Hope?

I had an interesting trip home today. My drive to the airport took longer then my flight, but I knew that, and it didn't really bother me.  What was causing me anxiety was what I might see when I arrived at my final destination at the airport.  A huge part of me hoped to see something at the airport, while at the same time deep down knowing that I wasn't going to see what I was hoping to see.  Even though I knew the answer in my heart, I still could not bring myself to call for a ride from the airport due to the last bit of hope I was holding onto.
I am questioning through all this was it really "hope" that I was holding onto, or just longing.  I 'hope" for the best, for what God truly desires, in all things and in all situations.  I see it as my duty as a Catholic.  Hope can bring so much joy, and it has throughout my life.  I knew this "hope" was not going to end the way I wanted it to.  Maybe the goodness I was thinking about, what I was hoping for, is not what God wants for me.  As much as that sucks and it feels like I am missing out on something amazing, all of this is bringing me closer to God, which is the most important thing.

I am home, by heart hurts, but I am with family and I know God loves me more then I can imagine.

Peace all

Holy Week Reflection

Here is my reflection for Holy Week, given on the last day of school before spring break.

Next posts will be from beautiful Montana!!!!!!!

Peace all!

Bluegrass Mourns

The Bluegrass community mourns the loss of Earl Scruggs.  May he rest in the eternal Glory of God pickin' and a grinnin' with Jesus!

Peace all!

Oh To Have This Joy!

This makes me smile just thinking about it!  Why do we have to grow up and lose such exuberance and simple joy for life? Like dancing in front of whole crown when everybody is watching without a care in the world.

Peace all!

Religion, Politics and Bare Feet?

Alright, bare with on this one.
I had some interesting thoughts while on a run this evening.  They made sense at the time... lets see if I can translate them for my many (haha) readers.
While sitting on the throne and flipping through my running magazine, I read the Vibram FiveFinger ad.  If you don't know what they are, check them out here.  I decided to throw my pair on and go for a nice barefoot jog.
While on my jog I thought about the running industry and how the barefoot running craze has taken fire.  For all of the non-runners out there, bringing up barefoot running with a group of runners is like bringing up religion or politics with any group of adults; it can get heated and feelings often get hurt.
Vibram started out making soles for many different shoe companies and when this barefoot crazy took off, they were one of the first to dive right in.  They offer a "shoe" that simply protects the foot from the world, while providing little structural support so as to allow the body and the natural mechanics of the foot and the running motion to do that for the runner.
As I was thinking about this I started thinking about the Catholic Church and its relationship to the world.  As the foundation for all of Christianity, providing, if you will, the "soul" of Christianity, the Catholic Church is attune to the Vibram's of the Christianity.
The Church is there to help and guide all humans, to give them a basis of support in their lives.  The Church helps us to understand our lives, our bodies, our minds and our souls.  Thats what Vibram is doing!  Helping people to understand their bodies, add a little bit of protection and help and get us moving in the right direction.

Ok, it was and is a stretch and this does not sound as good as it did in my head, but I had to try and explain because after a long day at school, all of this made me smile. :)

Peace all!

Why Wait for Sex?

Awesome video!

Peace all!

Still Got Work To Do

It is tough looking for the good in others when you are competing against them.

That is the trouble I ran into this weekend when playing in a softball tournament with my friends.  For whatever reason, I was looking for ways to criticize the teams we were playing; and too often I voiced my thoughts.  People that act like they are, sorry... the shitz... frustrate me to begin with.  It is easy for me pick out things to speak ill about them about and this weekend I did that.  I criticized people on the other team to the point that my own teammates were like "whoa! aren't you a theology teacher?"  That was the moment that slapped me upside the head (which seems to be the only way I truly learn lessons anymore).  

I made a to point to quit what I was doing and start looking for the good in my opponents.  I took time to thank  God for the ability to be playing a fun game with my friends and to have people to compete against.  Criticizing them  did me no good at all and left me feeling like crap, especially when they ending up besting us. 

Looking for the best in others, even when we don't want to is tough... but its worth it.  After today's games, I felt a great deal better about myself and did take more time to thank God.  

I still got work to do, so the slapping will continue.  I wouldn't have it any other way.

Peace all

The Sex Talk to 250 students

I had been planning on giving a talk about artificial contraception and just the "sex talk" in general for one of my morning reflections for the high school I teach at.  I had fully intended to video it, but it completely slipped my mind. So I guess I will do my best to try to recreate some of what I said today.  The Holy Spirit was moving me and I honestly was surprised when the bell rang telling me I had run out of time.
I explained to the students I was not going to get into the politics of the HHS mandate; I was going to talk about what so many people did not want to talk about: sex.
There are 2 main reasons why artificial contraception is hurtful.  I explained that yes, it is a sin to use artificial contraception, and that it is because it hurts us, it causes damage to us as human beings.
I explained the first strictly Biblical reason why contraception is a sin.  Genesis 38, Onan is called upon to provide his deceased brother offspring.  He has relations with his sister-in-law but implores the old pull-out method and spills his seed on the ground.  For that, God strikes him down.  He got to enjoy the pleasure of the experience while at the same time not doing what he was called upon to do.
For those that are not sure about Scripture I then went into the natural law side of the discussion.  I did my best to explain that natural law tells that everything has its natural purpose.  Plants are intended to grow and reproduce, just like humans.  Sex has a twofold end; unity and procreation.  If any one of those is left out it hurts the organism, by not allowing it to reach its natural end.  I explained about bulimia and how a bulimic will eat and experience the joy of eating and tasting, but then fail to experience the next part, which is to be satisfied and full.  Or I explained how it would be like taking a plant and putting it in a closet and seeing if it grows or not.  When things are not allowed to reach then natural end, they are effected in a negative way.  I even went as far as to talk about how boys know what this feels like, when something isn't allowed to reach its natural end and the build up blood in a certain region causes a lot of pain (I was told by a few that they knew what I was talking about; blue-balls)
(Pretty much all of this info I took from the awesome blog Bad Catholic and his two blogs on "Why Contraception is Bad" ; #1 and #2)
The Holy Spirit really was moving me and one thing I threw in a few times that it is wrong to go past kissing before you are in a committed relationship with a ring on your finger.  Sex is a time when we get to be as close to God as we can be and get a chance to be like God and create life.  I also threw in my thoughts on the Dr. Oz show and the doctor who kept referring to the "risk of pregnancy" and how it hurt me every time she said that.
Honestly, I got only good feedback from my talk, both from students and adults.  I didn't do it justice at all with this post because when I am up there in front of the school, it truly is the Holy Spirit working through me, and we were fired up today and I got the message across that God needed me to get across.

Peace all

Saaawwweeeeeeeettttt!

As you may know, I have been praying a rosary every day (and even a decade at school every day with a group of students and other faculty).  So reading this really made me smile and has strengthened me as well as given me more motivation to keep it up.

5 Reasons Why YOUNG Catholics Should Pray a Daily Rosary

Check it out!

Peace

Bishop sees new generation seeking truth, rejecting relativism :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Bishop sees new generation seeking truth, rejecting relativism :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)

I really hope the good bishop is right.  Its kinda cool that I have met him a few times!

Awesome Song with montage

Peace all

Oh What Love and Joy

At mass today I was blessed to have a beautiful family sit right in front of me.  The quintessential American family; 3 kids, a mom and a dad.  I tried my best to not let them distract me during mass, which really was not that difficult.  The kids behaved perfectly well for there ages (the little girl did a lot of figgiting with her hair, which was just super cute).  I did watch them though at times and it just made me smile.  Seeing their love brought joy to me.  Watching the mother and father intertwine their arms when standing during prayer and then holding their children and whispering to them.  Never harsh words or looks, only love and compassion expressed at all times.  The kids even genuflected with more reverence and respect then most adults do.
I could not escape the longing in my heart that maybe someday I may be blessed to have and share in that same love and joy with a wonderful woman. Still, through the grace of God, my mind went right to reminding me that "not my will, but Your will".
So I prayed to be prepared for my future, for God to open my eyes so I may see my path and follow Him, wherever He might lead me...and that is where I will find my greatest joy.

Peace all

Awesome Article

“If there is not some sacrifice, hardship, and challenge to living our Catholic faith, we usually end up taking it for granted and setting it aside.

Dr. Philip Jenkins, the scholar of religion at Penn State University, observes a bit of raw data: the Church grows rapidly, and the faith of her believers is deep and vibrant, in countries where there is persecution of the Church; the Church languishes and gradually loses its luster in countries where it is prosperous, and where it is privileged.

The great Father of the Church, Tertullian, made the same claim 19 centuries ago as he watched the Church suffer persecution in the Roman Empire: “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the faith.”

Uh-oh...what’s that say about us? We live in America where there is religious freedom (even though it is under pressure!). Here we are in a country where there is no danger or external hardship involved in being a loyal Catholic. Are we in for trouble, then? Is our faith becoming listless?...

[In a recent talk] I repeated the famous quote from Pope Paul VI: “When it’s easy to be a Catholic, it’s actually harder to be a good Catholic; and when it’s hard to be a good Catholic, it’s actually easier to be one.”

Read that again and let it sink in....

Convenience, ease, no demands, no sacrifice, blending in, drifting along, just-like-everybody-else, no “cost of discipleship”—that’s a poisonous recipe for faith.

Hardship, sacrifice, tough choices, harassment, ridicule, standing for Gospel values, loyalty to our faith to the point of persecution or even blood—that’s the recipe for a deep, sincere, dynamic faith.

We see it in the Old Testament: when the People of Israel are at peace, prosperous, free and unfettered in their faith...they turn to false gods!

When they are under attack, persecuted, and vilified for their faith, their religion is pure and strong.

Scholars tell us that people who leave our Catholic faith for another religion—and a somber fact today is that many do—usually (not always), but more often than not, join a religion that is stricter and more demanding.

Seems like “easy religion” languishes; “hard discipleship” flourishes.

So, what do we do? Should we long for harassment or persecution to revive and renew the faith? Hardly.

But we do admit that, if the practice of our faith does not result in some hardship, or make us somewhat different from “the crowd” to the point of occasional derision and exclusion, something’s wrong.

And we can also voluntarily take on sacrifices to remind us of the cross Jesus asks us to carry with Him.

Voila! Lent! The time we are encouraged to penance and mortification....

If we are fortunate enough to live in a country where there is no overt, external, explicit persecution of the faith—and we Americans are—we praise God, but then are constantly vigilant to make sure our faith does not become listless.

One way to avoid that is by taking upon ourselves penance, sacrifice, and mortification.

To some, that’s “old school.” To some, that’s pharisaical.

To me, it’s pure Gospel...and very wise.

Because, when it’s easy to be a Catholic—and today it is—look out, because it’s tougher to be a good Catholic; and when it’s hard to be a good Catholic—and that’s your choice—it’s easier to be one!

A blessed Lent!”

--Timothy Cardinal Dolan
Archbishop of New York
President of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops
Column in Catholic New York
8 March 2012

What Are You Praying For?

This is a thought that has been going through my mind for a while.  I have been thinking a lot about prayer and how God answers our prayers.  

My conundrum is whether or not it is right to ask God for a direct answer when we pray?

I have done this and I know lots of people have and continue to pray this way.  It is one of the easiest ways to pray.  But is it right to ask God for something directly, or to take it even farther, to present God with a "please show me either this way or that" scenario? 

For instance, I could pray every night for a sign telling me that I should either become a priest or get married someday.  Or I could, as I have done in the past, pray for an answer to whether I should stay in a relationship or not.

In both situations, as a typical human being, I go into my prayer with my own desires and wants, hoping beyond hope that God will give me the answer I want.  With that comes the mind game of turning anything that can be perceived as a sign into the answer I was seeking.  

But does God really answer our prayers like this?  I would say no, and not just because I have direct experience in this sort of prayer situation.

I believe God answers all our prayers, but we need be clear on what we are praying for.  If we are praying for something we want but making it seem like we are leaving it up to God, is that really a sincere prayer?

To eliminate this problem in my own prayer life I simple pray for God to lead me and that I will in turn be able to see and then have the courage to follow his direction.  Sure, I still have my own wants and desires, but I am not searching for any little thing that could be a sign from God for the answer that I am looking for and wanting.  Taking out my own wants from my prayer has freed me up a great deal and brought me closer to God.  There is no more "either this or that" when it comes to my conversations with God.  No more "give me the answer right now God" sort of prayers being said.  

Does it take a lot more patients? Oh, yes... yes.  But we have to remember its not about our will, our wants or our own desires; its about God's.

"not as I will, but as you will" Matthew 26: 39

If you have a right and true relationship with God you have to believe that the decisions you make will be good ones.  God is not going to lead you astray if he truly your friend.

Peace all

Great Song

Sometimes, you find a song that just sums things up for you.

Sidewalk Prophets- Live Like That

Sometimes I think

What will people say of me

When I'm only just a memory

When I'm home where my soul belongs

Was I love

When no one else would show up

Was I Jesus to the least of those

Was my worship more than just a song

I want to live like that

And give it all I have

So that everything I say and do

Points to You

If love is who I am

Then this is where I'll stand

Recklessly abandoned

Never holding back

I want to live like that

I want to live like that

Am I proof

That You are who you say You are

That grace can really change a heart

Do I live like Your love is true

People pass

And even if they don't know my name

Is there evidence that I've been changed

When they see me, do they see You

I want to live like that

And give it all I have

So that everything I say and do

Points to You

If love is who I am

Then this is where I'll stand

Recklessly abandoned

Never holding back

I want to live like that

I want to live like that

I want to show the world the love You gave for me

I'm longing for the world to know the glory of the King

I want to live like that

And give it all I have

So that everything I say and do

Points to You

If love is who I am

Then this is where I'll stand

Recklessly abandoned

Never holding back

I want to live like that

I want to live like that

I really do want to live like that... but its not about what I want, which can be the toughest thing to figure out.

Peace all

Sad

So I am watching "The Doctor Oz Show" at the moment. (yes, like finding out ways to improve my health, even  if the show seems to be more geared toward women.)
The show today is talking about "the pill" and how it can be used as a cancer preventative.  I have no problem with that at all; please, anything to reduce cancer.  The Catholic Church says there is nothing wrong with using the pill in ways to improve the health of women.
Here is the problem I have though. The guest doctor who is talking about the pill has stated a few times that the pill reduces the "risk of pregnancy".  This makes me mad!!!!
Since when was pregnancy a disease?  Since when was creating life attune to having cancer or the common cold?
I can wash my hands to prevent the risk of getting sick.  I can run and eat better to reduce the risk of becoming overweight and unhealthy.  I can drive defensively to reduce the risk of getting in a car accident.  Becoming pregnant and partaking in the amazing act of creating life is not a sickness or disease or a risk to anyone like a cold or cancer.
We truly are living in a "culture of death" if we have reduced pregnancy to a disease.

Peace

Evangelization

In my reading of blogs and watching of videos I have recently come across a few things.
Father Barron has a video on evangelization where he says the best way to evangelize is by sharing the "contagious joy of being a friend of Jesus Christ"-- how awesome is that!!!!
Now, is this something I need to work on?  YES!
Still, I just think how fun it will be to share this joy... it makes me excited!
And then I read an article from Pope Benedict XVI... Its entitled "Evangelize With Silence"
How awesome is that?!!!!
He even calls out bloggers, which made me laugh.Click here is you want to read the article.
So, I can't wait to get better at this, to become an even closer friend to Christ Jesus and evangelize with silence and immense joy.

Peace all

First RCIA lesson I taught

The Eighth Commandment: To Tell the Truth

You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

We all learned from a young age that telling a lie was a bad thing.  The eighth commandment is not simply about why we should not lie; it is about why we need to say the truth.  Being a witness to the faith is something we are all called to do; so to bear false witness is to go against the faith, the truth, who is God. 

What is truth?  Truth is that which corresponds to reality.  Truth is infinite.  “God is the source of all truth. His Word is truth. His Law is truth.” (CCC 2465)

“I am the way, the truth and the life” (John 14:6). For John, the truth is the divinely revealed reality of the Father manifested in the person and works of Jesus.  The possession of truth confers knowledge and liberation from sin.

“If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32) 

In life, we are seeking God, we are seeking the truth.  The problem is in our society today, people think they have their own truths and that is all they need.  The fact is, there is objective truth.  That means that there are no personal truths.  Truth exists outside of our personal understanding.  The phrase “what is true for you might not be true for me” holds no merit.  If truth is only what we make it, then there is an end to it; truth becomes finite.  Truth is infinite, truth is God.

Lying is a direct offense against truth.  “To lie is to speak or act against the truth in order to lead into error someone who as the right to know the truth.” (CCC 2483)

If God is truth then to lie is an offense against God.  Jesus describes the devil as the father of lies and says there are no truths in him.

So there are three conditions that have to be in place to make a statement a lie:

(1) “Speak or act against the truth”: In other words, the words or actions have to be not true.

(2) “In order to lead into error”: A misspoken word or erroneous statement said in ignorance is not a lie.

(3) “someone who as the right to know the truth”: “No one is bound to reveal the truth to someone who does not have the right to know it” (CCC 2489)  We cannot “lie” to save a life, but we can tell an untruth if necessary, but in doing so, that is not a lie. (Nazi Germany)- extreme situations

As Christian’s life isn't about us searching for God, it is about God searching for us.  So really, truth is always seeking us and leading others away from the truth is lying.

Aquaponics

This is a presentation on aquaponics, something I hope to use someday as an amazing way to grow food.

Just another way to take care of the earth God has blessed us all to be on.

Peace

Just Something to Make Me Smile

I just need something to make me smile.  I am going to go pray my daily rosary soon, that makes me smile, along with this...

Peace!