Do I Have to Go?

I consider any book a must-read that makes someone like me who would already answer the question in the book’s title with a resounding, emphatic Yes! even more interested in participating in the Mass. As a cradle Catholic who has never wanted to miss Mass, I read this book not expecting to learn anything new. Actually, I was pitching my own book idea to one of the authors, Matthew Pinto, who also happens to be ahead of Ascension Press, so I purchased a copy of it to become more familiar with what he writes and publishes.
   
I was pleasantly surprised when this relatively short, easy-to-read book included information about the Mass and Church history which I hadn’t come across elsewhere. I thought a book with a title including a question you’d expect to hear as a whine coming out of a teen’s mouth, a cover with an adolescent still in bed (presumably on a Sunday morning), and a question-and-answer format very much geared towards teens and young adults wouldn’t teach me anything new or make a devout Catholic even more drawn to the blessing of the Mass. Once in a while, it’s nice to be proven wrong.
     
Do I Have To Go? covers the basics of what’s behind the things that are said and done at Mass, but it also include quotes from Scripture and saints about the significance of the Mass in terms of life, spirituality, and growing closer to God.
    
I highly recommend this book for teens, young adults, and those who work with them, but I’d also give it to adults who have fallen away from the Church or who have just come into it and could use some extra info on the importance and draw of participating in Mass.
   
You can purchase this book here.  I wrote this review of Do I Have To Go? for the Tiber River Blogger Review program.  Tiber River is the first Catholic book review site, started in 2000 to help you make informed decisions about Catholic book purchases.  I receive free product samples as compensation for writing reviews for Tiber River.

Reflections on & beyond THE SHACK

     At times while I was reading this novel, I would close my eyes and do my best to picture the transformed shack as it is described in the book. The language and imagery is beautiful, very poetic in spots. The conversations are rich and filled with love. Yet, there is a heaviness and a seriousness to what’s happening because the main character Mack has some doubts, questions, and even some unresolved anger towards God because of what’s happened to one of his children.
     I believe many of us can identify all too well with Mack’s trouble accepting God’s unconditional, unlimited love. When faced with illness, injury, and injustice, we are often inclined to wonder why things happen. We all have periods in life when we desperately need to be reminded that we are precious to God, that He can bring good out of absolutely any situation.
     The Shack provides a good combination of interesting characters, action, and suspense with otherworldly experience, spiritual revelations, and theological discussion. It’s a fascinating story that draws you in, yet this work of fiction incorporates many of the age-old questions people have had about God, religion, good vs. evil, and man vs. man.
     Actually, in many places throughout the book, the author eludes to various famous philosophical questions and discussions I studied in a course I took in college called the Philosophy of Religion. Reading this book reminded me of the hours I spent reading arguments and discussions by philosophers who lived and wrote a number of years ago.
     That semester I went to class with all of these different theories, questions, and debates in my head, then my professor would ask us questions that would make us dig even deeper to understand and explain what these men were proposing, what line of logic they followed, and if it made sense.
     At times, I could almost feel my mind stretching to new lengths and expanding when faced with these universal questions about God and man. Even if the answers weren’t clear, just knowing the questions people thought to ask made me feel like my brain would have to grow in order to contain all the possibilities.
     My favorite day of this course was on Friday. Why? Because Saturday was sure to follow? No, it was because after doing my best to sift through, consider, accept, and/or debate so many concepts, I would get into my light blue Pontiac 6000 and drive through a very picturesque valley. I would get out at the top of a hill and could feel God welcoming me, His mother outside waiting for me to enter.
     I always arrived just in time, gave a quiet nod to the other regulars who had come to worship, and sat down ready to let the clutter in my mind exit, so only faith would remain. Before long, the reasons and questions, some of which reason may never understand, were replaced by truth, hope, and love. I couldn’t help but smile as I said the Creed, reached out my hands to others to say the Our Father and do the kiss of peace. I yearned for the Eucharist. I had answers and could embrace, even appreciate, the mysteries inherent and perhaps necessary to having faith.
     I would walk out of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church after Mass feeling refreshed in my faith and grounded in the truth. It was a great way to put the philosophers’ voices and nitty-gritty debates to rest so that the Holy Spirit was easier for me to hear in the present.
     If we spend time actively participating in our relationship with God, it may very well come to our attention that the rotted out beams, broken floorboards, and rusty pipes in our soul need to be replaced. Without fear of condemnation or a demolition crew showing up on our doorstep, we can allow our loving Father, Son, and Holy Spirit to assess the damages. It can be uncomfortable or even painful at times when we are called to be aware of the desolation, the places in need of repair, and be willing to let the Carpenter in. The difference is the price quote for the damages is beyond anything you could pay. Fortunately, you have a lifetime warranty that covers any and all damages, including that of natural disasters, human misfortunes…and it’s been paid for in full. Are you ready to let God transform your shack into His tabernacle?
     You can purchase this book here.  I wrote this review of The Shack for the Tiber River Blogger Review program.  Tiber River is the first Catholic book review site, started in 2000 to help you make informed decisions about Catholic book purchases. I receive free product samples as compensation for writing reviews for Tiber River.

Unearth the Treasure

     I love thinking about how the theme of unearthing the treasure relates to spirituality. Of course it brings to mind wooden treasure chests brimming over with gold coins, emeralds, diamonds, sapphires, and rubies. It also makes me think about children digging in the dirt or the sand with a passion few adults bring to the same activity. When kids have a pail and shovel, it’s all about discovery and play. They have no idea what they’re going to find, so the energy and curiosity fuel their desire to dig deeper and deeper.
     We know that at some beaches kids are likely to find seashells, some pebbles, lots of sand (which they can and will manage to get in all of their major crevices), and possibly some trash that they will often mistake as being something of value.
     As adults, digging and fun aren’t often synonymous. We dig through closets to find shoes and purses to find keys. We sit in traffic while construction workers dig up pipes. We dig up weeds and dirt on other people.
     Perhaps what we need as adults is to rediscover the joy of digging while fully believing that we’ll find something really good if we’re willing to stick with the search.
     We have to take time out to unearth the treasure in ourselves and help those around us do the same. It’s far too easy to let our treasures get buried underneath the sand. Each time we are criticized, hurt, disappointed, afraid, or sad, it’s as if another pile of sand has been shoveled on top of our treasure chests. Not only do these piles of sand make it hard for others to find our treasures, but they also makes it difficult for us to open our own treasure chests even though we can locate them without trouble.
     To God, each of us is a precious treasure. We each have immeasurable value in His eyes. When we take the time to listen to God, He will show us how He feels about us and tell us how He sees us. God and those special treasure-seekers He places in our path will help us to discover the essence of who we are and who we can be.
     Treasure-seekers come in many forms. They may be church leaders, spiritual directors, family members, or close friends of ours. They could be co-workers, mere acquaintances, or total strangers. Perhaps a beloved pet, a touching movie, a well-written book will be part of the process that leads us to unearthing treasure. God has an uncanny ability to work in and through people, animals, nature, and experiences to reach us.
     There are circumstances that may cause us to lock up treasure inside our chests and hide it in hopes that it’ll never again be found. In that case, the excavation process may take some time. Trained spiritual anthropologists may need to go in to help remove the debris and grime allowed to build up. I say, dig anyway! Soon enough, you’ll strike it rich, and the beauty of God’s love will burst into every color of the spectrum when reflected and refracted through the diamond that is you.
Unearth the Treasure

However much digging it takes
to unearth the treasure,
it’s worth it.

However many shovels you break
and new friends you make
in the process of

unearthing the treasure
that is you,
it’s worth it.

Discover and accept
you are a treasure.
Live as the treasure you are.

Become a treasure-seeker,
and affirm the beauty
you see in others.

I wrote the above reflection and poem July 27, 2008 in honor of the participants on the 408th Central Virginia Men’s Cursillo Weekend whose theme was Unearth the Treasure. God bless you as you continue treasure-seeking.

Be Still and Know

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.” Psalm 139: 13-16
    
The Lord has known us and loved us unconditionally from before we were conceived until long after we have breathed our last breath and gone back into eternity. What a beautiful gift, to know that we are always loved. In Psalm 136, we are reminded every other line that: “His love endures forever.”
    
No sin we have committed, no decision we have made in the past or will make in the future, can separate us from the love of God. As it says in Romans 8:38-39: “…Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God…”
    
That having been said, there are many things that can bring us even closer to God. There are many ways in which we can become increasingly aware of His love in our lives. One of the main paths I have learned to expand perception of and reception to God’s love is prayer. Of course, prayer means many things to many people. It can mean reading sacred texts, reflecting on them, reading spiritual books, reciting prayers, making up prayers as we are inspired during the course of the day, meditation, singing, dancing, doing laundry, or the dishes. To some, it involves a period of silence, to others a period of praise and speaking in tongues. Regardless of the method, the result is that God is glorified, and we are drawn closer to Him. We are shown glimpses of His infinite love.
    
Something I have often struggled with in my prayer life is slowing down, being still, embracing silence, and really listening to God. I certainly believe God will come to me in the silence, but boy, it’s hard for me to get into a place that is silent and keep my mind from forming prayers, listing special intentions, worries, to-do lists…
    
It was no accident that the theme for my Cursillo weekend back in 2006 was “Be still and know” taken from Psalm 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God…” I am still learning how to just be and let God in. I’m so used to the ‘just doing’ that I have to practice the ‘just being’ or my actions will be devoid of the love, kindness, joy, gentleness, and peace which the Lord wants all of my words and actions to have.

What's in Your Bread?

     This morning I meditated on The Parable of the Yeast. “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch of dough was leavened.” Luke 13:20-21

A Penny for Your Prayers

     I love stories that help me see every day objects and situations in a new light. A couple weeks ago my mom forwarded me a story about a penny in which a woman is really curious about why a very wealthy man stops dead in his tracks to pick up a penny, marvel at it, and put it in his pocket as if he’d found a precious gem.

“My home is within you.” Psalm 87:7

     For a while I’ve heard and known that God is in each of us, but it seems even richer to consider that His home is within us. The implications are so much deeper.
     If God’s home is within me, then He doesn’t just visit from time to time. He doesn’t need to call ahead to let me know He’s coming. He’s got the key and knows the code to turn off the alarm system.
     He created this home in me, but I get to make the rules for it. I choose what rooms He’s allowed to come into. I know that I’ve probably kept some rooms in my heart locked. Of course, God already knows what’s behind the closed doors, but if I’m completely honest with myself, I’d have to admit that there are some areas of my life that I’m not ready to examine closely with Him at this point in time.

The Joy of the Lord is Your Strength

I started reading: Mother Teresa and Me: Ten Years of Friendship by Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle, a remarkable woman of faith, writer, speaker, blogger, wife, mother…whom I had the privilege of meeting and hearing speak at the Catholic Writers Conference last August. I was only on page 29, when these two quotes from Mother Teresa really hit home:
  
“We must not attempt to control God’s actions. We must not count the stages in the journey he would have us make. We cannot long for a clear perception of our progress along the route, nor long to know precisely where we are on the path of holiness. I ask Jesus to make me a saint. I leave it to him to choose the means that can lead me in that direction. Lord, make me a saint according to your own heart, meek and humble.”   
  
I personally haven’t yet had the courage to pray for God to make me a saint, but perhaps one day that inspiration will come. In the meantime, I’m trying to work on gracefully accepting the rest of what she speaks about in regard to the spiritual journey.
  
The second quote comes from a letter that Mother Teresa wrote to Donna-Marie, “God loves you – give Him your heart to love – your will to serve Him – pray the Rosary daily. Our blessed Lady will lead you to her Son. Keep the joy of the Lord as your strength.”
  
When I read the last part, it gave me chills. “The joy of the Lord is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10 is the quote engraved on the front of my current prayer journal. It’s also a quote the Baptist Campus Minister I became good friends with at college had as her Facebook status message that day. Though at our prayer group we read and discuss the Scripture readings for the following Sunday, I’d forgotten that Nehemiah was in them when I was writing a letter to a friend that Saturday.
  
I looked at Kevin wide-eyed when I heard the verse read at Mass. One reason being that I’d forgotten it was in that particular reading, and the second surprise was the translation in the lectionary which states and in my interpretation means something entirely different from the version that kept coming to me. The reading at Mass ended with, “Do not be saddened this day, for rejoicing in the Lord must be your strength!”
  
Without having said anything else about how often the verse had been appearing to me, the friend responded to the letter by saying that “The joy of the Lord is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10 was what really jumped out at him in the typed three pages I’d handed him.
  
Just in case I’d missed the message the first several times, God drove it home through another person whom I hadn’t had contact with in a while. When chatting on IM with a friend of the family who is a minister in her church and asking her to pray for me, this powerful prayer warrior’s response to my request included none other than the reminder from Nehemiah. I was beyond certain this came from the Holy Spirit as I hadn’t mentioned anything at all to her about the verse. I’d simply asked her for prayers during a tough time.
  
All of the above are what I consider God incidents, especially since this verse is one that baffles me a bit. Joy has often alluded me, but thinking of the Lord’s joy seems utterly profound, and a much more likely source of strength. God’s joy must be wrapped up in love, compassion, mercy, freedom, and innocence. God’s joy must skip, dance, sing aloud, and laugh. Joy that is true, lasting in the midst of pain and suffering, that must be the joy of the Lord. I would like to experience and be more aware of the joy of the Lord, so I can make it my strength.
 
Lord, please make me more aware of the joy that exists in and around me. I know that joy can be a powerful gift when evangelizing and living out Your love. Make me a channel of Your joy and peace. Where there is despair, condemnation, loneliness, or anxiety, let me be a source of hope, mercy, friendship, and peace which passes all understanding. Amen.

Go Get Your Armor, Archangels, Prayer Warriors, and Mother Mary

Lately, I’ve seen and read a lot that talks about spiritual warfare. What place do weapons, war, fighting, and armor have in the spiritual realm? Turns out, they are very appropriate and necessary elements for Christian combat.
    
My favorite song on the passage from Ephesians 6:10-20 is by The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir. It’s called “We Are United,” and begins with:

     “We are united in Jesus Christ.

     We are the soldiers of the Light.
     We don’t wrestle flesh and blood

     but principalities of the dark.”

    
It’s important to be reminded that we are indeed united to our Savior, part of His holy army, which brings Light to dispel the darkness. Since we are human soldiers, we are fighting darkness within us and outside of us at the same time. Our mission isn’t to attack other people. We are called to destroy the darkness in and around us by spreading the Light and Love of Christ. Sometimes this means we will have to go head-to-head against the enemy by directly confronting lies with truth, despair with hope, hate with love, division with peace, and fear with joy.
    
We aren’t meant to go out and fight alone. We are given the direction and training we need either in advance or on the job, if we’re willing to listen. Our comrades are sent out with us, to lift us up, encourage, and protect us when we get worn down by the fight. They share their skills and we offer our talents, so that the holy army moves as one body to conquer evil. The more we heed and learn to trust the Lord, our commander-in-chief, the better able we will be to win the battles while preserving the souls entrusted to our care.

     "We, too, are marching to one beat,

     crushing the enemy under our feet.

     We are mighty in our stand

     with God’s word in our hand.”

    
People brought together for a common purpose and goal tend to stand out. Groups attract attention. The larger the group, the more attention. A unified group of people marching together in an organized fashion has a commanding presence. Confidence and strength exude from such a formidable sight and sound as troops marching, prepared for battle, faces sent like flint against the foe.
    
Though I’m one who likes to have the answers immediately, if not sooner, there is a question from Scripture that has been very beneficial for me to ponder. When facing strong opposition, I have often taken comfort in a question that still gives me pause: “If God is for us, who can be against us?” Romans 8:31 

Inevitably when I ask myself this in light of a troubling situation, the people opposed to the words and actions I choose and do to live out a certain ideology come to mind. When the issue is a major one, such as respecting life from conception to natural death, individuals as well as groups pop into my head. That’s when I return to the question and rejoice in the answer. “If God is for us, who can be against us?” No one. No person, no group, no ideology of the dark, no widespread lies…will remain standing. Who can separate us from God, His Love, and His Truth? Nothing and no one!

     
“The Lord, Our God is our sword and shield

     We fight our battles on our knees.”

The greatest weapon we have is prayer. Jesus knew this and often went off to pray alone. We definitely need to prepare for spiritual warfare by spending time alone in silence to hear the Lord’s still small voice. We are also called to unite our prayer power with other soldiers of the Light. Wherever two or more are gathered in prayer, God is there. No other scenario is more reassuring when facing the enemy than:

1 prayer warrior + 1 prayer warrior -> 2 prayer warriors + Lord God Almighty

    
Lord, please help us to put on the armor You provide, so that we are ready to bring Light into a world confused and disillusioned by principalities of the dark. Let us always seek and spread Truth, Light, and Love. Source of all that is good, all that is holy, all that is just, guide us Almighty Commander-in-Chief to be faithful soldiers, prayer warriors, and servants. Amen.

March for Life 2010

     I’m still processing all that happened today, but I feel that I need to write something about the first time Kevin and I participated in the March for Life on this, the anniversary of Roe v Wade and the 37th year of the March held to convince our government and our country to reverse that decision.  Though mainstream media rarely if ever makes mention of it, hundreds of thousands of people from across the country came together yet again to speak out and pray that our government officials and the citizens of the United States will open their hearts and minds to God’s call to protect the sanctity of life from conception to natural death.
     I have been involved in supporting the pro-life movement in various forms for a number of years. Our family has participated in the annual Walk for Life sponsored by the Pregnancy Resource Center. We’ve prayed and fasted for an end to abortion through 40 Days for Life vigils held in Richmond (last year and this year my mom, Ann Niermeyer, has been the one to head up the Spring campaign in our area). We’ve gotten in touch with our legislators, done extensive research and tried to educate others about what the effects of abortion are on women, children, men, and our country.
     It was very powerful indeed to convene with so many other pro-life people in one place knowing that since God is for us, there is no one who can be against us in bringing about the end of abortion. When God told us as part of the Top Ten “Thou shalt not kill” He meant it.
     Last year, I was amazed and horrified by the abortion statistics I learned from my mom when she reported back from her participation in the March for Life events. In the past few years I’ve come to see and realize why some refer to abortion as “black genocide” and the “stop the lying, we are dying” phrase chanted really hit home.
     Today many of us held signs up given to us for free by volunteers from Silent No More, a group spearheaded by women who have had abortions and are courageous enough to be silent no more in how the experience has affected them. We held the signs they handed out which read “Women do regret abortion” on one side and “Men regret lost fatherhood” on the other.

     Things came together today on the Mall. The prayers and example of my mom, dad, and grandma joined with those Kevin and I prayed with friends, families, complete strangers who are from a variety of races and creeds. I am sure beyond the shadow of a doubt that the Holy Spirit was working in glorious ways and know only some of the blessings are evident to me at this point.
     Thank You God for the gifts of life, love, truth, prayer, faith, and compassion. Amen.

Go to Joseph

     After reading only the first chapter of Go To Joseph by Fr. Richard W. Gilsdorf, I felt my understanding of Christ’s childhood and the role of Joseph being expanded. I hadn’t before considered all of the vast implications of Joseph’s role in the Holy Family, nor had I made all of the connections among Old Testament persons whose roles in history resembled those Joseph would play as the foster father of Jesus until I read this book. Picturing Joseph as a young man of about nineteen changed my view of him considerably. I appreciated the historical references and research included to give a more in-depth synapses of what occurred between the time Mary was found with child and that of Joseph’s death.

     I felt more connected to Jesus and Mary when, for the first time ever, I imagined them by Joseph’s side, mourning his death. There isn’t anything about the circumstances and emotions surrounding his passing, but surely if Jesus wept when His friend Lazarus died, he cried when His father on earth passed away.

     The greatest advantage to reading this book is that it has increased my understanding of and devotion to Joseph as a powerful intercessor and important role model in Christ’s life. It got me thinking about how faith-filled and graceful a man Joseph must have been. I wondered what he and Mary talked about on their way to Bethlehem. Wouldn’t it have been wonderful to hear the conversations that took place between Joseph and Jesus when He was just a boy?

     Though advertised as “a retreat in a book,” I don’t think it really serves that purpose. Each chapter has extensive footnotes, some have contradicting arguments, and the writing is often very academic and intellectual. There were certainly times when I came across golden nuggets to ponder that made it well-worth sifting through the numerous footnotes and suppositions of various theological scholars.

     You could definitely take parts of this book and build a retreat around it. Praying the Rosary while contemplating more of the mysteries from Joseph’s point of view has made that form of prayer a richer experience for me. Meditating on the poignant study questions at the end of each chapter has also helped to enrich the vision I have of Joseph’s role as husband, father, protector, provider, and head of the family.

     I would certainly recommend reading this book, as it will likely increase your respect for Joseph and the role of fathers—biological, foster, and spiritual.

     This review was written as part of the Catholic book Reviewer program from The Catholic Company. In exchange for a free copy of the book, I provide an honest review. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Go To Joseph.

Not Your Normal Kind of Gifts

Though this year we celebrated the Epiphany of the Lord on Sunday, the usual day for this celebration is January 6. I don’t know about you, but I would have thought it very strange that three kings from distant lands following a star had come to bring gifts to honor a newborn baby.

Mary and Joseph had already gotten a clue that God’s ways weren’t often what they’d had in mind in terms of the order of circumstances making them a family: betrothal, a virgin becoming pregnant, then the two living together as husband and wife. The labor and delivery accommodations probably weren’t quite what they’d pictured, either, so I guess it stands to reason that the visitors made aware of this miraculous birth would be rather out of the ordinary as well.
    
Angels have come to announce His birth. Shepherds tending to their flocks are told of Christ’s coming, and three wise men, or as Kevin refers to them “the three wise guys,” come to pay homage to the child born in Bethlehem. These are only some of the marvels that occur during this next leg of the young family’s journey. They must have been at least a little mystified by the gifts brought by the three wise men. I’m pretty sure gold, frankincense, and myrrh weren’t your everyday baby shower gifts, especially for such humble, lowly families.     

The revelation of the Incarnation, God made Man, is enough to wrap our heads around, but then we’re given the significance of these three gifts to ponder. Gold seems an appropriate gift for one called a king. Frankincense seems fitting since it was an ingredient for incense which was often used in the Old Testament for religious rites. Myrrh would have struck me as a rather strange baby gift. This reddish-brown tree sap was widely used in burials and funerals as embalming ointment.
    
Right from the beginning, we are reminded how fragile life is at both ends of the spectrum. A helpless baby lying in a feeding trough will one day experience death. God bridged the gap by becoming man, thereby becoming mortal for a time. Even in Mary’s tears of joy at holding the Christ child, she is given a foretaste of the sorrow that will later pierce her heart, the death of her beloved Son, just as essential and miraculous as His birth.
    
Lord, thank You for giving us the gift of Your only Son. Help us to pay homage to Our Savior by following His example (and those of Mary and Joseph) by committing completely and fully to Your will, especially when Your gifts and blessings to us aren’t exactly what we’d hoped for or expected. Amen.

Go Ask Your Father

     In rereading the stories about Christ’s birth and the years leading up to his public ministry, I’ve often found it much easier to imagine Mary’s role than Joseph’s. For that reason and because of my natural inclination after losing my father this year to continue thinking about the role of a father, I selected Go to Joseph by Fr. Richard W. Gilsdorf as the next book I’m going to review for Catholic Company. I’m only six pages into it and feel like my mind’s already been stretched.

More Cherished Christmas Traditions

Christmas Movies

     We enjoy watching the VHS tape of Christmas videos my mom recorded twenty some years agowhen we lived in Naperville, Illinois. It’s fun seeing the old 7Up commercials, weather reports, etc. every year from when I was in first and second grade. Each year there are certain movies our family likes to watch. “White Christmas,” “It’s a Wonderful Life,” “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas,” “Mickey’s Christmas Carol,” and “Home Alone” are definitely must-sees each year.

Christmas Eve

     Generally we gather in the room with the Christmas tree, listen to carols, each get to open one gift. We enjoy an assortment of hors-d’oeuvres throughout the evening which include: my mom’s homemade chicken fingers, shrimp cocktail, cocktail sausages, a vegetable tray, chips, and of course our Christmas cookies. At some point we turn all the lights out to enjoy the glow from the candles in the room and the lights on the tree as we sip hot cocoa, tea, or coffee.
Christmas Day

     When we were little (okay, actually up until last Christmas), Mom and Dad went in the family room first, turned on the tree lights, lit a fire in the fireplace if we had one, then my sisters and I always entered the room where the tree and presents were in order from youngest to oldest. None of the presents from Santa are ever wrapped. They are stuffed in stockings and strategically placed out at the edge of the other wrapped gifts under the tree, sectioned off by who gets what.

     For some reason we’ve had a tradition of opening our stockings first while eyeing our section of unwrapped gifts under the tree. In more recent years, Theresa has been the one who sits on the floor next to the Christmas tree and distributes gifts for the rest of us to open. We often end up leaving our gifts scattered about in the room. Coffee, hot tea, and Christmas cookies are often part of breakfast.

     Often times we get dressed up and go to Mass on Christmas morning. I love this tradition, because it helps offset some of the commercialism that can be a big part of the morning’s festivities. What better way to remember Jesus is the reason for the season, than to recall His birth, life, and sacrifice for us by singing, praying, and taking part in the Eucharist.

     In the late afternoon or evening, we have our traditional Christmas dinner of turkey, mashed potatoes, squash, crescent rolls, veggies, etc. We spend more time sitting around the tree with candles lit around the room to create a warm ambiance.

     Lord, thank You for blessing us with the gift of Your Son. Help us to live in such a way that we help all around us prepare more room in their hearts for Jesus. Amen.

Our Family's Christmas Traditions

Christmas Music


The minute I heard one of our family's fave Christmas songs for the first time this season I had to call my mom and play it for her over the phone. I'm sure she had visions of her three daughters spinning near the decorated tree to "Jingle Bells" (on speed) by Barbra Streisand. We’d dance, spin, and laugh until the colored lights on the tree were a blur and we’d tumble to the ground.
   
Another popular Christmas album by a Jewish artist that we played every year when I was growing up was by Neil Diamond. My brother-in-law Jordan’s loathing for Neil Diamond has kept us from playing that particular artist’s songs, at least while he’s there.
   
Since married, Kevin and I have adopted Chicago’s Christmas album as one of our favorites. Our other two must-haves each year are Charlie Brown’s Christmas and Amy Grant’s classics.
   
My mom is very fond of Christmas music, so when we were younger and all still living at home, we’d sometimes hide her tapes or CDs, so we wouldn’t have to listen to them more than a month before or after Christmas.

The Family Tree

When Mary and I were little, we would all go out as a family to pick out our live Christmas tree. Someone would be assigned to watch the back of the car on the way home to make sure the tree didn’t fall out. We have always used little colored lights, home-made ornaments from our elementary school days, sewn ornaments my mom had made, ornaments from souvenirs, travels, and to mark special days, as well as store-bought ornaments. My dad used to love it when people refused to believe that we had a live tree. They insisted it looked far too perfect to be real.
   
This year my mom, Kevin, and I were the only ones who went to the lot to pick out our family tree. We all gathered to decorate the tree once Jordan had brought it in and they’d gotten our little colored lights on it. The tree’s a bit shorter than in years past, but we still had trouble putting the angel on top with the branch so close to the ceiling. Of course Christmas carols were playing in the background. We all got to watch “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas” together.

Making Christmas Cookies

When we lived in Rowlett, Texas, we often spent Thanksgiving and Christmas with my uncle Rich, Aunt Linda, and cousins: Tim, Tom, John, and Amy. It was Uncle Rich and Aunt Linda who introduced us to the tradition of baking and decorating Christmas cookies. We have kept up this ritual each year since. One year Mary and I were having so much fun decorating cookies that we ran out of normal decorations and started using random candy we found around the house, such as Breathsavers.
   
In more recent years, our cookie decorating has gotten a bit more creative, artistic, intricate, and unusual. I’m fairly certain my sister Mary and her husband Jordan win for taking the longest to decorate a single cookie. My dad wanted to eat a cookie, but he wasn’t sure which one to take since all of them were decorated with so much detail.

Fall Asleep Counting Your Blessings

This Advent has been much different from those in years past. For one thing, we’ve usually gotten together as a family by now and decorated our Douglas fir Christmas tree. We’ve also usually gotten together to bake and decorate Christmas cookies, which we also haven’t done yet this year.
    
In previous years, I would have already spent hours writing Christmas cards, making or buying presents, and going to various local Christmas concerts and shows, parties, etc. Many things have been different this Advent, and maybe that’s a good thing. Kevin and I haven’t done nearly as much hustling and bustling as we usually do. Only a few of our planned activities we missed due to illness or because of snow.
    
We’ve spent more evenings at home together, and it’s been really nice. We do the daily readings, and share the reflections, answer the questions from a few different Advent devotionals, maybe pray the Rosary. We’ve felt God has been answering our prayers that He would draw Kevin and I closer to Him and close to each other.
   
I’ve made a conscious effort to spend more time in prayer, in part, because I heard not one but two priests strongly suggest that everyone would be much happier if we spent the Advent season preparing our minds and hearts for Christ’s coming, then celebrate Christmas during the days on the liturgical calendar set aside for that joyful occasion which is from Christmas Eve to January 10 this year.
    
I guess the true test will come over the next week, when the temptation will be greater to rush around to find gifts and do our usual family traditions. I’m not too worried right now, though. I feel in many ways that Kevin and I have already given the most important Christmas gifts we could have. We’ve spent more time with God and with each other. We’ve used what we have been given to help others in need. We can see more of our blessings, past and present, and be grateful for them.
    
The following lyrics from the "White Christmas" movie seem to sum up part of what has made this season more peaceful for us:
“When I'm worried and I can't sleep
I count my blessings instead of sheep
And I fall asleep counting my blessings
When my bankroll is getting small
I think of when I had none at all
And I fall asleep counting my blessings”

Lord, help all of us to count the presence of Your Son in the world as the greatest present ever given. Open our hearts and minds to the love inherent in You sending Jesus into the world as a vulnerable, helpless baby. Teach us to center on You, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who are the source of all love, joy, peace, and hope. Amen.

Lessons from the movie: “It’s a Wonderful Life”

      “Strange, isn't it? Each man's life touches so many other lives. When he isn't around he leaves an awful hole, doesn't he?” –Clarence "It's a Wonderful Life"
     Since we don’t have someone like Clarence, who shows us all the ways in which we’ve made a difference, we might occasionally have moments when we wonder how we got to where we are and ask why our lives don’t seem as significant as we feel they ought to be.
     Losing a loved one, being laid off from a job, finding yourself light years away from where you thought you’d be by a certain age or place in your career, ministry, or faith can all lead to questions and reflection.
     An important point to ponder if/when we reach such a line of internal questioning: each one of us touches so many other lives.

Rejoice and Be Glad!

Rejoice and be glad! Sounds like a good idea to me! Celebrate, be pleased about, cheer, exult, delight that God is with us!

I’m doing my best to live out this part of the Christmas message, but it can be challenging at times. Friends and family have said they have lots to do to get ready for Christmas, and when I hear this, I know they’re talking about preparing their homes, buying and wrapping presents, sending out Christmas cards, hosting parties, and buying more gifts.

Not once have I heard people tell me they’re getting ready for Christmas has included slowing down to spend some quiet time to allow God to fill their hearts and minds with the magnitude of love and the unending joy He gave to us by sending Christ into the world.
     
We make time for what’s important to us. During the holidays, it often seems we don’t have as much time as we do other periods during the year. People seem more harried and hurried. A couple of the special things I made time for last Christmas season truly helped me to understand more about the love and selflessness, the awe and wonder, the generosity and compassion, that Christ coming into the world in the form of an infant illustrate to us.
    
On Dec. 6, 2008, the Feast of St. Nicholas, a group of Cursillistas and their spouses attended Mass at Little Sisters of the Poor, had a potluck lunch, and then sang Christmas carols to the residents at St. Joseph’s Little Sisters of the Poor nursing home, where my grandmother has lived for over a year now.
     
Fr. Leo Gagnon, the former chaplain at Little Sisters, was the priest and one of the spiritual directors on team with me and fourteen others for the Cursillo Women’s Weekend October 2008. Knowing that Fr. Leo lost his dear mother the previous year near Christmas, we wanted to come and spend time with him around the holidays and thought taking part in the celebrations surrounding St. Nicholas would be a good way to show him his Christian family cares about him.
     
Fr. Leo dressed up as St. Nicholas for the residents. He shared stories with us about the life of this saint, then he had each person come up for a blessing with the holy oil miraculously produced by St. Nicholas’ bones each year. This experience was the opposite of a visit to Santa Claus, who is of course, modeled after St. Nicholas. Instead of coming up and whispering what store-bought items you hoped to receive for your own satisfaction, we were asked to come up to St. Nicholas, receive an anointing, and tell him what we hoped God would give to the world this year.
     
Many of the residents came forward with the same eagerness and anticipation you see on children’s faces when they approach Santa with their wish-lists ready. It was beautiful to watch. I had the privilege of seeing all of this up close when I began helping pass out candy canes to the residents after Fr. Leo had blessed them and heard their prayer request for the world.
    
No one was worried about getting perfect pictures with St. Nicholas. Everyone patiently waited for their turn. The spirit of love and generosity were real, not part of an act a man in a white beard and some elf-helpers were getting paid to perform.
     
Soon after that day, my mom, my friend Barb, and I went to see my grandmother in the Christmas play at Little Sisters. What a wonderful experience! Men and women in their 70s and 80s were the stars of a play written by the activities director at the nursing home. They came out in full costumes and did a wonderful job in the production of “The Mouse and the Manger.”
     
My grandmother was the narrator for the play. In weeks leading up to the show, she would get really worked up telling us about the practices, because the others in the play would change the words or forget their lines, which she never did. She said the nuns never corrected them as long as they remembered the essential parts and didn’t change the meaning of the story, but it really got my grandma going. The funny thing is, it never occurred to her that she would be making as many omissions and changes if she didn’t have the role of narrator, which allows her to sit in her wheelchair with a microphone and read directly from the script.
     
The play was very touching, but I could tell what the cast of residents enjoyed most was getting compliments, hugs, and kisses from the nuns, staff, family members, and friends who had come to watch.
    
Often we hear that we need to be good stewards of our time, talent, and treasure. As the days until Christmas draw closer,

I’ve been asking myself some questions to try and keep on the right track: Am I spending time a significant amount of time listening to, conversing with, learning from God? Do I set aside time to pray and make it a priority, or do I put it on my list of things to do and allow other things I need or want to accomplish come first?
    
Do I spend more quality time enjoying the company of family and friends than I do shopping for store-bought things they may or may not want or need? Do I focus only on what I can do to make this a nice holiday season for me, or do I look to others who have less, who have lost a loved one this year, who are struggling in mind, body, or spirit, and offer them support? How can I live out the call to rejoice and be glad this holiday season?
    
I pray that you may experience the peace, love, joy, and compassion God wants to give you this Advent season.

Saint of the Day (Sixth revised edition) Ed. Foley & McCloskey

Recently I have been thinking about how each and every one of us is called to become a saint. Scripture passages, conversations with friends, and reading the classic best-seller Saint of the Day (Revised 6th Edition) have all helped me begin to examine this call on a deeper level. I marked each of the pages in this book containing the most applicable and profound statements that could be incorporated in modern day life about what it means to be a saint.
    
I was recently talking with a friend about how we’re all called to become saints. I find this call rather daunting, especially when I read about the incredible suffering in mind, body, and spirit that many of the saints faced throughout their lives. I wonder if they always seemed as brave and fearless as they come across, at least in short biographies. I’m not afraid to pray that God would make me holy, even though I know significant spiritual cleansing will be a necessary part of the process, but I’m not yet brave enough to pray that God would make me a saint.
    
I remember thinking the same thing when I made my Encounter with Christ weekend #133 in the Diocese of Richmond back in February 2000. The girl who was my team member at table was praying that God would make her a saint. I found that such an amazing prayer for someone to pray. She certainly wasn’t asking that of God for the fame or the praise that a few saints-to-be have received while still living. I could tell her faith was so strong that she wanted to lay everything she was and could be on the line to serve God.
    
Deep down I want more than anything else to do God’s will. That’s been tested over and over again in my life. But to pray to be made a saint? I’m not there, yet. I fear the suffering that might be involved. I obviously lack the level of faith and trust necessary to submit willingly to suffering, even ask for it, in order to serve God at my full capacity. Perhaps I’ll get to the point someday, when I’ll be able to pray what she has prayed. Until then, I’ll continue studying the lives of the saints, finding the similarities among them, and try to be more open to the ways the Holy Spirit would like to work in and through me.
    
Though the lives of the individuals included in this book were vastly different in many ways, each person clearly exemplified what it means to be holy and Christ-like to others. For some, this involved being scholars and teachers, and for others it meant living among and serving the poorest of the poor. Some lived very short, extremely devout lives of suffering and grace before being martyred. Others spent many years on this earth putting their God-given gifts and abilities to use by serving others in whatever places and circumstances to which the Lord led them.
    
Whether among the laity, virgins, married, consecrated religious, priests, deacons, bishops, or popes, they answered God’s call to bring the Truth into the world, forgetting the price they might have to pay so that others would come to accept and embrace the love of the Lord in giving us His only beloved Son.
    
Through well-written short biographies, reflections, and quotes, the reader may glean a good first look at the lives of the saints, both those well-known and those lesser-known ones, as well as a handful of Blesseds, and five recently canonized individuals. The book is laid out to be read during the calendar year. There is an index of the saints by name and another one by date. A great deal of Church history is included in the short biographies, since many of these holy men and women were instrumental in the formation of the Catholic Church teachings as we know them today. Also included are Scripture passages, quotes from beatification Masses, and text taken directly from the writings of the saints. I found it especially helpful that anything included that is considered legend instead of fact, was stated as such.
    
This book is a good synopsis of the lives of many saints that is likely to inspire the reader to come across one or two saints he or she would like to learn more about through additional reading and research. It’s also a fairly good reference for discovering the patron saints of various places, professions, etc.
    
This review was written as part of the Catholic book Reviewer program from The Catholic Company. I was given a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest written review of the work. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Saint of the Day (Revised 6th Edition).

What's in Your Cup?

Recently I started a new ritual that my husband and I have both enjoyed. I tend to go to bed a bit later than he does, and he usually gets up a bit earlier than I do. In the evening we do the daily readings together and have some prayer time, but most mornings, I’ll emerge from the bedroom long enough to say hi, then go back for my 20-30 minutes of quiet prayer time.
    
I’d been inviting Kevin to take some quiet time to pray as well. Both of us pray throughout the day, but there is a value beyond measure to meeting God alone. That’s why Jesus often went off on his own to pray. We are told that God will come to us in the silence, and in one of my favorite Psalm verses 46:10, we are invited to be still and know the Lord.
    
During my own prayer time one day, I got an idea. Kevin doesn’t read a lot of religious/spiritual books like I do, but he’s generally open to listening to the passages I’d like to share with him and discuss. Keeping that in mind, I decided that each morning I would start setting out some spiritual food for thought on the loveseat where he has his morning cup of coffee.
    
Lately, I’ve been leaving open a book called which has short Scripture reflections by C.H. Spurgeon. Below the two reflections, I open up a prayer book with one prayer on each page. When I began this practice, I used the prayer book I made for my dad which includes a culmination of my favorite prayers, quotes, as well as some prayers and reflections I’ve written. Sometimes I pull from other sources for the prayers. I also write Kevin a brief love note.
    
In order to prop the pages of the books open, I lay the porcelain frog and lily pad I gave him when he was on the Men’s Team last March. Russ, the rector of the weekend, taught us a few years ago about F.R.O.G. (Fully Relying On God), and in Kevin’s talk on evangelization for the March weekend, he took the philosophy one leap further. He emphasized the importance of F.R.O.G.P.A.D. (Fully Relying On God with Purpose And Direction).
    
Looking at the very relaxed frog reminds me of how we can be at peace and at rest when we are indeed fully relying on God. It seems to be a good reminder for Kevin as well. It also serves to remind him of a very special weekend when he was very aware of the Holy Spirit working in, through, and around him.
    
My mom gave me a soft-like-suede covered journal with the title Love Notes for my birthday. I started writing Kevin little love notes on small pads of paper we had lying around. Sometimes he’d flip them over or write a short message at the bottom in response. Eventually, I decided to write each day in the Love Notes journal. Now, Kevin responds with his own love note to me each morning.
    
Kevin and I have talked about how this has been an effective, yet cleverly sneaky way to get him to start each day with prayer. I dare say it’s made his fair trade organic coffee taste even better ;). I know I’ve had fun coming out and reading Kevin’s love notes to me each morning and knowing that he’s spending some time in prayer.
    
Lord, thank You for inspiring us to do loving gestures and acts of kindness for those closest to us as well as to those strangers who cross our paths. Guide us to come to You in the silence so that You can fill us up with the love and mercy You wish to shower upon us. Amen.