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My priest recently said, “The world tells you to do whatever makes you feel good. This is wrong. Instead, we are to be good.”
For those of us that have tried to follow the world’s advice of “feel good at all costs” know that this causes a certain heaviness.
The things that are always encouraged in the “feel good” doctrine are vices. It’s always vices. Sure, it is often cloaked as self-love and self-care and liberation, but that’s just how vices have to be packaged in order to make them seem acceptable.
We should absolutely love ourselves and care for ourselves, but the best way to do that is by being good.
Now, if you’ve followed me for any length of time, you know I can’t stand it when people simply say, “Hey, I’m a good person.”
What does that even mean? You haven’t killed anyone? You don’t steal? You are nice to babies and puppies? It’s too easy to passively call ourselves a good person and not really reflect on what that means.
To really be a good person, we must do what Christ says, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.” Matthew 11:29-30
When we live a life of goodness as modeled by Christ, we are not weighed down by the burden of sin and selfishness, Catholic Pilgrims.
Striving to be good—striving to be a saint—will ultimately feel good because we will be living as God intended for us. Striving to simply feel good will not lead us to being good. It has to be the other way around.
Have a blessed Thursday.
*Fatima
About a month ago when I was in Phoenix, my family went out to eat at a sushi restaurant. Our waitress was a young, college-aged looking woman, very sweet and slightly shy. Right as we were about to leave, I noticed her Miraculous Medal necklace and asked her about it. She touched it and shyly said, "Oh, yes, I'm Catholic." I smiled back and said, "Me, too. Look, I have on a Miraculous Medal ring." That completely broke the ice with her and, in like five seconds, she relaxed, almost as if she was around family. As we got up to go, she even said, "God bless." This is one of the reasons why I love our sacramentals. They allow conversations to happen. When people come into my home, I have lots of sacramentals and they always, always start a conversation. People travel around my house like it's a museum. I love it, because it gives me a chance to talk about our faith. "What's this glass bottle of water?" "It's water from the Jordan River where Jesus was baptized." "Where did you get this statue of Jesus and Mary? It looks old." "I found it in a box at a flea market in Turkey and bought it for like $2.00." Often the religious jewelry I wear catches eyes and people will ask about it. It gives me chance to talk about Jesus, Mary, or one of the Saints. I've never had a bad conversation--only opportunities to plant seeds and share the faith in a way that feels unobtrusive. I find, too, that it helps make a connection with other Catholics, just like the waitress. I'm not one to stand on a street corner with a bullhorn shouting about Jesus. I'll probably never hold signs asking people if they are saved. You won't catch me going door-to-door to evangelize. But, I will use sacramentals to my advantage and allow them to naturally draw people in. Live the Faith boldly and travel well this Thursday, Catholic Pilgrims. *Church is St. Mary's in Izmir, Turkey
Continue Reading"OKLAHOMA, WHERE THE WIND COMES SWEEPIN' DOWN THE PLAIN." (sang in burly man voice) As much as Kansans get bombarded with "Wizard of Oz" jokes, I imagine Oklahomans get bombarded with this song from the musical "Oklahoma." 😅 It's a great musical, btw. Carrying on, though, my wayward sons, today's small town church showcase is St. Anthony of Padua in Okeene, Oklahoma. (Picture sent in by one of you.) Okeene is a tiny little town with a population of 1,040 and it sits northwest of Oklahoma City. This church was built in 1922. It was built to replace the wooden church before it. That one had been damaged in a tornado and the congregation realized that it was time for brick, instead of wood. Hopefully, a tornado wouldn't be able to blow and blow their brick house down. My husband and I stopped in Oklahoma City on our epic road trip last year and I've been bragging about that city ever since. The downtown was clean, interesting, and felt safe and my husband and I had a great time in The Bricks area. We, also, visited the amazing Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine there which is a must-see. A great day trip would be to go see St. Anthony's in Okeene and then head into Oklahoma City to see the Shrine and enjoy an evening downtown on the riverwalk. The outside of this church is lovely and, looking online, the inside is just what we like to see, too. So, if ever you find yourself sweeping across the plains of Oklahoma and have time to stop, go see St. Anthony's in Okeene, Catholic Pilgrims. Have a blessed Tuesday! St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church
Continue ReadingI heard someone say the other day, "Catholics try to bring people to everything other than Christ first. They try to bring them to the Eucharist, to Mary..." Stop right there. Eucharist = Christ Usually we get dissenters who try to tell us that the Eucharist isn't Christ, but they at least know that we believe that It is Him. This guy was so off the mark that He didn't even realize that we believe the Eucharist is Christ. He thinks that we think we are just bringing people to round wafers. Yes, all day, everyday, I wanna bring people to Christ in the Eucharist. Guilty as charged. Christ did not leave us a mere symbol to help us to symbolically reenact the Last Supper every once in a while. He offers us His Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity in the perpetual Sacrifice offered every day at every Mass, which "re-presents (makes present) the sacrifice of the Cross." "For His Flesh is true food, and His blood is true drink." John 6:55 It is the single most incredible, most miraculous way to get the Divine Life within you, Catholic Pilgrims. Yes, we want to bring people to Our Lord. Live the Faith boldly and travel well this Monday. *Jesus in the monstrance for Adoration at St. Mary of Sorrows in Fairfax, VA
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