Johnny Garcia a member of Catholic Recovery has this excellent video on breaking addiction’s chains:
I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)
A friend of mine on Twitter just posted this link about the saint who’s Feast day the Church celebrates today: Saint Maximilian Kolbe
(Via SPQN.)
I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)
We are all sinners. Every one of us. There is no one who is sinless and incapable of sinning (except for Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary). But we have recourse to the Sacrament of Confession to remove our sins.
Psalm 32:5: “Then I declared my sin to you; my guilt I did not hide. I said, ‘I confess my faults to the LORD,’ and you took away the guilt of my sin.”
(Via USCCB.)
We confess our sins to a priest and through him God cleanses us of our sin and its guilt. That is how the sacrament works.
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church paragraph 1116: “Sacraments are ‘powers that comes forth’ from the Body of Christ, which is ever-living and life-giving. They are actions of the Holy Spirit at work in his Body, the Church. They are ‘the masterworks of God’ in the new and everlasting covenant.”
(Via USCCB.)
We can confess our sins to God, but in doing so there is no guarantee of absolution (the removal of the sin and guilt). Jesus after all gave His disciples the power to forgive sins or not to (so why bother if we can just go straight to God?):
John 20:22-23: “And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.'”
(Via USCCB.)
Even Twelve Step movements recognize the need to clear the air of the past with another person. In Step 5 people are exhorted to admit to God, to yourself and to another person the wrongs of the past. The courage needed to talk to another person helps to strengthen the “firm purpose of amendment” that we must possess and increases our personal honesty. It is a sign of humility.
The main practical here-and-now difference between confessing your sins to a priest, however, and “doing a Step 5” with another is that the priest is bound by the seal of confession to not reveal whatever is said during it. No person hearing an alcoholic’s 5th Step list of wrongs is bound by such a thing. Your Step 5 “confession” is not guaranteed to remain a secret.
So, in recognition of the fact that going to Confession is hard if you’re not used to it, confess your sins to God, as a start. As a humble prayer present your sins to God along with a petition for the courage to see a priest for the sacrament. As I said in the beginning, we are all sinners, no getting around that. Jesus established the sacrament for a reason; a direct, tangible and certain way for us to know that our sins are forgiven and removed. This is something that those going directly to God in prayer cannot ever be certain of. Non-Catholics may disagree, but simply put, going straight to God with a prayer of petition to forgive sins is nothing more than a prayer. And as everyone knows, although God does answer all of our prayers, He may not do so in the manner we want, nor in the time we need. Using Confession removes all doubt. We are using the tools that God expressly provided for us to ask Him to do something for us. He is bound by it.
Matthew 16:19: “I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.'”
(Via USCCB.)
So, go to Confession soon. Once a month isn’t too difficult. Often enough for a good cleansing, but not too often that it is “burdensome”. After a fashion you may opt for a more frequent schedule!
Psalm 32:1: “Happy the sinner whose fault is removed, whose sin is forgiven.”
(Via USCCB.)
I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)
Today is the Feast Day of St. Benedict, one of the more important and influential saints of the Catholic Church, and also one of the individuals who helped form and shape Western civilization.
Who was St. Benedict? The Online Guide to St. Benedict has an excellent biography of him, as well as a lot of useful resources on his life.
He was born about the year 480, and died around 547.
I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)
John W. Garcia, a member of Catholics in Recovery offers this video on basic Catholic tools to aid in your recovery from addictions.
It does answer one common objection that comes up when people state that you cannot rely solely on religion, and that you need the support of a group, the “slogans” and other tools that you develop in recovery meeting rooms. Those are nice, but not needed.
The “What to do kit for addictions” offers all sorts of things the Catholic Faith has that can help you recover, and maintain that recovery. In addition, and this is key, it offers the tools needed to retrain yourself in how you react to things. This seems a central point in any addict’slife.We need to relearn how to react to things in a non-addictive way.
John is also the person behind the excellent Sober for Christ resource.
Watch the video and visit his site.
I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)
The Church seems to be using Lent to drive home the theme of relying on the Lord to deliver His people from their distress. The Responsorial Psalm for Friday of the Fifth Week of Lent is yet another prayer of gratitude to God:
Psalm 18:2-7:
“I love you, O LORD, my strength, O LORD, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer.
My God, my rock of refuge, my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold! Praised be the LORD, I exclaim, and I am safe from my enemies.
The breakers of death surged round about me, the destroying floods overwhelmed me; The cords of the nether world enmeshed me, the snares of death overtook me.
In my distress I called upon the LORD and cried out to my God; From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears.”
(Via USCCB.)
Lent is a time for repentance, of turning away from sin and amending your life. The Church is also reminding us that a benefit of this is a confident reliance on God to help us in our distress. We must never forget this.
I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)
This excerpt from the Responsorial Psalm for the Mass from Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent is an excellent prayer of distress in times of pain:
Psalm 102:2-3: “O LORD, hear my prayer,
and let my cry come to you.
Hide not your face from me
in the day of my distress.
Incline your ear to me;
in the day when I call, answer me speedily.”
(Via USCCB.)
It seems that many of the Psalms picked for the season of Lent recognize the pain and suffering that people find themselves in. Most often it is caused by sin, either the sufferer’s actions or another’s.
Nevertheless, we are being constantly reminded by the Church of the healing and forgiving nature of God.
I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)
The Responsorial Psalm for Monday of the Third Week of Lent may have an answer for those alcoholics and addicts who still suffer occasionally from having a “hole in the soul” in need of filling:
Psalm 42:2-3; 43:3-4: “As the deer longs for streams of water, so my soul longs for you, O God.
My being thirsts for God, the living God. When can I go and see the face of God?
Send your light and fidelity, that they may be my guide And bring me to your holy mountain, to the place of your dwelling,
That I may come to the altar of God, to God, my joy, my delight. Then I will praise you with the harp, O God, my God.”
(Via USCCB.)
We seek God everywhere except perhaps where He is. In Church, in the sacredness of the Sacraments and in methods of holiness such as Catholic devotions.
The hole in our soul is therefore filled with useless things, namely our addictions. Even aside from our addictions we seek out the pleasures of the secular world, falsely assuming and hoping that they can satisfy the need we have for deep spiritual sustenance.
Long for God, long for the spiritual and sacramental satisfaction that can only be met by Him. Prayerfully read the Bible, learn all about the meaning behind then passages to better understand things, study the Mass and discover why it is the summit of our Catholic Faith and the source of everything we need to truly fill that “hole in our soul.”
I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)
The Responsorial Psalm for the Third Sunday in Lent paints a nice picture of knowing the will of God:
Psalm 19:8-11: “The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing the soul. The decree of the LORD is trustworthy, giving wisdom to the simple.
The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart. The command of the LORD is clear, enlightening the eye.
The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever. The statutes of the LORD are true, all of them just;
More desirable than gold, than a hoard of purest gold, Sweeter also than honey or drippings from the comb”
(Via USCCB.)
The best way to grow closer to God in the privacy of your own dwelling, or even when enjoying nature, is to study the Bible, the source of His laws, precepts, commands and statutes.
I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)
The Gospel Reading for the Second Sunday of Lent is a familiar one: it is the Transfiguration of Jesus.
Mark 9:2-10: “Jesus took Peter, James, and John
and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves.
And he was transfigured before them,
and his clothes became dazzling white,
such as no fuller on earth could bleach them.
Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses,
and they were conversing with Jesus.
Then Peter said to Jesus in reply,
‘Rabbi, it is good that we are here!
Let us make three tents:
one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.’
He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified.
Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them;
from the cloud came a voice,
‘This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.’
Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone
but Jesus alone with them.
As they were coming down from the mountain,
he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone,
except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead.
So they kept the matter to themselves,
questioning what rising from the dead meant.”
(Via USCCB.)
A key phrase in the passage from Mark is “Listen to Him.” The voice is God, issuing a command. God is endorsing the authority of Jesus to teach and to lead. In light of yesterday’s post to “Just Do It”, it is interesting that this follows.
We are to listen to Jesus, to do as He says, to live as He lived. He will guide us through the dark times and on to the good. We need to get through “Good Friday” before we can get to “Easter Sunday”.
I had written a post on the Transfiguration before, as a Rosary meditation.
I have a new book! "The Sober Catholic Way" is a handbook on how anyone can live a sober life, drawn from over 17 years of SoberCatholic posts! It's out now on "Amazon," "Apple Books," "B&N" and and others!"!My two other books are still available! "The Stations of the Cross for Alcoholics" and "The Recovery Rosary: Reflections for Alcoholics and Addicts" (Thank you!!)