The violin composition by Ludwig van Beethoven: Romance #2 for violin and orchestra Opus 50 in F Major, played by violinist Josef Suk, Sir Neville Marriner, conductor [1] evokes a youthful fantasy, a place of peace and freedom where a carefree life could be lived in love with abandon.
Beethoven's Romance #1 Opus 49 in G Major is also beautiful but his Romance #2 Opus 50 in F Major stresses a sense of longing that always seems to arise during periods between romantic interludes which makes each successive romantic rendezvous much more ephemeral and precious than the last, and turns the longing for the next into an intense yearning.
Youthful fantasies fade away while realities of life set in insidiously as the years go by, erasing the innocence of youth, the spontaneity of laughter and the blissfulness of existence.
Despite the prevalence of disturbances and worries in the life of a grown-up, this Romance #2 for violin and orchestra by Beethoven recorded by Josef Suk, with Sir Neville Marriner conducting Academy of St. Martin of the Fields orchestra beginning at 7:25 awakens temporarily the dreams of youth that are closer to what Heaven must be like than the antipodal extremes of hijacked and tyrannical religions and unbridled and greedy capitalism.
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwa0c-oKZSM beginning at 7:25.
Sunday, August 31, 2014
Completed My Confession - Conclusion
My penance is to reach out to the homeless and start a conversation, to volunteer at a soup kitchen and the like. Having compassion is not enough, apparently. Putting the compassion into action is my assignment. That is not easy for me, for I prefer solitude, but I will do it.
Fr. Joseph who heard my confession was the priest who gave the homily (in English) at the 11 a.m. Latin Mass. Coincidentally, or not-so-coincidentally, depending on one's perspective, the Good Samaritan [1], [2] was today's Gospel reading . The homily echoed the teaching of Jesus Christ Who asked us to do as the Good Samaritan had done, by interrupting life, going out of the way, to help a neighbor in need.
Fr. Joseph noted that St. Augustine likened the man on the road to Jericho who was beaten and robbed to Adam, and the Good Samaritan who paid the innkeeper two silver coins and however many more that were necessary to take care of the injured man to Christ Who came to purchase salvation for the descendants of the fallen Adam by paying the ultimate price--death by crucifixion.
While I am not brave or selfless enough to give up my life for another, perhaps I can give up a little bit, in order to share a laugh and a moment of comfort with another less fortunate [3].
[1] http://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/tag/parable-of-the-good-samaritan/
[2] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2010:25-37
[3] Fr. Joseph also made us recall the victims of war in Ukraine, Iraq and Syria.
Fr. Joseph who heard my confession was the priest who gave the homily (in English) at the 11 a.m. Latin Mass. Coincidentally, or not-so-coincidentally, depending on one's perspective, the Good Samaritan [1], [2] was today's Gospel reading . The homily echoed the teaching of Jesus Christ Who asked us to do as the Good Samaritan had done, by interrupting life, going out of the way, to help a neighbor in need.
Fr. Joseph noted that St. Augustine likened the man on the road to Jericho who was beaten and robbed to Adam, and the Good Samaritan who paid the innkeeper two silver coins and however many more that were necessary to take care of the injured man to Christ Who came to purchase salvation for the descendants of the fallen Adam by paying the ultimate price--death by crucifixion.
While I am not brave or selfless enough to give up my life for another, perhaps I can give up a little bit, in order to share a laugh and a moment of comfort with another less fortunate [3].
[1] http://petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang.com/tag/parable-of-the-good-samaritan/
[2] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2010:25-37
[3] Fr. Joseph also made us recall the victims of war in Ukraine, Iraq and Syria.
Planning My Confession - Part 3
I was determined to have my confession even though I did not know how to confess. This afternoon [1], I went to church and saw Fr. Joseph, the pastor, praying on his knees in the sanctuary. During a short break, he noticed my presence and waved to me to approach. I did not feel comfortable standing so I knelt on the padded communion rail kneeler (a long prie-dieu [2]) to speak with him. He told me he was saying his prayers but will meet with me afterwards. I returned to the pew to pray. When the church bell rang, I looked up. Fr. Joseph was done with his prayers. He motioned me to follow him.
He led me to his office and he began by saying The Memorare prayer and two others before he started asking me questions. I told him that I was preparing to enter a new phase in my life, and asked if he was able to be my spiritual guide, and that I would like to have a confession except I did not know how to confess. He printed out a "checklist" that was almost one full page worth of single-spaced questions in four categories:
1. "God and My Faith in Him"
2. "Family Life and Friendships"
3. "The Gift of Sexuality" and
4. "Honesty".
The litany of questions under each category is embarrassing to approach on my own, let alone confessing my responses to a priest I met just today. Embarrassment aside, I have an appointment tomorrow to confess.
[1] This entry began on Saturday night but was posted after midnight.
[2] http://www.howjsay.com/index.php?word=prie-dieu
He led me to his office and he began by saying The Memorare prayer and two others before he started asking me questions. I told him that I was preparing to enter a new phase in my life, and asked if he was able to be my spiritual guide, and that I would like to have a confession except I did not know how to confess. He printed out a "checklist" that was almost one full page worth of single-spaced questions in four categories:
1. "God and My Faith in Him"
2. "Family Life and Friendships"
3. "The Gift of Sexuality" and
4. "Honesty".
The litany of questions under each category is embarrassing to approach on my own, let alone confessing my responses to a priest I met just today. Embarrassment aside, I have an appointment tomorrow to confess.
[1] This entry began on Saturday night but was posted after midnight.
[2] http://www.howjsay.com/index.php?word=prie-dieu
Saturday, August 30, 2014
The Face Of God
Nobody has seen the face of God. This opens the door to imagination, a limitless space the Creator shares with all the created.
In this day and age, surveillance cameras are virtually everywhere. Imagine that such a camera is a floating satellite, and that each person is assigned to one, and it records every moment of his or her existence until death. Every image captured is in 3-D, having a resolution indistinguishable from life itself. Over the course of any fractional picosecond, a very large number of such images can be available. Needless to say, over the course of one's lifetime, an even larger number of such images can be examined [1].
From this storage of images one can find a facial image that is the most beautiful relative to the rest [2]. This is one image of one's face at one's best moment in one's entire lifetime. Then imagine all the people that had existed, that now exists and will ever exist in the future, and from each life, only one beautiful facial image will be produced.
Imagine further that the one beautiful face from each individual are united to form a single face. This face, I imagine, approximates the face of God.
[1] Although the number of images captured in a lifetime is beyond my practical comprehension, it nonetheless is theoretically less than infinity because one's lifetime is a very short span relative to an eternity that does not have a beginning or an end.
[2] Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. Therefore, one has to leave the judging to God and that will include images that has been transformed by accident and by choice, by diet and nutrition or lack thereof, by medication, drugs and hormones. The beauty of a face is the combination of the physical exterior and the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual interior, reflecting the totality of the being at any one moment.
In this day and age, surveillance cameras are virtually everywhere. Imagine that such a camera is a floating satellite, and that each person is assigned to one, and it records every moment of his or her existence until death. Every image captured is in 3-D, having a resolution indistinguishable from life itself. Over the course of any fractional picosecond, a very large number of such images can be available. Needless to say, over the course of one's lifetime, an even larger number of such images can be examined [1].
From this storage of images one can find a facial image that is the most beautiful relative to the rest [2]. This is one image of one's face at one's best moment in one's entire lifetime. Then imagine all the people that had existed, that now exists and will ever exist in the future, and from each life, only one beautiful facial image will be produced.
Imagine further that the one beautiful face from each individual are united to form a single face. This face, I imagine, approximates the face of God.
[1] Although the number of images captured in a lifetime is beyond my practical comprehension, it nonetheless is theoretically less than infinity because one's lifetime is a very short span relative to an eternity that does not have a beginning or an end.
[2] Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. Therefore, one has to leave the judging to God and that will include images that has been transformed by accident and by choice, by diet and nutrition or lack thereof, by medication, drugs and hormones. The beauty of a face is the combination of the physical exterior and the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual interior, reflecting the totality of the being at any one moment.
Friday, August 29, 2014
God Loves A Broken Heart
A broken heart, for purposes of this entry, is not a clinical condition [1] but an emotional one. When one loves another and that love is misunderstood, unrequited or no longer possible for any reason, such as death, the heart hurts.
The closer the relationship from which the love stems, the closest could very well be between parent and child, the more the pain when that love is missing, ignored, rejected, overlooked, under-appreciated or unappreciated, deemed superfluous or irrelevant, or is terminated. When the one giving love is not giving up, the heart can feel like it is in pieces. A broken heart is a heart God loves because it is broken out of love.
The heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary was broken when She saw Her Son suffer emotionally and physically before and during His crucifixion, and the heart of Jesus was broken when Judas betrayed Him, when Peter denied Him, when Thomas disbelieved in Him and when those whom He came to save rejected and crucified Him.
The sinful heart of man stands at a vast distance away from the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Sacred Heart of Jesus in purity, but its brokenness is closely linked to Theirs by a commonality: the humanness of the organ that is vulnerable to being hurt. It is that humanness that God loves. When the heart is given freely to another out of unconditional love, man grows in the likeness of God, eventually returning to God when the scars of emotional pain from his broken and unfulfilled heart would be fully healed. [1]
[1] The thought that God's heart is broken because the children of the world are destroying each other, the earth and the Church seemed like a good idea at first but it is not (see contradicting paragraph below). In Heaven, everything is perfect--nothing is broken. God is whole and omniscient, forgiving and unconditionally loving. Anyone who is like God, who knows the Truth and who forgives all trespasses and loves all, is immune to pain, an immunity that the Mother of God and the Son of God did not have while they were on earth.
Having made an assertion that God's heart is not broken because God is perfect and perfection is whole, I contradict myself and come full circle. Perhaps brokenness is embodied within perfection and as such, God is perfect with a broken heart, broken because the children of the world are destroying each other, the earth and the Church.
[1] http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/broken-heart-syndrome/basics/definition/con-20034635
The closer the relationship from which the love stems, the closest could very well be between parent and child, the more the pain when that love is missing, ignored, rejected, overlooked, under-appreciated or unappreciated, deemed superfluous or irrelevant, or is terminated. When the one giving love is not giving up, the heart can feel like it is in pieces. A broken heart is a heart God loves because it is broken out of love.
The heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary was broken when She saw Her Son suffer emotionally and physically before and during His crucifixion, and the heart of Jesus was broken when Judas betrayed Him, when Peter denied Him, when Thomas disbelieved in Him and when those whom He came to save rejected and crucified Him.
The sinful heart of man stands at a vast distance away from the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Sacred Heart of Jesus in purity, but its brokenness is closely linked to Theirs by a commonality: the humanness of the organ that is vulnerable to being hurt. It is that humanness that God loves. When the heart is given freely to another out of unconditional love, man grows in the likeness of God, eventually returning to God when the scars of emotional pain from his broken and unfulfilled heart would be fully healed. [1]
[1] The thought that God's heart is broken because the children of the world are destroying each other, the earth and the Church seemed like a good idea at first but it is not (see contradicting paragraph below). In Heaven, everything is perfect--nothing is broken. God is whole and omniscient, forgiving and unconditionally loving. Anyone who is like God, who knows the Truth and who forgives all trespasses and loves all, is immune to pain, an immunity that the Mother of God and the Son of God did not have while they were on earth.
Having made an assertion that God's heart is not broken because God is perfect and perfection is whole, I contradict myself and come full circle. Perhaps brokenness is embodied within perfection and as such, God is perfect with a broken heart, broken because the children of the world are destroying each other, the earth and the Church.
[1] http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/broken-heart-syndrome/basics/definition/con-20034635
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
Monstrance
I want to know how often the Holy Eucharist is replaced in the receptacle that holds It, and what they do with It when it is replaced. I still do not know but I was told that the receptacle that holds the Holy Eucharist is called monstrance, derived from the Latin word monstrare which means "to show" [1]. It is also called ostensorium, derived from the Latin word ostendere which also means "to show" [2].
The monstrances or ostensoria I have seen look ostentatious. In my opinion, they take away attention from the Holy Eucharist, the humble Body of Christ. Dissatisfied with the gaudy designs that demonstrate the richness of the container, I decided to do an image search on Google and found one that I like (see above) [3]. It is not the most basic of monstrances nor is it the most glittery. It seems to strike a balance between the purity of the sacred Host it contains and man's attempt to capture the glory of Christ in Heaven with imagination, talent, and gold.
[1] http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/monstrance?s=t
[2] http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/ostensorium?s=t
[3] "Monstrance manufactured in France in the first half of the twentieth century. Immaculée-Conception de Bellerive Church.
Photo : Sébastien Daviau, Musée régional de Vaudreuil-Soulanges, 2011." See http://www.frh-europe.org/category/features/page/2/ (need to scroll down to see the image copied above).
Monday, August 25, 2014
Is There Love In Hell?
Hell? No.
One ends up in Hell because he has made his final rejection of God, Who is Love. Accordingly, Hell has no God and no love. It also does not have compassion and forgiveness, the precursors of love.
It does have justice, however--not the justice that landed the soul there in the first place, but the justice the soul continuously seeks because it believes it should not be in Hell, but the fact that it is, it believes that being in Hell must have been a result of unfairness.
The kind of justice a soul in Hell seeks to have never ends because it is never perfect. It is merely an attempt at perfection, trying to make things whole again. Each attempt that is made necessarily fails because justice cannot make things whole--only love can. Love perfects justice; indeed, it replaces justice, making it obsolete. Thus, in Heaven, where God's love is in abundance everywhere, justice is not part of the knowledge and consciousness of souls. Its existence has simply been rendered unnecessary.
The absence of compassion and forgiveness in Hell allows justice to show its scales that never balances. The atmosphere is full of blame and recrimination, similar to earthly vendettas that never ends. The explosive situation in the Mideast is an example. Bitter family fights are another.
The scales of justice cannot deliver a remedy that brings peace to the Mideast, to quarreling family members or to the souls in Hell. Something is always missing, the perfect remedy always being elusive. They think perfect justice is lacking, but they are wrong, for the justice they seek is never perfect because it has no compassion, and it has no forgiveness.
The souls that seek justice from the depths of Hell were very people who clamored for justice in life and who failed to have compassion for and show forgiveness of others, including their enemies. These souls will never have the love of God.
One ends up in Hell because he has made his final rejection of God, Who is Love. Accordingly, Hell has no God and no love. It also does not have compassion and forgiveness, the precursors of love.
It does have justice, however--not the justice that landed the soul there in the first place, but the justice the soul continuously seeks because it believes it should not be in Hell, but the fact that it is, it believes that being in Hell must have been a result of unfairness.
The kind of justice a soul in Hell seeks to have never ends because it is never perfect. It is merely an attempt at perfection, trying to make things whole again. Each attempt that is made necessarily fails because justice cannot make things whole--only love can. Love perfects justice; indeed, it replaces justice, making it obsolete. Thus, in Heaven, where God's love is in abundance everywhere, justice is not part of the knowledge and consciousness of souls. Its existence has simply been rendered unnecessary.
The absence of compassion and forgiveness in Hell allows justice to show its scales that never balances. The atmosphere is full of blame and recrimination, similar to earthly vendettas that never ends. The explosive situation in the Mideast is an example. Bitter family fights are another.
The scales of justice cannot deliver a remedy that brings peace to the Mideast, to quarreling family members or to the souls in Hell. Something is always missing, the perfect remedy always being elusive. They think perfect justice is lacking, but they are wrong, for the justice they seek is never perfect because it has no compassion, and it has no forgiveness.
The souls that seek justice from the depths of Hell were very people who clamored for justice in life and who failed to have compassion for and show forgiveness of others, including their enemies. These souls will never have the love of God.
Friday, August 22, 2014
An Operatic Duet
By no means am I an opera buff but Vincenzo Bellini's "Miro O Norma" sung by mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne and soprano Joan Sutherland in this 1970 recording on Youtube is worth a listen [1]. While the kind of love alluded to in this song [2] does not quite parallel the spousal or motherly love set forth in my last post, it is nonetheless love.
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STtwkh1rAA. Other parings for this duet include:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4ANM5_ur5k beginning at 3:50 (Renata Scotto and Tatiana Troyano),
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zZBeDWvYXo (Cecilia Bartoli and Sumi Jo) and
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGIKcc6HiNw (Anna Netrebko and Elīna Garanča)
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norma_%28opera%29
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STtwkh1rAA. Other parings for this duet include:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4ANM5_ur5k beginning at 3:50 (Renata Scotto and Tatiana Troyano),
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zZBeDWvYXo (Cecilia Bartoli and Sumi Jo) and
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGIKcc6HiNw (Anna Netrebko and Elīna Garanča)
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norma_%28opera%29
The Blessed Virgin Mary - The Model For Women
The Holy Trinity is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The trinity of the Blessed Virgin Mary [1] is the Spouse of the Holy Spirit [2], the Mother of Jesus, the Son, and the Daughter of God, the Father [3]. The Blessed Virgin Mary is therefore the one and only perfect model for women in all three capacities as spouse, mother and daughter.
As the Spouse of the Paraclete, "[s]urrendering with alacrity to the abundant and alluring grace of the Holy Spirit, Mary has pledged herself to Him in the spirit of fidelity, thereby becoming His Chaste Spouse. She has rejected everything that is contrary to the Holy Spirit. She has only one Eternal Spouse: the Beloved Counselor." [4]
If a woman looks to the Blessed Virgin Mary as the model of a perfect spouse, she would live in perfect harmony with her husband, just as the Blessed Virgin Mary is perfectly united with the Holy Spirit; and she would conform to her marriage vows with love [5], in the same way the Blessed Virgin Mary is "caught up into the Will of the Holy Spirit. Mary's conformity to the Consoler is so complete that His desires, sentiments and plan of action have become hers." [6]
In a marriage that mirrors the pairing of the Holy Paraclete and the Blessed Virgin Mary, the husband is loved so unconditionally by his wife that he would do anything she says, and she would lead him to the heart the Blessed Virgin Mary as she herself is guided by her Blessed Mother. The family they would have and the children that are brought up by them would never leave the embrace of Christ.
A wife to her husband is also a mother to her children. The mother who loves her children in the way the Mother of God loves Her Son from conception to crucifixion [7], and who guides her children to the heart of their father (whose heart she fell in love with and married in the first place) will never face infidelity, endure the pains of separation and divorce, of brokenness and loneliness.
The absence of such pains is not her reward. Her reward is her children's constant love for her because of the unwavering love she has for them and for their father whom they also love. In much the same way the Blessed Virgin Mary is rewarded with the love of Her Beloved Son because She also loves God the Father Whom the Son also loves.
To this day, Her Son continues to love Her Mother and pay attention to what She has to convey--Her unconditional love for us sinners through Her constant intercessions. What mother would not want her children to love her and listen to her in the way Christ loves and listens to His Mother? What woman would not want to be like her most beautiful Blessed Mother? [8]
A woman who becomes a spouse, then a mother, is first a daughter of God the Father. The Father in Heaven is a perfect Father Who loves unconditionally all daughters from every corner of the world and welcomes into the Kingdom of Heaven all who love as the Blessed Virgin Mary loves.
The Blessed Virgin Mary Whose perfect obedience to the Father has earned Her a special place in Heaven as Queen of Heaven and Earth. Although no other woman, however saintly, is Her equal in the trio of gifts of Immaculate Conception, Chaste Union with the Holy Spirit and Motherhood to the Son of God, every woman is nonetheless blessed with the gift of family from daughterhood, marriage to motherhood and has her place in Heaven as a beloved daughter whose soul is embraced by and filled with the uninterrupted flow of God's love.
[1] The Blessed Virgin Mary as a trinity of persons came into my thoughts a few days ago as a vague concept.
[2] I looked for and found support that the Blessed Virgin Mary is "is the Spouse of the Paraclete" at http://www.catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=3013
[3] I also looked for and found support that the Blessed Virgin Mary is "the Daughter of God the Father" in the concluding prayer of the Little Crown of the Blessed Virgin Mary at http://www.catholictradition.org/Two-Hearts/crown.htm.
[4] http://www.catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=3013
[5] A number of marriage vows can be found on the internet, including here: http://weddings.about.com/cs/bridesandgrooms/a/vowwording.htm
[6] http://www.catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=3013
[7] Conception as I define it means the very moment the spermatozoon enters the ovum, even before the zygote is formed. Crucifixion as I define it here means death, but not by euthanasia.
[8] "Bernadette described Our Lady as being very young and very beautiful – In her own words:
As the Spouse of the Paraclete, "[s]urrendering with alacrity to the abundant and alluring grace of the Holy Spirit, Mary has pledged herself to Him in the spirit of fidelity, thereby becoming His Chaste Spouse. She has rejected everything that is contrary to the Holy Spirit. She has only one Eternal Spouse: the Beloved Counselor." [4]
If a woman looks to the Blessed Virgin Mary as the model of a perfect spouse, she would live in perfect harmony with her husband, just as the Blessed Virgin Mary is perfectly united with the Holy Spirit; and she would conform to her marriage vows with love [5], in the same way the Blessed Virgin Mary is "caught up into the Will of the Holy Spirit. Mary's conformity to the Consoler is so complete that His desires, sentiments and plan of action have become hers." [6]
In a marriage that mirrors the pairing of the Holy Paraclete and the Blessed Virgin Mary, the husband is loved so unconditionally by his wife that he would do anything she says, and she would lead him to the heart the Blessed Virgin Mary as she herself is guided by her Blessed Mother. The family they would have and the children that are brought up by them would never leave the embrace of Christ.
A wife to her husband is also a mother to her children. The mother who loves her children in the way the Mother of God loves Her Son from conception to crucifixion [7], and who guides her children to the heart of their father (whose heart she fell in love with and married in the first place) will never face infidelity, endure the pains of separation and divorce, of brokenness and loneliness.
The absence of such pains is not her reward. Her reward is her children's constant love for her because of the unwavering love she has for them and for their father whom they also love. In much the same way the Blessed Virgin Mary is rewarded with the love of Her Beloved Son because She also loves God the Father Whom the Son also loves.
To this day, Her Son continues to love Her Mother and pay attention to what She has to convey--Her unconditional love for us sinners through Her constant intercessions. What mother would not want her children to love her and listen to her in the way Christ loves and listens to His Mother? What woman would not want to be like her most beautiful Blessed Mother? [8]
A woman who becomes a spouse, then a mother, is first a daughter of God the Father. The Father in Heaven is a perfect Father Who loves unconditionally all daughters from every corner of the world and welcomes into the Kingdom of Heaven all who love as the Blessed Virgin Mary loves.
The Blessed Virgin Mary Whose perfect obedience to the Father has earned Her a special place in Heaven as Queen of Heaven and Earth. Although no other woman, however saintly, is Her equal in the trio of gifts of Immaculate Conception, Chaste Union with the Holy Spirit and Motherhood to the Son of God, every woman is nonetheless blessed with the gift of family from daughterhood, marriage to motherhood and has her place in Heaven as a beloved daughter whose soul is embraced by and filled with the uninterrupted flow of God's love.
[1] The Blessed Virgin Mary as a trinity of persons came into my thoughts a few days ago as a vague concept.
[2] I looked for and found support that the Blessed Virgin Mary is "is the Spouse of the Paraclete" at http://www.catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=3013
[3] I also looked for and found support that the Blessed Virgin Mary is "the Daughter of God the Father" in the concluding prayer of the Little Crown of the Blessed Virgin Mary at http://www.catholictradition.org/Two-Hearts/crown.htm.
[4] http://www.catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=3013
[5] A number of marriage vows can be found on the internet, including here: http://weddings.about.com/cs/bridesandgrooms/a/vowwording.htm
[6] http://www.catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=3013
[7] Conception as I define it means the very moment the spermatozoon enters the ovum, even before the zygote is formed. Crucifixion as I define it here means death, but not by euthanasia.
[8] "Bernadette described Our Lady as being very young and very beautiful – In her own words:
See http://www.biographyonline.net/spiritual/bernadette-soubirious.html'so lovely that, when you have seen her once, you would willingly die to see her again!' [1]"
Sunday, August 17, 2014
Mass For Peace and Reconciliation
Today, Pope Francis celebrated Mass for Peace and Reconciliation at the Myeongdong Cathedral, the Cathedral Church of the Virgin Mary of the Immaculate Conception [1], in Seoul, Korea. He spoke of forgiveness and reconciliation and in that spirit, I shall, from this day forward, change my attitude toward this pope whom I had charged with hypocrisy, without giving him the benefit of the doubt, without considering how difficult a job he has and without considering that he has the capacity to grow in holiness. Certainly, I have lived with and excused my own hypocrisies, and realize how impossible it is to lead a life detached from the day to day responsibilities and escape from the numerous occasions for sin, and how often I have received the grace of God despite my unholiness and not having dedicated myself to serving God.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myeongdong_Cathedral
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myeongdong_Cathedral
Friday, August 15, 2014
Feast Of The Assumption Of The Blessed Virgin Mary
Being a very bad Catholic, I am never mindful of the Holy Days of Obligation. Today happens to be the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. I was only reminded of it because I dropped by the church that I plan to be a part of, wishing to ask about how often they had Vespers. It was only when I picked up the weekly bulletin did I realize that today was a Holy Day of Obligation, obligating a Catholic to attend Mass. Well, the next Mass was going to start at 6 p.m. and it would be in Latin.
I say the rosary in Latin, along with the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel and the Memorare, but I do not know any other Latin words, with the exception of a few legal terms. It was not a Mass that I planned on attending, in whatever language.
A reminder that today is a Holy Day of Obligation did not distract me from my goal. A man familiar with the grounds directed me to the office. A lady by the name of Carmel (the accent is on the first syllable, not the second, as I have learned) opened the door. She was sweet and helpful. Carmel said Vespers was a new addition and not quite yet in place, so she called a priest to ask.
Fr. Patrick Driscoll, one of the two new priests at the church came down to greet me instead of talking with me on the telephone as Carmel suggested. I did not expect a meeting and was slightly apprehensive, for I am used to living anonymously. I was there just to ask about Vespers, but the conversation started on a very different path. It turned out to be a pre-confession conversation. I was happy to have met Fr. Driscoll, but the meeting did not change my mind on skipping the 6 p.m. Mass.
I had planned to workout. At 5:30 p.m. I was confronted with a choice: gym or Mass? The decision came quickly. I had no problem admitting that the Blessed Virgin Mary has been helping me a lot. She comes to my aid every time I pray to Her. I just could not bear ignoring Her day of Assumption (that would certainly have been a confessable sin), so I went to Mass.
It was the first Latin Mass I had attended. I did not understand much of anything (except for the sermon which was in English) but I am determined to learn. The priest who said the Mass was Fr. Driscoll. It was nice seeing him again. There was a degree of familiarity. I like that.
Upon returning home, moments before I opened the door, I felt a lightness in my step, a certain happiness that came from within, a total relief from all my worries and burdens. I felt as if I did not have a care in the world. I was free! I was happy from within. This feeling was different from the fully relaxed feeling I get after an endorphin-releasing workout. The after workout feel is physical, but the after Mass feel today was plenary (physical, mental and spiritual). It was a gift from my Blessed Mother, an encouragement to attend Mass more, to be more dedicated to a Catholic life and be an active participant at the church (that can be challenging, but the Blessed Mother always asks a lot of us, but never more than what we are able to accomplish).
Asking is one thing, actually accomplishing what have been asked of is quite another. A mind that wanders during Mass is probably not what the Blessed Mother expects, but it happens. It happened during the 6 p.m. Mass, probably while Fr. Driscoll was saying something in Latin, when I came up with this prayer [1]:
O Blessed Virgin Mary, You were assumed into Heaven. Take us with you!
[1] This time my wandering thoughts came up with a prayer at least. Sometimes Satan enters and they become momentarily stuck in Its corner. It happened today, too.
I say the rosary in Latin, along with the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel and the Memorare, but I do not know any other Latin words, with the exception of a few legal terms. It was not a Mass that I planned on attending, in whatever language.
A reminder that today is a Holy Day of Obligation did not distract me from my goal. A man familiar with the grounds directed me to the office. A lady by the name of Carmel (the accent is on the first syllable, not the second, as I have learned) opened the door. She was sweet and helpful. Carmel said Vespers was a new addition and not quite yet in place, so she called a priest to ask.
Fr. Patrick Driscoll, one of the two new priests at the church came down to greet me instead of talking with me on the telephone as Carmel suggested. I did not expect a meeting and was slightly apprehensive, for I am used to living anonymously. I was there just to ask about Vespers, but the conversation started on a very different path. It turned out to be a pre-confession conversation. I was happy to have met Fr. Driscoll, but the meeting did not change my mind on skipping the 6 p.m. Mass.
I had planned to workout. At 5:30 p.m. I was confronted with a choice: gym or Mass? The decision came quickly. I had no problem admitting that the Blessed Virgin Mary has been helping me a lot. She comes to my aid every time I pray to Her. I just could not bear ignoring Her day of Assumption (that would certainly have been a confessable sin), so I went to Mass.
It was the first Latin Mass I had attended. I did not understand much of anything (except for the sermon which was in English) but I am determined to learn. The priest who said the Mass was Fr. Driscoll. It was nice seeing him again. There was a degree of familiarity. I like that.
Upon returning home, moments before I opened the door, I felt a lightness in my step, a certain happiness that came from within, a total relief from all my worries and burdens. I felt as if I did not have a care in the world. I was free! I was happy from within. This feeling was different from the fully relaxed feeling I get after an endorphin-releasing workout. The after workout feel is physical, but the after Mass feel today was plenary (physical, mental and spiritual). It was a gift from my Blessed Mother, an encouragement to attend Mass more, to be more dedicated to a Catholic life and be an active participant at the church (that can be challenging, but the Blessed Mother always asks a lot of us, but never more than what we are able to accomplish).
Asking is one thing, actually accomplishing what have been asked of is quite another. A mind that wanders during Mass is probably not what the Blessed Mother expects, but it happens. It happened during the 6 p.m. Mass, probably while Fr. Driscoll was saying something in Latin, when I came up with this prayer [1]:
O Blessed Virgin Mary, You were assumed into Heaven. Take us with you!
[1] This time my wandering thoughts came up with a prayer at least. Sometimes Satan enters and they become momentarily stuck in Its corner. It happened today, too.
Thursday, August 14, 2014
Words Of Our Lady of Soufanieh and The Lord Jesus
Excerpted below are two of the many messages received by Myrna Nazzour from the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Lord Jesus:
Words of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Her Third Message delivered during Her Fourth Apparition at Soufanieh, Syria, on Monday February 21, 1983, at 9:30 p.m.:
Words of the Lord on Ascension Thursday, May 31, 1984:
[1] http://www.soufanieh.com/ENGLISH/eemess.htm
[2] Ibid.
[3] It is interesting to note that none of the messages spoke of any covenant with any of the Jews in the Old Testament or the saving of Israel. But Jesus did speak generally of unity, love and faith: "My children, You, yourselves, will teach the generations THE WORD of unity, love and faith. I am with you." Ibid. That allows one to conclude that the Jews are no longer favored over the rest of humanity, that they are a part of humanity, so that they, too, along with all the Gentiles, will need to live out "THE WORD of unity, love and faith" to get to Heaven.
Words of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Her Third Message delivered during Her Fourth Apparition at Soufanieh, Syria, on Monday February 21, 1983, at 9:30 p.m.:
I would like to request something from you, a word that you will engrave in your memory, that you shall always repeat:
God saves me, Jesus enlightens me, the Holy Spirit is my life, thus I fear nothing. [1]
Words of the Lord on Ascension Thursday, May 31, 1984:
Pray for God's will to be done in you, and say:
Beloved Jesus,
Only then will I come to say: Here I am, because you have invited Me. [2], [3]
Grant that I rest in You above all things,
above all creatures,
above all Your angels,
above all praise,
above all rejoicing and exultation,
above all glory and honour,
above all heavenly hosts,
For You alone are the Most High,
You alone are the Almighty and Good above all things.
May You come to me and relieve me,
and release me from my chains,
and grant me freedom,
because without You my joy is not complete,
without You my table is empty.
[1] http://www.soufanieh.com/ENGLISH/eemess.htm
[2] Ibid.
[3] It is interesting to note that none of the messages spoke of any covenant with any of the Jews in the Old Testament or the saving of Israel. But Jesus did speak generally of unity, love and faith: "My children, You, yourselves, will teach the generations THE WORD of unity, love and faith. I am with you." Ibid. That allows one to conclude that the Jews are no longer favored over the rest of humanity, that they are a part of humanity, so that they, too, along with all the Gentiles, will need to live out "THE WORD of unity, love and faith" to get to Heaven.
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Am I Willing To Be A Child Of God?
Only if one can opt out from being God's child can this question be entertained: Am I willing to be a child of God? I pose the question not
because one can choose an alternate Creator, but because whether one ought to behave like a child of God is a worthwhile topic.
I am not a child psychologist (my two psychology courses were Introduction to Psychology and Abnormal Psychology) but I was a child once, so I speak only subjectively. I remember when I was a small child, knowing only enough to make a few decisions, such as to move about and how fast I wanted to move myself. The rest I had no control over, like when I needed food and sleep, and when I needed to go to the bathroom (those were decisions Mother Nature made), and what I would wear and how much to wear (those were decisions my nanny made even though my mother had the final say). I was happy to be taken on an outing, not knowing where I would be going or how to get there. I had put entire my life in the hands of my parents (I would not now). I had no choice (now I do).
Having my parents making my decisions turned out fine. I grew up. The older I became the more I knew and the more control I was able to have over my life, refusing often to abide by the will of my parents (you know how that goes). That is normal.
It is also normal not to abide by the Will of God for we are, after all, descendants of our first parents, Adam and Eve whose Original Sin (disobedience) we inherited, but that is only an excuse, for even sinners have choices.
Having choices means that we are not forced by Sin to reject the Will of God even though being completely obedient to the Will of God is challenging--not impossible-- for anyone not immaculately conceived [1]. Having choices also means that even when we are all grown up, we can still behave like children and do what we are asked to do. That is precisely what God wants, for us to be children, follow God and do God's will.
You ask: "Why must we do what God wants when we can do whatever we want? We have knowledge, we can think, we can reason, we can judge." That is true, but how much do we know, how well can we think, how flawlessly can we reason and how perfectly can we judge when Sin is present in the Truth and confounds us?
Since we do not know everything and we cannot think of everything (we make mistakes), and we cannot reason perfectly and judge perfectly (we end up arguing and fighting), we are like children. So how do we avoid mistakes, arguments and wars?
There is only one way, and that is to follow God, by following Christ.
On the night Jesus Christ was betrayed, He led without words. His first step was humility. Jesus humbled Himself by kneeling before His disciples with water ready to wash their feet. Jesus then washed His disciples' feet, demonstrating charity of heart in the service of others. Jesus' final step that night was love. This Jesus showed His unconditional love by healing the servant of the high priest whose ear was cut off by one of His disciples. [2]
Following means being led. To be led is to behave like children. It is important to behave like children before Christ, to be led by Him [3]. Even Jesus Himself had said, "unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." [4] Thus, it is worthwhile to behave like a child of God, and be led to Heaven.
[1] The Blessed Virgin Mary (the Immaculate Conception) was, and still is, the only person conceived without Original Sin. She was, and remains, completely obedient to the Will of God.
[2] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke%2022:49-51&version=NIV
[3] The operative words are italicized because many act like children before Satan, willing to be led by It. Satan is happy to grant to those willing to do anything, deceive, betray, kill (in essence, sell their souls) in return for power and control over others and the mechanisms that have enslaved the modern man on which he must rely in order to survive.
[4] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+18%3A3&version=ESV
I am not a child psychologist (my two psychology courses were Introduction to Psychology and Abnormal Psychology) but I was a child once, so I speak only subjectively. I remember when I was a small child, knowing only enough to make a few decisions, such as to move about and how fast I wanted to move myself. The rest I had no control over, like when I needed food and sleep, and when I needed to go to the bathroom (those were decisions Mother Nature made), and what I would wear and how much to wear (those were decisions my nanny made even though my mother had the final say). I was happy to be taken on an outing, not knowing where I would be going or how to get there. I had put entire my life in the hands of my parents (I would not now). I had no choice (now I do).
Having my parents making my decisions turned out fine. I grew up. The older I became the more I knew and the more control I was able to have over my life, refusing often to abide by the will of my parents (you know how that goes). That is normal.
It is also normal not to abide by the Will of God for we are, after all, descendants of our first parents, Adam and Eve whose Original Sin (disobedience) we inherited, but that is only an excuse, for even sinners have choices.
Having choices means that we are not forced by Sin to reject the Will of God even though being completely obedient to the Will of God is challenging--not impossible-- for anyone not immaculately conceived [1]. Having choices also means that even when we are all grown up, we can still behave like children and do what we are asked to do. That is precisely what God wants, for us to be children, follow God and do God's will.
You ask: "Why must we do what God wants when we can do whatever we want? We have knowledge, we can think, we can reason, we can judge." That is true, but how much do we know, how well can we think, how flawlessly can we reason and how perfectly can we judge when Sin is present in the Truth and confounds us?
Since we do not know everything and we cannot think of everything (we make mistakes), and we cannot reason perfectly and judge perfectly (we end up arguing and fighting), we are like children. So how do we avoid mistakes, arguments and wars?
There is only one way, and that is to follow God, by following Christ.
On the night Jesus Christ was betrayed, He led without words. His first step was humility. Jesus humbled Himself by kneeling before His disciples with water ready to wash their feet. Jesus then washed His disciples' feet, demonstrating charity of heart in the service of others. Jesus' final step that night was love. This Jesus showed His unconditional love by healing the servant of the high priest whose ear was cut off by one of His disciples. [2]
Following means being led. To be led is to behave like children. It is important to behave like children before Christ, to be led by Him [3]. Even Jesus Himself had said, "unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." [4] Thus, it is worthwhile to behave like a child of God, and be led to Heaven.
[1] The Blessed Virgin Mary (the Immaculate Conception) was, and still is, the only person conceived without Original Sin. She was, and remains, completely obedient to the Will of God.
[2] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke%2022:49-51&version=NIV
[3] The operative words are italicized because many act like children before Satan, willing to be led by It. Satan is happy to grant to those willing to do anything, deceive, betray, kill (in essence, sell their souls) in return for power and control over others and the mechanisms that have enslaved the modern man on which he must rely in order to survive.
[4] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+18%3A3&version=ESV
Sunday, August 10, 2014
The Scream
Edvard Munch's 1893 painting, The Scream [1], foreshadowed the suffering of people in the modern world, beginning with 1914's WWI to today's persecution of Christians in Iraq by Islamic militants [2], passing though 1915's Armenian Genocide, 1937's Nanjing Massacre, 1939's WWII, 1944's Holocaust, 1992's Bosnia Genocide, and 1994's Rwandan Genocide.
Those who say that there is no solution to the persecution of Christians and believe that bombing the rebel militants would be helpful, they have not heeded the messages of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Damascus, Syria and in Brasschaat, Belgium [3], [4]:
With peace the suffering ends, and the scream turns into a smile.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scream. The most painful scream is the silent scream. In my mind, the figure in Edvard Munch's painting never made a sound. He was screaming from his mind and in his heart and he could not stop screaming, even when he wanted to, because the pain was deep in his being, affecting every part of his being. This figure did not pray. He never prays because he is there to show the world the intensity of pain that never ceases. Only with prayer will God heal his wounds, will his pain subside.
[2] I do not have words to preface the raw graphic images on this link, please therefore use discretion before going there: http://www.catholic.org/news/international/middle_east/story.php?id=56481 Christians are also being persecuted in Syria and Libya.
[3] http://www.soufanieh.com/ENGLISH/eemess.htm
[4] The visionary is a Muslim. Her name is Myrna Nazzour. Here is her story: http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/myrna-and-the-oil-an-everyday-miracle-how-does-a-woman-become-a-modern-saint-in-damascus-brigid-keenan-met-myrna-nazzour-and-saw-for-herself-1375732.html and here is her on Youtube in Canada, September 2012: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZeT0nV0cb4. Myrna Nazzour has 3,979 views as of today. The upload is likely 7 months ago. Compare the number of views received by Myrna Nazzour delivering the words of Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary to that of a certain comedian that fetched between 14 million to over 17 million views on a number of Youtube uploads. Little wonder this world is a mess.
Those who say that there is no solution to the persecution of Christians and believe that bombing the rebel militants would be helpful, they have not heeded the messages of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Damascus, Syria and in Brasschaat, Belgium [3], [4]:
Second apparition, First message - Saturday, December 18, 1982, 11:37 pm
My children,
Remember God, because God is with us.
You know all things and yet you know nothing.
Your knowledge is an incomplete knowledge.
But the day will come when you will know all things the way God knows Me.
Do good to those who do evil.
And do not harm anyone.
I have given you oil more than you have asked for,
but I shall give you something much more powerful than oil.
Repent and have faith, and remember Me in your joy.
Announce My Son the Emmanuel.
He who announces Him is saved, and he who does not announce Him, his faith is vain.
Love one another.
I am not asking for money to give to churches, nor for money to distribute to the poor.
I am asking for love.
Those who distribute their money to the poor and to churches,
but have no love, those are nothing.
I shall visit homes more often, because those who go to church, sometimes, do not go there to pray.
I am not asking you to build Me a church, but a shrine.
Give.
Do not turn away anyone who asks for help. [Emphasis added.]
Message from the Holy Virgin (Braaschaatt, Belgium) - Wednesday, August 15, 1990
My children,
Pray for peace, and especially in the East, because you are all brothers in Christ. [Emphasis added.]
With peace the suffering ends, and the scream turns into a smile.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scream. The most painful scream is the silent scream. In my mind, the figure in Edvard Munch's painting never made a sound. He was screaming from his mind and in his heart and he could not stop screaming, even when he wanted to, because the pain was deep in his being, affecting every part of his being. This figure did not pray. He never prays because he is there to show the world the intensity of pain that never ceases. Only with prayer will God heal his wounds, will his pain subside.
[2] I do not have words to preface the raw graphic images on this link, please therefore use discretion before going there: http://www.catholic.org/news/international/middle_east/story.php?id=56481 Christians are also being persecuted in Syria and Libya.
[3] http://www.soufanieh.com/ENGLISH/eemess.htm
[4] The visionary is a Muslim. Her name is Myrna Nazzour. Here is her story: http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/myrna-and-the-oil-an-everyday-miracle-how-does-a-woman-become-a-modern-saint-in-damascus-brigid-keenan-met-myrna-nazzour-and-saw-for-herself-1375732.html and here is her on Youtube in Canada, September 2012: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZeT0nV0cb4. Myrna Nazzour has 3,979 views as of today. The upload is likely 7 months ago. Compare the number of views received by Myrna Nazzour delivering the words of Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary to that of a certain comedian that fetched between 14 million to over 17 million views on a number of Youtube uploads. Little wonder this world is a mess.
Happy In Quietude
I am enjoying my life as an unlonely loner, quite the opposite of my younger years when I was a lonely and depressed loner. Living alone has its challenges, but it is also very free, doing what I please, when I please. Tonight is especially a peaceful night with my mind largely at rest. I am able to enjoy this state of being probably because I had attended a Saturday evening vigil Mass in the late afternoon and left the church with a temporary souvenir: the peace of God.
While I am totally at peace at the moment, a fragment of it went missing a little earlier when I was updating a previous post entered two days ago with a news report on two low ranking politicians, Laurent Fabius, France's foreign minister, and Bernard Cazeneuve, France's interior minister, who jointly offered asylum to the dispossessed and displaced Iraqi Christians. [1] The thought that I cannot do anything to bring comfort to the lives of the persecuted when secular and religious leaders seem only to care about their own little worlds was upsetting. I confess that I had thought of them (including a former president) as serpents that Satan sleeps with until they are no longer useful at which time they are tossed out like the filth, and might I confessedly add, forever festering in venom in the snake pit of Hell. [2]
Here I am reaching out with futility to the persecuted Iraqi Christians and non-Christians alike from the comfort of my room with earbuds delivering Wagner's Tannhäuser Overture [3], the Pilgrim's Chorus [4] and the Grand March [5] into my head does not paint a picture of usefulness, let alone care. Perhaps my hypocrisy equals, if not exceeds that of those I had so bitterly criticized in the paragraph above. Perhaps I ought to be content in my solitude and retreat into my make-belief hermitage divorced from the noises of this world. I am happy to exist alone in quietude, in prayer, in peace [6] and in love. For however long I have been granted the grace to live as such, I am grateful.
[1] http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2014/07/france-offers-asylum-iraqi-christians-2014728125854650414.html
[2] Oh, am I bitter still!
[3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTM7E4-DN0o
[4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBqwAGj5fDA (professional German version) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDdb65l-49E (amateur Chinese-German version)
[6] Like Tannhäuser whose addiction to the profane had kept the sacred out of his reach, my inability to gain complete detachment from the world around me will keep the permanence of Christ's Peace out of mine. Only at death can detachment from the profanities of the world occur and only then can the repentance of sins be final and salvation be possible.
While I am totally at peace at the moment, a fragment of it went missing a little earlier when I was updating a previous post entered two days ago with a news report on two low ranking politicians, Laurent Fabius, France's foreign minister, and Bernard Cazeneuve, France's interior minister, who jointly offered asylum to the dispossessed and displaced Iraqi Christians. [1] The thought that I cannot do anything to bring comfort to the lives of the persecuted when secular and religious leaders seem only to care about their own little worlds was upsetting. I confess that I had thought of them (including a former president) as serpents that Satan sleeps with until they are no longer useful at which time they are tossed out like the filth, and might I confessedly add, forever festering in venom in the snake pit of Hell. [2]
Here I am reaching out with futility to the persecuted Iraqi Christians and non-Christians alike from the comfort of my room with earbuds delivering Wagner's Tannhäuser Overture [3], the Pilgrim's Chorus [4] and the Grand March [5] into my head does not paint a picture of usefulness, let alone care. Perhaps my hypocrisy equals, if not exceeds that of those I had so bitterly criticized in the paragraph above. Perhaps I ought to be content in my solitude and retreat into my make-belief hermitage divorced from the noises of this world. I am happy to exist alone in quietude, in prayer, in peace [6] and in love. For however long I have been granted the grace to live as such, I am grateful.
[1] http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2014/07/france-offers-asylum-iraqi-christians-2014728125854650414.html
[2] Oh, am I bitter still!
[3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTM7E4-DN0o
[4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBqwAGj5fDA (professional German version) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDdb65l-49E (amateur Chinese-German version)
[6] Like Tannhäuser whose addiction to the profane had kept the sacred out of his reach, my inability to gain complete detachment from the world around me will keep the permanence of Christ's Peace out of mine. Only at death can detachment from the profanities of the world occur and only then can the repentance of sins be final and salvation be possible.
Friday, August 8, 2014
A Dream In Pieces
When I was a young boy, I told my Buddhist grandmother that I was Catholic before I had attended my first Mass and, if my memory serves me right, before I had ever stepped foot into a Catholic church. There was a Catholic church near my house but nobody in the family ever went, not my parents who still are not particularly religious even though their hearts are in the right place, not my siblings who were not religious, except for my one sister who was supposedly Catholic. Even she did not attend Mass regularly, but it was she whom I asked to take me to my first Mass [1] for I was too young to go alone. I remember going there a second time with her, but after that I lost the desire to go again. That, however, did not stop me from thinking that I was "Catholic," and certainly did not distance me from God.
Without any clue as to what Catholicism meant, I had to make it up. What I made up was what I loved about Catholicism and the Catholic church. In my mind, it was a beautiful place filled with kind people I could trust, and they would love me without question, and the priests who lived there were all holy, in the flesh in place of God--they were that perfect. It was a place I felt I belonged. It was a place I would have loved to spend my time. I would be comforted there. I would be safe.
The walls of my made-up church disappeared over time, as did the kind church goers who loved me unconditionally and the holy priests who lived there. All that was left was God, in a wide open space undefined by boundaries, Who was unconfined by time. This was a God who knew me but Whom I did not know well, though well enough to know that God would always be there when I called. For a boy who was a loner but needed a constant companion, and wanted someone reliable to rely on always and wished often for miracles, God was it.
God would be my companion until I learned about Christ, God incarnate, then Christ became my companion. Sometimes I still mix up the two of Them, but because They are One and the same, I suppose that is alright.
For those who have read some of my recent posts know that I am struggling to bring reality into my imaginary Catholicism, to find a real Catholic church with a real confessor, thinking that by doing so, I would be more like a real Catholic than an imagined one, be reconciled to the Catholic church despite all its imperfections, be happy with it and have happiness that is associated with the very people who are the kind church goers who judge not and love plenty.
However, when I saw a bunch of bishops and archbishops on EWTN, televising the 132nd annual convention of the Knights of Columbus [2], a multi-billion entity [3], I can only wonder what holiness drew them to Florida that is worth their time away from the lonely, the lost, the sick, the poor in their communities, and the money they had to spend on traveling and accommodations. I suppose if a Catholic fraternity that has no more than $194 in assets compared to the $19.4 billion Knights of Columbus has [4] had called a convention in a public park that all these same religious who had attended the Knight's convention would politely decline the poor fraternity's gathering due to schedule conflicts. Images such as this ruin my idealistic image of Catholicism and the Catholic church, shattering into pieces my boyhood dream.
[1] Mass was totally foreign to me. With my sister pointing from time to time to the missalette where I ought to be looking at, I was largely oblivious to what was happening. I was short and could not see what was going on up front for we were sitting near the back of the church. My first mass, the one I remember attending, felt like an eternity. I found it to be long and boring. In the middle of it, I had to try my best not to fidget, especially when I had to keep standing. When the time came for Holy Communion, I was looking forward to receiving it but my sister said I could not because I was not Catholic. I never did receive Holy Communion until after I was baptized.
[2] http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/2110156
[3] See table under the subtitle "Insurance program" at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights_of_Columbus and the corresponding footnote 50: "Annual Report of the Supreme Knight" (pdf). Knights of Columbus. August 6, 2013. Retrieved 2013-10-16.
[4] Ibid.
Without any clue as to what Catholicism meant, I had to make it up. What I made up was what I loved about Catholicism and the Catholic church. In my mind, it was a beautiful place filled with kind people I could trust, and they would love me without question, and the priests who lived there were all holy, in the flesh in place of God--they were that perfect. It was a place I felt I belonged. It was a place I would have loved to spend my time. I would be comforted there. I would be safe.
The walls of my made-up church disappeared over time, as did the kind church goers who loved me unconditionally and the holy priests who lived there. All that was left was God, in a wide open space undefined by boundaries, Who was unconfined by time. This was a God who knew me but Whom I did not know well, though well enough to know that God would always be there when I called. For a boy who was a loner but needed a constant companion, and wanted someone reliable to rely on always and wished often for miracles, God was it.
God would be my companion until I learned about Christ, God incarnate, then Christ became my companion. Sometimes I still mix up the two of Them, but because They are One and the same, I suppose that is alright.
For those who have read some of my recent posts know that I am struggling to bring reality into my imaginary Catholicism, to find a real Catholic church with a real confessor, thinking that by doing so, I would be more like a real Catholic than an imagined one, be reconciled to the Catholic church despite all its imperfections, be happy with it and have happiness that is associated with the very people who are the kind church goers who judge not and love plenty.
However, when I saw a bunch of bishops and archbishops on EWTN, televising the 132nd annual convention of the Knights of Columbus [2], a multi-billion entity [3], I can only wonder what holiness drew them to Florida that is worth their time away from the lonely, the lost, the sick, the poor in their communities, and the money they had to spend on traveling and accommodations. I suppose if a Catholic fraternity that has no more than $194 in assets compared to the $19.4 billion Knights of Columbus has [4] had called a convention in a public park that all these same religious who had attended the Knight's convention would politely decline the poor fraternity's gathering due to schedule conflicts. Images such as this ruin my idealistic image of Catholicism and the Catholic church, shattering into pieces my boyhood dream.
[1] Mass was totally foreign to me. With my sister pointing from time to time to the missalette where I ought to be looking at, I was largely oblivious to what was happening. I was short and could not see what was going on up front for we were sitting near the back of the church. My first mass, the one I remember attending, felt like an eternity. I found it to be long and boring. In the middle of it, I had to try my best not to fidget, especially when I had to keep standing. When the time came for Holy Communion, I was looking forward to receiving it but my sister said I could not because I was not Catholic. I never did receive Holy Communion until after I was baptized.
[2] http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/2110156
[3] See table under the subtitle "Insurance program" at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights_of_Columbus and the corresponding footnote 50: "Annual Report of the Supreme Knight" (pdf). Knights of Columbus. August 6, 2013. Retrieved 2013-10-16.
[4] Ibid.
The Chosen People - A Quick Analysis
The Chosen Ones, as far as I know, are ethnic Jews. Why did God choose them over any other people is unclear, but what is clear is the expectation that the Chosen Ones act like God. To act like God in a world where Satan roams is not easy. Being a chosen people is therefore a burden, one that the Jews were unprepared and unwilling to assume, one that must have seemed like a curse in the minds of some. As a result, the Chosen Ones not only rejected God and the Ten Commandments but also Jesus, the Son of God, Messenger of Love and Prince of Peace in favor of self-serving laws they write, interpret and manipulate to the delight of Satan, the Fallen Angel, Master of Deceit, Instigator of Hate and Prince of Darkness. Nothing much has changed over the years. The Chosen Ones have continued to disobey God and reject Jesus, leaving a non-chosen Gentile to wonder from time to time why God would still want to save them. Perhaps a world without ethnic Jews would be far worse and for that reason, they have been chosen by God and would be forgiven and saved, even though they are far from perfect, like everyone else.
Thursday, August 7, 2014
Did The Blessed Virign Mary Die?
For some reason, whether the Blessed Virgin Mary had actually died came into my blank mind few days ago when I was thinking of a topic for this blog. Today, I searched the internet and found an answer at Catholicism.About.com. This is what it says, in part:
The reasoning is simple. The Blessed Virgin Mary is the Immaculate Conception, meaning that our Blessed Mother was conceived without the stain of Original Sin. The consequence of Original Sin is death. Thus, I conclude: No Original Sin, no death.
[1] http://catholicism.about.com/od/beliefsteachings/f/Did-The-Virgin-Mary-Die.htm
[2] This is the link to the original Munificentissimus Deus for anyone interested in reading it (I did not): http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xii/apost_constitutions/documents/hf_p-xii_apc_19501101_munificentissimus-deus_en.html
[3] Earlier in the same sentence, Pius XII referred to the "dead body" of the Blessed Virgin Mary having remained incorrupt. That on its face is plain contradiction. The only way I can resolve the pope's contradiction is to refer to the supposed "death" of a girl in Matthew 9:23-26 whom Jesus said was only sleeping. "When Jesus entered the synagogue leader’s house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, he said, 'Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.' But they laughed at him. After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. News of this spread through all that region." See https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+9%3A23-26&version=NIV
Pope Pius XII, in Munificentissimus Deus, his November 1, 1950, declaration of the dogma of the Assumption of Mary, cites ancient liturgical texts from both East and West, as well as the writings of the Church Fathers, all indicating that the Blessed Virgin had died before her body was assumed into Heaven. Pius echoes this tradition in his own words:
My emphasis preordains my conclusion: The Blessed Virgin Mary, by having triumphed over death means that She did not die before She was assumed into Heaven. [3]this feast shows, not only that the dead body of the Blessed Virgin Mary remained incorrupt, but that she gained a triumph out of death, her heavenly glorification after the example of her only begotten Son, Jesus Christ . . .Still, the dogma, as Pius XII defined it, leaves the question of whether the Virgin Mary died open. What Catholics must believe is
that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory."[H]aving completed the course of her earthly life" is ambiguous; it allows for the possibility that Mary may not have died before her Assumption. In other words, while tradition has always indicated that Mary did die, Catholics are not bound, at least by the definition of the dogma, to believe it. [1], [2] (Emphasis added.)
The reasoning is simple. The Blessed Virgin Mary is the Immaculate Conception, meaning that our Blessed Mother was conceived without the stain of Original Sin. The consequence of Original Sin is death. Thus, I conclude: No Original Sin, no death.
[1] http://catholicism.about.com/od/beliefsteachings/f/Did-The-Virgin-Mary-Die.htm
[2] This is the link to the original Munificentissimus Deus for anyone interested in reading it (I did not): http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xii/apost_constitutions/documents/hf_p-xii_apc_19501101_munificentissimus-deus_en.html
[3] Earlier in the same sentence, Pius XII referred to the "dead body" of the Blessed Virgin Mary having remained incorrupt. That on its face is plain contradiction. The only way I can resolve the pope's contradiction is to refer to the supposed "death" of a girl in Matthew 9:23-26 whom Jesus said was only sleeping. "When Jesus entered the synagogue leader’s house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, he said, 'Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.' But they laughed at him. After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. News of this spread through all that region." See https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+9%3A23-26&version=NIV
Christians Flee Iraq - What Would Jesus Do?
The report below is quoted from http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/iraqi-christians-threatened-and-heading-into-exile-572487:
What kind of Western military action will be taken? Was it not a self-professed Christian president who employed such action to effectuate a "regime change" in Iraq? Iraqi Christians never had it so bad before it occurred. [1] One has to wonder whether the deceased dictator or the president who tacitly agreed to his execution by hanging was Satan's minion? From Satan's perspective, they both were.
Will bombing help the displaced Iraqi Christians? Of course not, but it has been authorized [2]. If Jesus were alive today, what would He do? I speculate. First, He would not bomb the persecutors. What would He do with all the refugees? Jesus Himself was a refugee before He was born, therefore it would be reasonable to assume that He would do as Mary and Joseph did, move to a place of safety, but Jesus is not here today. Thus, it would be up to those Christians with the power and means to do the work of Christ. I recall that there are powerful leaders in the world who profess to be Christians. They can open the borders of their countries and let the refugees immigrate. Will they do it? No, but they know how to kill, and they have killed. [3]
And where are the articulate religious who speak so compassionately of illegal immigration when they are needed? Where are their voices for the persecuted descendants of the early Christians? How will they answer their conscience? How will they answer God on Judgment Day, a day they know so well and look forward to so eagerly? [4]
[1] https://www.thetimesherald.com/article/20140801/OPINION/308010009/Jim-Ketchum-Iraqi-Christians-victims-conflict
[2] http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2014/08/07/iraq-christian-villages-flee/13710265/
[3] Of all the powerful leaders in the world, two low ranking politicians, Laurent Fabius, France's foreign minister, and Bernard Cazeneuve, France's interior minister, stood up to offer asylum to the dispossessed and displaced Iraqi Christians. See http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2014/07/france-offers-asylum-iraqi-christians-2014728125854650414.html God bless them!
[4] I dislike sarcasm. Please pardon my use of it here. I am a bit bitter.
Iraqi Christians are again under threat, with tens of thousands that fled after jihadists seized several northern towns on Thursday just the latest wave to seek shelter elsewhere in the country and abroad.Another report says: "Islamist militants surged across northern Iraq toward the capital of the Kurdish region on Thursday, sending tens of thousands of Christians fleeing for their lives, in an offensive that prompted talk of Western military action." See http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/08/07/iraq-security-idINKBN0G70NR20140807
Gunmen from the Sunni Muslim Islamic State (IS) seized Qaraqosh, Iraq's largest Christian town, and several others near Mosul following the withdrawal of Kurdish peshmerga fighters, inhabitants said.
Chaldean Catholic Patriarch Louis Sako called the occupation part of a "humanitarian disaster" that has displaced 100,000 Christians and seen churches occupied, their crosses removed and manuscripts burned.
In mid-July, thousands of Christians in Mosul fled after IS gave them an ultimatum to convert to Islam, pay jizya (protection money) or leave on pain of death.
The exodus raised concern in Western capital, and governments began to accept the fleeing Christians as refugees.
Before the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, the country had an estimated Christian population of more than one million, including more than 600,000 in Baghdad, 60,000 in Mosul and concentrations in the oil cities of Kirkuk and Basra.
The latest estimates put the overall number at around 400,000 with more than half living in the northern Nineveh province, of which Mosul is the capital.
Patriarch Sako says there were around 35,000 in Mosul before the IS launched an offensive, though other sources give lower figures, and almost all have since fled.
What kind of Western military action will be taken? Was it not a self-professed Christian president who employed such action to effectuate a "regime change" in Iraq? Iraqi Christians never had it so bad before it occurred. [1] One has to wonder whether the deceased dictator or the president who tacitly agreed to his execution by hanging was Satan's minion? From Satan's perspective, they both were.
Will bombing help the displaced Iraqi Christians? Of course not, but it has been authorized [2]. If Jesus were alive today, what would He do? I speculate. First, He would not bomb the persecutors. What would He do with all the refugees? Jesus Himself was a refugee before He was born, therefore it would be reasonable to assume that He would do as Mary and Joseph did, move to a place of safety, but Jesus is not here today. Thus, it would be up to those Christians with the power and means to do the work of Christ. I recall that there are powerful leaders in the world who profess to be Christians. They can open the borders of their countries and let the refugees immigrate. Will they do it? No, but they know how to kill, and they have killed. [3]
And where are the articulate religious who speak so compassionately of illegal immigration when they are needed? Where are their voices for the persecuted descendants of the early Christians? How will they answer their conscience? How will they answer God on Judgment Day, a day they know so well and look forward to so eagerly? [4]
[1] https://www.thetimesherald.com/article/20140801/OPINION/308010009/Jim-Ketchum-Iraqi-Christians-victims-conflict
[2] http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2014/08/07/iraq-christian-villages-flee/13710265/
[3] Of all the powerful leaders in the world, two low ranking politicians, Laurent Fabius, France's foreign minister, and Bernard Cazeneuve, France's interior minister, stood up to offer asylum to the dispossessed and displaced Iraqi Christians. See http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2014/07/france-offers-asylum-iraqi-christians-2014728125854650414.html God bless them!
[4] I dislike sarcasm. Please pardon my use of it here. I am a bit bitter.
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
The End Times Predictions - A Reflection
After the resurrection of Christ, His Second Coming has been a subject of speculation for nearly 2,000 years. Relative to the history of the earth, a period of two millennia is not long, but relative to one's lifetime, it may as well be an eternity. Not being to digest supernatural in the distant future, most people see no connection or relevance between their lives and the Book of Revelation. With the prospect of the end times being uncertain for some and unbelievable for others, the fear of it is much attenuated even though events that are unfolding gradually are more likely than not leading toward that end. This entry, however, is not intended to enumerate the instances that suggest that the end times could be approaching--that is available all over the internet; rather, its purpose is to inspire anyone who fortuitously stumbles onto this blog to stop being a participant momentarily and become the observer, to meditate on how much distance people have put between themselves and Christ since His resurrection, on how well Satan's third temptation [1] that had no effect on Jesus had worked its way into the hearts of self-righteous, egocentric, power-thirsty leaders who destabilized peace and transformed the world into a tinderbox, and into the sufferings occurring in various parts of the world [2].
[1] "Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 'All this I will give you,' he said, 'if you will bow down and worship me.'” See https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+4%3A8-9
[2] Bible passage below quoted, in part, from https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+21%3A5-11&version=NIV:
[1] "Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 'All this I will give you,' he said, 'if you will bow down and worship me.'” See https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+4%3A8-9
[2] Bible passage below quoted, in part, from https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+21%3A5-11&version=NIV:
Jesus said, “As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be thrown down.”
“Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”
He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.”
Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.
Tuesday, August 5, 2014
Lying In Wait
The Devil is always waiting around for an attack, when one is most vulnerable. It overwhelms the senses with fury and replaces reason with unfiltered emotion. This is disaster in the making and disaster is what pleases the Prince of Darkness. When the mind is closed to reason, discourse ensues. When one is at the mercy of his unbridled passion, his temper will flair, then nothing gets accomplished.
Failure awaits the unbridled self but it does not have to come to pass. As soon as one detects a hint of agitation, one must realize that he himself is no longer in control but the Devil. In order to thwart Its plan, one has to resort to the prayers of the rosary, to enlist the assistance of the Blessed Virgin Mary to build a barrier to protect against the Devil's advances and Saint Michael the Archangel to battle Prince of Darkness and sent It back to Hell.
Failure awaits the unbridled self but it does not have to come to pass. As soon as one detects a hint of agitation, one must realize that he himself is no longer in control but the Devil. In order to thwart Its plan, one has to resort to the prayers of the rosary, to enlist the assistance of the Blessed Virgin Mary to build a barrier to protect against the Devil's advances and Saint Michael the Archangel to battle Prince of Darkness and sent It back to Hell.
Monday, August 4, 2014
Broken Promises - Bothersome No More
I used to be bothered whenever a friend fails to fulfill a promise made because I did not know whether I had been lied to deliberately, whether the friendship was a true friendship and whether I mattered at all. Now, with age and wisdom, I no longer dwell on the failures of others, or on interpersonal relationships or my self-worth. I now let others fail themselves. If they make a promise they do not deliver, they have not failed me, they have failed themselves, by not respecting themselves, their own words and making good on them, and by acting like the Enemy, treating others as expendable [1]. For my part, I will keep my focus in life with God as my center, and not be thrown off kilter by what others will freely to do or not do, say or not say, for what they choose and the circumstances surrounding their choices are not for me to judge. I only need to be at peace with my conscience, my understanding and forgiveness and with God.
[1] In contrast, God never abandons us. To be like God is not to take another bite of the Forbidden Apple in order to stand superior to others by reducing them to expendable nothingness, but to treat everyone as you would have God treat you, dearly, and unconditionally lovingly.
[1] In contrast, God never abandons us. To be like God is not to take another bite of the Forbidden Apple in order to stand superior to others by reducing them to expendable nothingness, but to treat everyone as you would have God treat you, dearly, and unconditionally lovingly.
Sunday, August 3, 2014
Planning My Confession - Part 2
A thought entered my mind after my last entry. Since I am obsessed with the endless manifestations and variations of Sin, harmless [1] or otherwise, that need to be confessed, I ask if there is anything that would expiate or expunge them so that a confession would be unnecessary. The answer came as I recall the greatest commandment of all which is to love God with all of one's heart. [2] So I wonder if I follow the commandment and love God with all my might, do I still need to go confession, even though I am far from perfect? In other words, does one's continuous love for God expiate sin or better yet, expunge it, even as one remains a sinner and sins repeatedly?
I do not have an answer. Any conclusion that I can possibly draw has to be based on my analysis which comes from my faulty intellect, a product of Sin, and can therefore not be acted upon as if it were the Truth. Absolute certainty can only be had from knowing the Truth, and the Truth can be known only if God wills it to be known. When God wills the Truth be known, it will originate from the heart, not the gut or the mind.
As of this writing, my heart tells me that I ought to go to confession, but my mind is trying to avoid it on the one hand and on the other telling me to organize my thoughts so that they would not be haphazard, forming a hodgepodge of unlinkable jigsaw puzzle pieces when I enter the confessional.
[1] Can any semblance of sin be ever harmless?
[2] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+22:36-40
I do not have an answer. Any conclusion that I can possibly draw has to be based on my analysis which comes from my faulty intellect, a product of Sin, and can therefore not be acted upon as if it were the Truth. Absolute certainty can only be had from knowing the Truth, and the Truth can be known only if God wills it to be known. When God wills the Truth be known, it will originate from the heart, not the gut or the mind.
As of this writing, my heart tells me that I ought to go to confession, but my mind is trying to avoid it on the one hand and on the other telling me to organize my thoughts so that they would not be haphazard, forming a hodgepodge of unlinkable jigsaw puzzle pieces when I enter the confessional.
[1] Can any semblance of sin be ever harmless?
[2] https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+22:36-40
Planning My Confession - Part 1
A little over two weeks ago, on July 16, I wrote about my empty confession and expressed a desire to begin a series of confessions that are substantive. Today, I pick up from where I left off, thinking about it yet again but taking no action.
To confess properly, I need to know what sins I have committed. To be truthful, I do not quite know exactly what a sin is that has to be confessed. [1] Is not knowing what a sin is a sin in itself? Is ignorance of sin an excuse for sin?
I have never seen a checklist of sins posted next to a confessional. Maybe someone should come up with a questionnaire for a penitent to complete, much like an intake form given to a new patient at a doctor's office asking all kinds of questions about one's medical history, so that the confessor reviewing a penitent's sinful past can decide to what extent the confession should be, if a confession is deemed necessary.
What about one's dissatisfaction with the Catholic church, a particular reference to a particular saint or a blessed (not quite a saint) or the choice of Eucharistic prayer? Is that a sin? Is the Catholic church infallible so that every disagreement with the church is automatically a sin to be confessed? If that is the case, I can spend the remainder of my life inside a confessional.
I am struggling with a dilemma: If criticizing the Catholic church is a sin, and I believe myself to be correct in criticizing the Catholic church, why should I go to the people who uphold the very church I criticize to seek absolution of my sins when the church itself is in sin?
I have a lot more work to do before stepping into a confessional, or maybe the Church does, or both the Church and I have much work to do. I do not think my thoughts are final and unchangeable. I struggle because the Truth is infallible but think that the Church is not, and I do not know the Truth. The day I know the Truth, I will know exactly what to confess, but that day may not come soon enough, so is it better to over-confess than under-confess or not confess at all?
[1] A young Benedictine monk, Brother Anthony, once casually asked a bunch of us, at the time 14-year old freshmen boarders, if there was any difference between a monk who lights up a cigarette whenever he starts to pray and a monk who prays whenever he starts to smoke? No one had an answer since both monks would have ended up praying and smoking at the same time, not even Brother Anthony. Now that I am older, much older than Br. Anthony was at the time, I am able to see the difference, apparent in the intent of the nicotine-addicted monks. In the first instance, the monk who starts to smoke as he starts to pray has to break his concentration and put God on hold to light up a cigarette, whereas in the second, the monk who during his "free" time lights up a cigarette, interrupts his own smoking to start a conversation with God. This difference in intent does not tell the whole story, however, since no one knows where the heart of each monk is when he begins to pray or the content of his prayers. Therefore, it is impossible to make a judgment as to who is the holier monk. If it is that difficult to judge others, is it not more difficult to judge oneself, when one is capable of rationalizing one's actions in order to legitimize them?
To confess properly, I need to know what sins I have committed. To be truthful, I do not quite know exactly what a sin is that has to be confessed. [1] Is not knowing what a sin is a sin in itself? Is ignorance of sin an excuse for sin?
I have never seen a checklist of sins posted next to a confessional. Maybe someone should come up with a questionnaire for a penitent to complete, much like an intake form given to a new patient at a doctor's office asking all kinds of questions about one's medical history, so that the confessor reviewing a penitent's sinful past can decide to what extent the confession should be, if a confession is deemed necessary.
What about one's dissatisfaction with the Catholic church, a particular reference to a particular saint or a blessed (not quite a saint) or the choice of Eucharistic prayer? Is that a sin? Is the Catholic church infallible so that every disagreement with the church is automatically a sin to be confessed? If that is the case, I can spend the remainder of my life inside a confessional.
I am struggling with a dilemma: If criticizing the Catholic church is a sin, and I believe myself to be correct in criticizing the Catholic church, why should I go to the people who uphold the very church I criticize to seek absolution of my sins when the church itself is in sin?
I have a lot more work to do before stepping into a confessional, or maybe the Church does, or both the Church and I have much work to do. I do not think my thoughts are final and unchangeable. I struggle because the Truth is infallible but think that the Church is not, and I do not know the Truth. The day I know the Truth, I will know exactly what to confess, but that day may not come soon enough, so is it better to over-confess than under-confess or not confess at all?
[1] A young Benedictine monk, Brother Anthony, once casually asked a bunch of us, at the time 14-year old freshmen boarders, if there was any difference between a monk who lights up a cigarette whenever he starts to pray and a monk who prays whenever he starts to smoke? No one had an answer since both monks would have ended up praying and smoking at the same time, not even Brother Anthony. Now that I am older, much older than Br. Anthony was at the time, I am able to see the difference, apparent in the intent of the nicotine-addicted monks. In the first instance, the monk who starts to smoke as he starts to pray has to break his concentration and put God on hold to light up a cigarette, whereas in the second, the monk who during his "free" time lights up a cigarette, interrupts his own smoking to start a conversation with God. This difference in intent does not tell the whole story, however, since no one knows where the heart of each monk is when he begins to pray or the content of his prayers. Therefore, it is impossible to make a judgment as to who is the holier monk. If it is that difficult to judge others, is it not more difficult to judge oneself, when one is capable of rationalizing one's actions in order to legitimize them?
Friday, August 1, 2014
A Bold Prediction On Mideast Peace
"A tense ceasefire has officially come into effect in Gaza after Israel
and Hamas agreed to a 72-hour pause in their three-week conflict. The
United States and United Nations brokered the temporary truce to allow
for humanitarian relief and bring both sides to the table for talks on a
longer-term halt to hostilities." [1] A ceasefire, according to my definition, is a time to amass more ammunition and reload for the next round of hostilities.
My prediction: Peace in the Mideast will not take place before the Second Coming. [2] To think that China has a plan that will bring peace to the region is to believe in a fantasy. [3] Even the Son of God, Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace Who is part of the Holy Trinity, was rejected by both the Jewish and Islamic establishments. How can anyone else do better?
The world should face the reality that the Jews and the Arabs will never see eye to eye. Their hatred for each other began in the biblical times. "If there is an explicit biblical explanation for this animosity, it goes all the way back to Abraham. The Jews are descendants of Abraham’s son Isaac. The Arabs are descendants of Abraham’s son Ishmael. With Ishmael being the son of a slave woman (Genesis 16:1-16) and Isaac being the promised son who would inherit the blessings of Abraham (Genesis 21:1-3), obviously there would be some animosity between the two sons. As a result of Ishmael mocking Isaac (Genesis 21:9), Sarah talked Abraham into sending Hagar and Ishmael away (Genesis 21:11-21). Likely, this caused even more contempt in Ishmael’s heart towards Isaac. An angel prophesied to Hagar that Ishmael would 'live in hostility toward all his brothers' (Genesis 16:11-12)." [4] Angels are never wrong. They can see the Truth from the beginning of time, as if time had a beginning, to eternity's end, as if eternity has an ending.
With the Truth so clearly established, what can China do, China, a country that started its cultural revolution under Mao Zedong in 1966, a mere 46 years ago, that ended under Deng Xiaoping 11 years later, in 1977, [5] and a country whose Godless, modern moral compass is misguided by speed and greed? It would be like the blind leading the blind that are blind to each other's humanity and blind to Christ.
If China's political involvement in the Mideast has no effect, resulting in more of the same, the world would understand and it would be normal. If China's military is drawn into the conflict, that will hasten the Second Coming.
[1] http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/31/israel-gaza-agree-72-hour-ceasefire-us-un
[2] http://christianity.about.com/od/endtimestopicalstudy/f/secondcomingof.htm
[3] http://www.bjreview.com.cn/quotes/txt/2014-06/18/content_624720_2.htm
[4] http://www.gotquestions.org/Jews-Arabs.html
[5] http://www.history.com/topics/cultural-revolution
My prediction: Peace in the Mideast will not take place before the Second Coming. [2] To think that China has a plan that will bring peace to the region is to believe in a fantasy. [3] Even the Son of God, Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace Who is part of the Holy Trinity, was rejected by both the Jewish and Islamic establishments. How can anyone else do better?
The world should face the reality that the Jews and the Arabs will never see eye to eye. Their hatred for each other began in the biblical times. "If there is an explicit biblical explanation for this animosity, it goes all the way back to Abraham. The Jews are descendants of Abraham’s son Isaac. The Arabs are descendants of Abraham’s son Ishmael. With Ishmael being the son of a slave woman (Genesis 16:1-16) and Isaac being the promised son who would inherit the blessings of Abraham (Genesis 21:1-3), obviously there would be some animosity between the two sons. As a result of Ishmael mocking Isaac (Genesis 21:9), Sarah talked Abraham into sending Hagar and Ishmael away (Genesis 21:11-21). Likely, this caused even more contempt in Ishmael’s heart towards Isaac. An angel prophesied to Hagar that Ishmael would 'live in hostility toward all his brothers' (Genesis 16:11-12)." [4] Angels are never wrong. They can see the Truth from the beginning of time, as if time had a beginning, to eternity's end, as if eternity has an ending.
With the Truth so clearly established, what can China do, China, a country that started its cultural revolution under Mao Zedong in 1966, a mere 46 years ago, that ended under Deng Xiaoping 11 years later, in 1977, [5] and a country whose Godless, modern moral compass is misguided by speed and greed? It would be like the blind leading the blind that are blind to each other's humanity and blind to Christ.
If China's political involvement in the Mideast has no effect, resulting in more of the same, the world would understand and it would be normal. If China's military is drawn into the conflict, that will hasten the Second Coming.
[1] http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/31/israel-gaza-agree-72-hour-ceasefire-us-un
[2] http://christianity.about.com/od/endtimestopicalstudy/f/secondcomingof.htm
[3] http://www.bjreview.com.cn/quotes/txt/2014-06/18/content_624720_2.htm
[4] http://www.gotquestions.org/Jews-Arabs.html
[5] http://www.history.com/topics/cultural-revolution
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