I hope your Advent is going well for you. I’m sorry I haven’t been around much, I am getting ready for another Formation weekend. I have papers to finalize and performing some critical reading on 2 of my class reading assignments. In addition, I’ve taken on setting up on Facebook, so life’s been really busy.

In reflection so far, Advent is a great time to prepare and really see the area’s of my life that can be straightened out and that pathway cleared for the Lord. I hope the 3rd Sunday of Advent will give you reason to Rejoice!

Peace be with you.

With all the doom-n-gloom going on in the world, but even closer, in the States, it’s tempting to slip down the slope to despair. It’s a struggle to remain upbeat in the face of such bleak news, but it’s important to realize when our fears and worries run rampant, it fuels the uncertainty and prolongs the financial agony and delays potential recovery.

This gym where I worked out once, had this simple phrase that spoke volumes, with few words:

” Whether you THINK you can or can’t,  you’re right! ”

Says a lot don’t it?

It ranks right up there with, “Whatever you tell yourself, is most real to you.” I find this so true in many instances where I’ve literally talked myself into some funk. Literally, garbage in-garbage out. You really have to monitor the self-talk, especially with the negative. I find it most helpful to think on the positive note, and find things to be thankful for.

So, I hope you’ll be the first to “pay it forward” by showing some goodwill to others, encourage them, and share some fellowship with those being displaced. I think the social “death” is sometimes worse than actually being laid off. I’m starting to keep my friends in my journal, with their contact information. I hope to help them by letting them know of openings that I become aware of. Or help by reading their resumes for them, and forwarding them when I can. Every little bit helps.

I hope you all know that I keep you in my prayers and pray this too will pass. That better opportunities are down the road for us all.

Peace and blessings to all.

It’s hard to believe Advent is upon us. Where in the world did 2008 go? In whirl, it’s about to vanish into the history books.

While this it true, it’s still a moment where we are waiting. Waiting for the birth of our Savior. For him to be born anew, in our hearts. The anticipation is what I love, and is perhaps the strongest feeling I’m experiencing at the moment. The psalmist speaks, “How long O Lord….?” You can’t help but feel their need for his presence in their crying out to the Lord.  I find myself expressing the same in unison.

Jesus tells us to Watch! and be prepared, not to be caught asleep and unaware!

Be ready to go out to meet him when he comes.

Advent is special to me, and even though the penitential overtones are played down, I still feel every bit inclined to review my life thus far since Easter, and check any unwanted baggage at the gate. Because,  I like to travel light!

Have a Blessed Advent Season!

We join our Holy Father in prayer for the victims in the terrorist attacks in Mumbai. So very senseless. I am saddened by the use of violence which violates our human dignity.

Benedict XVI Grieves Mumbai Attacks - zenit.org

“Deeply concerned about the outbreak of violence in Mumbai, the Holy Father asks you kindly to convey his heartfelt condolences to the families of those who have lost their lives in these brutal attacks, and to assure the public authorities, citizens, and all those affected of his spiritual closeness” the telegram said. “His Holiness urgently appeals for an end to all acts of terrorism, which gravely offend the human family and severely destabilize the peace and solidarity needed to build a civilization worthy of mankind’s noble vocation to love God and neighbor. ”

“The Holy Father prays for the repose of the souls of the victims and implores God’s gift of strength and comfort for those who are injured and in mourning.”

Dear and Gracious God,

We thank you for your love and care, and for all the gifts which you bestow on us, in Christ Jesus. Thank you for the very life breath we possess in you. May we always find joy in serving you, and in serving one another. Bless and protect our families as we travel to see our loved ones today. May your peace and love dwell within us forever

We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, who lives an reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, as one God forever and ever.

Amen!

Long lines, empty shelves are signs of times at food banks

• Story Highlights
• Food banks, community pantries struggle to keep up with need as donations drop
• Middle-class families who used to be donors now on the other side seeking food
• Care & Share Food Bank of Southern Colorado has 95 turkeys, but it needs 6,000
• Church in California giving out chickens instead of turkeys to needy families
  

CNN) — Long lines, empty shelves and Thanksgiving chickens are just a few symptoms of the economic downturn’s effect on food banks and community pantries across the country.

Shawn Wray picks up a food donation Tuesday to distribute to families in need in Atlanta, Georgia.

People are turning to charitable organizations for their Thanksgiving meal this year in record numbers, while donations have dropped significantly and funding has been slashed.

Charity organizers across the country say the lagging economy has forced individual donors to keep money to themselves, while businesses that usually donate are struggling to stay afloat.

As of Tuesday, the Care & Share Food Bank of Southern Colorado had about 95 turkeys in its freezer, a far cry from the 6,000 it needs to spread among 430 charities in the region.

The Sacramento Food Bank in California has about 2,000 turkeys, but it needs at least 1,000 more. Since August, the number of new clients has risen 20 percent, and it now serves about 16,000 people each month. [More here..]

So very sad to hear of so many in need, but even more, that many are simply not giving out of fear. It doesn’t take much to help someone out. Donate a small basket with non-perishables. Heck, even a small turkey or chicken would be great and go far.

Please don’t let fear immobilize you.

Giving helps the heart.

Today’s Office of Readings strikes to the core, which is a message of warning. Warning us of the perils of following “False” teachers or teachings. This is one reason the Invitatory Office, is so important to me. I get the best possible advice for me, when God speaks through his Word, what I need to know, which is essential to live in his peace.

The first psalm, is a warning to be on guard about what comes out of my mouth, even when my opposition stands before me. The psalmist implores God to remind us, just how short our days are, and what we face when we are judged. In the second psalm, he’s imploring the Lord, to hear his prayer and to rescue him from sins.  He’s imploring his soul, baring it, and acknowledging that he’s lost without God. And the Final psalm, perhaps is the most riveting. What happens when we are deceitful, when we use our gifts of intellect toward evil, when we use that for plotting destruction and spreading malice instead of spreading kindness, or presenting good. It’s starkness really captivates me, but in the ending of the psalm, the psalmist is letting us know how God repays those who love him and follow his precepts.

This is essence of confession, what it’s about and how much we have fallen away from the general practice and why we have so many problems. We have people teaching falsely, for their own gain and against the authority of God’s Church. Teaching false doctrines, those that promote the culture of death. It’s important, that when we hear truth from teachers committed to truth, we listen! Take heart and follow. You know, by their fruits…? The reading this morning, and given homily warns us, that even the Angels were not spared.

“As there were false prophets in the past history of our people, so you too will have your false teachers, who will insinuate their own disruptive views and disown the Master who purchased their freedom. They will destroy themselves very quickly; but there will be many who copy their shameful behavior and the Way of Truth will be brought into disrepute on their account. They will eagerly try to buy you for themselves with insidious speeches, but for them the Condemnation, pronounced so long ago, is at its work already, and Destruction is not asleep.”

And from this homily:

“When God was displeased with his people, he delivered them to the enemy, and they were conquered by those who hated them; there were no more sacrifices or feasts. Likewise angered at a soul who had broken his commands, God handed it over to its enemies, who corrupted and totally dishonored it. When a house has no master living in it, it becomes dark, vile and contemptible, choked with filth and disgusting refuse. So too is a soul which has lost its master, who once rejoiced there with his angels.”

This is the essence of sin, and effects on us. Thank God! he’s given us the wonderful Sacrament of Reconciliation, or Confession. We have some excellent teachers here (in the following articles), giving us some great advice! Because we need to be “re-catechized” regarding this sacrament, and how to approach it properly, and how to obtain the most from it:

Archbp. Nienstedt’s initiative about confession: “a total re-catechesis”: part 1

“Fr. Z’s 20 Tips For Making A Good Confession o{]:¬)”

QUAERITUR: Confession of tendencies and spiritual direction

I pray for each and everyone that begins this movement to the Lord of all Forgiveness.

This was quite an article from the Washington Post. Can’t say I enjoyed the images it brought to mind, but I was surprised at her conclusion. (H/T to “The Deacons Bench“)

You’ll find few stories more harrowing or heart-rending or sobering than this one, from Sunday’s Washington Post, which chronicles the journey of a medical student named Lesley Wojick, as she decides whether or not she wants to perform abortions: ”Abortion is one of the most common surgical procedures performed on women, yet nobody in medical school even talks about it,” Lesley said. “If medical students don’t talk about it, how will they learn?”

It was Christina, the Students for Choice chapter president, who proposed holding a papaya workshop to expose more students to abortion. She’d heard about such a workshop at a national Students for Choice gathering. It was a hands-on opportunity for second-year medical students to learn how to perform an abortion, using a papaya as a stand-in for a woman’s uterus. Lesley thought it was a great idea.

The women enlisted doctors, residents and nurses from Maryland and Johns Hopkins to run the workshop and e-mailed an invitation to all second-year students. They promised dinner, a sure bet to lure medical students. This time, if the dean knew about their plans, he didn’t object. Soon the workshop, which could accommodate 20 students, had a waiting list — and the women organizing it had a small firestorm on their hands.

In her e-mail, Christina had hoped to attract participants by suggesting that they’d have fun learning the procedure: “You’ll get the opportunity to be shown how to use manual vacuum aspirators using papaya models (apparently papayas bear a striking resemblance to a uterus. Who knew?)” But some of the students who received the invitation didn’t see it that way. “This is a serious matter,” one told Christina. Those offended by her tone demanded to be dropped from any future Medical Students for Choice e-mails. After consulting a dean, the women didn’t remove any names from their list, but they decided to word future missives more carefully.

[You'll want to read what this woman came up with from the original article here..]

It’s hard to believe that we’ve completed the 3rd weekend for the year, and have one session remaining in 2008. In reflection, I see a strong bond forming between us. The stories being told are amazing, describing feelings of joy, sorrow, satisfaction and bewilderment. I guess all are part of experiencing God’s forming hand upon us, and are to be expected. The thing that I like is being shielded, how nice it is to be isolated from the hectic world for a bit, then late Sunday afternoon, we’re sent back out into our individual worlds, strengthened for yet another month. Only, with new reading/writing assignments and homework, having us utilize these new lessons in our ministerial preparation work and anchoring skills we’ve only just begun to employ.

Another amazing thing, we are very diverse, we are diverse both culturally, and professionally. We have software engineers, plant managers, aircraft mechanics, business owners and a system administrator. Some of us are retired, some are employed-earning degrees. Some speak English as a first language, and for some it’s a second or third language. We all have things we’re either happy about, or  struggling with, but we’re learning how to deal with them. Some lessons are opening new portals, others, stretching our minds a bit.

I know, from my perspective, it’s difficult, and takes a lot of time researching, writing and then re-writing our assignments. But, do you know what? I wouldn’t have it any other way! It’s challenging, and this experience is really giving my mind a workout. It’s having me evaluating my “starting” points, and making me think about things from both a faith and scholarly perspective. It’s causing me flex mental muscles, long suffering, from a mental atrophy.

So I am thankful for this opportunity God’s given me.  Studying with such a fine group of people. For his gift of new friendships, and creating a brotherly bond between us.

May God’s peace be with you, and, you have a joyful Thanksgiving Holy Day.

Interesting post from “Whispers in the Loggia” over Obama’s pick to head up the HHS, “Tom Daschle “.

Is This War?

The Federal agency responsible for abortion policy — and the shepherding of any proposed Freedom of Choice Act through Congress — will be led by… a pro-choice Catholic:
President-elect Barack Obama has chosen his close confidant and former Senate Majority Leader Thomas Daschle to serve as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, according to several sources close to the transition.

Daschle, a South Dakota Democrat, will also reportedly be given a policy portfolio that stretches beyond the department in order to help shepherd health-care reform legislation in 2009.

He will oversee a department of nearly 65,000 employees spread across 11 operating divisions with a budget this year of $707.7 billion. If he is confirmed by the Senate, his responsibilities will include the Medicare and Medicaid programs, the Food and Drug Administration, public health programs and government research at the National Institutes of Health.

[More here..]