I'm a Christian and a Feminist: Come At Me, Bro.

As with any good discussion, we must agree on terms:

What is a Christian?

A follower of Jesus of Nazareth; a believer in his teachings, and a member of his church on earth. 

What is a feminist?

A person who supports women's rights on the basis of the equality of the sexes.

What does a feminist believe?

Women should be equal to men, and if they are not, action should be taken to promote equality.

What is equality?

The state of being equal, especially in status, rights, and opportunities.

Are we on the same page? Oh, goody. If you agree with the above, then you are a Christian and a feminist as well. If you do not think Christianity is compatible with feminism, then this is my ladysplainin' to why it's important (even if you don't identify with as a feminist, which is cool, yo).

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To start, let's start with a brief discussion of patriarchy, defined as a group organized by men as leaders; e.g. a lineage with the father or eldest male being the head of the family.

This is a neutral term. I do not have an overall issue with patriarchy: I believe in Apostolic succession, men as priests, and hey! I took my husband's last name.

There are so many issues I want to cover, but I need to stay concise.

I have an issue with patriarchy presented as anti-feminist. Feminists are not fire-breathing dragons which chivalrous knights need to slay to protect their womenfolk. Nay! Feminists are not a one size fits all group. Their common link is an active desire for the socio-political and economic equality of women and men. This noble cause does not mean all feminists are great people; but every organization needs a few a-holes for humility purposes.

Patriarch who was pro-women? Jesus. If you're a Christian, He's the guy (God) you want to listen to on this:

"Jesus, the founder of the faith, did indeed live in a male-dominated society, but he was radical in how he rebelled against the cultural values of his age. His treatment of women pushed far beyond his society’s boundaries to love and honor women in ways never before seen. The gospels tell of his extraordinary conduct towards women, which takes on a radical nature when considered in the context of the oppressive environment for women in the Ancient Middle East. By looking at Jesus’ actions through the proper lens, I want to demonstrate that Christianity was instituted with a profoundly pro-women attitude" (CJ Curtis, "Jesus and Women: Rebelling against Misogyny", The Augustine Collective).

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Next: we don't need feminism.

This is probably the most debatable amongst people who see more equality on a regular basis. For me, women got the right to vote less than 100 years ago. As much as we pride ourselves as progressive people, humans actually need at least 100 years for real change to occur organically - even with legislation supporting it.

My big (anecdotal) sticking point for why we need feminism is the blatant misogyny (defined as "dislike of, contempt for, or ingrained prejudice against women") which occurs against certain types of women. For example, feminists themselves. We can't accept that they have different ideas, so we call them fat, man-hating cows because that is a scientifically proven way to change a person's mind. And what about pro-life ladies? You mean, anti-abortion, anti-women nazis? Yep. We need to change the attitude and conversation there too.

Feminists have room for improvement too. And if you want to have a conversation, you need to show that you're genuinely interested in the person, not just making a point.

I am a conservative, and it greatly me that feminism is such a derisive idea - how else can we call for the preservation of a culture without the strength of women?!?

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The elephant in the room/ why people say Christians cannot be feminists: BUT FEMINISTS SUPPORT/ GET ABORTIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay. Yes. And no. But yes. As a Christian, I am against abortions. As a feminist, I am against abortions. I am for preserving and protecting life at every stage - especially little women! Check out the female birth rates in China and India. Our tithing as the Baldwin family is mostly split between the church, the woman's shelter near our parish, and the homeless shelter down the street from the hospital.

Still. As a woman who has been pregnant three times... I get it. I do not agree with it, but I understand why women want other women to have access to abortions. I had three really hard pregnancies, even with all the medicine and support readily available to me. I know women deserve better. I want babies to go to loving homes. Will sees people who should not be parents have a lot of kids and the poverty cycles continue. It is truly heartbreaking. We need more empathy in the public discussion on this.

(And I'mma pause you right there if you start to move toward the comment box to mansplain or momsplain the gift of children to me. I know the beauty, and I know the sorrow, connected with my little human beings in my care. Will and I are dedicated to our children, and we're currently facing a reality that another child right now might emotionally break me because of my PPD. Unfortunately, not all women have amazing and supportive husbands like my own.)

So! Instead of viewing these women as selfish, start viewing these women as scared human beings; start seeing that these women need support and love; start acting like you give a damn about the woman in question; and most importantly, stop blaming the woman for getting pregnant. A woman is fertile about 6-8 days/month and a man is fertile every single day. Mhm.

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Abortion is wrong. Period. The pro-life movement tries to show that, but as I mentioned before, every movement has the a-holes which ruin the message for others. This is another reason why is it SO important for we, as Christian women and men, to stand up as feminists. We must be seen as allies, not enemies.

Feminists do not all agree. And that is okay. That is bi-partisanship. That is community. As my college friend Hannah commented on this issue,

"I'll refer you to a quote I love from Sarah Bessey's Jesus Feminist:
"As long as I know how important maternal health is to Haiti’s future, and as long as I know that women are being abused and raped, as long as I know girls are being denied life itself through selective abortion, abandonment, and abuse, as long as brave little girls in Afghanistan are attacked with acid for the crime of going to school, and until being a Christian is synonymous with doing something about these things, you can also call me a feminist.”
Because while it should be always synonymous, too often people twist Christianity to support agendas of abuse, neglect, and cruelty."

So, please. Enough with telling women that they should smile and they should radiate rainbows and never fart and look pretty and stop talking and sit down and always ask, Please, sir? Can I have another? Please. Just stop telling us what we can or cannot be. If you, dear reader, value equality, then you are not threatened by strong women. You can handle room for improvement. You encourage women in their pursuits and do not say, Thank God you are not like other women! Oh! NO. To be a woman is a far better experience than the way we dress or act or speak. The beauty of womanhood is in our sisterhood - our feminine genius, our creativity, our passion, our tribal protection of our own, our ambitions and our grit to right wrongs.

Our femininity does not detract from another's masculinity. We are not here to challenge. We are here to be ourselves and preserve ourselves. We are not here to ask permission to exist and have wants, needs and desires, or to serve. Feminism says, We can have all of these things. We can choose. We can choose to be a wife, we can choose to be a mother, we can choose to work, we can choose to travel, and our worth is not dictated by our actions or looks. We are DAUGHTERS of the Lord, and we laugh and dance because it pleases Him for us to be fully alive.

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My "rules" for this series are short (especially before commenting): this topic is personal and I am currently living in it. This is not an abstract for a dissertation. I do not have 20/20 hindsight yet. I don't need any medical advice, as I keep in close communication with my own PA + Dr., as well as being married to one. My husband and I practice many different types of coping mechanisms as well, which I will write about too. My situation is 100 percent unique and I am writing only about myself. These posts are directed at no one, and still, I am opening myself up to share my experiences. If I can help one person, it will be worth it. Please respect this adult conversation at face value.

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The Gift James Foley Gave Me

When I went upstairs this morning to tell Will about the essay I had read, I hadn't expected to start crying again.

I cried the first time promptly after finishing the last two sentences:

"If nothing else, prayer was the glue that enabled my freedom, an inner freedom first and later the miracle of being released during a war in which the regime had no real incentive to free us. It didn’t make sense, but faith did."

I was on our bed with Grace, and she giggled as I briefly cried, finished changing her diaper, put her down for a nap, and went upstair to Will's office.

I announced to him that I finally knew what I would write about for my Ignitum Today post due on Friday: an essay by James Foley, the American journalist beheaded by ISIS, for his alma mater Marquette University. It was written in 2011, after he was released from captivity in Libya.

He wrote about the power of prayer. He wrote about saying the rosary in his cell: the 100 Hail Marys on his knuckles; an Our Father between every 10 Hail Marys; how praying the rosary, like his mother and grandmother would do, helped keep his mind clear.

He prayed out loud with his colleague, Clare: "It felt energizing to speak our weaknesses and hopes together, as if in a conversation with God, rather than silently and alone."

He wrote about his conversation with his mother, and how prayer penetrates hearts, minds, and across continents:

“I’ve been praying for you to know that I’m OK,” I said. “Haven’t you felt my prayers?”
“Oh, Jimmy, so many people are praying for you. All your friends... Your brother Michael loves you so much.” She started to cry. “The Turkish embassy is trying to see you and also Human Rights Watch. Did you see them?” I said I hadn’t.
“They’re having a prayer vigil for you at Marquette. Don’t you feel our prayers?” she asked.
“I do, Mom, I feel them,” and I thought about this for a second. Maybe it was others’ prayers strengthening me, keeping me afloat.

That vision of the community of saints -- I couldn't shake it from me -- and how one person's faith can ground reality into another person. I thought about saying prayers with Grace before bed, and night prayers with Will before going to sleep. I thought about how much I struggle with getting to daily mass, and the constant distractions posed to each of us in an attempt to dissuade us from praying more and more - to lessen our communication with God.

There is a violent, religious war going on in the world. People are attempting to shape the world in their own image - an image of what they imagine Heaven should be, and are instead creating Hell. People are being beheaded, killed, raped, starved, exiled, beaten and tortured.

I am at home, bemoaning the laundry that has piled up, and that I need to clean up the downstairs before our babysitter candidate comes over for her interview. I know the work I do is important - taking care of one's family and home is a noble duty. But I need to seek more solitude and joy from the act of praying and the love of Scripture. I read when I "have time" and pray "when I can" -- but they should be more ingrained in our life. They should have more priority seating. My God is worth glorifying, and my faith is worth strengthening.

James Foley - may the angels sing you home, and may God welcome you into Heaven. Thank you for your words. Thank you for your witness. May the Lord continue to bless your family, and may they find solace in your life, heart and faith. Thank you for reminding me that the freedom of religion is not only a legal protection, but the freedom to practice my faith in both public and private. The freedom, as Blessed John Paul II said, to do what we ought.

#7QT: Forget Multi-Tasking!

Friday? It's Friday? Again?! (Just kidding, it's Saturday now.) Hi-ya to Jen and Co.!

ONE

I was complaining at my more recent inability to multi-task well, and Laura sent me this:

Thanks for this wisdom, Laura!

Which ties in a bit to the next few...

TWO

Okay, Syria. This has been on my heart and mind so much. Today is the a day of prayer and fasting for peace in Syria. I can't fast, but Will and I are going to confession and mass today.

There have been interesting articles posted around, explaining the conflict in Syria, and it's just tragic. But Syria is not the only place in the world when horrible crimes are being committed against its citizens, and the hubris of our government to think that they have a moral obligation to "right the wrongs" abroad when our own country is crippled by our abortion rates, the sex trafficking happening right under our noses, the ridiculous war on drugs which sounds good but is causing more violence and crime, the callousness towards anyone attempting to live in a counter-cultural way and the want to conform our country to one standard (be it in education or mores) is truly disturbing.

Syria has not attacked us. Syria's peace crisis is not going to be solved by another country attacking them and then forcing them into a peace treaty. The devastation of war in the 20th century are multiple examples of that. In the peace treaties following WWI, the humiliation of Germany (an ally, not even an aggressor) was a direct contributor and catalyst to the renewal of pride in being German, the so many closed eyes to wrongs done by the National Socialist Party and its leaders, and the death of millions of innocent people across the European and Pacific theaters.

Hubris can be a greater evil if we allow pride to dictate our power over others.

THREE

The USCCB has written to the President and Congress, following Pope Francis' call for peace. I haven't yet, but I'll be writing too. Pro-life means valuing ALL LIVES. War is not the answer. The end does not beget the means.

Contact your Congressmen. Let's really start keeping people accountable.

FOUR

Okay, fluffy part now. I am in love with Shutterfly. Huggies gave me a "free book" for being a "new mommy" so I made a wedding book, because the offer expires on September 28, and the baby is due on September 24. No way I could make a baby book before then, and I reeeeally wanted to make a wedding book before the deluge of baby pictures come rolling in.

It came last night.

I texted this to my sister last night. 

I love it so much.

My favorite page with my sister's MOH speech.

She's fuuuuuunny.

They're having another general deal for the end of summer - one free 8x8 book with the code "SUMMERBOOK" - hop on it, y'all!

FIVE

I am a list girl. Before Baby arrives, I want to have my chore list established and my pantry list in working order, as well as our finances and passwords in one location so Will can contribute to the process. On a larger scale, I think this is going to be a big step for me in not micro-managing.

My current list!

Also, on a personal question level, does one ever get used to taking care of the majority of the housework, cleaning, errands?! Will helps out when I ask, but I have to be specific because I don't think he notices a majority of the messes I am obsessing over... Maybe that's why I fit this job description better.

{He can also memorize a ridiculous amount of information and comprehends it all - which I really only benefit from when I have a pregnancy woe or when we're watching a t.v. show and someone has the flu, and the doctor says they're running low on antibiotics, or something like that. Laugh laugh laugh - the flu is a virus! You can't cure it with an antibiotic!}

Another question: I know chores is a constant adaptation to one's surroundings, but how does you stick to your goals? I tend to get side-tracked by other jobs (which perhaps ties into the first part - struggling with multi-tasking!)...

SIX

One perk of an OB's office are all the adorable baby announcements one gets to look at while waiting for the doctor to come in the room. Since my baby is due in 17 days, I've been thinking more seriously on this. I also don't want to wait to see if it's going to be a boy or girl when deciding... I've been thinking of a New Orleans onesie!

I found this one at a local store, Fleurty Girl:

Thoughts? I'll probably keep looking around, and buy one by next weekend.

SEVEN

Fun links:

• Performing Shakespeare’s plays with their original English accent - um, very cool.
• 10 Things I Love About Flannery O’Connor - hearts, glitter and puffy paint galore! Me too, Haley.
• Cormac McCarthy's words matched with music at Literary JukeBox - a side project of BrainPickings; love.

Happy weekend!

Rest In Peace! And Keep In Touch

TBM Topic 32: Pray for the Living and the Dead

"Rest In Peace! And Keep In Touch" by Julie Robison
Trista at Not a Minx, Moron, or a Parasite
Elizabeth at Startling the Day

We three are from the oft-mentioned, widely-speculated upon demographic of young, twenty-something Catholic women. We're here to dispel the myths and misconceptions- please join us for the discussion on Facebook and Twitter!


During Lent, we will be discussing the Spiritual Works of Mercy.

Why pray for the living and the dead?

This Lent, we Bright Maidens have been discussing the Spiritual Works of Mercy. This topic is a good one for Lent because

1. The spiritual works of mercy are reminders of our unofficial duties as Christians (verses the precepts of the Church); they're ways people can attempt to better their spiritual lives through daily graces verses physically abstaining from foods or forms of entertainment, too.
2. The marriage between the spiritual and earthly world can be tangibly shown.
3. The marriage between grace and works can be manifest in writing, as well as in thoughts and actions.

The last point is an important point: some Christians say praying for the dead is useless and unbiblical. If that's the case, then so is praying for the living. If our fate is so fixed, why ask God for help? Why seek a relationship with Jesus if believing in him is enough?

Praying is how we communicate with God, be it in praise, penitence, thanksgiving or petition. It can be freeing and intimate. It can also be humbling and intimidating. Life is overwhelming, and even starting prayer may be difficult. Luckily, even sitting quietly in the presence of God is praying. Taking time to listen to God is just as important as talking with him. In this way, we can pray without ceasing! (1 Thessalonians 5:17) This is how all relationships work at a human level.

When Blessed John Paul II was asked how the pope prays, he responded, "You would have to ask the Holy Spirit! The Pope prays as the Holy Spirit permits him to pray. I think he has to pray in a way in which, deepening the mystery revealed in Christ, he can better fulfill his ministry. The Holy Spirit certainly guides him in this. But man must not put up obstacles" (Crossing the Threshold of Hope).

At a convent's cemetery in Salzburg

Praying for others is just as important as your personal relationship with God. As we humans are all interconnected, it is an act of fraternal charity. Moreover, not praying for a person because "they are dead" insinuates that there is not a communion between Heaven and Earth. People departed from this life are not gone; they are at a higher level of communion with God.

This is why Catholics pray to saints; not "to" them, as one would pray to God, but to them like we ask our family and friends to pray for and with us. I pray to St. Anthony (patron of lost things) fairly often. I could pray directly to God, but I like including my saintly friends in my daily tasks. If a person work in a big corporation, would they go to their boss for every little thing? Or do you ask a co-worker to help you out with a minor problem?

This is not to imply that we should not pray to God for the little things: but remember, he already knows all. So he might be sending an angle to watch over you, or a new friend into your life, to help guide and shape you. In the Gospel of John, a story is told in which Jesus gives Peter the power and strength to continue his ministry:

When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” 

He then said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” 

He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was distressed that he had said to him a third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” [Jesus] said to him, “Feed my sheep” (John 21:15-17).

So, we too must continue this ministry, out of love of God. So, too, we must pray for the living and the dead, out of love for self and neighbor. Praying for all people is biblical, as well as being part of a Christian's core mission.

Prayer is an act (work) of love. Even Billy Joel got that in his scandalous song, "Only the Good Die Young": You said your mother told you/  All I could give you was a reputation/ Ah she never cared for me/ But did she ever say a prayer for me?"

There is one mediator between God and humans, and that is Christ (1 Timothy 2:5); but there are billions of helpmates to be found on earth and in heaven, continuing the mission of Christ, peacefully and together. This is why we pray for the living and the dead: to partake in this life, an extraordinary one, and rejoice in the hope with encapsulates all of us as members of the body of Christ, the great cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1).

Church in Munich, Germany

I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, thankful for your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel thus about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 


For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruits of righteousness which come through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. (Philippians 1:3-11)

John Paul II and the Authentic Life

"No one can live a trial life; no one can love experimentally." --Blessed John Paul II

Today, on the seventh anniversary of the death of the Pope most families grew up under, I pause to reflect how one man, our earthly spiritual leader, could have such a profound affect on our world. I remember reading in Time Magazine, how four non-believers were sent to interview the Pope, and all four could feel the presence of something more. Even if you do not intellectually believe, there is a more inner part of a person that embrace revelation and acknowledges God without a needed word. The Pope's serious faith and humility of his position gave way to great fruit, and helped people find freedom in Christ, when this world offered none of it.

How bold he was! Proclaiming Christ, showing us, not just telling us, Do Not Be Afraid! When the world seems so dark and broken, the light of Christ shines through the peep hole, giving us the needed hope. John Paul II was that messenger of hope, the spiritual leader of the Roman Catholic Church on earth, and the friend I never met, and still love very dearly.

Moreover, we are indebted to Pope John Paul II for not letting Cardinal Ratzinger retire, and thus helping give the Church one of her best and most brilliant popes, Pope Benedict XVI.

For the repose of the soul of Pope John Paul II, and all those souls in need of our prayers, let us pray!

How did Pope John Paul II affect you? Did he affect you? Did you see the effects of his life on others?

Anti-HHS Mandate Rallies

H/T We Can End Abortion

Also, great podcast by two lawyers from the Institute of Justice on the mandates, and how they go against contract law. George Will wrote on this too, mentioning IJ and one of the above lawyers, Elizabeth Price Foley.

Stairway to Sacrilege

Ok Go, an alternative rock band known for catchy beats and viral YouTube videos, recently released a video in a Chevy commercial. The band drove a Chevy car through a two mile track of instruments, releasing their latest song, "Needing/Getting."

Their opening is, "I've been waiting for months, waiting for years, waiting for you to change./ Aw, but there ain't much that's dumber, there ain't much that's dumber/ Than pinning your hopes on a change in another./ And I, yeah, I still need you; but what good's that gonna do?/ Needing is one thing, and getting: getting's another."

This song, though about a girl, plays nicely into a recent NYT op-ed by psychologist Jonathan Haidt entitled, "Forget the Money, Follow the Sacredness." He writes to show the Right and Left's cultural narratives and their amazing ability to talk past each other on issues.

Continue reading at The Imaginative Conservative >>>>>>>>

You Say That’s Exactly How This Grace Thing Works

Few things make me happier than people finding joy in their vocation.  I heard vocation aptly described a few days ago at my parish's "Ask a Priest!" night.

Vocation is
1. A call from God for a specific purpose
2. An answering of that call
3. The Church's acceptance of that call

Obviously there can be bigger and smaller vocation, which are both important, but Church acceptance is key. For example, one may feel called to be a prostitute, but that goes against Church teaching of honoring one's body and sex as an expression of a sacramental love between a man and a woman. Therefore, prostitution is not a vocation because God would never call a person to something that degrades their humanity. Furthermore, this is a good time to remind the studio audience that the Church does not exist for her own existence, but rather to evangelize the world for Christ and to bring all people into communion with him.

Here are some awesome Dominican novices from a nearby parish playing and singing Mumford & Son's "Roll Away Your Stone" for their Parents' Weekend last October:



I've been a busy bee (hence the Bright Maidens post delay... forgive me!) and am at the airport now, waiting for my plane to Georgia. Please pray for my safe travels!

Not Even Wrong

Wolfgang Pauli, a physicist who pioneered the field of quantum physics, is famous for the critique, "Das ist nicht nur nicht richtig, es ist nicht einmal falsch!" Or, "Not only is it not right, it's not even wrong!"

Pauli reserved this most severe criticism for papers whose theories or theses were so unstable and not within the realm of evaluable science that they could not even be proved wrong. This, of course, coming from a man who created the Pauli principle, in which no two electrons in an atom can have the same quantum numbers. (Obviously.)

Stacy Trasancos wrote a beautiful piece today entitled "The Unity of Charity" and it prompted me to think beyond Catholic to Catholic relations, or even Catholic to Anti-Catholic relations, and into Catholic to Protestant relationships.

The "I Hate Religion But I Love Jesus" sentiment is beyond the video that went viral. Are you religious or are you redeemed?, asked a college friend of mine in seminary on Facebook. I listened to Pastor Mark Driscoll speak and I did not recognize such a religion as my own. My friend said he was speaking to Evangelicals; but such words translate into a disdain for all organized religion, especially the Roman Catholic Church.

Moreover, that kind of rhetoric has no substantial place in Christendom. It does not advance the conversation. It does not lead to unity between Christians.

Read More at IGNITUM TODAY >>>>>>>

Christmas Beyond Commercialism

We Catholics are still in the Christmas season, so I thought I would share the full text of Pope Benedict's Christmas Eve homily. These addresses are traditional "Urbi et Orbi" speeches-- to the City and to the World!

Dear Brothers and Sisters!

The reading from Saint Paul’s Letter to Titus that we have just heard begins solemnly with the word “apparuit,” which then comes back again in the reading at the Dawn Mass: apparuit, "there has appeared."

This is a programmatic word, by which the Church seeks to express synthetically the essence of Christmas. Formerly, people had spoken of God and formed human images of him in all sorts of different ways. God himself had spoken in many and various ways to mankind (cf. Heb 1:1 Mass during the Day).

But now something new has happened: he has appeared. He has revealed himself. He has emerged from the inaccessible light in which he dwells. He himself has come into our midst. This was the great joy of Christmas for the early Church: God has appeared. No longer is he merely an idea, no longer do we have to form a picture of him on the basis of mere words. He has “appeared”. But now we ask: how has he appeared? Who is he in reality?

The reading at the Dawn Mass goes on to say: “the kindness and love of God our Savior for mankind were revealed” (Tit 3:4). For the people of pre-Christian times, whose response to the terrors and contradictions of the world was to fear that God himself might not be good either, that he too might well be cruel and arbitrary, this was a real “epiphany,” the great light that has appeared to us: God is pure goodness.

Today too, people who are no longer able to recognize God through faith are asking whether the ultimate power that underpins and sustains the world is truly good, or whether evil is just as powerful and primordial as the good and the beautiful which we encounter in radiant moments in our world.

“The kindness and love of God our Savior for mankind were revealed:” this is the new, consoling certainty that is granted to us at Christmas. In all three Christmas Masses, the liturgy quotes a passage from the Prophet Isaiah, which describes the epiphany that took place at Christmas in greater detail: “A child is born for us, a son given to us and dominion is laid on his shoulders; and this is the name they give him: Wonder-Counsellor, Mighty-God, Eternal-Father, Prince-of-Peace. Wide is his dominion in a peace that has no end” (Is 9:5f.).

Whether the prophet had a particular child in mind, born during his own period of history, we do not know. But it seems impossible. This is the only text in the Old Testament in which it is said of a child, of a human being: his name will be Mighty-God, Eternal-Father.

We are presented with a vision that extends far beyond the historical moment into the mysterious, into the future. A child, in all its weakness, is Mighty God. A child, in all its neediness and dependence, is Eternal Father. And his peace “has no end.”

The prophet had previously described the child as “a great light” and had said of the peace he would usher in that the rod of the oppressor, the footgear of battle, every cloak rolled in blood would be burned (Is 9:1, 3-4). God has appeared as a child. It is in this guise that he pits himself against all violence and brings a message that is peace.

At this hour, when the world is continually threatened by violence in so many places and in so many different ways, when over and over again there are oppressors’ rods and bloodstained cloaks, we cry out to the Lord: O mighty God, you have appeared as a child and you have revealed yourself to us as the One who loves us, the One through whom love will triumph. And you have shown us that we must be peacemakers with you. We love your childish estate, your powerlessness, but we suffer from the continuing presence of violence in the world, and so we also ask you: manifest your power, O God. In this time of ours, in this world of ours, cause the oppressors’ rods, the cloaks rolled in blood and the footgear of battle to be burned, so that your peace may triumph in this world of ours.

Christmas is an epiphany the appearing of God and of his great light in a child that is born for us. Born in a stable in Bethlehem, not in the palaces of kings. In 1223, when Saint Francis of Assisi celebrated Christmas in Greccio with an ox and an ass and a manger full of hay, a new dimension of the mystery of Christmas came to light. Saint Francis of Assisi called Christmas “the feast of feasts” above all other feasts and he celebrated it with “unutterable devotion” (2 Celano 199; Fonti Francescane, 787). He kissed images of the Christ-child with great devotion and he stammered tender words such as children say, so Thomas of Celano tells us (ibid.).

For the early Church, the feast of feasts was Easter: in the Resurrection Christ had flung open the doors of death and in so doing had radically changed the world: he had made a place for man in God himself. Now, Francis neither changed nor intended to change this objective order of precedence among the feasts, the inner structure of the faith centered on the Paschal Mystery. And yet through him and the character of his faith, something new took place: Francis discovered Jesus’ humanity in an entirely new depth.

This human existence of God became most visible to him at the moment when God’s Son, born of the Virgin Mary, was wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger. The Resurrection presupposes the Incarnation. For God’s Son to take the form of a child, a truly human child, made a profound impression on the heart of the Saint of Assisi, transforming faith into love.

“The kindness and love of God our Savior for mankind were revealed” this phrase of Saint Paul now acquired an entirely new depth. In the child born in the stable at Bethlehem, we can as it were touch and caress God. And so the liturgical year acquired a second focus in a feast that is above all a feast of the heart.

This has nothing to do with sentimentality. It is right here, in this new experience of the reality of Jesus’ humanity that the great mystery of faith is revealed. Francis loved the child Jesus, because for him it was in this childish estate that God’s humility shone forth. God became poor. His Son was born in the poverty of the stable. In the child Jesus, God made himself dependent, in need of human love, he put himself in the position of asking for human love our love.

Today Christmas has become a commercial celebration, whose bright lights hide the mystery of God’s humility, which in turn calls us to humility and simplicity. Let us ask the Lord to help us see through the superficial glitter of this season, and to discover behind it the child in the stable in Bethlehem, so as to find true joy and true light. Francis arranged for Mass to be celebrated on the manger that stood between the ox and the ass (cf. 1 Celano 85; Fonti 469).

Later, an altar was built over this manger, so that where animals had once fed on hay, men could now receive the flesh of the spotless lamb Jesus Christ, for the salvation of soul and body, as Thomas of Celano tells us (cf. 1 Celano 87; Fonti 471). Francis himself, as a deacon, had sung the Christmas Gospel on the holy night in Greccio with resounding voice. Through the friars’ radiant Christmas singing, the whole celebration seemed to be a great outburst of joy (1 Celano 85.86; Fonti 469, 470).

It was the encounter with God’s humility that caused this joy his goodness creates the true feast. Today, anyone wishing to enter the Church of Jesus’ Nativity in Bethlehem will find that the doorway five and a half meters high, through which emperors and caliphs used to enter the building, is now largely walled up. Only a low opening of one and a half meters has remained. The intention was probably to provide the church with better protection from attack, but above all to prevent people from entering God’s house on horseback. Anyone wishing to enter the place of Jesus’ birth has to bend down.

It seems to me that a deeper truth is revealed here, which should touch our hearts on this holy night: if we want to find the God who appeared as a child, then we must dismount from the high horse of our “enlightened” reason. We must set aside our false certainties, our intellectual pride, which prevents us from recognizing God’s closeness. We must follow the interior path of Saint Francis the path leading to that ultimate outward and inward simplicity which enables the heart to see. We must bend down, spiritually we must as it were go on foot, in order to pass through the portal of faith and encounter the God who is so different from our prejudices and opinions the God who conceals himself in the humility of a newborn baby.

In this spirit let us celebrate the liturgy of the holy night, let us strip away our fixation on what is material, on what can be measured and grasped. Let us allow ourselves to be made simple by the God who reveals himself to the simple of heart. And let us also pray especially at this hour for all who have to celebrate Christmas in poverty, in suffering, as migrants, that a ray of God’s kindness may shine upon them, that they and we may be touched by the kindness that God chose to bring into the world through the birth of his Son in a stable. Amen.

Some Days, I Wish I Was An Orthodox Jew

Hanukkah begins tomorrow!





Dabru Emet: A Jewish Statement on Christians and Christianity

Life Doesn't Have To Be Easy To Be Joyful

Jen at Conversion Diary gave an awesome talk on her journey from a lifetime of Atheism to orthodox Catholicism. Listen/ watch here:



What are y'all doing this weekend? I'm going to an office party with B. and his parents to meet Dr. B.'s colleagues and play Twenty Questions! I'm also writing-writing-writing, et cetera. You know. The usual.

Have a blessed Friday!

Can't Get No Satisfaction

"Sationes" by Julie Robison

It amuses when you talk of doing things
As if our calender was thus dictated, like the days of kings,
and instead of replying, I let my mind wander:
Feeling sorry for those who fill the clock and don't ponder
The un-amusing and ordinary act of eating ice cream
Perhaps bought after watching your team;
Staring at the headlines, but ignoring the news
and I smile and think, yes, this is what I choose:
An organic transition (not yet the flower, but beyond the seed),
not letting the Word get buried in the lede.
No! I decide where and when I want to fly a kite;
happily study the Cross to better understand humanity's blight;
at some point I'll wash the dishes and use too much soap;
talk to God and try to cope.
The sun does not always shine bright,
but it's possible to know wrong, and choose right.
There is a stigma today to say, "I am satisfied"
and so much of history cries out, "At least I tried!"
Made flesh, our Lord hung upon a tree
so that we can freely be.
If this is so, then how can we accept mediocrity, or ever be bored;
and how can there be people who so arrogantly deny the Lord?
I know there are children who are born of parents who never danced,
and those who can't be happy without their features being artificially enhanced:
so I can't accept mankind's dispassionate pleas for more,
when all they do is see living as a chore,
to be completed in the appropriate time
and, in the meantime, waiting for a chime.
How is that living? To only live for one:
less convinced of him, and more seduced by fun.

Last weekend: blessed by these two godly and goodly women

As originally published at The Imaginative Conservative (on Tuesday)

Let the Rain Fall

TBM Topic 20: Moments that remind us God fully exists

"Let the Rain Fall" by Julie Robison
"Little Moments" by Trista at Not a Minx, Moron, or a Parasite
"The Mount" by Elizabeth at Startling the Day

We three are from the oft-mentioned, widely-speculated upon demographic of young, twenty-something Catholic women. We're here to dispel the myths and misconceptions- please join us for the discussion on Facebook and Twitter!

You could say I was lookin' fly. Rain boots with sailboats; orange soccer shorts; a navy blue raincoat pull-over. Correction: I was lookin' super-fly. I was all set for an impromptu walk in the rain with my boyfriend and his family's dog.

We walked around his neighborhood, talking and occasionally calling to his dog. We returned to the house wet and happy. It was the end of another fun weekend together. We talked about our future and its possibilities; we laughed and enjoyed each other's company; we looked at each other and knew we are blessed.

In this past week, I've read a couple Why I'm Catholic stories. When non-believers read such conversion stories, they are generally unconvinced. The responses I usually see are "lame" and "unbelievable" and "that person probably wasn't a real atheist."

When our Protestant brethren talk the Real Presence of Christ, they are not referring to Transubstantiation. They are talking about knowing Christ and thus recognizing his presence in the sacredness of the ordinary.

My sister taking pictures on the Marienbrucke in Germany

Take rain for instance; it can often have a negative connotation. For instance, the phrases "raining on my parade" and "It was a dark and rainy night," Adele's "Set Fire to the Rain" and the Allman Brothers' "Bad Rain", and the fact that rain's usual company, overcast weather, tends to depress people.

Rain can also be renewing. Rainbows come after the rain, as does puddle jumping, more vegetation and horticultural growth, and, as one 11 year old optimist put it, "It makes you appreciate the sunny days that we get and makes them more enjoyable!"

I happen to love the rain. I love walking in it, I love being in it*, I love listening to it, and I am grateful for it. Rain is a blessing, literally from above.

My senior year of college, in my last few weeks, my beloved Aunt died. My thesis was due and the time crunch was too severe, so my family told me not to come down for the funeral. The day of the funeral, I wrote a poem entitled "The Rain." It rained in Michigan the day of my Aunt's funeral. I imagined it was God's tears. (Sentimental, I am.) It is not a great poem (the blog published version is its first draft form), but these last lines partly captures my appreciation and love of rain:

and here I am, still at school, no time to think about leaving,
no more time to cry while my heart still mourns,
but instead relish in the rain: people are running
from building to building and all I think
is how she can no longer feel the rain hit her face
or get cold, or smile, or walk, or skip,
and so I do all of these as I move through the rain,
my funeral procession of one,
the still living.

As I walked through the rain with B. last weekend, I could smile because I am alive. In the rain, I am reminded of God's covenant with his people. In the rain, I can understand why grace can hurt. Every year on Good Friday, my family prays together on the steps in Mt. Adams for two hours, and every year it rains. Not always exactly at noon, but between the hours of 12 and 3 p.m., the time of Jesus hanging dead on the cross, the sky grows dark and the earth shakes. And then it rains.

My sister and I in the rain as wee tots

It is when it rains that I know God fully exists. It is when I am praying, eyes closed and hands clasped; asking, seeking, knocking - I come before God in faith alone. There is nothing more I can often do but trust. There is nothing to be gained through holding the weight on my shoulders, when Christ already paid the price to have such pains airlifted. In the rain and the discomfort of being wet, I am most receptive and aware of the importance of offering it up to God, whatever "it"** may be for each individual.

Without trying to disconnect my theology from my naturalistic experiences, I'd like to add that rain reminds me of God because we cannot know the ways of rain. It can just as easily be a foe and turn to sleet, hail or ice as it can beautify one's garden and grass. Rain gives no reason for its coming and going, nor offers sound logic for its patterns. But rain does not answer to me, and neither does God.

During the times when studying theology becomes more theory and less love affair, it is the physicality of rain that appeals to me, just as my physical reception of Holy Communion is necessary, and spending time with our Lord in Eucharistic adoration. It is in Christ that I am alive, and his presence - made actual through the Liturgy or apparent through his world - I cherish, as I grow to know him deeper and in different ways, and so have more Love for him.



Edith Stein once said that God shows himself too much; that he offers too much proof of his existence. I believe that. I think the power and grandeur of God really is too overwhelming for us to truly comprehend. God shows himself, as Jesus said in the Gospel on Sunday, in the poor, sick, homeless, and imprisoned. I think he also shows himself through the beauty of art, music, science, the wideness of the galaxy, and the intrinsic complexity of the world. This world says to me, there is a God and he is good, because he made this for us. God did not make evil, which taints the world, but he can sanctify it.

In this same vein, I believe rain is a sanctifying agent in the world. It renews. It revives. It gives hope. It can tear down in order to make us build up again. It takes away so that the Lord may giveth. Rain, so ordinary, is so sacred. With every drop of rain comes a blessing to be counted, and I'm thankful the rain reminds me of God's graciousness and from whom all blessings flow.

What do you think of the rain? What kind of moments is God fully alive to you?

*My sister may correct me here; walking up a huge hill to a castle in Germany in a downpour with our tour group was not an overly agreeable experience; if only I had remembered my rain jacket!
**For some, it is shrubbery!

Have a blessed Thanksgiving, dear readers! Here is some extra reading: "The Weight of Glory" by C.S. Lewis

Moral Decadence in Man

“For Paul, the moral decadence of society is nothing more than the logical consequence and the faithful reflection of this radical perversion. When man prefers his own egoism, his pride, and his convenience to the demands made on him by the truth, the only possible outcome is an upside-down existence. Adoration is due to God alone, but what is adored is no longer God; images, outward appearances, and current opinion have dominion over man.

This general alteration extends to every sphere of life. That which is against nature becomes the norm; the man who lives against he truth also lives against nature. His creativity is no longer at the service of the good: he devotes his genius to ever more refined forms of evil. The bonds between man and woman, and between parents and children, are dissolved, so that the very sources from which life springs are blocked up. It is no longer life that reigns, but death. A civilization of death is formed (Rom 1:21-32). The description of decadence that Paul sketches here astonishes us modern readers by its contemporary relevance.”

Padre Pio's stigmatas are a good reminder of our higher calling to God's way, not our own

and

“The knowledge of God has always existed. And everywhere in the history of religions, in various forms, we encounter the significant conflict between the knowledge of the one God and the attraction of other powers that are considered more dangerous or nearer at hand and, therefore, more important for man than the God who is distant mysterious.

All of history bears the traces of this strange dilemma between the non-violent, tranquil demands made by the truth, on the one hand, and the pressure brought to make profits and the need to have a good relationship with the powers that determine daily life by their interventions, on the other hand. Again and again, we see the victory of profit over truth, although the signs of the truth and of its own power never disappear completely. Indeed, they continue to live, often in surprising forms, in the very heart of a jungle full of poisonous plants.”

--Pope Benedict XVI, as Joseph Ratzinger; Christianity and the Crisis of Culture

Atheist Convert: R.J. Stove

I read this amazing testimony by R.J. Stove about his conversion to Catholicism on Why I'm Catholic, a site run by an awesome guy and fellow VP contributor Steven Lawson.

Stove is the son a prominent atheist, the late David Stove. He joined the Catholic Church in 2002. He lives in Melbourne, Australia. His website says he is an editor, writer, composer and narcissist, and features a quote by Paul Valery (French poet, essayist and philosopher): "A poem is never finished, it is only abandoned."

The first part of that sentence, I think, applies well to humans. We humans are not perfect, which would seem like a good finishing point. But even the word "perfect" could be exchanged for another attitude: we're never finished striving towards God, just as God is ever patient waiting for us to come back to him.

The second part of Valery's sentence, then, could juxtapose the difference between man and God: as man gives up, God never abandons us. Through the calm and storms of life, he uses our free will and decisions as a pathway for grace.

I tried to pick a favorite graf, but couldn't. I hope you consider Stove's conversion with an open mind and delight in his use of the English language. Read the article here.

My Interview on Pat Gohn's Among Women Podcast

The awesome Pat Gohn interviewed me for her Among Women podcast: Listen here!

Disordered? Or Specifically Designed to Carry the Cross?

I read this conversation on a CatholicVote.org article:

First, Davide:

Tom, if I told you I was not sexually attracted to you am I disordered? You are mistaken no where absolutely no where does the Church say the attraction is disordered. I encourage you to read the CCC 2357-2359. It says our attraction is a 'trail'. I am willing to go further and say it is not normal or natural. But I don;t need anyone reminding me of this. Imagine a 15 year old Catholic boy who is confused about his sexuality and he is told his attraction is disordered even though he is a virgin. Right out of the gate he feels lost and condemn. His straight buddies are disinterested in his sexuality. So he goes to the 'gay' kids who are disinterested in his faith. But not one of them considered him disordered. So he struggles between faith and what the world wants him to do. More than likely where do you think he will end up? Its no wonder most hetero folks don't understand homosexual advocacy, cause they don't undertand SSA. So I think we should limit the 'disordered' comments to the actual sin.

The response by Tom:

Davide--- Again, I didn't say you or anyone dealing with SSA *is* disordered. And as I read CCC 2358 I see it say of the homosexual attraction, "This inclination, which is objectively disordered...." Am I wrong in interpreting that to refer to the attraction, regardless of the action? If so, how? But again, in no way am I condemning anyone. As I imagine that 15 year old boy confused about his sexuality, telling him that his attraction is disordered isn't telling him that *he* is bad or condemned, but that he has a disordered inclination. Yes, it'll be a tough pill to swallow, but it's not incorrect. The next step, of course, is to help him on the path of living chastely, which, incidentally, is what 15 year olds who don't experience SSA need to be taught also. Perhaps steps can be taken to prevent the feeling of being lost and condemned through proper compassion at that tender age. I do not dispute that the compassion has been lacking far too frequently, but that does not mean the truth is not the truth. ------------ And I do not take any offense to your responses. I have appreciated your contributions and appreciate that you have a personal stake in this topic.

And a welcome clarification from Andy:

Again, "disordered" is not to be thought of in the psychological sense.

I'm glad these respectful conversations are happening. For more on SSA and the Church, the Canadian Council of Catholic Bishops put out the excellent read, "Pastoral Ministry to Young People with Same-Sex Attraction." The Church respects and defends the dignity of all people carrying this cross; let us Catholics do the same, without compromising the Church's teachings.

I think this is a tough issue for the Church, especially since it has become subjective in the sense that people hear "gay" and immediately think of their friend or relative. The teaching of homosexuality is aligned tightly with the Church's teachings of heterosexuality sexuality. They are one in the same; they are concerned primarily to the whole dignity of each person and faithfulness to the Lord's commandments.

Two slim books I really recommend are "Set Free to Love: Lives Changed by Theology of the Body" by Marcel LeJuene and "Washed and Waiting" by Wesley Hill. The former is from a Roman Catholic perspective (he works at Texas A&M and runs the Aggie Catholics blog) and the latter is Evangelical Christian (the author is a graduate of Wheaton College). Another excellent person to read on this subject is Eve Tushnet; she is a Catholic convert, lesbian and single (ergo, celibate). I first heard about her from a NYT article and enjoy her blog. OH! And Steve Gershom - a must-read blog by a "Catholic, Gay, and Feeling Fine, Thanks" man.

I reviewed LeJeune's book this past January; he writes on "sex, chastity, married life, celibacy, Trinitarian love, human dignity, the differences between men and women, and our ultimate purpose in life."

The story by the young man who struggles with same-sex attraction was phenomenal. When he asked Christopher West (renowned TOB author and speaker) how best to "deal" with it, West said, "First and foremost, you are a man."

This young man would later find further grace through the sacraments of the Church: "I started attending daily Mass and receiving the Eucharist day in and day out. I realized this was what I had been looking for all along! If I really wanted to learn what it meant to be a man, how much further did I need to look than the Sacrament of the greatest man who ever lived?"

Please pray with me for further understanding, contentment, respect and joy for all affected in this growing dialogue!

Guest Post: Why Convert?: Invincible Ignorance vs. Knowledge of the Truth

by JFB, a friend in seminary

I recently learned from a friend about a theological problem that he had faced. Once, while talking with some of his friends, he was asked by one of them who was a Protestant whether Catholics believed that anyone not a member of the Catholic Church was destined for Hell.

My friend responded, "No, Catholics believe that if a non-Christian leads a good moral life to the best of his knowledge, Jesus will have mercy." The Protestant then asked the next logical question: “Well, if that’s the case, why would you want to evangelize? If you just let them stay in their ignorance, they’ll have a greater chance of getting into heaven, because if a person doesn’t know about Jesus, he won’t be held to the higher standard than a Christian would be.”

This is very a reasonable question, and quite wrong-headed. First, let us make some general assumptions. It is not my purpose here to prove the Catholic Church is the one, true religion. I am merely showing why a Catholic should want to convert someone and risk their rejection rather than let them serve God as best they can with the knowledge they have.

So we assume that the Catholic Church is the one, true universal church, founded by Jesus Christ approximately 2000 years ago. The Catholic Church holds the deposit of faith given to us by Jesus Christ and the surest means of acquiring salvation. The Catechism says, "The Church, following the apostles, teaches that Christ died for all men without exception: 'There is not, never has been, and never will be a single human being for whom Christ did not suffer'" (CCC 605).

Therefore, anyone who loves God and seeks to know and serve Him as best as they are able -- be they Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Islamic, or Pagan -- is capable of being redeemed by Jesus through his suffering and death and entering Paradise. At the very least, it is not ours to judge on the final destination of any person.

Christ is Lord of eternal life. Full right to pass definitive judgment on the works and hearts of men belongs to him as redeemer of the world. He "acquired" this right by his cross. The Father has given "all judgment to the Son." Yet the Son did not come to judge, but to save and to give the life he has in himself. By rejecting grace in this life, one already judges oneself, receives according to one's works, and can even condemn oneself for all eternity by rejecting the Spirit of love (CCC 679).

So then, why attempt to convert anyone? Why not let them try to live their life the best that they can, shielded at the Final Judgment by Invincible Ignorance?

Let me begin with a little joke. The denominations do not matter much for the general telling of the joke. One day, a Roman Catholic Priest, a Byzantine Priest, and a Rabbi are walking along a river. The Catholic Priest sees a Coca-Cola machine on the other side of the river and, being thirsty, walks across the surface of the river, buys a coke, and then walks back.

The Byzantine Priest is also thirsty and he too walks across the river to buy a coke. The Rabbi is astounded by this and decides he wants a coke too; if these guys can walk on water, so can he! He steps out into the river and immediately falls in. He pulls himself ashore and steps out again. As he's falling in the second time, the Catholic priest turns to the other and says, "Do you think we should tell him where the rocks are?"

The Catholic Church is not just another religion. Its beliefs are not just as valid as anyone else's. Now, in terms of comparing salvation to walking across the river to get a coke, the Rabbi might have been able to swim across on his own. The current may have pulled him downstream and he would be exhausted and wet, but it is possible for him to make it. It is also possible that he could have drowned.

If, when he made it to the coke machine, he were to be met there by one of his Priest friends and told about how he could have walked on the rocks, do you think he would've thanked him? Would he not have preferred to have been told that before he nearly went off a waterfall?

True: he may have decided that he felt like a swim and forsaken the rocks, and that would be his own decision. If a person of another faith or lack thereof is truly dedicated to learning the Truth of this life and serving it to the best of their ability, they should run to conversion when they are presented with the truths of the Catholic Church. If, on the other hand, they turn you away, mock you, and/ or refuse to listen to what you have to say, then they have judged themselves already (as stated above in CCC 679).

But maybe, just maybe, what you said will touch their heart beyond their understanding and some day lead them to the truth. In short, by attempting to convert someone to Catholicism you are only doing them a favor, or at the very least you are doing them no disservice because they are not intent on living the best way that they can. A further analogy that might be made is that hoping that someone will be saved by ignorance of the truth is about as safe as hoping that by virtue not teaching someone self-defense they will never be mugged.

Now, how to go about teaching someone about the truth of the Catholic Church: I'm afraid there is no sure method. Even logic can be ignored by someone sufficiently determined to do so. But perhaps the best way to convert someone is by example. To quote (somewhat inaccurately, I'm sure) a Priest I know: "I have never converted anyone by defeating them in logical argument. Rather those I have converted did so because they saw a completeness in my life which they lacked."

Another way of saying this is to use the words of St. Francis: "Preach the Gospel at all times. When necessary use words." But this doesn't mean you should not have logical arguments at the ready.

"...Always be prepared to make a defense to any one who calls you to account for the hope that is in you, yet do it with gentleness and reverence; and keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are abused, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame" (1 Peter 3:15-16). 

I hope this note has been enlightening. My final thought is that if you want to achieve Heaven, you must live what you preach, and preach by how you live.

Oremus pro invicem

We Are Catholic!

Great video!