Ash Wednesday is March 6

• Michael Dubruiel’s The Power of the Cross is out of print, but feel free to download it here.

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• There are a few used copies of The Power of the Cross on Amazon for under $5.00.

Michael Dubruiel

Michael Dubruiel died ten years ago today - February 3, 2009.

Michael Dubruiel died on February 3, 2009 after suffering a heart attack while on the treadmill at the Mountain Brook, AL YMCA.


You may read about Michael's passing at his wife Amy's blog here.

More photos of Michael are here.

The last column he wrote for the diocesan newspaper, the night before he died, is here.

Feast of the Presentation - February 2

From 2006:


Something to think about the next time you come forward to receive Holy Communion:

(Simeon) took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, "Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word; for mine eyes have seen thy salvation which thou hast prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to thy people Israel.

Michael Dubruiel 

RCIA Confession Resource

For a brief, pointed and helpful guide,

All of Michael Dubruiel's books listed on Amazon.

The Power of the Cross free download and audio files.

The New Version of the Stations of the Cross link

Michael Dubruiel Interview

You can listen to an interview program with Michael Dubruiel about the first four chapters of his book, The Power of the Cross. The interview is with Kris McGregor of KVSS radio.


Episode 2 – The Cross of Christ teaches us…

– Michael discusses:

 Day 1 – Our Mission Day
2 – To Live the Gospel Day
3 – How to Pray Day
4 – About Repentance Day
5 – How to Trust and Give Thanks Day
 6 – Reconciliation Day
7 – How to Love

You can find out more about The Power of the Cross here, including a free download of the book. 

Free Catholic Book

The human race has been fighting the battle against pride

since the Fall. Discontent with the lofty position God had given

them, they wanted to be just like God—but independent of

him. This disordered desire continues to be at the heart of human

nature. Only when God’s spirit lives within us to the fullest are

we able to be most fully human. And the only way to be filled

with God’s spirit is to empty ourselves of any false sense of who

we are, or who we think we have to be. This is the way of humility,

what St. Paul calls having “the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians

2:16).

In the gospels, Jesus warns his disciples against desiring titles

and lofty honors. If we achieve greatness in life, as Cardinal del

Val did, we must guard against becoming attached to the position

or to the glory attached to it. Cardinal del Val gave the following

spiritual advice often to those who came to him for

counsel:

Have a great devotion to the Passion of Our Lord.

With peace and resignation, put up with your daily

troubles and worries. Remember that you are not a disciple

of Christ unless you partake of His sufferings and

are associated with His Passion. The help of the grace

of silence was the only thing that enabled the saints to

carry their extremely heavy crosses. We can show our

love for Him by accepting with joy the cross He sends

our way.

The cross sheds light on the way of humility; it is the path

that Christ took and the surest path for us to receive all the blessings

that Christ wishes to bestow upon us.

-The Power of the Cross  by Michael Dubruiel

Confirmation Gift

Michael Dubruiel conceived and put together the small hardbound book, Praying the Rosary.  Click on the cover for more information.

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Here's an excerpt:

The Gospels show that the gaze of Mary varied depending upon the circumstances of life. So it will be with us. Each time we pick up the holy beads to recite the Rosary, our gaze at the mystery of Christ will differ depending on where we find ourselves at that moment.

Thereafter Mary’s gaze, ever filled with adoration and wonder, would never leave him. At times it would be a questioning look, as in the episode of the finding in the Temple: “Son, why have you treated us so?” (Lk 2:48); it would always be a penetrating gaze, one capable of deeply understanding Jesus, even to the point of perceiving his hidden feelings and anticipating his decisions, as at Cana (cf. Jn 2:5). At other times it would be a look of sorrow, especially beneath the Cross, where her vision would still be that of mother giving birth, for Mary not only shared the passion and death of her Son, she also received the new son given to her in the beloved disciple (cf. Jn 19:26-27). On the morning of Easter hers would be a gaze radiant with the joy of the Resurrection, and finally, on the day of Pentecost, a gaze afire with the outpouring of the Spirit (cf. Acts 1:14) [Rosarium Virginis Mariae, no. 10].

As we pray the Rosary, then, we join with Mary in contemplating Christ. With her, we remember Christ, we proclaim Him, we learn from Him, and, most importantly, as we raise our voices in prayer and our hearts in contemplation of the holy mysteries, this “compendium of the Gospel” itself, we are conformed to Him.

Also, check out this post from 2003, in which Michael Dubruiel narrates the events of one of his "rosary walks."