Friday, October 7, 2011

Types of Catholics

The other day, it occurred to me that I have seen many types of Catholics. I thought I might share a few of them with you.
  • Flower Catholics - These people are convinced that their local parish is completely decked out in flowers all the time because whenever they go in, poinsettias or lilies cover the sanctuary. Sure I go to Mass: every Christmas and Easter.
  • Buffet Catholics - These people pick and choose what they want to believe. They may know that the church teaches things such as only men can be priests, priests cannot marry, if you sin you should go to confession, etc. However, they decide that on certain issues, they just won't take that belief. I'll take the Eucharist and Saints, but I believe that you can just take your sins to God in personal prayer and that is the same as confession.
  • Have-ta-be Catholics - Typically between the ages of 10 and 20, these people only show up out of necessity. They can usually be found texting, playing handheld video games, or trying to sleep. Often the parents of these people think that just making them go to Mass is enough, however most of them are just counting the days until they move out. I would rather eat cockroaches than sit through another boring homily.
  • Righteous Brothers Catholics - These can be men or women who are extremely Catholic to a level that you and I can never reach. Don't bring small children around these people as they will freely ask you to move so they can pray better. They may also criticize the way you pray, the way you fold your hands, or even the way you receive the Eucharist. They are quick to judge your behavior without knowing the circumstances. They also are happy to let you know just how unholy you are. If you were a little more like me, maybe you'd make it to Purgatory.
  • Wanna-be or Gonna-be Catholics - These are not Catholics, although they will be soon. They are slowly coming to realize that the fullness of the truth is in the Church and that they belong here. Tell me again why you believe that the Eucharist is really Jesus?
  • I Know That Catholics - Similar to Buffet Catholics in that they disagree with something the Church teaches, they just don't know it. Most of these people (incorrectly) think that they know a teaching or refuse to look at what the Church actually teaches about a subject and so due to their lack of knowledge they go astray or worse - lead others astray. If you really love someone and intend to get married to them, then it is OK if you sleep together.
  • Average Catholics - This is the one I hope to count myself in. We try hard. We learn as much as we can. Even if things are tough to understand, we keep trying. In the end, we might fail, but God will hopefully be merciful enough to send us through Purging Fire so that we can be with Him forever. I'm trying my best, but I make regular trips to confession.
  • Can We Canonize Them Yet? Catholics - Few and far between, but these are people that everyone knows will be a saint, it is just a matter of time. Some examples of these include Padre Pio, Francis of Assisi, John Paul II, and Mother Teresa. Of course most of those are already canonized, but you get my point.
    • Pray, hope, and don't worry. - Padre Pio
    • Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words. - St. Francis of Assisi
    • As the family goes, so goes the nation and so goes the whole world in which we live. - Blessed John Paul II
    • Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies. - St. Teresa of Calcutta
Any other Catholics you have noticed?

    Thursday, April 21, 2011

    Cool Video

    Thought this video was pretty cool.

    Wednesday, March 30, 2011

    I'm only pretending...

    The other night my daughter was wailing... I walked in to see what was the matter.
    "Are you OK, Clare?"

    "Yes. I was only pretending. WAAA! WAAA! See?"

    As I walked away, I shook my head and smiled at my wife. Over the last few days I have thought more about this and realized that this pretending skill is a skill that many people will use all through their lives. I work with people who "pretend" to get along although they don't like each other. I've known people who pretend to be devout Christians one minute and the next they engage in things that are completely contrary to the Faith. I know lots of people who are completely miserable, but pretend that they are happy and content with how things are going in their lives. Why do we pretend so much? Can we not really get along? Is the Faith that hard to live? Is the life that God has given us so bad?

    Many people pretend for a lot of different reasons. Sometimes we need a reminder of the good that God has given us. I'm just as guilty of not being content as the next person. I've overlooked my blessings. I've tried to do things that God has asked me not to do. All that being said though - I also try to be me and not to pretend I'm something that I'm not. However, I don't try to be the me that I would settle into if I had nothing pushing me to be better. I try to be the best version of me. I pretend to be the me that God wants to see instead of the me that wants to just settle.

    So, maybe pretending isn't such a bad thing. C. S. Lewis said in Mere Christianity that the best way to become holy is to act like someone who is holy. If we keep acting all the time, eventually the holy things will become habit and we will stop acting holy and actually be holy. So did he mean we should pretend to be holy? I think he did. However, the problem with pretending is when we stop pretending and go back to our sinful ways. I hope that someday I reach the point where holiness is a habit I've formed and I can stop pretending and be that way. Until then, I guess I'm back to pretending...

    Wednesday, February 23, 2011

    Super Bowl

    A few weeks have past since the Packers and Steelers met in the Super Bowl. Being a huge Steelers fan, I was disappointed that they lost. However, I've been a Packers fan for the last few years. This article, which I just came across even though it is a couple of weeks after the Super Bowl, was very informative and only confirmed my allegiances to both teams.

    http://www.catholicsportsnet.com/articles/2011/1/31/catholic-roots-run-deep-in-super-bowl

    Tuesday, February 22, 2011

    Great Blog Post

    I follow the blog called Catholic Dads. There are a number of bloggers for the site. One of my favorites goes by the name of Nod.  This post in particular was so good that I felt that I needed to share it. It is about being a husband, a father, a Catholic, and a professional. Overall, a great post.

    http://www.catholicdadsonline.org/posts/6636/2415-supposedly/

    Sunday, February 13, 2011

    Light reading?

    Clare waned to do some light reading before bedtime. What are we going to give her when she is 3?!?


    Things are Getting Tense (or Tents?)

    What is something fun that you can do as a father to a 4 and 2 year old while you are stuck in apartment on a cold Sunday afternoon in late January? Add into that the fact that Mama was up with the baby most of the night and they are both trying to make up for that? Well, we came up with building a tent fort. Not just any tent fort - but on that used 6 twin sheets (not fitted sheets, but the other kind) an extension cord, and a box of binder clips. The girls loved this fort that was the size of their room. In fact, they slept in this fort each night from when it was built until we took it down a week later.

    The doorway

    Bernadette made her room in the corner by the chair.

    Clare made her room in the corner by the closet.

    Both slept surprisingly well for sleeping on the floor and they had hours and hours of endless fun in their forts. These pictures were actually taken at night when they were sleeping, just as proof that they did really sleep.

    Bump, Set, Spike

    We decided early on in parenting that we wanted our daughters to have long hair. One thing I have found particularly entertaining about this is that when it comes time for bathing them, the 2 year old's hair is still fine enough that after applying shampoo, you can put her hair in almost any position. We have a little fun with this, but my favorite is the "Spike" where on top of her 3 feet of real height, we add on another 12-18 inches. The picture below was taken after 5 minutes of playing after I spiked it.

    Tuesday, February 1, 2011

    Posting

    Life as always is crazy at our house. We have moved, are building a house, attended my sister's out of town wedding, not to mention the holidays, and being completely overwhelmed with work. Long end short - I really want to keep this blog up, but though I've started 3 or 4 blogs, I don't know if/when I'll get back to them. Hopefully things will slow down a little bit and I'll be able to post again soon. Until then, back to my mission!!

    Wednesday, January 5, 2011

    Proverbs 31 revisted

    I came across this article and found it very insightful. I hope you enjoy reading about the husband of a good wife.