Catholic Church: October 2008 Archives

from Acedia & Me
Kathleen Norris

The monastic perspective can assist us specifically with regard to understanding the value of community. Imagine for a moment that the people you encounter at home, work, or school are the very people God has given you to pray with, eat with, and play with for the rest of your life. And you are supposed to thank God for this, every day, several times a day. This is what monastic people take on. And what they've learned from this particular asceticism, in attempting to live in peace with themselves and with others, may constitute their greatest gift to us.

What struck me as I read this passage is that, in fact, it should not require any remarkable feat of imagination, because this is, in fact, precisely what God has done. Not perhaps for the rest of our lives, given our mobile society, but certainly for that entire portion of our lives while we live amongst these people.

What's important here is the necessity of thanking God for these people regardless of how we might feel about them, and thanking Him for the community that we have around us. Honestly, how many of us can claim that we do that faithfully every day? I don't see any raised hands on this side of the ether.

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I Offer This for What It Is

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I don't quite know what to make of this--but a person arrested for protesting the indoctrination of homosexuality in the schools? I suppose we'll see as the case continues:

Proposition 8 in CA

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The Beginning of October

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I think I've said before that October is my favorite month. It has long been so. Apple harvest is in, the beginning of pumpkin pie and spice season, and that gradual lowering toward the deep dark of December, but not yet there.

Another thing about October, and perhaps this is just another sign of my calling, is that we celebrate two major Carmelite Saint feasts and the Feast of the Holy Rosary (which is neither Carmelite, nor a favorite of mine, but it adds to that month in which we also celebrate St. Francis of Assisi and indeed, All Saints).

For today, I just wanted to remind everyone of the gentle power of St. Therese, the entrenched determination to love. She is a saint who said she wanted to spend her heaven doing good on Earth, and the good she did, does, and taught/teaches continues to support us all in our journey toward God.

Happy October. Happy St. Therese Day. And a joyous conclusion to Rosh Hashanah, with hopes for a blessed Yom Kippur.

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This page is a archive of entries in the Catholic Church category from October 2008.

Catholic Church: September 2008 is the previous archive.

Catholic Church: November 2008 is the next archive.

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