Am I a Catholic?

There are times when people come to me with a frowning face and heavy shoulders, asking for some guidance in their lives and their relationships, and after sharing their stories they will take a deep breath and say with a sad voice,

“Father, it is difficult to be a Catholic.”

Sometimes I ask myself, what makes Catholicism difficult?  What is the hardest thing about being Catholic?  And I realized that the most difficult part of being a Catholic is “BEING” a Catholic itself.  Many of us in this world call ourselves Catholic Christians, but can we truly say that we are really living like Christ and living out the our faith as Catholics?  Often many of us are living our own version of Christianity, and our own version of Catholicism, the version that makes us the most comfortable and does not rock the boat, cause trouble or cause an argument if faith is on the line or being challenged.

In the book of the Prophet Amos, there was a priest named Amaziah.  He asked Amos to leave Bethel and prophesy somewhere else because Amos was rocking the boat, making waves or causing trouble against the King’s sanctuary in Bethel and his government, and Amaziah didn’t like it.  This was sad because Amaziah was a priest, a spokesman of God.  He was supposed to be an expert in the things of God, but he didn’t recognize God’s voice, or if he recognized it, he didn’t follow it.  It shows us that some of the difficulties facing the Church today are not completely new.

In our Church today we find the same thing, there are times that we Catholics, even social and political celebrities, even priests, preach a different gospel, a gospel that is comfortable.  There are occasions that we reject certain aspects of Christ’s teaching that comes to us through his chosen messengers.  There are circumstances that we put forth our own opinions as gospel truth, we put forth what we think is the right opinion.  And those opinions which we call “popular culture.”

Popular culture tells us that abortion is a human right.

Popular culture tells us that promiscuity, lust and self-indulgence are healthy and normal behaviors.

Popular culture tells us that so-called gay marriage is morally equivalent to true sacramental marriage.

Popular culture tells us that killing human embryos to harvest their stem cells is noble and praiseworthy.

When Catholics who promote these positions say that they are listening to their own conscience, it is certainly not true.  In fact they are listening to popular culture; they are accepting the comfortable lies instead of the uncomfortable truth.

We are called to be prophets, even if we are not qualified like the Prophet Amos who is only a shepherd and dresser of Sycamores.  But according to St Paul, God equips us with grace, a LAVISH grace, and overflowing and abundant blessing so that we could be God’s co-workers in the fulfillment of God’s mission.  There is a lavish grace but we are expected to do something.  As a  prophet by virtue of our baptism we are expected to live a blameless and holy life.  We cannot say to ourselves:

“It is OK not to go to church on Sunday after all, I am very tired from working all week.”

“It is ok to cheat in my business dealings after all, I’m donating something to the church.”

It is NOT OK!  We are Catholics and we are called to be prophets who should strive to live a holy life.  Let the witness of our lives be our main tool in preaching the Gospel of Jesus.  But if along the way we fail in the aspect of being Catholic and being a prophet, let us not be discouraged, let us not lose hope, let us always remember that God doesn’t give up on us, even when we choose to live in conformable lies.  He continues to call all of us to follow the steep path of salvation, to allow God’s voice resound in the deepest corner of our hearts through the preaching and teaching of the Pope, the catechism, and the example of the saints and to continue to have hope in God’s unconditional love, mercy and forgiveness.

Our conscience is like the radio that God built into our hearts; but it’s up to us to keep it tuned in to the right channel.

New Year's and the Te Deum

When I was in eighth grade, New Year’s meant not only a change of year, but a change of century and a change of millennium.  I was in the St. Cecilia choristers at the Madeleine Choir School, and we sang for a special Mass that started before midnight on December 31^st and ended in the early hours of January 1^st.  Many things were special about that Mass, but two stand out in my memory.

The first is how excited we all were.  For many of us this was one of the first times we had been allowed, or indeed, encouraged to stay up for midnight and see the New Year in.  Of course, those who are old enough to remember the uncertainties about the impending start of the 2000s will recall that there was a certain amount of nervousness and “doomsday” prophecy going around as well, so that added to the general sense that this was a special day.

The second thing I remember was the fact that we sang a specially commissioned setting of the Te Deum.  The Te Deum is a traditional prayer of the Catholic Church, which typically is recited during Compline, the prayer in the Liturgy of the Hours said before sleep.

The text should be somewhat familiar to those who know the hymn “Holy God, We Praise Thy Name,” which is based on the Te Deum:

You are God:  we praise you;
You are the Lord; we acclaim you;
You are the eternal Father:
All creation worships you.

To you all angels, all the powers of heaven,
Cherubim and Seraphim, sing in endless praise:
Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.

The glorious company of apostles praise you.
The noble fellowship of prophets praise you.
The white-robed army of martyrs praise you.

Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you;
Father of majesty unbounded,
your true and only Son, worthy of all worship,
and the Holy Spirit, advocate and guide.

You, Christ, are the king of glory,
the eternal Son of the Father.

When you became man to set us free
you did not shun the Virgin’s womb.

You overcame the sting of death
and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.

You are seated at God’s right hand in glory.
We believe that you will come and be our judge.

Come then, Lord, and help your people,
bought with the price of your own blood,
and bring us with your saints
to glory everlasting.

V:  Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance;
R:  govern and uphold them, now and always.
V:  Day by day we bless you;
R:  we praise your name for ever.
V:  Keep us today, Lord, from all sin;
R:  have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy.
V:  Lord, show us your love and mercy;
R:  for we put our trust in you.
V:  In you, Lord, is our hope;
R:  and we shall never hope in vain.

Imagine beginning a new year with this attitude of praise and thanksgiving for the greatness of God.  If you would like, make a resolution to include the Te Deum in your prayers more regularly.

"Ora et Labora"

“Ora et Labora” is a Latin phrase which literally means pray and work.  During the Middle Ages, ora et labora refers to the monastic practice of working and praying, and usually was associated with the Rule of St. Benedict.  St. Benedict viewed prayer and work as buddies and partners, and believed in combining contemplation with action and there should be a balance of prayer and work in the monasteries.

And so, let us reflect on the two poles of our Christian life:  Prayer and Action.

In the Gospel of Mark 6:30, Jesus’ Apostles had completed their first successful missionary work.  They preached repentance; they cast out many demons, and anointed sick with and healed them.  Now they returned enthusiastically and exhaustingly to report their progress.  And how does Christ respond when his missionaries return from their exciting and busy adventure?  He takes them aside to rest, to be with him again in the quiet intimacy of their small community.  To be with Jesus, means talking to Jesus and talking to Jesus means prayer.  The lesson is clear, we need to work and we also need to pray.

We who are energetically and enthusiastically occupied in evangelizing the world around us, need to balance our activity with contemplation, with time spent in personal conversation with the Lord.  After all HE is the master and WORK is not the master that should dictate us.

Sometimes we can wonder why we get so emotionally and spiritually exhausted by the busyness of our lives.  It’s because we aren’t recharging our spiritual batteries.  Stress, discouragement, and other crippling emotions can bring us down if we aren’t daily reinforcing our loving conversation with Jesus.  Only our friendship with Christ can supply us with the grace, wisdom and strength we need to be truly successful, successful not just in the roles we play, but in who we are beneath those roles.

But even though both are equally important for our spiritual maturity, in today’s world one of them is harder than the other.  “It is easier said than done” as they put it.  Today’s society is so focused on getting things done, on task lists and action points and bottom lines, that many people have actually lost sight of which things are really worthwhile doing and why.  The fast and superficial pace of life in the digital world makes prayer harder and harder, because prayer requires internal discipline and depth.

And God will certainly help us, if we just give him the chance.  And one way to do that is to make a commitment to a regular prayer life, not one that shifts with our moods.  We need to pray daily, to have a daily quiet time when we can speak to Christ, pray for our loved ones, reflect on the scriptures, or read some good, solid spiritual book.  That means carving out the time.  It doesn’t have to be a lot of time but it has to be consistent, and that means self-discipline.

We must remember that without prayer, study, and moments of being alone with God, our well will soon run dry, we will have nothing substantial to offer others.  On the other hand without action, without giving freely to others what we have freely received from God, our spiritual waters will become sluggish, dormant, stagnant, and lifeless like a salty lake with no outlet.  Contemplation and action, prayer and work, such was the way of Jesus, so every Christian’s should follow that way.

Christmas Traditions

As of tomorrow, we will officially be five days away from Christmas.  This might set off alarm bells in your head or it might trigger great feelings of excitement.  The former is probably more to do with the secular expectations that accompany the celebration of Christmas.  The latter would stem from a child-like delight in Christmas and/or from a deeper understanding of why we are celebrating – Jesus is born for us!

We are lucky here at St. Ambrose to be exposed to multiple cultures.  The students at Cosgriff will take part in a school-wide Posada tomorrow (the Hispanic tradition of traveling from house to house – or in this case, room to room – seeking shelter, as a re-enactment of Mary and Joseph entering Bethlehem and finding no place to stay other than the stable).  On Saturday, St. Ambrose will host the Filipino community for Simbang Gabi, a novena of Masses leading up to Christmas.  We host the Polish-speaking community for Mass twice a month.  Each community celebrates Christmas a little differently.

My family is a blend of European cultures.  My mother is Hungarian and my father is of English descent.  As such, we have a blended Christmas tradition.  We celebrate “European Christmas” on the 24^th.  We celebrate “American Christmas” on the 25^th.  This gives us the opportunity to experience the best of both worlds, as it were.

Our Christmas tree rarely goes up before the Fourth Week of Advent, not because we are too lazy or too busy to put it up before then, but because in Hungarian tradition, the tree wouldn’t go up until the 24^th.  Jesus and the angels (in the guise of the “grown-ups” in the family) bring the tree and the gifts.

We abstain from meat on Christmas Eve, following Catholic tradition, but we usually have a family dinner.  At the end of dinner, we read the Christmas story from the Bible, taken from the readings for Mass at Midnight and Mass at Dawn, and then the angels (in the guise of one of the “kids” in the family) ring bells to let us know that the tree and gifts are ready for us.  We sing some Christmas carols together, and then we open gifts.  On Christmas Day, we celebrate the more “American” way, with Christmas stockings and a larger family gathering.

Of course, we also attend Mass either or both days.  In recent years, due to involvement in the choir, we have mostly attended Mass or Masses on Christmas Eve and skipped going to church on Christmas Day.

I like my family’s traditions, partly because I grew up with them, so they are familiar to me, but also because they keep Jesus Christ in Christmas.  I may come from a blended family (both in terms of cultures and religious backgrounds), but Christmas for me has been always truly “Christ”mas.

Surprise!

Have you ever experienced being surprised by someone who is very familiar to you?  You were surprised because you didn’t expect this ordinary person could be someone who is so great.

Jesus was well known in Nazareth.  He was too ordinary for them.  They knew His father was a carpenter and they knew that Jesus was one, too.  Thus, it was not easy for them to accept the transformation of Jesus.  From a carpenter who got paid for practicing his trade, to a prophet who performed miracles for free.  To the people in His town, Jesus was just like any one of them, simple and ordinary.  But while Jesus was like all of us in everything, He was not an ordinary mortal.  Jesus was sinless.  There is something beyond ordinary in Him, something that even His own neighbors failed to see.  There was something they had never seen in him:  they never saw the power of God working in Him.

Our life can seem too ordinary to us sometimes.  We may not recognize the voice of God when he calls to us, when he asks for a deeper faith and commitment to him.  We may not recognize him speaking through the example and words of others.  We may not shake off our routine and truly listen to the Word of God.  But we can learn from the surprise the people of Nazareth showed at Jesus’ true identity, as it will help us to be more alert to God’s increasing surprises.

And so, how can we recognize Jesus and His surprises in our lives?  How can we see greatness in the ordinary?  I believe there is one thing necessary.  And that is Purity of Heart.  It is only the pure of heart that can go beyond the ordinary and see the Divine.  As the scripture tells us:

“Blessed are the pure of heart for they shall see God” (Mt. 5.8)

Only the pure of heart can see the work of God in every flower blooming around us.  Only the pure of heart can see the work of God in the homeless people in the streets.  Only the pure of heart can see God in the simplicity, in the ordinariness, in the routine of our day to day life.

Without the purity of heart, life becomes a burden, and life becomes heavy for us.  But if we are blessed with the purity of heart, we can look and see beyond the ordinary to Jesus Christ.  Beyond the ordinary is the love of God made present in all of us.

We will pray to the Lord for this grace.  For a heart that is pure so that we may be able to look beyond the ordinary and see the wonders of God’s being present among us.  Let us pray to the Lord for a purity of heart so that we can look beyond the ordinary and be surprise at the beauty of God’s love for us.

-- Fr. Joshua

Seriously Celebrating

Advent, by its nature, is a season of anticipation.  This makes it a more solemn season in the course of the Church year.  The word solemn need not mean “sad” or “somber,” especially in the context of Advent, during which we are preparing for the joyous event of Christmas and Jesus’ birth.  Indeed, in this context, it means “serious.”  We have feast days during the Church year that are celebrated as Solemnities.  For instance, for our parish, the feast of St. Ambrose on December 7^th may be celebrated as a Solemnity because he is our patron saint.  This means we get to celebrate a little more than usual.  We can take the day more seriously.

During this season of anticipation, we have one Sunday during which we celebrate a little more:  Gaudete Sunday, which is the Third Sunday of Advent.  We celebrate because we are halfway (or a little more than halfway) to the celebration of Christmas.  We light the rose-colored candle.  We allow ourselves to be a little more joyful.

The word gaudete is Latin for rejoice.  It is a command to us.  The reason we call the Third Sunday of Advent Gaudete Sunday is because the entrance antiphon in the Roman Missal for this Sunday is taken from St. Paul’s letter to the Phillipians, in which he tells the new Christian community to “Rejoice in the Lord always” (Philipians 4:4).  We are to rejoice because the Lord is coming.  Indeed, He is near.

As Christmas approaches, and with it, our commemoration of the first coming of Jesus, the anticipation grows as well.  Yesterday, I overheard one of the little ones in EDP asking, “Mommy, is it Christmas?”  The mom responded, “Not yet, soon.”  The excitement was evident in the child’s voice.

As we get older, we tend to become more serious, somber, and solemn.  We lose our childlike joy as we become jaded by life experience.  Starting today, try to indulge your inner child.  Try to find the joy you may have felt growing up when the first signs of Christmas appeared in your surroundings.  Rediscover the awe and wonder of one of the best things that has happened to you, because Christmas is just that:  one of the best things that has ever happened for humankind.

How will you rediscover your childlike joy this Advent and Christmas season? 

On the Seventh Day...

People in the city seem to have a stronger urge to work than those people who live in the countryside.  Many people in the cities love to work.  Some people even take pride in being called workaholics.

Many of us live with the viewpoint that a person’s worth is defined and measured by the way he or she works.  It means, the more work, the more worth; the less work, the less worth.  Sometimes we feel guilty if we take a break while other people we know are working.  We want to be well occupied always.  We want to work not only for the sake of working, but also because when we work, we get a greater chance of earning much and live a happly and comfortable life.  And because we always want to work, we become uncomfortable with silence.  There must be music, or something we can read.  There must be something to work on.  If there is nothing to work on, or music to listen to or books to read, we become uneasy, tense and troubled; because we no longer know what to do with silence.  To rest is not a sign of weakness.  Rest is not only limited only to the old and sick people.

Sometimes we become uncomfortable with silence.  We become perturbed by solitude.  We start to feel guilty when we want to rest.

There is a mother who boasts that since she became a mother she has not taken a vacation because, she says, she doesn’t need a vacation.  Then a priest asked the children, Is it true that your mother does not need a vacation?  “Maybe, the children replied:  “but mother does not realize that sometimes we need a vacation from her”.

Sometimes we are afraid to rest because we are afraid to realize that even if we are far away the world will still go on.  Sometimes we are afraid to resign, to get away, to take a break, to take a leave, because we are afraid that when we return, things have become better without us.

On the seventh day, God rested.  Even God the mighty rested.  Jesus the Son of God, the savior of the world, invites us.  “Come to me all you who are tired and I will give you rest.”  There was so much to do.  People were coming to Him.  People were rushing to Him to hear God’s word.  Yet, the most practical way, the most pastoral and apostolic way to handle such situations was to rest, to keep still in the presence of the Lord.

Let us ask Jesus for the grace to slow down, to be comfortable with rest, to be comfortable with solitude.  Because in solitude, we are confronted with that small voice inside us which tells us that we are loved by a gracious God.

-- Fr. Joshua Santos

Advent Calendars and Christmas Count-Downs

Secular culture hears the phrase “Advent calendar,” and what comes to mind almost immediately are the cardboard boxes with the pictures of Santa Claus or a winter scene with the little doors.  Open a door, get a little piece of chocolate, rinse and repeat each day until Christmas.  These commercial “Advent” calendars usually start on December 1^st and go until December 25^th, with no regard for what the liturgical season of Advent actually is.

Typical commercial “Advent” calendar

Of course, there is nothing wrong with using one of these commercial calendars with your family, so long as there is also a focus on the liturgical season of Advent.  However, it is my personal opinion that such calendars should be thought of as Christmas count-downs rather than Advent calendars.

I am lucky to have and use an Advent calendar that my family made for me when I was young.  It consists of a wooden Christmas tree with ornaments to place on it each day of Advent.  There are enough ornaments for each day of Advent, regardless of whether it starts the last week of November, or the first week of December.  My brother’s is a similar concept – a felt Christmas tree with felt ornaments that one can attach to the tree with Velcro each day of Advent.  Both of our calendar ornaments contain religious symbols, as well as more secular symbols of winter.

An Advent Calendar similar to my own

An Advent Calendar similar to my brother’s

These calendars enhanced our experience of Advent growing up, when the commercial calendars were far less prevalent, because they opened the door for conversation about why we were celebrating during the run up to Christmas.  It gave our mother the chance to get us ready:  mind, body, and soul.

What kinds of Advent calendars do you use with your families?  How do they help you get ready for Christmas, and “Prepare the way of the Lord”?

Spiritual House Cleaning

December starts tomorrow.  While winter officially starts on December 21^st, we’ve already had snow, and it has definitely become colder outside.  Depending on how you look at it, we are either really lucky or unlucky that we live in an area which experiences four seasons.

The liturgical year, too, has seasons:  Advent, Christmas, a first period of Ordinary Time, Lent, Easter, and a second period of Ordinary Time.

(image source)

Advent starts this Sunday, December 2^nd.  During this time, we wait in joyful hope for the coming of Jesus at Christmas, but He is already with us.  Christmas is our time to remember Jesus’ first coming, but He comes to us at each Mass we attend, and His earthly dwelling is in each of our hearts.  So, let us make our hearts into a dwelling fit for Jesus, who is God in the person of the Son.  

Join us for our parish Penance Service on Monday at 6:30 pm.  We will have a liturgy of the word followed by an examination of conscience, and an opportunity for individual confession.  Take advantage of this opportunity to do some pre-holiday cleaning, and take care of Jesus’ home as well as your own.

Gift and Reward

The Parable of the “Workers in the Vineyard” is a parable NOT ONLY ABOUT JUSTICE but more about the parable of GENEROSITY.

It is a parable of justice because those who worked for the eight (8) hour workday received the usual, regular and just wage for a day’s work.  It is also a parable of generosity because some hired workers received more than what they deserve.

What the Lord meant was that hired men received money from the Lord not because they had to be paid for work that they did but simply because God wanted to give.  It is the same with heaven.  Heaven is not God’s reward to us for not violating the Ten Commandments.  Heaven is not God’s reward to us because we go to Mass every Sunday or because we pray the rosary, or do not kill, steal, or commit adultery.  It is not because of all of these that God must reward us with heaven.  “HEAVEN IS NOT A REWARD; HEAVEN IS GOD’S GIFT TO US.”

If we were to demand justice from God for what we do, we will all end up outside the Kingdom of heaven.  We will all be able to enter God’s kingdom not because we are worthy, but because GOD IS GENEROUS.  We will all be able to enter God’s kingdom not because we are being rewarded for the good things we have done but because GOD IS GOOD.  There is no opportunity; there is no chance for us to buy heaven.  If we try to buy heaven, it will be like buying the whole of California with fake gold, which is valueless.  We cannot buy our salvation.

Our acts of love to our neighbor, our acts of piety, our fidelity to the commandments, our praying the Rosary everyday our going to mass every Sunday, these are only expressions of our love for God.

And at the end of the day when everything is said and done, we can only say, in humility:  “Lord I still do not deserve heaven.  Please be gracious to me, let me enter heaven one day.”

If God desires to give us heaven, let us thank Him.  Heaven is not God’s reward to us.  Heaven is not something we pay for.  Heaven is COMPLETELY GOD’S GIFT to us.

God is generous, God is kind.  God is love.  Let us thank God that He is generous because if God were only just, we will all be outside the kingdom of heaven.  The generosity of God is the beginning of new life.  May we all experience the generosity of God and may we be able to be generous to others as God has been generous in loving us.

Now Thank We All Our God

The holiday season is upon us.  This is true both in the secular sense of the phrase “holiday season” and in the religious sense.  This week, we celebrate Thanksgiving here in the United States, and the Church Universal celebrates the feast of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe.

When I was in middle school at the Madeleine Choir School, Christ the King was the start of some of my favorite music.  We processed around the outside of the Cathedral chanting the Christus Vincit Acclamations accompanied solely by hand bells.  I can still hear the chant in my head, and it brings a smile to my face.  It really felt like a celebration.

And that is as it should be.  The feast of Christ the King is like New Year’s Eve for the Catholic Church.  The following Sunday, we enter into a new liturgical year with the First Sunday of Advent.  It is a time of new beginnings and a time of reflection.

This ties in well with the secular holiday of Thanksgiving.  This week, we take time to be thankful for the gifts we have been given, and if we are lucky, we get to spend time with family and friends whom we maybe do not get to see very often.  It is a time of reminiscence and nostalgia for many.

My family usually hosts Thanksgiving at our house.  This year, we will have twelve people around our Thanksgiving table, which is a lot for us.  I’m looking forward to it though because we will get to see family we don’t usually see this time of year.  We are joking around the house that there will be at least eight people there who share substantial amounts of DNA, and we’ll probably be a pretty raucous bunch because of that, but that’s not a bad thing. 

Enjoying the company of others is part of what makes the holidays a special time of year.  Let us remember that, while we are renewing our connections with family and friends and strengthening those bonds, we can and should be renewing our connection and strengthening our bond with God also.

Why are You Angry?

Jesus is commonly known to be a compassionate, loving and merciful God.  We often refer to him as the Good Shepherd who never leaves His flock unattended.  He is a gentle God.  But in the Gospel of St John 2:13-22, we can see a rather surprising action of Jesus.  For some it may even be scandalous.  Why?  It is because Jesus became “ANGRY”:  An angry God who made a whip out of chords, drove out the money-changers from the temple and overturned their tables.

What could be the possible reason for this anger?  It is stated in the gospel that he would like to put a stop in making the temple, His Father’s house, a market place and a den of thieves.  It is the “ZEAL FOR MY FATHER’S HOUSE” that consumes Him.  Therefore he was angry because of his immense love for His Father and His desire to rectify the wrong things done.

We might then ask the question.  Is anger a sin?  YES or NO?  If we say YES, it would mean Jesus committed a sin, and His sinlessness is tainted by this anger.  If we say NO, then how can we explain anger as one of the Capital Sin together with, pride, envy, gluttony, sloth, lust and wrath?  Is anger a sin?  The answer can be Yes and No.

YES, Anger is a sin when it is a product of revenge, a burst of unreasonable emotion, and a show of feeling of resentment and frustrations.  NO, Anger is not a sin when one just want to straighten our wrongdoings and rectify the erroneous action committed.  Thus one is therefore angry, not because of hatred but because of love.

Aristotle says; “Anger is justified when it is done in the right time, by the right people, at the right place, and for the right reason”  And so, Jesus remains blameless and sinless because His anger is a product of correcting us in the name of love.

For those people in authority, especially parents, when you are angry, make sure it is not a sinful anger.  Let your anger be like the anger of Jesus, whose only motivation is love.  Now, it is good to ask yourself “What kind of anger do I feel?  Am I hasty person who flies into overwhelming temper once I see something is wrong?”  I believe that it is always good to ask Jesus to give us the grace to be patient.  When we ask God to be patient, let us plead from Him the grace to correct, not simply to express our anger, but to bring people to conversion, to eventually become a better person.  Only through this will our anger become life-giving.  And when it is life-giving, our anger becomes God’s instrument of grace.

Take a Breath

For me, October seemed extremely busy.  I’m sure part of it was due to the fact that I am in the first year of a new job and finding out all the things that needed to be done before November started.  Last week I felt like I could finally take a breath and think about other things – things that I had been putting on the back-burner for the last month because it felt like I just didn’t have time.  With the approach of the holiday season, I know things will get busy again, perhaps even more so, because there will be family commitments and events in my personal life as well as things going on at work.

This in-between time of fewer commitments and more time spent with my family emphasizes to me that God never gives us more than we can handle.  It might feel like we are being pushed to our limits, but He will never push us past our limits.  And, when He pushes us to our limits, there is usually time afterward to recover ourselves and regain our former strength.

So, when we are going through a difficult period in our lives, we should remember that God, who is all-knowing, knows what is best for us.  He gives us times of struggle so we have a chance to turn to Him for help.  If we turn to Him in prayer, whether directly or through the intercession of the Saints, He will provide an answer for us.

Prayers in Correction

In the Gospel of St Matthew chapter 18:15-20 Jesus put fraternal correction and prayer at the same moment of his preaching. Jesus is telling us that the most significant characteristic of fraternal correction or the best effective way of fraternal correction is to pray for the person who needs to be corrected.

There is a not holy joke that says:

“Oh, Father I prayed for the person who hurts me, I prayed for my enemies.” And then the priest asked: “So what is your prayer for your enemies?”, and the man said: “I prayed that all of them will die.”

My sisters and brothers, that is not how we should pray for them. The gospel is clear. We pray for them, confront them in order to win them back, make them realize their mistake, and bring that person back to God. There are already so many sins committed in the name of fraternal correction, there are already so many persons that are hooked under the banner of constructive criticism, but not so many are really praying for the people we wish to correct.

Trash talking somebody will not solve any dispute or solve problems in relationships. Gossip will just make it worse. Pope Francis once said: “Gossiping is terrorism.” Let us reflect and consider this; If somebody commits an offense against us, instead of talking to the person first, can we bring our conversation to GOD first? If somebody has hurt you; talk to God about the person, if somebody needs correction; talk to God about the person, and if somebody needs to be criticized; talk to God about the person. The advice is “TALK TO GOD FIRST”

The first and foremost effective and responsible way of correcting people is by PRAYER. We must realize that it is not our good works that change hearts, it is not our beautiful words that make people change their ways, it is only the GRACE OF GOD that can change the hearts of people and NOT US. That is why PRAYER is the most important, vital instrument in FRATERNAL CORRECTION.

We will pray today for the people we want to correct, we will pray today for the people we are tempted to criticize, and we will pray today for the people who have hurt us, and we will talk to God about them.

Seeking Serenity

My bachelor’s degree is in English.  In the senior seminar class for this major, my college made the informal distinction between a teaching major and an academic major, the difference being the answer to “What are you going to do with that?” which is a question English majors get all the time.  Are you going to teach the subject to others?  Congratulations, you’re getting a teaching major.  Are you going to spend your time picking apart literature, writing scholarly articles, or becoming an editor?  Congratulations, you’re getting an academic major.

I was a teaching major.  My plan, in the grand scheme of things, was to teach high school English.  Obviously, God had other plans.  I did my stint working in a high school in a special education classroom, then in two different elementary schools in special education classrooms, and then in a daycare.  None of these classrooms really gave me a chance to do anything with my English major.

My family refers to me as the “resident English major.”  Often, I am presented with their writing to edit it for meaning and flow.  I’ve done various forms of creative writing since I was little, and now, I write for this blog as well.  But mostly, I write for myself.

Writing, like any hobby, is a skill that one improves through practice.  There are many who share tips on how to make writing a habit.  Daily pages (“write every day”), stream of consciousness (“write whatever is going through your mind at a given time”), prompts (topics to write about), and many other methods exist to get people writing and doing so consistently.

For the very ambitious, there are writing “events.”  For many writers, November is National Novel Writing Month, during which people attempt to write a 50,000-word novel in just thirty days.  I have tried this several times, and I have succeeded exactly once.  Veterans of this particular event say it is doable if you allow yourself to accept whatever comes from your brain and makes its way onto the page (or the computer screen).  The focus is on quantity and not quality.  “That’s what editing is for,” they say.  Just get it all out, and then you can make it into what you envisioned it to be in the first place.

This is very difficult for people with perfectionist tendencies such as myself, but I feel like it’s also a good exercise to engage in.  Sometimes you have to give yourself permission to accept what things are for the way they are.  The same is true in life, which is why we have the so-called Serenity Prayer.

Lord, grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change,

The Courage to change the things I can,

And Wisdom to know the difference.

With this mindset, hopefully it will be easier for us to accept our imperfections and, as the morning offering prayer of the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales says, conduct ourselves each day in a manner pleasing to God.

Praying for Those in Purgatory

As we begin the month of November, we celebrate the feasts of All Saints Day and All Souls Day.  On All Saints Day, we remember those who have gone before us who are in Heaven.  This includes those saints who are canonized (i.e., whose feasts and memorials we celebrate throughout the year), as well as other holy people who we know are in heaven.  On All Souls Day, we pray for those souls that are in Purgatory.  At St. Ambrose, we specifically remember those who have passed away in the last year at the Mass on November 2^nd.

The Catholic Church dedicates the entire month of November to praying for those souls that are in Purgatory.  But why do they need our prayers?  Purgatory is not so much a place as it is a process according to Catholic teaching.  The Catechism of the Catholic Church (1994) refers to it as a “cleansing fire” (CCC 1031).  In the summary part of this section of the Catechism, it states:

Those who die in God’s grace and friendship imperfectly purified, although they are assured of their eternal salvation, undergo a purification after death, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of God.  (CCC 1054)

Since this period of purification is a process, it makes sense that we would pray for those going through the process, just as we might pray for someone living who is experiencing a time of trial in his or her life.

It is comforting to know that we will not be condemned for our sins automatically.  As long as we are repentant for our actions, we can be saved from damnation in Hell.  During this month of November, of course pray for your loved ones who have died, but also, consider praying for the souls in Purgatory who have no one to pray for them.

Rosary Series (Part 4 of 4): So What am I Going to Get Out of This?

This month, this blog has focused on the Rosary.  It has covered personal relationships with the Rosary, Rosary novenas, and the mysteries of the Rosary.  Today, I want to address the question, “So what am I going to get out of this?”  What do we get when we pray the Rosary regularly?

The Blessed Virgin Mary made fifteen promises to St. Dominic when she gave him the prayers of the Rosary.  These promises are enumerated on this site.  In brief:

• ·         our prayers will be answered (whether we get the answers to our prayers that we want or are hoping for is a different matter entirely, but we are promised an answer)
• ·         we will be spiritually prepared for death
• ·         ultimately, we will go to heaven and enjoy eternal life with God
• ·         the world will be a better place because God will be at work in us, and 
• ·         Mary assures us of her personal intercession with her son, Jesus

All well and good, one might say, but what do I get out of it?  The answer to that is similar to the answer you might receive when looking into any remedy:  results may vary.  It depends on the intent behind the devotion.  If we intend to spend mindful time in prayer, it is preferable to doing it for the sake of doing it, just because we know we should.

I will admit, there are times I pray simply because I know I should, with very little thought to the deeper reasons why I should.  Developing a habit of prayer goes beyond making it an obligation.  Our motivation in developing a habit of prayer needs to come from a place of recognition that we need God’s help in our lives, and the way we ask for that help is through prayer.  When we pray the rosary regularly, not only are we assured of God’s help in some way.  We know that we have a mediator in Heaven in the Blessed Virgin Mary as well, and she only wants good things for us.

Rosary Series (part 3 of 4): A "Mysterious" Tour through Jesus' Life

When praying the rosary, each day of the week has a specific set of mysteries associated with it.  Sunday is typically associated with the Glorious Mysteries, which is fitting, since each Sunday is like a mini-Easter celebration of the Lord’s resurrection from the dead.  During Advent, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) recommends praying the Joyful Mysteries on Sunday, and during Lent, they recommend praying the Sorrowful Mysteries, in observance of the solemnity of these liturgical seasons (source).  Monday is typically associated with the Joyful Mysteries, Tuesday with the Sorrowful Mysteries, and Wednesday with the Glorious Mysteries.  Friday is associated with the Sorrowful Mysteries, which is fitting as Friday was the day of the events of Jesus’ death.  Saturday is associated with the Joyful mysteries.

Today, Thursday, is associated with the Luminous Mysteries of Pope St. John Paul II.  Prior to the implementation of the Luminous Mysteries in 2002, Thursday was associated with the Joyful Mysteries.  Some conservative members of the Church still observe this, contending that when the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to St. Dominic and gave him the prayers of the rosary, she did not give him the Luminous Mysteries.  Further, when she appeared to the children in Fatima, she said to pray the fifteen mysteries of the rosary for the reparation of sins, not twenty.

Personally, I like the Luminous Mysteries.  They complete the story of Jesus’ life as observed in the mysteries of the rosary.  If one prays all twenty of the mysteries in a single sitting (ambitious, but possible), one meditates on the entire life of Jesus, including the years of His public ministry.  Leaving them out, to me, feels like missing an important piece of Jesus’ life:  His example to us through His shared humanity with us.

Of course, there isn’t one right way to pray the rosary.  It is a private devotion.  What matters is that we use it in a way that is beneficial to us as well as to the world.  It doesn’t really matter which Mysteries one meditates on each day.  The typical associations noted above simply provide some unity throughout the Church’s prayer of this devotion.

How do you pray the rosary?  What is your opinion of the Luminous Mysteries?  Share in the comments below, and please remember to be respectful and courteous of others and their views and opinions.

Rosary series (part 2 of 4): Rosary Novenas

You have probably heard of a prayer novena before – a prayer, often to a certain saint, which is said nine days in a row for a specific petition or for that saint’s intercession in a time of need.  If you can think of a saint or a specific issue you may face, there is probably a novena to meet your needs.  But did you know there is also such a thing as a rosary novena?

A rosary novena (nine days praying the rosary in a row) could be said for any intention.  After all, the rosary incorporates intercession to Mary to “pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.”  And who better to intercede for us than the Mother of God herself?

According to EWTN:  

“A 54-day Rosary is basically six novenas of the five-decade rosary that is said for a particular intention.  The first set of three novenas (27 days) are said in petition for the intention and the second set of three novenas (27 days) are said in thanksgiving, even if the answer to your intention was not yet given. In other words, in the second set of novenas you are giving thanksgiving that God's will is going to be done. To make the novena, you pray a five-decade rosary for 54 days in a row for your intention.”

Now, like me, you’re probably thinking, 54 days?!  In a row?!  It does seem daunting on the face of it.  However, a 54-day rosary has much to teach us.  It could teach us patience.  It could teach us perseverance.  It could help us make saying the rosary a daily habit.  There really aren’t any cons to giving it a try at least.  And, if we fail, we can always try again, confident in the fact that Mother Mary will not judge us for our failures.

Have you tried a rosary novena?  What about a 54-day rosary?  What spiritual benefits did you gain from this practice?  Share in the comments below.

Rosary Series (part 1 of 4): My Developing Relationship with the Rosary

During the month of October, this blog will focus on the rosary.  I will begin this four-part series with a reflection on my relationship with the rosary and how it has changed over the years.

I am a cradle Catholic.  My earliest memories of the rosary are a combination of the large children’s rosary I had hanging above my bed and my rosary coloring book.  I would spend what felt like hours carefully coloring each bead, being super careful to color inside the lines.  That was my earliest expression of devotion to the rosary. 

As I got older, my relationship with the rosary evolved.  I remember bringing a rosary to school with me in October when I was in second grade at Cosgriff and having the whole school gather in the church to pray together.  I remember the CD I received as a gift that had kids from Australia praying the rosary.  I remember receiving a specially blessed rosary from the shrine of Our Lady of Betania in Venezuela.  (I still have and use this rosary.)

As an adult, my relationship with the rosary has become more about the devotion itself.  I am still trying to find the way of praying it that is most satisfying to me.  I want to “do everything.”  I want a scriptural passage to meditate on.  I want an expansion on the holy name of Jesus to help keep the mystery top of mind.  I want to make sure I am including the prayers for the pope and his intentions and the Litany of Loreto at the end.  And I want a way to incorporate the intention of my rosary into the prayers.

Maybe I want to do too much.  I have yet to find a method or app for praying the rosary that incorporates all of these things.  I have read conflicting articles.  Some say that it’s not about the quantity of your prayer (i.e., the time you spend in prayer), it’s about the quality of your prayer.  Then others seem to say the exact opposite.  Of course, the best thing to do most likely is to find a balance between the two.  As Dr. Mary Healy says in the Symbolon video we used for RCIA this week, “If we say we are too busy to pray, we’re too busy.”  She goes on to explain that prayer needs to be a priority in our lives.  What could be more important than developing our relationship with God through prayer?

What are your earliest memories of the rosary?  How do you incorporate this devotion into your prayer life?

Urgency vs. Patience

My mom often says to me, “Have a sense of urgency.”  Hurry up.  Things won’t get done on time if you sit around lollygagging your time away.  In a way, this is an extension of what my grandmother would tell her:  “Induljatok!” – Hungarian for “Get going!”

I have struggled with having this sense of urgency my whole life.  Part of it is probably genetic from both sides.  In my family, we do things very deliberately, and very accurately.  There’s probably a measure of OCD thrown into the mix.  My parents had to be very precise in their work, so it was a habit that both my brother and I picked up quite easily.

When we went to New England over Labor Day weekend, our tour director advised us that in one town, they had no sense of urgency, so ask for your lunch check right when you receive your food.  I told my mom, this is the town for me.

There are times when it is good to have a sense of urgency:  when you are facing a deadline, when you have an important appointment, or when there is some sort of an emergency.  There are also times when it is more advisable to take your time.  Journeys of faith usually fall into the latter category.  I make sure to mention to people who want to go through the RCIA program that this is their journey.  It goes at each person’s own pace.  The important thing is to discern how God is impacting their life at this point in their life.  What is He calling them to do at this moment?  What is His will for them where they are right now?

Perhaps during hectic times of our lives, it would be beneficial to slow down, even stop for a moment, and ask ourselves, what does God want of me at this moment?  How would He want me to act or react in this situation?  What would Jesus do in this situation?  And, at times when things are not moving along as quickly as we might like, we can remember that patience is a skill that perhaps we need to develop further.

Obedience to God's Will

This year, among the many changes that have taken place in our parish, Fr. Andrzej asked me to take over RCIA.  When he first suggested this, I was a little uncomfortable with the idea.  I am a cradle Catholic.  What do I know about conversion?  Yes, I have a teaching background, but I mostly worked with lower grades, never adults.  Each age-level is its own beast and comes with its own challenges.  I spent a long time coming to terms with the idea of leading a group of adults through arguably one of the most transformative experiences of their lives, but eventually I accepted the task before me, even if it still makes me a little nervous.  This is what God’s plan for me is right now.  He wants to work through me and strengthen me in my faith through this experience.

This past Tuesday evening, the incoming RCIA participants had the opportunity to meet with Fr. Joshua, Deacon George, and Deacon John.  In the course of the conversation, the topic of Mary came up.  Fr. Joshua told those present that we can come to understand Jesus better through Mary.  Deacon John mentioned that the last recorded words we have from Mary in the Bible are at the Wedding at Cana when Jesus performed his first miracle, changing the water into wine.  Mary said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5).

When Deacon John mentioned the last recorded words of Mary, it got me thinking about the other times we hear Mary’s words directly quoted in scripture.  Each of the four times illustrate Mary’s own journey toward total obedience to God’s will.

First, when the angel Gabriel tells Mary she is to be the mother of God, she says, “How can this be…?”  (Luke 1:34).  Even Mary had her moments of disbelief and doubt.  She comes to accept God’s will for her very quickly however because just four verses later, in Luke 1:38 she says, “May it be done to me according to your [the angel Gabriel’s] word.”  When Mary goes to visit Elizabeth, she proclaims the Magnificat in praise and thanksgiving for God’s care for her.  And finally, at the Wedding at Cana, Mary shows the utmost trust in God in the person of Jesus when she tells the servants to “Do whatever he tells you.” 

Mary’s journey is perhaps best summarized as going through four stages, which we see in her own words:  skepticism, acceptance, praise and thanksgiving, and obedience.  We can take comfort from the fact that even our Blessed Mother experienced these human emotions and showed us how to be perfectly obedient to God’s will.

Keep the Plates Spinning

My mantra this week has been “Keep the plates spinning.”  When I was growing up, we had a VHS compilation of segments from “The Ed Sullivan Show” and in it, there was a plate-spinning act.  The idea was to see how many plates one could keep spinning at the same time. 

Plate-spinning was a one-person act, which upped the suspense level.  Could one person do it all alone?  It made for great entertainment, because of the potential for things to go wrong.  But what if there were more people involved?  What if, instead of just one person, there were multiple people, each trying to make sure all the plates kept spinning?  That could be just as disastrous.

Sometimes, there seems to be so much going on, it is a struggle to keep just a few plates spinning.  Other times, it is easier.  Sometimes the plates are on a counter or table with little risk of falling and shattering.  Other times the plates are spinning on sticks and the worst could happen at any moment.

The point is, when organizations are run effectively and efficiently, each person is responsible for their set of plates and their set of plates alone.  There is division of duties so that no one person has too many plates.  It makes a seemingly insurmountable task manageable.

I feel like we are in the middle of a plate-spinning act at St. Ambrose right now.  At least, that’s how it has felt on the administrative side of the parish.  There are so many programs to keep going, and at the moment our chief plate-spinner, Fr. Andrzej, has stepped away from the table.  It now falls to those of us who remain to “pick up the slack” as it were.

The important thing to realize is that, at the very core, we are invested in keeping our Church alive, even in the face of adversity.  There may be some fumbles and some slips along the way, but we will come out the other side of this difficult time.  The hope is that we come out stronger.  We just have to rely on one another a little bit more and be willing to help in whatever way we can.  We know that we can always rely on God’s help to resolve our difficulties.  It may not be in the way we want or expect, but He always listens and answers our prayers.

Finding Joy in Simple Things

I just got back from a weeklong trip to New England.  It was good to get away for a while, and nice to spend time traveling with my mom.  We went on a bus tour around all five New England states.  We had traveled with this tour company last year as well, and both times my dad joked that I would probably be the youngest person on the tour.  (I wasn’t the youngest either time, by the way.)

Half the fun of a bus tour is getting to know those with whom you are traveling.  This year, we met an older couple and their adult son who seemed to have an intellectual disability.  I’ll call him “Ryan” here.  In my years working in special education, I have enjoyed working with such individuals because they find so much joy in the simple things of life.

Ryan soaked up all the experiences on the tour.  To him, everything was “awesome!”  From visiting Faneuil Hall in Boston, to driving past the grand estates of the Breakers in Rhode Island, to cruising the harbor and eating lobster in Maine, he loved every minute. 

People like Ryan who are able to find joy in pretty much anything inspire me.  Their zest for life is contagious.  It makes me realize how much in my life I should thank God for.  I have written before about the importance of being child-like.  People like Ryan never really lose their child-like wonder and fascination with the world.  Rather than regarding this as an aspect of their disability, one might consider it their super power.

Balancing Work with Prayer

On Monday, we will celebrate Labor Day, a holiday originally intended to celebrate the dignity of the worker.  St. Joseph is, among other things, the patron saint of workers.  He made his living as a carpenter, engaged in manual labor, and he passed on his trade to Jesus.  Jesus took it a step further in his role as the Son of God.

Jesus engaged in the work of conversion through prayer.  He called his apostles from their daily work to a different calling, but one that is still work.  “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men,” He tells them in Matthew 4:19.  It is work to follow Jesus.  It is sacrifice.  The conversion of hearts takes effort, both on the part of the convert and the converter.

The idea that prayer and work go hand in hand has survived through the centuries.  Ora et labora (prayer and work) became the motto of many monasteries as a key component of the Rule of St. Benedict.  His Rule sought to ensure that there was balance in life rather than a tending toward one extreme or the other.

When prayer guides our work, we can be assured that God will have a hand in it somehow.  It may not be in the way we expect, but He is working in and through us.  As we celebrate Labor Day, let us call to mind all those who work with and for us to better our lives.

Regaining Clarity

I’ll just say it.  The air quality this summer has been absolutely terrible.  It was such a nice surprise to be able to see the Salt Lake Valley on my way to work yesterday morning.  Thank God for the cleansing rain!   Unfortunately, the storm on Wednesday blew a lot of smoke into the valley again, so our respite was fleeting.  Nevertheless, we know that there is the possibility of clearer days ahead.

Regaining the physical ability to see the valley only to have it obscured the next day, reminded me that there are always opportunities to look for the gifts that God is giving us.  Sometimes they may be more difficult to see than usual, but they are still there.  Saint Ignatius called these times of haziness in our life “desolation.”  He called the times of clarity “consolation.”  When we are in desolation, it may seem difficult to talk with God.  It may be hard to see the good things in our life.  The times of consolation are easier.  During these times, we should strive to thank God for all the things He is doing for us, whether we realize it or not.

This week, try to see the gifts God wants to give you each day.

Winnie the Pooh and the Value of Being Child-Like

In Saint Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians he says, “When I was a child, I used to talk as a child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I became a man, I put aside childish things” (1 Corinthians 13:11).  It is important though to make a distinction between “childish” and “child-like.”  After all, Jesus said, “unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:3).  The new film, Christopher Robin, in theaters now, illustrates this distinction very well.

WARNING:  SPOILERS AHEAD!  If you would like to see the movie without spoilers, please skip the next two paragraphs.

The film brings back beloved characters from childhood:  Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, Tigger, Rabbit, Owl, Kanga, and Roo.  It first presents Christopher Robin as a boy getting ready to go away to boarding school.  The majority of the film shows him as an adult (played by Ewan Mcgregor), with all the worries and responsibilities of a grown up.  Pooh finds his way to London because he has lost his friends in the Hundred Acre Wood and needs Christopher Robin’s help to find them.  Christopher Robin is facing a daunting time at work during which his boss expects him to do some restructuring of staff.  He has needed to cancel a family outing with his wife Evelyn and daughter Madeline in order to work.  Pooh’s timing could not be worse!  Grudgingly, Christopher Robin takes Pooh back to the Hundred Acre Wood, defeats a “woozle,” and saves his childhood friends.  But, when he returns to the “real world”, he unknowingly leaves behind all of his important work papers. 

The inhabitants of the Hundred Acre Wood embark on a mission to return the papers to Christopher Robin, enlisting the help of Madeline.  Madeline goes off with them to try to find her father in London, resulting in her mother thinking she has gone off on her own.  Christopher and Evelyn find Madeline in London, and Christopher finds a way to resolve his staffing issues in a manner beneficial to all.  In the process, Christopher Robin realizes he is trying to make his daughter grow up too fast.  He discovers that there is more to life than working all the time.  He finds a solution, both to his work problem and the problem of missing time with his family.  And, in the grand tradition of Disney films, they live happily ever after.

So, what does this have to do with the scripture passages I included earlier?  Christopher Robin “put aside childish things,” but he also lost his child-like wonder.  It took a significant intervention from his childhood friends to help him find it again, and he was a happier person because of it.  He found himself again, and he was able to allow his daughter to be a child instead of growing up too fast as he had to do.

As I have gotten older, I have begun to notice the “grown-up” messages in films meant for children.  This film was full of them.  It helps us to realize the value in being child-like.  Most importantly, it reminds us not to grow up too fast.

Resolutions Aren't Just for the New Year

This is the first time in twenty-six years that August has not been “back to school” time for me.  Typically, August was filled with back to school shopping and “school year resolutions”:  This year, I’m going to be organized.  This year, I’m going to stay on top of my homework (or, when I became a teacher, my grading).  This year is going to be different, and it’s going to be better, and I’m going to get so much more done.

Now that I am out of school, both as a student and as a teacher, I am finding myself missing this time of starting fresh and beginning new things.  I feel like I’ve finally “graduated” to becoming an “adult” with bigger responsibilities, even though I had them as a teacher as well.  Now, though, they’re year-round.

I realize it doesn’t have to be this way necessarily.  Any time can be a time of renewal.  Often, if one looks for advice on goal setting, what one finds is simple.  Add new habits and goals gradually.  Set a time-range for meeting your goal.  Is it a long-term goal?  Allow more time to achieve it.  Set smaller goals to help reach the bigger ones.

At this point in my life, leaving the world of education, I feel like I've lost the sense of schedule that the cycle of school-summer-school gave me, but that’s not a bad thing.  Now I can truly embrace the idea of starting anew at any time.

I think the same can be said for spiritual renewal.  Often, we look to the “big” seasons in the Church year, such as Advent, Christmas, Lent, or Easter as the times to reconnect with our faith, but we can do so at any time.  God is always waiting for us.  We just have to be ready and willing to meet Him.

What could you do to start a time of spiritual renewal right now?