It can be uncomfortable to talk about the inequality of privilege, but discomfort is not always bad, in fact, it can be the catalyst to change.
I think a big part of the struggle to celebrate the concept of “American” and apply it to myself was because everything I knew about that identity — whether from history, the media, or lived experience — was centered around people who looked and lived nothing like me or my friends.
If you don’t have authentic friendships I urge you to make this school year count and start seeking God. He gave each of us this gift of friendship and He wants you to receive it.
But in our social-media-consumed world, sometimes the first inclination when we go on mission is to come back and to post a glamour shot surrounded by minorities from an impoverished community to Instagram with a trite caption featuring a bible verse and cute little saying about how much more was received than what was given.
Anger is a powerful emotion, and it drives quite a variety of actions. It can be used to wound people, but can also be used for good. This emotion is something we are allowed to feel.
I came to terms with the fact that I’m physically attracted to people of the same sex the summer before my junior year of high school. It was by far one of the most terrifying experiences of my life.
I became ensnared by porn in high school. Sexual sin ran the show for a while and I fell away. I also became ensnared by the idea that I wasn't good enough to get better. That somehow, my sin had spoiled salvation. I wasn’t a real Catholic, I would never be good enough for Prince Charming or even Jesus Himself. I thought that God probably didn’t want me.
Catholic schools are great. You should go to one if you feel that the Lord is calling you there. All I am saying is that Catholic schools are very rarely the sole reason why anyone (anyone that I know at least) stayed Catholic past high school.
On the inside of soaring cathedrals were walls and windows filled with Christian imagery. Scenes from creation, lives of the Saints, and stories of the Gospels danced around visitors as they explored these churches. Even if those Christians couldn’t read the written Word of God, they could still take in the stories around which their faith revolved.
