Happy Feast of the Annunciation & Maryland Day!

Today is the feast of the Annunciation, which celebrates God becoming man within the womb of the Virgin Mary (Notice that Christmas is exactly nine months away??) Today, we recall that our Lord loved us enough to become one of us, and Mary was faithful enough to say "yes" to God's plan.

Today is also the 375th anniversary of the first recorded Catholic Mass in the English-speaking colonies. On March 25, 1634, Fr. Andrew White and the settlers of Maryland celebrated the feast of the Annunciation at St. Clement's Island, after a long and dangerous journey from England. Today we recall when the Catholic faith first reached the shores of St. Mary's County, MD. The video below, which was created last year for Pope Benedict's Birthday, chronicles the Seeds of Catholicism in Colonial Maryland.

Pope asks young Catholics to use technology to share their faith

Each year, the Pope offers reflections on the media on World Communications Day. This year, his message was aimed at teens and young adults. He encouraged teens to use blogs, facebook accounts, to spread the Gospel. Here's the story:

http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0900327.htm

As Southern Maryland Youth Day approaches, you will be able to use stmaryscatholicyouth.com to invite others to Youth Day - more information will be coming soon!

SOMD Youth Day - Rock the Faith!

The title and logo for Southern Maryland Youth Day have been chosen - Rock the Faith! Psalm 62:3 says, "God alone is my rock and salvation, my secure height; I shall never fall." We can focus our lives on popularity, on school, on our friends, on our possessions, and on so many other things, but only faith in God gives our lives real meaning. Things in our life may come and go, but our Catholic faith is always the same.

The deadline for registration has been set to February 20th. You can register online at http://www.stmaryscatholicyouth.com/ or by snail mail.

Keep Christ in Christmas

For many of us, Christmas truly is "the most wonderful time of the year." Buying (and receiving) presents, enjoying family dinners, and watching classic Christmas movies like Elf, Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer, Elf, and Frosty the Snowman (did I mention Elf?) make this once-a-year holiday one-of-a-kind. In the midst of all of the celebrations, it's easy to forget that "the Reason for the Season" is Jesus. This Christmas, make time for Mass, prayer, and reflection on the greatest gift of Christmas - salvation through Jesus Christ.

Professional Soccer Player Chooses Priesthood

This professional soccer player leaves the field to become a priest. He’s not shy about using the media to promulgate the faith and talk about God!

Theme Chosen for SOMD Youth Day

At our first planning meeting for Southern Maryland Youth Day 2009, we threw around ideas for possible themes - the Bible, St. Paul (this is his year, after all), and others. Someone mentioned that 2009 is the 375th anniversary of the first recorded Catholic Mass in the English colonies, and we quickly decided to focus on what we could learn from the first settlers here in Maryland.

Sound boring? Maybe you don't know enough about what those early Marylanders had been through: The Catholics on-board were fleeing harsh treatment by the English government, seeking a place where they could live out their faith more freely. Others on board were adventurers looking for life in a new world and a chance at fortune and fame. In danger of starvation, pirate attacks, sickness at sea, and violent storms, they crossed the ocean to settle in a new colony, and the rest, as they say, is history.