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I’ve told this story before, but it begs a repeat.
The summer before we moved from Turkey, my husband’s squadron chaplain hosted a mini-pilgrimage to Istanbul to see some of the Christian sites and to meet the Patriarch of the Eastern Orthodox Church.
It was an extremely memorable trip, but the most memorable part to me was when we walked into this church. We had all kinds on our trip—believers and non-believers. As we walked into this church and our group laid eyes on its beauty, you could see it move everyone to silence.
One-by-one, each member of our group, just kinda sank into a seat and gazed around in awe.
You could have heard a pin drop. I was standing near the back watching all this and I smiled knowing what true beauty can do for a soul. It was powerful to witness.
We were made to behold true beauty, to strive for goodness and to seek truth. Our culture, though, seeks to destroy and replace with ugliness, immoral behavior, and lies.
The beauty of femininity is being mocked by men masquerading in woman face.
Classic art that seeks to draw the mind to new heights is replaced with conformed trash meant to look like…nothing.
The goodness of families and marriage is torn down and treated with contempt. Lust is encouraged and all forms of s€xual deviancy are praised.
Truth is discarded for lies and agendas.
Goodness and virtue are sneered at, while vice is encouraged.
We were made in the image and likeness of God and therefore we were made for beauty, goodness, and truth.
In our culture’s effort to remove God, it loses its beckon and therefore serves up debase, ugly, and even demonic replacements. It creates nothing and offers no solace for the soul. No one is helped or inspired by this garbage.
I saw what true beauty does for a soul when our group walked into this church. It stunned to silence and it made people realize that we are made for more.
Have a blessed Friday, Catholic Pilgrims.
**St. Stephen’s Bulgarian Orthodox Church, Istanbul
In our second reading today, St. Paul is writing to the Christians in Corinth. He says, "To you who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be holy, with all those everywhere who call upon the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ." It was the "called to be holy" part that caught my eye. St. Paul doesn't say we can live however we want while calling ourselves a Christian. He, also, doesn't say that we are straight up holy once we become a Christian. He says we are called to be and, that means, there is some participation on our part where we must cooperate with the graces given to us by God and be obedient to Christ's teachings and the teachings of His Church. God calls us to holiness, but we do have to desire it. If we think that we are just "good to go" because we call ourselves a Christian, it will be difficult to desire holiness. I know that I once didn't even desire it because 1. nobody ever talked to me about it. and 2. I thought calling myself a Christian meant I had an assured ticket to Heaven. Consequently, I didn't try to live any differently. In fact, unless you asked me, you wouldn't have known I was a Christian based on how I lived. To be holy means that we want to live out the virtues--courage, prudence, justice, fortitude, piety, etc,-- for love of God and for love of others. We want to orient our lives to look more like Christ's and make choices that don't follow the easy way. We are called to holiness, Catholic Pilgrims. God will work with our desire to answer that call if we ask Him. Have a blessed Sunday. *Church is Mission San Juan Baptista in CA
Continue ReadingIn the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Today, in our reading from Matthew, the Trinity is revealed. At the Baptism of Our Lord, the Father speaks of His love for His Son, The Son gives us the Sacrament of Baptism, and the Holy Spirit descends like a dove letting us know that this action is sanctified. It is holy and pleasing to God. This is why we baptize in the Trinitarian formula and every single time we do the Sign of the Cross it is a beautiful reminder of our baptism and the saving grace we received from it. We must continue to cooperate with those graces throughout our life, but it/was our entrance into the family of God. So many things happen at baptism: You become a child of God and an heir to the Kingdom. Original sin is washed away and any actual sins if above the age of reason. Your soul is permanently marked as belonging to God. Your soul is filled with grace--the Divine life. You receive the three theological gifts of Faith, Hope, and Charity. You receive the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. Jesus didn't need to be baptized, but He was showing us what He wanted us to do--this was the new covenantal ritual, circumcision would not be needed anymore. Baptism is the start of our Christian life with God, Catholic Pilgrims. Through it, we are brought into the life of the Blessed Trinity. Have a beautiful Sunday.
Continue ReadingMy husband and I were talking to our daughter on the phone the other day and as we were talking, my husband told her about all the different Masses we had been to in one week. We went to our first Latin Mass the Sunday after Christmas. Then, we went to a funeral Mass in San Jose. The day after that, we went to a bilingual Mass at Mission San Juan Baptista--my 12th California Mission. And this past Sunday, we were back at our base chapel with all the familiar faces of our friends that we live with on base. It never ceases to amaze me how good it feels to just walk into a Catholic Church and know that I belong. I don't even have to know anybody. It's always nice when I do know people, but, even when I don't, I feel a great sense of belonging. As the Catholic Pilgrim, I've visited literally hundreds of Catholic Churches in the 16 years since I converted. I've been to Masses where the people spoke French, Turkish, Portuguese, Polish, and Spanish. Latin can now be added to the list. I've been to Mass in enormous cathedrals and in small caves. I've attended Mass outside with over a million Catholics and I attend daily Mass on base where sometimes it's just my son and me. In all of these different circumstances, I sense the universality of the Catholic Church. Even when I'm surrounded by people that don't look like me, I feel such a connection because of our Faith and our one shared Feast at the altar--the Eucharist, which is Jesus Christ. What a blessing to be part of this one, big, universal family, Catholic Pilgrims. Live the Faith boldly and travel well this Wednesday.
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