Taking solace in music

I'm a person who believes that music has the power to reach the very core of our being to move our hearts and bring comfort when nothing else can. I sympatize with St. Augusting of Hippo who said that music is prayer twice; first in the sounds, then in the words. I have, therefore, been listening to music in an effort to come to understand why God does things like allow a tsunami killing millions. Or, why he allows some babies to wake up from their naps and others don't. I've been listening to the song,"The Prayer" by Andre Bocelli with the hope that someday we will understand.

http://english-cards.qatar4us.com/the_prayer/

Please pray for Baby Jacob

I just found out from a couple of college friends, Tony and Tricia, that their baby died yesterday of SIDS.Jacob was not quite 3 months old. They are, undoubtedly, devastated and confused, as is their older boy, Joseph. No words can console us in these times. Instead, we draw on each other and the love we feel for each other. We ask that Christ draw Tony, Tricia, and Joseph close to his heart as well as little baby Jacob.

What would they do if....

Imagine if you were part of a club or organization. Let's say you bought a Membership to the YMCA or had a share in a timeshare vacation house. Now, imagine that you found out that someone was getting the same priveleges to the services that were provided you in those places without having to pay or be committed to them. For instance, you talk to the person swimming next to you and find out that, even though he or she hasn't been to the Y in years, he or she was allowed use of the facilities because their parents were members once. Or, worse, you go down to your summer vacation spot and find out that you can't use it because a family that isn't a part of the agreement, though they were at one time and they still have friends who are, were using it for the day. I imagine most people agree that these situations would be aggrivating. So, why should Catholic Churches do weddings and funerals for people who never come to church and don't contribute a dime? Why should I have to tell one family that wants to use the church and that come to church every week and give of their time and talents toward making the church exist each week that they can't have a wedding because Nina Nonbeliever wants to have a pretty church wedding in a church with a long isle? Yet, Catholic priests continually not only bend over backwards to make the couple happy but, in the end, ask for such a small contribution that the weekly faithful end up paying for part of Norman Nonbeliever's wedding. We need to be more just with some of this stuff.

The snow's a comin'

Ah, yes. It's the first real snowfall of the year. The only problem is that it's still four hours away from starting. But, by all accounts, it is going to be one of those four to six inch events. I went over to lunch with the grade school kids and they are all excited. I'm not sure if they're hoping for a free day of school tomorrow or if they are just hoping to finally be able to drag out their sleds and go flying down a snow-packed hill. I love the first real snow of the year. Right now, my life is a bit hectic. It would be good if something were to force me to slow down and take it easy for a little while. I think it would probably be good for everyone to have a day where the only thing we can do is sit in our warm homes and watch it snow. If only the weather men would get it right when they predict these things.

Christmas Cards

I'm working on my Christmas cards. I know what you're thinking. Shouldn't I have been doing that about a month ago? Yes. But, in the Catholic Church we refer to the time before Christmas as Advent and from Dec. 25 until we celebrate the Baptism of the Lord. So, I have five days to get it done. It's nice to recieve the cards from parishioners and hear from old friends but it's also hectic to answer them back. I can't wait until Sunday is over and we put away the trees for another year.

Standing up for a few things

As a Catholic priest, there are a few principles that dominate my life. The first is that God is the author of human life who decides life and death. An offshoot of this principle is that life needs to be treated with respect. We need to give respect to people because they are created in the image and likeness of God. Using people as objects denigrates the respect that we need to have for them. That’s why the Catholic Church opposes Pornography: because it transforms someone from a person with dignity into an object whose only dignity is my sexual gratification.
Nonetheless, we can’t look at this principle too restrictively. It seems to me that, while pornography is one thing, MTV’s “Boiling Points” objectifies people in the same way using a different principle. If you’ve never seen “Boiling Points” before, the basic premise is that one person develops a scheme to aggravate another person. Maybe a customer pays for something and doesn’t get the right product. When the person complains or asks for his or her money back, the person behind the counter who is trying to aggravate the person, refuses to do so. The person who is being aggravated has a certain time limit until the scam is revealed. If they don’t get angry and walk away, they win $100. The problem I have with this whole premise is that, despite the mistaken belief that MTV is really trying to get people to be more patient, they are really using money to justify using people as objects of pleasure. We laugh as they get mad when, in truth, the audience knows that it’s all a sham. How would we feel if we were the person who asked for a muffin and got a half eaten one instead? We need, as a society, to ensure that we don’t support these shows that exploit other people.