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go here to buy my stock photography Alan Creech
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That's Steve Harvey, comedian of the Original Kings of Comedy fame, introducing Jesus. Thanks to Michael Spencer for pointing this out. I've you've never heard of Steve, you might need to stop being so white for a minute and check him out - and that's Ricky Smiley on the keyboards (way too funny not to know about). I'm pretty sure Steve done preached himself happy by the end of this, for real. And I'll tell you what, he might preached me happy too. This is classic stuff. I've sat in preaching services like this. I have room for it. Amaan mistu Steve, Aman! :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: July 12, 2008 >> 2:07 PM in a galaxy far far away...  This is my very good friend Kevin Rains. Today he wrote a little piece on his blog remembering some connections some of us made several years ago. It was a little bitter-sweet for me to read. As he said, two of our comrades have since moved on to a fuller expression of God's Kingdom. Also, the connection we all had after that day, growing for a few years, seems to have faded a bit. That's not necessarily bad. God has moved some of us here and there, shifted our focus, etc. It still feels like something I'm personally lacking though - sometimes. That's a little sad for me.When I was at the event Kevin describes in his post (it began the night of July 25, 2001), I kept a very constant written journal. I recorded my thoughts as that weekend progressed. In 2005 I posted my own memorial post about the same event. The poem you see at the end there was one I wrote after a bunch of us went to a local bar/music club there in Cincinnati one night. I actually have pictures of that time somewhere, probably on a roll of film that never got developed. I'll try to track those down. I love you people - still - believe it. Palmer and Chad, pray for us. Labels: church, emerging church, friends, midwest crew :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: June 21, 2008 >> 10:27 PM soooo sick This may be one of the things I have to say: I am sooo sick of controversy in the Christian arena. I'm so damn tired of theological argumentation - We've got this right, of course they've got all that wrong. I'm so glad I'm not like that crew over there. It makes me feel really good knowing that I've got it all wrapped up. Seriously - I see so much of it in the blog world that it just makes me ill. But healthy theological debate is important - Truth is important - we've got to hash these things out and get to the bottom of things. I'm really beginning to wonder about all those statements. How important is it? Please don't answer that - any such answer will undoubtedly be in the category of that which makes me want to throw up. Listen, I'm a theological thinker. My mind works like that. But when it comes to what's really, really important in the Christian life, in life in general, I'm beginning to believe that getting everything tightly wrapped up in a neat little "Truth bundle" is NOT it. It's not what we really should be expending our energy on. I'm sure there are healthier examples than I see regularly. It would be nice if they were more the norm - but they're not. Yes, yes, it matters what we believe. Yes, some things are "truer" than others. Some things believed produce other things that aren't good - I know this. This can be so without us all becoming those who just sit around waiting for opportunities to pounce on those with whom we have "issues" ecclesiastically or theologically. All this mess goes 26 different directions. There really aren't many innocents out there. Hell, I'm sittin' here bitchin' about people who bitch about things, so there you go. We're in a broken world. We would all do well to more fully realize this. Lord have mercy, please. technorati tags > theology, controversy :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: June 03, 2008 >> 12:42 PM christian humor > saints > church I just finished watching these 3 videos about the value of humor in the Christian life. Very good stuff from Fr. James Martin, S.J. I actually saw James on the Colbert Report (which I don't watch regularly, just happened to see it) once. Anyway, check this 3-part deal out as he addressed a publishing convention. Very funny - good thing considering the subject matter. Many, many of us (Christians of whatever stripe) take ourselves MUCH too seriously. Laughing is far too foreign to us. These are helpful words for sourpusses. Peace and laughter. technorati tags > christian humor, catholic humor, james martin sj :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: May 23, 2008 >> 11:02 AM little portion update from jmt I got hold of this link from John Michael Talbot's blog. He's posted a personal video on YouTube telling the story of the fire and loss at Little Portion and asks for our help. Take a look if you haven't seen this. I feel a great kinship with them not just because I've loved John's music for years but also because of what they're doing as a monastic community. I feel myself in those shoes a little bit. So, I'll be praying for them at least, if not more. technorati tags > john michael talbot, little portion hermitage, brothers and sisters of charity Labels: church, monasticism :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: May 20, 2008 >> 8:50 PM confirmed  Well, as of tonight, one journey is over. This is my family receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation - being received into full communion with the Catholic Church. Thier sponsors (or proxies thereof) are behind them. Our friend, my spiritual director, Fr. Louis Lipps, is presiding there. It was a very simple, sparsely attended daily Mass today at 5:30pm. I like that it was simple this way. I'm very proud of my children today. They said "yes" to Jesus. They received more of His Grace to live that "yes." I love my wife, but I'm not so much "proud" of her as happy for her that this part of the road is over and now we can settle in and live it out. Things will not be perfect now. Difficulty is not over. We shouldn't think it is. One journey has ended... and another begun. Labels: catholic, church, family, personal :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: May 19, 2008 >> 3:31 PM too long delayed Here's a very timely and interesting quote from Fr. Karl Rahner that I ran into a little while back. I don't really feel the need to comment further. It's just a good quote and I thought I'd share it here ...the Church is today caught up in a transformation. Probably this has been too long delayed. For people used to think it a special Christian virtue, the salvation of an imperiled world, intransigently to insist on what had always been the case; and therefore this transformation is now coming very suddenly, and with all the typical features and dangers that arise when something in itself necessary has to be "caught up with" too quickly. Yes a transformation of this kind is necessary if the Church does not want to remain the Church of the peasant and petit-bourgeois classes particular to late European modernity, with ever decreasing membership, but instead to become a Church for the kind of society that has a future. This transformation in the Church is difficult because is has begun too late. It involves the danger of betraying the true substance of Christianity. It is painful. It brings the different levels of the Church, which are at different stages in their awareness, into conflict with each other. But it cannot be avoided – indeed it is still not being engaged in with anything like sufficient seriousness. technorati tags > church, catholic church, change in the church, karl rahner Labels: catholic, church, rahner :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: May 14, 2008 >> 11:16 AM the faithful  I hear this from time to time, and it never fails to bother me. The terms "faithful Catholic" and conversely, "unfaithful Catholic" are thrown around a good bit, especially in the blogosphere. They are almost always used by Catholics in the very conservative arena to describe either themselves (the faithful) or to describe Catholics, well maybe they're Catholics, who have issues with some of what the Catholic Church teaches, some of it's theology or practice (the unfaithful).Very simplistically speaking, the story goes that if you put all your beebees, all your mental trust, without reservation of any kind, into the Magisterial basket - if there is no point of doctrine that you simply cannot assent to (as it is presently stated and understood) - if the Catechism is quite enough for you, no more discussion or struggle needed - then you are... a faithful Catholic. On the other hand, if you hear or read what the Magisterium has laid out there and on some points you just can't grab hold - if you (just as an example) simply cannot accept the presently stated and understood concept of mortal sin (even though you've theologically struggled through this and have over-thoughtfully and prayerfully come to your position) - if you aren't very fond of some of your Church's present disciplines (having come to the conclusion that some of them can be, in fact, harmful instead of helpful) - if, perhaps, you feel free to open your mouth and speak your conscientious thoughts and convictions and they happen to run contrary to the present letter of Catholic Magisterial teaching - then you are, pour soul, one of the unfaithful. Some of you can see why this would bother me. Part of it is because, guess where I end up on this set of scales? Go ahead, guess. Never mind, I'll tell you - I am, apparently, an unfaithful Catholic. Some might even say that makes me not a Catholic at all. They might say I'm a Protestant already in my thoughts and actions so I might as well just go ahead and be one. Maybe they're right. I wonder that sometimes myself. Interesting thought. Is there not room for what some call a faithful dissent in some areas? I mean a dissent (as I see it, an inability to assent with good conscience) that is prayerful, thoughtful, educated and conscientious - not one that is apathetic or born of a desire to engage in some inordinate behavior or because you are swept away by the worldly culture around you. Also, not a dissent that is all about carrying picket signs or causing a whole bunch of trouble. I mean being a thinker, one who needs to, and is perhaps called to, work things out and not simply accept the status quo without question. This is what seems like it could be a healthy dissent. Maybe we should stop calling it "dissent" at all, that word having such a negative connotation in this discussion. It's definitionally correct I suppose - assent vs. dissent and all that. I guess my point is that "dissent" in this arena doesn't need to mean that you hate the Church and you want to blow it all up in favor of some wild, opposite alternative. This is how it's characterized sometimes though, which is unfortunate. Perhaps I'm just taking seriously my part in the Sensus Fidelium - the sense of the faithful - realizing that the Holy Spirit of Truth lives in, acts in and speaks to me as a member of the mystical Body of Christ... too. The protection we have from God from going over the cliff as far as error is concerned is more complicated than just, "the Pope said it, that settles it." The members of the Body who don't wear collars are not simply faceless, spiritless, sheep. We are all incorporated into Jesus, and are the fullness of Him who fills all things in all places (Eph. 1:22-23). And no, I'm not talking about sitting around making it all up for ourselves. If you think that's what I'm talking about, well, you can think what you like, but it's not nearly what I'm referring to. Things in this broken, human world are not that cut and dry. They are complicated. The Church and everything that makes her tick, is complicated. The Holy Spirit and how He works in the Church and in the world is not entirely quantifiable. Yes, He may have given us certain assurances that we wouldn't ultimately go over the edge, but all manner of things can happen before that. We (Catholics) get all manner of flack from some quarters of the Protestant world about how we have contradicted ourselves over the years, about how we will never give a straight answer about how the Catholic Church has, or has not, been wrong here and there down through the centuries. Can we just give somebody a straight-up answer that yes, the Catholic Church has been wrong, has grown and changed and developed and corrected itself many, many different times. I just said it. It doesn't bother me. It doesn't make my head spin. Are there contradictory stances within her? Sure. What do you expect? Have Popes contradicted each other - even? Certainly they have. Like I said - a broken mess, all of us. Yeah, yeah, I know all the definitions... Holy Spirit... infallibility... teaching authority... et cetera. Some of it is troublesome, I'll hand you that on a platter, but that doesn't negate it all. Even if, as I see it, some of it is not that well defined, or is too defined, it still doesn't take the whole house down. It doesn't have to. I've wandered in this essay. It's already too long for a decent blog post. I'm even fairly afraid to post it, how about that? I'm really not looking for a big argument. I'm certainly not looking to be scolded by anyone. OK, there are my insecurities out on the table. Oh, and I'm not looking to institute any clown Masses any time soon either - holy crap! What I'm talking about is a little deeper and more complex than that. One more thought I had was that, practically speaking (and this is worth taking into consideration, and not just from a populist viewpoint), in the sensus fidelium arena, unless you want to take on a sort of fortress, we're the tiny remnant of true Catholic Christianity attitude, the vast majority of Catholics in the United States (and I doubt it's only the US, but that's all we hear about mostly) are unfaithful Catholics. That's most members of most parishes, and it can't all be chalked up to "bad catachesis" or "those pitiful seminaries after Vatican II." There are probably a lot of factors. I'm not trying to define them here. What I might be saying, at least in part, is that some of this is not bad - some of it is perhaps about the Holy Spirit slowly working a correction in through the People of God. Please don't hem me into some liberal corner either. I just said what I said. I didn't say what you're thinking I said. That I have to say that is pretty funny anyway. OK, that's enough of this. If I post this it'll be a tiny miracle - we can attribute it to the intercession of Thomas Merton, how about that monk-fans? Pax vobiscum. technorati tags > church, catholic church, faithful catholics, unfaithful catholics, sensus fidelium, faithful dissent :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: April 25, 2008 >> 10:14 AM me and my story  I was poking around yesterday and found a podcast that was done fairly recently, interviewing myself about my recent story as well as talking about some other interesting things about church life, etc. I realize that some of you may not have heard me talk about this, not in this way at least. As I listened to it again last night, it became apparent to me that I "sound" much different than I "read" sometimes. My friends Kevin Rains and D.G. Hollums are doing a podcast called Praxis (nice logo, yeah that was me, hire me). I was apparently their inaugural show, very cool. You can take a listen to that here. While you're over there you can subscribe to the podcast I'm sure. Peace.Labels: catholic, church, emerging church, personal :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: April 24, 2008 >> 10:24 PM church, money, future conversation Well, this ought to be interesting. There's a bit of a blog-versation going on among some of my friends about the future of the church, how it conducts itself, how and where churches come together for worship, how ministers/pastors/priests are supported by their communities - all in light of possible coming monetary problems, financial crisis, etc. You can check their musings out first if you like to keep in stride...
I spent quite a few years with my mouth wide open about how large church buildings that depend on quite a bit of money and ministers who depend on salaries that suck the life out of a congregation are bad for the Church as a whole - that they put our focus on the wrong things and help perpetuate a way of being Christian which is not quite what I'm thinking Jesus intended. Now, some may think, here I am in the biggest, richest, most opulent ecclesiastical institution of them all - shut up! I guess technically they'd be right. Nothing like Rome for some gold and stained glass and seeeeeriously whoopdeedoo vestments. Right. Nothing like the Vatican's stash. Right. And those Cathedrals! Holy, well holy cathedral Batman! Show me the MONAAAAY! Rome doesn't fund local Catholic parishes by the way - just thought I'd through that in there. There's a lot of medieval mess in all that. There's a ton of leftover, as Jason mentioned, deeply "Christendom" ideas floating around this ancient church. And yes, I believe it's a problem, one not easily or quickly solved. Some of the defense behind some of these things is a sort of anti-Gnostic, matter and things here on earth are important, beauty draws us to contemplate God, He is worthy of something amazing and cool like that kind of thing. Can you see where that's coming from without me having to write another book on it? I can see some of it, but not all of it. I can understand an attitude that God in His infinite wonder and wants to reflect that around us in a context of worship - sacred space and all that. I get that. I love beautiful spaces. I'd rather be in a beautiful, sacred space than in a corny, goofy lookin' space. We're human. We're of this earth. It matters. BUT, how much does it matter? In what way does it matter? I think we've too easily answered these questions. We've adopted answers that aren't "our" answers over the years and unfortunately they have stuck with us and we've developed apologies for them. How about the beauty of simplicity? Can I get some Franciscan love up in this joint? Is Jesus really looking for golden thrones and million dollar sanctuaries? It seems odd for a God who once tried to convince us that He doesn't dwell structures built by human hands - doesn't it? It does. Oh, I know, the Blessed Sacrament (pardon me for a second guys) - yes, I do believe in His Real Presence in the Sacrament. But then there's that animal stall in Bethlehem, those dirty streets He walked on, the humble, normal house he lived in - all that. This is only part of my point. To me, opulence and finery are a very surface way of getting the point across, of showing respect. It's not evil, necessarily, but it's also not necessary. Simple, normal, regular, how about that? Things seem to be moving in a direction that might cause us all to have to rethink what we spend, what we build, how we pay our staff, etc. Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, whatever - things will change and we will all have to face it sooner or later. This all makes me remember a story an old Priest told me about something a friend said to him who had spent a lot of time in Rome, that the best thing that could happen to the Catholic Church is for an oppressive government to take over and strip it of all it's wealth, tear the external institution down and push it back into the catacombs. OK, the catacombs part was my creative addition, but you get my point. And it's not only the Catholic Church but much of the rest of the whole Church - let us all lose the ability to own buildings, to pay our leaders or our tax exemptions. Bring it! Where would our focus be then? Maybe on the Kingdom of God, something novel like that. It's time for some Body of Christ creativity. Maybe we should start practicing now - maybe. Lord have mercy. technorati tags > church, church buildings, church and money Labels: catholic, church, emerging church :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: April 04, 2008 >> 1:23 AM into one body The reading from Mid-morning prayer this morning in the Office... It was in one Spirit that all of us, whether Jew or Greek, slave or free, were baptized into one body. All of us have been given to drink of the one Spirit.I'm not too keen on Catholics gearing this to say "...oh, and that one Body is us, only us and the rest of you are out of luck." I know, I know - "it's your Church that says these things, deal with it buddy, or you need to get out" - oh, and, AND (from the Catholics), "You may not like it but we ARE THE one true Church, and that's just it, deal with it buddy, bend your neck or get out." That mess just pisses me off so don't say that. I know this too (I'm real smart by the way) - not all Protestants think like that or would say that AND not all Catholics would say anything like that. I know that so don't start. But it IS out there and it's common enough to take note of, and it's hard for me, in my present circumstance, not to take note. I know also that many Catholics, especially converts from Protestant Churches it seems, take great comfort in the "One True Church" thing. This is why many of them converted. They are convinced this is the only way to go, that nothing else is really legitimate, so the choice is fairly limited. I understand the excitement something like this can instill. I get the great value placed on the ancient nature of the Catholic Church and all it has kept intact for nearly 2,000 years. I understand that this has also been the fuel that has reignited the fire in many a cradle Catholic as well. I see and understand these things. I want to say, though, that I think there are other ways one can be a Catholic Christian, other reasons to love the Catholic Church than because of any exclusivity claims. Personally, I have to look past the exclusivity claims, whether they are made by the Church authorities or by her members, in order that they don't overshadow what love I have for Catholic Christianity which is not based in this thinking. The whole Church, all of us, every institutional expression, every so-called non-institutional expression, and every individual member, is screwed up. We are collectively not ideally what we were designed to be. I believe there are ancient, True, beautiful, and amazing things in the Catholic Church that have been more fully maintained than in many other strains of the Body of Christ. There are things, I believe, that have been forgotten or lost in the Catholic arena as well - yes eeeeven in the Catholic Church. Even inside the beauty, there is some ugliness. Sure, like I said, I believe there is a certain fullness to be found in the big old walls of the Catholic Church. Does this mean to me that there is none of that fullness found anywhere else ecclesiastically speaking? It doesn't mean that to me. Perhaps, you may say, as a Protestant or as a Catholic, that I need to rethink my deal. Look, I'm always rethinking my deal. I'm always trying to listen to God and sense the Holy Spirit. I believe I have a decent ability to "hear God" leading me in my life. I can certainly miss it. I'm a part of the broken Body of Christ. Even though there may be a certain fullness here or there, some things forgotten or lost in this or that place, we are ALL still a part of this broken, yet to be fully transformed Body. One of the best things we could probably do along the way is at least recognize that and live with each other on that level, as the diversely scattered fellow members of the One Body of Christ. Oh, all you members of the Body, Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Coptic, etc. - please pray for my Dad if you think about it. He's in the hospital (fine right now), but he has developed a couple more major artery blockages and will need another bypass surgery soon. Thanks. Peace to you. technorati tags > body of christ, the church, catholic church Labels: catholic, church, ecumenism :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: March 01, 2008 >> 3:44 PM mccabe on the kingdom I've been reading my new book, which makes me ask, why have I never heard of this man before now? I'm speaking of Herbert McCabe. I guess Dominicans don't really get famous very often. God, Christ and Us is a collection of sermons and other teaching, so it doesn't come off like hard-to-read theology. I don't mind some of that myself, but this is very accessible. Here's another quote for you to chew on - very good stuff on the Kingdom of God, about temporary things vs. permanent things. Check it out... I think that the author of Hebrews is thinking of the fact that in one way we have received the promise, in one way the Kingdom has come. We are no longer simply groping in the dark. In a sort of way, in Jesus Christ the promise is fulfilled, the Kingdom is established - in an odd sort of way, myteriously, in the way we call 'sacramentally'. Sacramentally, we have arrived at the Kingdom, just as Abraham arrived as a stranger, a foreigner in the Promised Land. But he lived there in a tent - a temporary shack. And he didn't make the mistake of thinking that what he built was the real thing. It was just a structure he threw up while waiting for the gift of the real city, waiting for the terrible giving of the city, a giving that involved letting his people be broken and remade.The Church is a tent, a shack, a temporary dwelling on our way to the fullness of the Kingdom. Oh my. I think this is very true, though. And because this is true, we cannot afford to think of the Church as the point of it all. It is not the point. The Church is sacramentally the presence of the Kingdom of God on earth. It's a conduit, a tool God is using to move us from one way of being to another. I've said this before. The Church is really a stop-gap solution for a broken people. It's not meant to be permanent. Once the fullness of the Kingdom swallows us all up, there will be no more need for the Church, our worship as members of it, it's liturgy, even for the Sacraments. We won't need all this any more at that point. We will be where It has been leading us. This is not to say the Church is unimportant or not needed now. We are far from the recapitulation of all things. Until then, the Church is our vehicle of transformation. It is the vessel God has given us, in which we travel from the brokenness of this dimension of life into the fullness of the one we do not yet fully see and experience - more accurately, into the re-merger of these two dimensions, the earthly one and the Kingdom. technorati tags > the kingdom of god, hope, herbert mccabe :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: February 06, 2008 >> 1:27 PM ashes, ashes, we've all fallen down I just thought that was cleaver, so there. Which mean, probably, that somebody's said it before at some point - oh well. It's Ash Wednesday - that means the beginning of the liturgical season of Lent. Today - I feel nothing. Maybe that's good. It's not about feeling anything I don't guess. I wonder, when I speak in a rather colloquial manner, do certain people tune me out as possibly someone who has little of substance to say? Interesting question in the middle of my thought-train there. So, like I said, Lent begins today and even though I don't feel anything about it really, I do have a couple of thoughts...
technorati tags > lent, liturgy, catholicism, lenten disciplines Labels: catholic, church, lent, liturgy :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: January 14, 2008 >> 10:36 AM back to ordinary  Back to the brown book, back to Ordinary Time. I'm pretty sure this is my favorite liturgical season. I'm not sure it's considered a "season," per se, but it's my favorite time block on the calendar. Weird, you say? Maybe. I think I just prefer the regular rhythm of everyday life as opposed to the somewhat intense focus on a particular event or Truth in the life of Christ and the Church.I don't mean to say that I don't appreciate the celebration of say, Lent or Advent or Christmas or Easter. I think we need those constant reminders interrupting the rhythm of our lives. Over and over, year after year, to live that in and out, up and down of the calendar is good. I believe that. I wonder, though, if sometimes we don't get a little carried away with the celebrations such that they become things that we wait for during Ordinary Time, just tolerating things until November or February. I've heard some people say they wish we'd back Advent up into October to make it longer. Mmmmmmm, I don't think I'd be in favor of that. If anything, make it shorter. I don't think it's the healthiest thing to live our lives waiting for big, spectacular events. If we can't "feel spiritual" or close to God during the ordinary part of the year, we have some problems. And nobody's asking for my vote, but strip out all the "obligation" attached to any of these feast days, and to any fasting or abstinence attached to them. That is not to say there shouldn't be an encouragement to do certain things or to gather with the whole Church to worship at certain times. Certainly there should be, but attaching an ultimate penalty to these things is counter-productive to real spiritual development. Yes, I really do think so. Would you rather your children obey your rules out of love and respect or from fear of being punished - and not just punished but kicked out of the freakin' house? I hope our answer would be, love. And fear does not produce love. I don't think so. Anyway, we should all develop a rhythm to our spiritual lives that is solidly entrenched in Ordinary Time. The special seasons should be pleasant interruptions in an already solid rhythm of life focused on our Life in Christ. Christmas is wonderful, and waiting for it in Advent is great, but the now is that Christ is alive, as God and Man, and living in us. Easter is amazing and the relative darkness of Lent is a helpful thing, but now, He lives forever in eternity and is constantly inviting us into His present Life. Let's do what we can to constantly be hearing that invitation and saying yes to it. technorati tags > ordinary time, liturgical calendar :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: January 10, 2008 >> 4:28 PM being a regular person Lately, again, I have noticed something in myself. I know you're dying to hear about this. Well, here's what I know: I think I have lost a sense of value for being a regular Christian person, just part of the laity (I still hate that word by the way). I mean I seriously don't see it. And now, I'm classified as one of these people again, and you see where the problem lies. Yes, right, I see little value in myself at the moment. I don't feel that my daily prayer life, my weekly assistance at the Mass (and sometimes daily Mass), and whatever else I do amounts to much of anything really. I know I'm comparing now vs. then. That's exactly what's going on in my mind. I see what I was doing and what I'm doing now and to me it feels, I feel, useless for the most part. I'm sure many of you can come up with all kinds of encouraging things to say or even really good points about how all Christians are valuable and precious in God's eyes, in His plan, etc. I hear you, I hear you. I could intellectually write a pretty decent essay on the subject in all likelihood. I'm talking about how I feel. It certainly is how I feel, not always, but now for sure. And I realize it's a bit of a disordered way to think about the thing. I do realize that. I also realize that this is very real to me right now. I'd bet I'm not alone in this either, if I had any money to be betting with. I wonder how many other people who were Pastors, leaders, respected "elders" of one sort or another, and then moved into a state of life where this is no longer the case have these same symptoms. Again, I'd bet money on that big. Please pray for my slightly twisted mind and perceptions if you think about it. Peace to you. technorati tags > christianity, ministry, laity, lay person Labels: christian life, church :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: December 30, 2007 >> 3:40 PM holy family > church > frustration  Today is the feast of the Holy Family. That's Jesus, Mary and Joseph if you didn't know. Our holy family went to Mass this morning - well, we went to the church twice - first to take the kids to CCD and Confirmation class an hour early, except there were no classes today - who knew? Not us. So, go back home, wait for about 15-20 more minutes and go back. Our holy family got to sit together today, which has been unusual. I like it when we can sit together - well, wait, maybe I do. We are 6 and take up about half a pew in our church presently. Only I am going up for Communion at the moment, since all this began, until everyone else is Confirmed. That's getting old. I doubt there is much real anticipation in my crew to receive Christ in the Eucharist - probably more that they won't have to all trail out of the long pew to let everybody else by or back in during the awkward process. I just want us all to be together in the thing. I want things to settle into a more regular rhythm. Please, Lord, soon! In addition to that, our holy family is not quite all your quiet, calm, meditative type. There is slightly hyperactive constant drumming on things (all these kids are 12 and over mind you), today gum was discovered, messing with each other, whispering at the most inappropriate times, etc., etc., etc. All of this acts together to raise my blood pressure. I am likely the most distracted person by all these goings-on. I try. I try to chill and not be bothered by it. But it's damn hard folks. So, add that to learning a new ecclesiastical world for my family, getting used to new things. I just pray always that none of this ends up turning them against God and the Church. I pray that they aren't too frustrated by it, such that it pushes them away from the beauty of the Eucharist as opposed to drawing them toward it. Blessed Mary, our Mother, St. Joseph, pray for my holy family, that we may all be bound, first with Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit and woven together in this big complicated Body. Labels: catholic, church, liturgy, reversion :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: December 17, 2007 >> 3:16 PM several facts and links A few things - remembering our year - and a few links...
Labels: catholic, church, music, personal :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: December 01, 2007 >> 1:10 PM advent is upon us The waiting begins - to wait on our Savior to appear, for the Dawn from on high to break upon us. It's time to intentionally look, wait, open ourselves to His coming, in whatever way He will come, in us, to us. This will be, for me, a very odd Advent I think. For so long I have celebrated this Season as a Christian, a catholic Christian, and for the first time in a long time I will be celebrating it as a Catholic Christian. Some of you may want to hear that I am ecstatic at this prospect. You may want to hear that I praise God with great joy for this present reality in my life. Unfortunately, right now, it is bitter-sweet. There is no extra joy because of it. I feel a certain amount of guilt because I do not feel more happy. Our wreath is set up just like it was last year, and the year before that, and before that. I'm giving this the old college try folks. God give me Grace to do what You want me to do. I wait for You. Labels: advent, catholic, church, personal, reversion :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: November 24, 2007 >> 6:54 PM Christ the king > merton  Tomorrow is the feast of Christ the King. I found an image I think is appropriate for how Christ showed Himself as King to us, for us. I don't really have a lot to say about that right now but I also wanted to share a two minute section of audio with you - of Thomas Merton speaking about Christ the King, on or near that same feast day in 1968, in Bangkok Thailand. So this was recorded about two weeks before he died. The quality isn't the greatest, but what he says is very well worth letting sink in. Listen well.> Merton on Christ the King technorati tags > christ the king, thomas merton Labels: church, liturgy, merton :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: November 05, 2007 >> 10:03 AM is it too much to ask? Maybe it is, I know know. I'm beginning to wonder. I'm beginning to wonder about my own sanity. It seems I have two choices in making sense of all the seeming craziness that's going on right now in our life: 1) We're under an all-out spiritual attack. 2) God is whittling me down, trying to "make me little." In my experience, these two things feel very similar sometimes. And when you're in the middle of either, it's a bit hard to discern. Your eyes are red and your head throbbing. Your heart is aching and you feel barely able to think about such things. I'm a smart person, smart enough to know that I'm pretty smart, smart enough to have to watch out how smart I know that I am. But smart only goes so far when you're in a vice. Here's a frightening thought as well: It's both. God is always, always working on us, to transform us, to fully "save" us, to recreate us in His Own Image. We only notice it here and there. His "work" never ceases. He doesn't ever pull back and stop moving on and in us. And there are times when that working feels like utter destruction. It feels like breaking and not building. It feels like tearing apart, not putting together. Sometimes He knows, the one is a prerequisite for the other. I know these things. I've experienced this kind of transformational growth and molding. I've counseled and spiritually directed people through these things. But you never stop going through it yourself and you can only direct yourself to a certain extent. I do have a spiritual director and I do talk to him about these things. I only see him once a month, though, so in between those times, I'm out at sea in bad weather. I am also familiar with the enemy and the reality of spiritual warfare and demonic activity. I've been up close and personal with that mess. It's nothing to be sneezed at. Compared with the power of the Lord into Whom we are grafted, the "power" of these entities are next to nothing. Here's the problem though. We can, I can, know this but still not be tapping into the Power of Jesus as much as I could - and the power of spiritual evil in comparison to my own personal power, is a "big man" indeed. I cannot pretend that I am able to go up against that on my own. I don't doubt that some of that is going on - it is going on with all of us if we are moving in God's direction, trying to listen to Him and follow Him. There are traps set all over these roads. So, the original question was: Is it too much to ask? ...that people could be caring, pastoral, welcoming and open-hearted to my family as we go through this somewhat awkward process of entry into the Catholic Church? I'm not saying no one has been nice or that no one has shown us any openness. That's not the case. But seriously people, I'm not coming into this thing looking to be an ass about things or to get angry at everything and everyone, honestly I'm not. I haven't. But I can tell you about some extremely awkward, very un-pastoral, very next to rude things that have been said to us and which are presently in play. It makes me ask, knowing that it's a very skewed question, am I being punished somehow for having left the Church to begin with? (clarifying update: I mean by people, not by God) Am I being considered automatically ignorant? As I said in so many words, I'm very willing to look and see where I am being goofy here. I have and am doing that. But nobody else is doing this - it doesn't seem like. And that, sports fans, is hard to deal with. I'm being very open about this business on this blog. I know that's downright weird to some of you. Oh well. This is all I have to say at the moment. I'm not writing this in the middle of my worst emotion, in tears. I'm writing this post that, having thought a bit. I made a decision to share this here, NOT in order to give anyone a reason to dislike or pile on the Catholic Church or Catholicism in general, NOT to attract any more rudeness or uncaring remarks than I've already experienced, and NOT just to be a big baby whiner. This is my real life experience, and I have a suspicion that I'm probably not alone in this, and I think it's a good thing to have whole, real stories out here in this realm for people to see. Anyway, I pray that you have more Peace than I have right now. technorati tags > catholic church, reversion, church burnout, spiritual growth, spiritual warfare Labels: catholic, church, personal, reversion :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: November 01, 2007 >> 8:38 PM all saints  Happy All Saints Day. Today we celebrate all those Saints who have gone on to the fullness of their Salvation before us, whether known, unknown, canonized or not. Their fullness of Life now is hope for us. We also focus today on the concept of the Communion of Saints - all those who belong to and are grafted into Christ, whether here on earth, or those in the heavenly realm (purgatorial front hallway all the way deep into the Bridal chamber). We ask for their help, their prayers - prayers from the big-picture perspective.We went to Mass tonight to join in the celebration with the whole Church. The Bishop presided and I'm sure he'd want to know I liked his homily quite a bit. :) He spoke of the big and the small, all of us, all the Saints we know of and those whom we have known in our lives and know now. He went on into the Gospel reading, the Beatitudes, and borrowed a little from Pope Benedict's take in his new book, about how this list is really a veiled Christology, if you will. They describe Jesus. He is the personification of the Beatitudes, and as much as we allow Him to permeate our lives and change us, they will also be biographical of us. Our hope is in Him, in Whom we trust to create in us His own Life. Good stuff - THE stuff. I leave you with a litany of sorts - of Saints I have known and of some whom I one day will know. I honor them as my now older siblings in Christ. I look to them for aid in my own journey which is still pretty sticky at times. Ora Pro Nobis.... - Father Killian Mooney - Camilla Bauer - Mark Palmer - Chad Canipe - Verna Nelson - Francis of Assisi - Patrick of Ireland - Columba of Ireland - Benedict of Nursia - Thomas Merton - Mary, Mother of God technorati tags > all saints, beatitudes Labels: church, liturgy, theology :::
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permalink ::: e-mail me ::: October 31, 2007 >> 2:43 PM halloween > reformation day  You know it's October 31st, Halloween, All Hallow's Eve, the ancient harvest feast of Samhain (pron. "SAwan"). All that. Lord have mercy. Yes, that's our Jack-O-Lantern there, the two faced one. Our two youngest got to carve a face a piece in the pumpkin - looks pretty good. Then, tonight, at least the youngest one will dress up, go around the neighborhood, and get a bunch of candy from people. And I get the candy they don't like, so that's good too - Tootsie Rolls and Almond Joys! I know, I know all about the sketchy roots of Halloween. I know that business is real. I've been involved in it, to a small degree, in my teenage years before I knew better. So, my kids know too. They've always - always - been taught that these negative spiritual things are real and not to be messed with. I've told them personal stories to help keep them away from it. It has worked, believe it or not. Teaching your children is good, m'kaaay. We have taught them but haven't been overly focused on demons behind every bush - that, I don't believe, is very helpful. It's out of balance. Be careful with that, and eat lots of candy.Reformation Day - One Catholic's Perspective   Apparently, at some point, this too became Reformation Day. I don't know the history of that so I won't get into that. Oh, and meet Fr. Martin (left) and Mr. Calvin (right) - they would have no small bit to do with what is called the Protestant Reformation. OK, don't get excited. I have no intention of writing some long dissertation here on the Reformation or Luther and Calvin, etc. That's not the point of this. Oh, and just for the record, I would likely much favor the fatter, beer-drinkin' German on the left to the skinnier, more harsh-looking dude on the right. Whatever that's worth.First I want to point out two good posts I've seen recently, written by my siblings on the Protestant side of the House - worth taking a look at: Andrew Jones and Michael Spencer. Good thoughts I think. I told Michael that I thought about writing this, so here I am. Basically, I thought I'd mimic these guys and go down a few bullet points, some thoughts - and these are MY thoughts - once again, whatever they're worth.
technorati tags > halloween, catholic church, protestant reformation, reformation day Labels: catholic, church, church history |
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