I am a cradle Roman Catholic, that always had the knowledge of God. I, however, did not have a relationship with him and thus, was empty inside. Now through asking him to come into my life and going to prayer groups etc., I have had a renewal in my faith. Protestants may call it being "born-again". I now find what I thought was a BORING Mass to be the ultimate enjoyable experience that brings me closest to our Lord....besides of course Eucharistic Adoration, which is awe inspiring. The Church Fathers took me deeper into my faith which is when I came back completely-like a boomerang, thus my blog title. I understand why I am a Catholic/Christian. It is not just a religion. It IS God, it IS love.
I might not be an English scholar and you might edit me in your head. But, I do have something to share and I hope you will join me on the journey and maybe discover something new to think about. Blessings+
A Mothers love is so precious and beautiful. Thank you Mother Mary for doing what must have been unimaginable for you to do- let go of your precious Son to the hands of those who would harm Him. But, you knew that was the plan and that it was God's will. Something, I don't think I could imagine doing or would ever want to experience. However, I realize it was Jesus,and this great sacrifice of dying for our sins, that is the most perfect love ever offered. He died for us so that we may live.
Mary, as a mother, you are to be cherished for your love and compassion. Can we even come close to being humble like you? A great model of virtue, grace and faith to all mothers and mankind.Your love is so precious and beautiful. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us.
Ever wonder what Jesus would say to you if He was standing right in front of you? Well, listen to this short video. About 20 seconds in, you will hear something that might make you think a little different about the Carpenter from Nazareth. Lighten your load and be open to these words. Worse case scenario, 5 minutes pass with nothing to gain, or 5 minutes pass that gives you MUCH to gain.
Anyone wanting a workout? My sister can tell you something about that, as she is an avid runner. Me- I can tell you how I get a workout by going to a Catholic Mass. Yes, I get to pray, worship and get a workout all at the same time. But, all joking aside, I never quite understood it. I always laughed with others as we would comment on how strange and funny it was going to a Catholic Mass, to go through an exercise regime. How could I not laugh back then? I mean it seemed foolish to me, going from one form of posture to another. As the video above mentions we change positions 15 times! That is a fair bit of movement in an hour. I now admire the elderly getting up and down with their arthritic knees-God bless them!
Years ago, when I went to Church at Christmas/maybe Easter, I would sit further back so that I would not look stupid. Last thing I wanted, was to be going from standing to sitting, while everyone else goes down on their knees to pray instead. That would just look stupid, right!? I sit near the front now, but that happening only after many trips to Church every Sunday, getting to understand the rhythm and sequence. I found it illogical however, so my nature was find out why. So, I Googled "why do CATHOLICS kneel etc." I then found answers.
Simply put, let us go first with the analogy of being at a wedding or an important event where you are sitting awaiting the arrival of the guest(s) of arrival into the room. What do you and others proceed to do when they arrive? You stand right, as a sign of respect. Well, so do we as Catholics during the reading of the Gospel, when we say The Lord's Prayer and also when we sing to God (praise and worship).
We kneel when we are in prayer (giving thanks or asking for forgiveness). Also, during a moment that is sacred such as when the Host (the bread) is being consecrated (the prayer given by Jesus is said by the priest to turn the bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ) during the Mass.
We sit when we are attentively listening during the Homily (when the priest instructs and explains the Gospel reading in a way that is relevant to our times so that we may understand deeper the word of God). I am sure I was told all about this, during Sunday school. But, I must not have been listening/it did not matter to me then.
This may seem overwhelming and hard to grapple with, seeming all so technical and complicated. I swear, it really isn't. It just takes time and allowing yourself to get comfortable with these wonderful traditions passed on from the beginning of the Church's inception. Mentioned time and time again in the bible and in the writings of people throughout the life of the Church. It has only been the last few years that I have really seen how it all makes perfect sense and it is very natural and meaningful to me. There is purpose and meaning to what we do as Catholics, at least finally to this one. But, we can all just do these things habitually without it holding any meaning and that is where it looses its special purpose. As the famous St. Therese said "Jesus does not look so much at the greatness of our actions, or even at their difficulty, as at the love with which we do them"
My daughter will this spring, around Easter, be having her first Communion and Sacrament of supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. OK, ok....I meant to say Reconcilliation, just making sure I had your attention. For those that don't know what it means, its confession of your sins to God, so to be forgiven. The Priest stands in for God, it's not the Priest that is God. One mistake is going, only as an obligation or duty. It is more than that. This is done with a contrite heart, a heart of pain or sorrow for sins or offenses. When you really give yourself to God and love him with all your being it is does hurt to offend Him. You want to make amends not because of the fear of "fire and brimstone", but because of love. But, I had to ask God into my heart first, and invite him to help me grow in love for Him. He, of course answered me, but waited like a gentleman for me to decide first.The Holy Spirit did the rest.
Back to this great Sacrament (a formal religious ceremony conferring a specific grace on those who receive it). It was at the age of reason, age 7, when I had my first Sacrament of Reconciliation. Though we were taught about it at Sunday school, I was more interested in the boy sitting in front of me than what the teacher said. I am teaching my children all that I can, so they will not grow up someday and leave the Church because they did not have all the facts and truths. I could have fallen away easily, there are so many alluring churches to choose from. I feel some Catholics would stay in the Church if they understood this Sacrament. These are not empty or stupid rituals. This is not the case at all. Anyways, God had other plans for me. I asked Him to give me wisdom and discernment about this Church of my youth. He has provided much information. I think most of us as adults get more serious about our faith, then we may have as children. I now know why we confess to the Priest and not just straight to God. It took me 25 years to get back to confession, remember, I just did not get it. I was sobbing when I left the confessional. I felt so high and freed of so much bondage it was incredible as God's grace and blessing was upon me. Lucky the Church didn't burn down-ha.The poor Priest. I love this Sacrament-Whoda thunk, that years ago, I would say that. The video and below it explain why we as Catholics go to confession (hopefully many times a year-nudge nudge to my Catholic friends and yours truly).
Why go? Because that's the way God wants us to do it. As quoted from Catholic apologist, John Martignoni "In James 5:16, God, through Sacred Scripture, commands us to "confess our sins to one another." Notice, Scripture does not say confess your sins straight to God and only to God...it says confess your sins to one another.
In Matthew, chapter 9, verse 6, Jesus tells us that He was given authority on earth to forgive sins. And then Scripture proceeds to tell us, in verse 8, that this authority was given to "men"...plural.
In John 20, verses 21-23, what is the 1st thing Jesus says to the gathered disciples on the night of His resurrection? "Jesus said to them, 'Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.'" How did the Father send Jesus? Well, we just saw in Mt 9 that the Father sent Jesus with the authority on earth to forgive sins. Now, Jesus sends out His disciples as the Father has sent Him...so, what authority must Jesus be sending His disciples out with? The authority on earth to forgive sins. And, just in case they didn't get it, verses 22-23 say this, "And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.'"
Why would Jesus give the Apostles the power to forgive or to retain sins if He wasn't expecting folks to confess their sins to them? And how could they forgive or retain sins if no one was confessing their sins to them?
The Bible tells us to confess our sins to one another. It also tells us that God gave men the authority on Earth to forgive sins. Jesus sends out His disciples with the authority on earth to forgive sins. When Catholics confess our sins to a priest, we are simply following the plan laid down by Jesus Christ. He forgives sins through the priest...it is God's power, but He exercises that power through the ministry of the priest."-works for me, I must confess!
Today at Mass, our Sunday reading was about the Beatitudes/The Sermon on the Mount. Where Jesus is up on a hill giving a sermon that starts with "Blessed are the poor in Spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of God...", a very well known scripture passage.A little difficult to understand at first glance. Matt Maher, a Catholic artist explains so well, his thoughts on the Beatitudes, that I had to share the video below! He wrote the song Unwavering, based upon this Sermon and his recollection of the victims of Hurricane Katrina.
I remember, about 5 years ago, my husband going down to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina, with other workers from GM. He blessed many with his gifts, from carpentry to electrical. But, the people there blessed him also. They opened his eyes and ours when he came home and told us stories about these happy people. People you would expect to be miserable and angry. They were poor, in regards to having nothing left- they were truly dead to the promises of the world, for they were stripped of all material possessions. But, turns out they had much, for they had their faith to uphold them. That granted them the Glory of God in a very low time in their lives. We can be financially rich and spiritually poor or financially poor and not leaning on that, but, on God, to become spiritually rich.
We who have so much, take for granted what we have at times. We are so a part of the world- and if we only let go of the pleasures and riches and wealth, even a wee bit, we might start to get a glimpse of the wonderful other world that promises much more. I believe this, and I know this. I am still apart of the world, most definitely, but by embracing my faith and surrendering my life to God with my husband and kids, we have been blessed beyond measure.We have received a peek of the Kingdom and are humbled by that gift. Life is much better than before. This is "a good thing" and we are thankful for God's unwavering love through the journey we continue to take in this life.
