This Sunday’s readings reveal to us the beauty of the New Covenant that Jesus made with us on the cross. We no longer only know Him from afar, but Jesus desires to dwell within us in the Eucharist. Fifth Sunday of Lent: Jer 31:31-34; Ps 51:3-4, 12-13, 14-15; Heb 5:7-9; Jn 12:20-33
“You Shall Not Kill” Exodus 20:13 As a little kid, I was jealous of my neighbor. He was my age, but he could hit the baseball better than I could. He would smack the ball into the outfield and everyone would shout “Run! You can do it!” I never heard “Run!” shouted to me. It was usually “Duck!” or “Open your eyes!” or “Put down the snow-cone until after the game!” We’ve all experienced knowing someone who’s better than you at something or has something you lack. If you feel happy for them and aspire them to grow and get [...]
“Behold Jesus Christ crucified, Who is the only foundation of our hope; He is our Mediator and Advocate; the victim and sacrifice for our sins. He is goodness and patience itself; His mercy is moved by the tears of sinners, and He never refuses pardon and grace to those who ask it with a truly contrite and humbled heart.” -Saint Charles Borromeo
You never know who God is going to bring into your life. This past week I had an amazing experience of God while waiting for my dinner. “Iced tea, please.” I requested with a genuine tone. “You guys goin’ to get ripped on Friday?” the waiter asked me (and my friends). “I’m sorry?” I asked a little confused and more than a little intrigued. “You know, are you guys gonna get lit up to celebrate Saint Patrick’s day this Friday?” he asked again, (obviously assuming that because we were young adults that binge drinking and public drunkenness must be our [...]
Catholics genuflect in Church in order to show our reverence to the True Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Genuflection is defined as “A reverence made by bending the knee, especially to express adoration of the Blessed Sacrament” (CCC 1378). As we walk into the house of God, a Church, we show our adoration for Him by kneeing before Him.
Let’s be real, I think the Lord had teenagers in mind when He came up with the fourth commandment. It’s no secret that the teen years are often the hardest when it comes to the parent-child relationship.
But does it have to be that way?
Not at all! When we realize that we have a responsibility to honor our parents, the relationship becomes a lot easier. Here’s a little piece of my experience with the 4th commandment.
This Sunday it’s all about the “why.” Find out why God sent his Son, why you should care, and why it matters this Lent. Fourth Sunday of Lent: 2 Chr 36:14-16, 19-23; Ps 137:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6; Eph 2:4-10; Jn 3:14-21
My second favorite day is Sunday. Growing up, Sundays were lazy, watch TV or movies all day in my PJs, don’t brush my teeth until 3:30 pm kind of days. Then after Mass and Life Night, I started my two hours of homework because the rest of day I was clearly too wrapped up in more important things like watching Men in Black three times in a row. I always thought, “Surely this is what God meant when he gave us the 3rd Commandment – Laziness, bad hygiene, and procrastination.”
The concept of having a name is an interesting thing. Don’t you think? A name is one of the most basic necessities we possess. Think about it. Without a name we would not be able to differentiate one person from another. How different would your interactions with other people be if there were no such thing as names?
When this video started I quickly labeled Leila Hurst as “cool” and “popular” and “happy.” I saw a gorgeous, blond, teen surfer who was getting lots of money and fame for doing what she loved. What could be better? As the video went on I saw her close relationship with her sister who has spinal bifida, and how strong the bond of siblings can be if we don’t let our struggles or resentment get in the way. Then I listened more closely to what Leila was saying. This is what I heard: “When I started going forward in my surfing [...]
I remember one of my first retreats in high school. I came home Sunday night on fire and ready to be a new person. It was time to change. I was going to go to Confession every week, get to mass everyday, pray the rosary every night, and read my Bible every morning. I was going to be holy. No more making fun of people, bad language, or laziness. I knew I could do it. I was inspired.
And that lasted until Tuesday. Yep. Tuesday. I had so much to learn.
I stepped into the confessional and kneeled down at the kneeler. The priest opened the partition and I froze. I could not for the life of me remember what to say to the priest. Luckily he sensed my nervousness and walked me through the whole thing.
Because I know that sometimes we forget what to say I’ve provided a basic structure of what you should say at the beginning of your confession. I hope it helps!
I have refused sweets many times already this Lent. I don’t refuse them because I’m scared of breaking a promise or afraid God will triple the calories for disobeying my Lenten commitment. I refuse the sweets because it’s one of the things I decided to do for Lent. I’d rather take the seemingly sad situation as a chance to run to Jesus and unite my (puny) sufferings with His. I prefer to be moved and driven by love, not fear. Remember that we are the beloved. Notice that we word beloved breaks up into be-loved.
Then I realized that I was not much better than those pagan voodoo worshipers.
In my head I know that God was the only one worth my worship, but I still found myself turning to so many other relationships, habits, and even sins to save me when I was overwhelmed and in need of help. I knew that Jesus was my Savior, but often I turned anywhere else but towards Him when I needed to be saved from loneliness, hurt, or boredom.
Not sure if you’ve broken any of the Ten Commandments? Or maybe you don’t know what the Ten Commandments even are? (It’s okay, 10 is a lot to remember.) Print out this Examination of Conscience to take with you when you go to the Sacrament of Reconciliation!
There’s a hole in the side of my parents bathtub and it’s all my fault.
I was 11 years old. We had only lived in our newly built house for 2 years. On this particular evening my siblings and I were getting ready to go to a square dance. Yes, I just said square dance. Leave me alone. It was cool.
“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.” John 15:10
This week, find out why God gave us the Ten Commandments and what it means to give God what He deserves.
