Happy birthday?

Our culture certainly places a lot of importance on money. This explains why the news is so full of stories of how our current financial downturn has affected EVERYONE, rich and poor alike.

But in our desire to use money in our best interests for us and our family, we find an interesting dilemma in defining what is essential and what is not.

Perhaps for some, a birthday party would be considered not essential when money is tight (or, in many cases these days, when there is no money at all). But, a non-profit organization in Massachusetts would disagree. And is doing something about it.

Proof perhaps that self-donating love shines the brightest when darkness seems to surround us?

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Bravery, sacrifice, support

These are words used by President Bush in his proclamation for this year's observance of Veterans Day.  And these words are very appropriate to describe the men and women of our Armed Forces.

It is easy for us civilians to take for granted the liberties that are protected by our military.  And probably even easier to forget that this protection comes at a great price.

So, perhaps those words the President used are really for us.

Maybe our support is in the form of taking care of our country, so that our armed forces know that their service is worth something.

Maybe our bravery is in the form of taking leaps of faith in willing - and incarnating - the good of our fellow Americans.

Maybe our sacrifice is putting aside our political differences and working towards the common good.

God Bless you men and women in our military, living and deceased.  And God Bless us all!

What turning the other cheek really means...

When I was a young lad, my parents made us read alot.  And I mean ALOT.  One of the things we had to read was a series of books on influential people of our modern world: Louis Pasteur, Helen Keller...people like that.

The book/person I remember the most was Jackie Robinson.

His story stood out to me partly because he was a Brooklyn Dodger (and I was a fan of the West Coast version of that team), partly because he was a talented baseball player, and partly because he went to a high school not too far from mine.

But what really touched me was that he was asked to make sacrifices for a greater good and truth.  

Branch Rickey, the general manager of the Dodgers at the time, knew that signing the first African-American major league baseball player would be scandalous to the establishment.  And he knew that Jackie would have to endure much hardship, not only for his acceptance in the league, but so that other African-American players would someday have the same chance to play.

The book chronicled Branch Rickey counseling Jackie to turn the other cheek at all the slurs, physical violence on the field and lack of support from teammates that would most certainly be directed at him.  

And, of course, history has proven that his choice to not repay evil with evil changed the hearts of a professional baseball league, its players and an entire country.

Why do I remember this now?

The greater good and THE Truth is bigger than the candidates that will be elected tomorrow and the laws that will be passed or defeated.  And what is good and true always and in every case prefers giving life and sanctifying the family unit.

Some of you reading this (Christian and non-Christian alike) do not agree with Christianity's stance on many of the issues on the ballot, particularly her support of California's Proposition 8 and Senator McCain's candidacy for the Office of the President.  Your reasons for disagreeing are understandable given today's cultural definition of love and your outspokenness is a beauty of our democracy.  To you, my prayer is that your passion can be directed towards moments (however big or small) of serious contemplation, where you can discover the fullness of your search for THE Truth, not just the small portion of it that we absorb from our culture.  In this contemplative journey, you may discover that THE Truth is in the very nature of our humanness - our true identities as male and female and the deepest longings of our souls.  And maybe, just maybe, in this journey you will understand why the pro-life, pro-family value system is so important to all humanity.

Some of you reading this are already committed to the Gospel message of Truth and desire that Truth to be borne out in our nation's government and policies.  Those that live the Christian life are called by God to make sacrifices to stand for a greater good and Truth. However, we cannot confuse what the greater good is here. It is bringing about the mercy and forgiveness of the Lord, not winning an election. We must choose to not repay evil that will be done to us because of our faith with evil.  We must choose unwavering charity to all people regardless of their political stance, whether or not the pro-life, pro-family values reflected on the ballot receives the most votes.  We must choose to take up our crosses, which may very well take the form of enduring personal attacks or violence, lack of support from our own families and brothers and sisters in faith, and/or loss of civil liberties. In choosing all these, we will cooperate with Christ in changing the hearts of our families, churches and our whole country.  And the victory will not belong to a political party or ideology, but to Christ, the way, THE Truth, and the life.

And, so now, we pray, that turning the other cheek will bring about peace and life...

A moment with our "good angel/bad angel"

I've always loved this image of the interior tug-of-war of our consciences.  And while the good angel/bad angel speak to us daily (bringing peace or unrest, depending on which of the angels we listen to), we will collectively experience THE tug-of-war as Americans on Tuesday, Nov. 4.

So, as Election Day looms, and our political alliances, cultural understanding and desire for happiness influence our vote, may we all, Catholics and non-Catholics alike, consider a vote for THE one, holy truth that does exist inside of all of us.  We just have to listen to the right voice.

Winning = losing?

In one week, the people of the United States of America will be electing a new president, as well as voting on the wide array of local offices and propositions.

Americans will be asked to dig into their individual and collective consciousnesses to decide on the many important issues that face our great nation.

However, if a candidate is elected into office, or a proposition passed (or defeated, depending on one's perspective), does that mean that God's Will was incarnated?

Have we, as Christians, become so caught up in politics of our country that winning is more important than truth?

Will hearts be converted because of a new law, a newly elected public servant or the life-giving, compassionate love that flows from Jesus Christ and through the Church and her people?

As Christians, our passion for pro-life, pro-family issues must serve as an authentic witness of our love for and obedience to God's loving blueprint for humanity.  And we know that there are particular candidates and propositions in this election that are contrary to this blueprint.  

But, we must remember that God is bigger than politics.  And as such, shouldn't we see this election as bigger than just the choices we make on list of candidates and other ballot items?

We should give our agendas to "Caesar".  Our votes are essential and valuable to the democratic process.  And our desire to have civil laws that reflect the dignity of humans is a way for us to live out our Christian vocation.  

But to God, we must give - and share - His love and mercy, at all times and in every situation to every person regardless of their political stance.   Because even if the candidate/proposition we want receives the most votes, but the electorate is not sanctified, can we really celebrate a victory?

Money matters?

I honestly don't even know if I completely grasp the financial crisis we are in.  At the minimum, it is what everyone wants to talk about, whether it affects them or not.  So, my understanding of the whole situation is based on what I read about in the news and hear from other people.  My dad and I were talking about just hanging on and making it through to the other side.

But, make no mistake, you know it's bad when the question "Are you prepared for a depression?" is being asked seriously.

As always, however, the Church has a response.  It might not be the response that people want to hear.  But it is certainly the one way out of this mess.  It's a solution for all of us: financial people, government leaders, Christian and non-Christians alike:

The Word of God is not only living and true, but it endures ALL crisis.

“This is Katrina in the entire country, but without the means that Louisiana had.”

I was having dinner with a friend the other night and we were discussing the impact of natural disasters in the history of our lives, as well as the current impact of all the recent hurricanes on the Caribbean and the southern United States.

As we were talking, I mentioned how our mainstream news media has not to this point described the extent of the devastation in Haiti.  

This article from the New York Times is still only a glimpse of what the Haitians are going through.

I am sad because of the mighty suffering these simple people have to endure.  I pray that I will endure with them.

A smattering of schtuff...

• I'm currently listening to two very powerful albums: Revelation by Third Day and Hello Love by Chris Tomlin.  Both albums are not just wonderful musical experiences, but are also powerful expressions of how God works in the tangible to draw us close to Him.
  
• The iPhone is still a pretty amazing machine.  My friend told me today that the word on the street is that it will be available through multiple cellular carriers within a year.
  
• I love to eat.  Picking up breakfast at Pipes Cafe in Cardiff always brings a smile to my face.
  
• Is it just me, but are there ALOT of people (men AND women) who are fanatical about football?
  
• If you haven't done so already, you need to see the video on catholicvote.com.
  

It's already been seven years

Like many people, I can remember very clearly what I was doing when the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 started.  Not just remember what I was doing, but what I was feeling: sad, confused, angry, unsure, scared.  But, now, as we commemorate the seventh anniversary of those attacks, I feel those same feelings, yet with a different context.

I asked myself this morning, "Have we forgotten what happened?"  Sure, there are a lot of ceremonies honoring those that died.  Our news media will be replaying all of the horrifying images from that day and trying to analyze how safe we are from another attack.  Polls show that our country's concern over another act of terrorism is at its lowest level since 2001.  And certainly, for as life altering as that day was for all of us, we must move on.

But now, I think the better question is "Have we forgotten how we reacted?"

We, the people of the United States, reacted in a way that was, in a word, holy.

Men and women - young and old - being obedient to their vocation to the armed forces to sacrifice their very lives to protect you and me (which they continue to do today).  Americans rich and poor caring for total strangers, no matter how near or far.  Family being the priority over sports, business, politics, money.  Priests and pastors of every denomination preaching to packed churches.  Self-donation exceeding self-satisfaction.  A nation that was truly, if only for a moment, one under God.

Perhaps all of the pomp and circumstance of today will remind us of this: that the best way for our country to honor those who died is not just to be more protected and secure, but for Americans to be truly and authentically loving of family, friends and the other alike, as we were on Sept. 11, 2001.

(Almost) Live from Sydney

It's been great catching the World Youth Day coverage from Australia.  But, it's even better to get e-mails and blogs and messages from people you know.

I mentioned Marko and Scott in my blog the other day.  Both of them are at World Youth Day right now.  They are friends in ministry who I have connected with over the summer to brainstorm and dream about an even more powerful youth ministry.

Scott is in charge of teen faith formation for the Archdiocese of Baltimore.  He has some wonderful thoughts about how to make Catholic youth ministry work in today's context.  And Marko is the president of Youth Specialties, a San Diego-based publisher of youth ministry resources.  One of the coolest things about Marko is how willing he is to experience our Catholic tradition (he is not Catholic, but is attending WYD and has spoken at a Catholic youth minister's training sponsored by Life Teen).  

Both Scott and Marko have inspired me to think outside of the proverbial ministry box.  I pray that that process and discernment and the support I know they and others will give me will be close to God's Will.  Because doing God's Will always bears fruit.  And God likes fruit.

So, please check out Scott's and Marko's blogs from Australia.  They provide such a beautiful perspective for all of us not there.

I have to give a quick shout out to Maire, Leah, Sarah, Grant, Jon and everyone from the Gathering Youth Ministry who are in Sydney now.  Marie left this beautiful Facebook message for me this morning:

PAT!!! Australia is amazing!! I was 5 feet from the pope in his pope mobile!!!! I wish you were here!!! I'm soo pumped for steubenville!!! see you next week!!!

Oh, you NEED to go to Google Maps and get directions from San Diego (or wherever you are) to Sydney.  You won't believe your eyes....

Random-osity

- I feel like I have a lot going on right now.

Getting ready for our annual trip to the Steubenville San Diego Catholic Youth Conference.  Some of you are laughing because the conference is being held in our backyard at SDSU.  While it isn't a trip in the sense of miles, it is a journey into the Sacred Heart of Christ.

I'm also getting ready to go on a vacation/missionary trip to the Dominican Republic.  I really am excited (and nervous) to go.  I'm struggling right now with that feeling of "oh-I-still-have-time-to-get-everything-done-before-I-leave-but-I-really-don't-because-the-trip-is-only-a-few-weeks-away".

- These two stories grabbed my attention today:

1. As you probably know, our world is celebrating the Summer Olympics in a few weeks.  The host country, China, has been preaching (and warning) visitors to be civil and kind during the Games.  Among the many rules include no spitting, no standing for long periods of time in the seating area, and no crossbows allowed (yes, you heard me, NO CROSSBOWS!).

This is all well and good, but aren't we supposed to be civil to each other all the time?

2. If you want to get someone to clean your room or house, give them free gas.  If you want to make new friends, give them free gas.  If you want to lead people closer to Christ, give them free gas.

- I've been blessed to meet a lot of amazing teens, families, young adults of all ages, priests, sisters and fellow youth ministers.  There are two brother youth ministers, Mark Ostriecher and D. Scott Miller, that are in Australia for the celebration of World Youth Day.  Marko and Scott will be blogging from Sydney and I'll be sharing some of their experiences with you (as well as how they've inspired me to be a better youth minister and a better man of God).

- This Friday, July 18, here at my parish, St. James, we will be celebrating the ordination to the diaconate of Ernesto Torres.  If you're Catholic and have never been to an ordination of any kind, you have a moral obligation to go.  OK, you don't have a moral obligation to go, but you really should if you want to see, feel and hear the power of Christ's grace in action.  One of the most powerful experiences in the life of our Church.  I hope to have a special blog on Ernesto later this week.

- A quick shout out to all of you who have been coming to Bible study over the summer.  One of joys of being a youth minister is praying, preparing and leading Bible study.  I hope that those who have been coming (and those who will be coming) have a powerful encounter with Christ.  I know I do.