or questions on this content, either here in the blog comments or on YouTube and I will do my best to clarify.
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Easter Mass at St. Joseph Marello

April 12, 2022


I wanted to share the video of today's Easter mass at St. Joseph Marello Church.

St. Joseph Marello is one of two churches in the combined parish near my home in Pittston PA The second is St. John the Evangelist. It was at St. John's that I made my confession and received communion upon my official return to the Catholic faith on March 7th, 2020.

Last year I was able to make my confession prior to Holy Week but had to watch the Mass on YouTube.  This year, I'm happy to say that I will attending Easter Mass in person!

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"Jennifer the Damned" by Karen Ullo

April 6, 2022


Jennifer Carshaw would be an ordinary teenager dealing with ordinary problems - like acne, insecurity and boys - except for one thing.   Jennifer is a vampire.  

A not yet turned vampire orphan, attending Catholic school and living in a convent.  

Because of her vampire nature Jennifer can't take part in the religious life that surrounds her, even though she has always wanted to.  All she really wants is to be normal.

As a character, Jennifer is believable.  It is easy to sympathize with the sense of alienation she feels.  I found myself rooting for her very early on, hoping that she would somehow avoid her fate.  Sadly, however, it is only a matter of time until she takes the next inevitable step.

The remainder of the story focuses on Jennifer's life as a largely sympathetic wolf among the sheep.  

For me, "Jennifer the Damned" was a page turner because I sympathized with and felt invested in Jennifer herself.  I also appreciated the the secondary characters.  The sisters in particular really came alive for me and I found myself smiling at the quirks of their personalities.

Unavoidably, there is violence in this story but it is not gratuitous, in my opinion, and there is no overtly sexual content.  The book itself is very well-written and suspenseful.  It is written by a Catholic author and is, I think, a good choice for Christian readers of this genre.

I picked up the "Jennifer the Damned" after hearing the author speak on a panel on darkness in fiction writing at the Catholic Writer's Guild online conference (more on that in an upcoming post).  And highly recommend the book.

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"Jennifer the Damned" is available through Amazon at the following affiliate link.  

To check out the author's website please visit KarenUllo.com

Find out more about the Catholic Writers Guild here.

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3 Differences Between Catholic & Non-Catholic Meditation

April 2, 2022

I recently did a video / blog post on Catholic meditation or meditative prayer.  In that post, I talked about the differences between Catholic and non-Catholic meditation.  For me, three key differences stood out.  

I'm not sure that I articulated them clearly in the video, so I thought it might be helpful to summarize them here.

The Three Differences I've Noticed

1. Catholic meditation or meditative prayer is part of a larger, well defined structure.  

Meditative prayer is the second of the nine levels of prayer mentioned by St. Teresa of Avila and others.  These levels begin with vocal prayer and gradually progress towards more contemplative levels of prayer.  New Age, Eastern and other forms of popular meditation are less defined.  

This means that when you participate in popular meditations (whether individually, in a group or via a recording) you often don’t know what you’re getting – or where that particular meditation is leading you.  Whereas in Catholic meditation you absolutely do.

2. The object of Catholic meditation is God.  

Other kinds of meditations have very different objects. The object of eastern meditation is to experience nothingness.  The object of New Age meditations center on various, often unknown, entities or energies.  In many cases these unseen entities or energies are imaginary; in others they are spiritually dangerous. Many popular relaxation type meditations also include eastern or New Age content, which may be placed at end of the meditation when the listener is in an open (and vulnerable) state of mind.  Whether real or imaginary the objects of popular meditation don't offer any actual spiritual value.

Catholic meditation can help bring you closer to God.  Over time, it can lead to real progress in the spiritual life as you approach looking at things as God might.  Such progress can help us in practical ways as we overcome vices and develop virtue.  It's spiritual value is beyond estimation.

3.  Catholic meditation is an effective form of spiritual warfare.  

Because prayer raises your heart and mind to God, it creates an atmosphere that’s inhospitable to demons.  In fact, according to Catholic exorcist Fr. Chad Ripperger (who is my resource for much of the information shared in these posts) it’s possible for people to rid themselves of demonic obsession solely through Catholic meditation. 

Other forms of meditation however can, and sometimes do, have the opposite effect.  They may open doors that make us vulnerable to demonic influence or attack.


In Summary

Catholic mystics, like St. Teresa of Avila, have been utilizing mediation to get closer to God for hundreds of years.   In the way of other New Age modalities, popular meditation may mimic the deeper spiritual practices of the Catholic faith but but can't provide the same spiritual benefits and may even be spiritual unsafe.
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To see my previous post and video on this topic, please click here.
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