He is Risen! Happy Easter Friday!

Easter ain't over yet! It's an 8 day celebration! Happy Easter Friday to you all. May you have true and lasting joy in the Risen Jesus.

Easter Has Only Begun

One thing I love about being Catholic is that Easter is not only one day. In fact, it is an 8 day feast and the Easter season lasts until Pentecost. So wishing someone Happy Easter on Monday is totally valid! Here is a meditation by Papa Ben that I came across in the Magnificat. May we all be Easter People!

Jesus...says of his death: "I go away, and I will come to you." It is by going away that he comes. His going ushers in a completely new and greater way of being present. By dying he enters into the love of the Father. His dying is an act of love. Love, however, is immortal. Therefore, his going away is transformed into a new coming, into a form of presence which reaches deeper and does not come to an end...Jesus who is now totally transformed through the act of love, is free from barriers and limits. He is able not only to pass through colsed doors in the outside world, as the Gospels recount (Jn 20:19). He can pass through the interior door separating the "I" from the "you," the closed door between yesterday and today, between the past and the future...Now he can even surmount the wall of otherness that spearates the "I" from the "you."...Believers are never totally cut off from one another. We are in communion because of our deepest identity: Christ within us. Thus faith is a force for peace and reconciliation in the world: distances between people are overcome, in the Lord we have become close (Eph 2:13)...The Lord has granted us the light of truth. This light is also fire, a powerful force coming from God, a force that does not destroy, but seeks to transform our hearts, so that we truly become men of God, and so that his peace can become active in this world...Let us pray...in these words: Yes, Lord, make us Easter people, men and women of light, filled with the fire of your love.

Pope Benedict XVI

Peace to You On Good Friday

In the Cross is salvation,
in the Cross is life,
in the Cross is protection from enemies,
in the Cross is infusion of divine peace,
in the Cross is fortitude of heart,
in the Cross is joy of spirit,
in the Cross is summary of the virtues,
in the Cross is the perfection of sanctity.
There is no salvation for the soul or hope of everlasting life except in the Cross. Take, then, your cross, follow Jesus Christ and you will enter eternal life.
The Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis

Poignant Penance

Confession is usually a very private affair: just you and the priest (in persona Christi). I am very thankful for the secrecy of the sacrament, so I normally wouldn't share my experience in such a public way. But I really think the penance that I was asked to perform was beautiful.

A little background first...I am a control freak. My freakishness extends into many areas of my life and other people's lives, and this is often the cause of much anxiety, angst and relational strain. It's one of those pet sins that I seem to always be confessing.

In response to my most recent confession, the priest asked me to spend time looking at and reflecting on the stained glass window of Jesus hanging on the cross at the front of the church. He explained that the need to feel in control is often a response to insecurity. In our effort to give up control, there is no better example to follow than Christ on the cross. At that moment, Jesus was the most insecure he had ever been in his life by the world's standard; he was beaten, bloodied, nailed to a cross, and nearly abandoned. However, with his last words, he showed us how to trust God with what is most precious: "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit." May Christ be merciful and give us the grace to do the same, now and at the hour of our death.

The New Evangelization!

I just had to share these videos. Two teenage boys put five videos together depicting Christ's passion, death, and resurrection using legos! Sounds kind of nuts, but really, it is well done. According to an inside source, the boys spent all of this time and energy on the videos because they really want to share the gospel with their younger siblings and as many others as they can reach. Check them out!



Part Two

Part Three

Part Four

Part Five

Lenten Pondering

"It is Jesus that you seek when you dream of happiness. He is waiting for you when nothing else you find satisfies you.”
--John Paul II

"Abandoning Our Plans for Christ"

I was reading a meditation (same title as this post) in Magnificat today, and this excerpt really hit home, especially in being a new mom and accepting all that comes with that.

Whoever trusts in God gains quality in his life, in his potential, in security, and in his way of life. Surely all of us have plans in mind. This is good, but let us not make the mistake of remaining alone, convinced only of our own plans, of only what we want, because God tells us, "With me you can work miracles"... For sure, if you want to love, you have to renounce your immediate plans and your modern conveniences because without the cross, it is true that you cannot love. You cannot love the woman who gives her life for you, who renounces everyting to stay with you. You cannot even love your children who expect a smile or a word from you. You do not have time because you are focused on fulfilling your own little plans. True love always comes with an ability to renounce, with a sacrifice; and then that sacrifice becomes concrete love.
Mother Elvira Petrozzi

This One Says It All

Monica was baptized on Sunday. It was a blessed event, but not so peaceful for some...namely Monica and her parents! She screamed for all but two minutes, I think. She wanted to nap, but instead, Mommy put her in a scratchy gown and let a deacon pour water on her head. No wonder she was so TO'd!

The deacon that baptized her was just ordained a few weeks ago, so this was his first baptism. He was so excited and joyful even in the midst of the screaming. God's grace is abundant no matter the circumstances. We can all count on that!

Respect Life Sunday

Yesterday marked Respect Life Sunday in the Catholic Church throughout the United States. Every year since 1972, US Bishops have set aside the first Sunday in October for prayer and a renewed resolve to embrace a culture of life and end the killing of innocent human beings, regardless of age, size, health and dependency.

The right to life of children in the womb is close to my heart, and has become even more dear during pregnancy. Experiencing a child within me, a life that is separate and yet so intimately connected to mine, has been surreal and challenging, but altogether beautiful and humbling. God saw fit to entrust me with this life that is so vulnerable. Apart from my choice to protect this child, there is no protection for him or her under the law; the child in my womb does not have the rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Father Frank Pavone, the director of Priests for Life stated recently, "...there’s only one group in our society whose right to life has been directly and formally denied, and that is the children in the womb...Deny their right to life, and you undermine the entire moral order." The right to life from conception to natural death is absolutely critical to all social issues from the war in Iraq, to immigration, to health care, to responsible environmentalism. The right to life is at the heart of all issues facing our society.

Please consider the right to life--in regards to abortion, euthanasia, and embryonic stem cell research--in the upcoming elections-presidential and local. Our right to life is the most important and precious gift we have. Please do all you can to protect it for all people in our society.

Voting with a Clear Conscience - Catholic Edition
Voting with a Clear Conscience - Interdenominational Edition

The Timeless in Our Hearts

In these uncertain ecomomic and political times, I think today's first mass reading is comforting and appropriate. If, like me, finances, politics and the like have seemed bleak to you, remember the One who "has put the timeless into their hearts." We can never know the fullness of the magnificence, peace and blessing that God has for us while we're on this side of heaven. That is why I am thankful for Christ in His Eucharistic presence. In receiving him at mass during communion, the timeless passes over our lips into our very selves. Let us rejoice in that, no matter what uncertainty and trials we face.

There is an appointed time for everything,
and a time for every thing under the heavens.
A time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to uproot the plant.
A time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to tear down, and a time to build.
A time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance.
A time to scatter stones, and a time to gather them;
a time to embrace, and a time to be far from embraces.
A time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away.
A time to rend, and a time to sew;
a time to be silent, and a time to speak.
A time to love, and a time to hate;
a time of war, and a time of peace.

What advantage has the worker from his toil?
I have considered the task that God has appointed
for the sons of men to be busied about.
He has made everything appropriate to its time,
and has put the timeless into their hearts,
without man’s ever discovering,
from beginning to end, the work which God has done.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-11

For Michigan Voters...

In the upcoming November election, Proposal 2, a proposed ammendment to Michigan's state constitution allowing unrestricted experimentation on live human embryos, will be on the ballot. The ballot language is vague and deceptive. Please check out this website for further information. Voter approval of this ammendment could lead to wholesale destruction of human embryos at the expense of tax payers. Please pass this site and information on to friends and family. It is imperative that Michigan voters go to the polls informed of the far reaches of Proposal 2.

More of the Real Deal

Yesterday I posted an excerpt of Speaker Pelosi's comments regarding the Catholic Church's stance on abortion. She specifically referenced St. Augustine in regard to abortion and when human life actually begins. The specific writings she was referencing did not really address the morality of abortion, but the time that the soul entered the human body, or ensoulment.

Here's part of a statement from Archbishop Wuerl of Washingtion D.C.:

“As the Catechism and early Church documents make clear, abortion is always an evil. That is an unchanging teaching. The question on when the soul enters the body was a philosophical question that grew out of a lack of scientific data at the time of St. Augustine. We have the data today which shows the embryo is human. There no longer is any discussion of whether the unborn is human and so the philosophical discussion of St. Augustine’s time is not relevant today.

The Real Deal

Over the past week, there has been a lot of media hub-bub regarding politics, the sanctity of human life, and the Catholic Church. On Sunday, Representative Nancy Pelosi erroneously represented the Catholic Church and its position on abortion. An excerpt of her statement reads:

“as an ardent, practicing Catholic, this is an issue that I have studied for a long time. And what I know is over the centuries, the doctors of the church have not been able to make that definition . . . St. Augustine said at three months. We don't know. The point is, is that it shouldn't have an impact on the woman's right to choose.”

In the past 48 hours, the archbishops of Denver, New York, Philadelphia and Washington D.C. and other bishops have made formal statements regarding those of Nancy Pelosi. One of the most ardent was that of Edward Cardinal Egan. Directly from the Archdiocese of New York website:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 26, 2008

STATEMENT OF EDWARD CARDINAL EGAN CONCERNING REMARKS MADE BY THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Like many other citizens of this nation, I was shocked to learn that the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the United States of America would make the kind of statements that were made to Mr. Tom Brokaw of NBC-TV on Sunday, August 24, 2008. What the Speaker had to say about theologians and their positions regarding abortion was not only misinformed; it was also, and especially, utterly incredible in this day and age.

We are blessed in the 21st century with crystal-clear photographs and action films of the living realities within their pregnant mothers. No one with the slightest measure of integrity or honor could fail to know what these marvelous beings manifestly, clearly, and obviously are, as they smile and wave into the world outside the womb. In simplest terms, they are human beings with an inalienable right to live, a right that the Speaker of the House of Representatives is bound to defend at all costs for the most basic of ethical reasons. They are not parts of their mothers, and what they are depends not at all upon the opinions of theologians of any faith. Anyone who dares to defend that they may be legitimately killed because another human being “chooses” to do so or for any other equally ridiculous reason should not be providing leadership in a civilized democracy worthy of the name.

Edward Cardinal Egan
Archbishop of New York

August 26, 2008

Cardinal Egan is an outspoken champion for the unborn and the integrity of the Catholic Church's teaching on this abortion. In April, Kevin and I had the opportunity to attend a mass celebrated by Cardinal Egan during Catholic Public Policy Day in Albany. His homily centered on this very issue and was just as strong and poignant as the statement above. In the end, who are Catholics and the American pubblic going to believe? A misinformed politician claiming skills in moral theology, or a faithful, learned man of the church who gives his life for defense of the truth?

The Dignity of Little Women

Yesterday I got wind of this news story about a Chinese government official who, at the last minute, decided to oust a 7 year old girl who won the chance to sing at the Olympic Opening Ceremonies for another 7 year old who was deemed prettier and would lip sync to the former's voice. The article spins this story to be an affront by the Chinese government: yet another totalitarian, communist move to make the Western world think that all is perfect and beautiful in their land.

I think it runs deeper in that. The judgment rendered by the Chinese government that physical beauty is better received than the beautiful voice of this 7 year old girl who competed and won the chance to sing is a reflection of Western culture as well. We see this same behavior in American pop culture all the time-from music to television to movies. We can criticize this Chinese official for being totalitarian, but in the end, we cannot ignore our dominant, consumeristic, "beauty" obsessed culture that leads people the world over to believe that a little girl with a full face and crooked baby teeth is not good enough. The messages received by the singer (your not pretty enough) and the lip syncer (your physical beauty is the better asset) at such a tender age will undoubtedly follow them beyond the Olympics.

When will we put the truth and the dignity of women, especially the littlest women, first?

Il Papa

We're back from NYC, and the papal mass was truly awesome! A very grace-filled time was had by all. I will post pictures soon, though they are not as great as some you may find on the web. Here are a few of photos I found on another blog:







I also want to pass along this quote from said blog. It really summed up my experience:

"...in this one place and time, people in this stadium are bursting forth with a simple, and may I say, very palpable feeling of joy at being Catholic."

Words of Truth

This is an excerpt from Pope Benedict's address to the US Bishops on April 16th:

People today need to be reminded of the ultimate purpose of their lives. They need to recognize that implanted within them is a deep thirst for God. They need to be given opportunities to drink from the wells of his infinite love. It is easy to be entranced by the almost unlimited possibilities that science and technology place before us; it is easy to make the mistake of thinking we can obtain by our own efforts the fulfillment of our deepest needs. This is an illusion. Without God, who alone bestows upon us what we by ourselves cannot attain (cf. Spe Salvi, 31), our lives are ultimately empty. People need to be constantly reminded to cultivate a relationship with him who came that we might have life in abundance (cf. Jn 10:10). The goal of all our pastoral and catechetical work, the object of our preaching, and the focus of our sacramental ministry should be to help people establish and nurture that living relationship with "Christ Jesus, our hope" (1 Tim 1:1).

The Papacy: Grounded in Truth and Holiness or Super-Stardom?

I found two articles on MSN yesterday that assert very different viewpoints about Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the United States. The first article, "Why This Pope Doesn't Connect," was written by Lisa Miller, a senior editor at Newsweek. She claims that "American Catholics want...to feel something, a catharsis, a connection to their tradition, a sense that their leaders see and hear how difficult it can be to be a Catholic in this imperfect and chaotic world." Miller admits that her statement is a generalization, but is a catharsis, a release of emotional tension, really what American Catholics are really looking for? Since the Second Vatican Council, the Catholic Church in America has experienced major confusion. For many clergy and laity, implementing the changes in the Second Vatican Council meant sloughing off what made them "feel" constrained and guilty in liturgy, theological doctrine, and moral action. Miller supports this point by providing the following statistics:

58% of American Catholics believe you can be a "good" Catholic and disregard the Church's teachings on abortion

65% believe you can ignore its position on divorce and remarriage

75% believe you can disregard the ban on birth control

Those numbers alone do little to prove the need for a release of emotional tensions, which would characterize such a catharsis. I believe those numbers show that Catholic Americans have distanced themselves from their tradition. Our consumer/utilitarian culture, moral relativism and a lack of catechesis are at least partially to blame for the current crisis of disconnect in America. It is essential for American Catholics to connect with their tradition, as Miller asserts. However, connecting to the tradition of the Catholic Church is more than attending papal ceremonies and experiencing warm fuzzies at the sight of the current pontiff. American Catholics will connect with their Catholic tradition when they make the effort to connect to the teachings of Christ and his Church that remain largely unchanged, even since the Second Vatican Council. They will connect when they practice the tradition of faith handed down by the Apostles. They will connect to the Church upon a conversion of heart, mind, and action; the very thing Pope Benedict longs for and prays for for his entire flock.

The second article, "How Benedict XVI Will Make History", was written by George Weigel, a Senior Fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, Catholic theologian, and author of John Paul II biography, A Witness to Hope. He purports a different viewpoint on the same man, the same office. Weigel gives an interesting history of America's relationship with popes, beginning with the first Catholic diocese, Baltimore, erected in 1789. "That many Catholics feel a deep personal connection to the pope is another relatively new, and in some respects surprising, phenomenon." In 1963, for the first time, there was a "bond of personal affection" between a pope and the American people when Blessed John XXIII fought and died of stomach cancer. After him, Pope Paul VI was riddled with controversies over worhip, sexual moraltiy and church governance, and John Paul I died after just 33 days in office. Enter John Paul II. For the next 26 years, the world saw and heard the pope as he had never been seen and heard before. He was a gifted speaker, writer, preacher, and friend to all. He became "John Paul Superstar!" His funeral was even touted as "the human event of a generation."

Needless to say, Pope Benedict XVI follows a tall order. He has not attracted as much media attention, and he is not the public speaker John Paul II was. He requires one "to look closer and deeper to discern the imprint of the shoes of this fisherman."

Most interesting to me is the juxtaposition between the viewpoints of Miller and Weigel on the most controversial episode of Benedict's Pontificate: his Regensburg lecture on faith and reason at his German alma mater in 2006. Quoting a Byzantine emporer's sharp critique of Islam brought Benedict worldwide criticism, and Miller cites that criticism as a reason for Pope Benedict's defenders to "explain away his impolitic comments." In contrast, Weigel sees that episode as creating a windfall of dialogue and signficant interactions between the Catholic Church and Islam. After the Regensburg lecture, some "significant personalites of Islam took the pope's point about the dangers of faith detached from reason quite seriously." Since the lecture, Benedict received two open letters from Muslim leaders that have resulted in a Catholic-Muslim Forum that will meet twice yearly in Rome and in Amman, Jordan. Benedict has also had influence on Sunni Islam via his relationship with King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. The two recently began negotiations to build the first Catholic Church in Saudi Arabia.

But what does all of this matter to Catholics in America? By forging unprecedented bonds with the Catholic Church and the Arab world, the pope is not just acting on the Church's interests in Arab countries. He is setting the stage for a cooperative effort with "a reformed Islam...[that] could be an ally in the struggle against 'the dictatorship of relativism'...an Islam recognizing religious freedom and affirming the separation of religious and political authority would be good for Muslims who want to live in peace with their neighbors and good for the rest of the world. The stakes couldn't be higher." In a country where we can't even bring water through an airport security check, these steps towards a more peaceful, tolerant society for Christians, Muslims, and all peoples are a welcomed endeavor.

In some Roman circles it is said, "People came to see John Paul II; they come to hear Benedict XVI." Weigel suggests this contrast is too sharp, but it is true that John Paul II was a prolific writer, philosopher and theologian, and some of his more complicated works could make any scholar shake in their boots. However, Weigel asserts that "Joseph Ratzinger is one of the most learned men in the world; he is also a master teacher who can unpack complex Christian doctrines in an accessible way." Benedict's first two encyclicals regarding love and hope, Deus Caritas Est and Spe Salvi, are perfect examples of a teacher who specifically set out to speak to a world beset by fear while reminding it of the Christian message of hope, love, and salvation.

Though Miller cites a few clergy and professionals who don't appear to take the pope's visit very seriously, there is at least one American who does: President Bush. In fact, the president met the Benedict's plane at Andrews Air Force base. He said this unprecedented greeting was due to the particular significance of the pope. In an interview with EWTN, the president said, "One, he speaks for millions. Two, he doesn't come as a politician; he comes as a man of faith; and Three, I so subscribe to his notion that there’s right and wrong in life, that moral relativism undermines the capacity to have hopeful and free societies. I want to honor his convictions, as well.”

Regardless of whether Benedict has "done little" to appeal to American Catholics by Miller's estimation, he is still, by virtue of his office and as evidenced by his tireless commitment to the Truth, the "Servant of the Servants of God." (Gregory the Great) I think the last few lines of Weigel's article speak the impact of Pope Benedict on the world and the United States:

"Popes matter in ways that challenge our conventional thinking about the way the world works. Popes no longer claim the power to bring penitent princes to their knees in the snow...the modern papcy deploys a greater power, the power to propose, persuade, religiously and morally. Popes matter by changing lives and changing history."

Dust Thou Art, and to Dust Thou Shall Return

These are haunting and beautiful words: haunting because they remind us of our mortality; the death we will all face. They are beautiful because they are indicative of the supernatural love and compassion God shows us. He knit us together in our mother's womb (Psalm 139:13); he is with us always, even when we return to dust (Romans 8:37-39). And we hope against hope we will be with Him in paradise on the last day (Hebrews 10:23).

And that is what lent is all about, preparing ourselves for the last day; the day when we will meet Christ. So let us rend our hearts in prayer, fasting, and giving to the poor. For when we make ourselves available to God, he makes his love and changing grace available to us. And in that, we are truly blessed.

Super Tuesday

For those of you in (deep breath) Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee or Utah, then it's your day to go to the polls and have a say as to who the next presidential candidates are going to be.

Please vote and vote wisely. Our country needs a committed, strong, political and moral leader. Check out this guide for clarifying the life issues at stake. Check out this site for help in deciding on the candidate that will truly defend our civil rights: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Stand Up!

I am reminded today, as we commemorate the decision reached in Roe v. Wade, that Our Lord and his mother endured a "crisis pregnancy" situation. Mary was not yet married and therefore subject to the Jewish law which could have sentenced her to death for a pregnancy out of wedlock. But that was not to be. Joseph stood up for Mary and the child within her, Jesus Christ.

I pray that we may all do the same, today and everyday. Let us too stand up for all mothers and their children, born and unborn. Life is worth living, but we need to give it a chance.

preborn baby

O Mary, Mother of the Unborn, protect the gift of human life which your Divine Son has allowed to be given.

Give strength and joy to all parents as they await the birth of the precious child they have conceived.

Give courage to those who are fearful, calm to those who are anxious and guide all of us, with your motherly care, to treasure and protect the miraculous gift of human life.

We ask this through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Mary, Mother of the Unborn, Pray for Us!