Urban Ashes: Lent in the City

The University where I teach part time is in an urban setting, so when I went to teach this past Wednesday night, I was kind of amazed at what I saw. It was, as you know, Ash Wednesday. I had been to Mass at 7:15 that morning, and it was going to be a long day (the class I teach meets from 7-9:40). I was walking through the student commons to get a drink, maybe coffee before class when I started seeing something that made me smile. There, on an urban campus, crosses on people's foreheads.

Mine had all but disappeared, but these student's ashes were going strong. And I didn't just see one or two, but dozens of students who had ashes imposed. It was quite the joy to see. They greeted each other and acknowledged others marked with the sign of the cross. In some ways I felt like I was back in the second or third century, one of the brothers of Christ among the pagan world (then again, it's not much different now is it?). It was a great thing to witness!

The University is not a Catholic school, but a Cathedral is just about smack dab in the middle of campus and holds a "University Mass" at 5 pm. That's where they had been (after some research I found that the Cathedral was the only place that had service around that time on campus). So not only had they bucked the cultural trend and were marked with the cross visibly for all to see, but they had done so at Mass! What a great thing to see.

Let us not be afraid to visibly wear our faith. This culture, this world needs more than ever to be reminded of its responsibility and even more so that its God is not that of retail or money. For the next week, try and wear a crucifix or cross on your clothing or around your neck, but keep it visible. There's nothing silly about showing your faith, we as Christians have so much to "brag" about ;)

Catholics and Confession

“When I was 7, 8 or 9 years old,” she said, “I found myself repeating the same sins over and over to the priest. It seemed to me they weren’t really sins but simply human nature. On the other hand, if I did something really serious, the guilt alone would drive me to confession.”

This quote is taken from an article by Ed Conroy, writer for the National Catholic Reporter, featured on Catholic Online about the decline in numbers of American Catholics participating in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. From this quote it seems that there must be some kind of warped view on what it means to be human. This woman said the sins she was confessing as a child did not seem sinful, but human. Sin is part of our human weakness, not our nature of inherent goodness as children of God. The pitfalls that seem to be part of our "human nature" are really those small sins into which it is easiest to fall. We have the blessed gift of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and we receive abundant graces from it to help us combat these sins in the future in addition to forgiveness we receive in the first place.

The article goes on to explain that one of the biggest reasons Catholics cite for their staying away from confession is ". . . the feeling they said that confession gave them [was that of] of being trapped within personal weaknesses, always guilty, always in need of forgiveness." It is exactly the opposite that is true. Without the Sacrament of Reconciliation we are ". . . trapped within personal weaknesses, always guilty, always in need of forgiveness." The focus of the sacrament is not the sins of the faithful, but the restoration of the human to a level of dignity appropriate to a child of God. Humans cannot be fully realized without purity of heart and soul, which is exactly what the sacrament helps us to attain. Now more than ever our world needs a renewed sense of purity, a complete conversion of the heart. Let that begin with Catholics worldwide, beginning with an increased participation in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

The abovementioned article can be found at the following URL:
http://www.catholic.org/national/national_story.php?id=22951

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Where's the line? Murder or... murder?

This morning, the large news outlets are reporting a shocking story. A woman, Tiffany Hall, has been arressted after brutally murdering a woman and her unborn child. She killed the woman by forcefully cutting her unborn child (of 7 months) from her womb, effectively killing the child also. The official charge is intentional homicide of an unborn child.

Wait a second, what?

The official charge is intentional homicide of an unborn child.

Whoa. Okay, I must be reading something wrong because last I checked "intentional homicide of an unborn child" takes place thousands of times a day in this country legally. It's called abortion. The only difference is that the mother of the child is killing her unborn child instead of someone else.

So where's the line?

When is it not murder to kill an unborn child? Obviously what Ms. Hall did is horrible and I'm not in anyway trying to minimize it, but there's a huge issue of common sense here. God gave us reason, let's use it, why aren't we? If it's murder when someone else kills your unborn baby forcefully, why isn't it murder when a woman gives consent for someone to kill her unborn baby (abortion)?

The answer... it is.

It's a shame we live in a "culture" of "intellectuals" who either have no common sense or can't put one and one together.

Tiffany Hall has also been connected with the murders of three more children. This is a horrible travesty. Please pray for her soul and those she has killed and affected by her actions. Also, pray for the millions of mothers who have had abortions, may their souls reach heaven and be reunited with the children they never knew.

R.I.P. House

Tonight I watched a show I once liked very much and even had a lot of respect for. I considered it one of the more rewarding shows on television, but tonight I felt my heart cry out while I watched an episode end in travesty.

I know it's just a show, but the statement it made does nothing short of further defining the culture of death we live in today. A girl comes to the clinic where Dr. House is working and it comes to light that she was raped a week before. Through the course of the show an emotional story unfolds as we find out she has a minor sexually transmitted disease from her attacker. And then, towards the 3/4 mark, we find out she is also pregnant.

In classic hollywood style, Dr. House immediately suggests a "termination," to which she responds, "Abortion is murder" and goes on the defend her beliefs from an argumentative House. At first it made me smile, as their was a glimpse of hope that someone out in tinseltown might have a soul reaching for God. But that smile quickly turned to a frown as in the final 30 seconds of the show we find out that she takes House's advice and terminates her pregnancy. It was no more than an agenda-driven plot. The writers should be ashamed.

I'll miss the show because every other episode I've seen was quite rewarding, but for me I know that one episode can ruin them all... in this case it's ruined for me and most likely for thousands more a character beloved by so many. "House," you've lost my viewership and respect. Tonight, I pray for the writers and the souls of those they've influenced.

Pride and Principle

Recently I have discovered that there is a line, not much thicker than a strand of hair, between standing up for a principle for virtuous reasons and simply being prideful. Often times it is extremely difficult to tell when the line has been crossed and one is neck deep in a state of sinful self-importance. It is judgments like those that require the grace of God. It is only through grace that we are able to develop any clarity regarding our intentions.

A Prayer for Humility:
Lord,
help us to humble ourselves both to you and to others.
By Christ's example,
let us be secure only in that which we know pleases you.
In all other things,
grant us the clarity to discern right action.
We pray this in a spirit of humility
through Christ, your son, and the Holy Spirit. AMEN.

The First Bishop of Crete

There's a letter addressed to him from the Apostle Saint Paul. He was known as a great peacemaker which Saint Paul considered a gift of the Holy Spirit. In fact, Paul would often send him to "solve problems" and "end quarrels." Legend says that when he visited, the guilty immediately felt regret. So who is this mystery Bishop? None other than Saint Titus!

January 26th is the joint feast day of St.s Timothy and Titus. While doing some reading on their lives, I came across a very cool fact I hadn't been aware of before... that St. Titus had likely died a natural death. And that he had been the first and only Bishop of Crete up until he died. I always find it inspiring to know that not all early Church leaders were killed. In fact, it seemed as if the Christian community on Crete was quite strong, which makes perfect sense due to Titus' reputation as a peace maker.

This is a picture of the Basilica of St. Titus in Gortyna, Crete. Originally constructed in the 6th-7th centuries, the Basilica is a prime example of an early Church basilica. Invading Saracens destroyed the Basilica in 824, but parts remain (as you can see in the picture).

Saint Titus' relics (namely his head) were taken to Venice, Italy and are kept enshrined in St. Mark's.