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Your Sins Are Forgiven

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“Your sins are forgiven”. Four words that are so very powerful. These words give me such peace when the priest confessor says them to me as I receive a blessing at the close of each and every confession. These four words tell me I have been reconciled with God. It brings great joy, and usually tears, as I hear them spoken to me. As Jesus says to the paralytic, “Courage, child, your sins are forgiven” (MT 9:2b).

In today’s reading, Jesus tells the paralytic man to “rise…and go home” (MT 9:6c). There is an action here. The man must leave and go home. From the confessional, I too must leave the presence of the Lord and go back into the world. I can’t just sit in the moment forever. After my confession and absolution, I have been asked by the priest to share my story with others, say some prayers, reflect on specific scripture readings, and a few other things, all requiring some action on my part. I believe each of us is called to go out and do something because we live in communities. We are to be witnesses to others, charged to do so by our baptism, as a light in the world.

Yes, I can go home and sit by myself – which I do regularly. God, however, does not want me, or you, to be alone all the time. We come together to be fed by the Word of God and Body of Jesus each time we go to Mass. At the end of Mass, we are all told to ‘go out and share the Good News’. You don’t have to do anything earthshaking. It can be as simple as smiling, coordinating Vacation Bible School (or buying supplies), helping a co-worker in a way you don’t normally assist, or speaking up when you see an injustice occur. Yes, absolutely tackle the big project or take the first step to healing a personal or societal ill on any level. You can take your gift of forgiveness and pray it forward by praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet for the sins of the world.

We are so very blessed as Catholic Christians. Now, take those blessings out into the world and share the Good News. Each new day, every new journey begins with one step, no matter the size. Take a breath, say a prayer and keep walking the Way with courage, child.

Beth Price is a Secular Franciscan (OFS) and spiritual director who has worked in several parish ministry roles during the last 20 years. She is a proud mother of 3 adult children. Beth currently works at Diocesan. You can contact her at bprice@diocesan.com

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We Belong to God Alone

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Today is an exceptional day in the history of America. Many, many things come to mind in commemorating our independence as a nation that did not exist until 1776. Our history is not as extensive as the history of European and Asian countries, but we have accomplished a lot in a mere 242 years. It is good to be optimistic about where we have come and where we, as a nation, still have to go.

Today’s readings are difficult to unpack. We have God chastising us for thinking He will be satisfied with blood offerings and oaths; demons challenging Jesus to get rid of them; swine herders in Israel telling Jesus to go away. They were more concerned with their livestock than with the lives of the two men Jesus released from the grip of the demons. Wow! What does it all mean?

Well, today’s readings are telling us that God is in charge of all of creation, all of the natural world. The Psalmist writes:
“For mine are all the animals of the forests, beasts by the thousand on my mountains. I know all the birds of the air, and whatever stirs in the plains, belongs to me.”

People of faith know that all of our natural world, including all of humanity, belongs to God, and God alone, although you might not know it living in 21st century America. Many in our country believe they are in charge of everything: their lives, families, work, even their bodies. Are we living as did the swine herders, telling God to leave, to remove Himself from our country so we can take care of everything ourselves? We look to doing things our way, not God’s way. We look to getting everything we want when we want it and how we want it, often not showing concern for how that will affect others. The result is chaos and confusion.

All belongs to God – we belong to God. When we remember this, chaos and confusion disappear, and the path becomes clearer to us for God never leads us astray. Amos tells us to seek good and we may live, so that God will truly be with us and justice will prevail and we can be freed from our own demons.

Love all you meet and care for creation as God’s great gift to you. Work daily, one simple human interaction at a time, to move hearts to an America that rejoices in the freedom of all, based on the simple concept of Love. Love of and from God. Love for ourselves and each other. God’s Law can only bring life. I believe it is not an impossible dream. God will not give up on us!

Stay strong and God bless America.

Jeanne Penoyar, an Accounts Manager here at Diocesan, is currently a Lector at St. Anthony of Padua parish in Grand Rapids, MI. While at St. Thomas the Apostle, Grand Rapids, Jeanne was a Lector, Cantor, Coordinator of Special Liturgies, Coordinator of lectors and, at one time, chair of the Liturgy Commission. In a past life, secretary/bookkeeper at the Basilica of St. Adalbert where she ran the RCIA program for the Steepletown parishes. And she loves to write! When relaxing, she likes reading and word puzzles.

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One Nation Under God

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This week, I cried for our world. I watch the news, I follow social media, I talk with coworkers, so I am painfully aware of our world’s struggle. I am aware of the situation happening to immigrant children in our own country. I am aware of the religious persecution. I am aware of racial bias. I am aware of refugee struggles and rejection. I am aware of the fight for basic humanity. Where is the basic humanity?

I cannot understand why people do not simply care about each other. Who are we to judge one another? Are we not brothers and sisters in Christ, regardless of our differences? Who are we to deny others of the same freedoms we, ourselves, fight for? We are all struggling in one way or another and yet we are often very picky of who we will and will not lift up.

Today’s first reading says, “Brothers and sisters: You are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as capstone.” (EPH 2:19-21)

Last week was Catholic Religious Freedom Week and tomorrow is the Fourth of July, an anniversary of our nation’s independence. We should use today to reflect upon what tomorrow truly means. What does our freedom and independence mean? It means our country is a melting pot, filled with cultures, races, and backgrounds that are all able to come together in a single country.

We are all one in God’s eyes. There is no “us” and “them” in Catholicism. Just as our country is one nation under God – not one American nation under God, not one North American Nation under God, but just ALL one nation under God – we are all children of God. When Jesus told us to love our neighbors as ourselves, he further explained what he meant by literally everyone being our neighbor using the parable of the good Samaritan.  You see, we are all strangers on the road between Jerusalem and Jericho. It is up to us to be the Good Samaritan that treats all with mercy.

For more information on the Catholic Church’s stance on Religious Liberty, click here.

For last week’s Religious Liberty daily prayers and reflections, click here.

Veronica Alvarado is a born and raised Texan currently living in Michigan. Since graduating from Texas A&M University, Veronica has published various articles in the Catholic Diocese of Austin’s official newspaper, the Catholic Spirit, and other local publications. She now works as the Content Specialist in Diocesan’s Web Department.

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Think of God

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Does it ever scare you how easily it is to fall into bad habits? Reading about some of the transgressions of the time in the Book of Amos today, I realize once again how alive and applicable Scripture is to us today. We just as easily “trample the heads of the weak” or “profane his name” through impure acts. Even though God called us “good” from the moment he conceived mankind, it is so easy for us to be “bad”!

Being a parent has brought so much light on this tendency and the great need I have for grace. When I was single it was so easy to volunteer, go on mission trips, say kind things, help others with a project, have a regular prayer life and be a good person in general. But once I became a mother, all that was stripped away in favor of a life of 24/7 care of little ones. Not only was I no longer able to travel or volunteer or keep up a prayer routine, but any adult company in general was hard to come by. My friends had also married and had children and we all became absorbed in our own lives. I found it easier and easier to succumb to frustration, anger, finger pointing, and a desire to control.

Then I came across a reflection where the author discussed a heresy declaring that a person could gain heaven through his/her own effort, negating God’s grace. Recognizing the tendency in myself to drive, organize and manage things, I began to ponder whether I was ever guilty of this mindset. I have always been a bit of a “goody two shoes”, so to speak, attempting to follow the rules and do acts of charity, but for the past several years, sheer exhaustion and the constant outpouring of self has made grace much more of a necessity and virtue much harder to come by.

While continuing to mull over this thought, I read on and come to the Psalm: “Remember this, you who never think of God.” WHOA! That is not someone I want to be! Is He talking to me?? I certainly hope not! I much prefer to read “He that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me; and to him that goes the right way, I will show the salvation of God.” Yeah, yeah, that sounds much better… that’s who I want to be.

So with a renewed resolve I make a conscious decision to think of God more, ask for His grace more and rely on it more often. For only in Him and through Him can I even begin to be good…

Tami Urcia is wife and mother to her small army of boys. She works full time at Diocesan and is a freelance translator and blogger (BlessedIsshe.net and CatholicMom.com) She loves tackling home projects, keeping tabs on the family finances, and finding unique ways to love. Tami spent early young adulthood as a missionary in Mexico, then worked and traveled extensively before finishing her Bachelor’s Degree. Her favorite things to do are spending time outside with the kiddos, quiet conversation with the hubby, and an occasional break from real life by getting a pedicure or a haircut. You can find out more about her here.

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Miracles are Real

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I am an extreme optimist, or maybe optimist is already an extreme? I could be on a sinking cruise ship and be thankful that I will get to see the 80% of the ocean that we have not yet explored. Ok, maybe I am not that extreme, but I always try to think the best of people and circumstances. I have this crazy notion that human persons have an innate goodness and that no matter how depraved or unethical we become, we cannot entirely douse that flame.

At first I thought today’s Gospel was a perfect reading for an optimist. It speaks of the goodness of God and how if any person has a trial, illness, demonic possession, or any other iniquity, God will come and take care of the problem. Then I realized a very important truth about our faith. Miracles are not optimistic they are REAListic. The optimist tends to look at the glass half full, the pessimist looks at it half empty, but the realist looks at it and says that it is a glass of water. And the fact of the matter is that miracles are real. “Miracles are not contrary to nature but only contrary to what we know about nature” (St. Augustine).

We are living in an age where miracles are more important than ever before. “Miracles were necessary before the world believed, in order that it might believe” (St. Augustine). Well I think it’s safe to say we need to remind people that God is active in this world. When news headlines are riddled with division, depression, death, and destruction, miracles counteract with the divine power of God.

It’s easy as Catholics to know miracles exist, just look at the mass. I think it is difficult however to know miracles can be personal to our lives. Sure they existed in the lives of the saints that lived a long time ago in a galaxy far away (click here for some amazing examples of miracles that have happened to various saints), but God’s power has diminished every year since His death right? Or even if it hasn’t, he has no personal interest in me right?

Well the thing about the word of God is that it is living. It doesn’t die even if we put it up on a shelf. I encourage you to read the Gospel one more time and put your current life and situations into the story. What do you want God to heal? How do you need to rely on Him? Do you have faith that He has power and wants the very best for you? Tell him, after all, “We pay God a compliment when we ask great things of Him” (St. Teresa of Avila).

Be like the almost two thousand saints who have been canonized since John Paul the Great became Pope and trust that God wants to work in your life here and now. I am sure these saints struggled with thinking that God personally cared for them at some point in their lives. The difference is that they eventually gave up on their own power and relied on God to the grave and beyond. Let’s pray for grace so that one day Jesus can say to us as well, “Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith.”

Tommy Shultz is a Solutions Evangelist for Diocesan. In that role, he is committed to coaching parishes and dioceses on authentic and effective Catholic communication. Tommy has a heart and a flair for inspiring people to live their faith every day. He has worked in various youth ministry, adult ministry, and diocesan roles. He has been a featured speaker at retreats and events across the country. His mission and drive have been especially inspired by St. John Paul II’s teachings. Tommy is blessed to be able to learn from the numerous parishes he visits and pass that experience on in his presentations. Contact him at tshultz@diocesan.com.

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Conversions Woven Throughout Life

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On this feast day of St. Peter and St. Paul I look back upon the journey the Lord has led me on and where He has me going. It seems like my life has been filled with conversions; some conversions very much so interior (and only noticeable to myself) and some major exterior conversions visible to all.

In the Gospel reading for today Simon Peter proclaims the true identity of Christ, demonstrating his proclamation of faith in all that the Lord has revealed. With this profession of faith, Jesus gives Simon Peter the new title of “Peter”. What is the significance of this name change? We see this happen many times throughout scripture.  We can look at the patterns (Old Testament and New Testament) and we can see that something very big happens with a name change: a call to conversion through a change in the God given mission bestowed upon the person. Peter became the root that our Apostolic Faith was set upon, growing in strength of faith as “the rock” upon which our faith is established in Christ. Paul became a warrior for the Kingdom, converting from his days of persecuting Christians and growing a heart with so much love for Christ that it could not be contained.

Whatever your vocation to love may be, wherever God has you right now, you are called to conversion. He may have you on the road accepting small conversions (letting someone go ahead of you in traffic, holding the door for others, taking more time to read scripture daily, connecting with family, etc.) in order to lead up to the great and beautiful conversion that will be an integral part of your life’s story, your love story with our Savior.  

I recall when my mission changed on the night of Easter Vigil 2015, when I was given the name Peter after St. Peter the Apostle (my confirmation saint). While going through the RCIA process that prior year, and by studying the Church years before that point, I could always identify with Peter in how he denied Christ three times. I myself denied the call to become Catholic three times before finally giving my fiat to the conversion He was drawing my heart to. I will experience another name change in October of this year by becoming Mrs. Shultz, with my conversion involving making a gift of myself to my soon-to-be husband and the domestic church we will establish together with God as our center.  

When I think about my vocational conversion, my conversion to the Catholic faith, and all the little conversions leading up to where I am now I am reminded of how beautiful it is that God wants to take us exactly the way we are and call us to greatness. He does not call those who already have everything they need to complete a mission, but rather He calls those that have open hearts to receive all the graces needed to be able to live out the mission they have been given for the Kingdom.  

Be encouraged by the examples of St. Peter, a fisherman that ended up being the rock the Church is built upon, and St. Paul, a past persecutor of the faith that ended up being a devoted servant of our Lord and Savior that shared the Gospel with the world. God took these two men, who started out not equipped to fulfill the missions before them, and gave them all the graces they needed to live their lives for Him. If you give God open arms and an open heart, accepting life’s little conversions along the way, God will equip you for greatness in the mission He has placed you on in this life. When we lovingly accept this mission with faith and trust that is when our journey towards sainthood surges to new heights, for we are all called to join our hearts to Heaven and answering these calls make this joining of heart and Heaven a reality. St. Peter and St. Paul, pray for us!

“On the day of my conversion Charity entered into my heart and with it a yearning to forget self always; thenceforward I was happy.”

St. Thérèse of Lisieux

Nathalie Hanson is a special education teacher and a joyful convert to the Catholic faith with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).  She loves to share her passion for Catholicism with others, including her conversion story and how God continues to work miracles in her life through her OCD.  Nathalie is engaged to her best friend, Diocesan’s Tommy Shultz, and she is beyond excited to become Mrs. Shultz this October. Her favorite saints include St. Peter the Apostle, St. Teresa of Calcutta, and St. John Paul II.  If you have any questions for Nathalie, or just want her to pray for you, you can email her at rodzinkaministry@gmail.com.

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Exile and Return

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Earlier this week at daily Mass we began hearing readings from the second Book of Kings. We’re being introduced to ancient kings from Assyria and Babylon who have one intent: to overthrow the Kingdom of Judah and take captive Jerusalem and despoil the Temple.

These are challenging readings because of the foreign names — Sennacherib, Hezekiah, Hilkiah, Ahikam, Nebuchadnezzar, Jehoiachin and others — but also because they capture a wide swath of biblical history in the rise and fall of successive heirs of Kings David and Solomon. The Chosen People have made themselves vulnerable to being overthrown because they themselves have been overthrown. They have forgotten God. Their kings have forsaken their vocation as shepherds.

In today’s reading, the nearly 1,000-year reign of the Royal Kingdom of Judah, followed by the divided kingdoms of Judah and Israel come to an end. Scripture records the events dispassionately, almost like modern-day journalism. Nebuchadnezzer, king of Babylon, leads a siege of Jerusalem and conquers it. He captures King Jehoiachin of Judah and sends him into exile, along with the leading people of Jerusalem. Most tragically, Nebuchadnezzer’s army plunders the Temple and all the sacred objects used for the worship of God. With Jerusalem decimated and a foreign king now reigning over the Promised Land, all hope seemingly lost, the chronicler of these events notes this: “None were left among the people of the land except the poor” (2 Kgs 24:15).

Holy Mother Church next offers us the mournful, penitent prayers of these poor and exiled in Psalm 79 for our meditation: “O Lord, how long? … We are brought very low … Help us, O God our savior … Deliver us and pardon our sins…”

No matter where our sins may lead us or how far we feel we have strayed from the Savior’s mercy, may we turn to the Lord just like the psalmist and cry out, “Help us, O God our savior… Deliver us and pardon our sins.”

Father Tim S. Hickey is a priest of the Archdiocese of Hartford currently serving as a mission priest in the Diocese of Dodge City, Kansas. A native Kansan, he was schooled at Benedictine College, Marquette University and Mount St. Mary’s Seminary. Prior to becoming a priest, Father Hickey was editor of Columbia magazine for the Knights of Columbus. He writes occasionally for Magnificat’s seasonal special issues and for Communion and Liberation.

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Remain in Me

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“Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord”, is the responsorial psalm for today. I don’t know about you, but I need this constant reminder. I must focus on the decrees of the Lord because it is too easy for me to think, ‘yea, yea, I know all that. Let me tell others what I think the Lord is saying to them in their own situations.’ Wrong! That is not the way to bear good fruit. As the Alleluia refrain reiterates, “Remain in me, as I remain in you, says the Lord; whoever remains in me will bear much fruit” JN 15:4a, 5b.

These passages always reminds me of 2 of my all time favorite saints. Mother Teresa (aka St. Teresa of Calcutta) and St. Francis of Assisi. As a member of the Secular Franciscans, I am part of 300,000 professed lay people who love and support the Church with a focus of the life and witness of St. Francis. St. Francis produced much good fruit because of his faithful obedience and love of God. Take a look at the following article to learn a bit more about the Saint and his charisms here

Mother Teresa bore much good fruit in her life by following the decrees of the Lord. This one young woman, who began by listening to the voice of God while traveling on a train, is a beautiful example of a good tree. St. Teresa’s commitment to “remain in me, as I remain in you”, was a testament to her dedication. In her book, “The Simple Path”, Mother Teresa shares a prayer that hangs on the walls of the Sisters of Charity homes around the world. I share it with you today because it has become a touchstone for me over the last 20+ years due to its simplicity. That being said, it is a prayer that has borne fruit for me; for you, dear reader, it may not strike an accord, or bear good fruit. It is for you to decide.

The Simple Path

The fruit of silence is PRAYER.

The fruit of prayer is FAITH.

The fruit of faith is LOVE.

The fruit of love is SERVICE.

The fruit of service is PEACE.

-St. Teresa of Calcutta

Beth Price is a Secular Franciscan (OFS) and spiritual director who has worked in several parish ministry roles during the last 20 years. She is a proud mother of 3 adult children. Beth currently works at Diocesan. You can contact her at bprice@diocesan.com

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Trust in the Lord

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Imagine you are an ancient king, responsible for a vast area and the lives of many people. Neighboring kings have joined forces and are destroying nearby kingdoms, and now send the message that you are next. What would you do? Would you panic? Would you begin scrambling for a solution? Would you remind yourself that you are in charge and if something must be done, you must do it? Would you try to negotiate a treaty or run and hide yourself in the mountains and wait out the destruction? Would you rally your troops to defend the kingdom and lead them into battle or find safety for what you treasure?

This is the situation in today’s first reading from 2 Kings. And Hezekiah, king of Judah, did none of those things. When he received a message from the king of Assyria, who was threatening doom, Hezekiah went immediately into the temple of the Lord and put all his hope in the God of Israel. He first praised God as the One above all others, the One Who is over all the powers of earth. Then he begged the Lord to consider the threat of Assyria, and how they are a taunt against the one true God. And then he humbly asked God to save the kingdom of Judah from the power of the Assyrians – but not for their own sake, but “that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone, O Lord, are God.” Hezekiah begged the Lord to show his power so that others might believe. God responded with the promise that the Assyrians would not win, that the Lord himself would “save this city for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David.” God, faithful to his promises in every generation, struck down 185,000 soldiers and sent them packing back to Nineveh. Hezekiah won by putting all his trust in the Lord.

This brings us, by an indirect path, to the Gospel for today. We know many of these words, as they have become adages in our language: pearls before swine, do unto others, the narrow gate. Our familiarity with the phrases might obscure for us some of the subtleties in the message. Jesus is very clear about something that we can be a little foggy about: “the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter through it are many.” When I read that, I am shaken by the truth that many are following the way to destruction. This turns my understanding of the world on its side. I want to believe that most people are good and generous most of the time, that most people follow the rule to “do unto others,” and so they are on their way to eternal life. The Lord’s words tell a different story. “How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few.” How can this be?

It’s simple, really. The narrow gate and constricted road are not the way of niceness, or the way that our culture sees as “successful.” To understand it, we must look beyond the surface, so that we see it is the way of complete trust in the Lord, rather than self-reliance, no matter how “successful” that makes us.

It is the radical trust that goes to prayer before mustering an army, that trusts in the Lord to fight our social and emotional battles rather than insisting on fixing everything ourselves, that entrusts all the people we love and all their situations to the goodness of God before reaching in with our very limited human resources. It is the deep trust of a child to her loving Father, even when that Father is unseen. It is the loving trust that allows us to finally let go of our worrying and questioning; the love that casts out fear and sets us free.

Most of the people I know ARE good and generous and kind. But God sees into the heart, and he knows the narrow places in each of us that we do not even know ourselves so He knows whether, deep down inside, we rely on ourselves and our own weapons and tools and resources or, like Hezekiah, truly put all our trust in the Lord.

This does not come easily to our fallen human nature, and it is certainly not “the way of the world.” Let us each ask God to show us the ways we insist on taking care of things ourselves, and to give us the grace to entrust each of these things completely to him, so that we at last truly trust in him and are set free to do His will rather than our own.

Kathryn is married to Robert, mother of seven, grandmother to two, and a lay Carmelite. She has worked as a teacher, headmistress, catechist, Pastoral Associate, and DRE, and also as a writer and voice talent for Holy Family Radio. Currently, she serves the Church as a writer and presenter, and by collaborating with the diocesan Office of Faith Formation, individual parishes, and Catholic ministries to lead others to encounter Christ and engage their faith. Learn more at www.kathryntherese.com or on Facebook @summapax.

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Called to Proclaim

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I recently attended a Steubenville Adult Conference in which a speaker took the stage and gave an extremely vocal, Catholic rally call. He shouted and asked us to loudly repeat after him. At first, I felt like I was at some protestant church with the pastor yelling, people clapping, cheering, and a constant murmur of “Amen” and “Yes, God.” I thought, this is not what Catholics do. This is not how we behave. We wait until someone says, “Peace be with you” to say anything. I felt so uncomfortable and completely out of my spiritual element.

Then I realized that this uncomfortability is exactly why the Catholic faith is dying. It’s exactly why the youth are leaving and not bothering to look back. Many Catholics are so complacent with the world around us that they are not even trying to make a change. Many Catholics are so apathetic that they are borderline nihilistic. Many Catholics seem to be so “whatever” that their values and beliefs are worth next to nothing.

We cannot become complacent with the world around us, especially when we live in a nation that is constantly rallying and protesting their beliefs. Everyone is protesting something, be it pipelines, marijuana use, animal cruelty, pro-life issues, and so much more. Change is made when voices are heard and we will not be heard if we do not raise our voices. Instead, we as Catholics will slip into the unknown and we will be forgotten.

So I tell you now that it is okay to get loud. It is okay to go into the public arena armed with God’s unending love to fight with. If we fight, we will win because we have God on our side. But we will not win if we never bother fighting. Besides, we were not created to be silent. We were created to love God and to boldly defend his creations.

Let us turn our responsorial hymn into a prayerful rally cry. Pray it loud. 

“O God, you have rejected us and broken our defenses; you have been angry; rally us! You have rocked the country and split it open; repair the cracks in it, for it is tottering. You have made your people feel hardships; you have given us stupefying wine. Have not you, O God, rejected us, so that you go not forth, O God, with our armies? Give us aid against the foe, for worthless is the help of men.” (PS 60:3, 4-5, 12-13)

If you are still afraid to be bold, pray Ephesians 6:18-20.

Veronica Alvarado is a born and raised Texan currently living in Michigan. Since graduating from Texas A&M University, Veronica has published various articles in the Catholic Diocese of Austin’s official newspaper, the Catholic Spirit, and other local publications. She now works as the Content Specialist in Diocesan’s Web Department.

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Forerunner of Christ

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Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Nativity of John the Baptist and on August 29 the Memorial of his Passion, a requiem of sorts of his decapitation. Yes, as gory as that sounds we celebrate the day he was crowned with martyrdom through decapitation.

These feasts always remind me of the day 21 years ago that I consecrated myself to Christ through a lay Movement. I lived the life of a religious with 3+ hours of daily prayer, theological studies and missionary work. After three and a half years, I realized this life was not my calling, despite my deep desire to serve God, His Church and His people. Looking back, I wondered if perhaps the fact that I was consecrated on this bloody memorial was some kind of ominous foreshadowing that my vocation would die.

In the years hence, however, I have come to see death and memorials as more of a celebration of someone’s life, rather than a reliving of the way they died. I can now look beyond his decapitation and remember his legacy, in the same way I can look back on my temporary vocation as a time of personal growth and service to the Church instead of a failure.

John the Baptist was known as the great forerunner of Christ, one who “prepared the way of the Lord.” He was not afraid to take on practices that must have appeared strange to others in order to proclaim his message. He was bold, unashamed, and straightforward. He did not beat around the bush. He was truly the Lord’s “servant from the womb”, a “light to the nations” and “a man after [God’s] own heart” who carried out His every wish (Ref 1st & 2nd Readings).

As Christians we are called to do the very same. By our actions, our words (when necessary), our service and our prayer we are called to boldly proclaim the truth of Christ just as John the Baptist did. Our very lives should shine with the truth of the Gospel. “I praise you Lord, for I am wonderfully made,” the Psalm declares. He made us, we are His. There is no room for fear or embarrassment. The Spirt of Truth will guide the way. So get out there and preach it! Oh, and enjoy the locusts and wild honey while you’re at it…

Tami Urcia is wife and mother to her small army of boys. She works full time at Diocesan and is a freelance translator and blogger (Blessedisshe.net and CatholicMom.com) She loves tackling home projects, keeping tabs on the family finances, and finding unique ways to love. Tami spent early young adulthood as a missionary in Mexico, then worked and traveled extensively before finishing her Bachelor’s Degree. Her favorite things to do are spending time outside with the kiddos, quiet conversation with the hubby, and an occasional break from real life by getting a pedicure or a haircut. You can find out more about her here.

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The Real Cure for Stress

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Stress.

There cannot be one person reading this who hasn’t experienced it as a major factor in their lives. We’re all stressed, it seems, from the moment we get up in the mornings until we lie down for a troubled sleep at night. Appointments, deadlines, worries, fears all contribute to our levels of stress (and even more so when they’re missed appointments or forgotten deadlines!), and our diets and lack of exercise don’t help. Let’s face it, we’re a stressed-out nation.

That’s proven a goldmine for a plethora of professions and manufacturers who cater to the stressed. The same smartphones that keep us ridiculously connected also offer meditation and mindfulness apps. There are vitamins and supplements that claim to lower anxiety, exercises and yoga and gym memberships to counteract its effects, and promises that the next self-help bestseller will absolutely be the magic bullet to help us find wellness and calm.

As Catholics, we have a slightly different take on the whole question of stress. Oh, of course, we too should be eating more leafy greens and less sugar; we need to go for brisk walks and drag ourselves away from our computer screens like everybody else. But we’re blessed by the fact that Jesus knew all about stress, and gave us the one prescription for it that actually works.

It’s ridiculously simple, which may be why many of us find it hard to put into practice. But today’s reading from the Gospel of St. Matthew could not be clearer; we are called to be different. Followers of Jesus think and behave differently from the pagans. In particular this message can be boiled down to a few points:

  • You can’t love God and money both. Choose.
  • Worrying means that you’re taking life into your own hands instead of giving it to God.
  • God absolutely loves you. All the time, every day.
  • Don’t think about what is unimportant, but focus on heaven. Anything else is secondary.

The things that stress us out the most are generally the least important. What does that deadline have to do with your salvation? Will you get to heaven any faster by worrying about buying that new car?

We live in our culture and it makes some demands on us that we must meet. We have to have a place to sleep. We need to have food to eat. We’d like to have a good education, a decent job, a fun vacation. And these aren’t frivolous or unworthy goals; the problem is that we allow them to become our only goals.

We should have one goal: to be united with God. Everything else is secondary. Love God with all your heart; have faith that he will provide for you; don’t confuse essentials with nonessentials. You cannot serve God and money at the same time. If you spend your time worrying about accumulating money—and all the things that go along with it—then, Jesus tells us, your faith is small. You can do better.

Take a deep breath, trust in God, and… let go. You’ll be surprised at how quickly you’ll de-stress!

Jeannette de Beauvoir works in the digital department of Pauline Books & Media as marketing copywriter and editor. A graduate of Yale Divinity School, where she studied with Adian Kavanagh, OSB, she is particularly interested in liturgics and Church history.