Please pray for Monsignor Ignacio Barreiro! 

Prayers Requested for Seminarian Phillip Johnson

Sheen Miracle Sent to Rome!

All of us at Keep the Faith and The Latin Mass magazine would like to ask for your fervent prayers for a wonderful priest who has served the Church with his whole heart and soul, bringing his extraordinary talents to strengthen and renew the Mystical Body of Christ particularly through his pro-life work, his support of the Traditional Latin Mass, and his support of the priesthood, sponsoring many priests and seminarians who are studying in Rome. Since 1998, Monsignor Ignacio Barreiro has worked for Human Life International as Director of the HLI Rome office and also serving as interim president of HLI, guiding this important organization through one of the stormiest periods of its existence.  Very recently – and suddenly – Monsignor was diagnosed with colon cancer.  It is advanced, unfortunately, and Father had a major operation this morning in Rome. Of course, any time cancer has spread, there is cause for grave concern. We have to trust in Our Lord that He will guide and protect Monsignor Barreiro. Those of us who love him dearly are devastated by this news and want more than anything to be by his side.  May his brother priests support him with prayers and love, and especially with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.  
 
Please, dear Jesus, watch over Your very faithful servant, Monsignor Ignacio Barreiro.  Keep him safe from the attacks of the Adversary, who is a relentless foe and will strike with all its force when we are at our weakest.  Strengthen this great priest in body and mind, and fill his soul with your salvific Grace – now and forever.  Blessed Mother Mary, please pray for Father Barreiro – he loves you so. 

The Most Reverend Michael F. Burbidge is requesting prayers for one of his seminarians, Philip Johnson. Philip just completed his first year of Pre-Theology at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, Philip served two years in the Navy, having been granted a discharge in 2009 when he was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor.

Prior to this diagnosis, Philip believed God was calling him to the Priesthood. In October 2008, while serving on a ship near Bahrain, Philip began developing problems. His roommate, who was a Catholic chaplain, noticed a seizure Philip experienced during his sleep. As a result, he underwent an MRI, which revealed a mass developing in his brain. In January 2009, a biopsy was performed, the results of which indicated cancer. That meant an automatic medical discharge from the Navy, which occurred several months later.
Philip met again with Bishop Burbidge, sharing with him the status of his illness. He noted that doctors, while acknowledging the seriousness of his illness, could not give a definitive prognosis and that his age was in his favor. "Bishop Burbidge told me he would not get in God's way if I wanted to answer the call to Priesthood,” Philip said. In April 2009, he began undergoing radiation for the tumor and chemotherapy.  
Having been given the assurance by Philip's physicians that he could participate fully in the seminary formation program without any detrimental effects to his health, Bishop Burbidge accepted him into formation for the Priesthood, and he entered St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in August 2009.
Regrettably, Philip was informed in May of 2010 by his physicians that the tumor had begun to grow, and there is no standard treatment to address it at this time. On June 16, he began what will be regular visits to the National Institutes of Health in Washington, DC, undergoing a new experimental chemotherapy treatment.
During this period of treatment, Bishop Burbidge has assigned Philip to an apostolate of prayer for the Church and Diocese at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Dunn. In addition, he is being granted permission by the Bishop to return to the Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes in France in July to participate in a seminarian program at the Shrine, which helps pilgrims who are ill. He will also serve as a tour guide at the Shrine. It will be his second year in this program. "It is something I am looking forward to,” he said, "because of my devotion to Our Lady of Lourdes and Saint Bernadette.”
As for a return to the seminary this fall, Philip said, "The Bishop told me that I may return if I feel I can handle it, and that is my plan. The Bishop also stressed the need for consultation and the consent of my physicians.”
Bishop Burbidge stated that Philip is a powerful example of the faith and the trust we need to share in the sufferings of Christ.  Bishop Burbidge said, "I join Philip in thanking the priests, deacons, religious and lay faithful of this Diocese for their continued prayerful support for Philip during this time of need.”

Text from the website of the Catholic Diocese of Raleigh.

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Exciting news in the cause of Archbishop Fulton Sheen - On December 11, 2011, at a Mass offered during ceremonies closing the Diocese of Peoria's investigation of the miraculous healing of 15 month-old James Engstrom through the intercession of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, official inquiry documents were sealed and afterwards sent to Rome for consideration by the Congregation for Saint's Causes.

The Miracle under investigation:
On September 16, 2010, James Fulton Engstrom was born, and for the first 61 minutes of his life was without a pulse. Bonnie Engstrom, his mother recalls praying to Fulton Sheen while doctors performed CPR on her newborn son. It was only when the medical staff was ready to record the time of death that little James' heart miraculously started to beat. Later his parents asked friends and family to pray to the Servant of God Fulton Sheen for James' full recovery when they were told that he might never see or function normally... and he did recover and is now meeting the normal developmental milestones for an active toddler.