Category Archives: Holy Spirit

The Sign of the Cross Apostolate

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 I have been delving deeper into EWTN’s programming since I posted the other day about Mother Angelica is as helpful and inspiring today as she was decades ago. I have also begun exploring their programming on Lourdes (an obvious devotion for anyone who is an alcoholic and addict or is otherwise afflicted with physical and emotional maladies.) I found this series from a few short years ago: My Lourdes Faith Journey. It is like a companion to this book: Everyday Miracles Of Lourdes – Twenty Extraordinary Experiences Along The Way To The Grotto

Both are products of the work of Our Lady of Lourdes Hospitality North American Volunteers. Many of the chapters of the book serve as episodes of the “My Lourdes Faith Journey” program. One in particular stood out for me. At the end of Episode 5- Jamie Jensen, Mr Jensen (a quadriplegic who’s been to Lourdes well over a dozen times and serves on the Board of Advisors to the Hospitality NA Volunteers group) casually mentioned about a “Sign of the Cross Apostolate.” I couldn’t find any website, not even a page on the Volunteers Hospitality  site, but that might be because it’s very simple and probably spreads by word of mouth by those who participate in the Volunteers Hospitality pilgimages. 

Here’s some background: Our Lady of Lourdes North American Volunteers is an apostolate dedicated to arranging pilgrimages to Lourdes for North Americans who need to immerse themselves in the baths, visit the grotto, and obtain a physical, mental or spiritual healing. They are based in Syracuse, NY (not too far from my hometown of Oneida!) The book, “Everyday Miracles of Lourdes” details 21 stories of healing and conversion. The EWTN series “My Lourdes Faith Journey,” like I said above, is about many of those stories. Marlene Watkins, the host of the show and author of the book, interviews the pilgrims. It’s quite a wonderful, uplifting experience. 

Now, about the Sign of the Cross Apostolate. Mr. Jensen refers to it near the end of the episode he’s featured on. Since he is a quadriplegic, he cannot physically make the Sign of the Cross. People have to do it for him. He said in the book’s chapter on him as well as on the show, that if he could  move his arms only once, it would be to make the Sign of the Cross. 

The Sign of the Cross is an important part of the Lourdes devotion because St. Bernadette said that it is the path to Heaven when done with devotion and piety. The Sign of the Cross is also important when you consider the words:

“In the Name of the Father,

and of the Son,

and of the Holy Spirit. Amen””

Whenever you pray ‘In the name of,’ such as praying in the Name of Jesus (“In Jesus’ Name!”) and so forth, you are submitted to the authority contained in that name. In essence, when  making the Sign of the Cross, you are inviting the Will of God into your life and and are subjecting your prayers to His authority. You may get the things you prayed for or you may not. It’s all up to whether it’s a part of God’s Will for you. So, when you make the Sign of the Cross, you are inviting the Trinity. (I think you are also inviting the Blessed Mother in since being the Spouse of the Holy Spirit, she is an integral part of the Trinity. St. Maximilian Kolbe wrote extensively on her ‘Quasi-Trinitarian participation in a quasi-hypostatic union’ – or something like that – with the Trinity since she is the Daughter of God the Father, Mother of God the Son, and Spouse of the Holy Spirit.) 

Many people cannot make the Sign of the Cross because of their physical disability. Many people cannot do it in certain countries because it’ll mean imprisonment or death. This kind of shamed me (not a bad thing; the world can use a greater awareness of ‘shame’) since I am a rather casual Sign of the Cross maker. 

THAT is the Sign of the Cross Apostolate. Making the Sign of the Cross for those who cannot. That’s it. No special prayers or writings or devotions. Just make the Sign of the Cross for those who cannot. 

So, every time I make the Sign of the Cross, whether in private or in public (a courageous act!) I will do it with this in mind. Not only for my salvation, as per St. Bernadette’s conviction, but for all of those who cannot do it for whatever reason. 

You should too! Spread the word about 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!!)

Through Nothing to the Infinite: How an Atheist Lead me to God

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An atheist leads me towards belief in God during a tumultuous time in my life through his use of vivid storytelling within a deeply imaginative universe.

It begs the question of, “How can a non-believer help someone to believe?” 

Saints and spiritual writers often say that God can bring good out of evil. Evil is not just found in such actions as abortion, genocide, or slavery, but when any personal will opposes the Divine, however minor the act is. Atheism is that kind, ranging from mere unthinking disbelief to the more militant. God wills us to know and love him; atheists reject that will. I am not sure where in that range J. Michael Straczynski, the creator of the 1990s sci-fi TV show, “Babylon 5,” falls. He had a Catholic background but strayed from belief somewhere along the way. One episode of his “Babylon 5” drilled me to the floor with its consideration of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. “Passing Through Gethsemane” (S3E4) made me look at Christ’s Agony in the Garden from a perspective that treated it not as some pious event memorialized in the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary, but a reality to enter into so as to ponder how your actions might manifest themselves.

Straczynski is an atheist, yet he treated religious belief with a respect at variance with today’s atheists. He regarded religion as being part of the human condition serving as an excellent vehicle to explore it.

In “Passing Through Gethsemane,” a guest character, Brother Edward, (played by Brad Dourif,) is a monk dwelling on Babylon 5 with other members of his order. He has a past, which I won’t reveal for fear of spoiling the show. (Although the episode aired in 1995, streaming services enable new fans to discover the series regularly. If you already know Babylon 5, then you know about this episode.) In it, he is asked by Ambassador Delenn (played by Mira Furlan,) “What is the defining moment of your belief….the emotional core…?” Edward replies with the background on Gethsemane, and specifically that Jesus knew what was going to happen to him. In a moment of weakness, he prayed for the cup to pass from him, so he would be spared the pain of what was to come, including death. But of course, he wouldn’t be spared and he’d be arrested. Edward continues with an emphasis that Jesus didn’t have to be there when the soldiers arrived to arrest him, that he could have left and postponed the inevitable for a few hours or even days. But Jesus knew what would happen and stayed anyway. Brother Edward concludes that he honestly doesn’t know if he would have had the courage to stay.

BroEdward01

Brother Edward.

Courtesy: Babylon Project Fandom Wiki

When I first saw that episode, that latter part blew my mind. “Seriously,” I thought, “does anyone actually look at a Biblical event and personally connect it to their life? As in, what they might do if they were there and then build their faith life from that? Everyone thinks that if they were back in Jesus’ days they’d of course follow him unhesitatingly and would never be in the crowd screaming ‘Crucify him! Crucify him!’ But, to seriously meditate upon a specific event, dwell on it, and make it the ‘defining moment’ and the ‘emotional core’ of their faith life?”

Perhaps a digression into what my ‘emotional core’ was like at the time. I was ‘raised Catholic’ but left the Faith nearly ten years earlier. My prayers about some complicated desperate situations weren’t answered. I also coincidentally fell prey to some atheistic and libertarian science fiction novels that convinced me organized religion was a sham and a means of exercising mass control over the populace. So I left, and life immediately got better. So much for religion. (But I never became an atheist. I did flirt with libertarianism, though.) Flash forward to how I was when “Passing Through Gethsemane” aired and you’ll read a different story. Life had gotten progressively worse. I had relocated from across the country to escape some more complicated desperate situations (these had the habit of following me) and my ‘emotional core’ meant that drinking was defining my moments. Capt. Morgan and Jose Cuervo were my saviors; here I am being mind-struck by some monk wondering if he would have had the courage to stay in Gethsemane and await the soldiers to take him to his execution. Me, who defined courage by how skillfully I can smuggle bottles into the house.

You’re probably thinking that this TV episode changed my life right then and I found a priest, went to confession, and resumed participating in the life of the Church. No. Reversion was still a few years off. But seeds were planted that started growing, eventually bearing fruit later on.

The crux of this is that faith powers a spiritual life. What I learned from that episode, ironically written by an atheist, is that for faith to have meaning it has to grip you by the scruff of your neck, shake you up and down, and demand that it be lived and taken seriously. The kind of faith that inspires people to willingly sacrifice their lives, not the faux faith that attends Mass whenever they feel like it, or sets it aside when it proves inconvenient to their political or business choices. The latter kind is mental pablum designed to make you excuse your sins and feel good about yourself.

That was in marked contrast to the faith that I had. In the years before I left the Church, my Catholicism was broad but not deep. It couldn’t have done what Brother Edward did; intimately apply some event to my own life to create an emotional core that defined it. 

A faith that defines your emotional core such as what drove Brother Edward to contemplate his place in Gethsemane fosters the willingness to firmly plant your feet and say, “This is what I am about, regardless of the passing fancies of society or what the neighbor’s think. This is me, my self-defined ‘I AM.’” It confronts the crucial significance of belief and its consequences. This is the willingness to face down death; literal death or just those things which challenge you or can kill your soul. But perhaps more importantly, that drawing from this power and courage means you have the willingness to be a transformative force in the society around you in a manner best suited to your unique talents. 

That may have been what Brother Edward was wondering. Not only the literal, “If I was in Gethsemane, would I have…,” but in drawing from that would he have had the courage to face everything challenging him, both personal and external.

These are challenges everyone faces, and an atheist started me on the way.

NOTE: This post was intended for publication ‘professionally,’ as in for pay, but it kept getting rejected. I just posted it to my other blog, renamed Paul Sofranko Space. I thought that since it concerns conversion and spiritual growth, it should go here, too.

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!!)

Following Christ like St. John the Baptist

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Today is the Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist. I feel it is important for us to consider him as a patron and intercessor. Some thoughts along this theme came to me while praying the Evening Prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours (for today’s Solemnity.).

What do we know of the Baptist from Sacred Scripture that implies he should be a patron (or guide) for us?

His mission was preaching Jesus and announcing His coming. From the Gospel According to Luke 3:4 “…just as it has been written in the book of the sermons of the prophet Isaiah: “The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord. Make straight his paths.”

And Luke 3:16-17 “John responded by saying to everyone: “Indeed, I baptize you with water. But there will arrive one stronger than me, the laces of whose shoes I am not worthy to loosen. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit, and with fire. His winnowing fan is in his hand. And he will purify his threshing floor. And he will gather the wheat into the barn. But the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

He was to offer testimony to the Light, of which he was not; in other words, he was to preach about Jesus, and not himself. For in John 1:6-9 the Evangelist says, “There was a man sent by God, whose name was John. He arrived as a witness to offer testimony about the Light, so that all would believe through him. He was not the Light, but he was to offer testimony about the Light. The true Light, which illuminates every man, was coming into this world.”

John 1:19-21 “And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to him, so that they might ask him, “Who are you?” And he confessed it and did not deny it; and what he confessed was: “I am not the Christ.” And they questioned him: “Then what are you? Are you Elijah?” And he said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.”

Later we witness the Baptist identifying the Lord and pointing Him out: John 1:29-36; “On the next day, John saw Jesus coming toward him, and so he said: “Behold, the Lamb of God. Behold, he who takes away the sin of the world. This is the one about whom I said, ‘After me arrives a man, who has been placed ahead of me, because he existed before me.’ And I did not know him. Yet it is for this reason that I come baptizing with water: so that he may be made manifest in Israel.”

And John offered testimony, saying: “For I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove; and he remained upon him. And I did not know him. But he who sent me to baptize with water said to me: ‘He over whom you will see the Spirit descending and remaining upon him, this is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I saw, and I gave testimony: that this one is the Son of God.”

The next day again, John was standing with two of his disciples. And catching sight of Jesus walking, he said, “Behold, the Lamb of God.”

And later on in John’s Gospel when he recognizes the time has come for his mission to be over so that Jesus can realize what He came to do, in preaching the arrival of the Kingdom of God: John 3-30; “He must increase, while I must decrease.”

So, what can we learn from this? That we can be followers of Christ in the same manner that John the Baptist was:

  • We prepare others (and ourselves) for His coming; whether that is His Second Coming or just continued conversion to become more like Christ.
  • We reflect the light of Christ, meaning we preach His Gospel, and not our own. Too many people, including Bishops, priests and laity preach their own version of the Gospel of Christ. Repent, sinners, for you will learn that your pride of presuming to co-opt His Gospel will be that it may have been better for you not to have been born. 
  • We do it humbly: we are only proposing Christ to others, not forcing them to become Christians. We preach the Good News and let Him take over. We prepare the way. And like I alluded to above, we make certain it is His message, not ours.
  • We point Him out to others. We recognize Christ in those who do His will. Their lives are like the Christ who lives in them. Their message is subordinated to the Gospel; not that the Gospel is perverted to support their message.
  • We acknowledge when the time for our role in the process is done. Whether that means we get out of the way and let the Holy Spirit take over, or we recognize that perhaps our ego is in danger from the success of our work, and we begin to think it is our work, not God’s. I doubt John the Baptist worried about this; from Scripture it is clear that he understood what his job was, and that when Jesus finally arrived, that his role was over. I am just inferring the tendency of a “cult of personality” that develops amongst Catholic (and other Christian) bloggers and personalities. People become followers of them, and only incidentally of Christ.

And so we have how we can be followers of Christ like St. John the Baptist. We be little and humble, we understand who Jesus is and that we are not Him (in the prideful sense) we understand Who is doing the real work so that we do not get puffed up, we preach His Word and not our own slant, and we get out of the way if needed and let Him do the saving of souls.

Scripture passages courtesy Sacred Bible: Catholic Public Domain version.

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!!)

Soberversary! Seventeen years sober, today.

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Today I achieved my seventeenth year of sobriety. That’s One Day At A Time repeated 6,209 times.

A certain Twelve Step movement helped a lot at first; but I credit my endurance to Our Lord and Saviour’s Church, the Holy Catholic Church and to His Most Holy Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary. I think a few saints assisted along the way, too.

That’s all. No major revelations. “If I can manage to become sober, so can anyone.”

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 fortnight of years in sobriety

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Today marks my 14th anniversary of my last drunk. I sort of remember it, although for years I couldn’t recall the exact time (as in hour/minute) I took my last drink. I still can’t. I won’t bother with the details of my last drunk as I’ve written about them before.

Question: “How’d I do it?” Answer: “One day at a time!!” Well, there’s more to it than that, but in essence the twelve step practice of taking each day as it comes does help.

Sometimes I have to take each hour as it comes.

Speaking of the Twelve Steps, yes, they are useful. A wonderful lifeline when other things are absent or insufficient. (Absent or insufficient because they have not been developed enough as a response to external factors that may create a desire to drink.)

My Catholic Faith was and is more useful. I do know that if I had to rely solely upon the spirituality of the Twelve Steps and meeting attendance, I’d be one of those poster children for relapses; “those people” you see who enter the program, “get it” for a while, and then go back out.

Once in a while there are stressors. Anxiety, isolation, economic concerns and so forth well up and I think, “Just one drink to take the edge off.” But no, I don’t. I get through it (“One hour at a time, one minute at a time…”) and move on.

At times like those I also grab my AA literature (the Big Book or 12 & 12) and get help that way. Sometimes I feel the need for a meeting, but don’t bother (I seriously am NOT a meeting person. Never was, never will be. Online recovery works for me. I visit In the Rooms a lot.)

Sometimes when I feel that way, that my Faith and other personal means to maintain sobriety aren’t working, and I feel the need to fall back on traditional fixes like “going to a meeting” or “calling a sponsor” then I assess the state of my Faith. Sincerely, the Faith is all one should need.

Jesus came to heal the broken and wounded. The sick. We are all that and so His Church and the sacraments and devotions should work. They have, for me and for others that I’ve run across over the years. But at times they seem to be “not enough.”

But that isn’t an indictment of the Faith, or possibly not even my practice of it. There’s a list of saints very long who have gone through frequent periods of spiritual dryness, times when the Faith “wasn’t there.” They persevered and discerned that it was God’s way of drawing them closer. It is a path of spiritual growth and development (see St. Teresa of Jesus, a/k/a St. Teresa of Avila.) We feel distant and therefore we persevere and strive on, or we abandon the path.

I stay on the path. (This must be why images and symbols of “the path,” “the road,” “the way,” “the journey” resonate with me.)

I have come to feel that in those times when I feel the urge to drink is strong, and I need to respond in a traditional twelve step way, that I need to work on my Faith. I need to make a Spiritual Communion, or meditate on the Holy Spirit and His indwelling in me, or talk to the Blessed Mother. If this sounds selfish to you who are avid and devoted Twelve-Steppers, so be it. For the most part, my experience with AA has been at variance with the common conception of a “fellowship.” It’s just one more organization where I am a misfit, despite trying.

To me, AA and meeting attendance are training wheels or a crib. Eventually you outgrow them. You learn to ride on your own without the help of training wheels, and you move out of the crib. Useful to understand alcoholism and get the basics of Twelve Step spirituality and how to change your way of thinking and responding to situations, but after a fashion, one should learn what the Faith has to offer.

We were created by God. We exist to love Him and serve Him in this life and to be united and happy with Him forever in the next life (Heaven.) To get through this life He has established a Church to guide us.

We are obligated and we owe Him the duty to fully explore that Church and the Faith that springs up around Her. This does not mean leaving AA, if that suits your sobriety and you really enjoy it, then fine. It can be considered a work of mercy. Perhaps even a source for friendships.

But working within a Twelve Step program shouldn’t come at the expense of your Catholic Faith; that is like continuing to eat pureed baby food when the bread of life is readily available.

That’s all I have to say! I’ve just been very reflective on my fourteen years, where I’ve been, am now and where I’m going, along with the means for the way.

Just trudgin’ my road of happy destiny.

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!!)

Religious solutions to alcoholism

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Many 12 Steppers usually scoff at “religious” solutions to addiction, and
perhaps rightly so due to the low success rate (forgetting that AA has a very
low success rate, too.) Maybe they also think that religious observance is pointless
and is also an “easier, softer, way.” HA!

I think the main reason that religious solutions do not work is that they fail
to directly address the root cause of the addiction: that within each alcoholic
and addict there is something wrong with how the world and environment is perceived
or related to and how to properly react or cope with that. Alcohol addressees that,
although in a bad way.

In AA’s Big Book there is a line towards the end about how AA taught the writer
how to “handle sobriety.” In AA meetings I have heard quite often how the Steps
teach us how to alter or change they way we react to things. I believe that is the
same thing as “handling sobriety.”

I don’t think all the Masses and Rosaries and Divine Mercy Chaplets in the world
will work for anyone UNLESS they also believe in the healing power of Jesus and the
sacraments AND also believe that prayer is a union with God. This also pretty much
mandates Scripture reading. Pondering the Gospels, the NT Letters, the
Psalms and the Wisdom Books (Psalms, Wisdom, Proverbs, Sirach, Song of Songs and
Ecclesiastes) can help in changing how we react to things.

Scripture contains lessons for life and living. AA has their slogans, but the
Bible has more potent “sayings” in Wisdom, Proverbs, Sirach and the rest.

Add in reading the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and you have another powerful
tool in conversion (for that is what “handling sobriety” and “changing how you think”
amounts to).

This post was inspired by a recent discussion on the Matt Talbot Way of Recovery.

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 Hitchhiker

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Ever need evidence that the Holy Spirit guides people into life-changing (and sometimes saving) happenings? Bro Jer, one of my best friends, recorded and posted an audiofile about such a “God-incidence” to his blog Bro Jer’s Blog in a post entitled The Hitchhiker.

He tells of a situation in which he felt strongly prompted by the Holy Spirit to pick up a hitchhiker. The challenge for Bro Jer was in reconciling himself to respond to this prompting in light of following what he thought was God’s will versus the discomfort in what appeared to be a difficult divinely-inspired change of plans. Plus, the hitchhiker looked real scary.

Jeremiah 1:5: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you, a prophet to the nations I appointed you.”

Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know well the plans I have in mind for you, says the LORD, plans for your welfare, not for woe! Plans to give you a future full of hope.”

(Via USCCB.)

So, click on the audio link, listen, and try and recall similar “God-incidents” in your life. Perhaps you can post about them in the comments.

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!!)

Pentecost Prayers

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Today is Pentecost Sunday. The Church was born today, around 2,000 years ago when the Holy Spirit descended upon the Apostles and Mary.

Here are some prayers I received in an email sent to me:

Pentecost Prayer

Spirit of Christ, stir me;

Spirit of Christ, move me;

Spirit of Christ, fill me;

Spirit of Christ, seal me.

Consecrate in me Your Heart and Will, O Heavenly Father.

Create in me a fountain of virtues.

Seal my soul as Your own, that Your reflection in me may be a light for all to see.

Amen.

Prayer for the Outpouring of the Spirit

Holy Spirit,
we ask for an outpouring of your graces, blessings and gifts:

Upon those who do not believe, that they may believe;

Upon those who are doubtful or confused, that they may understand;

Upon those who are lukewarm or indifferent, that they may be transformed;

Upon those who are constantly living in the state of sin, that they may be converted;

Upon those who are weak, that they may be strengthened;

Upon those who are holy, that they may persevere.

Amen.

www.ewtn.com/devotionals/pentecost/pent1.htm

Prayer to the Holy Spirit

Breathe in me, O Holy Spirit, that my thoughts may all be holy.

Act in me, O Holy Spirit, that my work, too, may be holy.

Draw my heart, O Holy Spirit, that I love but what is holy.

Strengthen me, O Holy Spirit, to defend all that is holy.

Guard me, then, O Holy Spirit, that I always may be holy.

Amen.

(St. Augustine)

From Pope John Paul 2:

May the Holy Spirit,
the Spirit of Pentecost,
help you to clarify what is ambiguous,
to give warmth to what is indifferent,
to enlighten what is obscure,
to be before the world true and generous
witnesses of Christ’s love,
for “no one can live without love.”

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!!)

Don't send me away from you

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The penitent pleas with the Lord in the 13th verse to keep him close:

Psalm 51:13: “Do not drive me from your presence, nor take from me your holy spirit.”

(Via USCCB.)

A persistent fear that the sin was so grievous that God may cause banishment as a consequence of the penitent’s action motivates the sinner to plead for additional mercy. The penitent prays to remain in God’s presence, and to continue to receive His guidance through the workings of the Holy Spirit. The penitent desires not to be lost forever, for without God’s presence and guidance, Hell is certain.

Ask God to remain near. He is always close to the humble and sorrowful.

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!!)

Armor of God

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We are engaged in a battle when we are addicts and alcoholics. For all the talk of the medical, genetic or environmental causes of alcoholism and addiction, we cannot ignore the spiritual side of the affliction. I think even the founders of AA said that alcoholism is a spiritual problem. In acknowledging the spiritual side of addiction we cannot just assume that it is a problem in our relationship with God. The spiritual world has its dark forces, too. If you read the New Testament, demons were among the earliest to acknowledge the truth of Jesus. Jesus did battle with them, from His being tempted in the desert to casting them out of people they inhabited.

People who are “rational” scoff at the notion of demonic activity, yet it is a Church teaching that they exist and it is sensible to assume that they use whatever tools are available to them to destroy us and keep us from God.

If addictions fill the “hole in our soul” that should be filled by our desire for God, then possibly demons use them as the best means at their disposal to fill that hole and divert us from God. Our addictions satisfy a spiritual longing that is better taken up by devotion to God. But they are immediately satisfying instead of the longer time that spiritual conversion usually takes.

And so we are not just engaged in a battle against our desires. Our desires may be merely tools used against us. For whatever the reason, we who are alcoholics and addicts have an increased sensitivity to our desires and an inordinate need to fulfill them.

But we have weapons at our disposal. St. Paul writes:

Ephesians 6:10-17: “Finally, draw your strength from the Lord and from his mighty power.

Put on the armor of God so that you may be able to stand firm against the tactics of the devil.

For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens.

Therefore, put on the armor of God, that you may be able to resist on the evil day and, having done everything, to hold your ground.

So stand fast with your loins girded in truth, clothed with righteousness as a breastplate,

and your feet shod in readiness for the gospel of peace.

In all circumstances, hold faith as a shield, to quench all (the) flaming arrows of the evil one.

And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

(Via USCCB.)

The Faith is our shield. Studying the Catechism of the Catholic Church (available in most bookstores, plus there are links to online versions of it in the sidebar), which is the summary of our Faith, is one weapon. Prayers to the Holy Spirit is another. Regular reading of the Bible is another weapon. Prayerfully study the Catechism and the Bible, and your “armor of God” will be strengthened against the onslaught of the devil and his demons.

I heard in an AA meeting once (and this has been repeated in various ways by other people) that meeting attendance interrupts the thought processes that lead to a relapse. If that is so, then there can be no better way to interrupt the slide to a relapse that calling upon the graces of God that result when you build up your Faith through the reading of the Bible and the Catechism. If a mere meeting can help stave off a relapse, how much more mighty a shield is there than Scripture and the Catechism?

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!!)