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Yesterday in my OCIA class, we were talking about the four marks of the Church--One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic. It's the holy mark that always gets criticized. "Look at all the bad people that have been in the Church. How could you possibly say it's holy." The Catholic Church is not holy because of anything man has done. The Catholic Church's holiness does not come from its members, it comes from the fact that it is the Church that Christ founded. It is holy because through the Church and the Sacraments established by Christ, through the preservation of the Church by the Holy Spirit, and through the infallible teachings of the Church we can be made holy. It is holy because it was not established by man. People always like to point out "bad Catholics." And I would agree that there are bad Catholics out there, just as there are bad people in any group, organization, or institution. For Catholics, the only reason that people can say that they are bad is because people hold them to the standard of holiness that they intuitively know is called for in the Church. If these bad-faith Catholics are bad, it's because they did not follow the teachings of the Church, because the Church teaches to eradicate sin. It teaches to strive for sainthood. It does not teach that any sin should be tolerated, celebrated, normalized, or embraced so that we "can get with the times." To be sure, there are churches out there that do this. Instead, though, we should look to the Saints, who did take Christ's Church seriously and her call to holiness. Because they received the Sacraments and the grace that comes with, because they were obedient to the teachings of Christ and His Church, and because they took advantage of the treasure trove of helps given to us to help us live more Christ-like, well, they were made holy. To say that the Catholic Church isn't holy because of sinners, is a bit like saying that Jesus wasn't holy because his Apostles were sinners. Yet, it was through Him that they were made holy, just like He continues to do for us through His Church. Have a blessed Monday.
We get to read my favorite Bible verse today. "I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith." 2 Tim. 4:7 Why is this one my favorite? Part of it has to do with being a former athlete and understanding all that goes into competing well. The other part is that I didn't even try once upon a time to "compete well" and I know the difference. This verse is my reminder to never slip back into old ways. What were my old ways? Well, I definitely was like a Pharisee in many respects. Unlike them, I didn't practice my faith, but I did look for ways to pat myself on the back. "Oh God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity--murderous, uh...murderous...greedy, I'm not too greedy...uh...oh, WEIRD, I'm not weird." I couldn't see all the ways that I was just like the rest of humanity--hypocrite, dishonest, fornicator, sloth-like when it came to spiritual things, prideful, prone to rage, etc. I did nothing to keep the faith, or "compete well." I didn't even go to church. My Bible was somewhere, who knows where. And while I couldn't vocally say these things about myself, I knew it. I knew I was a barely limping along Christian, and it made me miserable. It wasn't until I couldn't bear it anymore that I became more like the tax collector in the parable Jesus tells us today in Luke 18:9-14. I came to my first confession begging God to "be merciful to me a sinner" and for the first time felt the relief of saying out loud what I knew to be true about myself. I'm still prideful, prone to a quick temper. I still struggle with envy and jealousy, and vanity for sure, especially as I age. I'm still like the rest of humanity--a human prone to sin. The difference is now, I want to "compete well" and "finish the race" having lived a life where people know that I was trying my hardest to love the Lord well and with a sincere heart. Just because I want to, doesn't mean it's always easy, but I have the remedy--Confession. That beautiful, wonderful Sacrament where I must go and humbly face Jesus, confess my sins, ask for mercy and forgiveness, and receive it. Then, I leave and try to become just a little bit better than before. So, live the faith boldly, my fellow Pilgrims, and travel well this Sunday.
Don't you just love it when pieces fall into place? Last night at my women's bible study, we were watching the final episode of the series "The Mass" with Bishop Barron. In the last episode, he covers the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. He talked about how, many times, God's words aren't just spoken to convey a message, they actually affect change. "Let there be light," and there was light. "Lazarus, come out!" and a dead man comes back to life and walks out of his tomb. "Talitha koum! Little girl, I say to you, arise!" and a dead girl gets up and is restored to her parents. "Quiet! Be still!" and a storm on the sea calms down. "Rise, take up your mat and walk," and a crippled man is restored to health. So many instances throughout the Bible we read how God speaks and His words affect change. And then there is, "This is My Body, this is My Blood" at the Last Supper. Jesus wasn't telling a parable or making reference to symbols. In that very moment, when He spoke those words, the bread and wine were affected by His words and became what He said they were--His Body and Blood. God speaks the world into existence. He heals the sick with words. He forgives sins with the power of His words. He calms storms, raises the dead, multiplies fish and loaves all with His words. And people think that one of the most significant nights of His earthly life--the night of the Last Supper--was just Jesus playing in word symbols? No. The Son of God is the Word made flesh and His words have power beyond our ability to understand. He still affects this change in bread and wine at every Mass. Working through the priest, who is in persona Christ and says Jesus' own words in first person, Jesus affects the change of the bread and wine into His Body and Blood. And then there He is fully present on our altars for us. I've known these things, but last night more pieces fell into place. We are truly blessed, Catholic Pilgrims.
After one of my old college roommates became an atheist, she said to me one time, "How could God ever take someone too soon?" I asked, "Well, what's too soon?" "I feel like you should at least get 90 years." "Does God owe you that?" Mind you, this is all coming from someone who supposedly didn't believe in God anymore. As we talked, her thinking became more and more clear. What she wanted was for everybody to have the opportunity to do whatever they wanted for X amount of years and then, once the end was drawing near, then, you get right with God, if you want. This attitude is what Jesus is referring to in our parable today. "But, if that servant says to himself, 'My master is delayed in coming,' and begins to beat the menservants and the maidservants, to eat and rink and get drunk, then that servant's master will come on an unexpected day." If God owed each of us at least 90 years, many of us would live however we wanted until we got close to the end. Then, we would "shape up" and hope to get that chance into Heaven and that God would just ignore all the past and we'd be good to go. But this attitude lacks love of any kind. In fact, it is selfishness of the highest degree. In effect, we are saying, "God, you owe me. I'll live how I want here on earth. Then, once my days are done, I'll try to do what you ask, and I expect welcome arms waiting for me in Heaven. Also, Heaven better live up to what I'd like it to be." What lies at the heart of all this, is a lack of trust that God's Will can satisfy here on earth. Many believe that they need to be allowed indulge sin to have their fun and then once they are "too old" to really do anymore, then the God stuff can come along. God, though, doesn't owe us anything. Instead, we owe Him everything because our very existence would not be possible without Him. It is better, infinitely better, to be like the servant in the parable who is faithful and prudent and ready for whenever the Master comes. The truth is, a life squandered for self will never satisfy no matter how many years you get, Catholic Pilgrims. So, live the faith boldly and travel well.
So last week, I saw a video of a female "pastor" doing a "I'm a pastor" take on social media. Throughout the entire church, the going theme was rainbow flags and banners galore. And they weren't there because this "church" was super into Noah. It was weird because it looked like she had taken over a church and just gutted it, turning it into a place where maybe a mosh pit would be? I don't know. It was weirdly hollow...or maybe that isn't weird...but instead incredibly on the nose. Anyway, at one point, she said, "I'm a pastor, of course, I believe all lives are sacred, which means that women and those who can bear children should make the decisions that they, their doctor, their family, and their god believes is best for them." So many problems with the nonsense uttered here. I responded with, "I 'love' when they say, 'I believe all lives are sacred' and then go on to support women deciding that it's fine to murder their unborn babies. There's such a disconnect." To which I got this response: "How about we stay JUDGMENT FREE and continue to love thy neighbor, like Jesus taught?!" Beware the ALL CAPS, as we discussed a few weeks ago. So, I said back, "Loving people doesn't mean we just let them sink in sin. Also, your comment doesn't address what I said. Her nonsense belief that all lives are sacred and, also, unborn babies are fine to kill if the mom wants them dead, is contradictory and utterly wrong. Also, you showing up to tell me to be judgment free is a judgment call. We can and should judge actions as morally good and morally bad. What we can't do is judge souls to Heaven or Hell." "She never stated 'Unborn babies are fine to kill,' YOU said that. Vilifying someone doesn't make you right." "She couched her thoughts on abortion in a slew of euphemisms. I'm making it clear." "You interpret what in YOUR heart {sic}. Ask yourself what would Jesus do?! and do THAT. "No, I'm not interpreting what's in my heart. I'm using clear language because I know what abortion is--the murder of unborn babies. And Jesus would say, "Thou shall not murder." It's in the Ten Commandments, clear as day." And that was it. It's so important, Catholic Pilgrims, that we speak firmly, truthfully, and with clarity. When you have truth on your side, you don't need to shroud your language in euphemisms. If all lives are sacred, they are from conception to death. Live the faith boldly and travel well.
Not too long ago at our base chapel, my husband and I took down the red altar cloths for Confirmation and put back on the green ones for the following Sunday. I've never been the one in charge of putting them back on, though I've watched it done several times. Now, I've laid out tablecloths on many a table throughout my life and there's nothing to it: Lay it out, adjust for equal length, carry on. Dressing an altar is different and I had never experienced the difference until I was in a quiet church, working with my husband to get the altar ready for the next Mass. We have two chapels on base. One is used almost exclusively by the Protestant community and the other is used primarily by the Catholic community. The chapel used by the Protestants has no altar; the sanctuary is just a stage. In contrast, our sanctuary has an altar and a tabernacle. In fact, we have two of each--one in the main church and one in a little Blessed Sacrament chapel. In the Old Testament, the altar was a consecrated object meant for sacrifice. It is was "a place of consecration and sacrifice, where God met man." --Catholic Answers We still have that today in our Catholic Churches--the Sacrifice of the Mass is still very much a reality. It is where God--Jesus Christ's Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity--meets man for Holy Communion. The OT altar was never meant to be discarded, it was meant to be elevated to hold Someone even greater. On our Catholic altars, the priest re-presents the Sacrifice of Christ in an unbloody manner. And so, as I was putting on the altar linens, the significance of touching the altar and treating it with loving care and respect was a very keen reality to me. Our altar in our base church is not as strikingly beautiful as the one in this picture taken in Portugal. But, because it has held Our Lord upon it, beautiful or not, it is infinitely significant. What struck me the most was how much of an honor it was to get the altar ready for the next time Jesus would be there and so I wanted to get it just right. Our Catholic Faith is so rich with meaning, Catholic Pilgrims, and we are truly blessed. Live the Faith boldly and travel well this Monday.
Before I begin the meat of what I have to say here, my intention is not to embarrass or shame anyone. I've gone back and forth on whether I should write about it, but, in the end, I was so moved by the experience that I felt I needed to share. This past weekend, my family attended Mass at St. Joseph's in Big Bear Lake, CA. At the start of Mass during the procession, the priest was taking awhile to come into my view. When he did, I could see that this relatively young priest had a disability in his legs that made walking difficult. As he climbed up to the altar, it was clear that he was in pain. During his homily, he was telling us about how he used to ski when he was young and he joked by saying, "Back when I was more agile," which caused a gentle laugh by the congregation. But, it was how this priest was during the Consecration that compels me to write. As you know, during the Consecration, the priest genuflects three times out of reverence for Our Lord. Given this priest's limitations, I didn't think he would genuflect, which was understandable. I thought he would bow. He didn't bow, though, and at each time for genuflection, though it clearly was difficult, this priest slowly, and so very reverently, genuflected to Jesus. Normally it is pretty quiet during this time, but there was an even deeper silence as we all watched this man struggle to genuflect. It was so powerfully moving and such a sight of beauty that I have tears falling even as I type this. Then we proceeded with Holy Communion and it was one of the most reverent Holy Communions I've ever experienced. I think the priest set the precedent. Afterwards, when he was "cleaning up the dishes," as my son once said when he was little, the priest lovingly and carefully performed this act. It was almost mesmerizing watching him be so attentive. When my husband and I walked out of the church, we both commented on how moved we were. Again, I don't write this to embarrass and I don't write to shame anyone who can't genuflect because of physical limitations. I write because this priest's effort and even his willingness to not try and hide his disability was sincerely touching. For love of God, Catholic Pilgrims. May everything we do and say, be done for love of God. Live the faith boldly and travel well.
I've recommended "Dracula" to you all before, but after reading it again this year, I have more thoughts. First, this book is extremely spiritual and the theme is definitely the enduring one of good vs. evil. It is not an over-sexualized book about lusty female vampires contrary to what popular culture would make you believe. Sure, there are parts of it that were probably scandalous to late 1800 century eyes, but it's really nothing to get worked up about. Anyway, in my latest reading of the book, I found a line from Dr. Van Helsing that especially stood out. When speaking to another doctor and trying to get him to believe that Lucy is really a vampire and that they must save her soul, he says: "You are clever man, friend John; you reason well, and your wit is bold, but you are too prejudiced. Ah, it is the fault of our science that it wants to explain all; and if it explain not, then it says there is nothing to explain." There is nothing wrong with science. Science is good for the study of the material world. It is one tool among many to understand our lives and the world we live in. However, it has its limitations, which is fine. It was never meant to be the only tool we ever use. The downfall with science is that it made a lot of people believe that it was the only tool and because it gives humans the ability to explain the material world, it made many feel more powerful than we actually are. We became the gods and science became the religion. But, science cannot explain everything and if it can't that doesn't mean then we have no answers or no other tool to use to understand life, God, and the universe. Many who follow the Religion of Science want to use it to find God and when they can't, "Well, guess he's all make-believe." But, God is not material, so He is never going to be directly found using science. We can indirectly come to know things about Him through science, but we will never find Him directly. What is ironic is that those that believe science is the end-all-be-all, show just how little they truly know and understand, though they think they rise above believers in rational and intelligent thought. Science is one tool that God gave us, Catholic Pilgrims, to help us understand Him better, but it is not the only one we use. Live the Faith boldly and travel well this Wednesday.
I've been making episodes for Season Six of my podcast, where I'll be reading St. Augustine's "Confessions." (Pst...season starts January 1st, 2026.) In one of the readings, St. Augustine is basically praising a litany of God's attributes: Omniscient--all knowing Omnipresent--ever present Omnipotent--all powerful Eternal--always has been, always will be Immutable--unchanging God is love God is mercy God is Being itself Today, in our reading from Romans, St. Paul says, "Ever since the creation of the world, His invisible attributes of eternal power and divinity have ben able to be understood and perceived in what He has made." We can come to know and understand God's attributes by looking at the created world. To quote Bishop Barron, God is not one great "creature among many," He is the Creator of all things. St. Paul goes on to talk about how people become "fools" and how our senseless minds can be darkened. In this day and age, I would argue that God gets reduced down to three attributes--two from the list and an added one. God is love--Translated to mean that God tolerates any way you want to live, because love is acceptance. God is mercy--Translated to mean that God will show mercy to anyone that chooses to live a life contrary to Biblical teachings, but still calls themselves a Christian. And, the added one, God is nice--translated to mean that God is just a pal that doesn't want to add one bit of friction to your life in any way. With these, we lose one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit--Fear of the Lord. This gift is the understanding that God is all might and majesty, that we are little and completely dependent on Him, and that our understanding of Him can never be exhausted. Nobody really wants to worship just a nice, tolerant god. Consequently, when people try to depict God in this way, He fades from people's lives and new idols--usually themselves--take over. Let us have a healthy fear of the Lord, Catholic Pilgrims, and recognize that we worship the Almighty, the great "I Am." Have a blessed Tuesday. *Church is St. Joseph's Oratory in Montreal.
Someone privately wrote me asking how to stop confessing the same sin over and over again. They didn't tell me what sin it is and I didn't ask, but I told them that they need to figure out why they are unwilling to eradicate that particular sin. They responded back with an honest answer, "I guess I like doing it too much." Most sins come down to fear and pleasure: We fear that if we don't commit a particular sin that we will trap ourselves somehow or we enjoy the pleasure of it too much. Sometimes both reasons apply. Ultimately, though, it comes down to the fact that we don't trust God with our happiness. This leads us to only think of the here and now. We want our temporary pleasure now; we want our way of living now. This is why the Church asks us to think on the last four things--Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell. There is no one temporary thing here on earth that could ever make up for the joy we will receive in Heaven or the torture we would endure if Hell was our destination. And the truth is, if we forgo the pleasure here on earth, it may just be that we struggle and suffer. It's not as if choosing God's Will is always easy or pleasant. Oftentimes, it comes with a great amount of suffering and so often, to avoid that, we take the reins and choose to trust in sinful pleasures and sinful ways so that we can seemingly enjoy this life. What we all have to come to understand is that what God wills for our lives, will always end up, in the end, better for us, if we choose to trust in Him. Jesus tells us, "What father among you would hand his son a snake when he asks for a fish? If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in Heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?" God's answer to us is not always the easy way or the most pleasurable way or the way of comfort, but the answer is always what is best for us. He knows better than anyone what we need to become Saints. So, we must knock at the door, Catholic Pilgrims, and ask for the grace to resist temporary "gain" over eternal joy and glory. Live the faith boldly and travel well this Thursday.
Sometimes when people share my posts, I can see comments made by people on their page. Yesterday, someone shared by post about praying the Rosary and how it's not vain repetition. I could see that someone commented to them, "Who taught you to bow to idols?" Now, I generally don't go commenting on other people's personal pages, but I will on here. The comment has nothing to do with the my post on the Rosary. It drives me absolutely bonkers when people just throw out an unrelated comment because they lack the ability to address the issue at hand. But, since they brought it up and because I like addressing bad comments and arguments, we'll talk about it today. The first thing we must understand is that to bow to something is not inherently wrong. Back in the day, men used to bow to women upon greeting them and, to be old fashioned in my language, in taking their leave. It was a sign of respect. In some Asian cultures, bowing is a cultural practice and we recognize that the bowing isn't idolization but, instead, a sign of respect. In 1 Kings 2:19, King Solomon bows to his mother. He does this, not because he is worshipping her, but because she is the queen mother and he is respecting her with a bow. Sometimes, Catholics bow to statues of Mary for the same reason--she is our Queen Mother and we are trying to show her respect through her image. There are other instances of people bowing in the Bible and it is not a form of worship. So, we see that we can bow and indict with our bodies a gesture of respect and honor. For Catholics, when we come into a Catholic Church, we genuflect, that is kneel and cross ourselves, as we take our seats. Anytime, we pass by the Tabernacle, we either bow or genuflect. Some people can't genuflect because of physical ailments, so they bow. The reason we do this is because Jesus is present. In this case, we are bowing and genuflecting out of worship. Jesus is present in the Eucharist. Today, in our Gospel reading, Jesus gives us the Our Father. Several years ago, I learned something very interesting from Bishop Barron. Where it says "daily bread," in the Greek, the word is epiousion, which means "substantial in the highest degree" or "super-substantial." St. Jerome translated this into the Latin Vulgate as "panem supersubstantialem," or super-substantial bread. What is bread in the highest degree? The Eucharist--Jesus fully present Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity. We get on our knees, we bow, we genuflect when we enter a Catholic Church because we are worshipping Jesus in the Panem Supersubstantialem. It is not idolization, but right praise. Thank God, Catholic Pilgrims, we can receive this Daily Bread everyday. Have a blessed Wednesday.
"The Bible says, 'In praying, don't use vain repetitions as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their much speaking.' Catholics are praying vain repetitions when you pray the Rosary." Heard this one before? I'm sure you have. About 15 years ago, I was completely devastated by some news within my larger family. One morning, I couldn't stop crying and I tried to formulate a prayer, but I couldn't. So, I just said over and over again, "Jesus." I feel asleep saying repeating Jesus' name. Anytime I give a talk, I get a little nervous, so as I'm on my way to the talk, I pray many times over, "Holy Spirit, keep me calm, keep me clear." This always stills my heart and helps me relax. After I receive the Eucharist, I pray three times, "Stay with me, Lord." This is a repetitious prayer. Even though I am repeating myself, none of these prayers are in vain. Vain, in the context of what Jesus is speaking about, means "useless" and "producing no results." The reason Jesus was saying this is because the Gentiles said repetitious prayers to pagan gods and, as we know, pagan gods don't exist. So, praying to Zeus or Athena was vain--useless--because they weren't real. When Catholics pray the Rosary we are saying repetitious prayers, this is true, but they aren't vain. The "Our Father" is a prayer we repeat at least six times and that is a prayer that Jesus gave us. Hardly vain. We pray the "Glory Be" at least six times and that prayer gives glory to the Blessed Trinity. Hardly vain. We pray the "Fatima prayer," which says, "Oh my, Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell. Lead all souls to Heaven, especially those in most need of Your mercy." Straight up prayer to Jesus. Hardly vain. Then, the "Hail Mary." The first part of the prayer are the words of St. Gabriel to Mary and the words of St. Elizabeth to Mary--scriptural texts formulate the prayer. The second half of the prayer is asking for her to pray for us. While we are praying these prayers, we are meditating on Christ's and Mary's life through different mysteries. Repetition is not, in and of itself, bad. It is never vain or useless to pray to Jesus or the Blessed Trinity. It is not vain to ask the Mother of God to pray for us while we meditate on the life of her Son, Who she desires us to love more than anything. Today, is the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, Catholic Pilgrims. May we pray a beautiful, fruitful, efficacious, repetitious Rosary today. Live the Faith boldly and travel well.
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