Musings of a Catholic Convert

"And if there's one thing I know, it's how to spot the genuine article. Because that's what you got to watch out for. Not the cops. You can always get around the cops. But the one thing you can never ever get around is the genuine article. And you, kid, are the genuine article."

Did you ever see the movie, "Leap of Faith", with Steve Martin playing the role of a faith healer?  That's where I got that quote.  Good movie.  Maybe you will watch it sometime. For now, look at that quote.  What is the problem that finally unseats this charlatan and ultimately makes him leave "the business"?  The genuine article.  A real healing by God.  You cannot argue with truth.  Well, you can try, but you cannot win.  That is how you spot the false.  Not by studying all of the counterfeits, but by studying the real deal.  When you know what the truth looks like, everything else shows itself as flawed and incomplete.  

So where do you go to study the truth?

Good question.

There's an even "gooder" answer, because God knew we would need more than our own intellect and emotion to guide us, which we sometimes mistakenly think is the Holy Spirit.  No, God gave us something more concrete - a promise actually - that will abide and protect His truth for all time.  What did He give us?  If you said the Holy Spirit, you are on the right track.  But notice the WAY in which He has given us the Holy Spirit and the deposit of faith.

John 14:16-17 (mouse over the reference to read the Scripture)

John 14:24-26 (use that mouse again)

We, having been buried with Christ in baptism and raised from our death to sin in order to live as new persons, have the indwelling of the Holy Trinity.  The Apostles have this too, but they got something else.  They received from the Holy Spirit total recall of all Jesus had taught them, which St. John said all the books in the world could not contain.  All of this teaching has been faithfully protected by these Apostles, who are the first Bishops.  Their successors, the Bishops have been charged throughout the centuries to continue to pass along these things.  For example, read through 1 & 2 Timothy to see the instruction given to this young Bishop to hold fast to the teachings that were handed down to him.  This succession, this structure which is part of the Church Jesus founded in Matthew 16, has the protection from the Holy Spirit Himself.  He is the guarantor of truth for the Church Jesus said would never succumb to death.  As we are faithful to this Deposit of Faith, whether we be laypersons, Priests, or individual Bishops, we can be sure that we are in the Truth.  When we choose to be novel, to reject the authoritative teaching God established, and seek to carve our own road, we undoubtedly will teach error.  So what is the answer?  Remain faithful to that which God has revealed.

Sound easy?  It's not.  Want a good place to start?  Try 1 John.  See what St. John says the Christian life looks like.  It's no walk in the garden, but it is worth any struggle and any self sacrifice to be in true communion with God.   

Did you figure it out yesterday? 

You know two men could be standing in front of you wearing identical looking shirts.  They both have a Tommy Hilfiger trademark symbol stitched into the "chest pocket" area of the shirt.  Same color.  Same size.  And let's even say that the two men are actually identical twins!  One of them - let's call him Tomax - is wearing a knockoff and the other - we'll call him Xamot - is wearing the real Tommy shirt.  How do you know which is which?

There are actually two correct answers to this question.  I'll give you the easy one.  Tomax's hair is parted on the right side of his head and Xamot's on the left.  Also, there is a scar on Xamot's right cheek, and Tomax has no scar.  See?  Simple.  

Know let's make a stretch and assume you didn't know how to identify Tomax or Xamot.  You'd have to use the shirts then, right?  So how would you do it?  How do you spot the fake shirt?

I'm going to tell you how tomorrow.  There are ways to tell.  But for today, let's assume you cannot tell them apart.  You might say, "Who cares?  It doesn't matter to me if one of them has a counterfeit product."  You might even be persuaded to buy into the lie that this isn't hurting anyone and that it is harmless.  Somebody is saving a buck, right?

What about the real merchandiser who stocks the actual Tommy shirts?  What is he saving?  What about the manufacturing plant that produces the goods?  Are those plants and their workers saving a buck too?  What about the families supported by those plants?  How is their savings?  And what about the shirt itself?  Is it made of quality material?  Is it going to last?  Is it made of safe fabric, or could there be something potentially harmful?

The picture on the left shows two feet that were chemically burned by a pair of cheaply produced sandals (not name brand even).  Several people were injured by these products and countless emails were circulated warning of the very real problem (I checked it out, because we got so many emails).  The quality of manufacturing materials DOES matter.  

And that is just a shirt or a pair of sandals.  What about baby formula?  What about medicine?  People can be seriously injured by counterfeit products.  It is a big deal, beyond the fact that it is theft on several levels, which in itself is a grave sin. 

Let's make another application to this.  What about false teachings?  What about fake Christians and the things they teach through their living and speaking?  Do you think there is potential there to cause harm?  Eternal harm even?  Absolutely.  All paths DO NOT lead to God.  All theological viewpoints are not equally truthful.  Someone is wrong.  Everyone is not right.  And it matters on an eternal scale.  How do you spot the fake?

I'll tell you tomorrow. 

Read John 3:19-21

Did you read it?  No?  Go back and read it.  That judgement falls on the majority of those who profess to be Christians.  Rather than step into the light and have their sins revealed for the purpose of purification and victory over sin, many of us choose to live in the shadows.  You're pretending that nobody sees what you're doing, or what you're thinking.  Wake up to the fact that there are no secret sins.  There is nothing that is hidden from God, and it is He that judges, not me or your buddies, or the people you compare yourself to to justify your sinfulness.  

I used to live just like you.  I did not want to give up my "pet sins".  I did not want to admit to myself that they were destructive tools of the Devil in my life, there to draw me away from God and His Church.  I was in darkness, living a lie, and justifying myself in all sorts of ways.  But guess what?  I was not justified, and neither are you - at least not in the way you think you are.  What changed?  I got a clue.

I realized that we are universally - that means everybody - called to holiness.  We are called to be saints.  Look at Matthew 5:48.  PERFECT!  That's the goal, not "be better than somebody else", not "pretend you are perfect", not "appear to be perfect", but "BE PERFECT".  Who is the standard?  God the Father!  Sound impossible?  It isn't.  God cannot command us to do something and not provide a means for us to obey him.  That would make Him unjust.  No, He has given us the means to be pefected by cooperating with His grace.  What does that mean?

Well it starts by letting go of everything and giving yourself wholly to God.  Look at Luke 14:25-33.  We don't hold anything back from God.  Are you there?  What are you holding back?  What are you afraid of?  Will you give your fear to God and trust Him?

This is the liberating part, to give yourself wholly and fully to God, to have a true ongoing relationship with him (This involves action by the way).  When you do this, you will be on the path to holiness.  Learn to detach yourself from your love of the things of this world and allow your heart to be daily given to Jesus Christ.  Learn to view others as God sees them and to see yourself as He sees you and loves you.  Don't let Satan trick you into thinking the life you have is as good as it's going to get.  Step into the light of truth.  Allow God to reveal the things that are keeping you from holiness.  Then get rid of them.  

Listen, this is a process.  You're not going to solve everything in one day, or even one year.  The grand thing about this is that God knows that.  He is going to be with you every step of the way.  Don't push Him off.  Let Him work on you and change you.  It is worth the effort.  It is worth the time.  It is worth the struggles that will inevitably come as you wrestle with sin and temptation.  Do it anyway.  

Then you and I will see things in a totally different way.  No longer living in the shadows but living in the light of Christ as we are meant to be.   

I don't understand why people are in such a hurry to get out of Mass on Sunday.  If your time is so valuable that you can't wait until the Recessional is over before you have to run out of the Church, why are you even coming to Mass?  What is another 5 minutes?  Do you love Jesus so little that you have to flee his Church immediately after communion?  Do you think that the communion you profess and receive is real?  I really don't understand.

I have never been able to understand how people can care so little about their relationship with the Lord, begrudgingly giving Him an hour on Sunday and somehow thinking they are doing Him a favor.  But heaven forbid the service last more than 60 minutes, because then the keys start rattling, you're gathering your things and ready to bolt for the door.  Really?  C'mon.  And you're not even leaving quietly, you're talking on the way out too.  Good grief, people.  Learn to at least respect the house of worship enough to keep your early leaving yap shut until you are outside.  At least pretend to care that this is Church.  

Think I'm being judgemental?  Think I'm being harsh?  I saw this same garbage when I was a Protestant pastor and I still see it at Mass.  And we as Catholics are supposed to be a sacramental people - a liturgical people - and I see this sort of behavior from people who should know better.  I bet nobody taught you to leave Mass early.  You probably learned it from someone else's bad example, just like all those people who are so adamant about holding hands during the Our Father.  Why also are so many people adamant about something that is not even a part of the liturgy (holding hands during  the Our Father) and yet do not even attempt to participate in the parts of the liturgy that are spelled out (making a profound bow during the words of the Incarnation, crossing yourself, etc.).  You have no excuse.

All the prescribed gestures play a role in putting our whole being in the pathway of God's free grace.  In other words, participation in the Mass disposes us to receive the grace He offers through it.  So why take it lightly?  Please don't.  Please give Him that hour of Mass with your whole heart, mind, soul, strength, participation, emotion, attention, and anything else you have.  And don't stop there.  Spend some time during the week praying, reading the Bible.  Did you know that the Church has ways for you to grow in your faith 7 days a week?  Give it a try.  You might find that you like it.   

The John Michael Talbot concert last night was wonderful.  I regret having to leave before its completion because it was so very wonderful.  My vocation as a father and husband took precedence however.  It's hard to have a concert on a weeknight when you have the wee ones to manage.  That being said, I am super grateful that I had the opportunity to spend the time I had at the concert.  

If you've never been to a John Michael Talbot concert, you need to find one nearby.  You will not regret the time spent.  You will enjoy the concert, even if accoustic/meditative music is not your "cup of tea", because it is much more than a concert.  It is a spiritual retreat and an opportunity for renewal and refreshment, led by one of the most prolific Christian musicians in the world.  Find an appearance of John Michael Talbot and go.   

JMT will be in concert tonight at Church of the Incarnation in Collierville, TN (where I b) at 7pm.  It's a free concert, but a love offering will be collected, so share the love.

John Michael Talbot is one of my favorite musicians.  Long before I was Catholic I listened to JMTs music.  Both he and Michael Card have never been afraid to have deep theological themes to their music, which is a refreshing break from the often shallow content of the so-called "praise music" that I've been exposed to.  JMT's willingness to pursue a meditative/contemplative musical ministry shows a lot of guts.  And God has honored him for his decision and his faithfulness.

If you're in the area, drop by for the concert.  You won't be disappointed. 

Oh, and if you're feeling particularly outgoing today, why not drop over to his blog on blogger and invite him to join us in our happy little Catholic blogging community. 

from Reuters:

By Anthony Boadle

HAVANA (Reuters) - Ailing Cuban leader Fidel Castro said on Tuesday that he will not return to lead the communist country, retiring as president 49 years after he seized power in a revolution and became a central figure of the Cold War.

Castro, 81, who has not appeared in public since undergoing stomach surgery almost 19 months ago, said he would not seek a new term as president or leader of Cuba's armed forces when the National Assembly meets on Sunday.

"To my dear compatriots, who gave me the immense honor in recent days of electing me a member of parliament … I communicate to you that I will not aspire to or accept — I repeat not aspire to or accept — the positions of president of the Council of State and commander-in-chief," Castro said in a statement published in the Communist Party's Granma newspaper.

President George W. Bush, who has tightened a decades-old economic embargo against Castro's government, said he hoped Castro's retirement would mark a new era in Cuba.

"I believe that the change from Fidel Castro ought to begin a period of a democratic transition," Bush said in Rwanda during a tour to Africa. "Eventually this transition ought to lead to free and fair elections. And I mean free and I mean fair."

Cuba's National Assembly, a rubber-stamp legislature, is expected to nominate Castro's brother and designated successor Raul Castro as president. The 76-year-old defense minister has been running the country since emergency intestinal surgery forced his brother to delegate power on July 31, 2006.

Raul Castro has raised hopes of economic reforms but he is unlikely to make bold political changes to the one-party state. Fidel Castro will remain influential as first secretary of the ruling Communist Party.

"This is a crucial moment. Cuba wants change, the people want change," said Oswaldo Paya, Cuba's best-known dissident. He said a succession headed by Raul Castro would not satisfy Cubans and called for an end to censorship.

Cubans on the empty streets of Havana were not surprised by Castro's retirement, first announced on Granma's Web site in the middle of the night.

"Everyone knew for a while that he would not come back. The people got used to his absence," said Roberto, a self-employed Cuban who did not want to be fully named.

"I don't know what to say. I just want to leave. This system cannot continue," said Alexis, a garbage collector.

In a deserted Revolution Square, the site of many hours-long speeches by Castro to massive crowds, a lone soldier stood guard at government headquarters. The city was calm.

CHARISMATIC REVOLUTIONARY

The charismatic Castro led the bearded and cigar-chomping guerrillas who swept down from the mountains of eastern Cuba to overthrow U.S.-backed dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959.

He then turned Cuba into a communist state on the doorstep of the United States and became the world's longest-serving head of state, barring monarchs.

Castro survived a CIA-backed invasion of Cuban exiles at the Bay of Pigs in 1961, as well as assassination attempts, the continuing U.S. trade embargo, and an economic crisis in the 1990s after the collapse of Soviet bloc communism.

He played a key role in taking the world to the brink of nuclear war in 1962 when he allowed Moscow to put ballistic missiles in Cuba, leading to a 13-day stand-off between U.S. President John F. Kennedy and Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev.

Famous for his long speeches delivered in his green military fatigues, Castro is admired in the Third World for standing up to the United States but considered by his opponents a tyrant who suppressed freedom.

At home, supporters point to Cuba's advances in health and education for all its citizens. But critics, led by the United States and the hundreds of thousands of Cubans who left to live abroad, say he turned the Caribbean island into a police state and that his policies wrecked the economy.

Castro came close to death in 2006 but Cuba's leadership showed no sign of collapse during his health crisis.

"Fortunately, our Revolution can still count on cadres from the old guard and others who were very young in the early stages of the process," Castro said in Tuesday's statement.

He has been seen only in pictures and video film, looking gaunt and frail, since he handed over power provisionally to his brother. His health improved enough a year ago to allow him to receive visits from foreign allies and write reams of articles published by Cuba's state press.

"This is not my farewell to you. My only wish is to fight as a soldier in the battle of ideas. I shall continue to write under the heading of 'Reflections by comrade Fidel.' It will be just another weapon you can count on. Perhaps my voice will be heard. I shall be careful," Castro said in Tuesday's message.

Raul Castro has raised expectations of economic reforms to improve the daily lot of Cubans since standing in for his brother, but he has yet to deliver.

"It was logical for Fidel to quit because he has been saying that he is not well," said a musician leaving a cabaret in the early hours of Tuesday. "But nothing will change until the government makes economic reforms that Cuba needs."

(Additional reporting by Rosa Tania Valdes in Havana, Deborah Charles in Rwanda and Michael Christie in Miami; Editing by Kieran Murray)

© Reuters 2008 All rights reserved

Some people might say I need therapy.  They are probably thinking of therapy for my brain.  I hate to disappoint, but I had a different type of therapy yesterday.  I, for the first time in my life, got a therapeutic massage.  Let me tell you something, brother, my back, neck, and shoulders feel awesome now!  Having never gotten a massage before, I did not know what to expect.  It was really neat, and there was nothing weird.  I even got a tour of the place, which also trains men and women for professional work.  They know muscles, bones, nerves, even blood stuff.  I was quite impressed.  The massage itself was awesome.  I must thank my sis again for the gift certificate that got me in the door.

I wasn’t too impressed by the SuperBowl last night.  In fact, I really didn’t watch it.  A couple of plays here and there but nothing to get hype about.  You know what?  I think I was even disappointed with the commercials this year.  There were a few that I really liked (FedEx rarely disappoints me), but overall I was not moved by anything I saw.

What about you?  What did you think of the game?  Got a favorite commercial?

Do we even need to mention the thrown-together-at-the-last-minute halftime show?  No offense to Tom Petty, but c’mon.  SuperBowl halftime show is usually over the top, mega hyped up superstar extravaganza.  I’m starting to wonder if the Tom Petty gig was related to an American Idol appearance later this year.

Yes, I do watch American Idol.  Oh, the shame!

Welcome to the New Musings of a Catholic Convert.

In time, I hope to migrate all my previous data to this totally Catholic community and begin adding new thoughts. Please be patient.

In the meantime, I encourage you to tell all your friends about this new Catholic community here at CatholicDestination.com. This is going to be awesome!