It's been a while

I see that people are still viewing this, and it's probably accidental, but I hope you're actually taking the time to look. I've learned in that past few years that some of my information is wrong (you can actually eat in the hour after mass, just not before), but most of it IS accurate.

They always said  be careful what you wish for; I always wanted to live in a time of strife the Catholic/Christian faith.
I'm in college now and I'm still being attacked for my faith. I'm sure many people are aware of Obama's pro-choice opinions and that's fine, but his determination to make Catholic Churches pay taxes for it goes not only against the Separation of  Church and State, but also against the morals of the Church.

I was able to vote in this past election and, since my college is liberal, VERY liberal (not that that's a bad thing; if we lived in a perfect world, I'd probably be liberal myself), I was very often accused of ignorance and stupidity and "rural-ness" (meaning, simply, I'm not educated because I must be from the country) silly stuff really. That was tough. Especially as someone who knows all the right answers but doesn't live her faith like she should. I AM trying to focus on the "golden" Commandment: "Love one another, as I have loved you." but no one ever said it was easy.

Many of my friends here are atheists and agnostics and I've gained a few homosexual friends as well. I think God's focus for me has really been to teach me not to judge and to be positive.

I have a friend here at college that insists on making anti-Christian jokes and slurs. It has been really difficult for me to remain friends with him because though I should forgive him 7 x 70 times, but as anyone knows, it's really hard to truly forgive someone that many times when it feels like they're slamming your head against the wall.

I went to World Youth Day in Spain last year; I had the time of my life and met people from almost all the continents. It was great. I had no idea the struggle faced by Chinese Christians- chalk it off to ignorant Americanism- but it was great. Somehow, singing "Rain Down" in a dry airport (where it hadn't rained for over 100 years, supposedly) before a rainstorm and then praying that it would stop so we could get some sleep before the Pope said Mass in the morning, was so.....joyful it didn't matter that I couldn't even see Pope Benedict XVI with my binoculars.

God is good; all the time. All the time; God is good!

DAY 40! A Few of my Favorite Things...

     I've learned so much from these past 40 days. When I started this blog I wanted to clarify some of the biggest misconceptions in the Catholic Church. I haven't addressed all of them, but some I would need a doctorate in theology to contradict.

     My favorite posts have been the ones I learned the most or just wrote REALLY well. (sorry, I don't mean to brag...) So those would be: day 13, day 19, day21, day 33, and day 37. I really enjoyed going back to my Bible and looking up verses. that was one of my biggest learning tools. Anything and Everything  you need to know is in the Bible. It's all there. It was funny because there would be times when I would be downhearted or confused and I would open my Bible and a verse would pop out at me and answer whatever question that had been nagging at me.

     God is truly amazing and this blog really has drawn me closer to Him. By spending an hour or so a day on this blog, I was spending and hour or so dedicated solely to Him. Well, God Bless and I hope everyone enjoyed my blog.

DAY 39: Secret societies?

     This is one I've never heard of, but apparently it's a common misconception. I guess a lot of people think the Church has secret societies. These "secret societies" are actually called religious orders and aren't secret. The holy orders are specifically priests, deacons and bishops, whereas the rest of the religious orders include nuns and monks. These "secret societies" are therefore called convents and monasteries respectively.

     Secrets in the Catholic Church are sometimes kept by these religious orders. For example, in the Sacrament of Reconciliation (confession) priests are sworn to secrecy. That's why in some police shows on TV talk about suspects confessing to priests and the cops not being able to get a confession out of the priests.

     Those are the times secrecy is used in the Church. If you have any questions, please ask. I have one more post and Sunday is Easter!!!! So Happy Good Friday everyone and God Bless.

http://www.pncea.org/Five-Misconceptions-about-the-Catholic-Church-(brochure).aspx

DAY 38: Holy Days of Obligation?

     Holy Days of Obligation in the Catholic Church are the most important feast days in it's history. The most common day of obligation is Sunday. Every Sunday Catholics are obliged to participate in the mass. Like the third Commandment says: "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy." (Chatechism of the Catholic Church and Al Kresta's book)

Below are the Holy Days of Obligations in the USA: (http://www.catholic.org/prayers/holydays.php)

 January 1, the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
*Thursday of the Sixth Week of Easter, the solemnity of the Ascension
 August 15, the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
*November 1, the solemnity of All Saints
 December 8, the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
*December 25, the solemnity of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ [list numbers are not in original]

The * are holy days throughout the world and the Church.


Easter is 3 days away! Happy Holy Thursday!

DAY 37: Is the Pope infallible?

     I guess many people believe that the Catholic Church teaches that the pope is infallible 24/7. Not so. If it were, then the pope would be equal to God and that is just blasphemous. No, the Pope is human, and like all humans, the pope sins- the pope makes mistakes....The Catholic Church does teach that the Pope IS infallible in SOME things, however.

     "I. The Pope must be making a decree on matters of faith or morals
      II. The declaration must be binding on the whole Church
      III. The Pope must be speaking with the full authority of the Papacy, and not in a personal capacity."
http://listverse.com/2009/07/13/top-10-misconceptions-about-the-catholic-church/

      Therefore, when the pope is teaching about science, he can make mistakes, but not on matters of religion.

     Remember, the Pope is the leader of the Church and since Catholics believe that whoever hears the Catholic Church hears Christ. And in Matthew 16:18- although it is more famous for acknowledging Peter as the rock on which Christ will build His church- it says " And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it." So if Satan can not wipe out the church or change its morals in anyway shape or form, how can the Pope be wrong in the ways of the Church?

     Does that verse give comfort to anyone else?  Well, Happy Spy Day? Today is the day the disciple, Judas, got 30 pieces of silver for promising to give up Christ. EASTER IS 4 DAYS AWAY! 
    

DAY 36: Catholic Definitions II

After doing the first definition day, I realized that there were still some Catholic words I didn't know. So, I've dedicated another day to vocabulary....


Acolyte-  A person from the church community that carries the cross and candles, sets the altar, etc.

Ambo- The podium from which the Scripture readings are read.
Cantor- someone who leads the Church in song

Celibacy- a promise made by men or women to never marry or have a family and to dedicate their life to Christ.

Covenant- promises or relationships with God. (See Old Testament)

Creed- beliefs; a short summery of key beliefs i.e. Apostles or Nicene Creed

Crosier- a bishop's staff that is shaped like a shepard's staff (see picture below)

Dogma-  A belief defined as necessary to the Catholic faith and is not changeable. For example: Jesus Christ is
the Son of God.
Epiclesis- part of the Mass where the priest raises his hands over the gifts and prays for the Holy Spirit to come upon the Eucharistic gifts.
Mitre- headpiece worn by bishops (see picture below)

Pentateuch- The name of the first 5 books of the Bible (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.)

   
Mitre ^                                       Crosier ^



Vocabulary and Definitions come from http://www.ssjohnandpaul.org/docs/Catechetical%20Lessons%201-6/Dictionary.pdf

Thanks everyone who is reading. We have had people reading the blog from England, Singapore, Ireland, Austria, and India ( Not including the North American countries)


PS: If you would like to compare the various Christian denominations, a great site is http://www.ancient-future.net/denominations.html

DAY 35: Priests and Marriage

     This is something I've wondered about recently, and I just wanted to clarify it. Priests can not get married, but a married man can become a priest. Get it? I have also read that married men can be deacons, but not bishops...

     AL Kresta makes the point that the Catholic Church only has one Priest- Jesus Christ. Just like our Lord is the "one King, one Prophet, one Mediator and one Shepard," so is he the only priest. But wait- aren't there thousands of priests around the world? Yes, but they all get their instructions from Jesus. I don't know if anyone else remembers this, but Jesus never married...
     Another thing Al mentions is that the Eastern Catholic Church commonly ordains married men and even the Western Church "occasionally ordains married men if they have been Protestant clergy and have then sought ordination after entering the Catholic Church."
 
     Many of the early priests and bishops were married- even the apostle Peter, the rock on whom Jesus built his Church.

     Although there are plenty of examples of married Catholic priests-such as Peter- it is not recommended by the Church. Why? "The Bible says a family man puts his family first, not the Church." 1 Corinthians 7: 32-34 (http://www.davidmacd.com/catholic/why_priests_cant_marry.htm and Al Kresta) This division of family and church is evident in ministers of other Christian religions. For example, it is scientifically proven that in the "Pentecostal Assemblies of God:

     * 1500 pastors per month leave the Pentecostal ministry
     * 2/3rds quit before they retire.
     * 14 years is the average length as a Pastor

AND

    * 8 out of 10 pastors and their spouses are discouraged or dealing with depression
    * 80% of pastors say they have insufficient time with their spouses"

So although it is not forbidden for priests to be married, it is highly discouraged because priests cannot give their full devotion to God.

Happy Holy Monday everyone! 6 more days till Easter!