Music Review: "You Are the Light" by Josh Blakesley

I've reviewed several Christian music CD's, and what I always look for first and foremost is for the music and lyrics to truly enhance worship:  I've found that some get so caught up in the music  that,  unfortunately,  the worship of the Lord is essentially lost.  

But....from the first track to the last track, Josh's music and songs made me think only of the Lord we worship.

Josh includes all aspects of faith and worship:

"Restored" relates how we are restored in the Lord.

 "I Will Give Thanks" expresses the gratitude due the Lord. 

"At  the Name" (my favorite, BTW) reminds us of the reverence due the name of Jesus.

This CD is one of the best Christian music CD's I've had the pleasure of reviewing.  

And did I mention Josh is Catholic?  :)   The below clip is a sample of his previous work.

An excellent CD! 

http://joshblakesley.com/
 

Josh's bio  

http://www.spiritandsong.com/ 

Movie Review: The Dark Knight Rises - PG13

Warning: Possible Spoilers 

TDKR opens about 8 years after "The Dark Knight"  left off.  Gotham City is honoring Harvey Dent with Harvey Dent Day, and Bruce Wayne is a recluse, taking the blame for what Harvey did (after he became Two Face) and for killing Harvey.   the whole city thinks Batman is the bad guy.   This part made absolutely NO sense, and started TDKR on a negative note.  When an evil terrorist terrorist named Bane arrives and threatens to destroy Gotham City, Bruce decides to return as Batman.

For starters,  Batman spends almost half the movie, which was 2:40 long,  recovering/rehabbing: first, when he returns to Gotham, and also after his first battle with Bane.  Most of the rest is pure destruction. There is also a bed scene which is completely unnecessary to the story (no nudity).

The two bright spots are Anne Hathaway, who steals the show as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who is excellent as Detective John Blake, one of the few who believes in Batman.

There is a nice plot twist toward the end, but it is too late to save this morbid  story.  I  really hope they meant it when they said this is the end of The Dark Knight story.

2 words: DISAPPOINTING and DEPRESSING.  Very over-rated.  Save your money.

Can Brave-ry be Overdone?

The wee bairn Merida, is a Scottish medieval princess who is irresistible as a tyke, romping with her parents, yet sadly morphs into a Disneyesque stubborn, roughneck runaway teen who wants to remake her queenly and gracious mother Elinor.
Rejecting the ridiculous suitors which according to clan tradition,  she must choose from, Merida flees into the woods on her gigantic horse, shooting arrows from her bow as a cowboy would shoot rounds into the air.
Oh please!

I was frustrated with the triteness of the plot and the heavy-handed feminism until Merida's wishes come true and she finds a way to change Mom.
Then, things got interesting, and a bit less dogmatic.
Brave is a traditional fairy tale story, with dark woods, fairies and witches, crafted  with a Tangled-like modern edge, but Merida is  missing Rapunzel's charming blend of boldness and vulnerability. She's too bristly and brash to be likeable, even if she IS a redhead. Bravery as a character trait is overplayed and ends as a tragic flaw.
Perhaps Merida's willowy, tender mother,  Elinor is the truly brave character.
Interesting discussions will ensue between mothers and teenage daughters who see this together, and for this I thank Pixar. Just don't condescend to women, we can enjoy wearing our dresses and riding horseback, just not at the same time. Dramatic highland scenery, and a fair-to-middling soundtrack don't make up for the fact that there is not one decent-looking man in the film who is sober and can shoot straight. Merida's father Fergus  is given shabby treatment as a boorish oaf, but the man-bashing is rescued by a good-natured parody of Braveheart. Sorry, Mel, you had it coming!
It might not be for under seven set. They have higher standards for princesses and those are some terrifying bears! They might want to wait till it comes out on DVD. 

Hyperactive little brothers add a few welcome moments of levity in a  somewhat dark film. King Fergus,
 make for a satisfying film with an acceptable 'lesson'.
But it coulda had a wee bit more class, than to show the cleavage on the servant woman, ya know what ay mean?

Movie Review: The Amazing Spiderman - PG13

Peter Parker lives with his Aunt May and Uncle Ben.  One day, he comes across a suitcase of his father's and starts to look into his father's work, which leads him to his father's workplace (where he gets bit by a genetically-altered spider) and  his father's research partner  Dr. Curt Connors.  Dr. Connors is researching reptile DNA in order to re-grow his severed arm.  Eventually, this leads to his turning into a lizard.

As I watched, I couldn't help but compare this reboot with the earlier Spiderman trilogy.  Andrew Garfield is much more natural in the role of Peter Parker.  Andrew's Peter Parker is quicker to adapt to his new abilities and powers than the earler portrayal portrayal was.  But Peter is still torn between sharing his secret with his girlfriend Gwen and wanting to keep her safe.

Overall. much better than the earlier trilogy.

The special effects are stunning, and there is tons of action.  They somehow make the concept of Spiderman vs. a lizard somewhat plausible.

A excellent movie...don't miss it!  At the end, the whole theater applauded.

http://theamazingspiderman.com/

2016 Teaser Trailer

Book Review: A Heart on Fire

A Heart on Fire: Rediscovering Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus by James Kubicki, S.J. Notre Dame: Ave Maria Press, 2012 Sometimes people feel as if devotions such as that to the Sacred Heart went the way of the horse and buggy after Vatican II. Nothing could be further from the truth. If anything, we need these devotions more than ever in our modern world which so often forgets about God and the love of Jesus.

In "A Heart on Fire: Rediscovering Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus," Fr. James Kubicki, National Director of the Apostleship of Prayer, explores the history of this devotion and its relevance for the world today. He examines the history of this devotion, beginning with the revelations of God's love in the Hebrew Scriptures, followed by the life of Jesus himself, its manifestation in the writings and teachings of the early Church, followed by the visions of several saints, such as St. Lutgard, St. Catherine of Siena, St. Mechthild, and St. Gertrude the Great.

St. Margaret Mary is the saint most associated with this devotion. Jesus appeared to her four times in 1673 and asked her to have a feast instituted in honor of His Sacred Heart. In 1856, Blessed Pius IX placed the feast on the Church's liturgical calendar and in 1899, Pope Leo XIII consecrated the world to the Sacred Heart. Fr. Kubicki also explores the connection between devotion to the Sacred Heart and devotion to the Eucharist. "Devotion to the Sacred Heart is simply a relationship with Jesus Christ that grows ever more personal and deep. What is the best way to develop such a relationship? The answer is simple: through the Eucharist." He also examines the relationship of the Sacred Heart devotion with that of Divine Mercy.

One of the most interesting parts of "A Heart on Fire" was an explanation of the parts of the Traditional Morning Offering of the Apostleship of Prayer. This prayer is well-known, but it was fascinating to learn of its history and the meaning behind the various parts. "A Heart on Fire" offers a solid history of devotion to the Sacred Heart and offers sound reasons why we should develop this devotion in our lives. In addition, Fr. Kubicki offers several "prayer exercises" to help us do just that.

Book Trailer The Lily Trilogy

Wing Tip Book Trailer from caritaspress on GodTube.

Wing Tip; Book Trailer

Wing Tip Book Trailer from caritaspress on GodTube.

Movie Review: Vito Bonafacci

Vito Bonafacci is a successful businessman who has much wealth and a lavish lifestyle.   One night he dreams that he had a heart attack and his mother appears to him and admonishes him to abandon his pursuit  of worldly goods and  pursue true life in the Lord. 

Vito seems unsure of how to do what his mother is telling him.  He repeatedly asks "am I a good person"?   He also questions the existence of heaven and hell.  He discusses his doubts with several people throughout the story,  but none of them has the answers.  In the end, he finds the answer is in the Catholic Church and reception of the sacraments.

I enjoyed the story and how it is told, but one technique I did not care for was that  in a couple scenes, when his mother is speaking, the camera closes in on her mouth.  I found this distracting.

My favorite quote from this film is "much of what the world holds in esteem, the Lord holds in disdain".

A very good story that follows a search for truth and ends up with the truth of the Church.  It will reinforce your own faith in the Church.

VitoBonafacci.com/

App Review: MyConsecration

I reviewed this app over the weekend.

The MyConsecration App is a free app for those that want to make the St. Louis de Montfort Consecration with all of the convenience of doing it on their iPhone (or iPad).

It has many features to aid in progressing toward consecration to Our Lady.

• The :Prayers" tab includes several prayers to Our Lady, for example the Magnificat and the Litany of Our Lady.
• The "Prepare" tab is 12 days of  prayers to prepare for Consecration to Our Lady.
• The "Plan" tab is my favorite.  It lists all the feasts of Our Lady, and the start and end dates of the consecration prayers leading up to each.  For example, the next prayers start on June 13 and end on June 16, the Feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel.

• The "Settings" tab is pretty cool.  It allows you to set a reminder, text-only or text with audio (a note of chant :),  to remind you when to start the prayers for each feast.

There is also a "Share" button which will allow you to share your daily consecration on Facebook

This app is an excellent tool to consecrate yourself to Our Lady.  I thoroughly enjoyed reviewing it and will definitely be using it in my own consecration. You can get it free by searching for MyConsecration in the App Store.  For more information, visit the site below.

 I highly recommend this App!

Update: a reader informed me they are in development stage for an Android App.

 

http://www.myconsecration.org/