I was surfing the web, looking for ideas on how to teach about venial and mortal sin to a ten-about-to-turn-eleven year old girl and found a great idea from Catholic Culture.
See if this makes sense to any of you:
Holding a glass of clear water up to the sunlight, you say, "Look how the light from the sun fills this glass even though it is full of water. This is kind of like how the Grace of God fills us up. When we are in a State of Grace, we are filled with the Sunlight of The Holy Spirit and God can dwell within us."
Drop a tea bag into that clear water and hold IT up to the sunlight. "Look!", you can say. "The light still can get through even though the water is not clear anymore. This is how it is when we have committed venial sin. The Grace of God is still within us, but it is murky inside our souls. We have sinned against Him, and while He has not left us entirely we still need to clean this up by going to the priest, confessing our sins and receiving absolution".
Then, get some really dark coffee or, if you are game, some dirt and make a mud pie in the glass. Hold it up to the sunlight and say, "Oh look at this! This is the state of our souls when we have committed a mortal sin. We have chosen to block the Sunlight of the Spirit from our souls and God no longer dwells in us. We have turned out back on Him. Isn't it wonderful that, even though we might make this type of choice, God always waits for us to choose Life in Him again? We can clean this up by going to the priest and receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation - go to confession and get absolution for our sin. And from the looks of this muddy, dirty water, we should do it right away, don't you think?".
I am going to try this....maybe not today...maybe this weekend.
Pray for me...teaching the Faith to a little one who only gets it from me is a huge responsibility.
Father Dominic, guide me.
Showing posts with label Catechists. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Catechists. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Feast of the Immaculate Conception
"When discussing the Immaculate Conception, an implicit reference may be found in the angel’s greeting to Mary. The angel Gabriel said, "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you" (Luke 1:28). The phrase "full of grace" is a translation of the Greek word kecharitomene. It therefore expresses a characteristic quality of Mary. "
Catholic Answers Tract on the Immaculate Conception (Catholic.com)
I love this feast day. To me this is the day that explains the extraordinary give and take between God and His creatures, the incredibly love the Creator has for all of us. For unlike the myths of old (the ones that ALMOST get it right), God does not force Himself onto Mary in order to get His way. Rather, like the perfect Father He is, God asks His creature if she is willing to give herself totally to Him. Is she willing to trust completely in He who knew her before she was knitted in her mother's womb? Is she willing to say yes to the destiny that allowed her to be saved from the stain of Original Sin, outside of time and space and by the merits of the Sacrifice of God Himself - Jesus Christ, True God and True Man.
The entire salvation of the world depended upon the willingness of a simple, loving, devout Jewish girl - would she trust God to protect her? Would she trust that God would allow her to give birth when she lived in a time and a culture that women for the sin of conceiving a child out of wedlock, even if that woman had been forcibly raped?
We have become almost desensitized to the experience of Mary, daughter of Anne and Joachim. However, as a woman who found herself multiple times in a position of being abandoned by the men she thought loved her, I cannot imagine the leap of faith it took for her to say the words we are all so familiar with: Let it be done unto me, according to thy word.
Granted, Mary had some advantages over me. For one thing, she was sober. During my pagan days I was never sober - I was usually drunk or wasted and so my judgement as to who was a reliable sexual partner and potential father to my children was not very sound. Mary was conceived without the stain of Original Sin - she was 'full of grace', the New Eve and therefore not hampered by the same fallen nature that hampers me. Mary had an angel show up and talk this over with her. The closest I have ever come to actually seeing my angel was when it chose to take the form of a Scottish Terrier named Shaw's Roddy McDuff for five years.
The doctrine of the Immaculate Conception is often a stumbling block for evangelicals and some fringe protestants. Most mainstream protestants, in my experience, come to an understanding of how God would create the living tabernacle to hold His Divine Self without too much resistance once they see the logic in it. However, the problem most others have is because they misunderstand the Catholic view of Mary - they think we worship her and so take away from Jesus Christ. However, that could not be further from the Truth.
Mary spends her existence pointing us to her Son. She is not God, she is the Mother of God. For that reason she is due a great deal of respect and love. In fact, I cannot imagine what it will be like for someone to stand before Jesus and say, "Sure I loved You, but I think your mother was just an incubator".
Purgatory time.
Anyway, today I visit the lawyer for some business and then get to attend Mass. It is a Holy Day of Obligation. I am so grateful to the Church. I have a mother, and I have a Holy Mother.
Could it get any better than this?
Catholic Answers Tract on the Immaculate Conception (Catholic.com)
I love this feast day. To me this is the day that explains the extraordinary give and take between God and His creatures, the incredibly love the Creator has for all of us. For unlike the myths of old (the ones that ALMOST get it right), God does not force Himself onto Mary in order to get His way. Rather, like the perfect Father He is, God asks His creature if she is willing to give herself totally to Him. Is she willing to trust completely in He who knew her before she was knitted in her mother's womb? Is she willing to say yes to the destiny that allowed her to be saved from the stain of Original Sin, outside of time and space and by the merits of the Sacrifice of God Himself - Jesus Christ, True God and True Man.
The entire salvation of the world depended upon the willingness of a simple, loving, devout Jewish girl - would she trust God to protect her? Would she trust that God would allow her to give birth when she lived in a time and a culture that women for the sin of conceiving a child out of wedlock, even if that woman had been forcibly raped?
We have become almost desensitized to the experience of Mary, daughter of Anne and Joachim. However, as a woman who found herself multiple times in a position of being abandoned by the men she thought loved her, I cannot imagine the leap of faith it took for her to say the words we are all so familiar with: Let it be done unto me, according to thy word.
Granted, Mary had some advantages over me. For one thing, she was sober. During my pagan days I was never sober - I was usually drunk or wasted and so my judgement as to who was a reliable sexual partner and potential father to my children was not very sound. Mary was conceived without the stain of Original Sin - she was 'full of grace', the New Eve and therefore not hampered by the same fallen nature that hampers me. Mary had an angel show up and talk this over with her. The closest I have ever come to actually seeing my angel was when it chose to take the form of a Scottish Terrier named Shaw's Roddy McDuff for five years.
The doctrine of the Immaculate Conception is often a stumbling block for evangelicals and some fringe protestants. Most mainstream protestants, in my experience, come to an understanding of how God would create the living tabernacle to hold His Divine Self without too much resistance once they see the logic in it. However, the problem most others have is because they misunderstand the Catholic view of Mary - they think we worship her and so take away from Jesus Christ. However, that could not be further from the Truth.
Mary spends her existence pointing us to her Son. She is not God, she is the Mother of God. For that reason she is due a great deal of respect and love. In fact, I cannot imagine what it will be like for someone to stand before Jesus and say, "Sure I loved You, but I think your mother was just an incubator".
Purgatory time.
Anyway, today I visit the lawyer for some business and then get to attend Mass. It is a Holy Day of Obligation. I am so grateful to the Church. I have a mother, and I have a Holy Mother.
Could it get any better than this?
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Original Sin and the Mystery of Iniquity
I love teaching in RCIA and I especially love teaching in the Inquiry classes. These are the people who are just beginning their journey Home to Truth. They are not real sure yet. They have preconceived ideas and they come from different faith backgrounds. Their minds are eager and their hearts are restless until they rest in Love.
Last night I spoke on Original Sin, the doctrine that went basically unchallenged in the Catholic world until the rise of Pelagianism in the late fourth century. This heresy basically denied that our first parents had been endowed with the supernatural life of grace lost when they chose to believe the great lie that they, too, can be 'like gods'.
The Church condemned this heresy and when protestant 'reformers' brought it back it was condemned again by the Council of Trent, which issued its definitive Decree on Original Sin (1546).
OK - so we know that it is only The Church that holds to the teachings of the Apostles in their entirety and what is amazing is that I got to participate in the Life of the Church by handing on this teaching. There I was, doing my part to combat the heresy that first infected the human race in the fourth century on a Monday night, in Modesto, in September of 2011.
Our first parents believed the lie because of pride, self-love and (worst of all) lack of trust in God. It is a problem we share to this day. How many times do we fall again and again in the same way....I love you, Lord, but are You SURE this is YOUR Will? I mean, what if I have a BETTER idea?
Concupiscence, the gift that keeps on giving.
So, today I go forth into the world determined to live the Faith and Truth to the best of my ability. I will go to work, offer all the inconvenience and sufferings of being in the world for the conversion of my brother, and offer a prayer for his ex-girlfriend who is going to participate in a 50 mile bike ride to raise money for cancer research.
I always knew she was nuts........
Last night I spoke on Original Sin, the doctrine that went basically unchallenged in the Catholic world until the rise of Pelagianism in the late fourth century. This heresy basically denied that our first parents had been endowed with the supernatural life of grace lost when they chose to believe the great lie that they, too, can be 'like gods'.
The Church condemned this heresy and when protestant 'reformers' brought it back it was condemned again by the Council of Trent, which issued its definitive Decree on Original Sin (1546).
OK - so we know that it is only The Church that holds to the teachings of the Apostles in their entirety and what is amazing is that I got to participate in the Life of the Church by handing on this teaching. There I was, doing my part to combat the heresy that first infected the human race in the fourth century on a Monday night, in Modesto, in September of 2011.
Our first parents believed the lie because of pride, self-love and (worst of all) lack of trust in God. It is a problem we share to this day. How many times do we fall again and again in the same way....I love you, Lord, but are You SURE this is YOUR Will? I mean, what if I have a BETTER idea?
Concupiscence, the gift that keeps on giving.
So, today I go forth into the world determined to live the Faith and Truth to the best of my ability. I will go to work, offer all the inconvenience and sufferings of being in the world for the conversion of my brother, and offer a prayer for his ex-girlfriend who is going to participate in a 50 mile bike ride to raise money for cancer research.
I always knew she was nuts........
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Got God? I have a question for you!
Good old Question #6 from the Baltimore Catechism (if you remember that you are like me - old) is:
Why did God make you?
And any Baby Boomer knows that answer without a glitch:
God made me to know Him, to love Him and to serve Him in this world and to be happy with Him forever in the next.
I can recite that coming out of a dead sleep, in the middle of an earthquake, and while watching the Niners beat the Raiders in pre-season football. Nudge me and ask me that or other questions from First Grade Religion class at Christ the King (Sister Mary Frances, all hail her holy name) would gently call the names of all 51 children (you read that right - FIFTY ONE KIDS) in her first grade class one at a time and ask us questions:
Does God have a beginning?
God has no beginning. God is infinite. God always was and always will be.
Very good, Leslie.
Next?
I bring this up because there is a line of thought today that somehow, studying our faith is always about deep philosophical thought and heavy duty discussion. The reality is (as any good teacher can tell you) a good student has to learn the basics, has to do some memorization, before they can tackle the deep stuff. If you do not know that a plus sign means addition they you cannot decipher the formula of 1 + 3. I don't care how smart you are - you gotta learn the basics.
For instance - Where is God?
Answer: God is everywhere.
Truth - simple and precise. From that we can ask, should we ever be worried we are abandoned by God? How can we be abandoned when He is everywhere, including wherever we are right that minute?
Question: Does God know all things?
Answer: God knows all things, even our most secret thoughts, words and actions.
Truth - again simple and precise and reassuring; for if He knows all then we do not have to worry about going to Him. For knowing means understanding, truly understanding. Link that with the fact that He loves us and you have a Creator who loves me as well as understands me...and how wonderful is that?
Learn the basics...and the reality of those basics will lead to an incredible life.
Why did God make you?
And any Baby Boomer knows that answer without a glitch:
God made me to know Him, to love Him and to serve Him in this world and to be happy with Him forever in the next.
I can recite that coming out of a dead sleep, in the middle of an earthquake, and while watching the Niners beat the Raiders in pre-season football. Nudge me and ask me that or other questions from First Grade Religion class at Christ the King (Sister Mary Frances, all hail her holy name) would gently call the names of all 51 children (you read that right - FIFTY ONE KIDS) in her first grade class one at a time and ask us questions:
Does God have a beginning?
God has no beginning. God is infinite. God always was and always will be.
Very good, Leslie.
Next?
I bring this up because there is a line of thought today that somehow, studying our faith is always about deep philosophical thought and heavy duty discussion. The reality is (as any good teacher can tell you) a good student has to learn the basics, has to do some memorization, before they can tackle the deep stuff. If you do not know that a plus sign means addition they you cannot decipher the formula of 1 + 3. I don't care how smart you are - you gotta learn the basics.
For instance - Where is God?
Answer: God is everywhere.
Truth - simple and precise. From that we can ask, should we ever be worried we are abandoned by God? How can we be abandoned when He is everywhere, including wherever we are right that minute?
Question: Does God know all things?
Answer: God knows all things, even our most secret thoughts, words and actions.
Truth - again simple and precise and reassuring; for if He knows all then we do not have to worry about going to Him. For knowing means understanding, truly understanding. Link that with the fact that He loves us and you have a Creator who loves me as well as understands me...and how wonderful is that?
Learn the basics...and the reality of those basics will lead to an incredible life.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
The Holy Trinity
God is not a solitary being; rather, He is the eternal community of The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit. What we get to remember is that all societies exist because of the eternal community: The Holy Trinity.
There is in God a true fatherhood that belongs to the First Person alone. From all eternity (in the beginning) The Father has been generating The Son - not as a mere attribute but as a distinct Person. St John wrote: In the beginning was The Word, and The Word was with God and the Word was God (emphasis added). Proceeding from the Father and the Son is the Holy Spirit, also a distinct Person and not merely a part of God nor an attribute of God.
The Three Persons have the blessed inmost life of the One Divine Being. Thrice Holy God is infinitely beyond anything I can conceive in Human measure. What I can be, however, is grateful for this Triune God, the infinite mystery of Love and Community that created me in His Own Image. I am a being of body, mind and spirit - a reflection of the Holy Trinity, One God, my Creator.
I have a responsibility to treat myself with the dignity a creature of a Loving God deserves just as I have a duty to treat all His creatures accordingly and with Love.
I am bound to love the unlovable, for Jesus taught that there is not special virtue in loving those who are lovable.
Right?
There is in God a true fatherhood that belongs to the First Person alone. From all eternity (in the beginning) The Father has been generating The Son - not as a mere attribute but as a distinct Person. St John wrote: In the beginning was The Word, and The Word was with God and the Word was God (emphasis added). Proceeding from the Father and the Son is the Holy Spirit, also a distinct Person and not merely a part of God nor an attribute of God.
The Three Persons have the blessed inmost life of the One Divine Being. Thrice Holy God is infinitely beyond anything I can conceive in Human measure. What I can be, however, is grateful for this Triune God, the infinite mystery of Love and Community that created me in His Own Image. I am a being of body, mind and spirit - a reflection of the Holy Trinity, One God, my Creator.
I have a responsibility to treat myself with the dignity a creature of a Loving God deserves just as I have a duty to treat all His creatures accordingly and with Love.
I am bound to love the unlovable, for Jesus taught that there is not special virtue in loving those who are lovable.
Right?
Thursday, August 18, 2011
The Attributes of God
The perfections we speak of when we try to describe God are His 'attributes', because we attribute to God the qualities we know belong to the divine nature. The perfections in God only dimly correspond to the various properties we find in ourselves.
In the Apostles' Creed there is only one attribute given to God: He is Almighty.
Since Apostolic times, however, the Church has identified no less than fifteen divine attributes:
He is absolutely ONE.
He s the TRUE God.
He is the LIVING God.
He is ETERNAL God
God is IMMENSE.
God is INCOMPREHENSIBLE.
God is INFINITE.
He is UNIQUE.
God is PURE SPIRIT.
God is TOTALLY SIMPLE.
God is UNCHANGEABLE.
He is TRANSCENDENT.
God is PERFECTLY HAPPY
God is the MOST SUBLIME.
There have been libraries written about each one of these attributes. I would never, EVER, pretend to be learned enough to offer anything new when discussing the attributes of my Creator.
The Catholic Church speaks of the attributes of God as internal because they describe God as He is in Himself. In a world where atheism is so prevalent, and so rigorously defended by those who hold to its ever changing precepts, believers must be clear in our understanding of who the One True God is.
Of course, we must also be aware of what we call the relative attributes of God - those divine perfections that are in relation to the world He has created.
The Apostles' Creed mentions only that attribute that is His almightiness. By this phrase, we know that He cannot do anything that would deny His own nature. He cannot tell a lie nor act in a contradictory nature, like change His mind (which is not the same as answering our prayers as we appeal to His permissible Will).
Reflecting upon God Almighty means to reflect on His majesty, His omniscient nature. It means to settle into the security that God always was, always will be and that He is in charge.
It means nothing happens in His universe by mistake.
How beautiful is that?
In the Apostles' Creed there is only one attribute given to God: He is Almighty.
Since Apostolic times, however, the Church has identified no less than fifteen divine attributes:
He is absolutely ONE.
He s the TRUE God.
He is the LIVING God.
He is ETERNAL God
God is IMMENSE.
God is INCOMPREHENSIBLE.
God is INFINITE.
He is UNIQUE.
God is PURE SPIRIT.
God is TOTALLY SIMPLE.
God is UNCHANGEABLE.
He is TRANSCENDENT.
God is PERFECTLY HAPPY
God is the MOST SUBLIME.
There have been libraries written about each one of these attributes. I would never, EVER, pretend to be learned enough to offer anything new when discussing the attributes of my Creator.
The Catholic Church speaks of the attributes of God as internal because they describe God as He is in Himself. In a world where atheism is so prevalent, and so rigorously defended by those who hold to its ever changing precepts, believers must be clear in our understanding of who the One True God is.
Of course, we must also be aware of what we call the relative attributes of God - those divine perfections that are in relation to the world He has created.
The Apostles' Creed mentions only that attribute that is His almightiness. By this phrase, we know that He cannot do anything that would deny His own nature. He cannot tell a lie nor act in a contradictory nature, like change His mind (which is not the same as answering our prayers as we appeal to His permissible Will).
Reflecting upon God Almighty means to reflect on His majesty, His omniscient nature. It means to settle into the security that God always was, always will be and that He is in charge.
It means nothing happens in His universe by mistake.
How beautiful is that?
Friday, August 12, 2011
Let's talk Sola Scriptura and What the Apostles believe
I have never understood the appeal of this doctrine. I once had a man who adheres to this line of thinking say to me that he would never allow a bunch of old men in Rome tell him how to think. He then went on to tell me that he is a follower of White and Piper.
huh?
There is nothing in the Holy Scripture that tells you only to rely upon Holy Scripture for one reason - the New Testament was being written and they did not know they were writing Holy Scripture. They thought they were sending someone a letter.
What made Holy Scripture Holy Scripture?
Well, God inspired the writers of course but God inspired a body of men to decide what would be included in the canon and what would not - and that group of men were The Church. The One Holy Catholic Church.
Looking at the Creed of the Apostles, what I see is the continuity of The True Faith. For instance, the opening line "I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth" implies an incredible number of truths of the Christian Faith. Each of these truths has been questioned during the Church's history and many of the people who believe the spurious scholarship that makes up the Trail of Blood often do not realize that those people they see as the persecuted 'real Christians' denied such beliefs as the divinity of Christ or the Truth of the Trinity. The author of that 'book' ended up renouncing their own assertions. That should clue you in that claiming that Baptists are Albigensian is not such a smart idea.
So over the next couple of weeks I want to examine the Apostles Creed. I want us to think about the word Faith and what it means - the acceptance with our minds what someone else teaches or tells us. We believe because we trust what is being told to us - and when the information comes from a human being we call that human faith....when the one we believe in is God, it is Divine Faith.
Maybe, just for today, we can meditate on the phrase "I believe in God". Could it have two meanings? First we can say we believe God because we can ascertain through reason that God exists, has our best interests at heart and should, because of His very existence as our Creator, be believed. He cannot lie to us because He is all good and therefore worthy of all our love. He cannot be deceived because He is all-knowing, so trying to hide ourselves from Him is useless. He knows us better than we know ourselves.
However, we also believe in God. That is expressed by our accepting on His Word all that He has revealed to us about Himself and about His love and desires for His Creatures - in particular, His highest creation - us.
Belief in God, or Faith, is a gift of course from The Creator but it is also important to remember that it is possible to come to this belief through reason. St Paul emphasized this and could not have been clearer on the duty we all have to get to know God by observing His world. St Paul insists that "Ever since God has created the world, His everlasting power and deity - however invisible - have been there for the mind to see in the things that He has made." (Romans 1:19-21).
Faith is a kind, or a form, of knowledge. It is reasonable knowledge. To divorce Faith from Reason, for someone who TRULY follows the Teachings of Christ, is impossible. Faith without Reason is not Faith - it is hysteria. Reason without Faith, I would assert, is not Reason - it is arrogance. The rejection of the obvious - that we are Creatures of a a Creator.. and we are loved.
"I believe in God" is a powerful statement. It is worth thinking about and praying about, and it is worth examining in light of Truth.
huh?
There is nothing in the Holy Scripture that tells you only to rely upon Holy Scripture for one reason - the New Testament was being written and they did not know they were writing Holy Scripture. They thought they were sending someone a letter.
What made Holy Scripture Holy Scripture?
Well, God inspired the writers of course but God inspired a body of men to decide what would be included in the canon and what would not - and that group of men were The Church. The One Holy Catholic Church.
Looking at the Creed of the Apostles, what I see is the continuity of The True Faith. For instance, the opening line "I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth" implies an incredible number of truths of the Christian Faith. Each of these truths has been questioned during the Church's history and many of the people who believe the spurious scholarship that makes up the Trail of Blood often do not realize that those people they see as the persecuted 'real Christians' denied such beliefs as the divinity of Christ or the Truth of the Trinity. The author of that 'book' ended up renouncing their own assertions. That should clue you in that claiming that Baptists are Albigensian is not such a smart idea.
So over the next couple of weeks I want to examine the Apostles Creed. I want us to think about the word Faith and what it means - the acceptance with our minds what someone else teaches or tells us. We believe because we trust what is being told to us - and when the information comes from a human being we call that human faith....when the one we believe in is God, it is Divine Faith.
Maybe, just for today, we can meditate on the phrase "I believe in God". Could it have two meanings? First we can say we believe God because we can ascertain through reason that God exists, has our best interests at heart and should, because of His very existence as our Creator, be believed. He cannot lie to us because He is all good and therefore worthy of all our love. He cannot be deceived because He is all-knowing, so trying to hide ourselves from Him is useless. He knows us better than we know ourselves.
However, we also believe in God. That is expressed by our accepting on His Word all that He has revealed to us about Himself and about His love and desires for His Creatures - in particular, His highest creation - us.
Belief in God, or Faith, is a gift of course from The Creator but it is also important to remember that it is possible to come to this belief through reason. St Paul emphasized this and could not have been clearer on the duty we all have to get to know God by observing His world. St Paul insists that "Ever since God has created the world, His everlasting power and deity - however invisible - have been there for the mind to see in the things that He has made." (Romans 1:19-21).
Faith is a kind, or a form, of knowledge. It is reasonable knowledge. To divorce Faith from Reason, for someone who TRULY follows the Teachings of Christ, is impossible. Faith without Reason is not Faith - it is hysteria. Reason without Faith, I would assert, is not Reason - it is arrogance. The rejection of the obvious - that we are Creatures of a a Creator.. and we are loved.
"I believe in God" is a powerful statement. It is worth thinking about and praying about, and it is worth examining in light of Truth.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Coming Home
From time to time I am approached by a Catholic who has fallen away from the Faith. Usually, the ones who contact me, were not lured into some cult or even left the Church for the usual reasons (bad sermons, sex scandal, wouldn't let me marry someone after I divorced, the lady at the office was mean to me); rather, the simply drifted away. No anger issues, no beef with a certain priest or a doctrine of Faith - just stopped going, stopped participating. And when the roof did not fall in on their heads or lightening strike them on the golf course they figured they were in the clear.
Until something happens: They find themselves at a wedding being advised by a faithful Priest that unless they are a Catholic in good standing (attending Sunday Mass, going to confession at least once a year, receiving the Eucharist at least once a year, supporting the Church, attending Mass on Holy Days of Obligation) that they cannot receive Our Lord in the Eucharist. They find themselves at a Rosary for a friend who has passed away and they cannot remember how to pray the prayer their mother's taught them when they were seven years old.
Oddly enough, this type of fallen away Catholic always ends up sitting next to me. And since I seem to have the word "Catechist" mysteriously visible to these people on my forehead, they always ask me 'what do I do?' - and I get to tell them.
AND I LOVE IT!!
Sometimes, being able to do a quick 2 minute Catechises with a big smile and lots of excitement in my whispers gives them the right impression:
We missed you. Welcome back. I know you think it is only for one day, but here's my phone number. We want you here, with us...with the rest of your Catholic Family.
With the Body of Christ.
Recently, I sat next to someone married to a fallen away Catholic who was fascinated by the Rosary I held in my hand.
"What is the Rosary, exactly?", he asked me.
I whipped out my iPhone with the Catholic Cheat Sheet Ap (yes, there are SEVERAL Catholic Aps that I have and I love) so that I could show him the Mysteries, how those Mysteries take us through an incredible meditation on the life of Jesus Christ, how praying with His Blessed Mother allows us to see Him through the eyes of the First Christian - the Woman, the Mother of us all.
I don't know what he heard, but today he called and asked me if he could learn more about being a Catholic.
Heck YEAH.
Now, listen. I know that this doesn't mean we have another convert about to embrace all the Teachings of The Truth. What I hope for is that we may have one more person willing to open the eyes and ears of their heart to the whispering of The Holy Spirit. I know the journey for many people trying to figure out where they live in relation to their Creator is long and loopy and bumpy and rough. The joy, I think, is in that journey not necessarily in the arrival.
One comes into full communion with Truth and that is one stage in the journey towards heaven. It is not the end by any means; rather, if one wants to be truly Catholic, one spends the rest of their lives on earth delving into the vast and endless spirituality that is Holy Mother Church. And then, if one is really blessed, we get to do what people like St Therese is doing right now - spending her eternity showering the earth with Roses picked from the heavenly garden, Roses that are the Love of Jesus Christ for His people.
Please pray for those far from Truth - people like my own family members who are either living in mortal sin or who have left the Eucharist because of some trivial reason, looking for the all-inclusive, politically correct way to worship Jesus Christ. They need to Come Home.
We all need to Come Home...and if we think we have arrived, then we need to keep going...because like St Paul we must be willing to run the race to the end.
I'm trying....
Anyone else interested?
www.CatholicsComeHome.org
Until something happens: They find themselves at a wedding being advised by a faithful Priest that unless they are a Catholic in good standing (attending Sunday Mass, going to confession at least once a year, receiving the Eucharist at least once a year, supporting the Church, attending Mass on Holy Days of Obligation) that they cannot receive Our Lord in the Eucharist. They find themselves at a Rosary for a friend who has passed away and they cannot remember how to pray the prayer their mother's taught them when they were seven years old.
Oddly enough, this type of fallen away Catholic always ends up sitting next to me. And since I seem to have the word "Catechist" mysteriously visible to these people on my forehead, they always ask me 'what do I do?' - and I get to tell them.
AND I LOVE IT!!
Sometimes, being able to do a quick 2 minute Catechises with a big smile and lots of excitement in my whispers gives them the right impression:
We missed you. Welcome back. I know you think it is only for one day, but here's my phone number. We want you here, with us...with the rest of your Catholic Family.
With the Body of Christ.
Recently, I sat next to someone married to a fallen away Catholic who was fascinated by the Rosary I held in my hand.
"What is the Rosary, exactly?", he asked me.
I whipped out my iPhone with the Catholic Cheat Sheet Ap (yes, there are SEVERAL Catholic Aps that I have and I love) so that I could show him the Mysteries, how those Mysteries take us through an incredible meditation on the life of Jesus Christ, how praying with His Blessed Mother allows us to see Him through the eyes of the First Christian - the Woman, the Mother of us all.
I don't know what he heard, but today he called and asked me if he could learn more about being a Catholic.
Heck YEAH.
Now, listen. I know that this doesn't mean we have another convert about to embrace all the Teachings of The Truth. What I hope for is that we may have one more person willing to open the eyes and ears of their heart to the whispering of The Holy Spirit. I know the journey for many people trying to figure out where they live in relation to their Creator is long and loopy and bumpy and rough. The joy, I think, is in that journey not necessarily in the arrival.
One comes into full communion with Truth and that is one stage in the journey towards heaven. It is not the end by any means; rather, if one wants to be truly Catholic, one spends the rest of their lives on earth delving into the vast and endless spirituality that is Holy Mother Church. And then, if one is really blessed, we get to do what people like St Therese is doing right now - spending her eternity showering the earth with Roses picked from the heavenly garden, Roses that are the Love of Jesus Christ for His people.
Please pray for those far from Truth - people like my own family members who are either living in mortal sin or who have left the Eucharist because of some trivial reason, looking for the all-inclusive, politically correct way to worship Jesus Christ. They need to Come Home.
We all need to Come Home...and if we think we have arrived, then we need to keep going...because like St Paul we must be willing to run the race to the end.
I'm trying....
Anyone else interested?
www.CatholicsComeHome.org
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
As We Go Forward
Many of you have asked where I serve as a Catechist.
My parish is St Joseph's in Modesto, CA.
To give you an idea of the type of RCIA process we facilitate there, I offer the following link:
http://rciablog.com/2010/02/year-round/
Presenting in this video is our former DRE, Dino Durando, and our present RCIA coordinator, Stacy Phillips.
(Personally, I think Stace is the best RCIA coordinator on the planet, but I am probably a little bit prejudice).
ENJOY!
My parish is St Joseph's in Modesto, CA.
To give you an idea of the type of RCIA process we facilitate there, I offer the following link:
http://rciablog.com/2010/02/year-round/
Presenting in this video is our former DRE, Dino Durando, and our present RCIA coordinator, Stacy Phillips.
(Personally, I think Stace is the best RCIA coordinator on the planet, but I am probably a little bit prejudice).
ENJOY!
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Why The Apostles' Creed?
There is no better place to start talking about Christianity than the Apostles' Creed. While there have been other creeds written and approved by The Church, it is the Apostles' Creed that can be traced back to the beginning - if not in words, in substance- to the Faith that was handed on by Jesus to The Apostles and to us.
Following Christ's declaration that "He who believes and is baptized will be saved" (St Mark, 16:16), The Apostles' Creed was the precondition for baptism. Because, as stated in the Acts of the Apostles, often entire households (including infants and children) were baptized, those below the age of reason were vouched for by their parents or guardians. Only believers could be baptized.
The Apostles' Creed attests to the basics: a person cannot be a Christian unless they embrace the Truths expressed in this simple, yet powerful, declaration. "Our Faith", we are told, "can guarantee the blessings that we hope for and prove the existence of the realities that at present remain unseen"(Letter to the Hebrews, 11:1).
Catholics accept three fundamental Truths as outlined in The Apostles' Creed.
1. We believe that the world did not exist before it was specifically created by God.
2. We believe that God became man in the person of Jesus Christ by being born of the Virgin Mary and that He died on the cross and rose from the dead and that He will come again on the last day to judge the living and the dead.
3. We believe that The Holy Spirit, a separate distinct Person of the Holy Trinity, in the soul of the Church and that through The Church we receive the graces we need to achieve our highest good - eternal life, that for which we were created.
We begin our journey in the fullness of the Christian Faith with a simple declaration:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth.
Look at that sentence and ask yourself, do I believe this? Do I accept this on Faith alone or can I look around me, at this world and nature and other human beings, and see the proof that God not only exists but is The Creator, the Father, intimately concerned with every aspect of my life as only one who loves me could ever be?
As most people who read my blog know, I have family who are far from The Church and far from Truth. I am shunned by some and others just periodically get angry because I will not take steps back from reality in order to make them feel better. I get that being a true disciple of Christ can mean losing what is important to me in this life.
However, I am becoming more and more convinced that being a Catholic requires sacrifices that other religions do not entertain...and I believe that those sacrifices, while painful at the moment they are made, lead to a relief and a guarantee of happiness that cannot be described.
I get to go back to work tomorrow night. I get to start preparing for the stomach surgery and the other studies, to keep loving the sponsees and the friends and the family I have left. Most of all I get to keep being me - a sober Catholic widow woman who looks at every day as another chance to be the best me I can be - one day at a time.
OH - and the best part?
Football season starts soon....lololololol.
Following Christ's declaration that "He who believes and is baptized will be saved" (St Mark, 16:16), The Apostles' Creed was the precondition for baptism. Because, as stated in the Acts of the Apostles, often entire households (including infants and children) were baptized, those below the age of reason were vouched for by their parents or guardians. Only believers could be baptized.
The Apostles' Creed attests to the basics: a person cannot be a Christian unless they embrace the Truths expressed in this simple, yet powerful, declaration. "Our Faith", we are told, "can guarantee the blessings that we hope for and prove the existence of the realities that at present remain unseen"(Letter to the Hebrews, 11:1).
Catholics accept three fundamental Truths as outlined in The Apostles' Creed.
1. We believe that the world did not exist before it was specifically created by God.
2. We believe that God became man in the person of Jesus Christ by being born of the Virgin Mary and that He died on the cross and rose from the dead and that He will come again on the last day to judge the living and the dead.
3. We believe that The Holy Spirit, a separate distinct Person of the Holy Trinity, in the soul of the Church and that through The Church we receive the graces we need to achieve our highest good - eternal life, that for which we were created.
We begin our journey in the fullness of the Christian Faith with a simple declaration:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth.
Look at that sentence and ask yourself, do I believe this? Do I accept this on Faith alone or can I look around me, at this world and nature and other human beings, and see the proof that God not only exists but is The Creator, the Father, intimately concerned with every aspect of my life as only one who loves me could ever be?
As most people who read my blog know, I have family who are far from The Church and far from Truth. I am shunned by some and others just periodically get angry because I will not take steps back from reality in order to make them feel better. I get that being a true disciple of Christ can mean losing what is important to me in this life.
However, I am becoming more and more convinced that being a Catholic requires sacrifices that other religions do not entertain...and I believe that those sacrifices, while painful at the moment they are made, lead to a relief and a guarantee of happiness that cannot be described.
I get to go back to work tomorrow night. I get to start preparing for the stomach surgery and the other studies, to keep loving the sponsees and the friends and the family I have left. Most of all I get to keep being me - a sober Catholic widow woman who looks at every day as another chance to be the best me I can be - one day at a time.
OH - and the best part?
Football season starts soon....lololololol.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Four Dimensions of the Catholic Faith - Lovin' the WHOLE Thing
Faith. Sacraments. Commandments. Prayer.
These four dimensions of the Catholic Faith are the foundation of Christianity and have been since Jesus founded His Church on the Faith and person of St Peter the Apostle. To understand Catholicism means to understand these four pillars of Christianity - take any one of these away, or refuse to acknowledge the importance of all four and one gets either a sadly watered down version of Christianity or worse - an outright heresy.
Faith
The Catholic Faith is what we who profess to be Catholic are to believe. There are certain truths that we are to acknowledge as the Teachings of God and the best place to find a concentrated form of these truths is in the Apostles' Creed.
Sacraments
Sacraments are the means provided by Jesus Christ for Christians to share in His Divine Life. The Sacraments allow us to grow in His Life and, if necessary, to regain the Divine Life if we lose our participation through sin.
Commandments
Not known as the ten suggestions, the Commandments given to Moses by God on Mt. Sinai are the main demands God makes on us in terms of obedience to His Will. These Commandments were later confirmed by Jesus Christ through His Sermon on the Mount, presented to us through the eyes of the Saving Victim, the Suffering Servant. No longer called to conquer by might, today we conquer through Love.
Prayer
The Lord's Prayer is both a summary and a guide. It shows us how to approach God as our Loving Father through prayer, while guiding us in our conversation with Him. We can, if we were to try, use each line of the Our Father as a meditation tool, contemplating the message behind forgiveness, Divine Fatherhood, eternal salvation and heavenly food and never truly plumb the spiritual depths of the Catholic Faith.
Each section of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the loving gift of Holy Mother Church to Her children, addresses these four pillars. If one opens up the eyes and ears of their heart and their mind, they can approach the Catechism as both a teaching tool and a spiritual guide.
"Our faith can guarantee the blessings that we hope for and prove the existence of the realities that, at present, remain unseen" (Hebrews 11:1).
Let's go forward, Christians...open your Bibles and your dictionary...and the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
Learn your faith. Defend the Truth.
These four dimensions of the Catholic Faith are the foundation of Christianity and have been since Jesus founded His Church on the Faith and person of St Peter the Apostle. To understand Catholicism means to understand these four pillars of Christianity - take any one of these away, or refuse to acknowledge the importance of all four and one gets either a sadly watered down version of Christianity or worse - an outright heresy.
Faith
The Catholic Faith is what we who profess to be Catholic are to believe. There are certain truths that we are to acknowledge as the Teachings of God and the best place to find a concentrated form of these truths is in the Apostles' Creed.
Sacraments
Sacraments are the means provided by Jesus Christ for Christians to share in His Divine Life. The Sacraments allow us to grow in His Life and, if necessary, to regain the Divine Life if we lose our participation through sin.
Commandments
Not known as the ten suggestions, the Commandments given to Moses by God on Mt. Sinai are the main demands God makes on us in terms of obedience to His Will. These Commandments were later confirmed by Jesus Christ through His Sermon on the Mount, presented to us through the eyes of the Saving Victim, the Suffering Servant. No longer called to conquer by might, today we conquer through Love.
Prayer
The Lord's Prayer is both a summary and a guide. It shows us how to approach God as our Loving Father through prayer, while guiding us in our conversation with Him. We can, if we were to try, use each line of the Our Father as a meditation tool, contemplating the message behind forgiveness, Divine Fatherhood, eternal salvation and heavenly food and never truly plumb the spiritual depths of the Catholic Faith.
Each section of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the loving gift of Holy Mother Church to Her children, addresses these four pillars. If one opens up the eyes and ears of their heart and their mind, they can approach the Catechism as both a teaching tool and a spiritual guide.
"Our faith can guarantee the blessings that we hope for and prove the existence of the realities that, at present, remain unseen" (Hebrews 11:1).
Let's go forward, Christians...open your Bibles and your dictionary...and the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
Learn your faith. Defend the Truth.
Monday, July 25, 2011
OK - I'm Certified...Now What?
I am a certified RCIA Catechist. I know that because I am currently holding the certificate in my hand. It is signed, it is really pretty, it states that I have completed all the course work to the satisfaction of those who judge my work.
So, it is true.
Now, what?
The last general session of the conference was chaired by Dr. Petroc Willey of the Maryvale Institute in England. It is the institute that grew out of the tradition of study fostered by Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman. Dr. Willey is considered one of the foremost authorities on the Catholic Catechism. A convert from first the Baptist tradition and, later, Anglicanism, Dr. Willey is one of those Catholics who looks at the entire words in a sentence before deciding what the author meant, a form of analysis I am familiar with as that is how I was taught to think at UC Berkeley.
I wish I had kept to that form of thinking in my personal life when I was younger. I would have saved myself a lot of grief (but that's all water around the Ark, as Noah would say, so let's keep on keepin' on).
The 'and' in a sentence is important. A Christian does not just have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ ( it is not just 'Jesus and me'); rather, if one looks at Holy Scripture and all of Salvation History, one realizes it is always about Jesus Christ and His Church. Our Lord did not say to St Peter, "You are Peter, and upon this rock I shall eat my lunch with one person at a time". He spoke of building a Church, creating something in much the same was as He created the world..a living, breathing, organic system of Love and Worship. As personal as my relationship is with Jesus Christ, it would not be a complete relationship unless I include His Church - no matter what the behavior of the individuals within the Church might be (good or bad, solid or squishy). My job, my vocation must include the development of my relationship with the Body of Christ - that is, The Church.
Dr. Willey proposed that every Catholic needs to acknowledge their responsibility to LEARN their Faith. They approach the Catechism full of attitudes and ideas that could possibly prevent them from really learning. This is true of all of us - especially 'cradle' Catholics who think they know what the Catholic Church teaches.
So in order for us to learn, to continue to deepen our relationship with Christ, we have to be willing to empty ourselves of our preconditioned responses to The Teachings of The Church. Learn....begin by opening the book lovingly given to us by the Magisterium and begin to read. Read a sentence and ask yourself if you understand it....keep a dictionary close by...do not stop with one sentence or one paragraph...just allow yourself to soak in the message.
I am going to challenge all my Catholic friends and those non-Catholics who pretend to understand what we believe to read the Catechism. Approach it as a spiritual reading...ask yourself after each section, "How does this manifest itself in my life today?".
I believe that, if we can do that, we can avoid becoming a follower of a specific priest or caught up in a schism because we know better than The Church. A
And that is what we are supposed to do - stay united,stay together...stay The Body of Christ.
So, it is true.
Now, what?
The last general session of the conference was chaired by Dr. Petroc Willey of the Maryvale Institute in England. It is the institute that grew out of the tradition of study fostered by Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman. Dr. Willey is considered one of the foremost authorities on the Catholic Catechism. A convert from first the Baptist tradition and, later, Anglicanism, Dr. Willey is one of those Catholics who looks at the entire words in a sentence before deciding what the author meant, a form of analysis I am familiar with as that is how I was taught to think at UC Berkeley.
I wish I had kept to that form of thinking in my personal life when I was younger. I would have saved myself a lot of grief (but that's all water around the Ark, as Noah would say, so let's keep on keepin' on).
The 'and' in a sentence is important. A Christian does not just have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ ( it is not just 'Jesus and me'); rather, if one looks at Holy Scripture and all of Salvation History, one realizes it is always about Jesus Christ and His Church. Our Lord did not say to St Peter, "You are Peter, and upon this rock I shall eat my lunch with one person at a time". He spoke of building a Church, creating something in much the same was as He created the world..a living, breathing, organic system of Love and Worship. As personal as my relationship is with Jesus Christ, it would not be a complete relationship unless I include His Church - no matter what the behavior of the individuals within the Church might be (good or bad, solid or squishy). My job, my vocation must include the development of my relationship with the Body of Christ - that is, The Church.
Dr. Willey proposed that every Catholic needs to acknowledge their responsibility to LEARN their Faith. They approach the Catechism full of attitudes and ideas that could possibly prevent them from really learning. This is true of all of us - especially 'cradle' Catholics who think they know what the Catholic Church teaches.
So in order for us to learn, to continue to deepen our relationship with Christ, we have to be willing to empty ourselves of our preconditioned responses to The Teachings of The Church. Learn....begin by opening the book lovingly given to us by the Magisterium and begin to read. Read a sentence and ask yourself if you understand it....keep a dictionary close by...do not stop with one sentence or one paragraph...just allow yourself to soak in the message.
I am going to challenge all my Catholic friends and those non-Catholics who pretend to understand what we believe to read the Catechism. Approach it as a spiritual reading...ask yourself after each section, "How does this manifest itself in my life today?".
I believe that, if we can do that, we can avoid becoming a follower of a specific priest or caught up in a schism because we know better than The Church. A
And that is what we are supposed to do - stay united,stay together...stay The Body of Christ.
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