Temptations: The sneaky fleshy kind that jump you in alleys

As most, if not all of you know, Katie and I recently decided that sleep was over rated and that we should become insomniacs. In order to further this goal in our lives and make sure there was no going back we had Thomas, and no, he is not sleeping through the night yet. Anyway, this is where the real story begins. One of the things I discovered about being a new parent is that you suddenly acquire a lot of things that you didn’t even know babies needed. I have a feeling that this lack of knowledge may in some way be tied to my Y-chromosome, but real scientific research has yet to support my theories. Regardless, you will accumulate many things that you (and by you I mean men) never even knew existed. Aside from the many gifts of various clothes, diapers, toys, etc. Katie and I also received many gift cards. Gift cards are great because parents with three baby swings and no diaper bag can put the gift to the best possible use and not have to go through the feelings of guilt that come about when you have to return two out of the three swings to the store because you failed to have triplets. This is where temptation enters the scene. A gift card to a baby stores scarcely a temptation for me as I don’t really like baby shopping. However a gift card to say, Target or Wal-Mart is a completely different story. Suddenly a whole electronics section has been opened up before my very eyes and a shiny new gift card is in my hand. The fact that the gift card is for buying baby things means very little to me. After all, I will be supporting Thomas for the next 18 years of his life, if I am lucky. Longer if I am not. And I have yet to see a gift card that covers a college education. So when a friend puts a baby card in my hand, and it contains a substantial gift card to a store that sells video games, and Katie is not around to even know that a gift card has been given or received, or if I find a gift card that may have been forgotten about... Yeah, temptation. Rest assured, however, that I rose to the occasion and told my wife about the gift card and did not run off and spend it frivolously behind her back. In the end I decided that she would notice if Smash Bros. Brawl showed up and no money disappeared from the bank account. And I am just to honest. This is why I generally have my wife manage the finances. It keeps us from eating a diet of Ramen noodles.

On an only slightly related note, Katie and I want to thank everyone at St. Joseph’s for their support of Thomas through prayers and gifts. Especially the youth group. You are all amazing.

Retreat?!!? Are they really worth your weekend? (March 9 2008)

When any retreat or other special event comes around, the question that always comes up is the same. Is this really worth my time? This question is no less relevant to me than it is to you. There are many good events, groups, guilds, organizations, etc. here at the Church that it can be difficult when we are forced to pick and choose where we want to be involved, and that doesn’t even begin to factor in the commitments to various things at school and with friends. All in all it can be very easy to become swamped or overwhelmed with a plethora of quality time commitments. I decided to use the word plethora because it took up less space than gargantuan truck load, in case you were wondering. Anyway, with all these worthwhile activities going on in our lives, where does one find time to go on a retreat? If you guys are like me, by the time the weekend rolls around, all I want to do is sit back and relax. To quote Peter from the movie Office Space when he was questioned about what he did over the weekend instead of coming in to work “Michael, I did nothing. I did absolutely nothing, and it was everything that I thought it could be.” This small statement speaks volumes, especially to me. Sometimes doing nothing is the best thing you can do. It provides you with a chance to kick back and recharge, let your worries go, whatever you need. I really like doing nothing. The problem is, usually there is something that needs to be done, so doing nothing is not always possible. There is one other thing I like almost as much, and at certain times more, then doing nothing. Going on a retreat. Now I am not talking about a half hearted retreat where the talks are long, boring, and have no real meaning to my life, but rather a real retreat. One that truly embodies the essence of the word. One where you leave town for a couple of days and go someplace special. Someplace up in the mountains or out in the woods. Where the talks are not to intense and rather than just preaching at you, they give you things to contemplate about your life. The atmosphere is very relaxed and you have a chance to just let God speak to you. These retreats are few and far between, but they are very enjoyable. The other kind of retreat I enjoy are big, loud, exciting, fun, and super intense. Retreats like REACH Gonzaga and Steubenville North West. Rather than calm, passive retreats, these are like a spiritual powerhouse that are designed to get you pumped up about your faith. They are incredible weekends and I cannot recommend them enough. If you can, please plan on attending these events. I think they are worth the money or I wouldn’t be taking people. If money is an issue please let me know and we can try to work things out. Apple Blossom is coming and we will need help with Doners.

Weekend Retreat: How things went on our Confirmation retreat (March 3 2008)

For those of you who have been keeping an eye on the “Upcoming Events” column on the right, you know that some of us spent this past weekend over at Holy Apostles on a retreat. I know that not everyone was able to attend the retreat, so I thought I would take a few moments to talk about what some of you unfortunately missed. The speaker for the weekend was Chris Stefanick. The first talk, given on Friday evening, was about chastity, contraception, and STDs. Chris reiterated the Church’s teaching that contraception is not only intrinsically evil (CCC 2370), but also degrading to the humanity of everyone involved. As I put it to the Confirmation class a few weeks ago, “How does keeping a woman all drugged up so that you can have sex with her whenever you want without getting her pregnant say ‘I love you?’” I am not even going to enter into the lies that come with using condoms, at least not this week. The point of the matter is this, contraception is the antithesis of true love, and as such has no place in a loving relationship. Chris also went on to talk about how in a world where the divorce rate is above 50%, the divorce rate for couples who use Natural Family Planning to space their children is below 5%. Even if I wasn’t a Catholic, I think that I would consider switching over to using NFP instead of contraception just to figure out how to increase the chances of making my marriage last for a life time. These statistics alone tell me exactly what happens when we turn our back on Gods plan for love and marriage and try to do it our own way, we get broken. It is not God that breaks us, but rather we who break ourselves. By rejecting the plan of the author of Love, we find that we have actually rejected Love itself. Anyway, the last talk that was given was a talk on relativism and living out our faith. Relativism is where we say that nothing is really right or wrong, except in the eye of the beholder. There are no real moral truths, because in the realm of faiths and morals there is no empirical evidence to support claims of right and wrong. This is, of course, a bunch of hogwash and we must reject it outright. There is such a thing as right and wrong, regardless of our opinions. If the U.S. passed a law tomorrow saying that rape was no longer a crime, wouldn’t it still be wrong? Of course it would. As Catholics we are heirs to the fullness of Christ’s revealed truth. We have a responsibility to live that truth out in our daily lives.
There, I summed up the beginning and the end of the retreat. In the middle there was a great game of pictionary, Eucharistic Adoration, Confession, Mass, tasty food, and a few other excellent talks. If you missed this one, Brendan Case is coming April 20 so don’t miss it.

My Weekend: How I spent my Presidents Day and beyond (February 24 2008)

I have had writers block before, but this week I really feel like I am at the end of my rope. I even spent the last hour or so cruising around on the internet trying to find something to offer my highly valued opinion on. Nothing. Nada. Zip. I am just drawing a blank. So instead of finding something witty or intellectual to entertain you with, I am just going to tell you about the last few days of my life. If nothing else this will explain why putting on a sweater this morning was one of the most painful events of my entire life, or at least of the week. Katie and I decided to spend our extended weekend up in Port Angeles with a surprise visit to her parents. It was a very enjoyable visit and I have always enjoyed the Church (Queen of Angeles) up there. While on our way back we decided to stop in Silverdale and do a little shopping. For Katie it was an opportunity to visit a large Jo-Ann Fabrics and find some good crafting supplies, for me it was a time to peruse Best Buy and Circuit City for all the various movies, video games, and music that I don’t really need. I was with my brother-in-law, James, and it was at Best Buy that we made the first kill of our hunt. We found them in a bin near the front counter, just waiting for us. The sign on the bin read “Strategy Guides $.01” Now, it didn’t really matter to either of us that we didn’t own any of the games that these guides referenced. In fact, most of the books were for P.S.3 and Xbox 360 games, neither of which I own. However, for a penny a pop how could we pass up such a wonderful opportunity. I only bought one, about the only Wii guide in the box, for Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. I figure that this is a game I might actually own one day, but who knows. James, however, bought one of everything in the box. Having conquered Best Buy, we moved on to Circuit City. Here I was able to find a Wii import of an old arcade shooter, which I picked up for $30 or so. Having exhausted all possibilities, we had lunch with Katie’s family and began the trek back to Wenatchee, bringing James with us. It was at this point that I learned that Thomas does not do well on long car rides, especially late in the afternoon. He screamed an awful lot. I will definitely keep this in mind for future trips. On Wednesday, James decided that we should get a good start on his visit by doing 400 pushups. I foolishly agreed to this machoistic display and undertook the competition. Bad idea. I don’t remember the last time I did a pushup, which is very poor preparation for a day of 400. By the end, yesterday evening, it was all I could do to move my arms. And that is why I was so stiff I could hardly move this morning.

The Secret of Love: I found it inside a Dove dark chocolate heart (February 17 2008)

So I was sitting around with my wife watching some Stargate SG-1 (yes, I am a Sci-Fi nerd) and munching some Dove chocolate hearts that we were given by our friends. This was some exceptionally good chocolate. I think I am going to convert over to the dark side, of chocolate that is. Anyway, that is not the point. Well, I guess in a way it is the point. If any of you are like me and have been munching those little Dove chocolate hearts, you know that you can’t help but read the clever little sayings on the inside of the wrapper. Now these sayings aren’t like the ones you would find on those candy hearts, you know, catchy valentines Day sayings like “Be Mine” and “U R Special.” Oh no, Dove takes things a step further. Seeing as the chocolate is in the shape of a heart, they are of course about love. Or so they want you to think. After painstakingly analyzing these seemingly innocent statements, I have interpreted their true meaning, which I pass on to you now so that you may be prepared just in case the “Dove Man” comes for you. Remember, the best defense is a good offense. The original Dove comments are in italics, with my comments following in normal text.

Share a secret; prove that you are untrustworthy.

Trust with your heart, not with your head; What would common sense know anyway

Sleep under the stars tonight; hypothermia is only temporary

Listen with your heart, what would your foot know about love

Hold hands firmly, hearts gently; hearts don't have bones so they break easier

Remember your first crush; Wasn’t 2nd grade wonderful?

A gentle touch speaks volumes; but so does a slap in the face

Savor small romantic moments; The big ones are tend to be bitter

Be your own Valentine; Life’s cheaper that way

Discover how much your heart can hold; I’m betting on 4 ounces

Hug someone today; It is only a crime if you are at the high school

Chocolate always loves you back; it’s called heartburn.

Anyway, these are just my impressions about the little sayings on the inside of Dove chocolate hearts. I am looking forward to Friday when they go on sale and I can buy 10lbs of them.

Love is Pain. Anyone who says different is selling something (February 10 2008)

One of the big questions that always comes up in people’s lives is “how can a loving God allow all this suffering?” For many, this one question can drive them away from the Church for a long time, maybe even their whole lives. If God really loves me, why does he let all these terrible things happen? This is a toughie. What it really boils down to is Love, hence my quote from The Princess Bride that I used above. One of the primary components of love is free will. You cannot force someone to love you, not with a real love. Because God loves us, he gives us the option of loving him in return. We are made out of love, and we are made for love. But since love is a choice, we always have the ability and the option to choose an unloving option in any given situation. This option is called sin. Pain and suffering are not a result of God’s failure to love us, but rather in our failure to love God. Because we can be relatively certain that everyone is not going to have a conversion tomorrow, the question now becomes, what do I do with the suffering in my life. I have often said that I would have no problem with outright martyrdom for the faith. If someone wants to shoot me in the face for being Catholic, go right ahead. Where I tend to get a bit more reluctant is when we cross over from a quick and painless death for my faith into the realm of suffering and maybe even torture. Pain and I, we don’t generally mix willingly. Is this a bad thing? Well, that depends on your point of view. If you view pain as something which is intrinsically evil and must be avoided at all costs, then you might want to rethink your faith and read through the Gospels. Many people believe in the old Health and Wealth Gospel, which pretty much says that as long as you follow Christ and avoid sin, you will live a long, healthy and prosperous life. If you are poor or suffering, then it must be because of sin in your life. This is primarily a Protestant view of Christianity. As Catholics we see much more value in suffering. We are called at all times to try to imitate the life of Christ, and Christ did some pretty hard core suffering. This was not because of sin on his part, he was perfect. It was something that he did not deserve, but he took it on willing. It wasn’t fair, it wasn’t justice, it was a sacrifice. This is what we are also called to. We are called to endure suffering and injustice and to join our sufferings with those of Christ. This is what Fr. Tom is talking about when he tells us to “offer it up” We do not do this in an effort to avoid suffering, but rather to give our suffering some meaning. This is especially powerful when we could get out of the suffering, but willingly choose to keep it and offer it up as a prayer. Just something for you to think about during your fasting this Lent

How I love Winter: and what would Calvin do? (February 3 2008)

One of my favorite comics growing up was Calvin and Hobbs. The strip was cancelled when I was in middle school due to the retirement of its author/writer Bill Watterson. One of the comics that ran through my mind the other day was one where Calvin loses a quarter in the snow. Hobbes tells him that he is just going to have to wait until spring, when the snow melts. Calvin is, of course, outraged at the thought of having to wait to find his quarter. The final panel of the strip shows Calvin outside with a hairdryer melting the snow in an effort to find his lost quarter. Why exactly am I telling you this? I am glad you asked. I actually have several reasons. The first is because I still love Calvin and Hobbes. I own all the books except for the large, all encompassing 3 volume set published a few years ago; and someday I will have that one as well. The second reason involves the quarter (or quata if you happen to be from Boston) The quarter reminds me of the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin in the Bible. In both cases something is lost and once it is found there is great rejoicing. With Calvin we never know if he finds his money or not, though probably more on the “not” side of things. For me the whole point is that he is searching for it. He didn’t just lose it and say “oh well, I guess I will never find my quarter” but he went to find it. First he got his best friend to help. When the two of them couldn’t find it, his friend advised waiting until the searching would be easier. But instead Calvin goes into the house and gets a hair dryer, determined to melt all the snow in his yard if that is what it takes. He wants his quarter back. In many ways this could be looked at as a representation on the spiritual life and our faith in God. We may go on a retreat or have a deep and personal experience with our savior, but then that initial bliss fades or we sin and everything feels different. It is important to realize that regardless of how we feel, God is there welcoming us with open arms. If we sin, then we go to Confession and we keep pursuing God. We must seek him out with the same recklessness that inspired Calvin to fight Old Man Winter with nothing more than a hair dryer. This is what we are made for and our lives will seem empty and meaningless unless we seek fulfillment in our Creator. All that and I just want winter to be over.

Woman of God: Or just something pretty to look at? (January 27 2008)

Two weeks ago I blasted the men for a lack of manners and how I felt that it was a sign of a deeper problem, a lack of manhood. Women everywhere cheered and I received offers from feminist groups from around the country to come and continue raging against my brothers. Or not. Anyway, even if I had received such offers I am sure that they would dry up after today. The question still stands What does it mean to be a woman of God? This is an even more difficult question for me to answer than the man of God question, so I am just going to hit on a couple basic ideas. First and foremost you are a child of God and you are loved. This is probably the biggest and most important aspect of true womanhood. Ironically the same principle holds true for men. For the ladies, however, it seems to be more important, and more easily forgotten. Let’s hit the subject of modesty first. While often associated with home school girls in ugly frumpy dresses, modesty is a key part of the virtue of chastity (and has little to do with frumpy dresses). Modesty is all about protecting the dignity that God has given you as a woman. For some this means wearing the frumpy dress, but for most it just involves wearing clothes that accentuate the whole person, not just certain physical attributes. The whole person should say, look at me, I am a child of God. You don’t even need a shirt with a catchy God slogan to say this, it will just radiate from you. The exact definition of what is modest and what is not is a challenge, especially in a society that places a woman’s worth on her good looks. Here are a few basic pointers that you might want to consider.
· Am I constantly pulling up the front of my shirt to keep my belly button from being exposed by my neckline?
· Is my underwear showing (for men too)
· Is my midriff showing?
· Does this outfit encourage others to grow in holiness when they look at me?
These are just some of my personal tips; as always you may do with them as you will. The last one I think is especially important. We should all consider the consequences of our actions, in everything we do. This is especially true for women in how they dress. Ladies, please do not wear clothing that is going to make men lust after you. They deserve better than that, and so do you. The T.V. shows and movie stars of our age are constantly telling you a lie that men only love women who wear slinky outfits and treat their bodies like nothing more than objects for men to ogle at. This is a lie. Real men don’t love that kind of woman. They love a woman who has dignity, self respect, and a knowledge that true beauty is a virtue that must be lived out on a daily basis. Remember, you are a child of God.

Thomas Jeremy: The Boy Who Lived

For those of you who are big Harry Potter like myself, you know that The Boy Who Lived is the name of the first chapter in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Now comes the question of who is Thomas Jeremy, and What does he have to do with Harry Potter? In response to the first part of the question, Thomas Jeremy is my son. He was born at 4:52pm on Tuesday and weighted in at 7lbs. 12 oz. What does he have to do with Harry Potter, absolutely nothing. Why then did I make the comment about being the boy who lived? I made the comment on behalf of the boy or girl who didn’t. For those of you who, like myself when I was in high school, don’t know the significance of January 22, I am here to let you know. January 22, 1973 was the day when the Supreme Court of the United States of America handed down its decision that it was ok for a woman to murder her unborn child. The boy who lived comment was made on behalf of the 23,461 babies here in the state of Washington in 2006 who never got to be kissed by their mom, or hugged by their dad. The 23,461 babies who never did anything wrong. The 23,461 babies who didn’t make it. Our prayers and our hearts go out to them.

Being a gentleman: and how I made a girl wet her pants (January 13 2008)

A bunch of us had just finished a rather intense game of floor hockey and were on our way out of the gym when this girl (and other girls) attacked us with snowballs. Most of the guys just shrugged it off, a few threw snow back. But not me. I chased down the girl who instigated the attack, grabbed her around the waist and threw her into the biggest snow drift I could find. I then buried her in said snowdrift. She was laughing so hard she wet her pants. This may not have been the most gentlemanly moment in my life, but hey, no one is perfect. In modern times, one of the seemingly lost arts to many men is the ability to act like a gentleman. Now before all the ladies get to overjoyed at the fact that I am picking on the guys today, I am just going to give you a heads up, your turn is coming. Anyway, back to the gentlemen. What is it that makes someone a true gentleman? Is it just holding the door open for the ladies, or is it something much deeper? For me, and keep in mind that this is my personal opinion, acting as a gentleman is the first step towards being a man. When I say man, I mean a real man, not just an adult male. When it comes to talking about what it takes to be a man, there are many different opinions and thoughts on the subject, some of which are good, and some of which are a load of garbage. Anyway, being a gentleman is, in many ways, like being virtuous. It is practiced by doing certain actions, whether you understand them or not. At first it may require a lot of thought and concentration, but after you have been doing it for a while, the actions just come as second nature. For example, if you make it a point to always hold the door open for the ladies, eventually you won’t even notice that you are doing it, it just becomes a habit. These actions, however, do not make one a true gentleman. It is merely the beginning. Now that you have the actions down, you have to have the attitude that goes with it, and that attitude can be summed up in a single word, honor. Not your own honor either, but the act of honoring someone else. You could also say service. It is not something you do because you want to be noticed, but simply because it is the right thing to do, or the way someone deserves to be treated. As men of God we should show special respect to all women and help them to realize how precious they are in the eyes of God and they do not need to wear immodest clothing to be beautiful. Women are worth so much more than that. One of the keys to being a man of God is understanding how to honor, respect and treat women. I learned the hard way that this does not involve whitewashing them.

Remember the Epiphany: and a partridge in a pear January 06 2008)

As many of you may be aware, the Christmas season officially ends today. That is, of course, assuming that you are reading this on Sunday January 6, the feast of the Epiphany. I find it ironic that we were almost to Epiphany before I found out what the song The twelve days of Christmas was really all about. I have known for some time that the twelve days are referring to the twelve days from Christmas to Epiphany, but that is where my knowledge stopped. I thought everything beyond that was just a bunch of weird gifts that some guy decided to give his wife or girlfriend. In no way did I think that this was a religious song. But I was wrong. For those of you who are like me and never had a clue that each of the gifts given on each of the twelve days has a religious meaning, I figured I would share my newfound knowledge with you. This knowledge is worth filing away for a future Christmas cocktail party because you can use it to impress your friends and wow your enemies, assuming that you have any enemies that is. And assuming that your enemies would be at the same cocktail party as you. Anyway, the gifts of twelve days of Christmas. The first thing to remember is that YOU are the true love, the beloved of God. These are the gifts he is giving you.

1st day: a partridge in a pear tree refers to Christ.

2nd day: two turtle doves; the Old and New Testaments of the Bible

3rd day: 3 French hens; the theological virtues of Faith, Hope, and Love.

4th day: 4 calling birds; the four gospels, proclaiming the Word of God

5th day: 5 gold rings; the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible which give a history of humanity’s fall and God’s response of grace and redemption.

6th day: 6 geese a laying; the 6 days of creation that reveal God as the Creator and Sustainer of the world.

7th day: 7 swans a swimming; the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit: prophesy, ministry, teaching, exhortation, giving, leading, and compassion. (Rom 12:6-8, 1Cor 12: 8-11)

8th day: 8 maids a milking; the eight Beatitudes: Blessed are the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness. (Mt 5: 3-10)

9th day: 9 ladies dancing; The nine fruits of the Holy Spirit: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Gal 5: 22)

10th day: 10 Lords a leaping; the Ten Commandments

11th day: 11 pipers piping; The eleven faithful Apostles. (Judas went piping to the wrong crowd)

12th day: 12 drummers drumming; The twelve points of doctrine found in the Apostles Creed.

There you go, now you can go show off your new found tidbit of information and hum yet another religiously based Christmas carol. Special thanks to: www.crescourcei.org for their info on the song (this is not a Catholic site, so if you visit beware of what they tell you to believe).

You can't judge me: discussions on right and wrong (12-29-2007)

Many of us have had discussions with our friends or family members where we may have heard the words “well, you can’t judge me.” These are often thrown in our face as a last desperate effort to some how rationalize something wrong. We try to help someone by pointing out that they are sinning, and we get snappy, angry comments about judge not lest ye be judged, and others along similar lines. Knowing that we will receive such harsh criticisms can often times persuade us that it is better to say nothing at all rather than risk a confrontation with one of our closest friends. The question then becomes “How do I talk to someone without coming off as judgmental?” The truth is, I don’t really know. One thing to remember is that you are not judging the person as going to heaven or hell (if you are then you need to stop and reevaluate) you are simply saying that their actions are morally wrong. It can be very difficult when we are called on by God to tell each other these things, but our love for our brothers and sisters in Christ must out weigh our fear of embarrassment. We must make sure to speak out of love, and not the mushy kind of love. True love that puts someone else's good ahead of our own. John 15:13 tells us, “Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” This means that we must put it all on the line for our friends if we really love them. This may even mean making them angry at us for a while. It can be a difficult situation but the most important thing we can do for our friends is pray for them. Pray that their hearts will be open to what we may have to say and that we will only say what God wants us to say. Afterwards pray that our words will have an effect on them and that God will have the strength to continue to be God’s instrument. Be careful not to fall into the trap of just praying and doing nothing. We need both prayer and good works in our lives and the two are not separable. While on the subject of judging things, I wanted to talk a little bit about what I look at when judging the goodness (or lack thereof) of a movie, or in the recent case of The Golden Compass a book. One of the first things that I believe one needs to look at are the motives of the author. Is the author just trying to entertain, or does he/she have an agenda that that they are trying get you to agree with, like C.S. Lewis or P. Pullman? Their agenda may be good or bad, but we should know that it is there. Lewis pushes a very pro-Christianity message, while Pullman pushes an anti-Christian message. These overall themes are important and should color our readings of the books or watching of a movie. Secondly, what are the characteristics of the main characters and what do they hold as important? Sometimes these characteristics do not hold with the teachings of the Church, like doing an evil deed in order to achieve a good end. The end never justifies the means. Sometimes it is easy for us to overlook these things and get caught up in an exciting story, but we must be careful. We should try to find books and movies that even if they are not blatantly Catholic, still promote the lifestyle that the Church says we should be living.

Beware the Weepies: Things that hit us at Christmas (12-23-2007)

The Christmas weepies. A dangerous syndrome that can have a profound effect on even the most stout hearted, Christmas loving soul. What, exactly, are “Christmas weepies” you ask? Well, since you have asked, I will answer. In my experience Christmas can be a very emotional and for some stressful time. This is directly related to the fact that our society puts a lot of emphasis on various secular aspects of the holiday. One example would be the romantic aspect. Now I am just as romantic as the next guy, maybe more so depending on who I am being compared to, and even I find this a bit nauseating. I don’t think you can go for more than 10 minutes without seeing some kind of commercial that involves buying diamonds for the woman of you dreams or a chainsaw for that logger in your life. For those who are single, this constant barrage of finding your self worth in buying some girl a diamond advertising can be irritating, frustrating, and in a worse case scenario, a point of infection for the weepies. After the weepies have infected someone, all their Christmas spirit is quickly sucked out through the skin. The end effect is a poor, zombie like creature who is barely human. People with the weepies walk around through the snow with sad or sometimes bitter looks at people who are enjoying the Christmas spirit, especially couples. This is classic type-A Christmas weepies. A sad, yet not uncommon disease. Type-B weepies is similar, yet different. Type-B weepies are more likely to effect adults than youth, especially women. Girls like to plan things out and have everything perfect. This involves everything from getting everyone the perfect gift to planning out the perfect Christmas or New Years party. Perfect decorations, perfect food, perfect accessory in the hair. Everything perfect. For some reason the holiday season seems to heighten this need for perfection in some people. Romans 3:23 tells us that All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, thus none of us are perfect. While it is important to strive towards perfection, we cannot allow it to destroy our lives when we fail. On the moral level, this is why we have the sacrament of confession. On the non-moral level, we just make mistakes. Parties don’t turn out the way we plan them, people don’t like their gifts, etc. People who get caught up in everything find there world crashing down do to our human nature. And then the weepies move in. People with type-B weepies are always tired because they are too stressed out to sleep and bald because they have pulled out all their hair. A dangerous predicament to be in. The question then arises, how can we avoid the weepies this year? First and foremost we must keep our eyes on the prize, and I don’t mean gifts under the tree. This season is about Christ; not girls, gifts, and parties. If serving him is our primary goal, we have already set things in motion for success. This doesn’t mean there won’t be some snags, it just means that our goal is worth working for. Maybe spend some time in Adoration on Christmas day and tell the Lord thank you. If all that fails you can always hug a puppy, which I hear helps some people feel better, at least in the short term.

The Golden Toilet: A critical look at The Golden Compass (12-16-2007)

First of all I need to get one thing out in the open. I have not seen this movie, nor do I intend to. The Golden Compass is nothing but a bunch of atheistic, anti-Catholic propaganda. If this is the case, why am I writing to you about it in the bulletin, especially after we spent our Life-night last week talking about it. Simple, the reason revolves around the fact that a lot of people skipped out on or were unable to make it to youth group last week. I felt that this topic was important enough to warrant taking a chance that they might read about it here. Besides, I have more to say than I said at Life-teen. First, let's deal with the movie. Since I refuse to go see it, and thus give money to support an attack on my faith, I got a book on tape instead. As previously stated, it is atheistic propaganda designed to destroy our faith in God (more on that later) and an attack on the Catholic Church. Any attack on our faith is a attack to us personally, and we should fight it as such. The author, Phillip Pullman, is a renown atheist (someone who denies the existence of God). He wrote the series His Dark Materials as a response to the popular Christian fantasy of authors like C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. The title of the series should give us a clue to his overall opinions on God. The main villain in the series is a group known as “The Magisterium.” Does that word sound familiar? It should, seeing as it is also the word that refers to the teaching authority of the Catholic Church. In The Golden Compass the Magisterium is power hungry religious group that seeks to control all of humanity, telling them what to believe and how to think. If anyone has any free thoughts or different opinions, they are branded as heretics and are often killed. The Magisterium is trying to find a way to repress peoples sexuality, because it is at the root of original sin. To do this they cut them away from there daemon (pronounced demon), which is an external expression of their soul. When they are cut off they lose all their joy, emotion, and happiness. They become mindless, controlled zombies. Let me throw a quote at you just in case you think I am just being overly sensitive: “The Authority, God, the Creator, the Lord, Yahweh, El, Adonai, the King, the Father the Almighty – those were all names he gave himself. He was never the creator. He was an angel like ourselves – the first angel, true, the most powerful, but he was formed of Dust as we are, and Dust is only a name for what happens when matter begins to understand itself….The first angels condensed out of Dust, and the Authority was the first of all. He told those who came after him that he had created them, but it was a lie.” Sounds pretty freaky eh? Many people would say, “that's the book, the anti-Catholic themes were toned down in the movie.” From what I have hear, this is indeed true. The reason for this is because they knew Christians in general would already be upset enough without any extra provocation. The director has already said they are not going to tone down the next two movies, if in fact they make two more. If they lose money, they won’t be able to make a sequel and continue their attacks. They are planning on parents seeing the movie and then getting their kids the book for Christmas, without ever reading it themselves. Let me make one thing clear, if you go to see this movie in the theater, you are supporting the continued corruption of young souls in this world. The same can be said about buying the book. I encourage all of you to stay away from The Golden Compass, and to help protect your family by encouraging your younger brothers and sisters to do the same.

Patron Saint: The Michael Jordans or the spiritual life (12-09-2007)

Our world is filled with sin and temptations. I know that I didn’t really need to say that, but I figured I would go ahead and throw it out there as a starting point none the less. So you may now be wondering what, exactly, a world filled with sin has to do with you. As teenagers living in the U.S., it has everything to do with you. As I am sure you all know, most of the advertisements we see on TV and billboards, and the internet is directed towards you. In some ways this is a good thing. It means that as young adults in our world, you get to set the stage for most of what happens in the fashion industry. If you all want to wear clothing that shows no respect for your dignity as a child of God, just keep buying it and that is all they will make. But if you stop buying immodest clothing and choose to dress like a child of God, then the industry will pick up on it and the fashion pendulum will swing back the other direction. It is all up to you. The Good Lord knew, of course that we might need some help along the way. When temptation rears its ugly head and comes flying at you across the room, you need a friend. And not just any friend, but a friend who loves God and wants you to love God as much as they do. Imagine, if you will, that Michael Jordan wanted to be your personal basketball coach. I know Michael Jordan has been out of the public scene for a while, but still, he was a man who loved basketball. If he was your personal coach, he would not just teach you how to play basketball, he would want to infect you with his love of the game. He would know that the only way to be the best, is to give it everything you have. You have to love the game. As Catholics, we have much more at stake and much more to love than just basketball. This is one of the reasons that we have the communion of saints “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” If you don’t have a patron saint, I cannot recommend one enough. If you have a confirmation saint, which most of you should, start there. You don’t need to be limited to just one either. Grab yourself a couple. Ask different saints to help you in different areas of your life. If they wrote any books, find them and read them. If you can’t find their books at the library, talk to me and I will see if I can help. If we want to get to heaven, what better way than asking the people who are already there to help us, guide us, and coach us.

Saint Nicholas, Great Saint or Jolly old fat man (12-02-2007)

As Christmas approaches, and yes, it is ok for me to talk about Christmas now that we are officially into Advent. Anyway, as Christmas approaches I find myself once again pondering the myth, legend, and facts about the man we currently know as Santa Claus. Santa Claus, as I am sure you all know is an anglicized version of the name Saint (Santa) Nicholas (Claus). Now there have been many saints named Nicholas over the 2000 year history of the Church, a few of them have even been canonized. The St. Nicholas that is generally associated with Christmas is St. Nicholas of Myra also called St. Nicholas of Bari. Why does the same saint get two places, because Myra is where he was bishop and originally buried and Bari is the town in Italy where his remains were moved after Myra was conquered by the Muslims. He lived during the 4th century and is one of the few saints of that time to have died from old age rather than martyrdom. All that being said, how does guy fit in with our modern concept of Santa Claus? The legend of St. Nicholas involves exactly 0 elves at a toy factory in the North Pole, 0 reindeer, and no sleigh whatsoever. One legend talks about a young boy who lived in Myra. On the Feast of St. Nicholas the city was attacked by pirates and the boy was taken as a slave. He was made the cup bearer for their king. His mother prayed every day for his safe return and for the protection of St. Nicholas. On the Feast of St. Nicholas the following year, the young boy suddenly appeared in the town, still holding the kings golden cup. He said that God had whisked him away from the pirates and St. Nicholas had brought him home. Thus, St. Nicholas is known as the protector of children. Another legend tells of three sisters who had no dowry and were on the verge of being sold into slavery. As each of the three girls came of age to marry, Nicholas would sneak in and leave them money for a dowry. Once he left it in some stocking that were hanging above the fireplace to dry. Thus he became known through his legends as a giver of gifts and a protector of children. His feast day is on December 6, (Thursday) and the tradition used to be to leave out you shoes and he would put some candy of fruit in them for you. I think this is a fun tradition and I encourage you to give it a shot for your younger brothers and sisters (or parents for all your kids). It is a great way to honor the real St. Nicholas during this time of Advent as we prepare for Christmas.

What's in your Wallet? The Capital One card of teh spiritual life. (11-25-2007)

Don’t ask me why I was thinking about this. The truth is I don’t really know myself. Anyway, I was thinking about what kind of credit cards God would give us if he were running a credit agency. The first thing that came into my mind was the old Capital One commercials. The one where the guy goes out and buys all the stuff and then the pirates start swarming out of everywhere and jumping out of store windows ready to pillage the poor guy with ridiculously high interest rates. Frankly I find the commercials really funny. Their whole point is that the capital one does not endorse piracy, even in the area of interest rated. When the pirates discover that the shopper has a Capital One card, they go away sad and dejected, until they find someone with “the other credit card” whence they gloriously pillage anew. What does this have to do with the spiritual life? Really, very little. Anyway, back to the point. God and a credit card. The whole purpose of a credit card is to help us do something financially that we are currently unable to do on our own. It helps us to overcome the little difficulties in life that we may run into on a daily basis. At the end of the month we pay back part or all of the money that we borrowed. The great thing about God is that everything he does for us is a gift. There is no paying him back at the end of the month. Indeed, his gifts are so lavish that it would be completely impossible to pay him back. We can, however, say thank you. If God handed out credit cards, or rather gift cards since we are not able to repay him, I think they would run on humility. This goes back to the Capitol One card analogy with the pirates and interest rates. Pride has often been seen as the root of all other sins. Like interest and the pirates. Therefore, we need the opposite of pride in our lives if we are going to avoid sin. Humility. This is a humility that can only come from God. It is a true gift of grace that we need more of in our world. We live in a culture where we are told to go ahead and do whatever we want and that no one has any right to tell us otherwise. It is difficult for us to place ourselves at the service of others, especially when we may not even like them. It is hard to let someone trample on our dignity and sometimes even rob us of what we think are our rights. It may be hard, but we must remember that Jesus did nothing less for us.

Thanksgiving, what are you thankful for? (11-18-2007)

I must admit that sometimes the Thanksgiving holiday confuses me. Is it supposed to be a religious holiday, or a secular one? While the obvious conclusion would be secular, maybe we should pause before jumping to the obvious. Let’s pause and take a look at what makes it a secular holiday. It was never something instituted or celebrated by the early Fathers of the Church, so that’s a strike against it. It marks no significant event in the life of Christ or the history of his Church. Strike two. It marks the beginning (at least in my book) of the secularized, materialistic Christmas season. Strike three, and Thanksgiving is secularized and OUT! Or is it? Regardless of what we may think about the Thanksgiving holiday, the act of giving thanks is not something that the secular world at large has a monopoly on. In fact while all the Atheists in our country gather around their turkeys and give thanks for their family, their health, and their job, we as Catholics have something much, much higher to be thankful for. The blood of the Lamb. Rather than just being thankful for the material things that get us by in everyday life, we should be looking to what gives us eternal life. We get to go to Mass every Sunday (and weekdays if you want) and receive the body and blood of God himself. It may just be me, but that really seems to put a dead bird to shame, no matter how much cranberry sauce you have to go with it. There are also all the little things to be thankful for. For example I am particularly thankful that my wife and baby are both ok after a car accident last week. I am not, however, just randomly thankful. I am thankful to God who protected them. Our car was totaled, but all my wife got out of the deal was a stiff leg and a couple of bruises. I feel sorry for those who believe that such things are just luck. So while Thanksgiving may not be a specifically religious holiday, I encourage you to think not only about what you are thankful for, but who you are thankful to. You don’t just say “thank you” to yourself, that would be ridiculous. You have to give your gratitude to someone or something else. Who can deserve our thanks more than God? No one. So I think a great way to celebrate this Thanksgiving holiday would be to make sure to attend Mass. Not just Mass on Sunday, but Mass on Thanksgiving day. What better way to say thank you to God. I can guarantee it will be the best meal you can receive.

Did Jesus carve a pumpkin? And if he did, what did it look like? (11-11-2007)

As you grabbed your bulletin this morning and excitedly flipped to your favorite page (that would be this one) to find out what is going on in the world of youth group this week, you may have been slightly creeped out by the mustache face staring back at you. This is the face that I chose to carve onto my pumpkin this year. Now you are no doubt asking yourself, “why did he carve such an odd face on his pumpkin, and why should we care?” Both are very good questions. You should care because the Catholic thing to do is to care about what your brothers and sisters in Christ are up to in their lives. As to the why, that takes a bit more explaining. Back in college my household brothers and I entered a pumpkin carving contest. Our pumpkin was beautiful, but since it wasn’t religious we got passed over for any of the prizes. This, however, failed to dampen our creative spirit and we decided this year to all carve pumpkins and send each other the pictures. Thus the pumpkin with a giant mustache was born. The whole point behind this little story is brotherhood. My brothers and I carved pumpkins to let each other know that we were thinking about and praying for each other. Was it also goofy, silly and a lot of fun? You better believe it! As far as Jesus ever carving a pumpkin goes, I don’t really think that he did. But I am sure that he did other things with his disciples that were similar. Things done just for fun to grow in the bonds of brotherhood. It is important for us to remember that Jesus was like us in all ways except sin. That means he knew how to just relax and have fun. We are called to imitate him in this area of our lives just as in all the rest. We just need to make sure that the fun we have is the same kind that Jesus would have had. I always wonder if he ever did whatever the ancient equivalent of short sheeting was to Peter’s bed? Something to ponder for the week I guess.

Trick-or-Treat?!!? Who should you look like this year? (10-28-2007)

I have always found Halloween to be an interesting holiday. For starters it gets far less mainstream controversy than, say, Christmas; but it is in fact one of the most exclusively Catholic days to celebrate. I say Catholic rather than Christian because our Protestant brothers and sisters do not believe in praying for the dead like us Catholics. Halloween is the feast of All Saints day, and for me, this is where the controversy lies. As I talk to other Catholics and friends whom I hold in high regard, I have received a wide variety of opinions on the subject of All Hallows Eve. I grew up in a family where trick or treating was the norm and every year we had to think up a new and more inventive costume. My all time favorite is still the ninja outfit that we made. Good times, good times. Anyway, I only bring this up because I was talking to someone who was shocked that I would ever partake in such evil pseudo-satanic activity as trick-or-treating. After getting a dictionary and finding out what pseudo-satanic meant, I was quite puzzled about the outburst. I didn’t really see anything wrong with trick-or-treating let alone anything down right evil. Needless to say my humble and innocent opinion is not shared by all. After some rational discussion with others who are anti- trick-or-treating, I have come to understand and respect their views. They see trick-or-treating as something not only unhealthy, but also disrespectful to the true meaning of the holiday. All Saints day should be a day to honor and remember all the Saints in Heaven, not run around in a goblin or devil outfit. This is true. Thus I now suggest this compromise. Dress up as your favorite Saint this year when you go trick-or-treating. Chances are people are going to ask you about your costume and you will have a chance to share a bit about your saint with them. If this doesn’t work for you, you can always do what I do, wait until all the candy goes on sale on All Saints Day and go stock up .

Chastity Speaker: Catherine A. Walsh has been sharing her love of her Catholic faith with youth for the past 17 years. She has spoken on many topics in a variety of different settings, but has always felt that God was calling her to do more. Realizing that it was her own lack of courage that was keeping her from doing God’s will in her life, she has recently set out to complete a book for young women on self esteem and chastity. She has also begun a public speaking career with a focus on involving God in our daily decision making process, particularly when it comes to our relationships and chastity. Vans will be available after Mass to go to this event.

SUNDAY! SUNDAY! SUNDAY! Monster truck madness in the Baptismal font (10-14-2007)

I always thought it would be a lot of fun to be the voice on the TV or radio who got to do the announcements for the Monster trucks, Nascar, and other intense sporting events that don't include football or basketball. I have been thinking a lot about birthdays, baptism days etc. and for some reason it resonates through my mind with “the voice” “SUNDAY! SUNDAY! SUNDAY! This Sunday only at the superdome you’ll see Baptism like you’ve never seen it before. Chrism, water, and the cleansing of sin. Tickets go on sale soon for the whole seat, but you’ll only need...the edge.” At least that is how it plays out in my mind. Even though we don’t announce or advertise Baptism quite like sports center would, we should still be on the edge of our seats for it. This kind of talk tends to bring about the discussion of whether or not people should celebrate their baptism day instead of their birthday. I once heard that our late Pope J.P.II was asked what the most important day of his life was. Most expected him to respond that it was the day he was elected pope, or the day he became a priest. But he told them that it was the day he was baptized. It makes one stop and think about what makes our birthday’s so special that we celebrate them every year? Well, for starters you can’t be baptized unless you are born, so in a way birth is a pre-requisite for baptism. You also finally get some room to stretch your legs and arms, you get to scream all night and keep your parents awake, and you get to torment your brothers and sisters.. All-in-all, not a bad day to commemorate by throwing a little party. Just for kicks and giggles let’s go back in time nine months or so, to the date of our conception. This should also be a memorable day. This was the day that God, through the cooperation of our parents, brought us into being, made in his image and likeness. He continues to hold us in being even to this day. So maybe we should celebrate conception day. Baptism holds similarities to both our conception and birthdays. We are born again of water and spirit. The old self is dead and gone and we are a new creation in Christ. All of these days are worth celebrating in my book, and none should be forgotten. So whichever day you choose to hold the party, just make sure that you are celebrating the complete package.

Kilt vs. Man Skirt, and how the Bible can show you the way (10-07-2007)

Ahh, October. My favorite month of the entire year, and not just because my wife’s birthday is on the 25. October is when no one can try and talk me out of being in a “Fall” sort of mood. Fall is a great season. The leaves are changing, the air is cool and crisp, and hot chocolate stock is on the rise. It is also the season where we begin to change what we wear. We move from shorts and t-shirts over to long pants and sweaters. It was while meditating on fashion, clothes, and all the various things that one can wear that my mind wandered over to the subject of kilts. Now being of Irish descent myself (yes, Irish people are also allowed to wear kilts), I wanted to clear up a few modern misunderstandings about kilts. For some bizarre reason that I shall never fully understand, certain people are trying to help kilts make a comeback into popular culture after being ousted for the last 400 years or so in favor of pants. I support such valiant efforts; and if I actually owned a kilt I might actually wear it on very rare occasions. The problem stems from the fact that not everyone who wants to see the kilt make a comeback actually know anything. Some people are just in this for the money. Enter “the man-skirt.” Now to the untrained eye the man-skirt and a kilt may appear indistinguishable. Since I am a youth minister and not a fashion expert, I am not going to go into the differences here. I do wish to make it clear that I am sad because now says any piece of cloth half-heartedly thrown about the waist on a man is considered a kilt. Needless to say, it is not. Popular culture and fashion designers who only want your money couldn’t care less about what a kilt actually looks like, or about the brave men who wore them. Like Mel Gibson. Sort of. Because we don’t live in an age where kilts are common, we are often deceived into wearing a man-skirt instead. Not satisfied simply with ruining authentic Celtic fashion, our culture applied the same methods to truth and morals. Something is right or wrong good or evil based solely the ability of the media to influence popular opinion. It can be difficult to make good decisions under these circumstances, but God has an answer. He has given us his word in the Bible, and the Church to help us understand it. So read your Bible daily and if you have questions don’t be afraid to ask. God loves you, so take your moral advice from him and not someone who calls a skirt a kilt just to make a buck. Mel does.

Cow tipping, and other social abnormalities (09-30-2007)

I don’t really think that most of you expected me to write on cow tipping in the bulletin this week, by I am none the less. First of all I need to make abundantly clear my personal views on the subject. I stand as a firm supporter of sneaking up on poor defenseless cows under the cover of darkness and pushing them over, at least in theory. I say “in theory” because I have never actually partaken in such miscreant behavior, at least that I am willing to admit to. Now back to my support of tipping the cow. As fore stated there are some guidelines that I feel must be followed. First and foremost, the cow must belong to one of the parties involved in the actual tipping. That way if you are caught you are only in trouble with your parents and not with the law. Secondly, I would have to be assured that the cow itself would come to no real harm. Real harm does not include being freaked out and angry at being pushed over. It involves serious things like broken bones or ruined steaks. No doubt the question on most minds right now (other than where they can hide their cows) is “why is he talking about this?” Not a bad question if I do say so myself. I recommend hiding your cows in a barn. I promise that I won’t go sneaking in and tipping them over without permission. As to the real reason, we must first look at why people go cow tipping in the first place. First and foremost cow tipping is a social activity. It is also, usually, something that appeals to the gents rather than the ladies. Being a highly social male, it thus appeals to me. It is also a bit weird, which has its own appeal completely separate from the other two. Really, cow tipping is a social guy thing that most of us have never done outside of our own minds, nor ever will do. The point of it all is that it would be a good way to hang out and get to know each other. Another great way to hang out and get to know others would be to just spend some social time doing something equally as pointless as cow tipping; like playing video or board games, watching movies, etc. I have gone to great lengths to make my office a place where such random social activity may take place. I have a couch, a stereo, a Gamecube, a weird convection oven thingy, and oh so much more. What I am really saying is that I want you to come hang out with me in my office after school. If you have a great multiplayer game you want to try out, a movie you want to watch or a cow you want to tip, just let me know and we will make it happen.

Questing Supplies (09-23-2007)

I am sure that I do not really need to remind any of you, either junior or senior high, that our theme last week . One of the things that we discussed was the need to be properly prepared for a quest. Our quest for the kingdom of God is no different. Included below is a quote from Eph 6:13-18 talking about the armor of God.

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

While a knight needs armor to protect his physical body, it is even more important for us as Catholics to put on the armor of God to protect our souls. While most of us will never go off and slay dragons or evil ninja-wizards, the armor of God still gives us the protection we need. As young Catholics in high school and middle school, we need the armor of God to help protect us from temptation. This passage from Ephesians tells us that we are in a battle, whether we want to be or not. It also tells us how to be prepared. Truth, righteousness, readiness in the gospel and faith are not things that we just wake up with one morning. We must cultivate and practice them every day. This is why prayer is so important. I encourage all of you to set aside 15 minutes a day just for prayer. It might be difficult at first, but the more you do it, the easier it will get. If you don’t know what to do for those 15 minutes I will give you a few suggestions: Reading Scripture,
Praying the Rosary,
Chaplet of Divine Mercy
If you still need ideas or just want to talk feel free to email me or stop by my office.

Our Movie (09-16-2007)

The movie that we have been working on is coming along great. If any of you see Matt Ockinga this week, be sure to thank him for all the time he spent in my office helping edit the video together; and by helping I mean doing all the real work so I could focus on getting everything ready for the middle school youth group. One thing I can say about this video is that it does include a ninja scene. In my opinion the greatness of most movies is directly proportional to the number of ninjas or zombies that it contains. If there are actually ninjas fighting the zombies, so much the better. Zombie ninjas, however, would just be ridiculous. It is a well known fact that zombies cannot run or jump, thus eliminating their ability to act in a truly ninja fashion. All ninjas and zombies aside, come see the movie tonight. It is absolutely ridiculous, but you can come and laugh at me in my cape as I try to rescue the beautiful princess Lily.

Middle School News: Our middle school youth group is starting this Monday, September 17 at 7:00pm in the gym over at St. Joe’s school. If you haven’t had a chance to fill out a registration form yet there will be some available. We will be using a new set of books this year that I hope everyone will like. I will be taking over the 6th grade for the year while Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Baumeister teach the 7th and 8th graders respectively. I think this is going to be a great year and I am really looking forward to it. Also there is going to be a middle school youth rally sponsored by the diocese here at St. Joe’s on September 29. They are bringing in the REACH teams and it looks like it will be a fun day. The Diocese has put a lot of time and effort into this rally so I hope to see all the middle school youth from our parish in attendance.

The Journey begins (09-09-2007)

For those of you who are curious about what is going on next week, I am offering you a rare sneak peak into what is to come. The theme for our year will be Discovering the Sacred. As a kickoff for this theme, our first official life-night will feature the hit movie, The Journey Begins, which is a spoof on The Princess Bride. Having now used up my weekly quota of italicized words, I will no longer be mentioning any movie, book or article titles. The aforementioned movie spoof is currently under production by myself and the core team. I have no idea how the whole thing will turn out, but whether it is good or bad, it is going to be ridiculous and in my opinion that’s a good thing. I hope to see all of you next week at Life-teen so we can make this the greatest youth group experience of your life. Or at least second greatest.

Lifeteen Bar-B-Que:
I have been shamelessly plugging our Fall kickoff barbeque to just about anyone who will listen and is under the age of 19 for the last several weeks. I really encourage all of you to come and join us after the Life-teen Mass over at the school for some free food. Not only do I want all the youth to come, but I want them to bring their families. That’s right, moms are allowed to skip cooking dinner and tell the rest of the family that they are eating out tonight. It will be just like going to a restaurant, except different, and better…Never mind, just come and enjoy yourselves. Just to reassure those of you who live in terror of actually being forced to eat something that I have cooked, I will have nothing to do with the actual grilling process. It will be a great opportunity to meet all of the new volunteers and maybe throw a frisbee around. I hope to see all of you there.

Life-teen update (09-02-2007)

Friday Night Flix: we had our last movie night of the summer last Friday and the movie of choice was Chain Reaction, with Keanu Reeves and Morgan Freeman. While this movie fails to present a whole lot of moral issues or challenges, it is a fast-paced action movie that is only rated pg-13. The violence is kept to a minimum and is not gory at all. There are no sex scenes or shots of nudity. There are a couple minor uses of profanity, but all in all my opinion of the movie is very high. I wanted to hold it up as a model of what a good action movie can be. More often than not Hollywood has filled our movies with enough profanity and sexuality to choke a camel. As long as we continue to watch movies with things that offend our Catholic morals, society will continue to produce them. By supporting movies that are clean, decent, and wholesome we send a message to movie producers and actors that this is what we want. Most people in the movie industry are primarily influenced how much money they can make, and as such we must show them that they can make good money through the production of quality, family friendly movies. The one thing that I did notice in the movie that I didn’t agree with was the theory that the world was over populated. While this was not a major theme in the movie by any means, it was there and we had a good discussion about population control and why the Catholic Church says that use of contraception constitutes an intrinsically evil act (CCC 2370)
Life-teen: We are having our beginning of the year barbeque kickoff next weekend after the Life-teen Mass. This translates into about 6:40pm or so for those of you who prefer to attend the 9:00am Mass. This is open to all high school students and their families. I encourage everyone to come and join us for the kickoff of what promises to be a rocking year. Please remember to watch the bulletin for updates and deadlines for important events.

Life-teen update (08-26-2007)

Friday Night Flix - Second Hand Lions: Second Hand Lions is one of my all time favorite movies for many reasons. For those of you who missed the movie last week or have never seen Second Hands Lions I feel nothing but sadness. In my opinion this movie can be considered nothing less than a classic. It has everything you could want in a movie: Cheesy one-liners that never get old, bar fights, sword fights, and true love. It is about Walter, a young boy with no idea of what it means to be a man, who is abandoned by his mother and forced to spend the summer with his two uncles who only recently reappeared after having been missing for the past 40 years. Through the stories of his uncles Hub and Garth, Walter learns a little bit about what it truly means to be a man. Second Hand Lions is not only one of the manliest movies I have ever watched, but it is also very family friendly and comes with a pg rating. Much of the movie can be summed up in one of the quotes from Uncle Hub. “Sometimes the things that may or may not be true are the things a man needs to believe in the most. That people are basically good; that honor, courage, and virtue mean everything; that power and money, money and power mean nothing; that good always triumphs over evil; and I want you to remember this, that love... true love never dies. You remember that, boy. You remember that. Doesn't matter if it's true or not. You see, a man should believe in those things, because those are the things worth believing in.” I find a lot of truth in these words; especially where he says that honor, courage, and virtue mean everything; money and power mean nothing. In many easy this is a very counter cultural message. We live in a time where the measure of a man is how much money he makes, how big his desk is, and where his office is located. It is acceptable to treat other people like dirt and walk all over them in order to make yourself look good and get a promotion. This is a sad, sad way of life to choose to live. Last week we talked about how being a man or woman of God involves living a life of courage, honor, and virtue. But how do we do that? This is a question that was much harder for us to answer. It involves a choice everyday. We must rally around the battle cry of John Paul II and “Be not afraid.” When we see people at school being picked on and bullied, we must stand up for them. Some may say that they don’t want to stand up for others because they are afraid of the gangs or of embarrassment. I understand your fear, but you cannot use that as an excuse to avoid doing what is right. Christ was not afraid of the Jews or the Romans when he preached the Gospel. He stood up for others, for the poor, the sinners, the lost sheep. Will we imitate his example of true love, or will we slink away with our tail between our legs because we would rather live a life of fear and cowardice? This is a question that we must all answer for ourselves on a daily basis. I pray that courage, honor, and virtue mean as much to each of you as they meant to Uncle Hub. There will be no more Friday Night Flix for the rest of the summer.

Life-teen update (08-12-2007)

Friday Night Flix- Batman Begins and Sola Fide: This past week we watched Batman Begins. In my humble opinion this was one of the better batman movies that has been made over the last two decades or so. My favorite quote from the movie is when Rachel looks at Bruce and tells him, “It’s not who you are underneath, but what you do that defines you.” Ephesians 2:8 tells us “For by Grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is a gift from God; it is not from works, so that no one may boast. For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them.” God has prepared for us a life of good works. I am not saying that we should all don a cape and cowl in order to become crime fighting heroes. Not at all. What I am saying is that the Bible speaks of salvation in many places. Many of our protestant brothers and sister mistakenly believe that we are saved by faith alone. They are often times quite disturbed if we cannot tell them the exact time and place where we were “saved.” The truth of the matter is our salvation was purchased for us over 2000 years ago by Christ on the cross. He gives us the grace to live in him and do good works for the sake of his kingdom. We make a choice on a daily basis whether or not to accept this grace, or reject it. The idea behind Sola Fide is that Faith is completely separate from actions. Once you have accepted Christ as your savior, it no longer matters what you do. There is no need for the sacrament of confession because you are covered in the blood of the lamb. Unfortunately this leads to a very false and shallow Christianity. Under this view you can do whatever you want and not care or be repentant, because you have already been saved. Batman gives us a bit clearer view of the playing field. If we truly believe everything that Christ taught us, it must have a dramatic effect on the way we live our lives. “It’s not who you are underneath, but what you do that defines you.” In other words, what you do is what really defines who you are underneath. Our actions reflect the inner core of our being. If we say that we are against abortion or sexual promiscuity, then we must show it. When we know that people are engaging it actions that are sinful, we are tempted to let it pass and just say, “Oh well, I guess it is a personal choice. I am a good tolerant Christian who loves everybody and doesn’t want to offend, so I won’t say anything. Besides, if I say something they might not like me anymore.” : ( (That was a frowny face, not a punctuation error) What this really troubling is that we care so little about the real person. If we truly care, then we must do something. That person’s soul is in great peril and we must not walk on by. We don’t have to be Batman or Superman to change the world. We just have to be ourselves, and by “ourselves” I mean the men and women that God has created us to be. Created for the good works that he has prepared for us. Don’t forget to join us on Friday nights at 7:00pm for our weekly movie night. This weeks movie will be a surprise, but I think all of you will enjoy it.

Life-teen update (08-05-2007)

Friday Night Flix: This past week we watched The Princess Bride. As much as I like to look for various evil media messages mixed into an otherwise wholesome movie, Princess Bride really lets me down. I have always felt, and still feel, that this is a great piece of wholesome family entertainment. For those of you who haven’t seen it, The Princess Bride is a classic love tale involving an evil prince, pirates, revenge, and most of all true love. I suppose if I really wanted to get picky about the movie I could point out that Inigo is obsessed with revenge, which is never a good thing, but that is about it. Of course This doesn’t include all the bad things that the bad guys do, but over all even those are relentlessly mocked and are not admired by anyone other then the bad guys themselves. There are no affairs, no flings, no sleeping with each other out of wedlock, no lies, and none of the many other things that our society considers perfectly normal in love story, and that is just from your main hero or heroine. The Princess Bride portrays love as something that is long lasting and enduring. Westley even says that seath cannot stop love. As cheesy and romantic as that may sound, he is right. God is love, and death itself could not stop his Son. True love has already conquered death and it can conquer anything that we may experience in our lives, if we let it. As St Augustine once said, “love, and do what you will.” If we do everything out of a sincere love, we will never go wrong. The hard part is discovering what love really is. Pop culture tells a lot about what they think love should be, but they are usually wrong. For one thing true love has to know the truth. God is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. True love must, by necessity, begin and end with him. Anything less God is less than true love, and who ever dreams about finding that?

Life-teen update (07-29-2007)

Friday Night Flix: Superman Returns I know that some people felt very strongly about various aspects of this movie, my beloved wife being one of them. Her main concern with the movie was the morality issue. Superman has an affair with Louis Lane, fathers a child, and then disappears for several years. While this aspect of the movie does bother me a bit, it failed to ruin the rest of the movie. Yes it was wrong for Superman to have an affair with Louis, but from the way it was described it seemed that it was more of a one night stand rather than anything long term. This isn’t an effort to excuse his actions, but rather to simply say that we don’t need to crucify because he had a less than super moment. While he may be Superman, he isn’t God. At the end of the movie, when he finds out that he has a son he shows that he wants to take a more personal role in his life. Having just said that Superman isn’t God, I found some interesting correlations between God and Superman that I thought were worth sharing. One of the first comes from Superman’s father who says, “They can be a great people, Kal-El, they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. For this reason above all, their capacity for good, I have sent them you... my only son.” In many ways this is not unlike many of the central aspects of Christianity. After the fall we had lost our way in the darkness. The Father sent us his only begotten Son to us as the Light of the world. Jesus showed us how to stand for Truth and Justice, just like Superman. Another scene that I really enjoyed is where Louis tells Superman, “The world doesn’t need a savior, and neither do I.” Superman responds by taking her up into the night sky and asking her what she hears. After she tells him “nothing” he responds, “I hear everything. You wrote that the world doesn't need a savior, but I hear them crying for one everyday.” Our hearts cry out for a savior everyday, and we have one. Where Superman may be able to save us from a burning building or an out of control car, he can’t save us from death. Christ has conquered death and opened up the gates to everlasting life. When compared to Christ even Superman needs a savior. I will let you all know next week how our discussion on The Princess Bride goes and I encourage all the high schoolers (This includes recent 8th grade graduates) to join us this coming week as I continue my superhero kick at 7:00pm with Batman Begins. As always food will be provided, so come and join the fun every Friday night. If any of you have any questions please feel free to call me here at the church or email me at Lifeteen@stjoewen.org.

Life-teen update (07-22-2007)

Friday Night Flix: For those of you with inquiring minds who want to know how our movie nights are going, I just wanted to give you a quick update. We got everything kicked off on July 13 with the extended version of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. We had a few minor problems involving the sound, but once we got them all ironed out everything else went smoothly. Afterwards we had a great discussion on the various themes of the movie. Aside from the glaringly obvious relation between Aslan being killed in the place of Edmond, we also noticed that there were some other interesting examples of Christian symbolism. For example Just as Christ was striped before the crucifixion, Aslan was shaved. After the resurrection Christ first appeared to the women of the group, not to the Apostles. Similarly, After Aslan is raised from the dead he first appears to Lucy and Susanne, not to Peter and Edmond. There are many other examples, in fact more stand out to me each time I watch the movie. All Christian symbolism aside, there are a couple of other things that make The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe a great movie. For one it presents a very clear view of good and evil. There is no middle ground between the Witch and Aslan. This is becoming an ever increasing oddity in our secular world that teaches that both black and white are wrong and the only truly morally acceptable position is one that is gray and rejects the concepts of both right and wrong in the name of tolerance. A gray position would have said that Aslan and his followers had no more right to the control of Narnia then the Witch and her followers. The real right answer would have been to sit down, negotiate, and divide up Narnia so that everybody could get part of what they want, and each sside would have to respect that the other side had just as much right to exist as they did. After all, right and wrong and just two different personal opinions on the same subject and no one ever has the right to force their point of view on someone else. It is a good thing that we as Catholics do not believe in being gray. I am not saying that there isn’t room to compromise on certain issues, but when it comes to the moral sphere there is right and there is wrong. I have yet to hear an actual gray moral issue, though I know some people claim that they do exist. Getting back to the movie, All of our hero’s are truly people that can be admired, even Edmond. In the beginning of their adventure into the wardrobe Peter and Susanne are scared of what may happen, they are tempted to turn back but they don’t. The persevere to the end even knowing that they might die. In one moment of weakness Susanne tells Peter that just because some man in a red coat gave him a sword, that doesn’t make him a hero. In many ways she was right. What she couldn’t see was that Peter had what it took to be a hero long before he had the sword. This is true for all of us. We all have what it takes to be a hero, and it takes more than just a sword. It takes the courage to use it, to take the risks that come our way, to put our life on the line for our king. The theme of self sacrifice is hit on over and over in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Next up we are going to watch The Princess Bride. All high school youth are welcome to join us Friday at 7:00pm as we take a look at love and how it is presented in the media. As always there will be some kind of not so nourishing food, maybe pizza this week. God bless and I hope to see you all on Friday.

Life-teen update (07-15-2007)

Friday Night Flix: Hey Life-teen fans!! I hope that summer is going well for all of you. Whether you are working or playing away the summer hours, I have some updates for all of you. Since I am actually writing this before we have our first kickoff movie night with The Lion, the With and the Wardrobe I can’t give you an update on how it went. Rest assured that I will have one out for you all next that will include a bit of an overview on the discussion that we had afterwards as well. Next weeks movie of choice is going to be Superman Returns. I am not just picking this movie because I have yet to see it, but rather because it is a superhero movie. A superhero is supposed to exemplify what is good in all of us, which often manifests itself in an ability to stand up to a super villain which the erst of us are unable to face. There are other aspects of the movie that I have heard about and think will present good discussion material so I encourage you to come and join us at 7:00pm this Friday. There will be some sort of food provided, I am thinking maybe hamburgers, but exactly what it will be is subject to change.

Life-teen update (07-08-2007)

Now that we are all back safe and sound from our mission trip to the Gulf Coast, I just wanted to give a second update on how the trip ended. Aside from the heat and humidity which I ranted about last week, I wanted to just share on what the Lord did in my life while we were down there. It was a great opportunity to work and pray with relatively few external distractions. As a group we went to daily Mass at the oldest Catholic Church in Mississippi and for the most part were faithful to praying morning, evening, and night prayer from the liturgy of the hours. We were also able to go to Eucharistic adoration at the local retreat center and have some good discussion about a movie. In addition to taking time to pray, we helped two different families clear some of their land of debris from the storm and clear away some of the local jungle so that they could begin the process of rebuilding. We also helped a group of 7th Day Adventists put in the windows and tyvec insulation on a house they were building. The work was nothing more than good hard physical labor; the kind where you can sweat away your worries and leave your mind free for God. This is what I often found myself doing. As I heard someone say once “The only God some people might ever meet is the one that they see in you.” This is not to say that we are God, but we are his servants. We are called to carry out his will in the world and to let his love shine forth from within us. While this was constantly In the forefront of our minds while we were on the mission trip, it is no less true in our daily lives. St. Therese of Lisieux talked about how the path to holiness is not through doing great things, but by doing little things with great love. The love of Christ and the desire to serve his people must permeate our daily lives. This trip served me as a good reminder of that fact.

Friday Night Flix: We will go ahead and kick off our Friday night movie night this Friday (July 13) at 7:00pm with the consumption of some Nachos and a viewing of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. I know that many of you have seen this movie, but I encourage you to come anyway, if for no other reason than to eat nachos with me.

Life-teen update (07-01-2007)

I hope that all of you have been doing well in the great state of Washington this past week. As most of you are aware, I am down in southern Mississippi and Louisiana with the mission trip group. We have been working down here for the past couple of days and I just wanted to give all y’all (I have learned to speak with a southern accent) a quick update just to let you know that we are all still alive and what we are up to. First and foremost we are sweating; a lot. I am thinking about one of those super absorbent headbands that basketball players wear just to keep the sweat from trickling off the end of my nose like some kind of miniature waterfall. It wouldn’t be so bad except for the fact that the bugs keep trying to go spelunking in my mouth. Other then just being in the mid 90’s, the humidity is near 100 percent. This of course means that your body begins to perspire profusely when you even think about going outside. Add this to working outside for six hours clearing brush with weed eaters and a chainsaw and I think personally sweat enough cause another flood of the Gulf Coast area. In addition to helping clear brush from some land, we also helped put up some insulation on a house, install some windows, and fix the deck. All in all I think it had been a very fruitful trip for all of us. We have been attending daily Mass at the oldest church in Mississippi, Our Lady of the Gulf, and it is one of the most beautiful churches I have seen. It is right across the street from the Gulf of Mexico and has withstood several major hurricanes other than Katrina blowing over the top of it. The faith of many of the people down here is also amazing. Many are like Job,
“Naked I came forth from my mother’s womb and naked I shall go back again. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” ~Job 1:21
Others don’t have quite such a faith based attitude about things, but they are still trying to get by the best that they can. We are trying to take lots of pictures and even some video to show all of you once we get back. I personally cannot thank everyone enough who has helped make this trip possible. Both through prayers and finances you have helped us to reach out and love those who are hurting. The man who’s house we worked on today lost everything in the storm. When the water settled and the worst looked like it was over, his wife divorced him and took everything that the storm had missed. He has been living in a FEMA trailer for two years with no money, no house, and no job. But he had faith none the less. He thanked God that he had survived when others had fallen, and that we were helping him rebuild his house when there were still so many others homeless. Even though we are only going to be here a week, you have all helped us show God’s love to some of the people here on the Gulf Coast. Thank you for all that you have done for them.