Much thanks to Jesse Romero:
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!!)
Earlier this week (September 14th and 15th) the Church celebrated two feasts which I had written about before in these two posts: Triumph of the Cross and Our Lady of Sorrows.
I think it is intentional that these 2 feasts are linked by being placed a day apart.
The triumph of Jesus on the Cross was His death. Death is usually a defeat but His liberated us from the prison that was ours. He opened the gates of Heaven for us. Heaven is now attainable, whereas previously it was prohibited to us by the Original Sin of Adam. ( Genesis 3) The Sorrows of Mary were many but in tying these dates together, the Church is perhaps emphasizing Jesus’ suffering, death and burial and how they must have ripped apart the heart of Mary as she witnessed them.
Both Jesus and Mary are marked in their obedience to God the Father’s will. Jesus accepted that His role and mission was to suffer and die for our sins. Mary accepted hers as being the bearer of the Messiah, the Savior of Humanity. Her willing submission to God’s will linked her life to that of Jesus.
So it can be said of us. If we accept that our duty as Christians is to submit ourselves to God’s will in our lives, looking to the Church for guidance, then we open ourselves to the sufferings and sorrows about us. In accepting God’s will for us, it is necessary for us to “die to ourselves” so that the inspirations and beckoning of the Holy Spirit can be felt. We decrease, so it can increase. In so dying, we are reborn into the person God intended for us to be and therefore are able to fulfill His plan for our lives. The sufferings and sorrows we feel are our compassion for others.
As addicts and alcoholics, we are especially attuned to this. Our old selves died when we gave up drinking and using. Our truer selves were resurrected from the Cross we nailed our addictions to. And in our new lives we see others about us differently. We see others and broken and wounded souls, as we are also. Our hearts are pierced by the swords of their pain and suffering. ( Luke 2: 34-35)
As Jesus on the Cross gave Mary to each of us to be our Mother, we, in our recovery, are given to others to nurture and sustain them. (John 19: 25-27)
(All Scriptural links courtesy 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!!)
The Second Reading for the Mass for the 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time is a statement that faith in Jesus is no good if works do not spring from it:
James 2:14-18: “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone says he has faith but does not have works?
Can that faith save him?
If a brother or sister has nothing to wear
and has no food for the day,
and one of you says to them,
‘Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well, ’
but you do not give them the necessities of the body,
what good is it?
So also faith of itself,
if it does not have works, is dead.
Indeed someone might say,
‘You have faith and I have works.’
Demonstrate your faith to me without works,
and I will demonstrate my faith to you from my works.”
(Via USCCB.)
The idea is simple and obvious: If you have faith in Christ, where is the evidence of it? To merely say that “Jesus is Lord” and other such declarations of faith is meaningless unless there is proof of it. What distinguishes believers of Christ from non-believers, then? What outward sign of your faith is visible to those who are non-believers,or even believers? I do not mean garments or things like crosses about the neck. I mean, how does your faith change the world about you? How does your faith make a difference? How does your faith preach the Gospel, by your actions?How do you respond to Jesus’ call in the Gospel to preach to all peoples, even if “all peoples” is just your family, friends and co-workers?
“Good works” do not get you saved. No one can earn their way into Heaven by doing good things. Heaven is so unreachable by mere human means that Jesus had to die on the Cross to gain it for us. It is our faith in Him and the seed planted in our souls by that faith which grows into a desire to do something about the world that makes our salvation possible. Our belief in Him coupled with our working out of the Gospel message is what we are judged by.
“So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” James says in his letter. I have heard “Faith, without works, is dead” many times in AA meetings as it is a quote from AA writings.
The good works that spring from faith is the work of grace in our souls. God calls us by His free granting of grace, and we respond.
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!!)
On this date in 1995 my father died.
He and I weren’t very close, (“fathers and sons …”) generational and attitudinal differences separated us.
As a result, I didn’t really grieve over his death. I mean, I was saddened and did feel the loss, but I wasn’t ripped apart by his death like I was over my Mom’s 10 years later.
This relative lack of impact was aided by the fact that I was 2,500 miles away and hadn’t seen him in 4 years.
I went home for his funeral, and reconnected with the family, but when I returned home to California I continued life as usual. I had started drinking heavily to cope with life’s problems a year before (failed romance) and my drinking picked up a little more upon my return, so that may have softened the need to grieve in a sober manner.
The point of this is that although I wasn’t too close to Dad during his life, I am much closer to him now. That would seem strange to non-Catholics, but for believers with a knowledge of the Communion of Saints, that shouldn’t seem strange at all.
Death doesn’t end a life. Death is just a passage from this life to another. This life is temporary, everything “is”, and then passes away to dust and a dim memory. The life after is eternal. Whether that life is spent in Heaven or Hell depends on what you do in your Earthly life.
There is a connection between those of us still here on Earth and those deceased. It is called, as I referenced in a previous paragraph, the Communion of Saints . (Via New Advent.) This is comprised of the “Church Militant” (those still on Earth), the “Church Suffering” (those in Purgatory) and the “Church Triumphant” (those in Heaven). Only the souls that have damned themselves to Hell are excluded.
“Communion” implies a community, wherein the members still can relate to one another. This relation is conducted by the means of prayer. We pray to the Church Triumphant and the Church Suffering for their intercessory power with God. We can somehow sense their presence (although admittedly that “sensing” may be wishful thinking).
They are there to help, comfort and console us. We are separated from them by the chasm of death, but that chasm can be crossed eventually by our own deathly passage.
I said earlier in this post that I am much closer to Dad now than while he was alive. I have grown to be much like him, at least with regard to the practice of my Catholic Faith. (I still haven’t taken up woodworking as a hobby, nor returned to fishing as a pastime, but may in time. I do enjoy yardwork, like he did, and love baseball, too.) I understand him better as the years progress and as I grow older.
To anyone who has lost a parent (or anyone beloved) to death, fear not. They are not gone from you permanently. Consider them as just having moved far away, and the distance you need to travel to meet with them again will take the rest of your life.
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!!)
I have been feeling melancholic of late. Usually happens near the end of my days off from work or on unproductive rainy days. (Or productive rainy days but the productivity wasn’t what I had planned.)
Anyway, I had just gone outside to say my Evening Prayer, and was awestruck by the beauty of the dusky sky.
I had gone outside and I “got outside.” Sometimes we need to get outside of ourselves, and sometimes that can be accomplished by simply and literally going outside. I went outside to the yards around my house and meandered down the driveway to the country road we live on, and God took me for a walk.
How can anyone see the glory of nature and not believe that there is a Creator, a Master Artist, a Chief Architect, is an idiot. Or hopelessly unimaginative and spiritually dead.
Whatever the result is of “going outside” it is a sure antidote to the cravings of an addiction or the temptations of a relapse. The connection with God disrupts unhealthy thinking.
Luke 1:46-47: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior.”
(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, August 22nd, is the Feast of the Queenship of Mary. It is the day Catholics celebrate her coronation as Queen of Heaven.
The Hail Mary has the line:
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. .
We are all sinners, and Christianity teaches that this is so. Yet we do have a powerful intercessor with God for us.
That intercessor is Mary.
She can intercede for us at anytime, like any good mother will for her children. All we have to do is ask and the Hail Mary is that prayer.
The time of our death is never known to us, it can occur anytime. Only God knows when it will happen. Cultivating a good relationship with the Blessed Virgin Mary is an excellent method of insuring your salvation. The “hour of our death” is a particularly important time of battle, as that is Satan’s final chance to claim our soul for eternity. The Adversary will pull out all the stops in that final hour, if it feels there is an opportunity to win.
Hail Mary, Full of Grace, the Lord is with you,
Blessed are you amongst women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.
Amen
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!!)
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!!)
Today also marks the start of a Novena to St. Maximilian Kolbe.
From an earlier post: Reminder for upcoming St. Maximilian Kolbe Novena for Alcoholics and Addicts
Here is another Novena prayer you can use,
“O Lord Jesus Christ, who said, “greater love than this no man has that a man lay down his life for his friends,” through the intercession of St. Maximilian Kolbe whose life illustrated such love, we beseech You to grant us out petitions. . . (mention your petitions).
Through the Militia of the Immaculata movement, which Maximilian founded, he spread a fervent devotion to Our Lady throughout the world. He gave up his life for a total stranger and loved his persecutors, giving us an example of unselfish love for all men, a love which was inspired by true devotion to Mary.
Grant O Lord Jesus, that we too may give ourselves entirely without reserve to the love and service of our Heavenly Queen in order to better love and serve our fellowman in imitation of your humble servant, Maximilian. Amen.”
Courtesy: Marytown
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 marks the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. I had written about it earlier, as a part of the meditation on the Fourth Luminous Mystery of the Rosary .
Today also marks the beginning of what you may call an “unofficial” Lent. Lent is a period of penance and mortification lasting 40 days, culminating in the Crucifixion of Jesus. The Transfiguration of Jesus occurred just prior to His departure for Jerusalem where it all took place. Why would today mark the beginning of an unofficial Lent? Because 40 days from now marks the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. This is every year, so it must have been the Church’s intent to give us another focused opportunity for spiritual growth and development. Maybe you can make up for this year’s Lent if you didn’t meet whatever goals you set. Call it a “do-over”, or a “redo”.
You can read the Lenten meditations I posted earlier this year, just scroll down the sidebar and click on “LENT” in the “LABELS” category, that will bring up all my Lenten posts.
NOTE: This is an edited version of a post from one year ago.
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!!)