The Best of Things

"When we receive Holy Communion, we experience something extraordinary -- a joy, a fragrance, a well being that thrills the whole body and causes it to exalt."    

                                          --St. John Vianney  

As any of you who often read what I write (thanks, by the way) know, I generally only take the time to write on here if something profound has happened in my life or some major event is happening in the world.  This time, however, I am going to take a step back. What I am writing about here is not some new experience that I had, but rather a simply normal experience which ought to have been profound.

What I want to write about, as you can guess from the picture above, is the Holy Mass. This is the event which happens every single day in countless Churches across the world, and yet it is often taken for granted. When I sit down to think about what I might say in one of these posts, usually I think of the biggest things happening in the world and try to figure out if I have anything to add to the discussion. Most of those days are days when I made it or will make it to Mass, and yet somehow it slips my mind to write about this. Somehow in the chaos of work, relationships with the people around me, other responsibilities I have, and the constant flow of BREAKING NEWS: on twitter and elsewhere the reception of the Eucharist at Mass becomes routine and isn't what jumps to mind when I think of the greatest things of the day.

And yet, I must admit, this is tragic. The Mass, the place where the God of the Universe steps out of heaven down onto the altar and is present in the bread and wine transformed into Him, offered up as a re-presentation of His one sacrifice on the altar of Calvary, ought to be as profound of an experience as St. John Vianney suggested above. The profound reality of God Himself taking on the form of wheat bread and grape wine simply so that His people may receive Him and have union with Him is an earth-shattering, life-changing truth which is the ONLY remedy to the problems in the world. If you are looking for the Lord in the world, if I am searching for Him in the midst of trouble, all we need to do is go to Mass, to receive Him, and to adore Him.

Does this mean I'm done talking about other things? Of course not. What it hopefully does mean, though, is that I (and I pray, any of you who read this) will take more time each day to thank God for the greatest gift on Earth, the gift of His Only Son, the gift I get to receive every day in Mass.

"It would be easier for the world to survive without the presence of the sun than to do without Holy Mass."              

                                                                                          -St. Padre Pio 

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An Incarnation of Tenderness

Since most of the things I write about come from a thought sparked by someone I encounter which I dwell on for a long time, you can imagine my excitement when my penance from a recent confession was actually just to think. And, since this priest obviously knew how quickly I get distracted, his instructions to think were very specific:

Right now I want you to recall a tender moment with God, he said.

A tender moment with God? I can recall that. Okay, continue. (I probably really just mumbled mhm, but whatever).

Now, he said, go back to your pew, and for your penance spend time in adoration recalling that tender moment.

Boom. Dynamite penance. Life slightly altered. (more altered by the sacramental forgiveness, but since I'm not perfect I notice this thought he gave me more than that).

In recalling that moment, I was able to encounter the Lord that day (yesterday, as I type this), but even more than that the recollection of that moment has helped me continue to grow in my understanding of what the Sacrament of Reconciliation is all about (again, it was yesterday, so I probably haven't grasped the whole lesson yet).

Confession isn't simply about a God who forgives us even though we suck (although yes, we do suck, and yes, He does forgive us anyways), but a God who desires to forgive us. This Sacrament reminds us that our God wants us to know His love and His healing so desperately that He gives us an avenue of grace to know that our sins have been forgiven.

Tenderness, then, shown so perfectly in this sacrament, is the crux of the incarnation. The tenderness of our God is realized in Him stepping out of heaven and taking on human form. He took on our form to save us, and to do so in a way that would show us how near He always is.

Hopefully, we never forget His tenderness. Hopefully, we never feel separated from Him. Since we often do, though, he gives us the grace of an amazing sacrament and says: I love you, never feel distant from that love.

Those, on the other hand, who recognize that they are weak and sinful entrust themselves to God and obtain from him grace and forgiveness. It is precisely this message that must be transmitted: what counts most is to make people understand that in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, whatever the sin committed, if it is humbly recognized and the person involved turns with trust to the priest-confessor, he or she never fails to experience the soothing joy of God's forgiveness.      

-Pope Benedict XVI 

Promoting Life

Today I am wearing that t-shirt as a part of a thing called national pro-life t-shirt day, which is, as the name says, something people do across the country, and many people in Beaver County where I live participate in this. In honor of this day, I'd like to share a few thoughts about life, because, without defending and protecting life first and foremost we wouldn't have anything to fight for at all. 

I don't expect that many (or, for that matter, any) of the people reading this will disagree vehemently with me on this because I assume most of my readers are just my friends, but if you do I hope that you will take the time to read what I have to say and then feel free to discuss the points with me. 

As I sit here and write this little post, I find myself more and more convicted that I need to work harder to defend and promote life in every single situation where life is being threatened or harmed. This means speaking up against human trafficking (a great place to support the movement which looks to fight slavery, which still exists, is to go to this website: http://enditmovement.com), euthanasia, suicide (To Write Love on Her Arms is an organization doing a lot of work to fight depression and suicide), abortion, and any other way that life is being diminished, harmed, or destroyed. 

The problem in all of these things is that human life is seen as unimportant and something which can simply be tossed away. The human person is seen as a thing, an animal, something that can be used, mistreated, and discarded at the whims of another. Arguments for why things like abortion and euthanasia are okay usually center around convenience. We have gotten to a point as a civilization where we don't simply use things to our advantage, but now we use people. At this point in society we think it is okay to treat another like crap, even to the point of killing them, as long as what we are doing is for our benefit. What needs to start happening in our society is for people to stand up for the dignity of the human person in every situation, and this has to start with the way that we see, talk to, and treat those we encounter on a daily basis. What needs to start happening is a recognition of the dignity that each person has in themselves, and a respect for what that dignity means. 

And so today I am wearing this t-shirt. I am not doing this because I think that my t-shirt is going to save a whole bunch of lives, because probably it won't. I am still doing this, though, because I believe that showing the world I support human life is important. I believe that showing the people I see on the street today that there are other people out there who also support and are willing to stand up for human life might encourage them to stand up and be "a voice for the voiceless." 

Today, I wear a t-shirt and I pray for human life. Going forward I will continue to stand up, to fight when I can, and hopefully to be a part of the generation which sees life respected and guarded as the great and wonderful gift that it is. 

"We are not some casual and meaningless product of evolution. Each of us is the result of a thought of God. Each of us is willed, each of us is loved, each of us is necessary."      -Pope Benedict XVI

The Cry of My Heart

Nevertheless, to praise you is the desire of man, a little piece of your creation. You stir man to take pleasure in praising you, because you have made us for yourself, and our heart is restless until it rests in You.  

-St. Augustine, Confessions 

In reading that little passage from Augustine I think that we all can feel (or at least hope that we can) the truth which is behind his statement. Even when we don't always notice it, even when our hearts don't feel God's providence and care in everything that is going on, even when things don't seem perfect, there is a little piece of us (or, hopefully, a very large piece of us) which finds pleasure, peace, and rest in praising the Lord, in worship of Him. I believe that this is most truly stated in his second sentence above, where Augustine points out that our hearts are restless until they rest in the Lord, the God who made us. This restlessness, much more commonly found in today's world than the desire for praise, points us back to the fact that our hearts are not made for the finite, but for the Infinite, and can't be happy when they are filled with things of this world.

Restlessness, I think, is something that nearly everyone in today's world can find in themselves. In the craziness of daily life, filled with meetings, deadlines, e-mails, tweets, phone calls, more meetings, facebook, instagram, and whatever else you might fill your time with, we find ourselves too busy to slow down. And yet, often, if you talk to a person in today's world, they won't describe their busy lives as fulfilling but rather as a let down, and often times even as empty. They might say that things are good and exciting, but almost always they'll be able to tell you about what they desire more: a better job, a new location, more friends, more money, or sometimes they'll just say more; we aren't even always sure what it is, but we know we desire more.

At least, I guess, I can say that this is true for me. No matter how much good is going on I am constantly seeking, striving, desiring and looking for more to do. And yet, one time after another, I find that no matter how many more obligations, responsibilities or opportunities I add they still leave me restless.

This realization of restlessness always reminds me of an argument which I believe I read in Chesterton somewhere, but it may have been C.S. Lewis or somewhere else (my memory isn't always the best); regardless, it's worth mentioning. The argument goes as follows: how often does man complain about not having enough time, or time moving slowly, or something of that sort? Do you think a fish, if it could complain, would ever complain about being in water? Of course not, we would all likely agree. If a fish is comfortable in water, it is because he was made for water; if I am uncomfortable in time here on earth, I was clearly not made for time (this argument of our not being made for time doesn't rise and fall simply on us being uncomfortable; another great example would be the experience of love, in which a person-or in this case two persons-will often complain about desiring more time with the beloved, pointing to the fact that the time we have on earth can never truly satisfy).

And thus I am reminded-I am not made for the finite, but rather I am made for eternity with the Infinite Being. Then, remembering this, I can take a step back, and instead of seeking to fill my time, I can give my time away in praise of the One who deserves my praise, and in doing so I can find fulfillment. This fulfillment, of course, will never last, since I will get bored and once again seek the temporal, but if I continue to remind myself that I was created to praise God for eternity, and let the joy in doing that give my heart its rest, then I can return to peace and to happiness.

So, the cry of my heart, as one of my favorite songs says, is to bring You praise. The cry of my heart, as Augustine said, is that the human heart, my human heart, cannot be happy until it rests in God, praising Him who brought me into being.

The Word Became Flesh...

And dwelt among us! Today is the amazing and wonderful feast and solemnity of the Annunciation, so that's pretty cool. In honor of this great day on which our Savior took flesh through the obedience and "Yes" of our Blessed Mother, I thought I'd post some Benedict XVI from one of his homilies on this feast day (note: he gave this homily on March 25 not April 8th, but it was the Annunciation so we'll count it). If you haven't noticed, he's awesome and I really like him, so it shouldn't surprise anyone that I quote him. Here we go:

"The Annunciation, recounted at the beginning of Saint Luke's Gospel, is a humble, hidden event--no one saw it, no one except Mary knew of it--but at the same time it was crucial to the history of humanity. When the Virgin said her 'yes' to the Angel's announcement, Jesus was conceived and with him began the new era of history to be ratified in Easter as the 'new and eternal Covenant.' In fact, Mary's 'yes' perfectly mirrors that of Christ himself when he entered the world...We often contemplate Our Lady, who on Calvary sealed the 'yes' she pronounced at Nazareth. United to Christ, Witness of the Father's love, Mary lived martyrdom of the soul. Let us call on her intercession with confidence, so that the Church, faithful to her mission, may offer to the whole world a courageous witness of God's love." (25 March 2007)

I hope that God blesses each of us today with the love and zeal for our Lord that allows us to say yes in a true way to His love and His plan for our lives. If you want to read more about why this day is so good and important, check out this: The Word Became Flesh . Also it would be a good idea to go read the Gospel, and also go to Mass. The Gospel story that tells of this is Luke 1:26-38, and you can find out when Mass is by checking with your parish or going to this handy little website: masstimes.org .

"In Jesus, God has placed, in the midst of barren, despairing mankind, a new beginning which is not a product of human history but a gift from above."  --Pope Benedict XVI

Jesus I trust in you!

Happy Divine Mercy Sunday!

"There is no misery that could be a match for My mercy, neither will misery exhaust it, because as it is being granted-it increases. The soul that trusts in My mercy is most fortunate, because I  myself take care of it.”

 -Sr. Faustina's Diary

"Mary, Mother of Mercy, help us always to have this trust in your Son, our Redeemer. Help us too, St. Faustina, whom we remember today with special affection. Fixing our weak gaze on the divine Savior's face, we would like to repeat with you: 'Jesus, I trust in You!' Now and for ever. Amen."

-John Paul II

Make the most of today--pray for mercy, thank the Lord for Mercy, let Him give you Mercy! Today we celebrate what came from the Resurrection-Mercy that was ours if we were willing to ask for it and accept it! Don't miss the wonderful chance to do just that today. If you want to know a little more about this day and what it's all about, check out an awesome blog on it from Lighthouse Catholic Youth and Youth Minister Theresa Zweber: Divine Mercy . May God bless each of us this day!

Laymans Terms Talks Easter & Francis

Recently I have helped out some friends once or twice on this podcast called Layman's Terms. It's just a couple of lay Catholics talking faith.

This week we did a podcast with Edmund Mitchell (edmundmitchell.com) talking about a recent project he did with another friend Jon Cardinal called #captureeaster. The basic premise was to use social media to show God's work this Easter.

After talking with Edmund, Greg and I move on to our Easters and "The Tension" of Pope Francis' radical decisions.

Listen here and let us know what you think!: Laymans Terms Podcast