Tag: rosary

This is Your Brain… On Prayer

I tried to put together a good “election day and the rosary” type of article but nothing quite seemed to come together. There are plenty of good websites out there that have more time, writers, and other resources to discuss politics and the election through a religious lens. So RosaryMeds election coverage is simply this — read the USCCB‘s Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: A Call to Political Responsibility and, with a well-formed conscience, seriously consider which candidate will best support the values espoused by the Catholic faith. And while no candidate is ever perfect (after all, Jesus isn’t running for president), think about who will be the most open to legislation that supports, not attacks, your values. And this doesn’t just go for the presidential election, but also keep this in mind when selecting congressional, state, and local officials as well since many times they can have a much more dramatic impact on your life than the president.

Brain on PrayerIn this post I want to discuss your brain on prayer. I came across this short, three-minute video that I found very interesting. The main premise is that a brain in deep prayer shows similar activity as conversing with someone. Neurologically, there is no difference to our brain when we talk to God in prayer or physically with someone right in front of us. Now the critic would look at this data and conclude, ‘I knew it! Catholics and other religious are no different from people experiencing hallucinations or having imaginary friends!” But the critic would be wrong as any prayerful person can attest that we don’t hear real voices in our head telling us what to do when we pray. But there is a very real dialogue going on.

This goes to one of my main themes of RosaryMeds and my book, The Rosary for the Rest of Us, about the benefits of rosary prayer. At its root, rosary meditation is a dialogue with God either directly or through the intercession of Mary and the saints. This is what makes the rosary such a powerful prayer. You aren’t just talking into the void. There is someone listening on the other end and He does respond. It’s not a response in that drug-induced, “there are voices in my head” sort of way. It’s something deeper and less tangible (but still observable as the brain scans in the video show). God responds to our prayers when we suddenly have some sort of clarity on a difficult decision. He responds to us when we find that strength to do the right thing even when doing the wrong thing would be easier. He responds when we realize that some of our daily worries are trivial compared to our spiritual health.  These are just a few examples of how our brain changes during prayer as a result of having a conversation with God.

An angel comforting Jesus before his arrest in...The First Sorrowful Mystery, The Agony in the Garden, best shows the nature of prayer as a dialogue. Before the Pharisees arrested Jesus, He prayed to God. Jesus first asked God to find another way to redeem humanity besides Him suffering on the cross. But Jesus also showed humility and just asked for the strength to do God’s Will. But where was the dialogue? After all, there were many instances in the Gospel when God spoke as a thundering voice in the clouds. It may seem that Jesus was just speaking into nothingness in the garden of Gethsemane when he was arrested. But God did respond! He gave Jesus the strength to endure the scourging, the crown of thorns, the cross, and crucifixion. He gave Jesus clarity to forgive those who crucified Him in His final minutes of agony on the cross. And God responded by empowering the apostles, through the Holy Spirit, to spread the teachings and love that Jesus showed in His death and resurrection to the far ends of the world for generations to follow. Jesus asked God for the strength to do His Will. God heard loud and clear and responded.   The over one billion Catholics worldwide bare witness to God’s response to Jesus’s prayer.

We should remember this sentence from the Memorare when we pray the rosary: “Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to your protection, implored your help or sought your intercession, was left unaided.” Our prayers are heard by God in Heaven, the saints, and our Mother Mary. And they do respond but not always in the way we expect. We should pray for the faith to truly believe this great truth and take advantage of talking to God in prayer.  He’s waiting for you to pick up that spiritual phone and call Him!

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Is Morality an “All or Nothing” Proposition?

I read many articles dissecting Paul Ryan‘s answer on the abortion issue in the vice presidential debate last week. Ryan’s response disappointed many people when he said he would support laws that outlaw abortion except in cases of rape, incest, and life of the mother. Because he added that exception, many people dismissed his entire stance as not being genuinely pro-life. You can read more about it on the political blog or news site of your choice. But to me this appears to be one of many case where people dismiss someone’s intentions or efforts to do good (or reduce the amount of bad) because it doesn’t instantly bring about the fullness of Jesus‘ teachings. It seems like every election season there isn’t just a battle between two candidates, but also between the “all or nothing” and “incremental improvement” camps as well.

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We have to be careful when evaluating people’s intentions to bring about an eventual good end. For example, someone’s moral position cannot introduce an evil as a way of bringing about good (“the ends don’t justify the means” argument). But often, like Paul Ryan’s approach, no new evil is introduced by reducing the number of abortions in the general case and making exceptions in the edge cases for now (with the possibility of tackling them later). It’s accepting a political reality that the greatest good comes about one step at a time and rarely happens all at once. Nearly everything in life comes about in steps whether it be education, physical skills, spirituality, laws, and culture.

In my opinion, the “all or nothing” approach comes from people who are trying to justify their support of a position the Church opposes by making some sort of shaky moral equivalence  It’s a convenient way of convincing yourself that all politicians are really just the same so it doesn’t matter in the moral sense who you support. For some people, since Romney and Ryan would not outlaw 100% of abortions right away, they are just as pro-choice as Obama and Biden so the is no moral difference between the two on the abortion issue. I feel silly just writing that and hopefully you feel silly reading it. But if you’ve been on the Catholic Answers forums long enough, that is exactly the type of false logic many people hold.

Taking the logic of the “all or nothing” crowd, why should we help the poor since we cannot eliminate poverty entirely? Why should we treat the sick if we can’t end all illness instantly? Why fight for reforms in the justice system since our legal system will never be perfect? Why fight for freedom and liberty for some people if we cannot free all people around the globe? We fight these battles because we know that while we cannot help everyone, we do help many. After all, what is charity but trying to make small differences in some people’s’ lives? While I would love to wake up tomorrow to a world where there are no abortions, I’ll take a world where there are fewer abortions tomorrow than there are today. And if we all have that mindset where we fight to reduce the number of abortions tomorrow (even if just by one) then one day we might wake up to a world where there are no abortions at all. And those we save along the way will turn out to be our neighbours, our friends, our co-workers, our brothers or sisters, maybe our spouse, our parents, and so many other people who touch our lives who otherwise would not exist if we rejected every measure to do good because it wasn’t the ideal solution.

What Does the Rosary Teach Us?

What does the rosary teach us about how to face these social, political, and moral issues? Does it teach us that we should keep fighting for what is right and make small gains where we can or should we accept nothing less than the ideal solution? Jesus taking up His cross in the Fourth Sorrowful Mystery represents how the greatest good comes about one step at a time. Imagine how painful it must have been for Jesus, tired and beaten, to carry His cross to His crucifixion. Every second must have seemed like an eternity of anguish and despair. But Jesus showed resolve and determination knowing that His suffering was to bring about the salvation of all humanity.  Jesus’ Passion was a slow process that had its literal ups and downs but was always moving in the direction of redeeming all of humanity. And so we should remember this mystery when the things that we want and fight for don’t seem to come fast enough. We must remember that God‘s time is not our time. His plan may not necessarily be our plan. But we should all strive to live like Jesus in His Passion where we must endure the challenges and hardship understanding that living our faith is a process, not something that can happen instantly.

Icon of the Pentecost

Another rosary mystery that comes to mind when I think about how we must show patience for God’s plan is the Pentecost in the Third Glorious Mystery. When God sent the Holy Spirit to the apostles, the world did not instantly change that day. In fact, the outside world remained the same. And the Holy Spirit did not fill the apostles with the power to instantly convert all people to the fullness and truth of Jesus’ teachings. The apostles still had a long journey in front of them that would take them to the ends of the earth preaching the Gospel. The Church continues that mission thousands of years later of converting one soul at a time. Jesus’ message of love exists today because the early Church showed patience and endurance in spreading the Good News and didn’t quit because they couldn’t instantly convert the hearts and minds of all humanity.

What are your thoughts? Should we accept small and sometimes imperfect solutions to problems or do we wait and accept nothing less than the ideal solution?

 

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Kindle Edition of “The Rosary for the Rest of Us” Released

I finally finished and published the Kindle version of “The Rosary for the Rest of Us.” Sorry for the nearly year-long delay between the print version and this Kindle version. But I’ve been quite busy with work, family, and… oh yeah, my newborn baby! Download your copy today from Amazon at half the price of the printed version (and free for Amazon Prime members)!

I know there are a lot of people out there who are still confused about Kindle books. You don’t need to buy a Kindle Reader in order to enjoy Kindle books (which are usually a lot cheaper than the printed versions and you don’t need to wait for shipping). You can enjoy books in Kindle format on a home computer, tablet, or smart phone. You can download a free Kindle application for your PC from Amazon and start reading today.

The Kindle version of my rosary guide is just the latest iteration of me wanting to learn new things. When I took an interest in blogging, I created RosaryMeds. When I was interested in writing a book, I wrote “The Rosary for the Rest of Us.” When I took an interest in how Kindle books work, I converted it over. I wanted to learn a little video editing so I created a small book trailer. I find the best way to learn something is to just do it even if that means a lot of false starts and wrong turns. It took me a long time to convert my book to Kindle because everything I initially tried was really complicated and convoluted. Different guides and forums offered information that seemed to conflict with each other. But after some persistence, I finally came across the correct tools for the job (Sigil and Calibre if anyone is interested) and I got my Kindle book formatted and published within a week.

I bring up my misadventures with the Kindle conversion because I think it also relates to how we approach prayer. I know a lot of people who say they want to pray more and become better connected with their spiritual side. But they never find the “right time” to get started or they are afraid that they will do it wrong (I don’t understand how you can pray incorrectly). My advice is to just start praying. Maybe your goal is a rosary a day or 20 minutes of prayer. Don’t put off praying just because you can’t find 20 minutes in your day to pray. Start with 10 minutes, 5 minutes, one decade, or even one prayer. If you wait for the “right” time to try something, you may never try it all. I never would have started praying the rosary regularly, created RosaryMeds, or wrote “The Rosary for the Rest of Us” if I waited for the ideal conditions to emerge. Guess what? The ideal conditions hardly ever emerge. You have to create the ideal conditions.

So please support this website and buy my book either on paperback or Kindle. Tell your friends and family about it. But don’t wait for it to arrive or finish reading it cover to cover before trying to make prayer a more important part of your life. In fact, just stop right now and spend 30 seconds praying about something. It will be a good start. Don’t worry, the world won’t go anywhere. I promise.

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Because I said so…

Picture this.  You’re watching a football game and in the middle of a play some yahoo, frustrated with his team’s performance, jumps from the stands and runs on to the field.  He manages to take the ball from the quarterback and runs into the end zone.  He spikes the ball and declares that he’s such a great football player.  Meanwhile, his drunken friends in the stands are also cheering him on by telling everyone just how great of a football player their friend is.  However, that fan’s shenanigans ultimately do not mean anything. His touchdown wouldn’t count for either team, and his effort would not go down in any official record book.  And no amount of cheer leading or yelling from either him or his friends would change the fact that he is not an actual football player that has an effect on the outcome of the game.

English: Caroline Kennedy speaks during the fi...

And so we shift from football to the Democratic National Convention.  Here we have Obama and other Democrats cheer leading for their base.  Many people who spoke basically said, “Look at us! Look at how compassionate and pro-life Obama and the Democratic party is!”  But like the yahoo who ran onto the football field acting like a football player (and his drunken friends who echoed that claim), simply proclaiming you are compassionate and pro-life doesn’t make you so.

For example, we heard Caroline Kennedy say how a women’s reproductive health care is under attack because of the stricter abortion laws passed in many states.  She said that her Catholic faith would not allow her to support such laws.  I don’t know what theology class she took or what priests she consulted, but the Catholic Church is definitively against abortion in all forms.  Implying that the Church supports abortion in any way is a gross distortion of the truth and is scandalous because it misleads other Catholics who aren’t educated in their faith.

But the real woppers came from former congresswoman, Kathy Dahlkemper.  She went one step further than Caroline Kennedy and actually tried to make the argument that Obama is pro-life and that ObamaCare is the most pro-life piece of legislation ever passed in the Unite States.  Her words were:

So when people criticize Obama for his record on abortion, she continued, “you can turn on them and say, ‘He is pro-life.'”

Well that settles it.  There is no more debate.  Obama is pro-life because someone said so.  Never mind any of the hidden abortion funding in ObamaCare, the HHS contraception mandate, federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, the cancellation of federal funds for adult stem cell research, and the attacks, blackmail, and extortion from the federal government towards any state that tries to restrict abortions or defund Planned Parenthood.  Never mind the glowing endorsement Obama got from Nancy Keenan, president of National Abortion Rights Action League Pro-Choice America (NARAL), at the start of the DNC.  Never mind what Obama and the liberal left do, they are pro-choice, pro-life, whole-life, no-life, and whatever else they want you to think they are… because they say so.

Our Lady's Island Church of the Assumption Eas...

The twisting of facts and the outright lies at the DNC regarding contraception, abortion, and the teachings of the Catholic Church remind me the importance of the Fourth Glorious Mystery — Mary’s Assumption.  We remember in this mystery that Mary calls us to forge a deeper relationship with her son, Jesus Christ.  Part of forging this relationship is coming to know Jesus as the Truth and not distort it to fit our wants and desires.  But this is an understanding we only receive when we pray, read the Bible, learn the Catechism and tradition of the Catholic faith, receive the sacrament of Reconciliation, and receive the Eucharist.

There will be many people and groups that will try to confuse you and distort the truth in the upcoming weeks.  The Caroline Kennedys and Nancy Pelosis of the world will try to use their twisted view of the Catholic faith to serve their political ends instead of allowing the Holy Spirit to guide them in making wise decisions.  It is so important to make an effort to learn and understand your faith so that you won’t be swayed by anyone’s empty words, promises, and distortions.

I think it’s fitting to end with a small prayer:

Oh Lord, be with us now in this time when Your Word is so distorted or ignored in this world.  May we seek the guidance of Mary, the Holy Spirit, and the angels and saints to understand Your Truth and find the energy to follow it.  We pray for the conversion of those who choose to speak in Your Name to solely fit their personal ends instead of humbling themselves to truly listen and follow You.  Amen.

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What a Chicken Sandwich and the Olympics Teach Us About the Rosary

What a month it has been in terms of the assault on religious liberty, freedom of speech, and tolerance for differing opinions. Many events, both large and small, occurred recently that should give us all pause and question how safe our God-given freedom of religion really is in this world. Of course there was the Chick-Fil-A fiasco where the CEO stated his personal beliefs in the importance of traditional marriage. Note that this was his personal belief — the same one that thousands of business owners probably hold and one that even president Obama publicly held for years. The Chick-Fil-A CEO was not making any policy changes about how his franchises would operate. Anyone and everyone is more than welcome to eat or work at Chick-Fil-A restaurants. But out came both the outrage (someone berating an employee and acts of vandalism) as well as the support.

English: Lolo Jones after winning the women's ...

There have also been some less publicized assaults on people who publicly profess their faith. For example, the New York Times published a rather vicious article on professed Christian athlete, Lolo Jones. While not overtly attacking her faith, it is interesting that the NY Times targeted Jones as more image than substance before she even started competing in the London Olympics. There have been plenty of people who have underperformed in major athletic events, but it seems odd that the NY Times singled out Jones. It was as if they wanted a self-fulfilling prophecy where they knew she wouldn’t do well if they pre-emptively knocked her down a few pegs (it worked too — see her break down in this interview). But why would anyone want to write an article about an athlete’s failures before the competition even began? Who knows what their motive was. Could it have been a warning to others — mention your faith publicly and we’ll tear you to shreds? After all, Lolo Jones isn’t the first person to come into the media’s cross-hairs because of her faith. Does the name Tebow ring a bell?

There is an ancient Chinese curse that says, “may you live in interesting times.” And by “interesting” it means full uncertainty and danger. And we are finding ourselves living in more interesting times every day. It almost seems like over night, publicly living one’s faith is taboo. Mentioning personal beliefs that you derive from an authority other than the government is considered radical. Citing your freedom of religion is almost treasonous. And the power structure, whether it be the media or the government, will tear you down if you bring out your religion anywhere except in a church for an hour on Sunday. Many politicians have no issues with Catholics as long as they only act Catholic during Mass. Only a generation ago, a Catholic priest had an Emmy award-winning, prime time television show dedicated to teaching faith and morals to the public. Now just stating you’re a Christian and not participating in the 24/7 orgy which is the Olympic Village will get your torn apart by the media.

The rosary teaches us a lot about living our faith publicly, even when it is unpopular or difficult to do so. In fact, nearly all the mysteries of the rosary can relate to overcoming challenges the world might throw at us for professing our beliefs. Here’s a few examples:

That’s just a handful of rosary mysteries about living our faith publicly. But you get the idea that Jesus never called us to separate our spirituality and our public lives. It isn’t just priests and nuns that God calls to be outward signs of His glory, but all of us by living and professing our faith and morality. I do believe that Satan is stepping up his attacks on the faithful as the world becomes ever more hostile towards faith and morality. But this is the time when we need to double our efforts by doubling our prayer and our efforts to follow God’s Word. Pick up a rosary, pray, act morally, and win that spiritual gold medal!

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Pray with the Facts: Faith vs. the HSS Mandate

I received this newsletter from the good people at One More Soul, a website dedicated to fostering God‘s plan for love, chastity, marriage, and family. This is probably the most comprehensive discussion about the dangers of the Health and Human Services Contraception Mandate you will find anywhere. It approaches the issue of forcing people to offer contraceptive coverage in health care plans from multiple fronts — religious, political, philosophical, medical, economic, and sociological.  It has more than just Catholic commentary and theology that you might find in other publications. Many of the articles about the medical, economic, and sociological dangers of artificial contraception are from well-regarded doctors and scientists using data collected from studies and experiments.

Stand Up for Religious Freedom

This is a dense, 24-page newsletter so don’t think you can read through it casually in a few minutes. It does demand time and focus to get the most out of these articles. But I believe it is important to read every article to get the full scope of the challenge the faithful face in this world that is growing ever more hostile to people publicly living according to their religious convictions. It’s also important to read the medical articles so that you are aware of just how dangerous birth control pills are and the widespread damage they cause to individuals, marriages, and society.

I urge you to read these articles and share them. But also keep these articles in mind while you pray and meditate over the mysteries of the rosary. Because this battle over the HHS Mandate isn’t just about two large, faceless forces (the government and the Catholic Church) fighting over power and control. The issues of birth control, abortion, and the role of religious liberty has in our society affect millions of people whether it’s a business owner that must choose between his faith or his franchise or the young woman who the media, politicians, and abortion industry has deceived into thinking that a birth control pill is no different from a vitamin pill. Millions of people need your prayers.

Without prayer, we are like the apostles after Jesus’ death — hiding in a locked room scared of doing anything. But with the power of the Holy Spirit, through prayer, we find the strength to go out and publicly proclaim God’s truth like the apostles did on Pentecost which we remember when we pray in the Third Glorious Mystery of the rosary.  Learn the facts, listen to God through prayer, and then let the Holy Spirit work through you to help all those in need (especially those who don’t even know they need help).

I’m going to stop talking now so you have time to go and start reading these articles. Seriously, visit the One More Soul website, bookmark it, share it, sync the newsletter on all your smart phones, e-readers, and tablets and start reading and praying today!

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Why the “Meds” in RosaryMeds?

rosaryIt has been a while since I’ve written a “go the extra mile” type of post.  But with all that is going on in the world right now I think a little spiritual “kick” is appropriate.  I want to tell you why I chose the name “RosaryMeds” for this website.  “Meds” can mean a lot of things.  The first word that comes to mind is “meditation” which I certainly promote on this website and in my guide on praying the rosary.  But you can also think of “meds” as the slang word for “medicine” which also applies to rosary prayer.  First, we should take a look at how some people view medicine:

  • Medicine is meant to treat a disease
  • Sticking to a prescribed regiment takes discipline and often a conscious change in lifestyle
  • Many people stop taking treatments because they don’t feel any positive effects
  • Many people don’t take the fully prescribed dosage because they believe they are already cured

We first must identify the disease being treated when thinking about the rosary as a type of medicine.  In my opinion, we all suffer from the human weakness of failing to follow God‘s will and having the tendency to commit sin.  In many cases, knowing right from wrong is fairly straight forward.  We know that we should avoid vices (lust, greed, envy, wrath, etc.) and embrace virtues (love, charity, compassion, etc.). But we often fall short in finding the strength, energy, and courage to act virtuous and follow the path God puts before us.  And that is where our “rosary medication” comes in.  Praying the rosary is our medicine that strengthens our resistance of committing sin.

Our holy mother Mary tells us that the rosary is our spiritual medication in many of her 15 promises.  She promised:

  • The Rosary will be a very powerful armor against hell; it will destroy vice, deliver from sin and dispel heresy. (#3)
  • It will draw the hearts of men from the love of the world and its vanities, and will lift them to the desire of eternal things. (#4)
  • Those who trust themselves to me through the Rosary will not perish. (#5)

Generally available Marian image created in th...

Destroying vice, drawing hearts away from the love of the world, and not perishing in the fires of Hell sound like a some pretty powerful medicine to me.  But we never receive the rosary’s benefits if we never pray it.  Keeping a rosary in a drawer is like keeping the pill bottle in the medicine cabinet.  Medicine doesn’t magically get into our bodies and do its wonders by itself.  We have to want to get better from our affliction and take our medicine.  Similarly, we have to resolve to pray the rosary, stick to it, and make it part of our daily routine.  We have to want to become better people, stronger in faith, and closer to God’s good graces.  Once we find that motivation, the rosary “meds” can kick in and help multiply the benefits of God’s gifts to us.

Prayer is such strong medicine that Jesus Christ not only prescribed it to His disciples, but He took it as well.  While Jesus didn’t have a human weakness towards sin, He did experience fear about doing God’s will as we see in the First Sorrowful Mystery — the Agony in the Garden.  And what was Jesus’ action in the face of human weakness?  Jesus prayed to God for strength and courage which God gave Him as He endured a scourging, a crowning of thorns, carrying the cross, and crucifixion.  Jesus got all the spiritual medicine He needed to endure a level of hardship many of us will never (hopefully) experience.  If prayer was powerful enough for Jesus in His darkest hour, imagine what it can do for you in your daily struggles.

We know that sin and temptation attack our souls every day like a virus.  We know that the rosary is God’s prescription for treating it.  If you were sick with a physical illness would you skip taking your life-saving medicine because “you don’t feel like it?”  Keeping our souls healthy is so much more important than our our bodies (don’t get me wrong, we should take care of both).   So when it comes to our spiritual well being maybe we should be good patients and follow the doctor’s orders by praying regularly.  Remember, a rosary a day keeps the devil away!

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We’re All in the Garden Now

As you probably know, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of ObamaCare.  I’ll leave it to political websites to debate, praise, and criticize the ruling.  My concern now turns toward the Health and Human Services Mandate which will require businesses and organizations to cover contraception expenses regardless of their religious beliefs.  What are we, as people of faith, going to do about this assault on our freedom of religion?  How can the rosary help us find God‘s path and the strength to follow Him?

An angel comforting Jesus before his arrest in...
An angel comforting Jesus before his arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

If the Supreme Court had ruled ObamaCare and the individual mandate unconstitutional, then the HHS mandate would have become a moot point.  The only way the government could require people to provide contraception coverage in a health care plan was through the authority granted somewhere in the 2,700+ pages of the ObamaCare law.  This “silver bullet” approach to striking down the HHS mandate reminds me of the First Sorrowful Mystery — The Agony in the Garden.  Jesus prayed to God to spare Him the agony of the Passion and Crucifixion.  Jesus said in Matthew 26:39, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me.”  And that is exactly what people of faith asked the Supreme Court.  We asked, “if possible, please strike down ObamaCare so we won’t have to fight the HHS mandate.”  But Jesus did have to suffer through the Passion and Crucifixion much like we will have to suffer through many fights ahead regarding ObamaCare , the HHS mandate, and other violations of our religious liberty.

But don’t give up all hope.  God’s plan for Jesus involved suffering through the Passion as we see in the Fourth Sorrowful Mystery of Jesus taking up His cross.  But God was with Jesus through it all.  God gave Jesus the strength to get up every time He fell under the cross’ heavy burden.  And so find ourselves, under the heavy burden of the HHS mandate as one of our crosses.  But similarly to how God gave Jesus the strength to continue despite His suffering, God gives us the strength to fight the good fight.

Now is the time to pray much like Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane.  But we need to follow up that prayer with action.  When your priest preaches about the HHS mandate and how it threatens our religious liberty in a homily, tell him after Mass that you agree and support him.  People who are on the front lines of this battle, like priests and bishops, need to know they have our support and they aren’t just fighting this alone.  We need to educate ourselves and then educate others on the implications of the HHS mandate (see the video below for a quick primer).  We need to let our politicians know that we will not vote for or support those who think the government can arbitrarily give and take away our inalienable rights such as our freedom of religion.

Jesus suffered, but ultimately redeemed us all through His Resurrection.  The sorrows and suffering in His Passion and Crucifixion only made God’s ultimate triumph that much more spectacular and meaningful.  Who knows?  Maybe this whole HHS mandate battle will ultimately convert and save many more souls than if the Supreme Court had simply ruled against ObamaCare.  God sometimes works in mysterious ways like that.

Here are some more resources on how you can contribute to our defence of religious liberty:

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  • The Colson Center has developed a page with regular updates on the religious liberty questions still in play.
  • The Becket Fund is another create resources for learning about the legal battles that lay ahead.
  • And one of my personal favorites is the stophhs.com lead by radio host Al Kresta
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Understanding the Catholic Church’s “Users’ Manual”

I did something stupid — I updated the BIOS on my computer’s motherboard thinking it would solve a problem with my CPU fan.  As a result, my computer blue screened at Windows start up.  So I was without a functional computer for over a week resulting in lost productivity and a lot of frustration.  For those who aren’t computer geeks like me, I tried updating my computer and ended up breaking it.  This small ordeal taught me a lot about the details of my computer and how changing one little component can have far reaching consequences.  It also taught me a lot about faith and dogma.  Sometimes in life, when we ignore little warnings and the wisdom of others, we can find ourselves in a whole heap of trouble.

I could not find any updates or fixes for my noisy fan problem on my computer manufacturer’s website.  However, I did find a similar update file elsewhere and installed it despite all the warnings on the manufacturer’s website saying I should only use the updates they provide.  I thought I knew better.  I thought the update file I found would work just fine and all the warnings were for people with much less computer experience.  But as I quickly discovered when I turned my computer into an expensive paper weight, there’s a reason why the manufacturer’s website had those warnings.  I would have saved myself a lot of grief by heeding the manufacturer’s advice.

What does my experience breaking my computer have to do with the Catholic faith?  It taught me a great lesson in the importance for dogma.  The rules, guidelines, and teachings of the Catholic Church exist for a reason.  They act like a user’s manual and warranty for one’s spiritual, mental, and physical well being.  And when someone decides to ignore those rules and warnings, like we do when we sin, unpleasant difficulties can emerge.

Think about some of today’s hot button theological topics that popular culture criticizes the Catholic Church over like premarital sex, artificial contraception, divorce, abortion, embryonic stem cells, homosexuality, natural law, existence of absolute evil, and the objectivity of sinful behavior.  They often criticize the Church without really looking at the Church’s history and why it teaches what it teaches.  It isn’t that the Church wants to control everyone’s lives or destroy our fun.  Quite the opposite, the Church’s teachings are meant to protect us from harm and give us the best possible opportunity for happiness.

Let’s look at premarital sex as an example.  If you were to read any anti-Catholic (or just a secular) publication, you would think that the Church is just “old fashioned” and has a fear of women’s sexual freedom because it is run by a bunch of old, celibate men.  But if you actually look at the Church’s teachings, you will find that one of the reasons for coming out against premarital sex is to strengthen the bonds of marriage and allow a couple to experience a deeper sense of love for each other.  When people wait, they increase their chances of living a happier life.  The Church’s stance is even supported by a lot of secular research that shows that the divorce rate is lower for those who are virgins when they marry.  When you look around society and see the STDs, higher divorce rate, and just general unhappiness that has come from “free sex” you come to see the logic and wisdom on why the Church teaches you to wait for marriage.  It’s not always easy to do what is best for us.  Like impatient children that “just want it now” because “we feel like it,” many people dismiss the Church’s teachings only to find hardship, anger, and sadness.

Assumption of the Virgin Mary (Rubens)When I think about the rules and dogma of the Catholic Church, I think of the Fourth Glorious Mystery of the rosary — The Assumption of Mary.  I have said multiple times that Mary is our guide in finding ultimate happiness in God’s heavenly kingdom.  She is joined by saints, theologians, and others who have contributed over the last 2,000 years to the collective knowledge of the Catholic Church.  We owe it to ourselves to listen to Mary and these other guides through prayer and read the Church’s “users’ manuals” such as the Bible, the Catechism, encyclicals, and other teachings.  We owe it to ourselves to build up knowledge of our faith so we can make decisions that will lead us closer to God’s grace and not stray when society tempts us to live contrary to the faith.

I lost a week to a broken computer because I didn’t heed the warnings.  When you don’t heed the Church’s wisdom, you could lose much, much more — happiness, your life, your freedom, God’s grace, and His heavenly kingdom.

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It Will Get Ugly in November

I have a feeling this year’s presidential election is going to get much uglier than in years past.  Politics has always been a dirty business, but lately everyone seems to act so much more “unhinged.”  People are expressing the slightest disagreements with such high levels of vitriol and anger.  Looking at some peoples’ reactions, supporting traditional marriage or Paul Ryan‘s budget proposal isn’t just a difference of opinion, but more akin to supporting a holocaust or war crime.  In case you forgot, here are some of the issues that will bring about an unprecedented level of conflict leading up to the November vote:

  • Class warfare (Occupy movement, the 99% vs 1%, taxing the rich, more entitlements, etc.)
  • Financial warfare (budgets, deficits, defaults, socialism vs. capitalism, etc.)
  • Armed conflicts (Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, global terrorism, etc.)
  • Government expansion (Obamacare, HHS mandate, nanny laws, greater police surveillance, etc.)
  • Social issues (the poor, gay marriage, identity politics, etc.)
  • Religious freedom threats (HHS mandate, freedom of “worship”, abortion funding through Planned Parenthood, etc.)

And those are just some of the real issues.  We will also fight through accusations of racism, bigotry, and intolerance for any criticism of the Obama administration, media bias, and all the “fakeraversies” and “outrage du jour” that people cook up.  This election will be a perfect storm of important, country-changing issues mixed with just plain craziness.  If you remember back to Obama’s first months as president, the biggest controversy back then was him authorizing federal funds for embryonic stems cell research.  Compared to what is on the table this election, that ethical breach seems like small potatoes now.

I came across this article after hearing about it on Immaculate Heart Radio.  It’s titled “10 Ways Catholic Voters Will Be Misled” and is worth a glance.  It breaks down how the various political groups, the Obama administration, and the media will spin various issues to either tug at the Catholic voters’ heartstrings or attack and dismiss the Catholic position on certain topics.  For example, here is one way Catholic voters will be misled:

“Progressive” Catholic groups will produce polling that supposedly shows Catholics disagree with Church teaching on the sanctity of life and marriage, implying those who agree are in the minority and “behind the times.”

We hear this sentiment all the time whether it be from Nancy Pelosi, Katherine Sibelius, or the Georgetown University administration.  The attacks are only going to get stronger and more aggressive as we get closer to November.  And they won’t magically disappear regardless of the election’s outcome.  Unfortunately, Catholics are going to have to bunker down for a war we will probably fight for our entire lives.  We will experience some glorious wins and some agonizing defeats.  But it’s important that we keep up the fight for what is good, just, and right.

These political battles remind me of the Fourth Joyful Mystery — The Presentation in the Temple.  Remember, St. Simeon waited and prayed in the temple his entire life before finally meeting the baby Jesus.  His life was probably full of frustration as people probably mocked him and what they saw as a sad waste of time.  But he endured and eventually had his victory when he laid his eyes on Jesus.  We should remember the strength and endurance St. Simeon showed when we feel crushed by political forces that seem unstoppable.  Defending our faith will eventually lead to happiness.  It may not be a happiness this world can offer and to many, it may look like we’re wasting our time living Catholic values.  But we will find happiness in God’s heavenly kingdom where we will find our true victory.

Catholic Cross Jesus

When thinking about defending the Catholic faith in the voting booths this November, I’m also reminded of the lessons from the Fourth Glorious Mystery — Mary’s Assumption into Heaven.  We must remember that Mary and the saints are our guides who help us navigate life’s obstacles by showing us the path God puts before us.  Mary has given many messages throughout history.  One theme she keeps repeating is the importance of knowing the faith.  After all, how can we live and defend the faith and love God if we do not know Him?  That is why it is so important to learn the Church’s teachings on various issues so you won’t be misled by those who try to use your faith for their poltical advantage.  Read the Bible and the Catechism of the Catholic Church.  Listen to Catholic radio.  And most importantly, open your heart and mind in prayer to listen to the guidance of Mary and the saints (need help?  Buy my book on Amazon).  Our battles will not end at the polls in November, but with the help of the Church and the power of our faith we can endure whatever craziness comes our way.

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