Tonight will regrettably be another short post. I've had an exceedingly stressful last half of the day and I've noticed a trend in my life that any time something good, fruitful, or productive starts to happen, an immediate wave of unrepentant and unnecessary stress swoops in. It feels almost supernatural how circumstances chance on a whim and can knock you down on your butt even on your best day.
I think this daily challenge is what really separates us from the saints. We sometimes say that people have to have the patience of a saint and tonight I definitely failed in that. But what makes a saint more patient? Because they know that in the end, Jesus has won. Whatever little stress or temptation, it's already been defeated. Our Easter hymn of Alleluia is a victory song over all of those forces. And devil knows that. He wants to prevent us from accomplishing what God has planned for us and the world sometimes seems as though it purposefully conspires against us to keep us down, make us depressed, turn us to sin.
But, even on the worst of nights, we need to turn and praise God, and ask Him to make us saints because only through His grace can we become who we're meant to be.
None of the other stuff really matters. Thank God for your life, for all the good things in it. Thank God that you suck at whatever it is you suck at, and ask for His help to be better. He will give you tomorrow that little extra grace to make the small change you need to for His sake. Try a little harder tomorrow and He will give You everything you need, always and unconditionally.
God love you!
~onecatholicguy
Wednesday, April 30, 2014
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Bible Roulette! -- Caleb's Smart Gamble
Time for a new exciting game here at One Catholic Guy called:
His strength is not physical but in his passion for the Lord. The reference point he uses for his pinnacle of strength was Moses sending him forth. It is Caleb's mission that solidifies his resolve in the Lord and he fights against popular opinion to tell Moses what the other spies would not, that they can complete the mission; that they can return home. And he's rewarded by God for this loyalty not only with the land of Hebron but with this strength and firmness of will. To extend the roulette analogy, Caleb put all his chips on one number, God, and was paid more profit than the world could ever give: the favor and love of God,
I think it's common for an older man to look back on his life and think of his work and livelihood. My grandpa just today said he had gone back to work last month because he loved working. He has fond memories of his 40 plus years of work but surely it was not fantastic on a daily basis. Grandpa worked in a sweater factory as a presser, basically operating a gigantic steamer that made sweaters creaseless and ironically men wrinkled from the heat in their face for hours a day. The day to day of that business was arduous and the fact that it was a seasonal job surely meant large periods of time doubting whether the factory may reopen the next year.
I feel this myself as I've been unemployed for several months. Will I ever complete my mission and will I ever receive any sort of commission for working again? Am I able to do what God calls me towards and how do I know what that is? Am I on the right path?
Caleb, now who we see as an old man, knows the answer. He has done right by the Lord and remained loyal and he is still strong. He says he has vigor for both war and ordinary tasks. Part of this is from experience I think, he's lived many more days than I have and knows how things work. Same with my grandfather, he can say he loved working because the ordinary tasks of that work are long gone and he now sees the grander overall benefit of his career. But, more importantly both these men had an innate trust in God. My grandfather hoped and probably prayed that the factory stayed open until next season and Caleb knew when others doubted that the Israelites could get back what God promised them because God is a reliable promise-maker.
God is good to us and the source of great strength. In Jesus Christ's coming, we are given even greater trust that God will keep His Word since He gave us His Word who is Jesus. And, in the fullness of the Trinity, Jesus ascends to heaven and sends down the Holy Spirit to fill us with the vigor we need to do our mission in both extraordinary and ordinary ways as Caleb is set to still do at 85 and my grandfather, in a limited way, can at 91.
And I, on the brink of 25, will hold on hope* and trust in God that He will provide and I will receive my inheritance. I have strength still in me as I am in the Body of Christ, which too shows that I am useful to God despite my flaws, imperfections, unemployment. All of us are called into Christ's Body and in the Catholic Church we are privileged to receive our daily bread, the Eucharist to give us the strength to hold on for the 45 years until Joshua can give what Moses promised. At the end of the day I got a call for a new interview, a job much closer to my goal than the others I've applied for. God maybe placed that for a little encouragement. And I'm very grateful.
*(For those who can't resist completing the Mumford lyric)
So as we conclude this first bible roulette I pray for all of us who need some more trust in God today and who feel weak. Oh God, our life, strengthen us for the journey to You in heaven. Keep us on the path of faith and be our light as You always are. We love You and Praise You, now and forever!
Alleluia!
~onecatholicguy
bible roulette!
The game is simple: after failing to write a blog post all day, I will flip randomly through the bible and try and find a quote having to do with this Easter theme of joy!
First up from the USCCB online bible: Song of Songs 8:8 (who do we appreciate? Go team!)
Okay, maybe not the best one to start with. Let's try one with less breasts involved...or would it be more since the sister has none?“We have a little sister;*she has no breasts as yet.What shall we do for our sisteron the day she is spoken for?
awkward.
So let's give this another spin in the New American Bible I get around from confirmation class: Joshua 14.
This one is actually kind of fitting for me personally but we'll get to that in a minute.
Essentially it's a passage about how Joshua and the elders divided up the inheritance of the Israelites once they're in Caanan. After 40 years wandering, they've finally made it to the promised land, but who is promised what?
We hear about Caleb, who along with Joshua, spied on Caanan and reported to Moses that they could take back the land when 10 other spies called it impossible (Check it out on New Advent). Caleb is a man of great faith and trust in the Lord and Moses promised him the land he spied on, called Hebron, "because you have been completely loyal to the Lord, my God" Joshua 14:9.
The really cool part for me is this quote from everyone's favorite Kenizzite (whatever that means) Caleb,
"although I am now eighty-five years old, I am still as strong today as I was the day Moses sent me forth, with no less vigor whether for war or for ordinary tasks" Jos 14:10-11I had little time to write today because I was actually celebrating my grandfather's 91st birthday! So this is fortunate spin on the ol' roulette wheel. Caleb says he's as strong today as he was over 40 years ago. Given the crazy ages we see people live to in the bible, that could be physically true but I think 40 years will slow anyone down who lives less than 500 years total. So how is Caleb strong still?
His strength is not physical but in his passion for the Lord. The reference point he uses for his pinnacle of strength was Moses sending him forth. It is Caleb's mission that solidifies his resolve in the Lord and he fights against popular opinion to tell Moses what the other spies would not, that they can complete the mission; that they can return home. And he's rewarded by God for this loyalty not only with the land of Hebron but with this strength and firmness of will. To extend the roulette analogy, Caleb put all his chips on one number, God, and was paid more profit than the world could ever give: the favor and love of God,
I think it's common for an older man to look back on his life and think of his work and livelihood. My grandpa just today said he had gone back to work last month because he loved working. He has fond memories of his 40 plus years of work but surely it was not fantastic on a daily basis. Grandpa worked in a sweater factory as a presser, basically operating a gigantic steamer that made sweaters creaseless and ironically men wrinkled from the heat in their face for hours a day. The day to day of that business was arduous and the fact that it was a seasonal job surely meant large periods of time doubting whether the factory may reopen the next year.
I feel this myself as I've been unemployed for several months. Will I ever complete my mission and will I ever receive any sort of commission for working again? Am I able to do what God calls me towards and how do I know what that is? Am I on the right path?
Caleb, now who we see as an old man, knows the answer. He has done right by the Lord and remained loyal and he is still strong. He says he has vigor for both war and ordinary tasks. Part of this is from experience I think, he's lived many more days than I have and knows how things work. Same with my grandfather, he can say he loved working because the ordinary tasks of that work are long gone and he now sees the grander overall benefit of his career. But, more importantly both these men had an innate trust in God. My grandfather hoped and probably prayed that the factory stayed open until next season and Caleb knew when others doubted that the Israelites could get back what God promised them because God is a reliable promise-maker.
God is good to us and the source of great strength. In Jesus Christ's coming, we are given even greater trust that God will keep His Word since He gave us His Word who is Jesus. And, in the fullness of the Trinity, Jesus ascends to heaven and sends down the Holy Spirit to fill us with the vigor we need to do our mission in both extraordinary and ordinary ways as Caleb is set to still do at 85 and my grandfather, in a limited way, can at 91.
And I, on the brink of 25, will hold on hope* and trust in God that He will provide and I will receive my inheritance. I have strength still in me as I am in the Body of Christ, which too shows that I am useful to God despite my flaws, imperfections, unemployment. All of us are called into Christ's Body and in the Catholic Church we are privileged to receive our daily bread, the Eucharist to give us the strength to hold on for the 45 years until Joshua can give what Moses promised. At the end of the day I got a call for a new interview, a job much closer to my goal than the others I've applied for. God maybe placed that for a little encouragement. And I'm very grateful.
*(For those who can't resist completing the Mumford lyric)
So as we conclude this first bible roulette I pray for all of us who need some more trust in God today and who feel weak. Oh God, our life, strengthen us for the journey to You in heaven. Keep us on the path of faith and be our light as You always are. We love You and Praise You, now and forever!
Alleluia!
~onecatholicguy
Monday, April 28, 2014
700 Sundays on a Monday night
Tonight I was supposed to head into NYC to see a storytelling event. I had to do an errand for my grandparents and wound up missing my train. Instead I was surprised to see on TV a one man Broadway show of Billy Crystal's life call 700 Sundays. It is a deeply moving tale of Crystal's life played out in front of a facade of his chidlhood home. He especially focuses on his relationship with his father who died very suddenly when Billy was 15. He approximates in the play that he had about 700 Sundays with his father.
And the most touching part of the play for me were two scenes that mirror each other in the show, both taking place in heaven with Billy talking to God. The first conversation is right after Crystal's father died when he's angry and feels selfish and that God made his life unfair. God tells him that those are the cards he was dealt which makes Crystal quip, "Are you God or a blackjack dealer?"
At the last moments of the play, after the death of his mother, Billy speaks with God again and mimes a handful of cards that he's looking at. He starts by talking about the bad cards, the death of his father, his short height, but then quickly moves on to say all the great cards he was dealt: being close with his mother, having a beautiful wife and two daughters, getting to have the career he's always wanted.
It was a beautiful reflection on how we all are presented with certain circumstances of life, the "cards we're dealt" but we are given so many more good cards than bad. God gives us gifts in everything, even the worst of situations, the heaviest of loses, or the deepest of depressions can yield fruit that following our own will never could.
We are privledged to say that God is our Father and He gives us not just 700 Sundays but every day. Our life is an opportunity to love more truthfully each day and God gives us the necessary grace to grow in love. Each struggle we have, each failure and loss and heartache all lead us down a path we would never have without it.
When I compare my life to others I feel very blessed and that God has truly guided me safely so far. I have had some troubling experiences but not the devestating ones I have heard wiser people speak of and the pain that accompanies age. I know that I too will have these seemingly detrimental agonies but God is leading me tonight to the conclusion that they are important and for a purpose.
I wish I had something funny to say, I actually have been wishing I had something funny to say all day! But tonight I am just utterly grateful for God's gifts to me and I hope that He guides each of us to use our talents as well as our pains and wounds to bring us more fully into His life.
God love you!
~onecatholicguy
And the most touching part of the play for me were two scenes that mirror each other in the show, both taking place in heaven with Billy talking to God. The first conversation is right after Crystal's father died when he's angry and feels selfish and that God made his life unfair. God tells him that those are the cards he was dealt which makes Crystal quip, "Are you God or a blackjack dealer?"
At the last moments of the play, after the death of his mother, Billy speaks with God again and mimes a handful of cards that he's looking at. He starts by talking about the bad cards, the death of his father, his short height, but then quickly moves on to say all the great cards he was dealt: being close with his mother, having a beautiful wife and two daughters, getting to have the career he's always wanted.
It was a beautiful reflection on how we all are presented with certain circumstances of life, the "cards we're dealt" but we are given so many more good cards than bad. God gives us gifts in everything, even the worst of situations, the heaviest of loses, or the deepest of depressions can yield fruit that following our own will never could.
We are privledged to say that God is our Father and He gives us not just 700 Sundays but every day. Our life is an opportunity to love more truthfully each day and God gives us the necessary grace to grow in love. Each struggle we have, each failure and loss and heartache all lead us down a path we would never have without it.
When I compare my life to others I feel very blessed and that God has truly guided me safely so far. I have had some troubling experiences but not the devestating ones I have heard wiser people speak of and the pain that accompanies age. I know that I too will have these seemingly detrimental agonies but God is leading me tonight to the conclusion that they are important and for a purpose.
I wish I had something funny to say, I actually have been wishing I had something funny to say all day! But tonight I am just utterly grateful for God's gifts to me and I hope that He guides each of us to use our talents as well as our pains and wounds to bring us more fully into His life.
God love you!
~onecatholicguy
Sunday, April 27, 2014
Canonized!
I'm pretty exhausted today because I got up at 4 am to watch the historic canonization of Pope Saints John XXIII and John Paul II! So sadly, I haven't the energy to truly reflect on the beauty of the canonization, Divine Mercy Sunday, or St. Thomas' finger sticking good gospel.
Needless to say this was a day full of Easter joy and I am extremely grateful for today and I pray in a special way tonight for the intercession of John XXIII and John Paul II for the church and in a special way I pray for the homeless, poor, hungry, depressed, suicidal, and all those who may not be seeing the joy of Christ today.
I promise more in depth reflections later this week! And now some sleep, good night and God bless you all!
~onecatholicguy
Saturday, April 26, 2014
Divine Mercy
Today I have only one quick message:
The Lord is good and merciful, His mercy endures forever!
That is our joy and the gift Christ gives us in His sacrifice, reconciling us the the Father.
Praise to You Lord Jesus Christ, king of endless glory! Thanks be to God for His divine mercy on us!
Friday, April 25, 2014
Peter's Swimming lesson
Today, St Peter gives us a lesson in discipleship that's very fitting as we prepare for the canonization of two of his successors this weekend.
What joy would we have if we saw the resurrected Lord for the first time? How greater still the joy for the second reappearance ensuring our minds without a doubt this is true?
Perhaps Peter was doubting the true resurrection when he told the other apostles he was going fishing? Or maybe he simply didn't know what to do yet. He hadn't yet received the Holy Spirit on Pentecost and so maybe, without Christ physically present to follow he had no idea what to do except go back to fish old livelihood, fishing.
And as the leader of the apostles the others follow him. Several other apostles are in the boat with him when they hear a cry from the shore, "Children have you caught anything?"
That should've been there first clue this dude about the sand isn't your average beach bum. Usually one doesn't call a group of 30-40 year olds children unless the person is really old. And even then, they'd be more likely to say "youngin" or "whippersnapper" than Children. This is a father calling and, like a good father, he gives them advice and takes them fishing.
They cast te net off to the side as He says and soon the net is so full they cannot even reel it in. John is the first to say that it is The Lord, just as he testified to Jesus' resurrection by arriving at the tomb. But in an effort not to lose another race, Peter jumps into the water and speeds off.
Peter may look pretty silly doing this since they're only a hundred feet from shore, but his love for Jesus is so fierce that he cannot contain his joy. He gladly will look the fool to get closer to Christ! And him diving in the water is almost a sacramental reminder of baptism, he dives in the water with his eyes on Jesus, full of faith and vigor.
When the other apostles arrive on shore Jesus asks them to bring their catch to Him and Peter alone drags the net of 153 fish to The Lord. He really must have been working out since John beat him in the foot race because 153 edible fish has got to be heavy! (I'm not ichtiologist but I have read One fish two fish red fish blue fish a few times).
But it is at Christ's command he leaps into action! Peter's joy is to do the Lord's will and his enthusiasm and strength is an inspiring show of love.
As we prep to canonize John XXIII and JPII this weekend, let us look back even further to Peter, asking in the glow of the miracle and mystery of Easter, and pray for all three of these great pope's intercession
Thursday, April 24, 2014
What is man? What's in a name?
PThis reflection on Easter joy is based on the daily mass readings for today.
What particularly struck me about today's readings was one line in the Psalm:
From the very first mention in the Bible, we know we are made in the image of God, both man and woman showing that God contains the fullness of humanity in Himself. And this Psalm continues that same message of Genesis that man was given a privileged position above the creatures of the earth. But man had barely existed yet, how could he earn that right above the creatures?
The answer is that we were chosen because we are made in God's image. Not, as the serpent tried to convince Adam and Eve, or our ego tries to convince us daily, that we are like gods. None of this isn't by our merits but is a gift from God! Even if man were to hold dominion over all creation, he is still a creature. So, like the Psalm said, "What is man?"
Going back to the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles, we see Peter addressing a large crowd that has formed around him and John amazed at their power after they have healed a disabled man. The healed man himself clings to them, looking up in adoration and gratitude. On some level this must make them happy, after all Peter is the rock of the church, the chosen one by Christ Himself! And John, he had argued with his brother over who was to sit at the Lord's side. It's only human to feel some pride at their accomplishment, having helped that man and most of us might bask in the glow of that crowd's admiration. I venture I would.
But that is not what Peter and John did. Their pride was not the victor that day for, at this point, they had already received the Holy Spirit, and filled with the Spirit Peter asked,
The Gospel for today shows that He is a true man in His resurrection. He sees the apostles are frightened of Him and his supernatural power, just like they were when they saw Him walking on the water years earlier. But He shows them his side and his hands and feet, the wounds of the crucified man they buried in the stone tomb. He asks them for food and they give fish which He eats.
Once they see He is a man and not a ghost, once they accept the truth of Christ's dual nature, only when they see Christ as He is can He reveal to them the truth of that Jesus fulfills the prophesies and Psalms. And he tells the apostles,
What particularly struck me about today's readings was one line in the Psalm:
What is man that you should be mindful of him,What is man that God should care for him? Who are we to the Father?
or the son of man that you should care for him? Ps8:4
From the very first mention in the Bible, we know we are made in the image of God, both man and woman showing that God contains the fullness of humanity in Himself. And this Psalm continues that same message of Genesis that man was given a privileged position above the creatures of the earth. But man had barely existed yet, how could he earn that right above the creatures?
The answer is that we were chosen because we are made in God's image. Not, as the serpent tried to convince Adam and Eve, or our ego tries to convince us daily, that we are like gods. None of this isn't by our merits but is a gift from God! Even if man were to hold dominion over all creation, he is still a creature. So, like the Psalm said, "What is man?"
Going back to the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles, we see Peter addressing a large crowd that has formed around him and John amazed at their power after they have healed a disabled man. The healed man himself clings to them, looking up in adoration and gratitude. On some level this must make them happy, after all Peter is the rock of the church, the chosen one by Christ Himself! And John, he had argued with his brother over who was to sit at the Lord's side. It's only human to feel some pride at their accomplishment, having helped that man and most of us might bask in the glow of that crowd's admiration. I venture I would.
But that is not what Peter and John did. Their pride was not the victor that day for, at this point, they had already received the Holy Spirit, and filled with the Spirit Peter asked,
When Peter saw this, he addressed the people, “You Israelites, why are you amazed at this, and why do you look so intently at us as if we had made him walk by our own power or piety?e Acts3:12He then points to the true reason the man was healed, a truth echoed in the psalms refrain,
O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!It is because of the disabled man's faith in the name of Jesus he is healed! Peter testifies to the name and life of Christ, the author of humanity who Himself became human. What is man that God should become incarnate in our weak flesh? That is the mystery and joy of Christmas, the Incarnation, but we see it here in the Easter season as well. Jesus is human and Divine, man and God, Incarnate and Ressurected.
The Gospel for today shows that He is a true man in His resurrection. He sees the apostles are frightened of Him and his supernatural power, just like they were when they saw Him walking on the water years earlier. But He shows them his side and his hands and feet, the wounds of the crucified man they buried in the stone tomb. He asks them for food and they give fish which He eats.
Once they see He is a man and not a ghost, once they accept the truth of Christ's dual nature, only when they see Christ as He is can He reveal to them the truth of that Jesus fulfills the prophesies and Psalms. And he tells the apostles,
“Thus it is written that the Christ would sufferWhich is exactly what the Psalmist says, "how wonderful your name" and what Peter preaches to the crowds in Jerusalem. Jesus answers the question of the Psalm when he tells the apostles,
and rise from the dead on the third day
and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins,
would be preached in his name
to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. Luke 24:46-47
"You are witnesses of these things" Luke 24:48
That is what man is: a witness. Our abilities and faculties as a witness to the Father who's image we are made in and our vocation as Christians is to witness to Jesus Christ and proclaim the wonder of His name to all. We are witnesses of God's love and believe in Him.
Our highest calling is not to become like gods but to worship and testify to the one true God in the Blessed Trinity of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit! In Him is our glory, and may all our work be done in love for God and offered to Him! The beauty of this revelation tonight surprises me and leaves me with few words except those of today's Psalm:
O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
Alleulia, Christ is Risen! Glory, honor, power to You forever and ever! Amen
God Bless,
~onecatholicguy
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Eucharist: Food for thought
I don't have too much time to write a post today but my fiancee sent me a text this morning based on the morning prayer in the Magnificat that I thought was a beautiful reflection.
I think the Psalm was Ps 63 where it says, "My soul shall be filled as with a banquet". This has a lot of relevance to her and I as we've been searching through countless banquet halls for our wedding reception. Most of these halls are empty, drab ugly carpet with overwrought and oddly ornamented chandeliers.
But God, in the Eucharist, fills us as with a banquet with just the plainest of food: bread. That is because that bread is actually the person of Jesus within the humble appearance of the host. God takes the simplest and purest form without any adornments as to not distract us from the true food that is the Word of God inside the "bread". How sweet is that!
A whole banquet, the celebratory wedding feast of the Lamb, the entirety of the Universe all contained in this one small morsel. That's food for thought.
I am extremely grateful for God's love and His self-giving in the Eucharist today. That is my joyful thought for this day, that God loves us and is present in the Eucharist. This satisfies our souls and makes us full in spirit and teaches us humilty and love.
Thank you Lord for instituting the Eucharist so that we may know you and may learn from this most mysterious and beautiful sacrament!
God bless!
~onecatholicguy
I think the Psalm was Ps 63 where it says, "My soul shall be filled as with a banquet". This has a lot of relevance to her and I as we've been searching through countless banquet halls for our wedding reception. Most of these halls are empty, drab ugly carpet with overwrought and oddly ornamented chandeliers.
But God, in the Eucharist, fills us as with a banquet with just the plainest of food: bread. That is because that bread is actually the person of Jesus within the humble appearance of the host. God takes the simplest and purest form without any adornments as to not distract us from the true food that is the Word of God inside the "bread". How sweet is that!
A whole banquet, the celebratory wedding feast of the Lamb, the entirety of the Universe all contained in this one small morsel. That's food for thought.
I am extremely grateful for God's love and His self-giving in the Eucharist today. That is my joyful thought for this day, that God loves us and is present in the Eucharist. This satisfies our souls and makes us full in spirit and teaches us humilty and love.
Thank you Lord for instituting the Eucharist so that we may know you and may learn from this most mysterious and beautiful sacrament!
God bless!
~onecatholicguy
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Three's Company: Jacob and his sister wives
Today the biggest thing on my schedule is going to look for wedding venues. Being engaged is a very special time and I've gotten to know my fiancee in more intimate and beautiful ways as we look forward and plan our wedding. That being said, it's also an extremely stressful time and the planning itself leaves something to be desired. But I consider it a necessary labor as our life together deserves a proper start.
This morning I flipped through the Bible and stumbled upon the story of Jacob. I faintly recalled that Jacob was married to two women and I knew they were sisters. Or maybe that was just a show I fell asleep during on TLC. Regardless, in an attempt to understand how the man who would be Israel and the stem of the rest of the scriptures leading up to the coming of Christ, I read Genesis 29 and 30.
For those equally unfamiliar with the story, Jacob (Issac's son, Abraham's grandson) is fleeing from Cannan because he tricked his father into blessing him instead of his brother Esau and his brother wants to kill him. So, Jacob is talking to some shepherds, discovers he's in the country of his uncle Laban. Rachel, his wife to be, show up with some sheep and he kisses her and bursts into tears yelling for joy. A mini-family renuinon. She brings him to her father and Jacob starts to work for Laban. Laban asks what he wants for wages and he says he wants to marry Rachel. It's at this time we also meet the eldest daughter, Leah who is described as having lovely eyes (alternate translation is "weak" eyes which sound lovely if not iron deficient). Laban agrees and he works for him for seven years, "yet they seemed to him but a few days because of his love for her." (Gen29:20). How sweet.
Now it gets weird. Jacob asks to consummate the marriage since his seven years are up. He consummates the marriage and then in the morning discovers, oops, that was Leah! You'd imagine he'd be able to tell. But don't imagine that, since he wasn't and consequently asks Laban why he did this. Laban gives an excuse that you need to marry off the eldest first and Jacob has to finish the bridal week with Leah before marrying Rachel.
It's an interesting punishment to say the least and, besides the weirdness of him marrying two sisters by accident, it fits his particular crime. Jacob is running from his older brother because he stole what was rightfully his. Laban, for all his trickery, is trying to prevent the same thing happening to Leah. She is the firstborn and rightful to be married before her younger sister.
That being said it's tough to see Leah as blameless, even if she looks at you with her puppy dog weak/lovely eyes. She knew obviously that sleeping with Jacob was a deception and she participated but we don't know the reasoning behind it. But this quote stands out as making her sympathetic,
The way Leah names her children shows an evolution of her understanding of her relationship to Jacob and the Lord. Leah's firstborn is Reuben which she said means, "The Lord saw my misery; now my husband will love me" (Gen 29:32). Leah is despondent over not having Jacob's love, all her focus is on her failing marriage. Naming her second son, Simeon, "she said, 'It means, 'The Lord heard that I was unloved so he has given me this one also'" (Gen29:33). This is what the scripture says is the Lord's reason for making her fruitful, because she is unloved. Levi, the third is named because of her husband will be "attached" to her. She's no longer seeking Jacob's love in the same way she originally was but just a connection. Jacob's love is not truly for her and she can't force it with these children. Finally Judah is born, the ancestral origin of the line of David, and she says, "This time I will give grateful praise to the Lord" (Gen 29:35). Her love and praise has gone to it's proper place, the Lord. Her attention is finally on the source of love and, lesson learned, she stops bearing children...for now.
Meanwhile in Gen 30, poor Rachel is still infertile. We actually learn that she's so desperate to have children she allows Jacob to sleep with her servant and later he also sleeps with Leah's servant and has many more children. Rachel's first two children (via surrogate) she names Dan and Naphtali because she had been "vindicated" and "prevailed over her sister" (Gen 30:6-8). For Rachel this is all about a battle with sister and Jacob barely matter in the equation. We may imagine she isn't even making love to her husband, if only because he's too busy schtupping everyone else. Their great instant love is challenged and tested by this unfruitfulness and, much like Jacob's grandmother Sara, she has resorted to a vicarious birth.
Rachel is so desperate to bear a child that she allows Leah to sleep with Jacob again in exchange for mandrakes that Reuben found. Mandrakes appearantly are known for promoting conception and are an aphrodisiac (I guess oysters are out of the question since they're not kosher). And it certainly did...for Leah. Leah names the fifth son Issachar saying, "God has given me my reward for having let my husband have my maidservant." (Gen 30:18). That's strange for any number of reasons, one of which is she called Jacob her husband again, perhaps unlearning the last lesson of handing herself and her children over to God. The next son she says her husband will offer her presents because of bearing him six sons! What is this, one of those bear six get one free deals? Presents? How about some child support?
This all seems so trivial! How is this intensely fruitful marriage reduced by the 7th child (Dinah, a daughter) to, "maybe I'll get a present?" Because it's not the real marriage. The intended marriage is supposed to be between Jacob and Rachel, not Leah or any number of maidservant. And the scripture says,
God remembered Rachel and bore her the son she had waited so desperately for. Joseph we follow for the rest of Genesis and is a very good man, who also suffers much affliction like his mother. And she asks for another, a son that will be born to her on her deathbed in Gen35, Benjamin, "Son of my affliction". Rachel suffers greatly but bears two sons in the end. Her disgrace, like her husband, is tied to her sibling rivalry. It was their pride partially that blocked her from having children but God does not forget his people and finally answers her prayer.
I'm struggling now to figure out a tie to the joy of Easter here. I think, like all things, we will the find the answer in Christ. Jesus is the firstborn of God and the first to be ressurected in glory. He totally gave of himself to offer us the chance to be God's children. We all are united in Christ and reconciled to the Father. And I guess one thing I gleam from the story of Rachel and Leah and Jacob is that in marriage you have to constantly turn to God. As wonderful as your spouse is, you are loving God in your love for them and your fruitfulness comes from Him. Sex is the ultimate bond of love and it's our share in God creative act. That mutual love is not something that can be trivialized or trampled upon by circumstances in our lives. We have to offer ourselves wholly to God first and then to our husbands and wives.
I thought I thought another thought but it's escaped me. Point is, love you spouse, love God, and dont trick your inlaws into sleeping with the wrong relative.
This morning I flipped through the Bible and stumbled upon the story of Jacob. I faintly recalled that Jacob was married to two women and I knew they were sisters. Or maybe that was just a show I fell asleep during on TLC. Regardless, in an attempt to understand how the man who would be Israel and the stem of the rest of the scriptures leading up to the coming of Christ, I read Genesis 29 and 30.
For those equally unfamiliar with the story, Jacob (Issac's son, Abraham's grandson) is fleeing from Cannan because he tricked his father into blessing him instead of his brother Esau and his brother wants to kill him. So, Jacob is talking to some shepherds, discovers he's in the country of his uncle Laban. Rachel, his wife to be, show up with some sheep and he kisses her and bursts into tears yelling for joy. A mini-family renuinon. She brings him to her father and Jacob starts to work for Laban. Laban asks what he wants for wages and he says he wants to marry Rachel. It's at this time we also meet the eldest daughter, Leah who is described as having lovely eyes (alternate translation is "weak" eyes which sound lovely if not iron deficient). Laban agrees and he works for him for seven years, "yet they seemed to him but a few days because of his love for her." (Gen29:20). How sweet.
Now it gets weird. Jacob asks to consummate the marriage since his seven years are up. He consummates the marriage and then in the morning discovers, oops, that was Leah! You'd imagine he'd be able to tell. But don't imagine that, since he wasn't and consequently asks Laban why he did this. Laban gives an excuse that you need to marry off the eldest first and Jacob has to finish the bridal week with Leah before marrying Rachel.
It's an interesting punishment to say the least and, besides the weirdness of him marrying two sisters by accident, it fits his particular crime. Jacob is running from his older brother because he stole what was rightfully his. Laban, for all his trickery, is trying to prevent the same thing happening to Leah. She is the firstborn and rightful to be married before her younger sister.
That being said it's tough to see Leah as blameless, even if she looks at you with her puppy dog weak/lovely eyes. She knew obviously that sleeping with Jacob was a deception and she participated but we don't know the reasoning behind it. But this quote stands out as making her sympathetic,
"When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, he made her fruitful, while Rachel remained barren." Gen 29:31Because Leah did not have Jacob's love but was now part of this marriage to him, God gave her six children of the twelve who would become the branches of the nation of Israel.
The way Leah names her children shows an evolution of her understanding of her relationship to Jacob and the Lord. Leah's firstborn is Reuben which she said means, "The Lord saw my misery; now my husband will love me" (Gen 29:32). Leah is despondent over not having Jacob's love, all her focus is on her failing marriage. Naming her second son, Simeon, "she said, 'It means, 'The Lord heard that I was unloved so he has given me this one also'" (Gen29:33). This is what the scripture says is the Lord's reason for making her fruitful, because she is unloved. Levi, the third is named because of her husband will be "attached" to her. She's no longer seeking Jacob's love in the same way she originally was but just a connection. Jacob's love is not truly for her and she can't force it with these children. Finally Judah is born, the ancestral origin of the line of David, and she says, "This time I will give grateful praise to the Lord" (Gen 29:35). Her love and praise has gone to it's proper place, the Lord. Her attention is finally on the source of love and, lesson learned, she stops bearing children...for now.
Meanwhile in Gen 30, poor Rachel is still infertile. We actually learn that she's so desperate to have children she allows Jacob to sleep with her servant and later he also sleeps with Leah's servant and has many more children. Rachel's first two children (via surrogate) she names Dan and Naphtali because she had been "vindicated" and "prevailed over her sister" (Gen 30:6-8). For Rachel this is all about a battle with sister and Jacob barely matter in the equation. We may imagine she isn't even making love to her husband, if only because he's too busy schtupping everyone else. Their great instant love is challenged and tested by this unfruitfulness and, much like Jacob's grandmother Sara, she has resorted to a vicarious birth.
Rachel is so desperate to bear a child that she allows Leah to sleep with Jacob again in exchange for mandrakes that Reuben found. Mandrakes appearantly are known for promoting conception and are an aphrodisiac (I guess oysters are out of the question since they're not kosher). And it certainly did...for Leah. Leah names the fifth son Issachar saying, "God has given me my reward for having let my husband have my maidservant." (Gen 30:18). That's strange for any number of reasons, one of which is she called Jacob her husband again, perhaps unlearning the last lesson of handing herself and her children over to God. The next son she says her husband will offer her presents because of bearing him six sons! What is this, one of those bear six get one free deals? Presents? How about some child support?
This all seems so trivial! How is this intensely fruitful marriage reduced by the 7th child (Dinah, a daughter) to, "maybe I'll get a present?" Because it's not the real marriage. The intended marriage is supposed to be between Jacob and Rachel, not Leah or any number of maidservant. And the scripture says,
"Then God remembered Rachel; he heard her prayer and made her fruitful. She conceived and bore a son, and she said, 'God has removed my disgrace' So she named him Joseph, meaning, 'May the Lord add another son to this one for me!" (Gen 31:22-24).
God remembered Rachel and bore her the son she had waited so desperately for. Joseph we follow for the rest of Genesis and is a very good man, who also suffers much affliction like his mother. And she asks for another, a son that will be born to her on her deathbed in Gen35, Benjamin, "Son of my affliction". Rachel suffers greatly but bears two sons in the end. Her disgrace, like her husband, is tied to her sibling rivalry. It was their pride partially that blocked her from having children but God does not forget his people and finally answers her prayer.
I'm struggling now to figure out a tie to the joy of Easter here. I think, like all things, we will the find the answer in Christ. Jesus is the firstborn of God and the first to be ressurected in glory. He totally gave of himself to offer us the chance to be God's children. We all are united in Christ and reconciled to the Father. And I guess one thing I gleam from the story of Rachel and Leah and Jacob is that in marriage you have to constantly turn to God. As wonderful as your spouse is, you are loving God in your love for them and your fruitfulness comes from Him. Sex is the ultimate bond of love and it's our share in God creative act. That mutual love is not something that can be trivialized or trampled upon by circumstances in our lives. We have to offer ourselves wholly to God first and then to our husbands and wives.
I thought I thought another thought but it's escaped me. Point is, love you spouse, love God, and dont trick your inlaws into sleeping with the wrong relative.
Until tomorrow,
In Christ's love,
~onecatholicguy
Monday, April 21, 2014
Procrastinating
I was debating all day what to write for this first of 50 posts in honor of the Easter season. I wracked my mind, listened to too many catholic podcasts in a row, and read from books of the Bible I didn't remember existed (Habakkuk? General rule: if it has three K's in it, not a great name). Perhaps to get a Joseph like prophetic dream on what to write I took a nap. It's more likely I was tired but either way, I woke up with nothing.
Then it struck me to just tell the truth of my procrastination. You see, aside from this webpage the other program I have open is a screenplay I am writing. I've been writing for a few years and hope one day to make a career writing movies and TV shows. But the biggest problem is I'm a terrible procrastinator and I find writing painful and slow. And hot, as in "this old broken laptop is heating up and burning my fingers hot". Ow. Appropriate in a way since my screenplay is about firefighters, which I know very little about. Much in the same way, this blog is about Catholic stuff which I also know little about.
Perhaps me choosing this two projects that I know little about is my way of allowing procrastination to grow. After all, I can hardly blame me for not writing this scene yet or that post since I have to research it. I'm unprepared, I need more time, I am not ready. I kind of feel that way towards Easter as well. I had 40 days to prep during Lent, 40 days that I didn't do that great of a job with it (and no, I didn't write all that much during those 40 days either). But ready or not, here it is: Easter, the script and the blog. All are happening right now.
My Lent was kinda like the first draft of a screenplay-- it was long, boring, didn't keep to any of the rules, and it wasn't a good story. But Easter is here. The story is rewritten. The ending we expect, the ending we all agree is "The end", death, is gone. Demolished. Defeated. Done. It is such a drastic change in the story that it could only be done by the greatest Author of all time, God in His Word Jesus. It is a re-creation of our human understanding of how the world works.
Since the very first moments of humanity we have known the inevitable that we will one day die. The whole an apple a day keeps the doctor away thing didn't work out well for Adam and Eve and ever since we all got with the program. Birth, a quick appetizer course called childhood, an entree of Life followed very shortly after by death. If you are healthy, maybe you'll have time for some dessert before you shuffle off the mortal coil (I don't recommend the apple cobbler). But Jesus has re-written the script and torn away the strictures of death and sin.
He rose from the dead! That is not just the greatest story ever told, it is a remaking of reality! It's a new existence entirely, one that in Christ, with the Holy Spirit, allows us to become God's children. It's an unfathomable resolution to the drama of our lives and really the only thing stopping us is ourselves.
Procrastination stems from pride as all things do. Why do I not write my script? Because I know that once I write it I will see I'm not good at this. And that fear of revelation can stop you from doing what you mean to, which prevents you from getting better at whatever you're procrastinating from. The same thing goes for our spiritual lives. We sin because to stop sinning, and to love God more fully would show us the horror of our actions and our selfishness. Christ's light shows us our own shadows.
But there is hope! He has conquered death and His light can cast out the shadows! We only need to turn to God! The resurrection is a page one rewrite of everything. God so loves us that He recreated the world and offered His Son to die for our sins. We do not deserve this love at all but He gives it in the truest form of love and sacrifice. This blog post won't make any sense but this is my first effort to stop procrastinating and to give my incomplete, incomprehensible, slobby self to God and say, "I'll take the first step. I will follow you"
And I know that this step was a stumble. This blog is confusing even to me and my script will be unreadable as I type it tonight. But there is hope, Jesus wants us by His side and if we step and fall a few million times in the right direction, at least we'll be closer to Him. If we procrastinate and look only interiorly at ourselves we'll never make it to Him.
Until tomorrow, in the words of Ven. Fulton Sheen
"God love you"
~one catholic guy~
Then it struck me to just tell the truth of my procrastination. You see, aside from this webpage the other program I have open is a screenplay I am writing. I've been writing for a few years and hope one day to make a career writing movies and TV shows. But the biggest problem is I'm a terrible procrastinator and I find writing painful and slow. And hot, as in "this old broken laptop is heating up and burning my fingers hot". Ow. Appropriate in a way since my screenplay is about firefighters, which I know very little about. Much in the same way, this blog is about Catholic stuff which I also know little about.
Perhaps me choosing this two projects that I know little about is my way of allowing procrastination to grow. After all, I can hardly blame me for not writing this scene yet or that post since I have to research it. I'm unprepared, I need more time, I am not ready. I kind of feel that way towards Easter as well. I had 40 days to prep during Lent, 40 days that I didn't do that great of a job with it (and no, I didn't write all that much during those 40 days either). But ready or not, here it is: Easter, the script and the blog. All are happening right now.
My Lent was kinda like the first draft of a screenplay-- it was long, boring, didn't keep to any of the rules, and it wasn't a good story. But Easter is here. The story is rewritten. The ending we expect, the ending we all agree is "The end", death, is gone. Demolished. Defeated. Done. It is such a drastic change in the story that it could only be done by the greatest Author of all time, God in His Word Jesus. It is a re-creation of our human understanding of how the world works.
Since the very first moments of humanity we have known the inevitable that we will one day die. The whole an apple a day keeps the doctor away thing didn't work out well for Adam and Eve and ever since we all got with the program. Birth, a quick appetizer course called childhood, an entree of Life followed very shortly after by death. If you are healthy, maybe you'll have time for some dessert before you shuffle off the mortal coil (I don't recommend the apple cobbler). But Jesus has re-written the script and torn away the strictures of death and sin.
He rose from the dead! That is not just the greatest story ever told, it is a remaking of reality! It's a new existence entirely, one that in Christ, with the Holy Spirit, allows us to become God's children. It's an unfathomable resolution to the drama of our lives and really the only thing stopping us is ourselves.
Procrastination stems from pride as all things do. Why do I not write my script? Because I know that once I write it I will see I'm not good at this. And that fear of revelation can stop you from doing what you mean to, which prevents you from getting better at whatever you're procrastinating from. The same thing goes for our spiritual lives. We sin because to stop sinning, and to love God more fully would show us the horror of our actions and our selfishness. Christ's light shows us our own shadows.
But there is hope! He has conquered death and His light can cast out the shadows! We only need to turn to God! The resurrection is a page one rewrite of everything. God so loves us that He recreated the world and offered His Son to die for our sins. We do not deserve this love at all but He gives it in the truest form of love and sacrifice. This blog post won't make any sense but this is my first effort to stop procrastinating and to give my incomplete, incomprehensible, slobby self to God and say, "I'll take the first step. I will follow you"
And I know that this step was a stumble. This blog is confusing even to me and my script will be unreadable as I type it tonight. But there is hope, Jesus wants us by His side and if we step and fall a few million times in the right direction, at least we'll be closer to Him. If we procrastinate and look only interiorly at ourselves we'll never make it to Him.
Until tomorrow, in the words of Ven. Fulton Sheen
"God love you"
~one catholic guy~
Sunday, April 20, 2014
Happy Easter- emphasis on Happy!
It's been a long time and a lot has changed since I last blogged on this page.
First, most notably, Happy Easter! Since I last wrote the Year of Faith has ended! I hope it was fruitful for you! My original mission with this blog was to explore the year of faith through a series of writings and videos on different topics. I was overly ambitious and quickly fell off the project which saddened but humbled me.
Also, very important, I got engaged! I proposed and my fiancée and I will be getting married next year so please pray for us.
Being engaged has taught me a lot about patience, humility, love, and patience (we have a longer engagement so patience is pretty key!). It's a struggle but a joyful one and that's what has brought me back to this blog.
During Easter mass today I was struck by the beauty of life around me. Families bring their children up in their arms to communion, a young priest celebrating his first Easter mass, and God himself resurrected in the person of Christ, having suffered and died for us. I was in awe of the beauty of Easter, as I attended mass with my mother who in recent years hasn't been a frequent attendee. It inspired me to come back and start a new project; a simpler one in many ways.
My new spiritual undertaking is a much more realized one than what I sought to do for the year of faith. Easter is the fulfillment of our faith, hope, and love and this fulfillment comes in Jesus who suffered, died, and has risen and ascended to glory. So, for this season, as a way of deepening my love for God, I purpose to write a daily reflection on happiness and joy each day this Easter season.
Some posts will be personal, others theological, others may not even contain words but I aim that each at it's root will explore joy and try and find something about happiness.
Again, perhaps I am setting myself up for too lofty a project but I will try my best to faithfully post each day. I look forward to going on this journey with you and celebrating the joy of Easter daily.
Happy Easter, He is risen! Alleluia!
God bless!
~one catholic guy
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