When I found out about my good friend Shane Kapler writing a new book I was very excited! I had read Shane's first book, The God Who Is Love, when it came out. Tending the Temple: 365 Days of Spiritual and Physical Devotions is a devotional put together by Shane, Kevin Vost (Fit for Eternal Life), and Peggy Bowes (The Rosary Workout). This book provides a spiritual devotion for every day of the year. What is amazing about this devotional is that the authors were able to find a saint or a feast for every single day of the year! I have never seen a saint devotional before that had an entry for every day of the year. The well known and popular saints, like St. Francis of Assisi and St. Rose of Lima are represented as well as lesser known saints, like Blessed Luigi Beltrame Quattrocchi and his wife Blessed Maria Corsini-Quattrocchi, who in 2001 became the first married couple to be beatified together! Our Catholic faith is rich with wonderful saints, feasts, and holy men and women and this book provides an opportunity to learn more about them and discover new ones that we may have never heard of before.
In addition to providing us with spiritual food to enrich our lives, the book provides a unique second set of devotions--physical devotions. Each day the authors give the readers advice and suggestions to take what was learned about the saints and carry it out in some sort of action. It may be an exercise to assist the reader in becoming physically fit or it may be advice on how to live a life of holiness.
Learning about the saints of our Church means nothing unless you carry what you learn out in action. Tending the Temple provides us with an opportunity to not only learn about the saints but also gives us advice on how to take what we learn and carry out into some sort of action in our lives.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Mature Faith
Image via WikipediaThis comment really bothers me. I've heard it a few times, mostly centering around an idea that I have that I'm sharing with other youth ministers. I share an idea, one that I believe will ignite the fire of the Holy Spirit in the youth or deepen their understanding of their faith, and the response is "they can't handle that." These comments are coming from the same youth ministers who fill their meetings with games, skits, and activities. Not that there is anything wrong with these things (I use games and activities in my meetings, too), but to think that a high school youth cannot handle being challenged in his faith is bothersome.
When I first became a youth minister, I attended a workshop that suggested the idea (among others) that most Catholic adults are walking around with the faith of a 4th or 5th grader. It was suggested that most Catholic adults do not have a mature faith. I ask why? Why don't most adults have a mature faith? I think that a big part of that is the fact that most catechists, youth ministers, priests, or anyone who works with youth in the Church have the mindset that "they can't handle that."
When I started high school, my parish was without a youth ministry program. When I became interested in my faith the summer between my sophomore and junior year, I was invited to a youth ministry program that was not a part of my parish. I joined and loved it. It was a thriving, Spirit-filled program that drew about 20-30 teens every week, even though it met on Wednesdays, when most of us had sports, homework, and other commitments. Shortly after I started attending that program, my parish hired a youth minister. I was excited about it and jumped on board to be a part of a program and to take a leadership role. The program was a miserable failure. It never got off the ground and never drew more than a half-dozen teens to the weekly meetings.
What was the difference between the two? For one thing, the thriving program was established and had been running for many years. It's hard to start a youth ministry program from scratch. I know. I've done it. But I think the greatest difference was the approach to the program. The thriving and active program (the one I joined first) challenged us teens. The adults running the program would not accept mediocrity, would not accept that there were certain things about our faith that we couldn't handle. The other program, the one at my own parish, filled the teens time with movies, games, and food. (Again, there is nothing wrong with movies, games, and food, but if that is all your program is about, you're missing the point).
The way I see it, we don't challenge the youth today. We have very low expectations for our youth. We don't think they can handle many things, particularly when it comes to their faith. This is a tragedy. Teens are going to grow up living lives of mediocrity. They will never rise above the low expectations we set for them. I'm not being trying to be prideful, but I believe that I have an adult faith. That adult faith came from the youth ministry program that challenged me. It came from the program that did not accept that there were things that I was not mature enough to handle. If we have an attitude that the youth cannot handle being challenged in their faith, then they will never mature.
---------------------------
We need to be challenged. All of us, young and old, need to be challenged. It is through being challenged, being stretched, that we are able to grow. If we live lives of mediocrity, never being challenged in anything, then we will never grow. We will never grow mentally. We will never grow emotionally. We will never grow spiritually.
"I know your works; I know that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either cold or hot. So, because you are lukewarm, I will spit you out of my mouth." (Revelation 3:15-16)
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Where Do We Start? Thoughts On Stewardship
I attended a meeting the other day. It was a gathering of the heads of the different ministries for one of the two parishes I work for. The focus of the meeting was to present--and brainstorm--ideas on how we can, as a parish, increase participation in the different ministries of service that the parish currently has. We are looking for a way to increase the stewardship of time and talent in the parish. A lot of good ideas were discussed. We discussed having a ministry fair, a "Ministry Sunday" once a month where one of the ministries of the parish is highlighted, ministry nights for the parents of the Early Childhood Center and Religious Education, and many other good ideas. At the end of the meeting some time was set aside, as with all discussions about stewardship, for a discussion on money. Overall, it was a productive meeting. We came up with many ideas to try to increase the participation of time, talent, and, of course, treasure from the parishioners of the parish.
As I was sitting there, listening to what the parish stewardship committee head was presenting, I started thinking that we have it all backwards--that we, as a Church in the U.S. (not just this parish, but many parishes) oftentimes have it backwards. There is such a focus on service and on social justice--almost too much of a focus. Don't get me wrong. It is important to serve. There are many wonderful ministries at the parishes I work for, and all parishes, that do great work at supporting the church, it's parishioners, and those in the community around the parish. We need that. It is a necessary, and important, part of our Catholic faith. But, we have it backwards. We focus so much on service that we forget something very important. We are, first and foremost, a community of faith. We are so busy nurturing the corporal needs of our parishes and communities that we oftentimes neglect the spiritual needs.
We are losing Catholics. Many are leaving the Catholic Church to go to other Christian churches. Some just stop going to church altogether. I believe that most lost Catholics still sit in our pews, coming back week after week to fulfill their Sunday obligation. We can talk until we are blue in the face, coming up with idea after idea on how to get these lost Catholics to participate with more time, talent, and treasure. We can put on the greatest festival that money can buy to try to highlight the different ministries and increase participation in those ministries. But those lost Catholics, the ones that are filling up our pews week after week, won't participate. They won't participate because they don't care.
Why don't they care? They don't care because they are not engaged in their faith. They don't understand the importance of a personal relationship with Jesus. They don't understand how to have a personal relationship with Jesus. They have no passion for their faith.
People give to their passions. They give of their time. They give of their talent. They give of their treasure. Look at a parent who has a child with autism. That parent becomes passionate about the cause for finding a cure for autism. Or a husband who lost his wife to breast cancer. He becomes passionate about the fight to find a cure. These people are passionate about these causes because they are personally affected by them. If we, as a Church, take time to nurture a personal faith relationship with Christ then Catholics will give of their time, talent, and yes, treasure.
In addition to not caring because they are not engaged in their faith, there is another reason why these lost Catholics don't give of their time, talent, and treasure. If I had to wager a guess, I'd say that about 40% of Catholics filling the pews across the U.S. are walking around with empty cups. They have nothing to give. Another 50% of Catholics have half full cups. They have a little bit to give but are unwilling to give anything for fear of losing what little they have.
I have found in my own job of serving the youth of two parishes that if I have a half full cup or an empty cup that I am ineffective as a youth minister. I cannot give to the youth what I do not have. Unless I have an overflowing cup, I cannot be a good servant to anyone--my wife, my kids, or the parishes I serve.
How does one obtain an overflowing cup? There is only one way to fill a cup to overflowing, and that is through a personal relationship with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Unless and until we spend time every day with Jesus in prayer and dialogue we will never fill our cups.
I said earlier that we, as a Church in the U.S., oftentimes have it backwards. Instead of focusing on service, instead of focusing on increasing participation in these ministries of service, we need to first focus on faith formation. We need to help these lost Catholics in the pews to understand their faith. Remember, it was not until the Holy Spirit descended upon the Apostles in the upper room that they were able to go out and serve. The same holds true for the Church today. We need to invite the Holy Spirit to descend upon our parishes through providing opportunities for faith formation for all ages--youth and adult. When we invite the Spirit into our churches then, and only then, will we be empowered to give of our time, talent, and treasure. We will engage the disengaged. We will find the lost Catholics.
As I was sitting there, listening to what the parish stewardship committee head was presenting, I started thinking that we have it all backwards--that we, as a Church in the U.S. (not just this parish, but many parishes) oftentimes have it backwards. There is such a focus on service and on social justice--almost too much of a focus. Don't get me wrong. It is important to serve. There are many wonderful ministries at the parishes I work for, and all parishes, that do great work at supporting the church, it's parishioners, and those in the community around the parish. We need that. It is a necessary, and important, part of our Catholic faith. But, we have it backwards. We focus so much on service that we forget something very important. We are, first and foremost, a community of faith. We are so busy nurturing the corporal needs of our parishes and communities that we oftentimes neglect the spiritual needs.
We are losing Catholics. Many are leaving the Catholic Church to go to other Christian churches. Some just stop going to church altogether. I believe that most lost Catholics still sit in our pews, coming back week after week to fulfill their Sunday obligation. We can talk until we are blue in the face, coming up with idea after idea on how to get these lost Catholics to participate with more time, talent, and treasure. We can put on the greatest festival that money can buy to try to highlight the different ministries and increase participation in those ministries. But those lost Catholics, the ones that are filling up our pews week after week, won't participate. They won't participate because they don't care.
Why don't they care? They don't care because they are not engaged in their faith. They don't understand the importance of a personal relationship with Jesus. They don't understand how to have a personal relationship with Jesus. They have no passion for their faith.
People give to their passions. They give of their time. They give of their talent. They give of their treasure. Look at a parent who has a child with autism. That parent becomes passionate about the cause for finding a cure for autism. Or a husband who lost his wife to breast cancer. He becomes passionate about the fight to find a cure. These people are passionate about these causes because they are personally affected by them. If we, as a Church, take time to nurture a personal faith relationship with Christ then Catholics will give of their time, talent, and yes, treasure.
In addition to not caring because they are not engaged in their faith, there is another reason why these lost Catholics don't give of their time, talent, and treasure. If I had to wager a guess, I'd say that about 40% of Catholics filling the pews across the U.S. are walking around with empty cups. They have nothing to give. Another 50% of Catholics have half full cups. They have a little bit to give but are unwilling to give anything for fear of losing what little they have.
I have found in my own job of serving the youth of two parishes that if I have a half full cup or an empty cup that I am ineffective as a youth minister. I cannot give to the youth what I do not have. Unless I have an overflowing cup, I cannot be a good servant to anyone--my wife, my kids, or the parishes I serve.
How does one obtain an overflowing cup? There is only one way to fill a cup to overflowing, and that is through a personal relationship with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Unless and until we spend time every day with Jesus in prayer and dialogue we will never fill our cups.
I said earlier that we, as a Church in the U.S., oftentimes have it backwards. Instead of focusing on service, instead of focusing on increasing participation in these ministries of service, we need to first focus on faith formation. We need to help these lost Catholics in the pews to understand their faith. Remember, it was not until the Holy Spirit descended upon the Apostles in the upper room that they were able to go out and serve. The same holds true for the Church today. We need to invite the Holy Spirit to descend upon our parishes through providing opportunities for faith formation for all ages--youth and adult. When we invite the Spirit into our churches then, and only then, will we be empowered to give of our time, talent, and treasure. We will engage the disengaged. We will find the lost Catholics.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Running Out of Steam....
It's been 2 1/2 years since I started this blog. I originally started it as a way to reach out to the teens in my youth group outside of our weekly meetings. With 9,600 visits and 13,500 page views, my meager expectations for this blog have been blown away. With the help of Fr. Dwight Longenecker, Mark Shea, the Archbold brothers, and others, none of whom I have ever met, I have had hits from every state in the union and 100 other countries.(Thank you for your support.) I've been blessed by writing this blog. I've been blessed by those that have followed my stream of consciousness. I've been blessed by those who cared enough to leave a comment. I've been blessed most of all by the journey this adventure of salvation has led me down. I have learned a lot. I've learned a lot about myself. I have grown in my faith. What started out as an opportunity to transform the lives of the teens I work with, this blog ended up transforming my life. I am a much stronger Catholic as a result of putting "pen to paper" my thoughts, feelings and faith.
With that being said, I'm running out of steam. I've been neglecting my blog somewhat over the past couple of months. Part of this neglect is due to the busyness of my life. Between increased work responsibilities, cub scouts with my son, and other family commitments, I haven't had much time to write. I've also committed to being a regular contributor to Catholic Dads, writing a weekly feature called A Father's Faith. I've been debating in my mind for weeks whether or not I should just stop writing this blog altogether. I've decided what to do.
I'm not going to give up this venture completely. I just don't feel that I can walk away from this labor of love and not look back. Going forward, I will write only when I feel prompted by the Holy Spirit, instead of (as I have done in the past) trying to find something to write at least once a week. I may go weeks, or months, between posts. But I'm still here. I will poke my head in from time to time when the Spirit moves me to write something. I know I may lose followers without the constant activity on my blog, but I don't care. I don't write for them. I write what God wants me to write and when He wants me to write it.
If you want to get in my head on a regular basis, you can always visit me every Friday over at Catholic Dads.
With that being said, I'm running out of steam. I've been neglecting my blog somewhat over the past couple of months. Part of this neglect is due to the busyness of my life. Between increased work responsibilities, cub scouts with my son, and other family commitments, I haven't had much time to write. I've also committed to being a regular contributor to Catholic Dads, writing a weekly feature called A Father's Faith. I've been debating in my mind for weeks whether or not I should just stop writing this blog altogether. I've decided what to do.
I'm not going to give up this venture completely. I just don't feel that I can walk away from this labor of love and not look back. Going forward, I will write only when I feel prompted by the Holy Spirit, instead of (as I have done in the past) trying to find something to write at least once a week. I may go weeks, or months, between posts. But I'm still here. I will poke my head in from time to time when the Spirit moves me to write something. I know I may lose followers without the constant activity on my blog, but I don't care. I don't write for them. I write what God wants me to write and when He wants me to write it.
If you want to get in my head on a regular basis, you can always visit me every Friday over at Catholic Dads.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Book Review: In Convesation with God
Are you looking for help with your prayer? Are you looking for some spiritual reading that will help you to enter into a conversation with God? Well then, I recommend none other than the In Conversation with God series of daily meditations by Francis Fernandez. This series of seven books walks you through the Liturgical year, giving you a meditation based on scripture each day of the year.
Volume Three, the book I selected for review focuses on Ordinary Time, Weeks 1-12. (Why, you ask, did I start with Volume 3? Well, it's because we were in the midst of the first part of Ordinary Time when I ordered the book!) The weekday meditations focus on one of the scriptures for the day. During the week, the meditations may come from any of the three years of the cycle. For Sundays, there is a specific meditation for each year in the cycle. You just pick on the cycle we are in and read and meditate on that selection.
What do I like about this series of books? First of all, I like the fact that it follows the Liturgical Year. The Volumes are as follows:
Volume 1: Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany
Volume 2: Lent, Holy Week, and Eastertide
Volume 3: Ordinary Time, Weeks 1-12
Volume 4: Ordinary Time, Weeks 12-23
Volume 5: Ordinary Time, Weeks 24-34
Volume 6: Special Feasts: January - June
Volume 7: Special Feasts: July - December
I also like the theological focus of each of the reflections. The daily reflections appeal to both the intellect and the spirit. It draws you into the scripture and makes you think about what is written in the Word of God. It has given me a lot of food for thought and has drawn me into a deeper conversation with God.
You can purchase this book here.
I wrote this review of In Conversation with God, Vol. 3 for the Tiber River Blogger Review program, created by Aquinas and More Catholic Goods, your source for Baptism Gifts and First Communion Gifts. For more information and to purchase, please visit Aquinas and More Catholic Goods. Tiber River is the first Catholic book review site, started in 2000 to help you make informed decisions about Catholic book purchases.
I receive free product samples as compensation for writing reviews for Tiber River.
Friday, February 4, 2011
I'm Scared, I'm REEEAAALLLY Scared!
Has something ever happened to you that scared the living daylights out of you? Have you ever been consumed by something that you heard, read, or saw that really frightened you? For me, one of the most frightening things that has ever happened to me was when I was in college and got into a horrible car accident where I drove my car under the bed of an 18 wheeler flat-bed truck.That moment, that brush with death, was incredibly frightening for me. First of all, I thought I was going to die. In fact, eye witnesses to the accident said that they expected to pull a dead body out of the car. Furthermore, after I realized I didn't die (I actually walked away from it virtually unharmed) I was faced with the fact that I was 10 hours from home, in the midst of a nasty snow storm, and without a way to get home. I was scared. I was REEEAAALLLY scared. It was probably the most frightening thing I have gone through in my life....until today.
Today, I read something that frightened me even more than that car accident:
But it's not too late. As of the writing of this blog post I still have a pulse. I'm still breathing. I have the opportunity to change my mind about what, or who, I love the most. I pray that the Holy Spirit will give me the strength of will to choose to love God above all else.
Today, I read something that frightened me even more than that car accident:
On the day we die, I believe that the God of love gives us what we love the most.What an incredibly frightening thing to think about. Not the death part...the part about God giving us what we love most when we die. What do I love the most? When I look at my sinfulness, and the root of that sin, I find that what I love the most is......ME. I'm scared to spend eternity with nothing but me. It's not that I think that I'm such a horrible person that no one would want to spend eternity with me. My wife seems to like me. Whether or not she would want to spend eternity with me I'm not so sure about (I certainly hope so!) But for me to spend eternity with nothing but myself and my own selfish desires is another story. Here on earth, I can see glimpses of God's love for me despite my selfishness. And that gives me hope. It gives me comfort. But to spend eternity without even a glimpse of God's love is a miserable thought. It scares me to think that I am choosing, right now, in this life, what God is going to give me for eternity. What scares me even more is that I am not choosing to love God. Instead, I'm choosing to love myself and my selfish desires. Don't get me wrong. There is nothing wrong with loving yourself. But when that self-love becomes selfish-love it turns into sin. As a result, I love sin more than I love God. That love of sin will lead me straight to hell.
~Fr. Larry Richards
But it's not too late. As of the writing of this blog post I still have a pulse. I'm still breathing. I have the opportunity to change my mind about what, or who, I love the most. I pray that the Holy Spirit will give me the strength of will to choose to love God above all else.
Be A Man: Book Review
I could go on and on quoting different passages from Fr. Larry Richards' book that have inspired me to become a better man. But if I were to do that, I would end up copying most of the book into this review. What a truly wonderful book this is. It is easy to read--hard to put down in fact--and inspirational. I have ready many books on faith and spirituality and Be A Man is among the best books I have ever read.
Be A Man is an insightful, thought provoking look at the challenges that men face. It provides sound advice on how to carry out our mission as men of God in all areas of our life. He challenges men to be strong against the temptations and daily struggles we encounter in our lives.
Each chapter ends with an action plan and a list of questions for reflection. This gives the readers an opportunity to pause, reflect on what they just read and to take it to prayer.
Don't let the title fool you! This book is not just for men. Although Fr. Richards speaks directly to men in his book, I highly recommend women read it too. It will give women an insight into the struggles that men face, but it will also inspire women to be all that God created them to be as well. The advice and inspiration that Fr. Richards gives in Be A Man is good for women as well as men.
Tiber River is the first Catholic book review site, started in 2000 to help you make informed decisions about Catholic book purchases.
I receive free product samples as compensation for writing reviews for Tiber River.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
The Death Industry
A few weeks ago, I was driving down a major road in my area. It is one of those big, 6 lane roads with lots of traffic and lots of businesses along it. I was in the far right lane heading home from work when all of a sudden, I was nearly run off the road by another driver. I had to slam on my brakes and swerve into the shoulder of the road in order to avoid being hit by this crazy driver. I recovered quickly and continued down the road, keeping a safe distance behind the guy who just cut me off. At first I blew it off as one of our winter residents here in Florida, "Snow Birds" as we like to call them; older, retired residents who spend a few months here in the winter to avoid the cold north. About a mile down the road the car that cut me off turned into the parking lot of a professional center where I know there is an abortion clinic. I know there is a clinic there because I have spent some time in front of this clinic praying for the end of abortion. The thought occurred to me that this person just nearly ran me off the road because I am pro-life. No, I don't think he could have recognized me for praying outside the clinic. I'm not one of the regulars who are there week after week praying for an end to abortion. All he had to do was to look at my car to see that I was pro-life. You see, in Florida, we have the option to pay a little extra for our annual license plate renewal in order to donate to a charity. As you can guess, my license plate proclaims "Choose Life."
I have no idea whether this person worked for the abortion clinic or not, as there are other businesses in that same professional center, but it got me thinking. Those who work in the abortion industry, or rather, "The Death Industry" are surrounded by death. Spending day after day, week after week, surrounded by death and causing death could result, for many, in a complete and utter lack of respect for life. The recent news about abortionist Kermit Gosnell shows that, at least for him, this is true.
I have never been inside an abortion clinic, nor do I ever plan on stepping inside one, but I imagine it being very cold, physically and emotionally. I imagine all the employees, from the receptionist, to the nurses, to the doctor, being emotionless, showing no sympathy, no caring, and certainly no love to their patients. I can imagine the patient silently following the nurse down the hall to the room where the "procedure", or rather, murder is committed. She is full of emotion, the only one with emotion in the room. Maybe she's crying, desperate for answers, for a way out. Her emotion goes unanswered as the doctor and nurses carry out the abortion of her child. There is no respect for the mother, and there is certainly no respect for the child.
Thinking about this complete and total lack of respect for ALL life could move some to anger. But it moves me to pity. I pity the doctors, the nurses, and the administrators in the "Death Industry". This pity brings to mind a scene from J.R.R. Tolkein's The Fellowship of the Ring novel (I'm not sure if this scene is the same in the movie. It's been awhile since I've seen it). In this scene, Galdalf is telling Frodo of the Ring and how it came into the hands of Frodo's uncle, Bilbo. Smeagol, who would later become Gollum, was so consumed with the Ring that he would stop at nothing to possess it, even murdering his friend, Deagol. Frodo is at a loss of what to do with the ring, which is now in his possession:
We need to pray for those in the "Death Industry". We need to pray for an end to the industry. For those, like Kermit Gosnell, who we see little hope for, there is still a chance that they may be cured before they die. We need to pray for them. Pray that they may come to see the light. Those in the "Death Industry" can change. They can come to an understanding of and a respect for life. Abby Johnson, a former director for Planned Parenthood, came to see the light. Others can, too.
I have no idea whether this person worked for the abortion clinic or not, as there are other businesses in that same professional center, but it got me thinking. Those who work in the abortion industry, or rather, "The Death Industry" are surrounded by death. Spending day after day, week after week, surrounded by death and causing death could result, for many, in a complete and utter lack of respect for life. The recent news about abortionist Kermit Gosnell shows that, at least for him, this is true.
I have never been inside an abortion clinic, nor do I ever plan on stepping inside one, but I imagine it being very cold, physically and emotionally. I imagine all the employees, from the receptionist, to the nurses, to the doctor, being emotionless, showing no sympathy, no caring, and certainly no love to their patients. I can imagine the patient silently following the nurse down the hall to the room where the "procedure", or rather, murder is committed. She is full of emotion, the only one with emotion in the room. Maybe she's crying, desperate for answers, for a way out. Her emotion goes unanswered as the doctor and nurses carry out the abortion of her child. There is no respect for the mother, and there is certainly no respect for the child.
Thinking about this complete and total lack of respect for ALL life could move some to anger. But it moves me to pity. I pity the doctors, the nurses, and the administrators in the "Death Industry". This pity brings to mind a scene from J.R.R. Tolkein's The Fellowship of the Ring novel (I'm not sure if this scene is the same in the movie. It's been awhile since I've seen it). In this scene, Galdalf is telling Frodo of the Ring and how it came into the hands of Frodo's uncle, Bilbo. Smeagol, who would later become Gollum, was so consumed with the Ring that he would stop at nothing to possess it, even murdering his friend, Deagol. Frodo is at a loss of what to do with the ring, which is now in his possession:
"What am I to do? What a pity that Bilbo did not stab that vile creature, when he had a chance!"We need not react in anger at the atrocities being performed in abortion clinics across the nation. We need to react with pity, and mercy. For no matter how little respect those in the "Death Industry" may have for life, we should not be too eager to deal out judgment. "For even the wise cannot see all ends." Even Gollum, as vile and evil as he was, played a significant role in helping Frodo bring an end to evil.
"Pity? It was Pity that stayed his hand. Pity, and Mercy: not to strike without need. And he has been well rewarded, Frodo. Be sure that he took so little hurt from evil, and escaped in the end, because he began his ownership of the Ring so. With Pity."
"I am sorry," said Frodo. "But I am frightened; and I do not feel any pity for Gollum."
"You have not seen him," Gandalf broke in.
"No, and I don't want to," said Frodo. "I can't understand you. Do you mean to say that you, and the Elves, have let him live on after all those horrible deeds? Now at any rate he is as bad as an Orc, and just an enemy. He deserves death."
"Deserves it! I daresay he does. Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. For even the very wise cannot see all ends. I have not much hope that Gollum can be cured before he dies, but there is a chance of it. And he is bound up with the fate of the Ring. My heart tells me that he has some part to play yet, for good or ill, before the end; and when that comes, the pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many -- your not least."
We need to pray for those in the "Death Industry". We need to pray for an end to the industry. For those, like Kermit Gosnell, who we see little hope for, there is still a chance that they may be cured before they die. We need to pray for them. Pray that they may come to see the light. Those in the "Death Industry" can change. They can come to an understanding of and a respect for life. Abby Johnson, a former director for Planned Parenthood, came to see the light. Others can, too.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Carrying the Christ Child
The traditional end of the Christmas season has come and gone with the Feast of the Epiphany yesterday. Upon reflecting on the season of Advent and Christmas, one of my favorite moments of this past season was the vigil Mass on Christmas Eve. We attended the 4:00 PM Mass as is our tradition and arrived at the church at about 3:00. I took my 16 month old out into the narthex before Mass to let her run around for a while (she has a difficult time sitting still for 2 minutes, much less 2 hours). As we were going back into the church to join the rest of our family, my pastor stopped me and asked if my wife and I would be willing to carry the baby Jesus statue from the church's Nativity in the opening procession. After a bit of discussion with Kari about what to do with the 5 kids as processed to the front of the church we decided to leave them in the capable hands of our 12 year old daughter. There were other families that we knew near them to keep an eye on them as well.
Kari and I headed to the back of the church where my pastor handed me baby Jesus. We stood there for a few minutes waiting for the opening processional song to begin. When the song began, I held the statue high over my head as we walked down the center of the church to the front, so that everyone could see. About half way down the aisle I was struck with the fact that I was carrying Jesus, the one we all worship. Not only was I carrying him, but I was holding him in such a way that all who were present could worship him as well. The thought gave me chills and I started to tear up as I walked down the center aisle.
Our Lord and Savior is much more than a statue. All too often we reduce Christ to a mere symbol or an ideal to strive for. While it is right and noble to strive to live up to the ideals that Christ lived out and symbolize for us, it is not enough. Christ, as a child in a manger or crucified on a cross, is not just a symbol. He is not just an ideal to strive for. Christ is living, present, and real. We cannot live up to the ideals he set for us through his birth, ministry, passion, and death until we realize this.
We are called to be Christ-like. However, we need to enter into a relationship with Christ in order to do this. Reading the bible and understanding the teachings of Christ is not enough. I can know all about a particular person in history that I admire, but in order to truly become like that person that I admire, I have to know him or her. You can read the bible cover to cover and every book about Christ that has ever been written. What you will end up with is a lot of knowledge about the person of Christ. But, it is not until you enter into a personal relationship with him through prayer and the sacraments that you can truly become Christ-like. Knowing about Christ is not the same as knowing Christ. We need to know him in order to be like him.
Kari and I headed to the back of the church where my pastor handed me baby Jesus. We stood there for a few minutes waiting for the opening processional song to begin. When the song began, I held the statue high over my head as we walked down the center of the church to the front, so that everyone could see. About half way down the aisle I was struck with the fact that I was carrying Jesus, the one we all worship. Not only was I carrying him, but I was holding him in such a way that all who were present could worship him as well. The thought gave me chills and I started to tear up as I walked down the center aisle.
Our Lord and Savior is much more than a statue. All too often we reduce Christ to a mere symbol or an ideal to strive for. While it is right and noble to strive to live up to the ideals that Christ lived out and symbolize for us, it is not enough. Christ, as a child in a manger or crucified on a cross, is not just a symbol. He is not just an ideal to strive for. Christ is living, present, and real. We cannot live up to the ideals he set for us through his birth, ministry, passion, and death until we realize this.
We are called to be Christ-like. However, we need to enter into a relationship with Christ in order to do this. Reading the bible and understanding the teachings of Christ is not enough. I can know all about a particular person in history that I admire, but in order to truly become like that person that I admire, I have to know him or her. You can read the bible cover to cover and every book about Christ that has ever been written. What you will end up with is a lot of knowledge about the person of Christ. But, it is not until you enter into a personal relationship with him through prayer and the sacraments that you can truly become Christ-like. Knowing about Christ is not the same as knowing Christ. We need to know him in order to be like him.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)