Our Lady's Lamp

In class today, the teacher, Mrs. D, made a comparison that I'd never thought of before. God communicates to us like the old pen pals did. Back in the time of the World Wars, many people wrote long letters to each other, and they fell in love even across the sea. Through these letters, they poured their hearts out and decided that, yes, they were willing to spend their lives together based solely on this interaction. They never met each other, they didn't have several friends in common who could vouch for them, they accepted the words on the pages, and they married.  In many ways, that is how God communicates with us. He gives us glimpses of himself, most especially in the Scriptures and creation. He writes His love for us through the pages and trees. These letters tell us who He is, give us little anecdotes to see His personality, and tell us how serious He is about our relationship. He pours His Heart out upon these pages, begging us to recognize this love and sincerity....

This is an article I wrote for my Church's "newsletter" called the Messenger. It had to be really short, so I apologize for how abbreviated it is. I may, at some point, elaborate on one of more of the sections later. ~~~~~ We are all fighting a battle. We are the church militant. We fight against the forces of evil daily. We are in a constant battle, and, on our own, it would be impossible. But we are no more alone than were the Israelites in Exodus 17. Moses realized that while his arms were raised, the favor of the Lord shone upon the Israelites, and they could not be defeated. Likewise, we have the priests who offer – on our behalf and that of the whole world – the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. But, like Moses, our priests tire, as does the army. But like the Israelites, we should not despair, for we are not left alone. We have people to help hold up our priests’ arms so that we can better fight our fight, fueled by the Eucharist – those who consecrate themselve...

A daughter of the King, that is what I am. By the grace of the Holy Trinity, I am a princess in the court of God. I have been adopted by the merits of Christ's blood and the Holy Spirit. I was taken from my former life as a child of the world and given a heavenly inheritance! But what does it mean to be a daughter (or son) of God, the King of kings? What does it mean to be a princess of the heavenly court? What do our roles and relationships look like? God is Our Father God, the Creator of all, has adopted me. This means that I share in the inheritance of the kingdom of God. No longer and I just little me, human, weak, dirty, unworthy of the courts of Heaven. Heaven is my inheritance – as long as I remain a true daughter (reference the Prodigal Son). When I was a child, I would follow my dad everywhere, look at whatever textbook he was reading, ask endless questions of “why?” “what's that?” and “how?” and any variation therein. I would ask him for anything; I let him kn...

The Supreme Court ruled that “At the heart of liberty is the right to define one's own concept of existence, of meaning, of the universe, and of the mystery of human life” (“The Casey Decision”). We live in a country that says that the ultimate truth is whatever every individual wants to be truth. I can decide the meaning of my life, of the universe, and even why we exist. You can also decide the meaning of life, of the universe, and why we exist. And guess what? That's the heart of freedom, of liberty! I can't help but be saddened by this idea that has permeated not only secular society but also Christian society as well. Many times in the past couple years I have gotten into conversations with other Christians, and when we invariably disagree, they say “Well, for me, I think this, but you can still think that,” “I think this is true, but I'm not saying you are wrong,” “we each have to decide what is truth for ourselves,” or “we each have a personal truth based...

Around the world today, people are celebrating the thirty-first of October in various ways. Most of the Western World celebrates Halloween on this date. But for those, especially Christians, who do not agree with this practice, many choose another thing to emphasize: Reformation Day. I have issue with both of these observances, but I would be saying nothing new by saying what I think of Halloween. However, I am going to talk about the latter of the observances. Many people think that since I'm Catholic, I have issues with the celebration of Reformation Day because it is the start of the Protestant movement. While I think everyone knows my opinion on that matter, that is not the real reason I have issue with the celebration - and emphasis of - Reformation Day. My issue with it is that it propagates dis-unity. Luther needed to pin the 95 thesis on the door. Those were, for the most part, valid concerns. The clergy at the time was abusing its right. Luther did the right thing by b...