jesus

Waiting for the Treasure: How the Rosary Teaches Patience

I really wish I had the time to write a rosary reflection every day based on that day’s Gospel passage. But given that I’m only one person with a family and full-time job, I guess that will just need to wait another 30 years for my retirement. But I’ll consider myself successful if I can tie at least one Gospel to the rosary each week.

Let’s look at the Gospel from 7/27/16:

Jesus said to his disciples:
“The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field,
which a person finds and hides again,
and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like a merchant
searching for fine pearls.
When he finds a pearl of great price,
he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.”

The theology 101 analysis of this reading is straight forward. Think of the treasure as God’s grace or Heaven. Those who understand its value will be willing to give away all their earthly possessions to possess it. Taking their chances that they will have enough money to buy the field or that the field is still available is comparable to our faith in the joys that await us in Heaven. We do not have any observable proof of the greatness of Heaven, but our faith tells us that it is something worth forsaking all our worldly comforts to obtain.

The phrase that popped out at me was the person selling all that he has to buy the field containing the treasure. Why didn’t this person just pocket the treasure and go on his merry way? That way, he would not have to go through the trouble of selling his possessions and buying the field which would cut into his overall profit from the treasure. Even when he does go through the effort of buying the field, does it seem dishonest to withhold from the owner that there is something of extreme value on his land?

Going through the exercise of selling what you have and buying the land demonstrates that effort is needed on your part to obtain what is valuable. Just taking the treasure without working for it implies a sense of entitlement; that God owes us his love. Or, it leads us to believe we are entitled to the glory of Heaven now, in this life. But Jesus tells us no, you have to be patient and work on your relationship with God and your reward will be found in Heaven. That treasure must remain buried in this life because we do not yet have the right or the ability to fully possess it.

Saint Matthew’s gospel reading reminds me of the Fourth Joyful Mystery of the rosary — The Presentation in the Temple. I think about Saint Simeon who met the infant Jesus after what I assume was years of waiting. Although God promised Saint Simeon a great gift of seeing the Savior before dying, it was still something he could not possess immediately and had to show patience. He knew God was going to fulfill that promise and he could have done anything with his life. But the fact that Saint Simeon was in the temple on the day of Jesus’ presentation implies that he was probably a regular worshiper and spend a lot of time in prayer.

The Presentation of Jesus at the Temple (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Now connect the dots between Saint Simeon in the Fourth Joyful Mystery of the rosary and Matthew’s gospel. While we have the promise of God’s grace, we have to put ourselves in the right frame of mind and spirit to fully receive it. I imagine that Saint Simeon wanted to accept God’s gift in the fullest manner possible and worked hard living righteously. Otherwise, I could envision him having regrets if he was to receive Jesus in an unworthy state. The same goes for us receiving the treasure that God freely offers us — the ability to spend eternity with him in Heaven.

Are we putting in the effort to fully receive that gift by living a spiritual and righteous life and avoiding sin? Or do we pass up that treasure in the field because we are still uncertain it’s worth the effort to obtain it? Or do we feel bitter and resentful because we cannot have it now? The next time you pray the rosary and meditate on the Gospel, ask God for the patience and perseverance to live for his Kingdom and the understanding that it is not something we can fully grasp in this life.

Learning Perseverance Through Rosary Prayer

Perseverance is not a word exactly tied to pleasant thoughts. The definition is “steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, a state, etc., especially in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or despair.” One does not persevere unless there is an element of unpleasantness. Take physical exercise for example. You gain strength only by working through pain and fatigue. Or think about a healthy diet. You have to deny yourself the temporary pleasures of cookies, cakes, and other sweets to achieve the more long term goal of staying fit and avoiding diseases. What about our spirituality? Does perseverance play a role in praying the rosary?

5268559005_86539b1164_o — Feel the burn!

I’m not going to get all kumbaya on you. Yes, I know that the rosary is a great prayer and I’ve spoken about its benefits for the last six years. But that doesn’t mean the rosary is an easy prayer or very relaxing for that matter. It is a prayer where we must demonstrate perseverance. And as time goes on, it seems like persevering through rosary prayer becomes an even larger challenge than in past generations. We live in an age where attention spans are narrowing. If a three minute YouTube video is considered long, then 20 minutes of rosary prayer is an eternity. The rosary can become repetitive and boring when compared to the instant gratification most of us have at our fingertips via our smartphones, computers, and televisions.

Now before you start saying that I’m a rosary hater, keep in mind that I’m echoing the same sentiment as St. Louis de Montfort in The Secret of the Rosary. He writes in his 43rd rose about how we have to fight distractions and persevere through the rosary to strengthen our faith:

Even if you have to fight distractions all through your whole Rosary be sure to fight well, arms in hand: that is to say, do not stop saying your Rosary even if it is hard to say and you have absolutely no sensible devotion. It is a terrible battle, I know, but one that is profitable to the faithful soul. If you put down your arms, that is, if you give up the Rosary, you will be admitting defeat and then, having won, the devil will leave you alone. But at the Day of Judgment he will taunt you because of your faithlessness and lack of courage. “He that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful also in that which is greater.” He who fights even the smallest distractions faithfully when he says even the very smallest prayer he will also be faithful in great things. We can be absolutely certain of this because the Holy Spirit has told us so.

I’ve said it before, rosary prayer is a spiritual exercise. Much like running that extra mile even when you’re tired, praying the rosary devoutly in the face of the seemingly boring repetition will strengthen you spiritually. Perseverance isn’t the act of enduring one large hardship. Many of us can muster the strength to face one large challenge. It’s the act of overcoming a series of hardships, both large and small, over a long period of time. But if you can persevere in praying the rosary devoutly day in and day out, then you’ve proved to yourself that you have the ability to persevere in resisting sin and temptation as well. Like exercise, rosary prayer’s little gains start to show incremental, if not exponential, returns in the long run.

Not only is praying the rosary itself an exercise in perseverance, the mysteries also teach us that perseverance brings us closer to God’s grace. The most obvious one is the Fourth Sorrowful Mystery — Jesus taking up his cross. Three of the stations of the cross explicitly call out Jesus falling and getting back up. Jesus endured the pain and hardship because he understood the importance of doing God’s Will. Similarly, we are called to live God’s Will even when it proves difficult or the rationale is incomprehensible. When life gets difficult, many of us give up and become angry with God because the suffering makes no sense to us. But the Fourth Sorrowful Mystery teaches us to instead put our trust in God’s plan even when we cannot understand it.

Perseverance, whether it’s praying the rosary routinely or continuing to love God in times of great hardship is the ultimate form of faith. You tell God, “I may not understand why you asking me to endure these hardships, but I will because I love you and I know they will ultimately bring me closer to you and your kingdom of Heaven.” That is the essential nature of faith — loving God even when he asks you to persevere through hardship.

Slow Down! — Rosary Prayer isn’t a Hot Dog Eating Contest

I read this article about the value of reading the Bible slowly and contemplatively. The author, David Mathis, compared meditating on the Bible to enjoying a well crafted meal as opposed to trying to scarf it down quickly like you’re in a hot dog eating contest. This article got me thinking that the same principle of meditative bible reading applies to rosary prayer and relates to what I wrote in my last post about finding happiness.

World-class eaters would never stuff themselves at top speed at every meal, but many of us are prone to come to Bible intake like we’re scarfing cheap hot dogs. When morning devotions are simply our first to-do of the day, and we set out simply to read a chapter, check a box, and complete the task, we end up putting ourselves through something more like a hot dog eating contest than an enjoyable, nourishing, life-giving meal.

You can basically replace the word “Bible” in the article with “rosary” and the overall message remains the same. This echoes what I said about how not understanding the why behind rosary prayer reduces it to a check box on your daily to-do list.

What I’m going to do going forward is really take my time praying the rosary and emphasize quality over quantity. I don’t think Mary sits all day on a cloud in Heaven with a clip board making notes on how many rosaries I complete. The rosary isn’t an all or nothing proposition where it doesn’t count if you don’t complete the entire rosary. After all, what does a complete rosary even mean? Five mysteries in a 24 hour period? Five mysteries in a single sitting? All 20 mysteries? The 15 original mysteries? The meaning of a whole rosary can vary greatly depending on the individual. So why race through a rosary to met some arbitrary standard?

English: A Discalced Carmelite nun sits in her... — English: A Discalced Carmelite nun sits in her cell, praying, meditating on the Bible. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I’m not saying that you should just give up praying the rosary or not set a goal of praying it. What I am asking is that you don’t water down your rosary praying by racing through it in order to meet that goal. I think Mary appreciates a single decade prayed earnestly over five decades prayed hastily. Some days you may manage a single decade. Other days you may have the energy and concentration for all 20 mysteries. The idea is to not go through the motions to reach a goal but also don’t stop just because you prayed a certain number of mysteries. It’s not like you or Mary are trying to meet some sort of monthly rosary quota. In short, use your rosary prayer time to its fullest by making the most of each prayer.

Did you just rattle off 10 Hail Marys while thinking about last night’s hockey game? Stop! Do it again. Did you just completely forget what mystery you were praying? Stop! Take a break and come back when you have more focus. Where is the downside to acknowledging that you actually weren’t praying for the last five minutes and trying again? There is no downside if the purpose of your rosary prayer is to pray it earnestly, not to complete the loop.

The Rosary is a Means, Not an End

No matter who you are, your goal in life is probably to maximize the quantity and quality of personal happiness. This goal unites nearly all of humanity whether you are an American suburbanite, a nomad in Mongolia, or even a terrorist fighting in Syria. We all seek to be happy although our means and justifications may differ.

Ven. Fulton J. Sheen provided these three simple rules for finding happiness. The TLDR; summary is:

If you are ever to have a good time, you cannot plan your life to include nothing but good times
Pleasure is deepened and enhanced when it has survived a moment of tedium or pain: this law helps us to make our prized pleasure last for whole lifetime.
Pleasure is a by-product, not a goal.

Fulton J. Sheen, Roman Catholic Bishop and ear... — Fulton J. Sheen, Roman Catholic Bishop and early television preacher (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I believe these happiness principles also apply to prayer, particularly rosary prayer. I think too many times we view rosary prayer as the goal, not the means to something greater. I’m in no way exempt from this way of thinking. I often tell myself that I’m going to pray the rosary every day but forget to remind myself WHY I want to pray the rosary every day.

Let me be clear. There is nothing wrong with motivating yourself to pray the rosary regularly as long as you are mindful that praying the rosary is a means, not an end in itself. When rosary prayer is treated as the goal it often becomes rushed and unfocused since we tend to treat it as a check box on our daily todo list.

Rosary prayer requires focus and patience if you want to maximize its benefits. Let’s be honest, praying the rosary is not always fun and pleasurable. But as Ven. Fulton J. Sheen said, when you endure a little bit of pain and hardship, it makes the fruits of that hardship that much more prized and treasured. Keep that in mind the next time you don’t feel like praying the rosary or just want to rush through it. Mary understands the difficulty and appreciates your desire to reach out to her son, Jesus Christ, in the face of such hardship.

The million dollar question becomes, what benefit am I hoping to maximize by praying the rosary? What do you hope to gain from it? Everyone will have a different answer. Here’s mine. I pray it as a means of deepening my relationship with God. I pray the rosary because my Mother Mary tells me it is the most effective way of living in God’s grace. She promises me 15 benefits if I pray the rosary devoutly. I believe it also gives me perspective on all the events of my life and seeing what’s truly important and what is not. In short, I want to grow in happiness by living as God asks me to. Those are my true goals that praying the rosary helps me move ever closer to.

Generally available Marian image created in th... — Generally available Marian image created in the 1880s. The white circular text in the halo reads: “Je suis l’Immaculée Conception” (French for “I am the Immaculate Conception”). From Jtdirl’s collection. Copyright long expired. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

How about you? What’s your idea of happiness? Are you trying to be happy by living as Ven. Fulton J. Sheen suggests? What do you hope to gain from prayer? Are you treating prayer as a means to happiness by looking for God’s grace or an end in itself?

The Value of Fasting

I am an avid reader of science and technology articles. I read Wired and Popular Science cover to cover within days of the magazine arriving in my mailbox and I read articles from numerous websites. I get super excited when I notice a link between my two passions — science and technology and prayer and spirituality.

I came across such an article that dived into the science behind fasting. A researcher has a theory that fasting obstructs a hormone responsible for cell growth and makes people more sensitive to insulin. He thinks that periodic fasting could reduce one’s chances of developing diabetes or cancer. The technical details are beyond the scope of this article but it’s an interesting read.

The article mentions that those who fast often feel sharper mentally because of a process called ketosis. It has something to do with a difference in body chemistry when you’re burning fat instead of carbohydrates. But that got me thinking about why the Church recommends fasting in addition to prayer. If fasting sharpens the mind and makes you physically healthier, could it also make you spiritually healthier as well?

The common idea behind fasting is that we give up something physical (such as food) and replace it with something spiritually nourishing. But this isn’t a trade of equal value. The spiritual benefit will always outweigh the physical loss. Think about that for a second. You give up a dessert or your ritual cup of coffee so you can instead better listen to God and form a deeper relationship with Him. Talk about giving up so little to gain so much! Seems like an easy deal right?

And yet, while we all know the tremendous benefit of fasting, it is probably one of the hardest disciplines to practice. I think many of us have no problem saying some extra prayers, reading the bible, or praying the rosary when we put our minds to it. But you might as well suggest amputating a limb at the idea of not having that slice of cheesecake, substituting that mouth watering bacon burger for soup, or cutting out that cup of afternoon coffee. But that’s the point isn’t it? The harder the sacrifice, the more you benefit. When you say, “Okay God, I’m giving this up for you!” the better you will be able to hear God respond with a “thank you” and His grace.

And on Saturday he ate 1 piece of chocolate cake, 1 ice cream cone, 1 pickle…

Fasting amplifies our prayers and our reception of God’s Word. Compare fasting/prayer to diet/exercise. Exercise is not as effective without a matching, healthy diet. All that you gain working out for an hour can be undone with a single cheesecake slice. Or your health can be further benefited by supplementing exercise with nutritious food. The same can be said for prayer. All the benefits of prayer can be undone by a moment of sin or it can be elevated when combined with fasting. Obviously, if we pray and then turn around and sin we really haven’t let God’s grace into our hearts. But when we pray and fast, we allow God more room in our hearts to truly transform us. St. Augustine once said, “Those who sing pray twice.” If that’s true then I say that those who fast must be praying five-fold.

How does fasting connect to the rosary? Think about one of the themes of the Third Luminous Mystery. Jesus calls us to focus on living for His Kingdom of Heaven. That focus manifests itself by active conversion of our ways. We change our earthly focus to a Heavenly one. And that is exactly what fasting is all about. We give up something worldly in exchange for something spiritual. We intentionally choose the Kingdom of Heaven over delights in this earthly kingdom. No one accidentally fasts. Nor do we accidentally live for Heaven. In the Third Luminous Mystery, Jesus puts a choice before us. Will you live for His kingdom and convert your ways or will you remain chained to the pleasures of this life?

Lent Post Mortem

In software engineering it is common to have a post mortem upon completion of a large project. A post mortem gives the team a chance to identify what went well and what went badly in the course of the project and investigate the root causes. The idea is to continue doing what is good and avoid making the same mistakes in future projects. I like to think of Lent as a large spiritual project that deserves its own post mortem.

When I look back at my Lent, here’s what I did right:

Received the Sacrament of Reconciliation
Listened to the Gospel nearly everyday
Prayed the rosary nearly everyday (okay, that’s not too different from my usual routine)
Fasted from alcohol, candy, and snacks during the day

What was less than ideal:

Did not attend any extra Masses or prayer services
Did not receive ashes on Ash Wednesday
While I did not snack during the day, I didn’t exactly show a lot of willpower in the evening. So my fast was more like a delayed gratification on some days.

What did I learn?

Listening to the daily Gospel really fills in the story and teachings of Jesus that you don’t get only listening to the Sunday Gospel. I started to better understand the buildup to Holy Week and how Jesus drew the ire of the Pharisees which led to his crucifixion. I will try to continue reading/listening to the Gospel daily.
I should try to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation more often.
Since I abstained from snacks and treats on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, I know I can make it the entire day without them. I should put in more effort to fast from snacks throughout the year, not just on those two days.

Now it’s your turn. What did you gain during this Lent? Where did you fall short and do you plan on correcting any errors made during Lent in this Easter season?

How Catholics Should Give and Receive Criticism

Time for a touchy subject — criticism. Have you noticed how intolerant everyone appears to get at the slightest hint of criticism? I understand that no one enjoys criticism, even constructive criticism. But in the last few years, how society views criticism has changed. Instead of it as something you either accept or ignore, criticising anyone has become tantamount to hate speech that warrants severe repercussions. Just look at some of these headlines about how people react when their views are challenged or someone says something that makes them feel uncomfortable:

What I think is going on is that many people infer that any type of criticism comes from a position of self righteousness or malice. Criticism is interpreted as a passive aggressive way of saying, “I’m better than you.” In today’s world, the greatest act of love and concern appears to be silence and the cardinal sin of secular society is saying or doing anything that might upset someone.

In short, the world of Fahrenheit 451, where books are burned because people may find the ideas in them offensive, has come true. Granted, we do not have firemen raiding homes looking for contraband books. But we do have a culture where people are shouted down and threatened at the slightest implication that someone disagrees with their views or lifestyle.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI has this take on criticism and how it is born out of a genuine love for each other. While I encourage you to listen to the two minute audio meditation yourself, the tl;dl version (too long; didn’t listen) is that fraternal correction is a great act of love and mercy. Others often see aspects of us we don’t see ourselves and hence the cycle of continuous and mutual improvement completes us and our relationships with others. He emphasizes that correction must come from a humble heart desiring only what is best for one another, not from thinking of yourself as better than others.

Pope Benedictus XVI (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I think Benedict’s statement, that true loving correction does not come from a place of self righteousness, is lost in today’s world. Any attempt to help someone is often immediately dismissed because the person offering the criticism has his own faults and is therefore seen as a hypocrite. It’s the whole, “Oh yeah! Well you’re a …” response. But by that logic, no one can offer advice or help each other because no one is perfect.

I wonder how much unhappiness in the world is born out of people being too afraid to help each other discover the good because doing so may present temporary anxiety or discomfort. If you are on the receiving end of loving criticism, Benedict asks us to consider that not all criticism is malicious but is instead maybe the Holy Spirit working through someone to bring out the best in us.

Turning to the rosary, meditate on the Third Luminous Mystery — The Proclamation of the Kingdom of Heaven and Jesus’ Call to Conversion. Consider this passage taken from the Gospel of Luke chapter 4:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.”

Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him. He said to them, “Today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.” And all spoke highly of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They also asked, “Isn’t this the son of Joseph?” He said to them, “Surely you will quote me this proverb, ‘Physician, cure yourself,’ and say, ‘Do here in your native place the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.’” And he said, “Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place. Indeed, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah when the sky was closed for three and a half years and a severe famine spread over the entire land. It was to none of these that Elijah was sent, but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon. Again, there were many lepers in Israel during the time of Elisha the prophet; yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.” When the people in the synagogue heard this, they were all filled with fury. They rose up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong. But he passed through the midst of them and went away.

The Third Luminous Mystery of the rosary forces us to consider that Jesus Christ, and by extension His Church, calls us to see those aspects of our lives that are not moving us toward Heaven and to convert. Jesus’ ministry was marked with Him challenging people’s beliefs and wanting them to do better. In the Gospel, Jesus is criticizing the people for thinking that they, and only they, are called to God’s grace. At the idea that there are others in the world deserving of God’s love, the Jews were ready to throw Jesus over a cliff! Of course we shouldn’t forget that Jesus’ teachings so upset the status quo that He was eventually crucified because His truth made many feel uncomfortable or upset.

Embed from Getty Images

Ask yourself, how quickly do you make excuses to dismiss God’s plan for you? Or how often do you attack the messenger, who may be acting as an instrument of God’s loving guidance, because you do not like being told that you are doing something wrong or not in accordance with God’s plan? Look, I’m not saying that you should be all smiles and laughter when someone tries to correct your less than perfect ways. And not everyone acts out of love. But we all should ask God in prayer for patience and discernment and not immediately dismiss or attack someone who only wants the best for us.

Your Post Walk for Life Game Plan

March For Life 2009 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Walk for Life came and went on both coasts and put up impressive numbers. 50,000+ people walked on the West Coast while tens of thousands braved blizzard conditions on the East Coast (in past years the east coast saw 250,000+ people in better weather). The number of people from all different backgrounds attending these events is something to be proud of. But these marches are only a start. After all, the last time I checked, the Constitution did not mention anything about voting via marches. I’m going to suggest some next steps we can all take to further the pro-life movement.

First and foremost, since this is a blog on the rosary, we should turn to prayer. Our actions are much more powerful when we start by asking God for His advice and guidance. Prayer, especially the rosary, can be thought of as calibrating our spiritual instrumentation to make sure our actions are actually following God’s Will and promoting His kingdom.

I came across this website started by Cardinal Burke where he invites us to join Operation Storm Heaven. The quick synopsis is:

During this Holy Year of Mercy, let us join Cardinal Burke in a spiritual crusade to storm Heaven with prayers to dispel confusion and: bring Hope to souls and minds throughout America and the world; provide spiritual support in the struggle against the temptations of discouragement; to protect our families and our Faith; to stop the advance of evil in our society; and to flood souls with Grace and Light and Truth.

The goal is to have 1 million+ Catholics praying the rosary on the first of each month. I would hope that as loyal RosaryMeds readers that you’re already praying the rosary much more frequently so remembering to pray on the first of each month should be no problem.

What does Cardinal Burke mean by confusion? Consider this quote from the pro-abortion poster child, Nancy Pelosi. “I’m with the program in terms of the Catholic Church,” she said as reported by LifeSite News when speaking about abortion. Now think of how ill-informed people may read that and think that there is some moral wiggle room when it comes to abortion as well as other moral topics (Pope Francis’ off the cuff comments don’t help). This is the type of misinformation we are up against and requires every Hail Mary you can muster to combat it.

English: Nancy Pelosi photo portrait as Speake... — If God has a plan everyone, He’s sure taking His sweet time with the one for Nancy Pelosi.

I encourage all of you to read and sign the petition to drop the charges against David Daleiden, one of the people behind the videos that exposed Planned Parenthood’s selling of aborted baby tissue. He’s being charged with trying to buy the baby tissue and yet Planned Parenthood isn’t being charged with selling it. Evidently the Houston grand jury that indicted Daleiden never read the pro-abortion manual about being subtle when being hypocritical.

David Daleiden made these undercover videos for The Center for Medical Progress which has been fending off Planned Parenthood’s lawyers since they released them. In essence, they are fighting every pro-abortion politician in the federal government who are beholden or at least sympathetic to Planned Parenthood. Since it is doubtful the CMP is going to get a fair day in court, I encourage you to make a donation to their legal fund.

Finally, keep this in mind. Congress was able to pass a bill to defund Planned Parenthood of your federal tax dollars (something to the tune of a half billion dollars). President Obama naturally vetoed the bill. If we had a pro-life president then we would have struck a major blow against the abortion industry. As we enter the primaries, keep that in mind as you cast your vote. The next Congress and president may actually listen the the pro-life crowd and defund Planned Parenthood and maybe even change the makeup of the Supreme Court. But that can only happen if we make it happen.

Your pro-life action plan:

Pray and join Operation Storm Heaven.
Sign the petition supporting David Daleiden
Make a donation to the Center for Medical Progress
Consider the pro-life credentials of those you vote into office

Striving for Manliness, the Catholic Way

Did I miss a memo from the Vatican? I feel like I keep coming across this theme of becoming a better Catholic man all over the place. First I found it on Catholic Exchange when I wrote 12 Ways to be a Better Catholic in 2016. Then a friend sent me a video about the need for authentic Catholic manliness. Was there some sort of synod or papal document released recently on this issue? Or is it the Holy Spirit gently giving me hints that this is a topic I should write about?

If you don’t feel like reading and just want to veg out for a bit watching a video, here is the one my friend sent me about authentic Catholic manhood:

A few thoughts. I really like the part in the middle that asks, if you can’t resist all those little temptations how are you going to resist and protect yourself and others from the big ones? This concept of mastering the small things to prepare for the big ones ties into why I keep pushing on the idea of regular rosary prayer. I think we all encounter those moments of big crisis, temptation, despair, etc. at some point in our lives. It’s not a matter of if, but when. How much harder will overcoming those large challenges be if you haven’t proven to yourself that you have mastered the smaller ones? How much more difficult will it be to pick up that rosary in your hour of need if you’ve never prayed it? It’s the regularity of prayer and self-mastery which makes the big challenges in life manageable. It’s the difference between seeing a large mountain from the base camp vs. already being 90% to the summit. Start the climb now, whether it means resisting those small sins and temptations, fasting, or praying the rosary so that you won’t be starting from the bottom when life throws a mountain of challenges your way.

Another area I want to explore is why there is a cultural aversion to Catholic (or just spiritual) manliness. Why is being strong in faith not considered manly? I think part of it is that faith requires humility. It requires acceptance that you cannot conquer every challenge on your own but need God’s help. And like out of every cheesy romantic comedy, REAL MEN DON’T ASK FOR HELP! Unfortunately, as the movie earlier in this article points out, so much of our image of manhood is shaped by popular culture, not by real interaction with real people. So we develop this warped view that having a spiritual side somehow makes you weak.

"Put that map down! I know where I'm going." — “Put that map down! I know where I’m going.”

Okay, hopefully you’re reading this knowing that popular culture has the concept of manhood all wrong. But how can the rosary show us what true manliness is? The answer should be clear as most of the rosary mysteries revolve around Jesus. What example is he setting before us? I’m going to focus on the Sorrowful Mysteries given the challenges Jesus faced. After all, it is in the times of great hardship that our true character shines.

First Sorrowful Mystery: Jesus prays for help and for a different fate but also accepts God’s Will.
Second Sorrowful Mystery: Jesus endures suffering.
Third Sorrowful Mystery: Jesus endures humiliation.
Fourth Sorrowful Mystery: Jesus repeatedly falls but gets back up and moves forward.
Fifth Sorrowful Mystery: Jesus asks for God’s forgiveness for those who were crucifying him.

What picture do the Sorrowful Mysteries paint of manly virtue? Humility, sacrifice, perseverance, forgiveness, acceptance, understanding, and conviction. Those are the attributes everyone, men and women, are called to show. To steal the quotation from the opening of the movie, “You were not made for comfort. You were made for greatness.” And greatness comes from embracing your faith and imitating Jesus, not just when it is convenient, but when it is overwhelmingly challenging.

Come on, you all thought of Tim Tebow when you thought of men praying.

We pray for those facing huge life challenges. But we also pray that we all build up our spiritual strength by praying, faster, receiving the sacraments, and avoid sin.

God Must Come First!

What’s more important, serving God or serving each other? Patrick Archbold points out in his article on The Remnant that over the last few decades the Church’s focus has shifted from loving God first to primarily loving our fellow brothers and sisters. It’s not that we have to choose one or the other. We are called to do both. But it is a matter of priority and focus. If you accept the premise that Catholic Church has shifted its priorities in the last few generations, ask yourself whether that has strengthened or weakened the Church. Have we veered from what Jesus taught and what has made the Church strong over the centuries? Patrick Archbold thinks so and believes much of the weakness of faith within the Church has to do with this shift. I encourage you to read his article in full. The focus of this article will be on the rosary (naturally). Let’s look at what some of the rosary mysteries teach us about loving God vs. loving our fellow humans.

Look at the order of the first and second Joyful Mysteries of the rosary. In the Annunciation, we see Mary putting God first by accepting his plan for her. We then see in the Visitation Mary going out and helping her cousin Elizabeth. Notice the order? Okay, there is the fact that chronologically, the Annunciation did precede the Visitation. But there is also a spiritual significance in the order as well. When we pray the rosary we meditate first on the love of God as seen in the Annunciation and then the love for our fellow brothers and sisters as represented in the Visitation. In putting our love for God first, we receive his grace and can therefore more fully serve each other just as Mary does in the Joyful Mysteries.

On to the First Sorrowful Mystery. Jesus fears his upcoming arrest and crucifixion. But he prays to God asking God to first find another way he could redeem the world but also submits to God’s Will. Jesus shows his primary love for God by acknowledging God’s authority and humbly submitting to his plan. Later, when he’s arrested, Jesus tells his apostles, who were ready to defend him, to stand down. While Jesus loved his apostles and his apostles loved him, Jesus puts his life not in their hands, but into God’s hands. Again, we see the model Jesus asks us to follow — serve according to God’s Will first.

Finally, take a look at the Third Luminous Mystery. Jesus preaches that we should all convert our ways to God’s ways. We are called to live first for the Kingdom of Heaven. Note that Jesus did not tell us to solely live for the Kingdom of Heaven and forsake our responsibilities and others in this world. But it is a matter of priority — desiring God’s kingdom must come first. And from that desire, not only for ourselves but for others, we better help our fellow brothers and sisters to also come to live in God’s grace.

I will leave you with a quotation from the Council of Trent that Patrick Archbold cites in his article as I think it sums up nicely why the love of God needs to come before our love for our fellow humans.

“Moreover, no honor, no piety, no devotion can be rendered to God sufficiently worthy of Him, since love of Him admits of infinite increase. Hence our charity should become every day more fervent towards Him, who commands us to love Him with our whole heart, our whole soul, and with all our strength. The love of our neighbor, on the contrary, has its limits, for the Lord commands us to love our neighbor as ourselves. To outstep these limits by loving our neighbor as we love God would be an enormous crime.” —Catechism of Trent, Part 3, Chapter 5, Question 5

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