When Mike and I were newlyweds  his father would always tell me about a small village in Spain named Ciriza. Miguel, Mike’s father, wanted us to know his  ancestry. I never forgot his stories about this small village in Spain; I neatly tucked them away in my mind for another time. Mike and I had been to Europe several times before we considered visiting the land of our ancestors. A cousin of Mike’s took on the task of tracing the family name back to the Moors. His cousin Chris blessed us with this thick report  but because, it was mostly written in Spanish, it was too time consuming to read. I filed it away for safekeeping. We had arranged to meet Chris, but something came up and we had to cancel our meeting. After all that painstaking research, Mike’s cousin took his own life. We never met, and, sadly, Chris left behind a young wife and child.

Transition

When we sold our business Mike needed to rejuvenate. Larry, one of Mike’s dear friends, has a buddy named Jose who has family in Spain.  While he was visiting he went to “Ciriza” and texted a photo of a sign  to Larry. Mike received the text that same day. This stirred up something sentimental in Mike, so before long a trip to Ciriza was planned. I’m a missionary, so if I’m going to Europe, it’s going to be for a religious purpose as well. I remember looking at a map of Spain;  there in the tiniest font was Ciriza. I looked to the north and about three inches away was Lourdes, France. Now I needed to convince Mike that if we traveled up three more inches on the map, we could go on a pilgrimage to Lourdes. Mike was not having it, so I started to pray. Finally, after much pleading, he agreed.

Ciriza

When we arrived at our quaint hotel in the heart of Pamplona, we inquired about hiring a guide to visit Ciriza. It was as if God’s hand was used in the details of the trip. We were told about a lady, Maria (Tota) from Pamplona, who was an excellent guide. The irony was that she and her family have a home in the village of Ciriza. We arranged to meet with her the following day. Tota picked us up in her car and we drove to Ciriza. This small village is about 20 minutes from Pamplona. Since our tour guide is from this village of less then 150 inhabitants, everyone knows each other. In Ciriza the main street leads to San Miguel Catholic Church. We were privileged to have the sanctuary opened for us by a friend of  Tota’s.  As we passed through the over- sized wooden doors we were in awe of the simple, unscathed beauty of this tiny church with cathedral ceilings. We walked up to the balcony,  breathed in the holiness and prayed for our loved ones.  In the village’s recreational room, casually hanging on the wall is the Ciriza Coat of Arms. Mike took several pictures but accidentally deleted them. Ciriza produces its own wine, but the winery was closed on the day we visited. This village is surrounded by windmills set high on top of the Echauri mountain range. Its pristine scenery was left in my memory bank, so when I close my eyes it all comes back to me.

The Bullfighters

I was piecing it all together: Mike’s father Miguel was a bullfighter who loved the sport and wanted us to experience first hand where his family tree originated. In his youth  Miguel was a brave  bullfighter in the large arenas in Chihuahua, Mexico. When Mike was younger his father took him to Spain on several occasions to watch the bullfights.  Mike can still name some of the famous bullfighters he and his father saw in Madrid: Paco Camino and “El Cordobes.” El Cordobes  had long hair, and the fans would waves their combs while cheering him on when he came out to the arena.

San Fermin

On the route of the running of  the bulls in Pamplona is a statue of San Fermin. Before running with the bulls the participants ask for the saint’s protection by touching his permanent icon set in the old city walls. St. Fermin is the patron saint of Pamplona. He was the first bishop of Pamplona during the time of the Roman persecution of Christians. San Fermin was beheaded in Amiens, France. The connection between St. Fermin and the Running of the Bulls stems from his master San Saturinus’ martyrdom, not  St. Fermin. the legend says that San Saturinus was arrested and condemned to death because of his faith. Saturinus was tied by his feet to a bull and dragged through the city until he finally died.  Another legend:  the farmers needed to transport their bulls to market, so in order to make the bulls move faster, they coaxed them into running. This soon became a contest as whose bulls  could reach the stalls first.

We ate wonderful paella and for several days strolled through this town made famous by Ernest Hemingway in his 1926 novel   “The Sun Also Rises.”

Genealogy

Both Mike and I have ancestral roots in Spain, so I am still researching my maiden name Urquidez. This name also has a Basque heritage, originally it was spelled Urquidi.

When we are aware of our background, we can understand who we are. According to Ancestry. com  I am 46% Spaniard and 46% Mexican. My family’s background has always been Catholic on both sides. Father Arturo Lozano Ciriza, Mike’s uncle, was a Jesuit priest. From Chris’s research, I found the baptismal records of Mike’s grandfather in San Miguel Catholic Church in Ciriza. The time and effort that Chris Ciriza put into his research is greatly appreciated. I wish I could thank him and tell him that what he accomplished for the Ciriza family was an unselfish act of love.

The beauty in this discovery is that you do not have to come from nobility to be engrafted into the family of God. In the end we are all His children, and this is the only place where you will find peace. God called us from every race and creed and welcomed us into His family. I sing praises to Your Name, Lord, and give You the glory for You are my Heavenly Father.

My Prayer

Dear Lord, I pray for the repose of the soul of Christopher Aaron Ciriza. Father God, Chris was searching for his identity but did not find it on earth. Embrace this precious soul and allow him to feel Your loved. Lord, I pray for all lost souls contemplating suicide. Father, speak to them in night visions and give them a reason to live. Surround them with people who will help them find meaning in this crazy world. Comfort their brokenness and allow them to hear Your powerful, still small voice. Amen.

If you are not making a difference in life, what are you doing? God has called me to write this Blog, He did not tell me that it would be of any great success, or that it would go viral, He gives me ideas and I obediently write away. Perhaps by reaching several people to tug at their hearts, to motivate them to seek what God has intended for your life, Am I making a difference? I pray so.

We were all born for a certain time, you were chosen by God to witness life as it is now. And the direction you choose will make all the difference; you will either serve God or yourself.

Becoming a Lover of Self

When a individual reaches this level of self-love it comes with a hefty price. There is little room in your delusional, compart-mentalized heaven for others. Humility is a quality that will not fit your narrative. The Bible clearly states that men will become lovers of themselves. Once you reach this pentacle, and anyone or anything that gets in your way must bow down to you or be destroyed. Lover of themselves need be to fed a lot of affirmation to continue to rule their tiny mind kingdoms. Are these people gifted? Sometimes yes, but they are using their gifts perversely. I cannot stress enough that God has given special gifts for us all. The misguided believe that the gifts were created by their own means, because they have become their own deity. They have been persuaded that their gifts were earned through their own intellect. Their narcissistic beliefs can carry them to new levels of godship.  By using words like blessings and becoming involved with philanthropy, they hide their real character. They only have one thing in mind: to gain more recognition and to continue to climb up that unattainable mountains. They have no God, and they will never experience the joy of  purpose.

The Real Mountain

We as Christians have our own peaks and valleys as we carry our proverbial crosses in life. Unlike the lovers of self, our mountain is always visible; we can and eventually attain our goals. Do you remember the story of Moses when he met God on Mt. Sinai? What were the Israelites doing at the bottom of the hill? Were they praying and waiting for Moses to come down from the mountain? No, they grew impatient and did the unthinkable, they built a false idol! We reach the mountain through meditation in prayer, we draw closer and closer the more we give up the things of the world. Our goal is not to reach the top of the mountain and beat our chest saying “I’m the king of the hill!” No! we are spiritually satisfied because we’ve broken through in perseverance and patience, in knowing that God was always at our side.

God did not put you on earth to protest, destroy private property or to block freeways. The way I see it, we have on our hands a generation of lost souls searching for their purpose in life. These people are filled with passion, that is mixed with pent up anger.

Unresolved anger festers in the spirit, it churns up old hurts from the past. It could be a bad relationship with your mother or father, or a trauma that continues to trigger an emotion. When you add unforgiveness to anger, you created a potion of hatred. This type of hatred will surface in a playback of your mind. You visualize the trauma, hearing every word of pain as if it were being done in person. These reminders are in your subconscious left in your memory bank to control your emotions. God created our subconscious but being delivered of our past hurts will free us from these strongholds. You can seek the advice of a godly therapist and/or pray that the Lord heal you. God wants us whole, and He has allowed us to experience pain so that we can help others get past their distress. If someone who has been in prison comes to me for help, I will do my best, but an ex-prisoner can better understand the person’s situation because they’ve experienced it and have the compassion to guide much better than I can. We have all witness the anger that surrounds us, we’ve become a divided nation, leaving the door wide open for the Devil to come and stake his claim. Satan is the master manipulator, distorting facts in order to cause mass confusion and polarization.

⁴ who consoles us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction with the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God.

Confusion

I really don’t  know who or what to believe in this COVID-19 situation. So many mixed messages has put me in the state of doubt. When I attend daily Mass, I sit outdoors, about 20 steps from the door of the church, why can’t I go and serve God inside the church? I obediently wear a mask whenever I’m in public, but when this all started no specialist were sure if it made a difference. I watched the news last night reporting on the unrest and protest in different parts of our country. Clearly there were hundreds of people, but the report casually mention that they were protesting. The news immediately switched to a beach scene, showing hundreds of beachgoers but this time it was about them spreading COVID-19.

This type of bias reporting is confusing because in both cases you are susceptible to catching COVID-19. God gave me a free will and a clear, reasoning mind to think independently; therefore I do not fall for every wind of doctrine and I certainly do not believe the lies that we are all being trained to follow. I’m not a rebel but I recognize a political con and the motives behind it.

54 Day Novena

On August 15th I joined a novena. The Latin meaning of novena is derived from the word “novem” or nine. A novena is typically a nine day prayer. This prayer comes from the Book of Acts, (Acts 1:12-13) before Jesus ascended into heaven He asked his Apostles to pray. For nine days they prayed in the Upper Room preparing for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The 54 day novena is not uncommon, I, along with millions of other Catholics are praying the same prayer. Lately I have been praying in my back yard early evening. My cat Prudie and I will walk around the back yard praying the Rosary. Durning this petition I am asking our Blessed Mother’s intersession on behalf our our nation. We are praying for peace in the up coming elections. We pray the Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious mysteries of the Rosary.

My Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, just as the Apostles waited for the outpouring of Your Holy Spirit, we anxiously wait for You to answer all of our petitions. Lord, keep us safe and healthy during these calamitous times. Grant us peace in knowing that You are ever present. Amen.

“Keep people from their history, and they are easily controlled” –  Karl Marx

What is going on today with Black Lives Matter is a disgrace. My heart aches for the black people who are truly looking for a positive change. God hears your cries and He will see you through this. What a sad sight we’ve become to the world. Once the leader of all nations, our country is now being torn apart by paid thugs, not the hurting Black people. We all need to distinguish between the two. One side wants change for the betterment of mankind while the other wants to destroy the fabric of our society by forcing their socialist ideologies. It’s happening right before our eyes. A large population of zombies have infiltrated our society. Some peaceful citizens of Washington, D.C., who were out having a casual meal were approached by these bully zombies who demanded that they raise their fists in solidarity with BLM. One problem here: do all these people look black? No! Because they are the puppets spawned by the liberal colleges who gave birth to bastard children of hatred. It is hatred that is systemic in our society.

Ann Dorn

I watched  part of both the Democratic and Republican conventions and came away with much-needed hope, but two speeches stood out for me: the ones by Ann Dorn and Sister Debe Bryne. Ann Dorn, widow of David Dorn spoke of her husband’s execution eloquently. Her husband was a retired Chief of Police, who knew about being a police officer, and all that came with that responsibility. Her husband, David Dorn, was brutally murdered during the rioting in St. Louis in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd. She knows the pain of a black man being murdered in cold blood too. This family will be forever changed because of the senseless actions of an angry mob. David Dorn’s execution was live-streamed on Facebook for the world to witness the callousness of these diabolical zombies. Mr. Dorn’s grandson watched it all go down without realizing it was his beloved grandfather who was murdered. SAY HIS NAME! DAVID DORN! His life mattered.

Sister Debe Byrne

This beautiful sister served in the Army for 29 years  as a doctor/surgeon. She became a nun with the order of Little Workers of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Mary in 2002. Her powerful voice broke barriers when she spoke at the Republican National Convention. In her words, “As followers of Christ we are called to stand up for life, against the politically correct or fashionable of today. We must fight against the legislative agenda that supports and even celebrates destroying life in the womb. Keep in mind the laws we create define how we see our humanity.” Sister Debe ended her speech by holding up her Rosary and referring to is as a weapon of war. This powerful woman of God knows how to fight the Enemy, and we should all follow her lead.

The Children in Cages

Since the topic of “children in cages ” came up during the Democratic National Convention, it’s important that once and for all we get the facts straight. In 2014 President Obama approved and built temporary holding enclosures (that are now referred to as “cages”) so he is responsible for this project. This was done for the children’s safety, since many of these innocent children have been victims of human trafficking. These enclosures were meant to house the children for 72 hours, but due to the surge of many thousands of unaccompanied minors (70,000 in 2019) it complicated  the workload and added to the bureaucracy for three government agencies. The first is the Department of Homeland Security, followed by the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which is under the Department of Health and Human Services. These organizations are still working to protect and find placement for these unaccompanied children. The majority of these children are from Honduras and Guatemala. By the time they set foot on these hollowed grounds, the journey had added both physical and mental trauma. As humanitarians our country is doing its best to help with a problem brought on by the failures of past government policies and their failure to securing our borders. Pray for the parents of these children, as they sacrificed so much for their children to have a better life. I cannot imagine the heartache they suffer each day.

The Professional Ball Players

You are overpaid and should keep your politics to yourselves. What you are witnessing now, as you play your little games to empty stadiums and stands, may very well be the foreshadowing of what  you will experience in real life. People are tired of your Nike promotions and the millions you have made from us. Remember, your careers are short-lived; an injury, a younger player and it’s all over. Make good use of your time and become the role models you were called to be. The youth look up to you, so give them a positive reason. And if you are supporting Black Lives Matter, you have the responsibility, power and money to make this organization work for the betterment of our communities. So clean up BLM!

 To Parents 

Do right by your children, as it is your God-given duty. Pray for them to become great, productive citizens. Teach them the real meaning of life, love, humility and respect. Be the example of standing up for what is right in the eyes of God. Do not set a cushion for them to fall on; rather you should prepare them for any stones of hatred that may be thrown their way. Train them to fight spiritually through prayer.

The only thing left  for us is prayer. We must put on our spiritual military armor. We must, as parents, grandparents, and others, go into battle for our loved ones. The Devil may be winning a battle here and there, but the victory belongs to the Lord! We need to stop making excuses for mob-mentality violence. It’s alright to be angry, but to take matters into your own hands in violent, terrorist temper tantrums is unacceptable.

Not all minorities vote for the Democratic Party. I will  always take a knee for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is from Him that I have learned to stand up for what is right in His eyes. Nothing will change that! I am proud of my Mexican heritage, but I also belong to the family of God. My heritage and bloodline is that of Jesus Christ.

My Prayer: Lord, you are the Creator of us all. Father God,  I implore You to continue to give us strength during these trying times. Lord we lift up Jacob Blake, heal him and allow justice to prevail in his case.  Give us holy discernment on what to say and when to say it. Let us not operate in fear. Give us boldness to follow the path You have set before us. Amen.