St. Elizabeth Ann Seton: A Trailblazer in American Catholicism

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton: A Trailblazer in American Catholicism

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, born on August 28, 1774, in New York City, holds the distinguished honor of being the first native-born American to be canonized by the Roman Catholic Church. Her life is a testament to faith, resilience, and dedication to education and charity.

Early Life and Conversion

Elizabeth Ann Bayley was born into a prominent Episcopalian family. She married William Magee Seton, a wealthy businessman, in 1794. The couple had five children. However, their life took a tragic turn when William's business failed, and he succumbed to tuberculosis in 1803. During this period of grief, Elizabeth found solace in the Catholic faith, which she embraced wholeheartedly. She converted to Catholicism in 1805, despite facing significant social and financial hardships.

Founding the Sisters of Charity

In 1809, Elizabeth moved to Emmitsburg, Maryland, where she founded the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph's, the first community for religious women established in the United States. This congregation was dedicated to the education of poor children and the care of orphans. Elizabeth's vision and leadership laid the foundation for the Catholic parochial school system in America.

Legacy and Canonization

Elizabeth Ann Seton's legacy extends far beyond her lifetime. She established the first free Catholic school for girls in the United States, which became a model for future Catholic schools. Her work in education and charity has had a lasting impact on American society.

On September 14, 1975, Pope Paul VI canonized Elizabeth Ann Seton, recognizing her as a saint. Her feast day is celebrated on January 4th, and she is the patron saint of Catholic schools, widows, and seafarers.

Conclusion

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton's life is a remarkable story of faith, perseverance, and service. Her contributions to education and charity continue to inspire and influence countless individuals. As the first native-born American saint, she holds a special place in the hearts of many, and her legacy lives on through the institutions she founded and the lives she touched.

Book Review: The Kingdom of Matthias

                                                          

 The Kingdom of Matthias


Religion is something that is heavily rooted in American society. The United States of America has thousands of different churches, smaller denominations and non-western religions. “The Kingdom of Matthias” by Paul E. Johnson and Sean Wilentz tells us about Robert Matthews who would later refer to himself as “Matthias.”

The authors used memoirs and stories from William Stone, Margaret Matthews, and Gilbert Vale to write this book. These were the only sources available due to the fact that ‘Matthias’ did not leave behind any diaries or the like. The authors had to use second person sources in order to construct the life and history of this person.

The book begins with the story of Elijah Pierson who came from humble beginnings and move to New York. He was very religious. Upon his arrival to New York City he found himself out of place, so to speak. The people of New York were immoral in his eyes. They drank and lived licentious lives. Prostitution was rampant as well as many other vices. Elijah Pierson saw himself as a missionary and began to preach about God to whoever would listen.

His style attracted some followers who saw him as some sort of a leader or prophet. However, all this changed after his wife Sarah passed away. He literally believed Scriptural passages regarding the resurrection of the dead and attempted to raise Sarah from the dead himself. When this did not happen, people began to question. He himself began to wonder why God didn't raise his wife Sarah from the dead. As a self-proclaimed messenger of God, Elijah felt he could use the powers of God like the Apostles and others in the Bible did.

The book then continues to focus on Robert Matthews. Like Elijah, Matthews was an ardent believer. At work he would try to preach to his co-workers but was met with ridicule and this upset him. He would unfortunately take his frustrations out on his wife Margaret. At one point he made it big financially and had lots of wealth but then went through a down time.

Matthews as he grew in his ideas about God began to become delusional. He saw himself as the “Prophet of the God of the Jews” and eventually even believed he was God himself. His followers gave him money and with that money he would found a community. He would then search for the best metals to fashion religious appointments (candlesticks, chalices, swords) and furniture with. Matthias would let his beard grow since the Bible says for men not to cut it.(Leviticus 19:27)

He had a lavish taste for clothing as well and had uniforms designed for him with the most expensive materials around. Matthias would then go around the Bowery and Battery Park to preach. Those who didn't believe him he would dismiss as devils. Despite claiming to be a “Prophet” and “God,” Matthias still was abusive to his wife.  

At the time, laws prevented women from divorcing their husbands unless adultery was involved. Matthias’ style of preaching was harsh and he had a misogynistic view as well. Women were evil and of the devil, according to him. They tempt men and distract men from God.

Elijah Pierson would die and suspicion would arise that he was poisoned. Matthias would eventually be arrested because many saw him as mentally unstable and in conflict with New York's blasphemy laws. The “kingdom of Matthias” he founded would eventually dissolve and the media at the time would write articles about cults and how even educated people can fall into the tutelage of delusional people such as Matthias.

The book is interesting and ties in to what we know of today as the New Evangelical movements, the Finneyites, the “Second Awakening,” which was a period where fanaticism, fundamentalism and even delusions began to take hold in America. These would bring about cults and sects such as Pentecostalism, Adventism, The Watchtower and so on that would challenge mainstream Christianity and bring about new and sometimes strange ideas regarding God. This book puts into perspective why sects exist in America today by providing details on their evolution in early America.

I enjoyed reading the book. To me it shows how easily some people can fall for delusional ideas. It also shows that people of today aren't so different from people back then. There were drunkards, prostitutes; New York City was always the “whore of Babylon,” so to speak. Over zealous religious people would try hard to spread their ideas. Many of them were delusional and borderline schizophrenic. We find that even today. Many representatives of sects stand on corners shouting with microphones and speakers or distributing pamphlets claiming to be messengers of God “Jehovah” or the Angel “Moroni.”

However, they are not as extreme as Jose Miranda who comes to mind and reminds me of Matthias. Jose is a Hispanic man in Miami, Florida who thinks he is God. He even calls himself the “Antichrist” and uses the infamous “666” numbers as his sign. Many people believe this man and give him money just like back in the day people believed Matthias and gave to him money. Unfortunately, not much has changed since Matthias' time.  There are still crazy people out there and people who listen to their every word.

I recommend reading this book if you like American history and want to know a bit more about the origins of religious sects in American society.

Jason Collins "Comes out"

Recently, Jason Collins, an NBA athlete made headlines for "coming out" as a gay man.  Even president Obama and others have come out in support of him.  The media is having a love affair with this story.

The talk is that now more athletes will be more comfortable in revealing their sexuality.  American sports has always been seen as manly.  The coming out of Collins is now being presented as "historical" and a source of inspiration for gays who are still in hiding.

I personally do not understand why the media even covers this.  A deranged abortionist named Gosnell is on trial for killing babies and there is no coverage.  Yet a relatively unknown basketball player says he is gay and the media cannot stop covering it.  It makes absolutely no sense.  Do they really think this will change anything in America?  This will only hurt athletes who are gay and are now potential targets.

Homosexuality in the sports world is something that is irrelevant and should not be mentioned.  People go to see sports, not sexuality.  Players on teams play under contract.  They are required to represent their teams via their sports skills, not sexuality.  The coming out of Collins will not do anything for young people who are on sports teams.  There will still be that feeling of uneasiness if a gay team mate is in the locker room with heterosexuals.  Nothing will change this.

Reporting stories like this is a complete waste of time and resources.  He is gay, so what?  Gay people exist globally, there is nothing new about another one revealing him/herself as such.


Source:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/01/sports/basketball/nba-playoffs-celtics-rally-around-jason-collins.html?_r=0

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/magazine/news/20130429/jason-collins-gay-nba-player/

USCCB General Assembly - 2012 November

The Catholic bishops of the United States of America are meeting this week in their annual General Assembly.  This year, the bishop are engaging on a wide variety of topics all focusing on the new evangelization.  With the election in the past, the bishops now see that a lot has to be done.  The United States of America is changing.  The new challenges must be met head on.

May the Holy Spirit guide our bishops and instill in them the wisdom, knowledge  and courage to face the problems of today and tomorrow.

Cardinal Dolan spoke eloquently in his address:

Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York,
president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB)
Address given at the USCCB General Assembly Fall meeting on November 12, 2012.

My brother bishops, 

Yes, we have "a lot on our plate" as we commence our meeting, urgent issues very worthy of our solicitude as pastors -- the suffering in vast areas not far from here caused by the Hurricane of two weeks ago, the imperative to the New Evangelization, the invitation offered by the Year of Faith, and our continued dialogue, engagement, and prophetic challenge to our culture over urgent issues such as the protection of human life, the defense of marriage, the promotion of human dignity in the lives of the poor, the immigrant, those in danger from war and persecution throughout the world, and our continued efforts to defend our first and most cherished freedom -- all issues calling for our renewed and enthusiastic commitment.

But I stand before you this morning to say simply: first things first. We gather as disciples of, as friends of, as believers in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, "the Way, the Truth and the Life," who exhorted us to "seek first the Kingdom of God."

We cannot engage culture unless we let Him first engage us; we cannot dialogue with others unless we first dialogue with Him; we cannot challenge unless we first let Him challenge us.

The Venerable Servant of God, Fulton J. Sheen, once commented, "The first word of Jesus in the Gospel was 'come'; the last word of Jesus was 'go'."

Fifty years ago, on October 11, 1962, Blessed John XXIII courageously convened the Second Vatican Council "the greatest concern of which," he insisted, "is that the sacred deposit of Christian doctrine should be guarded and taught more efficaciously." (Allocution on the occasion of the opening of the Second Vatican Council, Gaudet mater ecclesia).

We gather for our plenary assembly in our nation's premiere see, at the close of the XIII Ordinary General Synod of Bishops, still near the beginning of the Year of Faith. Both occasions have the same origin, the same goal expressed by Blessed John XXIII: the effective transmission of the faith for the transformation of the world.

A year ago we began our visits ad limina Petri et Pauli. I know you join me in expressing deep gratitude for the extraordinary affection, warmth and fraternal care with which our Holy Father welcomed us.

But Pope Benedict did not stop with his gracious hospitality. No. He also gave us plenty of fatherly advice -- for our ministry as pastors of the Church and our personal role in the New Evangelization.

Here's an especially striking example from his first ad limina address: "Evangelization," the Successor of St. Peter noted, ". . . appears not simply a task to be undertaken ad extra; we ourselves are the first to need re-evangelization. As with all spiritual crises, whether of individuals or communities, we know that the ultimate answer can only be born of a searching, critical and ongoing self-assessment and conversion in the light of Christ's truth."

As we bishops at the just concluded Synod of Bishops confessed in our closing message:

"We, however, should never think that the new evangelization does not concern us as Bishops personally. In these days voices among the Bishops were raised to recall that the Church must first of all heed the Word before she can evangelize the world. The invitation to evangelize becomes a call to conversion."

"We Bishops firmly believe that we must convert ourselves first to the power of Jesus Christ who alone can make all things new, above all our poor existence. With humility we must recognize that the poverty and weaknesses of Jesus' disciples, especially us, his ministers, weigh on the credibility of the mission. We are certainly aware – we bishops first of all – that we can never really be equal to the Lord's calling and mandate to proclaim His Gospel to the nations. We… do not hesitate to recognize our personal sins. We are, however, also convinced that the Lord's Spirit is capable of renewing His Church and rendering her garment resplendent if we let Him mold us."(Final Message of the Synod of Bishops to the People of God, October 28, 2012)

The New Evangelization reminds us that the very agents of evangelization – you and me -- will never achieve that abundant harvest Blessed John XXIII described unless we are willing and eager to first be evangelized themselves. Only those themselves first evangelized can then evangelize. As St. Bernard put it so well, "If you want to be a channel, you must first be a reservoir."

I would suggest this morning that this reservoir of our lives and ministry, when it comes especially to the New Evangelization, must first be filled with the spirit of interior conversion born of our own renewal. That's the way we become channels of a truly effective transformation of the world, through our own witness of a penitential heart, and our own full embrace of the Sacrament of Penance.

II.

"To believers also the Church must ever preach faith and penance," declared the council fathers in the very first of the documents to appear, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy. (SC, n. 9)

​To be sure, the sacraments of initiation - - Baptism, Confirmation, the Eucharist - - charge, challenge, and equip the agents of evangelization. Without those sacraments, we remain isolated, unredeemed, timid and unfed.

​But, the Sacrament of Reconciliation evangelizes the evangelizers, as it brings us sacramentally into contact with Jesus, who calls us to conversion of heart, and allows us to answer his invitation to repentance -- a repentance from within that can then transform the world without.

​What an irony that despite the call of the Second Vatican Council for a renewal of the Sacrament of Penance, what we got instead was its near disappearance.

​We became very good in the years following the Council in calling for the reform of structures, systems, institutions, and people other than ourselves.That, too, is important; it can transform our society and world. But did we fail along the way to realize that in no way can the New Evangelization be reduced to a program, a process, or a call to structural reform; that it is first and foremost a deeply personal conversion within? "The Kingdom of God is within," as Jesus taught.

​The premier answer to the question "What's wrong with the world?" "what's wrong with the church?" is not politics, the economy, secularism, sectarianism, globalization or global warming . . .none of these, as significant as they are. As Chesterton wrote, "The answer to the question 'What's wrong with the world?' is just two words:'I am,'"

​I am! Admitting that leads to conversion of heart and repentance, the marrow of the Gospel-invitation. I remember the insightful words of a holy priest well known to many of us from his long apostolate to priests and seminarians in Rome, Monsignor Charles Elmer, wondering aloud from time to time if, following the close of the Council, we had sadly become a Church that forgot how to kneel.If we want the New Evangelization to work, it starts on our knees.

Remember a few years back, when Cardinal Cahal Daly led us in our June retreat? Speaking somberly of the Church in his home country, he observed, "The Church in Ireland is in the dirt on her knees." Then he paused, and concluded, "Maybe that's where the Church is at her best."

We kneel in the Sacrament of Penance because we are profoundly sorry for our faults and our sins, serious obstacles to the New Evangelization. But then we stand forgiven, resolute to return to the work entrusted to us - as evangelizers of the Gospel of Mercy.

I recall a conversation about a year ago with one of our brother bishops, newly ordained, attending his first plenary assembly. I asked his impressions of the meeting. "Well organized, informative, enjoyable," he replied, but he went on to observe that it was one moment in particular that had the greatest impact on him. It was during our closing Holy Hour, as he entered the large room next to the chapel, to see dozens and dozens of bishops lined up to approach the Sacrament of Penance. This new Bishop told me that he felt that moment had more of an influence upon him than anything else at the meeting.

Who can forget the prophetic words of repentance from Blessed John Paul II, during the Great Jubilee, as he expressed contrition – publically and repeatedly - for the sins of the past? He mentioned the shame of the slave trade, the horrors of the holocaust, the death and destruction wrought by the crusades, the injustices of the conquest of the new world, and the violence of religious wars, to name only a few.

I remember during the celebration of the 50^thInternational Eucharistic Congress in Ireland last June, when Cardinal Marc Ouellet, the Papal Legate, expressed this so forcefully as he spoke on behalf of the Holy Father at the penitential shrine of St. Patrick's Purgatory: "I come here with the specific intention of seeking forgiveness, from God and from the victims, for the grave sin of sexual abuse of children by clerics. . . In the name of the Church, I apologize once again to the victims, some of which I have met here in Lough Derg."

And so it turns to us, my brothers. How will we make the Year of Faith a time to renew the Sacrament of Penance, in our own loves and in the lives of our beloved people whom we serve? Once again, we will later this week approach the Sacrament of Penance.

And we'll have the opportunity during this meeting to approve a simple pastoral invitation to all our faithful to join us in renewing our appreciation for and use of the Sacrament. We will "Keep the Light On" during the upcoming Advent Season!

The work of our Conference during the coming year includes reflections on re-embracing Friday as a particular day of penance, including the possible re-institution of abstinence on all Fridays of the year, not just during Lent. Our pastoral plan offers numerous resources for catechesis on the Sacrament of Penance, and the manifold graces that come to us from the frequent use of confession. Next June we will gather in a special assembly as brother bishops to pray and reflect on the mission entrusted to us by the Church, including our witness to personal conversion in Jesus Christ, and so to the New Evangelization.

We work at giving our people good examples of humble, repentant pastors, aware of our own personal and corporate sins, constantly responding to the call of Jesus to interior conversion. Remember the Curé of Ars? When a concerned group of his worried supporters came to him with a stinging protest letter from a number of parishioners, demanding the bishop to remove John Vianney as their curé, claiming he was a sinner, ignorant, and awkward, St. John Vianney took the letter, read it carefully ... and signed the petition!

III.

As I began my talk this morning, my brothers, so I would like to end it, with Blessed John XXIII.

It was the Sunday angelus of October 28, 1962.The message the Holy Father delivered on that bright Roman afternoon never even mentions the phrase New Evangelization.But it strikes right at the heart of the mission entrusted to each of us as shepherds.

"I feel something touching my spirit that leads to serenity," Good Pope John remarked. "The word of the Gospel is not silent.It resonates from one end of the world to the other, and finds the way of the heart. Dangers and sorrows, human prudence and wisdom, everything needs to dissolve into a song of love, into a renewed invitation, pleading all to desire and wish for the establishment of the Kingdom of Christ. A kingdom of truth and life; a kingdom of holiness and grace; a kingdom of justice, love and peace."

How could we not see it alive in those holy men and women of every time and place, the heroic evangelizers of our faith, including most recently St. Kateri Tekakwitha and St. Marianne Cope?

We have beheld it in the Church's unrelenting corporal and spiritual works of mercy, in the heroic witness of persecuted Christians, in the Church's defense of unborn human life, the care of our elders and the terminally ill, advocacy for the unemployed, those in poverty, our immigrant brothers and sisters, victims of terror and violence throughout our world, of all faiths and creeds, and in our defense of religious freedom, marriage and family.

And, I have suggested today, that as we "come and go" in response to the invitation of Jesus, we begin with the Sacrament of Penance.This is the sacrament of the New Evangelization, for as Pope Benedict reminds us, "We cannot speak about the new evangelization without a sincere desire to conversion." (Homily for the Opening of the XIII Ordinary General Synod of Bishops).

With this as my presidential address, I know I risk the criticism. I can hear it now: "With all the controversies and urgent matters for the Church, Dolan spoke of conversion of heart through the Sacrament of Penance. Can you believe it?" 

To which I reply, "You better believe it!" 

First things first!  - http://www.usccb.org/about/leadership/usccb-general-assembly/2012-november-meeting/presidential-address-cardinal-dolan.cfm

Yes On 26!

Yes on 26!?!  What??

You may be wondering if I am calling a Bingo game or shouting out an NFL score, but this is not a game. The number 26 has significant meaning in Mississippi and the United States.  On Tuesday November 8th 2011, a vote by Mississippi could put a huge hole in the cesspool of evil and infanticide called Abortion and will instill a sense of reality to delusional Pro-choice supporters.  

This 26th amendment will recognize the unborn members of our society as persons!   In other words, those boys and girls who are not yet born will finally be seen legally as persons.

This is great news!

Since Roe v. Wade the Pro-choice movement along with Feminists and others who label themselves "liberal" and "progressive" have tried hard to present a delusional form of biology and embryology to Americans.

A woman is "expecting a child" or a "potential child."  A woman aborts a "blob of cells,"  a "parasitic non sentient thing."   "Pregnancy is a condition" - implying that the child is some sort of disease.

These are actual descriptions of unborn children and pregnancy given by Pro-Choice advocates!  Just Google, Yahoo, Ask.com them or look up the Pro-choice hashtag on Twitter and see for yourself.

Majoring in Biology and the Sciences it burns my eyes reading the lies.  These people try very hard to mask the reality that human pregnant women carry human life within their wombs.  This process is normal and natural.  It is not a disease, nor is the unborn child a foreign body attacking the woman. The child is her own developing ovum after fertilization by a human male sperm.

In a previous blog I answer many of the Pro-choice rhetorical ideas and how they are falsehoods when set side by side with Science.  see- http://sacerdotvs.blogspot.com/2011/10/prochoice-debunked.html


We are looking at a historical moment.   Personhood will be legally recognized at least in one State, but will cause a chain reaction that will remind America what it has written in the Declaration of Independence:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,"

For more info, please look at: http://www.yeson26.net/

Go Mississippi, we are rooting for ya! 

VIRTUTE ET ARMIS! 

In God We Trust

Today the US Congress voted to keep the official motto of the United States of America: "In God We Trust."  President Obama responded stating that (I paraphrase), "In God we trust will not put people back to work,"  (http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2011/11/02/obama-god-we-trust-vote-not-creating-jobs)

The words "In God We Trust"  have been on coins since the 1860's.  In the 1950's it was then applied to paper money.  The use of this motto came from US Treasury Secretary Salmon Chase who served under the Presidency of Abraham Lincoln.  It is seen everywhere, in courts, patriotic songs, documents, even in the final verse of the Stars Spangled Banner .

This motto reflects the ideals of a nation that fought for independence, existence, and rights against larger more powerful nations.  Early Americans used primitive weapons and guerilla warfare in order to fight against the powerful, organized British military.   As we all know, they won!

Recently a reporter on WPIX named Lionel gave a critique regarding the use of this motto.  He claimed it is "stupid, a waste of money and a contradiction of the 1st amendment."

Moreover, he suggested that the Republican party somehow has exclusivity to God.

Is it really stupid and a waste of money?   Does the motto really contradict the 1st amendment?

Not at all.

A motto that has been a part of the fabric of the United States of America since its infancy is anything but stupid.  The money spent to vote on it perhaps, but not the motto itself.  As for it being a contradiction, that is a misinterpretation of the 1st amendment.

The amendment reads:

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..."


This merely states that Congress cannot make any religion officially part of the government nor endorse one; nor can it prohibit any religion from freely exercising its beliefs within the union.  It says nothing about the government using motto's that mention a deity in a general way, nor the government using prayer.


Not all religions have a deity.  Buddhism is an example.  "In God we trust" has no religious value whatsoever to a Buddhist.  To claim that the motto endorses religion is ridiculous.  It is merely a statement that the United States of America trusts in a God.  Which God?  Just God.    


As a former atheist, I never had a problem with the motto.  I saw it not as an expression of faith, but a recollection of America's history.  It is a principle that the early Americans followed in order to help build this great nation.  If I were living in another nation and its money said, "In Zeus we trust" or "In Allah we trust," I would not get offended.  I must be an intelligent tolerant adult about it and realize that the particular nation using the motto is reflecting its history and ideals.  


The 1st amendment came into existence not to get rid of religion or separate it from the State, but rather to reflect on and answer the hardships the early settlers had in Europe where particular denominations had temporal power.  


America was going to be a nation that did not repeat what was experienced in Europe, but rather to start a new experiment.  A nation with freedom for all regardless of gender, faith or social status.  A nation "of the people, by the people, and for the people."  That was the idea behind this amendment.  It was not meant to have the Church and State point guns at each other. 


The suggestion that the Republicans are the only party that endorse God, Faith, Religion or Morals is unfounded.  There are Democrats, Independents and many political parties who also share these ideals.  President Obama, a Democrat is a Christian, so is former President Clinton.  Speaker Nancy Pelosi is a Catholic.  God does not belong to the Republicans or any particular party.  God is for anyone who is open to faith.       


No one can deny that the American Fathers were theists and that this nation was indeed founded on Judeo-Christian ideas.  We should accept and respect our nation's history and how our ancestors did things.  


A nation without God never thrives.  


Nations that have gone the route of secularism are disappearing from the face of the world.  France, Great Britain, Spain are examples.  We must return to the simplicity the early Americans had and trust God.  If we kick God out and try to do it ourselves, we will destroy ourselves.  




Here is some Scripture I am sure the American Founding Fathers read and were inspired by:




“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their nation.” 2 Chron. 7:14


“A nation without God's guidance is a nation without order. Happy are those who keep God's law!” Proverbs 29:18


“When there is moral rot within a nation, its government topples easily; but with honest, sensible leaders there is stability.” Proverbs 28:2


  

God bless America and yes: IN GOD WE TRUST!   AMEN

Happy Birthday Lady Liberty! 125yrs

The Statue of Liberty has just turned 125 years old.  It is probably the most well known modern statue on Earth.  Given as a gift from France, she has welcomed immigrants from Europe with the words penned by Emma Lazarus:

"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door"

May God bless the United States of America, and may this great nation continue to be a beacon of hope and freedom for all.