Sharesies!

First, some beauty:

Second, if you are struggling with interior peace and happiness at all, I highly recommend Fulton Sheen's Way to Happiness. I only stumbled upon it in our Adoration chapel today, so I'm not finished yet. But I am blown away at Sheen's ability to explain the human heart.

Quotes

Two great quotes I ran across today... the first from a saint, and the second from a tweet! I will leave them to you with no further introduction:

"Woe to me if I should prove myself but a half-hearted soldier in the service of my thorn-crowned Captain." -St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen

"Sometimes we over complicate evangelization. We use talks, books, and speeches. Jesus makes breakfast for His friends." -Ennie Hickman

Plus, a bonus:

"Wait... did you just say 'dead sea squirrels'?" -A teen in my youth group (referencing the dead sea scrolls)... followed by everyone's interpretation of what a dead sea squirrel would look like, and prayers for the poor, dead squirrels in seas everywhere. Gotta love it. ;)

Saturday = Mercy Day

Today is Saturday! (I specialize in stating the obvious.) You know what Saturday means, for Catholics? There are lots of priests in lots of churches, sitting in confessionals, waiting to mediate God's mercy and love to us. Jesus is waiting for us, this very afternoon!

So, I've been reading Sober Intoxication of the Spirit by Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, who serves as preacher to the papal household (he also spoke at Franciscan University the year I graduated! Check it out here). This book is really wonderful! I highly recommend it. I'll be honest, though: I opened it up today, saw that the next chapter was titled "Repent, and You Will Receive the Gift of the Holy Spirit," and thought to myself: "Shoot. If I read this, I'm going to have to go to Confession. Dang it."

Luckily, the Holy Spirit was poking my heart (how irritating, right?), so I read it anyway. And I'm so glad for that little divine push, because it was incredible! (You probably figured that out, because otherwise I wouldn't be writing this at the moment.) Soooooo, in case you are also needing a little push out the door and toward Jesus' mercy today, I'd just like to share a few passages with you that struck me in particular; maybe the HS would like to use them on your heart, too:

"The real metanoia, that is, change, occurs when we abandon our way of thinking and receive God's way of thinking, when we put aside, our judgment and take on God's judgment. This is where the leap occurs. To repent means to take a running leap into the abyss of God's judgment! His judgments, says one of the psalms, 'are like the great deep' (Psalm 36:6)."

At this point, you may be like, YIKES! Um, I don't want to take a "running leap into the abyss of God's judgment! That sounds crazy and scary and bad!" But he continues on:

"When this happens, a person begins to see his or her life and sins from within God's heart, and then things change. Seen in the light of the immense love of the Father, sin appears for what it truly is: a betrayal of His immense love, 'crucifying again the Son of God and... holding him up to contempt' (see Hebrews 6:6)."

When we see through God's eyes, all of our sins are seen against the backdrop of the Father's "immense love" for us, and how we've rejected His heart. We are not taking a "running leap" into an angry judgment, but one that will purify us, wash us "white as snow," and bring us back into the loving arms of Jesus Christ.

"How could I get free? I was immediately aware that I could not destroy [my sin] by my will because it was precisely there - in my will. A new love was born in me for the blood of Christ then..."

As the song goes, "What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus."

This judgment is truly a part of His divine mercy. It is a gift to us. And on top of that, another beautiful thing: repentance is our gift to Him:

"God's omnipotence is not enough to make a contrite heart. He can make the heavens and the earth, but He cannot, by Himself, make a contrite and humble heart. 'The one who created you without your consent will not save you without your consent!' Augustine said. He needs our free wills!"

"'A broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise!' (see Psalm 51:17). God surely does not despise a broken and contrite heart, because for Him that is the precious pearl, the hidden treasure. Do you want to give God a gift? The best gift there is? One that would fill Him with joy? Let Him find a contrite heart within you!"

"To offer this gift to God is not hard. Let us present ourselves to Him during a moment of profound meditation and say to Him, 'Lord, I don't know myself; I don't know what my responsibilities are, what my real sins are or even to what point I failed concerning the unity of your body. No one knows what my part is in all this, neither friends nor enemies. There is only one in the whole universe who knows the truth about me, and it is you, Lord. You are righteous in your words and in your judgments. I accept your judgment about me!'"

"And so let us thank the Lord. Let us say with Micah: 'What God is as great as You who forgives sins? You have created the heavens and the earth; You have done great things, but nothing as great as this: You cast our sins into the depths of the sea (see Micah 7:18-19)."

"Yes, Lord, what God is like you? We thank you for Christ who, on the cross, has destroyed our sin! We thank you because you have drawn all men to Him. We thank you because you now pour out on Jerusalem, on your people, a mighty stream of grace and consolation. Amen."

7 Quick Takes Friday

I thought I'd get in on the fun today! Here we go...

1

So yesterday, I got fake pulled over by the cops. What does that mean, you ask? It goes something like this:

[Flashing police car lights go off behind me as I'm getting off my exit.]

Me (to myself): Hmm... I know I was speeding earlier, but I wasn't right then! Maybe I have a headlight out or something. 

[I notice there are two officers in the car, and they're discussing something, and they look slightly confused.]

Me (to myself): Maybe one of them is in training, and the other guy is teaching him what to do.

(Side note: I was just telling this story over the phone to a friend, whose reaction was, "Wait... were you really that chill about this?" My answer: "Yep!")

[Officers still talking.]

Me (to myself): Maybe they want me to move. Maybe I should get off the ramp and go park in that parking lot... maybe they're going to give me an extra fine for being unsafe and stupid and pulling over on the ramp. Hmm... they're not waving me over, though. 

[Both officers finally get out and come to my window.]

Officer: Um, so we pulled over the wrong person. It was another beige car.

Me: Oh, okay. 

Me (to myself, in my head): There are TWO of them, and they pulled over the wrong car?!? Maybe they're BOTH in training...

Officer: We just didn't want you to be confused when we drove away.

Me: Okay, thanks!

Officer: You didn't just get on the highway, did you?

Me: No, I've been on for like twenty minutes.

Officer: Yep, it was that station wagon then. Have a good day!

And that, my friends, is how you get fake pulled over. 

2

I know I'm not the only one who's had crazy weather lately, but I thought I'd share anyway:

In case you were wondering, it usually looks like this:

3

Confirmation is this upcoming Tuesday for our 8th graders! Please pray for them. HOLY SPIRIT TIME!!!!! In other news: I get to have dinner with the auxiliary bishop that night... wooohooo!! Along with our priests, the DRE's, etc., of course (it isn't just me and the bishop... who do you think I am??). Although I do have friends who hang out with bishops all the time, I don't typically get that chance. So I'm pretty pumped!

4

Update: Deleted for sensitive material. I will not be publishing the related comments, since I have deleted this section. It is nothing against your comments (in fact, I would say they did their job) - thanks for the input!

5

It's looking like I'm going to have another summer full of weddings! If my calendar is correct, I'll be at one per month from May through September. Currently, I'm really thrilled that one such friend called me up yesterday and asked if I would do the second reading (from Ephesians 5) at hers! (My answer: "Really? Really? REALLY?!?! I'm so honored! I'm so excited! YES!")

6

I have mixed feelings on the whole #Gosnell Twitter exposure extravaganza. Yes, it's extremely, extremely, extremely important that the world recognizes the horrific reality of murder both inside and outside the womb. However, I'm not a big fan of countering murder with hatred. I think the best Tweet I saw on it all day was this: "For the sake of His sorrowful passion, have mercy on #Gosnell and on the whole world."

7 

The other night, I was slaphappy while watching a bunch of YouTube videos by Blimey Cow (they do Messy Mondays and Messyges). I was just watching them again, looking for a good one to share with you all, and they were NOT as funny as I remembered. Hmm. But I will still share this one with you, because I laughed out loud when he shared his favorite Disney princess (and the part at the end when he talked about how the country was actually mythical... don't lie, you know that you thought/wished it was real too, back in the day):

Amelia Mignognette Thermopolis Rinaldi... PrinCESS of Genovia.

For the Ministry Heart

We interrupt this series on being "set apart" to minister to those in ministry...

By which I mean, I'm going to share a few links that have recently given me a lot of comfort/wisdom/inspiration/peace lately. Basically, they help make it better, and they're not ice cream (because sometimes, you run out of ice cream):

"Forgetting the 99" - Because yep, that one bad thing that happens sometimes makes us forget to rejoice in the fruits.

"FAIL. Sometimes I am Really Bad at My Job." - Oh hey, me too! But seriously, humility is the #1 thing I am learning in ministry. Alllllllllll the time.

And last but not least, this song:

I planted seeds down in the ground
Not every one is growing
When I am tempted to give up
I choose love

For the World

Time to share a sweet Papa Benny quote on the idea of being "set apart!" Read it slowly and let it sink in: 

"The process of consecration, 'sanctification,' includes two apparently opposed, but in reality deeply conjoined, aspects. On the one hand, 'consecrating' as 'sanctifying' means setting apart from the rest of reality that pertains to man's ordinary everyday life. Something that is consecrated is raised into a new sphere that is no longer under human control. But this setting apart also includes the essential dynamic of 'existing for.' Precisely because it is entirely given over to God, this reality is now there for the world, for men, it speaks for them and exists for their healing. We may also say: setting apart and mission form a single whole." (Pope Benedict XVI, Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week)

This is beautiful! Did you catch what he's saying? We are consecrated in Christ (made holy/set apart) "for the world... for their healing."The world needs us to be real Catholics! We need to be going deep in prayer, loving sacrificially, in the heart of the Church, for the sake of all of the people around us. We need to come out of the sin in the world... so that we can go back in and set it free from that sin, in Christ! 

It's a good ol' Catholic "both-and." If we try to transform the world without being holy, that will seriously flop. On the other hand, we won't actually be holy if we become arrogantly or selfishly closed in on ourselves! We really can't do one without the other! (Don't you just love the way the Church sees the whole picture? She's such a good mother, making sure her silly little kids don't go to crazy extremes!)

I pray that we all continue to go deeper and deeper into the heart of Christ, so that we live in a way that heals the world!

"They do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world. Consecrate them in the truth. Your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I sent them into the world." (John 17:16-18) 

Set Apart

I don't know if you've noticed, but there's something fishy about young Catholics these days. We have been called the JPII generation, Generation Benedict, and Catholic hipsters. We listen to music like this, because we appreciate real art, and we believe that beauty really will save the world. We love orthodoxy, liturgy, the Word of God (in both Scripture and Tradition, of course) and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. We read theology for fun, quote popes like it's our job, and are seriously re-thinking how to evangelize. In fact, we like to think, and to probe more deeply into these thoughts with others. And we tend to get really pumped about authentic Catholic devotions and traditions and our favorite saints ("OHMYGOSH, St. Therese has been stalking you too?!?! I thought I was the only one!")

When it all comes down to it, we simply love being Catholic!

"Here is a lesson applicable for all Christians, in every vocation in the Church. Be rigorous, be loyal, be proud of who you are. The radiance of the Bride is the most convincing proof of the love of the Bridegroom." (Ryan N.S. Topping, Rebuilding Catholic Culture)

I have been fascinated by a single question for quite some time now: how do we form a Catholic culture, like the one I just described? Although I still feel like I've barely scratched the surface, I've been spending lots of time trying to gain insights from others. I've witnessed this kind of culture, and I've lived in it... but how do we get there in the first place? How does it happen?

Start trying to answer the question and you might immediately feel daunted (or at least, I did/do). I've learned a lot, but I still can't say that I have it - whatever "it" may be - or that I've discovered a nifty top 10 list for you. But I am 100%, unequivocally convinced of one thing: we need a distinctively Catholic culture. We need to rediscover our identity, our calling, our mission! As Christians, we can no longer remain the same, amorphously blending into the world like everyone else. We are anointed for a purpose; the world needs us to stand out:

"Here we discover the original and fundamental meaning of 'consecrated' and 'holy,' which in Hebrew is the word qadosh. Because of their consecration, Christians are qadosh, that is, different, separate, set apart. We need to reacquire a sense of being qadosh." (Raniero Cantalamessa, O.F.M. Cap., Sober Intoxication of the Spirit, emphasis mine)

And that, my friends, is the short version of where the new blog name came from. I guarantee that there is more to come on this topic!

Alleluia!

This weekend has been particularly off-the-charts insane... but in a very blessed sort of way! So for now I will simply say, happy Easter! I hope that you are filled with oodles and oodles of joy and peace:

"Enjoy in peace the joy God is giving you, without worrying about the future. He is reserving for you, I am sure, new graces and many consolations." 

~St. Therese

God bless!

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This blog soon to be found at setapartblog.blogspot.com