Category Archives: Rosary Meditations

Sober Catholic’s Facebook Page… (and a reminder about my books!)

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Facebook seems to have done something with their Search algorithms or otherwise how they distribute Pages as for the past week or so I’ve noticed a huge increase in the number of “Likes” for Sober Catholic on Facebook.

“Huge” is of course relative.

Anyway, I would like to extend a friendly welcome to all the new “Likers,” and to let them know that I also have written two devotionals for Catholics suffering from addictions (or in long term recovery, but who still need inspiration.) You can get ordering info for them by clicking on the link (the book’s title) in the following paragraphs.

There is The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics, “…a book that is rooted in an ancient Catholic devotion. It is intended to assist Catholics and other Christians find deeper 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, “…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.

The book 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.”

The books have their own Facebook Page, too: Sober Catholic Books, as well as one on GooglePlus: Sober Catholic Books on Google+.

Sober Catholic also has a Page on GooglePlus: Sober Catholic on Google+.

If you’re interested a little bit “About this Blog,” then there’s: About this blog: Sober Catholic.

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!!)

Five First Saturday Devotions

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The “Five First Saturdays” were instituted at the request of Mary in 1925, during an Apparition to Lucia, one of the then only surviving seers of Fatima.

Our Lady requested that the faithful, on the first Saturday of the month for five consecutive months:

 • Go to Confession

 • Receive Holy Communion

 • pray the Rosary

 • meditate on the one of the mysteries for fifteen minutes

 • all of the above in a spirit of reparation

Confession can be eight days before or after.

Communion can be received in the usual ways: either at Mass, such as a Saturday morning daily Mass or the Saturday Evening Vigil Mass, or from a priest or Eucharistic Minister, or during a Communion Service. Many parishes may have such a service to assist people in fulfilling the requirements. Check around your locale at Mass Times for parishes.

Why five Saturdays? Our Lady requested that for the following reasons:

Five first Saturdays of reparation were requested to atone for the five ways in which people offend the Immaculate Heart of Mary:

 1 attacks upon Mary’s Immaculate Conception

 2 attacks against her Perpetual Virginity

 3 attacks upon her Divine Maternity and the refusal to accept her as the Mother of all mankind

 4 for those who try to publicly implant in children’s hearts indifference, contempt and even hatred of this Immaculate Mother

 5 for those who insult her directly in her sacred images.

I am posting this now as tomorrow, August 2nd, is Saturday, and the first one of the month. It’ll be a good time to start as there are only five calendar months remaining in the year, so it’s easy to remember. When I did this devotion, I usually selected November through March, as they are the five full (or nearly full) months without any Major League Baseball regular season games. I’ve never heard of anyone selecting any particular months to do this (any five will do, as long as they are consecutive.) But in my opinion, try five that will be easy to remember to complete the devotion. The first five months of the year, or the last five, or if your favorite sport has a five month-long offseason, or something else entirely, whatever works! 😉

Why consecutive? I don’t know, probably to link them all in a continuity.

For more information, please visit here: Immaculate Heart of Mary and here.

The Five First Saturdays devotion is a part of the Fatima series of posts, found here.

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!!)

Book Review: Recovery Rosary for Alcoholics and Addicts on Catholic Alcoholic

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Just a heads up to readers that there is a book review of The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts over at Catholic Alcoholic.

Go here: Book Review: Recovery Rosary for Alcoholics and Addicts

Thanks, Number 9!

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!!)

Quick Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary prayers

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Yesterday I posted these on the Sober Catholic Blog Facebook Page. I am reposting them here:

The First Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary: The Agony in the Garden. “Lord, take this Cup from me, but not my will, let your will be done.”

The Second Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary: The Scourging at the Pillar. “May my remorse, and the rending of my heart, be like scourges, purifying my soul.”

The Third Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary: The Crowning with Thorns. “May my mental anguish and pain be like a heartfelt prayer rising up to You.”

The Fourth Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary: Jesus Carries His Cross. “Lord, give me the strength to bear the Cross I am burdened with.”

The Fifth Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary: Jesus Dies on the Cross. “May I die unto self, so that a new person may rise.”

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!!)

Sober Catholic Books on Google+

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Fresh off of creating a Page for them on Facebook, my books, The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics and The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts now also share a Page on Google+, also entitled “Sober Catholic Books”:

Sober Catholic Books

They have not been promoted much on Google+, outside of blogposts shared there. This blog has a Page on the Plus: Sober Catholic on Google+ as does its sister blog, The Four Last Things on Google+ .

Just a reminder, Sober Catholic is also on Facebook as is The Four Last Things.

“Plus” them and “Like” them!

I am working on a 10 Commandments book. I do not know when the completion date is yet.

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 books have a Page on Facebook

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My books, The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics and The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts now share a Page on Facebook entitled “Sober Catholic Books”:

SoberCatholicBooks

I have decided that it would be easier to promote and market them if they shared a page, rather than each having their own as they have up until this point.

As there will be other books, I figure that it is best to consolidate them now.

I am working on a 10 Commandments book. I do not know when the completion date is yet.

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!!)

I will be on The Busted Halo Show with Father Dave Dwyer tonight on SiriusXM (UPDATED)

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(NOTE: Interview rescheduled for one hour later, at 9:20 PM, ET USA)

I will be on The Busted Halo Show with Father Dave Dwyer tonight at 8:20 PM (Eastern USA Time)! Apparently they have had a lot of discussions on the show recently about substance abuse (what to do if you have a friend that you think is in trouble or needs help, how to ask for help, etc.) and the show’s producer came across The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts and The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics online.

From what I gather the interview with me will last 15-20 minutes. This is my first live interview on air. (Although not my first one for a radio program. My interview on American Catholic Radio was taped in January 2011 for the March 2011 airing.)

An overview of the Busted Halo show is here:

The Busted Halo Show with Father Dave Dwyer

weekdays 7 pm – 10 pm ET on The Catholic Channel

SiriusXM Channel 129

Nobody’s perfect, but we’re all on a journey toward God—that’s the premise behind The Busted Halo Show. This is not your typical radio talk show hosted by a priest. Before entering seminary, Paulist Father Dave Dwyer had a successful career directing and producing television programs for MTV and Comedy Central, and was an on-air personality for a hit music radio station. In his years as a priest he has been popular with college students and young adults and because of his dynamic, relevant preaching, enthusiasm for the faith, and fun-loving personality. Father Dave believes the Church needs to meet young people where they are, so this show invites listeners to find the connection between spirituality (faith, prayer, service, church teaching) and everyday life (culture, news, entertainment, work, relationships). Rather than going for polemics, this show seeks to bridge gaps in a fun, open environment.”

(Via Busted Halo.)

So, tune in if you’re a SiriusXM subscriber. I think they archive shows for later free download, once I learn more about that, I’ll post that here, or on the SoberCatholic.com Facebook Page.

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!!)

“Author offers two Catholic takes on recovery” : The Catholic Sun of the Diocese of Phoenix reviews my two books

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The The Catholic Sun, newspaper of the Diocese of Phoenix, AZ has written 2 reviews of my books, The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics and The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts.

Robert Curtis is the reviewer. According to the Sun’s bio of him, he is “a life-professed Lay Dominican, is the author of 17 books, holds a master’s in creative writing, teaches composition at the University of Phoenix and creative writing at Rio Salado College.”

One of my favorite passages: “Sofranko, a recovering alcoholic himself, has added one more element to the whole scheme of fighting addiction — hope. While many or even most self-help books suggest that we are the only ones capable of fixing our brokenness simply by reading the book, Sofranko elevates the place of prayer in the healing process and reminds readers of the necessity of relying on God for the grace to overcome our addictions.”

More good stuff can be found at the review, right here: Author offers two Catholic takes on recovery

(Via The Catholic Sun.)

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 Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts on Kindle and in print on CreateSpace

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My new book: The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts is now available through Amazon for their Kindle device and reader apps.

Amazon.com: The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts at the Kindle Store.

If you would prefer a print edition, Amazon’s CreateSpace offers it here: The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts on CreateSpace.

The book 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.

It is also available through Smashwords, for a variety of ebook formats. If you can’t wait for it to be available through Barnes & Noble for the Nook or Apple for you iPad and other iThingies, try Smashwords!

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!!)

New eBook: The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts

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A new ebook I have written for Catholics and other Christians suffering from alcoholism and addiction is out:

The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts. The book 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.

So far, it is available only through Smashwords, but print editions from CreateSpace and Amazon will be out perhaps this week, as well as an ebook version for Kindle.

The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts 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.

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!!)