A Couple of Links

I really do not have much time to post today, but here are a couple interesting links I've encountered recently.

 


For this next one, the music is rather annoying, but the video as a whole is neat to watch.


Well, enjoy! Do you have any interesting links you'd like to share?

 UPDATE: In light of the fact that Bishop Loverde is dedicating the diocese to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, I was looking up articles on the Sacred Heart. Here's an excerpt of a homily by St. Josemaria that I found. I have not had a chance to read the whole thing yet, but it looks amazing!!! 

True devotion to the Sacred Heart
3. Let us realize all the richness hidden in the words "the sacred heart of Jesus." When we speak of a person's heart, we refer not just to his sentiments, but to the whole person in his loving dealings with others. In order to help us understand divine things, Scripture uses the expression "heart" in its full human meaning, as the summary and source, expression and ultimate basis, of one's thoughts, words and actions. A man is worth what his heart is worth...

To the heart belongs joy: "let my heart rejoice in your saving help" (Ps 12:6); repentance: "my heart is like wax, it is melted within my breast" (Ps 21:15); praise of God: "my heart overflows with a goodly theme" (Ps 44:2) the decision to listen to the Lord: "my heart is ready, Lord" (Ps 56:8); loving vigilance: "I slept, but my heart was awake" (Cant 5:2); and also doubt and fear: "let not your hearts be troubled, believe in me." (John 14:1).

The heart not only feels, it knows and understands. God's law is received in the heart (Cf Ps 39:9) and remains written there (Cf Prov 7:3). Scripture also adds: "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks (Matt 12:34)." Our Lord reproaches the scribes: "Why do you think evil in your hearts?" (Matt 9:4) And, summing up all the sins man might commit, he says: "Out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander and blasphemy." (Matt 15:19)

When holy Scripture refers to the heart, it does not refer to some fleeting sentiment of joy or tears. By heart it means the personality which directs its whole being, soul and body, to what it considers its good, as Jesus himself indicated: "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." (Matt 6:21)

So when we talk about the heart of Jesus, we stress the certainty of God's love and the truth of his commitment to us. When we recommend devotion to the sacred heart, we are recommending that we should give our whole self to Jesus, to the whole Jesus — our soul, our feelings and thoughts, our words and actions, our joys.

That is what true devotion to the heart of Jesus means. It is knowing God and ourselves. It is looking at Jesus and turning to him, letting him encourage and teach and guide us. The greatest superficiality that can beset this devotion would be a lack of humanity, a failure to understand the reality of an incarnate God."

UPDATE 2:  Oh haha, I just realized I forgot to add the link where you can access the entire homily. Ah well, better late than never! Here's the link: http://www.josemariaescriva.info/article/sacred-heart-of-jesus

Unsung Heroes

When we hear the word "hero", we are most likely to think of person who has done something great in the eyes of the public, such as saving a person from a burning building with the odds against them, and from that point on their life is in the limelight. Our nation has war heroes, heroes from 9/11 who gave so much, even their lives, to save and help others. There are sports heroes, who people admire for their great skills. People have heroes in all walks of life. We have super-heroes (even though fictitious) who use their super powers to combat evil. Most of the superheroes have undisclosed identities; no one knows who they really are. Their heroic deeds are well known, but the man behind the mask remains unknown. I'm all for heroes, they are doing good things. (And I will add it is rather fun to dream up fantastic situations where your hero wins the day... ;-) ) Most of us will never meet any of these heroes: the great, the mighty ones who are extraordinary. If we did get to meet a hero, we would probably be floating on air and feel very privileged. Well, all of us have met a hero one time or another but haven't realized it. Here is one definition for what hero is: "a person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal".

Who are these heroes we have met and did not know were heroes? Until recently, I hadn't realized I have a hero in my everyday life. This person has performed heroic acts and has modeled what a good, Christian woman should be. I ha

ve often just taken this person for granted, never thinking how much this person has impacted my life. The love shown me, even in my darkest moments, has filled me with comfort. The behind the scenes acts of this person have made my life much easier, physically and spiritually. This person has suffered my pain with me and suffered their own pains for my sake, saving me from the brunt of worse pain. Often this person goes unnoticed, not only by my self, but by other people. Even though unnoticed, this person still gives their all to make others lives happier and safer. If I did not have this person in my life, who knows who I would be today. I could be out on the streets, in a gang, just throwing my life to the wind. This person is a wall of protection, a pillow of comfort, a listening ear when I need one. My hero is a silent hero, not one seeking glory. King David was only a boy when he became a hero for slaying Goliath. His fame spread, and he grew into a great man with much power. Many responsibilities were given to him. But for all his fame and greatness, he fell into sin, and because of his sin he suffered. Now I'm not saying heroes have to be or are perfect. But they can and should be the best they can be to God and themselves, not the world. Our Blessed Mother Mary is the ultimate silent hero. She gave of herself to be the mother of God, even though she felt unworthy. She raised Jesus into manhood, even with the knowledge he would suffer greatly in the end. I can only imagine the ways she protected Jesus from any suffering she could in his early years. When he left his mother to go out into the world before he died, who wold think of the woman who raised him? Yes, he is God, we know that, but how many believed that when Jesus walked the earth? Did many think of who had educated him at home, who had taught him to be a man?

The person who has most influenced my life and who is my hero is my mother. I can never thank her the way she needs to be thanked for all she has done for me. I am a good Catholic woman because she has taught me the truths of my faith, she has taught me kindness, to be giving of myself. There is so much more she has to offer me and I only hope I take advantage of what she has to offer. It will be the only way I can thank her properly for her hard work: to be the best person I can be, in any situation. I hope I make her proud of me, because in her pride for me she is seeing the her fruits of a job well done. Many people if you ask them who is the hero in their life will tell you of someone who has done something physically fantastic, has such-and-such a job, has achieved such-and-such a standing/accomplishments, or has done something great in their life. Sometimes it isn't what you can see that counts. It's what you can take away from someone and become a better person with what you have discovered that counts.

Thank God for our Unsung Heroes: they count!

My Mother's Daughter

This morning, after frantically rushing around the house in order to get myself ready for a long day, I finally plopped myself down in "Jarvis." (Don't ask why, but in my family we nickname our cars. The car I frequently drive is affectionately nicknamed Jarvis.)

I started the car and was immediately greeted with the crackling static of 1160 AM -- the station for EWTN. Not wanting to attempt to decipher the indistinguishable words, I quickly switched the radio to its cd setting. Sounds of the delightfully beautiful chant of the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles filled the car providing a sharp contrast to my prior frenzied rush. (I've included several of my favorite hymns below.)

As I drove along, I attempted to sing along to the songs I knew and reflected on the words of the songs I didn't know. Very soon the stress associated with the work of the day began to melt away, and I drove along with a joyful heart. (The words of St. Josemaria now come to mind: "The way to cut short all the evils we suffer is to pray." How true, yet how easy it is to forget this!) 

While listening to the words of "The Blessed Heart," I was struck with a particular thought.

In ordinary life, we often call people who have the same mannerisms as their mother "their mother's child." Similarly, though not with such  a positive connotation, we refer to a man who, despite his age, is completely dependent on his mother as "a mamma's boy." 

It struck me that we should have such a deep relationship with our Heavenly Mother, that people ought to be able to pick out that we are her children. Our hearts should mirror her Immaculate Heart in such a way that we can be distinguished as "our Mother's children." 

Children as we strive to be in our spiritual life, we should always remember to depend on our Mother for everything no matter our age. While in ordinary life someone who cannot let go of his attachment to his mother is looked down upon, in the spiritual life we should be proud to be called "a Mamma's boy or girl." 

As I parked the car and headed into Organic Chemistry, I was left asking myself, "Am I my heavenly Mother's daughter? Can people recognize my relationship with her by the way I live?" 

Let us challenge ourselves this week by imitating our Blessed Mother in such a way that people can say, "You know, she really is her Mother's daughter!" 

Mary, Mother Immaculate, make our hearts like unto thine. Amen.

So I woke up this morning...

I am an avid people watcher. Call me "guilty" because it's true. There is something so entertaining about sitting in a coffee shop, airport, (I won't mention church) or standing at the gas station and watching to see what people do. And, of course, it's fun to try and determine what kind of person they are. Every "grouping" I come up with usually has the radicals (or extremos as my Mom calls them), the so-so's, and the I-don't-care people.

Being a selfish creature I usually go 'round and 'round analyzing people until I end up right back at myself. Uh-oh. Yeah, that is what happened recently. It's so easy to get wrapped up in other people's lives and forget where YOU are! So the Holy Spirit has sent some "gentle" reminders to me.

First, I happened upon Pope Benedict's homily from Sept. 25th the other day. He certainly does not mince his words. Here is what he has to say about Mt. 21:29 (the two sons who responded to the Father's bidding):

The message of the parable is clear: it is not words that matter, but deeds, deeds of conversion and faith. As we heard, Jesus directs this message to the chief priests and elders of the people of Israel, that is, to the religious experts of his people. At first they say "yes" to God's will, but their piety becomes routine and God no longer matters to them.

Re-read that last line. Even for those of us who make prayer a part of daily routine can forget about God. But wait the real hard-hitting part comes next. In the Gospel Jesus tells his disciples that harlots will enter the kingdom before the chief priests and the elders.

Translated into the language of the present day, this statement might sound something like this: agnostics, who are constantly exercised by the question of God, those who long for a pure heart but suffer on account of their sin, are closer to the Kingdom of God than believers whose life of faith is "routine" and who regard the Church merely as an institution, without letting it touch their hearts, or letting the faith touch their hearts.

If that isn't a wake up call I don't know what is (maybe the second reminder is a close tie). Just being Catholic isn't enough. Just being a daily communicant isn't enough. Just saying the rosary daily isn't enough. Every day we need to wake up and consciously choose to live that day like Christ would, like Mary would, like the Saints would. We must choose to love one another and live radically.

The second reminder came today. This morning I was driving down Sudley Rd. past the abortion clinic and there was one older lady pacing up and down the sidewalk with a rosary in her hand. She was all alone. Then... I watched this:




If this guy was Catholic it would be spot-on perfect. Incredible things are happening in our country and each of us should be doing our part to bring about the Culture of Life. Am I being radical enough or am I allowing evil to triumph because I of laziness?

Tomorrow that older lady will not be alone.

For Pope Benedict's complete homily go to ewtn.com.