FATHER JOE: Chubby or Norman Chaney died here in Maryland back in 1936. He was the first of the “Our Gang” kids to pass away. Is there discoloration in the photograph? Has the ink soaked through the picture with age? He signed quite a few pictures when he was a kid but he did not live past 21. He was never part of the convention-autograph circuit we see today. Spanky and Butch pictures are much more common, given the many years they lived.

My name is Ellen and I belong to an awesome fansite called “Christopher Heyerdahl Community” and also the Facebook page “We Love Christopher Heyerdahl”. I would like to ask your kind permission to use a few of the Chris Heyerdahl photos for both of these sites.

Thank you for your consideration,

Ellen Cross

FATHER JOE: Fine by me.

The only thing thst prevented their success was a mysterious dog. Some said the dog was an angel but he never talked but just growled and bit the evil doers. If God had sent an angel to protect St. John Bosco why did he not appear as a man and frighten off the attackers. One is tempted to think that dogs exist in heaven and one was dispatched to do what came naturally to a big brave dog.

Here is a description of the dog’s activities taken from “All About the Angels” by Fr. Paul O’Sullivan, O.P, published by Tan Books and Publishers, Inc.

“When returning home one night through a bad and dangerous part of the town, he saw a magnificent dog of huge size following him. At first he was frightened but quickly came to see that the dog was friendly. The animal walked by his side and accompanied him to the door of his house and then went away. This happened five, six or eight times. He called the dog Grigio.

What did it mean? He was soon to learn.

Hastening home by himself, some time after the first appearance of the dog, two shots were fired at him by an assassin from behind a tree. Both shots missed their mark, but his assailant then rushed at and grappled with him. At that moment, Grigio appeared and sank his teeth into the flesh of the would-be murderer, who fled away shrieking with pain.

On a second occasion, two men lay in wait for him and threw a sack over his head. This time it seemed all was over with him, but Grigio unexpectedly came to his rescue and jumped at one of the ruffians, seizing him by the throat. The other fled in terror. Don Bosco had then to liberate the first from the fangs of Grigio, who still held him by the throat.

A third time, no less than twelve hired assassins, armed with clubs, lay in ambush, into which Don Bosco walked unawares. Again, escape seemed impossible, but once more Grigio bounded into the midst of the group, and his fierce look and savage growl proved enough. The men made off as quickly as they could.

Sometimes the dog entered Don Bosco’s house, but always with some reason, either to accompany him on a night journey or to prevent his leaving the house. No amount of animal instinct could explain these unexpected appearances of the dog.

On one of these occasions, when Don Bosco tried to go out, the great dog lay across the door and growled in such a menacing way that St. John was forced to remain at home. And it was well that he did so, for shortly afterwards a gentleman arrived to warn him not to leave the house on any consideration, as the heretics lay in wait to kill him.”

A tuition runs $2800 here in Western NY. My husband said he doesn’t think we could afford it; but he said if we can get some kind of tuition help that exists, we can maybe send him to Catholic school when our son is 5 and begins kindergarten.

God bless,
Heather

Find some Japanese, Natto. It is a fermented soy food that is good for your heart. If your Cardiologist has not heard of it ask him to look into it.

You might want to get a book by a couple of cardiologists named REVERSE HEART DISEASE NOW. The two are Dr. Stephen Sinatra MD and Dr. James Roberts MD. Both are Fellows of the American College of Cardiologists, so they are not a pair of ducks. It makes for nice reading, especially just before bedtime.

God Bless.

Karl

I know it might seem crazy, but the ability to see/sense spirits (both positive and negative) seems to run on my mother’s side of the family. I have two sisters and all three of us have been cursed (in my opinion) with this “gift.”

One of my sisters, the one with the strongest ability, came upon a motorcycle accident on the side of a freeway. She held the man in her arms until he passed because she didn’t want him to die alone. After that he would periodically visit her while she was driving and alert her that someone else was in trouble and lead her to the scene of a crash before the police or ambulance could even get there. She was training to be a police officer so she was able to call for help and administer first aide. She welcomed his visits because he was a benevolent spirit and she wanted to help those in need as much as he did. One day she told this to a friend and the friend offered to say a special prayer for her to keep the spirit away. She begged her friend not to but she did anyway and the spirit has not visited her since. Should she use her ability to help others or try to shun it?

My other sister was visited by a random male spirit that would come into her room at night and sit on her bed and she felt comforted by his presence. Her priest warned her never to talk to the spirit but to pray for him to cross over to Heaven. She did and eventually he stopped visiting her. Should she not communicate with the spirit, even if it’s a good one? I am aware that demons can lie but she could feel this was not a demon, but a lost soul. Should she have asked him what was keeping him from crossing over?

People seem to think that particular places are haunted, but they forget that people can be conduits, weather they want to be or not. My mom confided that she and my sisters could feel an evil presence in the front yard of their home. Perhaps it couldn’t enter the house because of the St. Benedict medals above the doors, I don’t know. But they knew it was there while my father remained blissfully ignorant.

I have repressed this “gift” as much as possible. I want nothing to do with the supernatural. I don’t even want to see beloved deceased family members. I’m terrified of spirits, even good ones. Any advice on keeping myself safe from their presence? My grandmother was very spiritual when she was alive and studdied the Catholic faith with the zeal of a nun. She always told us not to touch a oiji board (and I have always complied) and if we fear a spirit to say “All evil leave this place, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.” Is that enough? Is there something else I can do to ward them away?

I was mildly content with that prayer until my husband revealed a terrible haunting that occurred while he was in college. He doesn’t like to talk about it because it was very traumatic. He also knows that this stuff upsets me so he doesn’t say much. But he had me terrified when he told me that the crucifix and holy water and Catholic prayers don’t work on all spirits. He told me that they work on ones that have Judeo-Christian beliefs. But he says that there are a lot of other spirits that won’t be stopped by such means, spirits such as angry Native Americans, ancient Mayans and Aztecs, etc. Now I’m terrified. How can I protect myself, knowing that my family and I are natural conduits?

Blessings,
Kate

FATHER JOE: Your grandmother was right; stay away from the occult and do not seek communication with the dead or ghosts. Your husband, is only right to a point. There are some entities which resist blessings and prayers. Sometimes the Church intervenes through her priests to deal with such spiritual infestations. However, we are really talking about the demonic. Catholic faith, prayers and ritual is effective because they reflect the truth. It may not always be a quick fix. If I bless a home and the people are ungodly, then by their many sins they can invite the devil back into their homes. Pagan or non-Christian rituals suffer because they are prone to superstition and the occult. The dead are all aware of the truth that is expounded by the Catholic Church. There is not one spiritual reality for Catholics and others for Buddhists, Hindus, ancient Indian religions, etc. You must remember that demons are the ultimate liars. They can pretend to be the dead. Indeed, they might even feign friendliness. But, it is ultimately part of a plan for seduction and corruption.

FATHER JOE: I am taking medication. The blockage is not as bad as originally thought.