Merry Christmas!

Why’d you have to put me down?

We are all called to greatness, to be something special.  Therefore, whatever vocation we are called to should be treated as something to be sought out, not something we settle for.  Furthermore, nobody has the right to tell us "don't wait too long" for the simple reason that we are not waiting.  If our lives do not appear to be successful, it's not for a lack of trying.  And our trying and failing does not make us inferior either.  We all find our vocation in God's time, not man's time.  It's about finding our way, not about how quickly we find our way, and not about how we compare to other people our age.  The details of how we ran the race do not matter if we all cross the finish line at the right time.

If you are in position to tell someone about what their vocation might be, focus on what they are good at, not on what they have failed to prove about themselves so far.  The latter approach will only make them feel insecure, misunderstood, alienated, antagonized, and hostile.  One's vocation is something to be sought out, not settled for.  If someone feels that they know their vocation but just have not had any positive signs as of yet, that does not mean that they are automatically wrong.  After all, faith is about believing without proof or evidence.

Most of us are not destined to live a life of glamour nor are we very likely to be remembered as some sort of legend.  We are certainly not likely to represent the culmination of a number of prophecies in the Old Testament.  Although John the Baptist was mentioned (albeit not by name) in at least one Old Testament prophecy, even he did not represent the culmination of any of them.  Nevertheless, when his father, Zechariah, told John about his purpose in life, Zechariah focused on what was going to make John great rather than dwelling on the fact that John was not the Saviour.  He encouraged John by telling him what he was rather than discouraging him by telling him what he was not.

So if anyone tells you "maybe you're not called to marriage" or "maybe you're not called to the priesthood" or "maybe you're not called to religious life" or "you don't have what it takes to make it in the business/real estate/law/financial management world," don't listen to them!  They have no right to put you down like that!  And if you are in pursuit of a vocation but have not produced tangible results lately, that does not give anyone the right to mock you by saying "how's that working out for you?"  Your vocation is your business, not theirs.  They need to get a life and quit being so nosy and condescending.

Finally, if you feel that you are called to something, don't let anyone tell you that such a vocation or career is "wrong," no matter what "evidence" they provide as proof.  We all have different gifts and every vocation is important.  You may not know the reason why you feel called to something but you should trust your own intuition over the opinions of those who try to discourage you.  They have their own agenda and may be difficult to argue with but they do not know you the way you know yourself, no matter who they are.  They also might not care about you nearly as much as they pretend to.  Giving up on a dream without even trying it out is a terrible thing to do because then you are left with nothing but a false sense of self.  We are all called to greatness - thus we should see to it that we answer that call.

Luke 1: 67-79

Weeds

While I was out of town in a hotel, I saw this television show called "Weeds."  The name obviously refers to some illicit activity carried on by the main characters of the show but that's not my point.  One of the main characters is the mother of a teenage boy who is sincere but sometimes mistake-prone.  Well, the boy and his girlfriend found out that they were going to have a child and they had every intent to keep the baby.

The boy's mother obviously did not condone the behavior that led to this pregnancy but, realizing that she could not change the past, supported the teenagers' decision to keep the baby.  The girl's parents felt that they were too "good" (wealthy, priveleged, and conformist) of a family for this sort of thing to take place so they did not let the girl leave the house for several days.  This was more than enough time for them to speak to their daughter in a way that would introduce all kinds of doubt into her mind.  In the meantime, the only access the boyfriend had to her was a series of unanswered e-mails he sent, each one with an idea for a name for the baby.

Unfortunately, the baby was not meant to be.  Eventually it became clear that the baby was aborted.  What the kids did initially was wrong.  But given that what was done was already done, they tried to do the right thing from that point forward and the boy's mother supported that.  But the girl's parents tried to erase the past by erasing evidence of the past.  Sorry grandma and grandpa, but erasing evidence does not erase the past!  It only makes the situation worse!  Not only were the 2 teenagers likely to be scarred from the abortion, but the girl would also have a hard time recovering her self-confidence and her ability to trust her intuition after her parents so brutally put so much self-doubt in her mind.

Living your life so as to be pleasing to God may be the right way but it is often not the easy way.  Elizabeth intended to name her child "John" instead of "Zechariah" even though the father's name was Zechariah while nobody in the entire family tree was named John.  Elizabeth was just trying to do God's will.

Predictably she had no support for her position. In fact, the relatives and neighbors were putting pressure on her to change her mind. She was grossly outnumbered, some of the others were very knowledgeable, and her husband was unable to speak and therefore unable to come to her defence.  Furthermore, choosing a completely new name while refusing to use the father's name may have been considered a slight against his family - and Elizabeth was getting no feedback on the contrary from Zechariah.  Nevertheless, Elizabeth held firm and eventually the others turned to Zechariah for an answer - and the child's name was John.  It would have been a lot easier for Elizabeth to just give in to the pressure from the others but it was right for her to hold firm and do what was pleasing to God - listening to His will.

Luke 1: 57-66

It's not you, it's me

Every child is a gift from God.  In Mary's case this is quite literally true.  It's true for the rest of us as well, albeit not in such a literal sense.  But the fact remains that a child is not something we got as a result of any special ability or effort on our part.  In other words, a family with children is not any stronger or more driven than a family that has tried and failed to have children.

Mary does not brag about the fact that she is carrying the Son of God.  Instead, she talks rather passionately and at great length about how great God is and how unbelieveable is is that God looked upon someone as "lowly" as her with favor.  Mary's humility is an example we ought to follow in regard to having children as well as to any other "ability" or "talent" we may have.  To look down upon someone who lacks certain gifts would not only be arrogant but highly presumptuous as well.  Our gifts came from God.  We did not get them by our own merit.  And because God gave these gifts, only God can take them away.

Luke 1: 46-56

Do the Right thing, not the Easy thing

If we do the right thing, especially if we act humbly and selflessly, it would seem fairly obvious that we would prefer to be appreciated rather than vilified.  Being vilified or criticized would be particularly hurtful in this sort of situation because we even sacrificed our own well-being for the sake of someone else.  It's like getting hurt twice.  If that's the reception we're going to get then we might as well act selfishly instead and just stop caring about anyone but ourselves.  At least then the criticism would hurt less and we would still have accomplished what we wanted to.
Another way to deal with unappreciative people is to not deal with them at all for a bit.  Go and find people who will appreciate you for who you are and what you've done.   That's what Mary did.
Mary had humbly put God's priorities before her own when accepting His request to carry His Son.  Unfortunately, because this meant that she would be pregnant and unmarried, there was a very real chance that she would be treated like an outcast, that her name would turn to mud, or that she would be lynched.  The sad irony is that if she had acted selfishly and refused God's request, the community would have treated her as well as they would have treated any young woman.

Mary had a lot going on at this time, an awful lot for a teenage girl to handle.  But she knew of Elizabeth, a relative of hers who was quite a bit older than she was, and her unusual situation.  So Mary sought out Elizabeth and lived there for about three months.  This gave Mary an opportunity to cope with a life that seemed to be in a bit of turmoil.  She was looking for someone to talk to, someone who could understand what she was going through, someone who would give her the courage and strength to face what lay ahead.  She was looking for fellowship.

Elizabeth not only appreciated Mary but actually felt priveleged that someone as esteemed as Mary would visit someone as "unworthy" as Elizabeth.  Elizabeth understood the value of what Mary had to offer because Elizabeth had her mind and heart in the right place - turned toward God.  Elizabeth also understood Mary's emotional needs because Elizabeth had a similar experience.  These are the sorts of things we can think about as we pray the 2nd Joyful Mystery of the Rosary, the Visitation, and meditate upon the neighborly love that Mary and Elizabeth shared.

Luke 1: 39-45

Question!

When someone tells you something that sounds really unbelieveable, there are a few ways to handle it.  Some better than others.  You could go ahead and blindly believe it, trying to pretend that you're ssssooooo experienced in life that nothing surprises you anymore.  You could end up getting lied to an awful lot though.  On the other extreme, you could indiscriminately refuse to believe it altogether.  But people who are that closed-minded generally do not make good friends or confidants.  The best approach is to just ask questions for the purpose of clarification.  Do not doubt or discredit the messenger but do not come across as naive either.  Mary did the right thing in asking a reasonable question.  Let's try to follow Mary's example whenever faced with a situation of this sort.  It would make the world a more tolerable place.

Luke 1: 26-38

Don't Stop Believin'

In our own lives we sometimes become so jaded that we even refuse to believe the good news we had been hoping to receive.  We fall through time leading a hollow life and eventually lose hope.  Perhaps things just did not go the way we had hoped they would.  Perhaps we missed out on some of the good, little things in life.  Perhaps all the naysayers in our life conveniently show up to offer us more discouragement.  The worst part is when we finally resign ourselves and accept that nothing good will ever happen to us.

In Zechariah's case, he believed all the naysayers of the world who made him feel that he and his wife were too old to realize a dream.  So the angel Gabriel gave him a bit of a rude awakening.  The truth is, no matter how hopeless things seem, based upon how other people's lives "normally" progress, it is our duty to believe and to never lose hope.

We are all destined for greatness and nobody but God knows what that means for each of us individually.  Granted, each of us as individuals might have an idea what kind of greatness we may be destined for.  But still, nobody else has the right to tell us where we ought to be in life at a particular time based upon their "expert" opinion, no matter how "authoritative," "faithful," "prayerful," or "experienced" they seem.  After all, they did not live the same life that we, each individually, specifically lived.  Thus, we should never let these naysayers of the world get into our heads and bring us down.  We need to make it our mission to prove people like them wrong.  In the end, Zechariah and Elizabeth managed to do exactly that.

Luke 1: 5-25

Accept

In today's Gospel, the Angel Gabriel greets Mary with the first ever Hail Mary in the history of the known universe.  It is thus only fitting that the Annunciation, which is what today's Gospel is about, is the very first mystery on the entire Rosary.  It is one of the Joyful mysteries, which we tend to pray regardless of which day it is during the Advent season.  After all, Advent is the beginning of the Liturgical year and the Joyful mysteries represent the beginning of the Rosary.

Well, regardless of all that, her response was not anything like "Good boy, you're praying your Rosary."  On the contrary she was rather perplexed.  So the angel reassured her by telling her not to be afraid.  Now what could Mary possibly be afraid of?  Quite frankly, a lot of things.

As was the custom back then, she found herself betrothed as a teenager.  It is likely that this arrangement was made by either her parents or his parents.  Now try to imagine your state of mind as a teenager and then try to imagine being fixed up with your life partner at that age by your families.  You may not be all that happy about that.  Teenagers then may have had more adult responsibilities than teens now but their thought process and psychological development would have been exactly the same.  Mary might have felt that her life was in a bit of turmoil.

Then while she's just walking along minding her own business, this vaguely human form appears in front of her and seems to be made of light and has wings and speaks in a deep, booming voice and tells her how great she is.  And then he proceeds to tell her that she's preggers even though she had no reason to believe something like this.  Worse still, there were very grave consequences awaiting someone who's pregnant and unmarried.

So Mary had a lot going on in her mind.  Even with her relative Elizabeth to talk to, for support, this was still going to be a considerable burden for Mary to bear.  It would have been tempting, and logical, to respond "why me? why can't someone else do this?"  But instead, she humbly accepted God's will, God's plan for her, and trusted that things would work out.

We're at the part of Advent where people are trying to wrap things up, do some things last-minute, or just tie up loose ends.  Christmas Day is only a week away so there are some things we will not be able to do unless we've already been doing them.  This is where we accept what can realistically be expected.  If things are meant to get done then they will be done.  We just have to trust that it will all work out.

Every year we go through this and when Christmas Day rolls around, we either fulfill our self-imposed obligations or allow them to fall past due.  Nothing bad really happens.  All we have to do is accept what is or is not meant to be and then trust that things will work out.  It's about accepting God's will, His plan for us, and trusting that He will make things work out.  This applies for the Advent season but also for our own personal lives in the long run.  Let's follow Mary's example of acceptance and trust.

Luke 1: 26-38

(no video today because the audio is misbehaving)

Is This It?

10 years ago in the fall of 2001, I was listening to the radio and kept hearing about some offer where you could win a trip to some big New Year’s Eve party somewhere.  And the big kicker was that you could see The Strokes.  I had not heard much about them before that Fall so to me they did not have any special status.  I did hear their music on the radio at times but was rather unimpressed.  So with no special ‘legendary’ status and with an unimpressive sound, the hype seemed way overblown to me.  However, many people seemed to believe the hype and actually thought these guys would be something really special.

Well, as it turned out, The Strokes were killed by the hype machine.  The 2001 album title, “Is This It?” was almost prophetic.  There were all these expectations that these guys were going to be monsters of rock and then they just ended up being one amongst a seemingly endless line of artsy-sounding urban hipster bands.  The sound of people jumping off that bandwagon was deafening.

A little over 2000 years ago before Jesus was born, there was a great deal of hype amongst the learned people about what was to come.  It is no accident that the earthly father of Jesus was Joseph.  The saviour was to be the son of David.  He had to come from David’s lineage, of which Joseph was a part.  Another remarkable fact is that the same number of generations came and went between major events.  Abraham, David, Babylonian exile, Jesus.  In this case there were 14 generations between each event.  That magic number was about to be reached a third time, which would explain why there was so much anticipation in certain circles and so much anxiety and paranoia in others.  These people knew not only which generation but also had an idea of location as well.

Everything came true.  That is, everything but people’s self-concocted expectations.  Many people who knew of this event were expecting someone or something glamourous with a lot of fanfare.  Instead, Jesus, and the life circumstances of His family, were modest, at best.  Jesus was a lot more humble than people were expecting.

Sure, there were some who knew of His coming, came to see, and believed more firmly than before.  And then there were those who never knew of His coming until it was imminent and then they became believers.  But most who knew of His coming had certain unreasonable expectations, found themselves disappointed, and no longer believed.  And, of course, there were those who never believed the hype and continued to not believe it.  Human nature has not changed.

The difference, of course, is that there was not much substance to back up the hype surrounding The Strokes but there was plenty of substance to back up the hype surrounding the coming of Jesus, the son of David.  Also, the media hype surrounding The Strokes paled in comparison to the scholarly hype surrounding Jesus.  There was never a prophecy about The Strokes.  The Strokes may have been sort of a big deal back in their day but Jesus was, and still is, a HUGE deal.

People were left disappointed by the hype surrounding The Strokes because it was unfounded.  It was not real.  People were left disappointed by the hype surrounding the coming of Jesus, even though it was very real, because of their own misunderstanding of what constitutes greatness.  Jesus was never at fault, nor was the all the hype about His coming.  As a result, while people may have largely forgotten about The Strokes by now, Jesus is still very relevant.

Matthew 1: 1-17

The Gift

Everybody has certain gifts, or talents.  Some gifts may be more valued by people than other gifts but that does not make them actually superior.  Having a certain gift or talent that someone else does not have is not going to make you better or more worthy than they are.  Your gift was not earned by something special you did.  It was simply given to you.  Someone else not having that gift does not mean they are faulted or that they failed at life.  It does not make them a loser.  The gift was simply not given to them.  They were given a different gift.  Perhaps it is a less popular gift but it is not inferior in the slightest.  It only seems that way sometimes because of the nature of this post-original-sin society.

The testimony of Jesus was greater than that of John the Baptist because the testimony of Jesus involved the performing of miracles.  But Jesus makes it clear that he performs these miracles as an act of obedience to the heavenly Father and not as an act of one-upsmanship at John’s expense.  Now in this case, Jesus actually is far superior to John but in spite of that He never spoke badly about John.  If we follow the example of Jesus, we would never look down upon our fellow man, especially if we consider the fact that we are not inherently superior.  Jesus practiced humility even when He knew He was the greatest.

John 5: 33-36

Intent, not appearance

I believe in a God who is a merciful God.  Some of you may have heard the phrase “the devil tries to make you remember what God has already forgotten.”  I’m not sure if I got every little syllable exactly right but I have the right idea.  It’s not about how good or how bad we were in the past because if we truly and honestly seek His forgiveness He will show us His divine mercy.  It’s about acknowledging the righteousness of God.  It’s about our intent.

God really does not care whether we “look righteous” or not.  He also does not care how “accomplished” or “driven” we are or what our social status is.  In fact, those of us who are flawed or damaged inside are more likely to be receptive to the plan of God.  Those who think they are perfect and have everything will tend to bear a resemblance to a vessel that is full and can be filled no more.  He promised that His love shall be with us always, but only those of us who actually accept it will receive it in the first place.

Luke 7: 24-30

I want so much to believe

Some of us spend our lives trying to do the right thing all along, trusting that things would turn out well in the end.  Perhaps they will, but when things seem to go dreadfully wrong, we may start to question whether any of the sacrifices we made were even worth it.  We may start to question our own perception of what our purpose in life is.  We may become disillusioned.  We may even start to believe that we really did not have a purpose.

John the Baptist sent his own disciples to ask Jesus a burning question he had in his mind.  He did not go and ask Jesus on his own because being in prison makes that sort of thing rather difficult.  John had spent his entire life living for the one who is to come.  In fact, even before he was born, he got all excited when he heard the voice of the mother of Jesus.  Of course, John was under the impression all along that Jesus is the one who is to come, and rightly so.

But in spite of doing the right thing and living the right way and carrying out his mission, his purpose, he found himself in prison.  Being imprisoned involves living a life that is no longer your own and spending a lot of time alone.  Hope begins to die and doubt begins to creep in.  This was not at all how it was supposed to turn out.  So now John was no longer completely sure if Jesus was indeed the one who is to come.  But in spite of his doubt, he refused to give up hope.  That would have meant disaster for him because everything about his life, his sacrifices, decisions he made, indeed his very purpose of existence, was based upon his understanding that Jesus is the one who is to come.

John really wanted so much to believe - so much that he was willing to risk falling into despair for the chance to find peace of mind.  Jesus knew the situation well enough.  So he saw to it that the message John got would be one of great hope – one that would erase all doubt about who is the one who is to come.

So John had a purpose, after all, AND it was fulfilled.  Of course, he did not know that until he received the message from Jesus.  Until then, his bleak situation made it seem that his whole life may have been wasted, even when not a single thing about it was wasted.  The fact of the matter is, we ALL have a purpose.  Some of us may have even fulfilled that purpose, whether or not we know it at the time.  So no matter how dreadfully wrong our lives seem to have become, we should never lose hope because nothing was wasted.

Luke 7: 18b-23

The New Kid

I am a fairly recent convert to the Faith.  Sure, it was several years ago and a lot can, and has, changed during those years.  But in spite of that, I still feel like the “new kid.”  I have come to accept that this feeling that I’m different from cradle Catholics or even from my fellow converts is not going to go away, ever.

You may notice that some of the titles I’ve had for my posts these past few weeks could seem a bit over-the-top.  But that is the sort of thing I relate to and what other like-minded people (the few there are) could relate to.  Perhaps, as a search term, at least one of these titles may catch the attention of someone who is secular and is in a similarly turbulent state of mind as I was once in.

I am different because my memories are different.  My interest in music, movies, and other forms of media were different because I simply had different priorities.  As a result, the sorts of things that interested me back then may not have always been very wholesome.

Nowadays I see it as my mission to do the Father’s will.  Sure, I still listen to some of the music I listened to back in the day but I listen with a great deal more discernment now than I did then.  Although the contemporary music I listen to is generally more pleasing to God than the older music I listen(ed) to, it still often has an edge to it that is somber, sometimes aggressive, and occasionally bleak.

Doing the Father’s will is not about projecting this good and wholesome apple pie image that’s all jingly and sing-songy.  Sure, that could be a good thing too as long as it’s real but for me it would not be.  The son who was all talk projected that happy image initially but in his case it regressed into a shattered illusion.

Outward appearances in the beginning are not as relevant as our intent in the end.  My intent is to use my past experience as an asset in my effort to reach out to others and witness to them in ways they can relate to, either by example or with words.  Where they are now is where I was just a short while ago.

Matthew 21: 28-32

Intimidation

This is how intimidation usually works.  Someone of in a position of power will make it look like they have a spotless record and that you are doing something wrong, thus making you less likely to stand up to them.  But the fact of the matter is that NOBODY has a spotless record.  They do not have any more right to treat you badly than you have to make a mistake because they are guaranteed to be equally mistake-prone, even if it may not appear that way.

In the case of the chief priests and the elders, they had made a HUGE mistake by refusing to believe the message of John the Baptist.  So they aggressively turned all the attention to the presumed unauthorized teaching in the temple and away from their own unbelief.  Most people would not have dared to call attention to the mistake of the chief priests and elders because their own little errors would have been called out and used against them.  But Jesus is without sin and therefore managed to avoid making any mistakes that could potentially bring Him down.  As a result, He was able to bring attention to what the chief priests and elders did wrong and they did not have an answer for that.  They were exposed for the posers that they were.  Their fortress turned out to be a hollow shell.

Matthew 21: 23-27

Bigger, longer, and uncut

Picky, picky, picky!

So, you have been informed somehow that you would get to meet someone special, perhaps by way of a response to a Facebook invitation - or someone just told you.  Now you have all kinds of expectations about what this person is going to be like or what your interaction with this person is going to be like as you wait in anticipation of your chance to meet.  When you finally do meet and get to know this person, you find yourself rather disappointed because YOUR expectations about this person were not met.  So you dismiss this person as a failure and disappointment.

Truth be told, what this person had to offer was actually MORE profound than was advertised but not in the way one would expect.  Perhaps your interaction with this person was mundane or even awkward so it did not seem significant but things are not always as they appear.  If you keep your eyes and your heart open, you can recognize the significance in even the most seemingly mundane and ordinary events of your life, even those that would normally leave you feeling disappointed.

Matthew 17: 9a, 10-13

Fight the Power!

Being taught something for our own good or being led the way we should go is often not well-received.  People often imply that those promoting such ideals are outdated or out of touch.  In other words, they’re suggesting that the delivery is boring or lame.  But this is just an attempt to discredit the messenger because it’s really not about the delivery.  It’s the message itself that these people disagree with.  Sometimes, when the delivery is to their liking, they’ll accept the delivery but still won’t think anything of the message itself.

People simply do not like being told what to do because they feel entitled.  They feel that there’s a conspiracy of control in the works.  They think it’s cool to be rebellious and “independent,” but who are they rebelling against?  They’re certainly not rebelling against the establishment – they’re conforming to it.  (So much for “independence.”)  What they fail to realize is that what they’re resisting is a message of hope and compassion – the very message that could free them from this corrosion of conformity in which they insist on living.

Matthew 11: 16-19

The Chosen One

If today is supposed to be the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, then why does today's Gospel passage seem to focus on the Immaculate Conception of Jesus instead, better known as the Annunciation?  Doesn’t that feast day fall on the 25th of March?

The answer is yes.  But while that may be the case, let's also be mindful that one of the main ideas here is that Mary found favor with God.  This is presumably because she had been immaculately conceived, thus already chosen ahead of time.

But why her?  Why was she chosen?  We don’t know the answer to that.  Sure, Jesus had to be from the line of David, which means he had to be from Joseph’s family but David has nothing to do with Mary.  Couldn’t God have found favor with someone else and then arranged for that other woman to get immaculately conceived and then married to Joseph?  Probably, but he had a reason to choose Mary. 

In some obvious ways, it almost seems unfair how she got to find favor with God.  What made HER so special?  On the other hand, her role could be seen as an immense and unfair burden.  Mary knew this was going to complicate her life.  It could make her an outcast.  It could drag her name through the mud.  She could even get lynched.  So we’re back to the same question again. Why her? Why did she have to endure what she did?

This is much the same way that each of us has a purpose, role or characteristic.  We may like it a lot, or we may hate being the way we are.  But it’s easier to accept if we trust in God’s plan for us.  Things do eventually work out in the best possible way, even if there are times when it doesn't seem like it will.

Luke 1: 26-38

(no video today because of a whole laundry list of problems encountered, beginning last night)

A day that will live in infamy

Today is the 70^th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, a day that has since lived in infamy.  It was an attack that caught the nation by surprise.  During the attack the United States Navy’s Pacific Fleet managed to do a few things to avoid being damaged any more than they were.  But at the end of the day the fleet was still quite wounded and the soldiers were quite weary and perhaps feeling beaten.  As we all know, the U.S. Navy recovered in a big way and went on to win the war in the Pacific a few years later.

You may have a lot going on in your life at the moment – your own private battles.  The burden may be overwhelming and could even seem impossible.  Be mindful, though, that Jesus will not allow us to be burdened with more than we can handle.  If you offer, He will bear much of that burden for you, and in many ways He already has.  With Jesus you might still have your battles but that just means there’s a war for you to win.

Matthew 11: 28-30

You’ll never walk alone

No matter how neglected, ignored, isolated, or lost you feel, you are not forgotten.  No matter how low you think you have gone and no matter how ashamed or wretched you think you are, you are not forsaken.  With Christ, you'll never walk alone.

Matthew 18: 12-14

Faith

Faith means believing without seeing.  But it is still better to believe after seeing than to refuse to believe after seeing.  At the very least, it exemplifies open-mindedness.  However, open-mindedness is not the sort of thing that drives people to persevere in the face of unfavorable odds.  Open-mindedness does not give people the patience to wait for incredible (improbable) things to happen.  Only faith could do these things.

Luke 5: 17-26

The Reason for the Season

fix this broken machine

This blog of mine is my little way of witnessing to the faith.  I do not expect anything in return.  The proclaiming of the Kingdom (3rd Luminous Mystery of the Rosary for us Cliffs Notes types) is something that should always be done from the heart and with simple and pure intent.  It should not be for stroking one's ego nor should it be done with an eye on the bottom line.  It should be PROPHET-driven, NOT profit-driven.

When Jesus and His disciples were proclaiming the Kingdom to the people, they did not see the people as potential customers to sell the good news to.  Instead they realized that these were broken people in need of healing.  They were essentially doing mission work.  They may not have given anything of much monetary value but they were giving a lot just by going on a mission.  But what about those of us who do not have the opportunity to go on a mission?

If we can't give by going, we can go by giving.  This is where giving a tithe comes in.  (Technically, a tithe is one-tenth of your income).  It costs money to make a mission run, even if the missionaries make no profit.  Giving is what makes it possible for others to go on that mission we could not go on.

But a tithe is for the whole church, not just for mission work.  The Church is constantly short on money which means that it can never seem to provide enough for its people.  If you attended Mass, went to Adoration, attended a talk or lecture, went on a retreat, or used a church-run venue, facility, website, or other service in any other way, why not give those involved a share of your tithe?  If everyone who came to church did that, it would ensure that the Church can continue to provide for its people according to what the people actually need the most.  The whole world, including the Church, is loaded with broken people in need of healing.

By giving, we are proclaiming the Kingdom.  We are not expecting a tangible return on our investment like in a money market account.  We are just doing the right thing for ourselves and for others.  By supporting businesses that give to the Church (as seen on parish bulletins everywhere, as well as on the list of restaurants that helped out with the Eucharistic Congress in Boston) we are encouraging them to keep doing the same, especially when we acknowledge their support for the Church.

Matthew 9: 35 - Matthew 10: 1, 5a, 6-8

Out of darkness

You may feel that you spend your life in darkness and in spite of your most valiant attempts to get out, you find yourself denied every time.  You may feel that there is no hope for you.  But if you refuse to give up hope, there is a way.  It was in my darkest days that I found Jesus.  I did not know what else to do but pray - and I wasn't even sure if I knew what praying was.  I felt like I was not worthy to be praying to Him but that it was worth trying anyway.  I'm not going to say life has been easy since then but now at least I can sense a glimmer of hope out on the distant horizon.  My eyes have been opened and yours can be too if you open your heart to Him and have faith.

Matthew 9: 27-31

Talk is cheap

Most of us have heard the phrase "actions speak louder than words."  It means that talk is cheap.  People who are predominantly talk have little or no substance to back it up but they sound like they know stuff.  Those driven by thought and action may have trouble expressing themselves adequately by talking because there's just too many thoughts running through their head to articulate them effectively.  They end up appearing "confused" or "incompetent."  In our post-Original-Sin society, the talkers predictably tend to get a great deal of respect while those who let actions speak for themselves are often judged unfairly.

People of action have substance to back themselves up, even if it is not always outwardly or verbally expressed in an effective manner.  They get to know people based upon what they do (hobbies, interests, activities, etc.), not how they express themselves.  They teach others how to live by their own example - living their lives as witnesses to the faith.  Their lessons may not be easily noticeable, but if they are noticed, they are very helpful and valuable.

People who are talkers often resort to nosy questions in an ineffective attempt to get to know people.  They ask about things like your age, your dating life, what you do for work, what kind of job you expect to get with THAT degree, etc.  Somehow the fact that they did not actually get to know the person does not stop them from giving unsolicited advice, often in a patronizing manner.  They do like to hear themselves talk.  These lessons are all too noticeable and often hurtful but generally not helpful.  As a matter of fact, their value is sometimes "less than nothing."

A person who is predominantly talk can be likened to a big beach mansion that's built, not behind the dune, but on top or in front of it for vanity purposes.  The beach house looks quite spectacular but lacks any real substance or support.  A person of action can be likened to a humble little bungalow whose concrete foundation is in full contact with a granite bedrock shelf.  The little bungalow may not be much to look at and its basement floor is not at all level where the granite shelf comes up.  But that little house is built to last.  What it lacks in appearance, it more than makes up for in functionality.  Where would you rather live?

Matthew 7: 21, 24-27

Don't miss out!

Music festivals are very different from conventional concerts.  For one thing, they typically have multiple stages going simultaneously.  Furthermore, the posted schedule for each individual stage is merely an approximation.  And then there is the fact that there are just so many more bands to see at a festival.  Those bands typically play shorter sets and many of them are much less well-known than bands one would see at a concert.  So then there's the curiosity factor as well.

If I'm really disciplined, I would do my homework ahead of time and familiarize myself with the various bands playing so as to get an idea of who I would like to see during a particular time of day.  Now if the schedules go as planned, then inserting restroom and food breaks would be fairly simple since I would know which bands would be playing when and where.

But at festivals, schedules often do not go exactly as planned.  As mentioned before, they are merely approximations.  The restroom and food places are convenient for setup and takedown and deliveries, etc. but not necessarily for the stage-to-stage route I intend to take at a given time.  Also, since there are a multitude of stages, it's hard to keep track of who's been running behind and by how much.  Rather than assume a certain schedule delay for the next stage, based upon the previous stage I was at, I often just make a beeline to the next stage, foregoing a restroom or food break.  Sometimes it's a wise choice, other times I do end up getting there early.  But, of course, by the time I'm there, I'm not sure if I can backtrack for a restroom or food break and then return in time for the next band's set.

Because these bands are often not as well-known as concert bands, I might not get another chance to see them.  Or, if I do, it may not be worth the trouble at that next opportunity.  In other words, it's a special moment not to be missed for petty things like a restroom or food break.  Those can wait another 20-30 minutes for the end of the set, at which point I would decide how much longer I'm willing to "hold it" or "tough it out."

Some of my gamer friends have similar experiences in playing their video games.  Sometimes they're playing a really good game.  They're just in a zone and they're on a roll.  They could just pause and save but not in a rare and special moment like this.  No way!  Rather than interrupt what they have going with a petty thing like a restroom or food break, they "hold it" and "tough it out" for as long as they feel able - or until the game finally ends.

My gamer friends and I were experiencing our special moments in our own ways.  But nothing we ever experienced was nearly as profound as what the people witnessed when Jesus overcame the impossible to make things right.  Following Him for three days was massively inconvenient for them.  At the end of it there was a lot more at stake than just a bit of discomfort.  There was a very real chance that they might not make the long journey home without the help of the medics - in this case a considerable army of medics.

These followers may not have been "holding it" for any unusually long time but they were certainly "toughing it out" much more than I would at a music festival or my gamer friends would while playing totally epic game.  Jesus did feed the crowd at the end - again overcoming what seemed impossible - but until then these people neither knew nor presumed that they would get a meal out of following Him.  They just sensed something special was happening and absolutely did not want to miss it - even going as far as sacrificing a great deal of comfort without any knowledge of how they were going to get any relief.  They had complete trust in the Lord.

Matthew 15: 29-37

Don't use force, use THE Force

Advent can be a very busy season.  It's a time to buy a multitude of Christmas cards and then send them to people.  It's a time to get gifts for people.  Sometimes it's a time to drop hints to people who will buy gifts for you but don't know what to get (I really don't care - it's more about your PRESENCE than your PRESENTS).  It's also a time for a multitude of Christmas parties and other special events, which makes for an exercise in schedule juggling.

In my case it's a time to blog regularly, which is something I have no reason to believe I am any good at...I have trouble enough keeping in touch with people I used to be close to.  It is also a time for me to finish off my World Youth Day photos, videos, and notes - and then a time to get caught up in all of the photos that have come since August (hiking trips, etc.).  This extra burden related to World Youth Day could have been avoided if I had made World Youth Day stuff a higher priority than the other things I was trying to get done in the autumn.  But then those other things would have been on my Advent docket instead.  (Sigh).  Work has been a bit busy as well.

Perhaps you don't blog, have a World Youth Day backlog, a backlog of other photos, or a lot going on at work, but most likely you have your own things to get done in addition to the usual Advent activities.  Your story may not be the same as mine but you probably have your own story nonetheless.  Advent can be a very overwhelming time if we allow it to be and sometimes we might agonize over decisions about what to do next.  When we have trouble deciding, we delay, which leads to more anxiety.  And then we try to think real hard about it, using logic or whatever.  We overthink it - and that's usually a bad thing.

If it is necessary to decide what to do next, keep it simple - don't analyse it.  Otherwise, if you're busy enough during all your waking hours and then you add more stress by overthinking something simple, you'll start having dreams about everything you're trying to do, and they're generally not good dreams.  Knowing the right thing to do is something that will come to you, not something you will get through your own knowledge and power.  Remember, the disciples were very simple people but they were able to see what prophets and kings could not.  The prophets and kings vainly tried too hard while the disciples humbly left it up to God.  Likewise, we ought to make the potentially overwhelming Advent season a time to accept God's help.  He's offering.

Luke 10: 21-24

Come together

Although World Youth Day took place quite a while ago, I am still in the midst of posting images and words about that experience onto my Facebook page.  Every time I return to that task it is like reliving the memories all over again.  People came from all over.  Many different nations, many different social groups, people in different parts of their faith journey.  But we were all there for the same thing.  The differences between us formed bridges rather than fences - something to be celebrated rather than overcome.  It was both beautiful and surreal.  We really are one body.

Matthew 8: 5-11

A new beginning