Category Archives: Me

Ghosts of the Apocalypse on Kindle Vella is LIVE and awaiting you!

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Well, it’s done! My first piece of published fiction has gone live on Amazon’s Kindle Vella serial self-publishing platform! You can get it here: Ghosts of the Apocalypse on Kindle Vella.

It is Episode 1 (or ‘first installment’) of… offhand I don’t know how many episodes it’ll be. Probably around 20.

 

The first ten episodes are free, to unlock anymore afterwards, you have to buy tokens, but they are not expensive. I would be very grateful if you would at least follow the story and read the first ten (they should appear every 1-2 days; it is a serial format) and ‘follow’ the story, as well as ‘like’ it, any maybe even comment on it (constructive criticism/suggestions are welcome.) And perhaps, if you like it, continue to support it by buying the tokens need to unlock the premium ones.

This is my entry in the Kindle Vellys, a fiction contest. First place is $25,000, second is $10,000 with a nmber of $1,000 also rans. I doubt I’ll win, given the criteria for becoming one of the 25 semifinalists, but miracles do happen!

Thank you!

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

My fiction debut

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Sometime later this evening (Monday July 29th) I should upload the first “episode” of my Kindle Vella serial, “Ghosts of the Apocalypse” unless I have a panic attack. The title is subject to change, the current one is the third or fourth version. The first version was “A Funny Thing Happened to Me on the Way to the Spaceport,” which I changed to “The Trains Were Still Running the Day the World Ended,” because nothing funny actually happened to my protagonist on the way to the spaceport. I changed it to “The Trains…” because it’s evocative of a mood, but decided on “Ghosts of the Apocalypse” because that’s more encompassing of the plot and trains don’t factor in as much as I thought. It was called very briefly ‘The Odd Thing That Happened to Me on the Way to the Spaceport,” but it didn’t last because it’s just dumb. 

Kindle Vella is an initiative of Amazon that began about two years ago. It features episodic, serial fiction. Writers can upload stories with a minimum of  500 words (or is it 600?, I don’t care ‘cos I won’t be having episodes that brief) and a maximum of 5,000 per episode. The number of episodes is up to the writer. Mine may be 15-20 episodes of an average of 3,000 words each. 

Why am I boring you to tears with these details? Because I’m freaking out and this comforts me. This is an historic moment for me on a personal level. This will be my first piece of published fiction, ever. I  have always has aspirations of writing. I wrote and submitted terrible short stories to all the major science-fiction magazines way back in the 1980s. They were mercifully rejected. One never even merited a rejection letter. I guess they thought it was so bad that they weren’t going to waste postage on telling me so.  In 1991 I moved to Southern California to hopefully become a writer for television. I even submitted a script for “Star Trek: the Next Generation,” but it was rejected. I piddled with a few more but but never submitted them and then alcohol happened and I gave up writing for almost a decade. (The stereotype of writers is that they drink a lot. When I wrote, I didn’t drink. When I began drinking, I gave up writing. When I gave up drinking, I returned to writing. I sometimes do things backwards, I guess.)

I never entertained thoughts that my writing would be a Catholic spirituality blog along with devotional booklets. No, I was going to be a beloved writer of soft sci-fi novels and stories, and maybe a bunch of Star Trek episodes, to boot! But, no. Not that I am resentful. I never gave up the dream and have been working on miscellaneous pieces for the past 10+ years. 

Until a couple of weeks ago when my wife found out about the Kindle Vellys. 

It’s a writing contest. Unlike most contests where a group of judges read and analyze contest entries and select a winner, the Vellys are a popularity contest. The top 25 most popular stories based on subscription rates and other reader engagement metrics become finalists and then the judges read those. First place is $25,000. I think second place is $10,000 and there’s a bunch of $1,000 also-rans. 

I doubt I’ll get anywhere near the top 25 (which is why I’m fuzzy on the not-first-place prize monies) never having written a Vella story before; I am assuming the more experienced writers who have a following already have the advantage. 

But it isn’t gonna hurt for me to try. If I enjoy the experience, as well as the engagement (a key strategy in raising the visibility of your story is the writer engaging with their readers through the comment section. Readers can reply to the story, and writers respond) then I may continue with additional stories (I have many in various states of incompletion that may make for decent serials.) 

How is money earned? The writer gets paid royalties from the readers purchasing of tokens to unlock the episodes (the first 10 episodes are free, starting with the 11th, you gotta pay to read the rest of it.) I have not heard of anyone getting rich off of writing Vella stories. But, thirty days after the story is marked “completed,” I can package it up as a book and upload it to Amazon KDP ebook and paperback. But, if this is viable, it may prove to have decent revenue. Especially since I can “double dip” from Vella royalties and royalties on the book versions (which, I think, can be edited versions of the Vella. This story may approach novel-length, but it will juuuuuuuuuussssssssssst make the 40,000 word count that makes a story a novel. So, I may revise the serialized version after the contest is over. 

I would love to get your support. After I upload each episode, I will announce it here, and across my social media accounts. If you woud be so kind as to read each episode and make nice comments to boost the engagement metrics, I would love you all until the Second Coming and then some. The first ten episodes are free, and then you’ll have to buy tokens to get the rest, but  they’re not that expensive.  See:

So, if my story is 20 episodes, all you need to pay is $0.99 to unlock the episodes after the 10th. If it lasts longer than 20, it’ll cost you another $0.99 to get 10 more (I seriously doubt my story will be much longer than 20ish eps. So, you may have to spend $1.98 on me. I’m worth a buck ninety-eight? Right? Yes? Sniff. I think the writer’s royalties are 50% of the tokens purchased to unlock their episodes. (I’m focusing on the $25,000 prize money for First Place. The ordinary details I’ll figure out later.)

Anyway, it’s almost 2AM where I live and I must wrap this post up and go to bed. Or watch TV for a bit. But I’m done with the computer for now. Tomorrow, I’l reread a few times the first episode, make any needed changes and upload it. Check back here later tomorrow, or if you follow me or Sober Catholic on social media. If you scroll down these Pages: About me and About this blog, all my social media account are listed where I post blog updates and the Vella announcements.

Thanks, I really would appreciate the support.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Miraculous 54 Day Rosary Novena to save my parish from closure

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ATTENTION: THIS IS REALLY LONG BUT IT WOULD MEAN A LOT TO ME IF YOU’D READ THE WHOLE POST. I’M NOT ASKING FOR MONEY, JUST ATTENTION FOR SOMETHING PLEEEEEAAASSSE?????

This upcoming Saturday the 22nd of June my wife and I (and numerous others) will be starting a Miraculous 54 Day Rosary Novena to save our parish from closure.

We live in the Diocese of Buffalo and about six dozen parishes are recommended for closure due to the aging priesthood and an insufficient number of men coming into the priesthood. There is also an additional factor: the diocese had to declare bankruptcy to protect its assets from the numerous lawsuits stemming from the sex abuse scandal. The past 2, perhaps 3, Bishops of Buffalo failed to adequately protect young boys and girls from sexual predators in the priesthood. And so now these parishes will also be sold to pay the victims who sued the diocese.

I hope the fires of Hell burn a lot hotter for those unrepentant Catholic priests who couldn’t keep their hands off of boys and girls. Please note that I am NOT wishing Hell on anyone, this is why I said “unrepentant.” Unrepented and unconfessed mortal sins earn the guilty eternal hellfire. God’s mercy will indeed cover those priests who were sincere in repenting and confessing their sins, which I believe to be mortal. Perhaps a few could claim mitigating factors such as mental health problems or addictions, but given the deliberate nature of their actions and their duration, plus the lack of accountability by the Bishops, I think only a small few can be excused in that manner. 

From the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Paragraph1857:

For a sin to be mortal, three conditions must together be met: “Mortal sin is sin whose object is grave matter and which is also committed with full knowledge and deliberate consent.”

I find it difficult to believe that priests guilty of sexual crimes against others, especially children, are not covered by all three. 

So anyway, a  hundred thousand or so Catholics in the Diocese of Buffalo will be losing their parishes because vocations were rarely nurtured and priests who were sexual predators. 

Now we come to my parish, St. Bernadette’s. “St. Bernies” is strong, vibrant and growing. Almost every month the bulletin lists dozens and dozens of new parishioners. There are active ministries. There is Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration. The collection pulls in in excess of $20,000 every week. It is not in debt and pays all its bills. Every weekend over 1,000 people attend the three Masses (1 Saturday Vigil and 2 Sunday morning.) This is not common amongst parishes diocese-wide. There is no reason to close it. It is 2 miles from one other parish and about 5 from another, but those are in good condition, too, and hardly need the addition of our parish’s members. Besides, if St. Bernadette’s were to close it would add thousands of people to those two churches and there would still need to be three priests to serve those two, so the point in closing St. Bernadette’s is lost: there wouldn’t be a saving in priestly postings.

Our priest did mention that the diocese might be in error, that the data attributed to our parish might actually belong to a failing parish, but who knows? My brilliant wife is looking over some publicly available data in the Diocesan Directory and she’s found additional numbers that cast serious doubt on the sanity of the decision to recommend closure.

Note that the diocese is only recommending these parishes for closure; the affected parishes can offer a counterproposal to the plan. If accepted, they’re saved, if rejected, they’re not. Our priest and parish staff will be working overtime to work out a counterproposal.

(Incidentally, we love our priest. He looks like Jesus, plus in every homily he fondly mentions his Mom and Rome (or Italy. I’ve never heard so much stuff about Rome in homilies. He puts the ROMAN in Roman Catholic.))

So I thought of (or the Blessed Mother put it in my brain, or perhaps St. Bernadette) saying a Miraculous 54 Day Rosary Novena. I wrote the following and our priest approved it for distribution in the church:

ATTENTION ALL PARISHIONERS

OF ST. BERNADETTE’S:

PLEASE JOIN IN A

“Miraculous 54-Day Rosary Novena to Save St. Bernadette’s.”

***June 22-August 14***

 

We all love St. Bernadette’s and will be distraught over her closing, should that happen. To help prevent this, we are calling upon the powers of Heaven and Our Lady to help keep our parish open, if that be God’s will. Let’s all join together in reciting a Miraculous 54 Day Rosary Novena! We can pray as individuals in ‘spiritual communion’ with each other, or together in groups in the church, our homes or over Zoom/Google Meet, etc.

The Miraculous 54-Day Rosary Novena originated in the late 19th century in Naples, Italy, when a young girl suffering from an illness thought to be incurable prayed to Our Lady for help. Mary appeared to her and promised her healing if she prayed three novenas. The girl did so, and was miraculously healed. In a later apparition, Mary specified that the full prayer should have 3 novenas in petition, and 3 novenas in thanksgiving.

OUR NOVENA TO SAVE OUR PARISH WILL BEGIN ON SATURDAY JUNE 22nd SO AS TO END ON AUGUST 14th, the day before they begin to announce the final decisions on closings. August 14th is important because it’s the feast day of St. Maximilian Kolbe, WHO HAD A GREAT DEVOTION TO ST. BERNADETTE AND OUR LADY OF LOURDES!!!

How to pray the Novena:

The novena consists of five decades of the Rosary (one set of mysteries) each day for twenty-seven consecutive days in petition; then immediately five decades each day for an additional twenty-seven consecutive days in thanksgiving, regardless of whether or not the request has been granted yet.

The first day of the novena always begins with the Joyful Mysteries (regardless of what day of the week the novena is started); the second day, the Sorrowful Mysteries are prayed; and the third day of the novena, the Glorious Mysteries are prayed. The fourth day of the novena starts all over with the Joyful, etc. and continues on in that sequence (Joyful-Sorrowful-Glorious) throughout the 54 days of the novena. The Luminous Mysteries aren’t included only because they did not exist when Our Lady taught this novena to the girl.

There are special additional prayers to begin and conclude it during all the days of petition and thanksgiving, as well as at the end of each decade. Here are two links with the instructions and prayers:

The Miraculous 54 Day Rosary Novena and How to Pray the 54 Day Rosary Novena (NOTE TO MY READERS: on the sheet, the URLs were spelled out. Obviously a link wouldn’t work and I didn’t know how to convert one to a QR code (the instructions are on my phone somewhere but I lacked the time to figure it out. Hence the next sentence:)

OR JUST DO A WEB SEARCH FOR “HOW TO PRAY THE 54 DAY ROSARY NOVENA” it’s essentially the same at any source
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BACK TO MY READERS: My wife and I already know of several of our online friends who say they’ll join us in saying this Novena, which is awesome as they’ve never even been to western New York much less our parish!

WILL YOU JOIN IN, ALSO? I get  A LOT OF BLOG INSPIRATION while at my Holy Hours in the parish’s Perpetual Adoration Chapel, so you’ll kind of be helping Sober Catholic!

Yes, I know the Diocese of Buffalo isn’t alone in this. There are quite a lot of other diocese in the same position. So, if you refrain from helping out because of that, I’d understand. But still, I’d really appreciate it if you’d rise above rejecting help just because you’re not in this Diocese. I don’t think it would be inappropriate at all for you to add an additional, personal intention to the “Save Paulcoholic’s St. Bernadette Parish” petition! So there could be something in it for you! OH!!!!! If you want, you can email me or post in the comments the personal intentions that you might add; I’ll copy and paste them onto a doc and keep them on my phone and pray about them in front of the Blessed Sacrament at St. Bernie’s Adoration Chapel and before or after Mass.

Thanks!

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Happy 22nd Soberversary to me! Help me celebrate!

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On this day in 2002, I had my last drunk. I have conflicting memories of what happened (I may have to search through old blog posts of prior soberversaries, but even in those I recall not completely recalling events.) At any rate, it’s of no consequence any more. Twenty-two years and everyone involved in my life back then is either dead or disappeared. Sorrow for the former, good riddance (mostly) for the latter. We move on and consign the past to God’s mercy.

If you would like to help me celebrate, you can buy my books. I have a new one out now entitled “The Sober Catholic Way.”  It has a page which I keep updated as to its availabiity.

“The Sober Catholic Way” helps Catholics by describing the many ways in which their faith can assist in maintaining sobriety. Drawn from nearly two decades of blogging at SoberCatholic.com, “The Sober Catholic Way” shows the importance of the sacraments, the Bible, the Catechism and other books. It continues on with the various ways one can “live” out Catholicism by nurturing devotions to the Sacred Heart, Blessed Virgin Mary, and other saints. All of these contribute to sobriety as well as one’s spiritual progression!

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Discover the importance of the Real Presence, the Rosary, the Stations of the Cross, St. Joseph, St. Therese (the “Little Flower”) and Matt Talbot. You’ll get ideas on how to apply the Beatitudes, the Divine Mercy Message, as well as learning about the Apparitions of Our Lady at Guadalupe, Lourdes and Fatima and how they can guide one’s life.

“The Sober Catholic Way” is a basic handbook on how anyone can live a sober life. This book does not guarantee anything, but doing these things have helped the author keep his sobriety intact since May 22, 2002. Will he ever drink again? Quite unlikely, but the tools to help recover from a relapse are in every chapter! The love and mercy of God is everlasting and endless!

It is currently available through Amazon on Amazon Kindle, as well as a paperback: click here to buy as a paperback.

It is also now available at numerous other ebook retailers like Apple Books and Barnes and Noble. For others, just go here and click on the logo of your fave online bookshop.

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And there are my two classic Sober Catholic Books: The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics:

…is a book that is rooted in an ancient Catholic devotion. It is intended to assist Catholics and other Christians finddeeper meaning in their struggles with alcoholism, by connecting the oftentimes hard road of sobriety with Jesus’ suffering road to His Crucifixion. The reader sees that their old alcoholic ‘self’ is being led to the Cross and the joy of eventual resurrection of a new sober self can follow. Whether they are still drinking and struggling, or have been sober for many years and still have difficulties coping with sobriety, this book should help readers maintain that sobriety.

and “The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts” which:

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helps people to reflect on their recovery and relationships with others, and ultimately with Jesus Himself. 

Whether people are still struggling with their addictions, or have been clean and sober for a few weeks, months, or years, the reflections will lead them to meditate on the spiritual growth they have achieved so far.

It takes a time-honored prayer and brings it into a useful format for people to pause and reflect on their recovery, their relationships with others, and ultimately with Jesus Himself. Whether people are still struggling with their addictions, or have been clean and sober for a few weeks or months, or many years, the reflections for each Mystery of the Rosary will help them meditate on the spiritual growth they have achieved so far. Over the years, their thoughts on each meditation may change, depending on “where they’re at” in their recovery journey.

Click on those links (or the ones at the bottom of the post) to find out where you can get them.

I have one last book, it isn’t intended for people in recovery, rather for Catholic creatives. However, and this thought ocurred to me today, if you have been clean and sober for a while, and wonder what to do with yourself, then:

The Catholicpunk Manifesto may be the book for you! You’ve ‘fixed’ yourself, maybe you can help fix the culture!

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The Catholicpunk Manifesto is my new book exhorting Catholics to apply their faith to change the culture for the better!

“The Catholicpunk Manifesto is a call to arms, or rather, a call to pens, paintbrushes, and video cameras, for creative Catholics to take up St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe’s call to infiltrate pop culture and help alleviate the ills that pervade contemporary society. St. Maximilian saw back in the 1920s how the use of cinema, radio, and mass-market books was corrupting society. He thought that those same tools could be used as a force to counter this corruption. The Catholicpunk Manifesto tells how the teachings of the Catholic Faith can be used to provide a road map out of our current morass and a blueprint to build a more just and fair society constructed according to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy and other elements of traditional Catholic Social Teachings (CST).

To quote from the Manifesto:

 “…a literary and artistic form that seeks to make use of Catholic Social Teachings to lead the world away from the cliff of self-destruction it   is heading towards. It is a literary and artistic movement I am proposing that envisions a society ordered according to Catholic Social  Teachings (CST), particularly incorporating the Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy, the Sermon on the Mount; as well as any political and economic forms that might be imaginatively derived from CST, such as Christian Democracy, Catholic Monarchism, Subsidiarism and Solidarism, or a host of so-called ‘fringe’ ideas.”

“The preponderance of suggesting non-conventional political and economic forms is primarily due to the ongoing failure and collapse of conventional political and economic forms.”

“The ‘-punk’ suffix as typically used in literary and artistic forms suggests a countercultural, anti-establishment and anti-authoritarian ethic.”

Think of ‘cyberpunk,’ ‘steampunk,’ solarpunk,’ and so forth.

“Therefore, ‘Catholicpunk’ utilizes countercultural values in opposition to secularist and modernist mores and values. It is anti-establishment inasmuch as it defies the increasingly centralized authority of modern governments and the intrusive reach of corporations and is anti-authoritarian based on Catholicism’s traditional opposition to dictatorships.”

“Catholicpunk addresses how the future might look if humanity survives the contemporary social and moral collapse plaguing the Western world and the poverty and oppression prevalent in the Global South and the East. Catholicpunk illustrates how applying CST solves major contemporary challenges made by globalism, militarism, and the anti-life and sexual libertine agendas. When Catholicpunk emphasizes sustainability, it will be with an eye towards responsible management of resources so that there will be plenty for future generations, and not through restrictions on population such as aggressive birth control and abortion agendas. People from womb-to-tomb will be viewed as resources to be cherished and valued, not as parasites or polluters.”

“…Catholicism is the purest form of counter-cultural expression there is today. Catholicpunkers capitalize on this an funnel CST and other elements into artistic works designed to inspire people and give them a way out.”

Interested? It’s available as an ebook through Amazon KDP! Don’t like ebooks? Here’s the paperback version link! It is also available as an ebook through Apple Books, Barnes and Noble and Kobo!

“Creatives of Catholicism, unite! You have everything to gain, especially souls!”

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

The Sober Catholic Way is available as a paperback!!!

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The Sober Catholic Way is now available as a paperback! Amazon just approved my latest book as a traditional book book (as opposed to an e book 😉 ) and you can buy it right here!

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“The Sober Catholic Way” helps Catholics by describing the many ways in which their faith can assist in maintaining sobriety. Drawn from nearly two decades of blogging at SoberCatholic.com, “The Sober Catholic Way” shows the importance of the sacraments, the Bible, the Catechism and other books. It continues on with the various ways one can “live” out Catholicism by nurturing devotions to the Sacred Heart, Blessed Virgin Mary, and other saints. All of these contribute to sobriety as well as one’s spiritual progression!

Discover the importance of the Real Presence, the Rosary, the Stations of the Cross, St. Joseph, St. Therese (the “Little Flower”) and Matt Talbot. You’ll get ideas on how to apply the Beatitudes, the Divine Mercy Message, as well as learning about the Apparitions of Our Lady at Guadalupe, Lourdes and Fatima and how they can guide one’s life.”

Get a paperback! You can take it with you anywhere! Actually, you can do the same with the ebook, but there’s just something about the feel of paper in your hands. 

It is also available through these other fine online retailers.

 

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

The Sober Catholic Way will soon be available in paperback!!!

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The paperback edition of my latest Sober Catholic Book, “The Sober Catholic Way,” has been uploaded to Amazon and Draft2Digital. When they pass review (should be just a couple of days, if that.) I will update The Sober Catholic Way page.

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“The Sober Catholic Way” helps Catholics by describing the many ways in which their faith can assist in maintaining sobriety. Drawn from nearly two decades of blogging at SoberCatholic.com, “The Sober Catholic Way” shows the importance of the sacraments, the Bible, the Catechism and other books. It continues on with the various ways one can “live” out Catholicism by nurturing devotions to the Sacred Heart, Blessed Virgin Mary, and other saints. All of these contribute to sobriety as well as one’s spiritual progression!

Discover the importance of the Real Presence, the Rosary, the Stations of the Cross, St. Joseph, St. Therese (the “Little Flower”) and Matt Talbot. You’ll get ideas on how to apply the Beatitudes, the Divine Mercy Message, as well as learning about the Apparitions of Our Lady at Guadalupe, Lourdes and Fatima and how they can guide one’s life.

“The Sober Catholic Way” is a basic handbook on how anyone can live a sober life. This book does not guarantee anything, but doing these things have helped the author keep his sobriety intact since May 22, 2002. Will he ever drink again? Quite unlikely, but the tools to help recover from a relapse are in every chapter! The love and mercy of God is everlasting and endless!”

It is currently available as an ebook through Amazon, as well as through these other fine ebook retailers.

 

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

“The Sober Catholic Way” is now available at more online stores!!!

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The Sober Catholic Way is now available through numerous other online retailers such as Barnes & Noble and Apple Books. You can visit this universal link and find your fave ebook shop: “The Sober Catholic Way” on Books2Read 

Just click on the appropriate logo for the store you prefer. Don’t forget, it’s also available on Amazon Kindle.!

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I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

“The Sober Catholic Way” is available on Amazon Kindle!

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Take a look at my latest Sober Catholic Book: “The Sober Catholic Way,” now available at Amazon as a Kindle book. Here’s the cover (designed by my very lovely, patient and understanding wife, Rose Santuci-Sofranko.)

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“The Sober Catholic Way” helps Catholics by describing the many ways in which their faith can assist in maintaining sobriety. Drawn from nearly two decades of blogging at SoberCatholic.com, “The Sober Catholic Way” shows the importance of the sacraments, the Bible, the Catechism and other books. It continues on with the various ways one can “live” out Catholicism by nurturing devotions to the Sacred Heart, Blessed Virgin Mary, and other saints. All of these contribute to sobriety as well as one’s spiritual progression!

Discover the importance of the Real Presence, the Rosary, the Stations of the Cross, St. Joseph, St. Therese (the “Little Flower”) and Matt Talbot. You’ll get ideas on how to apply the Beatitudes, the Divine Mercy Message, as well as learning about the Apparitions of Our Lady at Guadalupe, Lourdes and Fatima and how they can guide one’s life.

“The Sober Catholic Way” is a basic handbook on how anyone can live a sober life. This book does not guarantee anything, but doing these things have helped the author keep his sobriety intact since May 22, 2002. Will he ever drink again? Quite unlikely, but the tools to help recover from a relapse are in every chapter! The love and mercy of God is everlasting and endless!

I am working on a paperback version, as well as additional print and digital distribution avenues. Check back for updates! Oh, yeah, GO BUY A COPY!!! 🙂 (And thank you!)

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

Mother Angelica is as helpful and inspiring today as she was decades ago

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 I couldn’t this morning decide what to watch on TV during the time I set aside for that before ‘beginning my day.’ Old reruns of “Sliders?” How about “Farscape?” “Babylon 5?” Maybe pick up where I left off during an interrupted binging of the original “Quantum Leap?” No, no, no, and no. I was restless in my indecision. Then I felt a tiny inspiration to watch classic Mother Angelica episodes on EWTN. And so I did!

Am I ever glad! 

I am, as usual, ‘going through stuff’ and I am awaiting a decision on a job application I made yesterday. And so I binged on Mother Angelica videos on EWTN and later YouTube for about 3 hours. Several were on fear, anxiety, and inner peace. I split my time between “Mother Angelica Live Classics” and “From the Heart with Mother Angelica” an older show I don’t think I’ve seen before.

I feel I’m being prepped for failure (I won’t get the job) or success (I’ll get it and properly cope with new job anxieties.) 

Either way, whatever happens, I feel like I received a grace today to cope with stuff. If the prayer is answered in the way that I hope it will, (I get the job) then “Yay!” If it gets answered ‘the other way,’ (I don’t get the job) then I’ll assume that God has other plans for me. I hope he lets me know what they are soon!

I cannot recommend watching Mother Angelica enough. I watched her programming quite a lot way back when, and I have read all the books she’s written and the ones edited or written by her biographer (Raymond Arroyo.) If you’re down, afraid, consumed with fear and anxiety, or are depressed, if you’re confused about anything: please go to the links I posted a few paragraphs above and just scroll through the offerings. If you’re suicidal, she has kind and loving things to say to you. She is a lifeline. She will help you pull back from the abyss.

“Mother Angelica Live Classics” is also available as audio-only. EWTN also has an audio-only version of  her EWTN call-in show, “Mother Angelica Answering the Call.” It’s about:

“Father Joseph Mary Wolfe and Doug Keck mine decades of viewer phone calls answered by Mother Angelica. Mother dishes out teaching, advice, laughter and plenty of prayers as she takes calls from her “Family”. No subject is off limits and no problem too big for the wisdom and compassion of the one and only, Mother Angelica!

I  listen to clips of this program on my local Catholic radio station (which is available to you on iCatholicRadio (available for the desktop or an iOS or Android app.) I may start listening to entire episodes: I need more Mother!

Mother Angelica is a balm, a healing remedy for these strange times which have gotten much worse since her shows aired. I kept thinking to myself “Imagine what she’d be saying nowadays!” She was four years younger than my Mom, but she’s always come across as a wise (-cracking) and loving Grandma who really cares about her family (all several million of us.)

I wish those folks down in Alabama would get started on her cause for beatification and canonization. If there was ever a woman who led a life of heroic virtue and who had a major, positive impact on millions of people worldwide, it’s Mother Mary Angelica of the Annunciation.

I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)

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I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!

My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)