Conflicted during church

Today at church, the Gospel reading was Luke 12:13-21. It's the classic parable about the rich man who is given so much abundance from his crops he decides to tear down his barns and build bigger ones so he can store it all. But he dies the next day. The point is not to spend so much time on earthy things but rather the things of the Lord, which is built on eternity.

The priest reminded us about ho much we possess and asked how much do we really need in our life. I thought it was a fine homily, and it is a good reminder to us, especially in the United States, that we can really do without certain earthly things and to live a simplistic lifestyle. I'm all for this. I still don't own a bed. Simplicity to me is a valuable trait which Christians should be willing to exercise as often as possible. Too much stuff distracts us from the Lord and relying on Him and his provision.

So we move into the creed and then to intercessions. Here's where it was a problem.

"Let's pray that wealth can be distributed evenly..."

I did not reply "Lord, hear our prayer."

I was not sure what to do at that point. My political convictions of conservative principles and small government told me this prayer was misguided and wrong. Governments should not redistribute the wealth. Ever. Charity should be based on the individual, not on someone telling you to do something. It ceases to be charity at that point. You should tithe your money and give even more out of your wealth. You should make the choice. It should be done because you are convicted to help, not because if you do not pay you get convicted for tax evasion.

But the Catholic side of me said the Church knows what it should be doing. They should be the agent of change. They should be on the front lines of helping the poor and living up to the teachings of Christ. But I would also say the church has to be aware the places where the Gospel is growing the most are places where there are many who are poor. Europe, with the exception of Poland, is becoming more and more godless as time progresses. It will only be a matter of time before Islam will be their top religion, with atheism probably somewhere in the top three (and yes, I know atheism is not a religion; it's just to illustrate the point). In Central and South America; Asia, especially China and South Korea; and Africa show the largest growth of Christianity. These are places where wealth is minimal.

Maybe I'm looking at it the wrong way. Maybe the goal is to make everyone poor so the proud will be humbled and the Gospel will flourish once again. But prayer requests for the redistribution of wealth should be left out of church. Prayers for an increase in charity and an emphasis on actually tithing ten percent of your income should be what is being preached.

A Servants of the Word Tribute

I've departed from the ranks of the Servants of the Word, and I wanted to give a fitting farewell speech at the last event I attended. But it never materialized. So, I've written my thoughts and thanks down and decided they would make a good post.

• Thank you, Don DeSmith. You taught me how to water ski. I’m sure I taught you some patients in the process (let’s face it, I started pretty bad) but I thank you for teaching me to persevere and not give up at something, even when I’m bad at it.

• Thank you Brian Laba, for teaching me the finer points of life: ultimate Frisbee, flora and fauna, and how to lead in UCO. The most beneficial experience was seeing you lead by example.

• Thank you Stu Ferguson, for teaching me even though I’m Catholic, I’ll still get to heaven, even if it’s just barely, and being a Christian doesn’t mean being a candy ass.

• Thank you Gary Sacharski, for being brutally honest with me during men’s group, and basically every other time we talked.

• Thank you Steve Clark, for telling me to leave Pittsburgh in the first place. I would have missed out on something special if I didn’t leave.

• To my lounge brothers: Toufic, Luis, and Michi. Thank you! You were real inspirations for me and you always could make me laugh. May the Lord continue to bless you as you move forward in your calls.

• Thank you Dan Keating and Ted Kennedy for showing me the blessings of living life as a man of prayer and order. I have grown a lot in these areas (especially order) because of the example you’ve given me.

• Thank you Joseph Mathias, for being a great roommate. We prayed together, drank together, and were rebuked together. What more could you ask for in a brother in the Lord?

• Finally, thank you Nico Angleys. You’ve been a great mentor and friend over the past years. You were my main influence for my decision to become an affiliate. May the Lord bless you as much as you have been a blessing to me.

It was a special time for me. I'll never forget it!

Getting Distracted?

I think it's really easy to blog about the news. It's always changing, there's always something happening, and there's always the next big thing. Think about this: did you wake up and say, "wow the oil in the gulf has stopped!" Maybe. It was more likely than, "the United States is at war right now." No one really remembers until an article comes out and a general doesn't speak too well of the Commander-in-Chief. (How may people knew General McCrystal was in charge of Afghanistan? Tell the truth!) Or did you wake up and say, "Mel Gibson wanted to burn his girlfriend's house down." Mr. Gibson's meltdown is like watching an episode of America's Wildest Police Chases, but in the long term, that's not going to matter. Afghanistan still should matter, until Lindsey Lohan goes or gets out of jail. Then we'll be moving on yet again.

But what would be a really tough blog. Ferrets. There's this movie PBS created devoted to the topic. But how could people actually live like that?

I stand corrected.


People have the desire in today's day and age to want to distract and remove all hardship and pain. But I've found the times where I learned the most were the times when I got through a hardship. I'd imagine it's the same for you. So let's not get distracted by things like Mel Gibson, Justin Beiber, ferrets, and LeBron James leaving to go to Miami. Let's remember there's still real things happening which require our attention.

It's easy to pick on the Christians

Have you ever noticed Christians are usually the easiest targets to attack? Think about it. You have nothing to lose when going after a Christian. Sure they could do physical harm to you if provoked, but then they would be hypocrites of their faith. The provoker would simply throw Scripture right back at the Christian. "What happened to 'do unto others' or 'turn the other cheek?'" Oh yeah, I could hear it now.

But the same people who would attack Christians are usually the first ones to say, "We need tolerance for the Muslim faith. It's our fault they attack us." What? Why? Christians often get provoked, but you don't see it as a terrorist cell or an ideology which wants to wipe Islam off the map.

Why won't the people attacking Christianity attack Islam? Is it because you might get a suicide bomber at your front door? Is it because people fear what happened to Danish cartoonist Kurt Westergaard when he is attacked for drawing a picture of Muhammad? Is it because Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh is killed for creating a film on Islam?

Christians though have been standing up to Islam, and getting martyred for it. Instead of fearing them, they try to live peacefully. When they are martyred, they make the ultimate sacrifice for their faith and for the Kingdom of the Lord. They are not hiding behind anything. They are standing up more than anyone. So go ahead and mock and ridicule Christians. It's the easy way out. But dying for your beliefs and standing in times of trial is something most people aren't willing to stomach anymore. Here's to the Christian martyrs, who are some of the most courageous people on the planet.

It’s Official: I’m getting old

It’s 2010 and I hit a new milestone for my life: 26. I am officially be closer to 30 than 20. I know 30 is the new 20, according to Jay-Z. But to me it seems a bit ridiculous. 30 is still 30. I guess he could be referring to the fact that adulthood seems to be delayed more and more in the developed world. It’s like being able to now keep your parent’s health insurance coverage until 26. So you can smoke, vote, and join the armed forces at 18. You can drink at 21. But please, citizens of the United States, don’t actually try to provide for yourself until the age of 26? Something seems a bit skewed. Jay-Z is probably also saying this so he can keep releasing albums, even though he’s 40. Doesn’t one need to move past money, clothes, and (insert a derogative term for the next word) women at some point. I was a fan of Jay’s back in ’03. He “retired,” which I thought was the right move. Your past the youthfulness required to rap. Good decision. Then he released three more albums. Bad call.

In my mind, I’ve been an adult for the last eight years. But this leads me to my new decisions: I cannot shop at Aeropostle, Abercrombie and Fitch, and--even one of my favorite--American Eagle (A/AF/AE) anymore. On a recent trip to try to find new shoes and to rid myself of the same shorts I’ve had since my freshman year of college, I came across a new observation. I’m looking at the posters of models which advertise A/AF/AE clothing. I notice they look nothing like me. In fact, they look nothing like my peers, either. In greater fact, they look like they have a lot more in common with the students in my high school youth group than any of my friends.

And so it dawns on me. I have reached the age where I am moving on from my own stage of life of an extended adolescence and I have to start making my own adult decisions. I can’t shop where kids go with their mothers, and if I am going to a store where this occurs I stay out of that section. It might be time to look into opening a Roth IRA, and invest in a 401k. Do I need life insurance? Is it time to start dressing in snappy casual more often? Do I need to go to more dinner parties? Eh, I’ll save that for later. I think a rerun of Jersey Shore is coming on MTV.

Without Facebook, No One Remembers Your Birthday

Today is my birthday. I guess you could say this blog is my gift to myself. I have to try to keep writing. I went to school for it, for crying out loud.

But with it being my birthday, I reminisced about the things which happened over the years and all the good birthdays, and even the bad one (19th). But what really is noticeable is your birthday on Facebook. All of a sudden, people you haven't talked to since elementary school are saying happy birthday. You really are in awe that this many people took 20 seconds out of their busy day to wish you a happy birthday. Isn't it awesome?

But then, you have to ask yourself what life is really like without the benefit of a social networking site which stores everything for you. Do you really know your friend's birthday if they came up to you and asked you, "hey what's my birthdate?" No. In fact, here's a list of who's birthdays I do know: mom's; dad's; younger brother; youngest brother; grandfather's on my dad's side (day after my dad's); grandfather on my mom's side (Christmas); my three housemates' who were with with me my first year after college; first girlfriend's; and that's about it. Pathetic, I know.

But with the addition of technology making our lives better in so many ways, it has also allowed us to become more lazy than we could ever imagine. I mean, how many phone numbers do you know by heart anymore besides your own. I do not know my mom's cell phone number, nor my two brothers. If my phone goes down, it's over. I don't even have the benefit of a SIM card. So I'm really screwed.

Here are some other skills which have become diminished since technology has advanced: spelling; grammar (which I misspelled the first time I typed it); remembering where you parked your car (just hit the button until your trunk pops); math; balancing your checkbook (with internet banking, it's all there); and changing CDs while driving a stick and talking on your cell phone during rush hour (okay, I made the last one up).

So, curse you, technology. You have brought about laziness and forgetfulness among my friends and the people who I can barely remember. Curse you, for making me use a calculator to add. And especially, curse you, Facebook. Because I'm not drawn to your soul-taking qualities and abilities to stalk people and peer in on their photos of them probably doing things their parents would not like, I'm am left with only a handful of happy birthdays from people who I know actually do care enough about me to know my actual birthdate. Thank goodness I can vent because of this blog.