Hello Silence My Old Friend

After listening to the cacophony prior to Mass beginning, it occurred to me to write a post about not being able to listen to God in His own House. Would it be rude to point out to people that God is present in the Church? My son complained that he can't hear God speaking to him. No wonder.

The worse transgression happened during our Holy Hour of Adoration the other evening. My family and I were alone in the Adoration Chapel. A lady soon joined us. Then her cell phone started ringing. I must admit it took a lot of effort to recollect myself and to remind myself Who was in front of me. The worse part is that she took two calls in that one hour.

Well, I don't have to write a post after all because someone has done a terrific job of putting to words what I have been feeling.

Adoro de Devoto - The Scandal of Silence

Prayer is not even honored in our own churches. We are bullied into singing, we are bullied into applauding, and we are bullied away from the reverence due Christ in order to misplace that reverence on the altar of self-esteem of whoever-might-be-in-the-spotlight.

Silence is sacred and reveals the sacred to those who are willing to listen. Can't we please have a single place in this world where we can come to kneel in silent awe before Our Lord and not be disrupted by the spirit of the age?

A big mahalo to Fr. Daren for pointing the way to that post.

11 Tips For Keeping Yourself Sane...

...when your parish is not what it's cracked up to be, liturgically speaking. My parish is a good parish. I just thought I'd share it in case someone could use the help.

I couldn't resist this list...actually, I can't resist any list.

I think I have my friend Tracy to thank for introducing me to this blog. Thanks Tracy!

(1) Don't stop and kick every barking dog. Don't fill up your pastor's email inbox with excessive complaints about liturgical abuses or catechetical errors. Chances are he knows about them and either doesn't care or is too feckless to do anything about it.

(2) Get sanity checks. Just because you don't belong to a healthy parish doesn't mean you can't visit one. Make it a monthly habit to go Mass at a such a place.

(3) Remember you are a member of the universal Church. Follow the Church's liturgical calendar and take advantage of the wealth of resources available on the Internet, e.g., homilies, commentaries, saints of the day.

(4) Kick the big dog. If you want to reform your parish, focus on a big problem and recruit fellow parishioners to change it. Do not hesitate to involve your bishop or Rome if you have exhausted local options.

(5) Form apostolates. Ask your pastor if a Bible study or catechism group can meet at the parish center, or, if that is not an option, meet at parishioner homes.

(6) Pray for your parish. It all starts -- but doesn't end -- with prayer.

(7) Lead your domestic church. You are the primary educators of your children. Make it a practice to read the lives of the saints, review a weekly chapter from a solid catechism, and gather for some form of evening prayer. Responsibility for your personal formation is part of this too.

(8) Don't scowl too much. This is somewhat related to tip (2), and one that strikes a personal chord, especially as a father. A cheery witness is a good witness; a grumpy one isn't.

(9) Be a Vatican II Catholic. The primary message to the laity of the Council was to engage and sanctify the world. It is outward directed. So becoming an active Catholic doesn't necessarily mean joining parish commissions, serving as an extraordinary minister, or joining the PTO. There are plenty of Catholic apostolates and organizations that need your help.

(10) Be hopeful. By hopeful, I do not mean "optimistic," a natural disposition or outlook. Hope is theological -- close to God. Put it all in His hands. Do not engage in the sort of conspiracy theories that predictably and lamentably circulate in troubled dioceses. The problems out in the open are probably bad enough.

(11) Seek fellowship. A fellow parishioner is organizing an Advent Bible study for couples. Many of the participants in my Monday morning catechism group have become dear friends. Strengthen the bond with your fellow Catholics by celebrating your faith with them.

Thanks to the Ten Reasons Blog

The Church

Purgatorio by Salvador Dali

The Church teaches us that the Holy Souls in Purgatory are officially known as "The Church Suffering" because they are undergoing purification before entering into Heaven. There may be said to be a sort of joy in Purgatory, though, despite the suffering which largely results from an absence of God.

This joy is because the Poor Souls in Purgatory are assured of their salvation. They have made it to Purgatory, so they cannot be damned to hell. They are confident that after their stay in Purgatory, they will be permitted to enter into everlasting bliss in Heaven and will never have to undergo the permanent fires of hell.

The second branch of the Church after "The Church Suffering" is "The Church Militant". We who still are working out our daily salvation are considered to be members of this group.

The third branch is "The Church Triumphant", the full company of the Communion of Saints in Heaven

Shared by Sue

Einstein and the Catholic Church

"Being a lover of freedom, when Nazi revolution came in Germany, I looked to the universities to defend it, knowing that they had always boasted of their devotion tot he cause of truth; but, no, the universities immediately were silenced. Then I looked to the great editors of the newspapers, whose flaming editorials in days gone by had proclaimed their love of freedom; but they, like the universities, were silenced in a few short weeks. Only the Catholic Church stood squarely across the path of Hitler's campaign for suppressing the truth. I never had any special interest in the Church before, but now I feel a great affection and admiration because the Church alone has had the courage and persistence to stand for intellectual truth and moral freedom. I am forced thus to confess that what I once despised, I now praise unreservedly."

I found the following quote in Myth of Hitler's Pope by Rabbi David G. Dalin.

The Catholic Church still stands up to enemies of the sanctity of life.

The Primacy of Peter in Scripture

Picture courtesy of This Site

Deb has a wonderful resource on her blog regarding the Primacy of St.Peter

..."And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." ~ Matt 16-19

Visit her site by CLICKING HERE for the scripture references.

Why Go to Church?

Hat tip to my friend Cc.

Photo of St. Augustine, Waikiki courtesy of P Base

Why Go To Church? A Church goer wrote a letter to the editor of a
newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday. "I've gone for 30 years now," he wrote, "and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 sermons. But for the life of me, I can't remember a single one of them. So, I think I'm wasting my time and the pastors are wasting theirs by giving sermons at all."

This started a real controversy in the "Letters to the Editor" column, much to the delight of the editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote this clincher:

"I've been married for 30 years now. In that time my wife has cooked some 32,000 meals. But, for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals. But I do know this.. They all nourished me and gave me the strength I needed to do my work. If my wife
had not given me these meals, I would be physically dead today.

Likewise, if I had not gone to church for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!" When you are DOWN to nothing.... God is UP to something! Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible! Thank God for our physical AND our spiritual nourishment!

Submitted to Prayer_Call by Phil Howard