Meeting New Friends

Yesterday, I had went to a Christian youth group at my college. It had peeked my interest so I had went, but when I had gotten there it was not what I had expected. I am very much used to “organized” prayer like the Rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet. I am also accustomed to silent individual prayer like adoration of the blessed sacrament, but what had happened I wasn’t prepared for. It began with a song played on the piano, than a person started to ,out loud, petition and give thanks to God. Another person was doing the same thing in Spanish(She wasn’t translating. I was paying attention). Others were singing, and another person was saying “amen” at any point that inspired him. I was standing in silence, hands clasped together prayer. I thought that It was just a conglomerate of individual prayer, as if they weren’t praying as one, but all doing what came to their heart at the time. It felt awkward. I thought, that in the end, our prayers had just as much power as if we had all prayed alone. I felt that there was praise, but no reverence.

What I had seen though, was a love for God that as Catholics I think we feel embarrassed to show. One girl had referred to God as “daddy”. That one word she said showed such humility, devotion, love, and dependence that just inspires me. She cried out ‘”Abba, Father” (Romans 8:15). They loved God and though there practice wasn’t orthodox, there love was extraordinary. They were inflamed with the love of the Holy Spirit and filled with great zeal.

I had left confused and uncomfortable asking our Blessed Mother whether I should keep going there. I knew that I shouldn’t think them as if they were lower than I was, but I was so troubled that I didn’t know if I wanted to stay. Later that evening after all of my classes were finished I had went back to the room where the group prayer had taken place. I saw the door was open so I walked inside, they welcomed me in and I sat down on the couch in the room. I listened to a conversation that one of students were having, and I was attracted to the fact that they spoke about God with such love in their topic (It was about dating), and I couldn’t help but to enter into the conversation as well. By the time I had to leave I was upset because I had finally found a place where Christ was the center.

It is funny how before that point I was so reluctant to even participate in anything that had to do with other Christian groups, but now I am more open to them. It doesn’t mean that I will not be catholic anymore and just become non-denominational. It means I won’t think of them as outcasts or on the wrong side of the fence, but as brothers and sisters. I feel that as a Catholic I have much to bring to them and share, and I also can learn much from them , and maybe their zeal will rub off on me as well.

Maybe the same feeling comes across with more Catholics than I think. To have the feeling that because we have the fullness of faith, other christian denominations are doing it all wrong, and not even just christian, but all religions and “isms” as well. We should always look to have some sort of dialogue; some kind of unity when it comes to others groups, because when we alienate based on what they believe we become less like christ whom we strive to be. Like christ we must not compromise our faith in an attempt to accept who they are. Rather, know that they are children of God and love them as Christ has loved you, with charity and love, rebukes and blessings.

May God Bless You,

Frantz Jean

So..what did we learn this summer?

Well, This Labor Day marks the end of summer vacation and the beginning of school for many. No more going to the beachor staying up late on the weekdays and aloha to homework, projects, and studying till the morning for tests. This day marks the return to old and familiar settings for some and new experiences for others. This day also calls for a little examination of life, or more specifically this summer.

Summer tests us in our spirituality in a way that I have come to think is unique. It leaves us relatively free and poses the question “Does the world have a hold of me or does God?” It is that momentary relief from the hustle and bustle of work that leaves us with no excuse as to why we don’t spend more time with God. So do you see your summer as only a time to relax and play or do you see it as a time to evaluate and grow in your faith. You were home… for three months. You could have either chosen to go out with your friends and family, or you could have relaxed, stayed home and enjoyed the day. I am very sure that praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament at least an hour a week or finding and practicing devotions were not at the top or your bucket list, and that is understandable. Though your entire summer wasn’t spent like a monk, like any experience it tests our faith to see if, when we relax our bodies, we leave our faith behind as well because it’s summer. If you did, don’t worry because the Divine Mercy of Jesus Christ pours out for us at every moment.

Let’s learn from our summer experiences, and though they may have been things we are not particularly proud of its not too late to learn from them, and to ask God for the grace to persevere in his grace and love. I also think that a little bit of fear in the Lord would help us in staying on the right track.

My take on the Romantic

The truth of a romantic spirit is in this statement:
"My heart is restless untilss it rests in you, O Lord."
-St Augustine

Disclaimer: I will not be giving out dating advice here. I know you are probably disappointed.

The romantic is one (male or female) who tends to dwell on thoughts of longing and take emotional tendencies. This of course is an overly simplistic definition of the romantics train of thought. The romantic has a unique and intrinsic way of seeing the world and their life. Better yet every romantic has a his own unique strain of romanticism. Each person tends towards romanticism at certain moments, but the romantic is own who tends to it more often then not. This is both good and bad.

First, we will take the bad. The romantic is dwells on thoughts of longing. There is a basic fault with this. When one longs for something different then he has, then by default he is longing against his state in life and this is usually a strife against the will of God. The unusual fault in this longing is the desire for a perfect experience for the self. The individual hopes for the good of the self and sometimes at the harm of the other. Also, the emotional tendencies of the romantic engulf him into a state of life dictated to by feelings. This is a great misstep. Living life by something so fickle as the experience one has with the changing responses to life is a dangerous bequeath of the individual will. Emotions are powerful, and the romantic often finds himself being encapsulated by them and he soaks in them. This further encourages the longing for that which one has not.

Now the good:Many great holy men and woman have been romantics. St. Augustin, Bl. John Paul II, Little St. Therese. The list goes on. These romantics tend towards great holiness, the key is the way of directing your longings and guiding your emotions. The reason we long is because we our empty of the grace of God, or not satisfied with the extent to which we are exposed to Him. That's a good thing. We should long for God, but when we long for that which is not of God, we are blocking our own path to Him who is the only being capable of ever filling the need for more. When you dwell on God, your emotions become powerful assistants on the path towards redemption, you longing becomes like road maps on the way to Christ, and the romantic is well suited for this travel. Like all of human struggles, the nature of the thought is not bad or harmful, it is the direction we take it in. It is our guidance of the tendencies that decide our ultimate competence in the sight of out tendencies.

Do not try and ignore your romantic tendencies, instead use them in a healthy way that allows you to draw nearer to God. That is the need for all of  us struggling with core issues. There is no such thing as a hopeless romantic, there is always hope, especially for a romantic.

God Love you,

AMDG
Peter James d`Aquino

Praying in Latin

I personally like praying in Latin.  I think it is a very cool language! And more importantly it helps me to pray better.  That might seem silly since I’ve had no formal training in the language, but it really does help me get into a deeper conversation with God.

The main prayer I say in Latin is the Rosary, and I think this is where it helps the most.  When I’m praying the rosary in Latin for some reason I get into a better mediation then when I’m saying it in English. It seems easier for me to focus on the mysteries.  I really don’t know why this happens! I think because the language is so strange to me that it helps me concentrate because I don’t want to mess up.
                Also I love mass in Latin. I am kind of obsessed with Latin masses.  I just love their beauty in the music and in the words being said.  People always ask me why I go if I don’t understand it.  I always tell them I understand it more than the English mass!  This is because again I am paying more attention by following along in my missal.  Since the language is unknown to me it helps me pay more attention so I don’t miss anything.

Once a priest told me a story about when he started saying the Latin mass. He never had any formal training in Latin but was able to pronounce the words. Then one Sunday when he was saying the Gospel all of a sudden everything made sense to him.  He believes the Lord gave him the Grace to understand the Gospel.

                So I believe everyone should try Latin just once! I personally believe that it is nice to have one language for our everyday speech and another for when we are worshiping the Lord.

AMDG

Peter Martin