Feb. 9: Always think before you speak... most of the time.

Always think before you speak. We have been taught that from a very young age. You can easily hurt people's feelings when you don't think. The rule is one of those that should always be followed... most of the time.

I was told by one of my task managers at work that I need to work on speaking more clearly and concisely. I do not always think through exactly what I am going to say before I say it. Before now, it has made life, in my opinion, more exciting and interesting. The English language is fun to twist. You can add uns and commas to anything to make it more interesting to read. Create acronyms and shortenings of words to add humor and speedity to life. (I made a funny! [Splinter, ninja turtles]) But this also means that my words do not always say what I mean. Or, even worse, can be construed and twisted. So I need to think more before I speak.

But don't we also think that children speak truthfully? They don't think about what they say and yet they still speak wisdom...

And the Bible says in Acts, "Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them. And they were all filled with the holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim." Isn't that the opposite of thinking before you speak? Allowing the Spirit to speak through you?

And even in the Silmarillion, when Tuor comes before Turgon, "all that heard the voice of Tuor marveled, doubting that this were in truth a Man of mortal race, for his words were the words of the Lord of Water that came to him in that hour." Again, not thinking and allowing others to speak through you.

Today I went to Target to pick up some random things. I walked back to the car with my cart, threw the stuff in my trunk, and went to put the cart in the return pen. As I was walking towards it, I saw this guy and girl kissing. Not quite making out, but not just a peck either. And of course they were kissing right in front of the cart pen. And so placed the cart into the spot next to the cart pen and walked away. A few seconds later, the two ceased their embrace, and the guy burst into laughter knowing what had happened. He yells to me, "Sorry!" And I yell back, without thinking, "No problem! God is good!" He responds with a ya. As I drove away, I thought to myself, why did I say 'God is good?' I then realized that God is love. And love is good. Without thinking about what I said.

So we should always think about what we say before we say it. Unless you are channeling the Holy Spirit or going to say something profound. But you rarely know when these instances are going to happen. So its better to stick with the general rule. Most of the time.

God is good! All the time!

All the time! God is good!

Amen! Alleluia!

Yes! Lord!

St. Joseph the Worker! Pray for us!

-The St. Joseph Litany, St. Joseph House

Feb. 8: Feast of Josephine Bakhita

Josephine Bakhita is a modern saint, both in time and in scope. She was born in Sudan in the late 1860's. At the age of 7, she was kidnapped and sold into slavery. She lived a hard life, being resold several times in 8 years. Finally, in 1883, she sold to the Italian consul to Sudan. Two years later, she was moved with the family back to Italy where she still remained a slave.

Once in Italy, she was given to a friend to act as a babysitter, and she accompanied the child to Venice's Institute of the Catechumens, run by Canossian sisters. Once there, she felt drawn to the Catholic church. When the family returned, they wished to take Josephine and her babysat back to Africa. Josephine refused and the Italian court, with the help of the Canossian sisters intervening on her behalf, ruled she was free.

Once free, she joined the joined the Canossian sisters, serving others. As was said about her by Leonard Foley, O.F.M, "She who worked under many 'masters' was finally happy to address God as "master" and carry out everything that she believed to be God's will for her."

During his homily at her canonization Mass in St. Peter's Square, Pope John Paul II said that in St. Josephine Bakhita, "We find a shining advocate of genuine emancipation. The history of her life inspires not passive acceptance but the firm resolve to work effectively to free girls and women from oppression and violence, and to return them to their dignity in the full exercise of their rights."

Will you let me be your servant, let me be as Christ to you?
Pray that I might have the grace to let you be my servant, too.

-Servant Song, Richard Gillard

Feb 7: Winter's Chill / One Month Down

We're over the hump! Winter is more than halfway over! Yippy!

We are now over a month into the new year! As my father so succinctly put it:

One month down, eleven to go.
How are your New Year's resolutions holding up?
Have you accomplished 1/12th of what you set out to do this year?
Better get going ...

Here are some random thoughts on New Years and changing yourself.

Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let
each new year find you a better man.

-Benjamin Franklin

You are you, that's truer than true. There is no one in the world who is youer than you.

-Dr. Seuss

Every Saint has a past. Every sinner has a future.

-Oscar Wilde

Sickness and healing are in every heart. Death and deliverance are in every hand.

How suddenly we find the flesh of God within us after all, when we thought that we were only made of dust.

-Speaker for the Dead, Orson Scott Card

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xm5246fitPY

The winter’s chill, a bitter cold,
As sin and shame leave us to fall,
The clouds now full of newborn snow,
For grace to come and save us all,
Within the darkest night of man,
Was found Your saving hand,
For everything must die to rise again.

On the third day, behold the King,
On the third day, death has no sting,
On the third day, we’re forgiven and reconciled.
-On the Third Day, Matt Maher

Feb. 6: St. Paulo Miki and Nagasaki

In 1549, the Jesuit St. Francis Xavier and a group of priests arrived in Nagasaki on the feast of the Assumption of Mary, August 15. By 1596, there were thousands of Christians in Japan. The Emperor, worried by the European influence, began the persecution. Twenty-six Christians, consisting of Jesuits, Franciscans, and laymen, were force marched from Kyoto to Nagasaki. There they were tied to crosses. The event is remembered in A Song for Nagasaki:

The Christians in the crowd took up the prayer, four thousand of them. Hazaburo Terazawa was the official in charge of the execution, and he would have to give a personal account to the dictator. He was growing apprehensive, as it was becoming a show of Christian strength rather than the bloodcurdling spectacle Dictator Hideyoshi had ordered.

One of the twenty-six asked leave to speak. He was the thirty-three-year-old Jesuit Paul Miki, son of a general in Baron Takayama’s army, an accomplished catechist and preacher. Dying well was tremendously important for samurai, and they often met death with a jisei no uta, or farewell song. Miki’s strong voice reached the edges of the crowd.

“I am a Japanese and a brother of the Society of Jesus. I have committed no crime. The only reason I am condemned to die is that I have taught the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. I am happy to die for that and accept death as a great gift from my Lord.” Miki asked the crowd if they saw fear on the faces of the twenty-six. He assured them there was no fear because heaven was real. He had only one dying request: that they believe. He said he forgave Hideyoshi and those responsible for his execution. Then with deliberation and a ringing voice, he gave his farewell song. It was the verse of Psalm 31 that Christ quoted from the Cross: “Lord, into your hands I commend my spirit.”

Terazawa gave a sign, and the samurai moved in with their steel-tipped bamboo lances. The samurai gave deep-throated cries, and their lances ripped into the twenty-six. The deadly silence of the crowd suddenly erupted into an angry roar, and Terazawa hurriedly withdrew to complete his report. The spectacle of humiliation had gone awry. The prestige of Christians rose dramatically, and baptisms increased.

Soon afterwards, Japan was shut off from the rest of the world. Not till the 1850s were churches allowed to be built in Japan. The newly arrived Catholics were amazed to find that 50,000 Christians still existed in Japan 250 years later.

This heart
Still believes
The love and mercy still exist
While all the hatred rage and so many say
That love is all but pointless in madness such as this
It's like trying to stop a fire
With the moisture from a kiss

And I hear them saying you'll never change things
And no matter what you do it's still the same thing
But it's not the world that I am changing
I do this so this world will know
That it will not change me

As long as one heart still holds on
Then hope is never really gone

-The Change, Garth Brooks

Feb. 5: National Weatherperson's Day

February 5th is the birthday of John Jeffries, one of the founders of weather data collection and prediction in America. As such, today is known as National Weatherperson's Day. Today we thank all the men and women who predict our weather. Those whose knowledge we rely on to predict hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, and when to wear shorts.

Today, we would also like to thank God for our weather. Through his infinite knowledge of charges gave us awe inspiring lightning. Through his knowledge of water gave us the beauty of snow. Through his knowledge of plasma and heat transfer gave us the warmth of the sun.

About a year ago, I had the chance to see Christopher West give a talk. One of the things that had the most effect on me was how he used regular / nonreligious music to make his points. Recently I found out that MC Hammer, later in his career, began preaching the word of Christ and joining youth and prison ministries. This made me think of how, when you see lightning in all its glory or the geology formed by glaciers and floods, God, in a small way, is up in heaven doing an MC Hammer dance and saying to you, "You can't touch this."

(MC Hammer dance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIRQf0S3oD0)

I was sure by now
God You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day
But once again, I say "Amen", and it's still raining

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear Your whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

And I'll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
And every tear I've cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

-Praise You in This Storm, Casting Crowns

Feb. 4: Feast of Faces

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Veronica. A pious woman of Jerusalem, she was filled with pity for the man carrying his cross to Golgotha. Oh, how her acts of kindness were blessed that day! And our kindnesses are no less blessed, whether here or in heaven!

In 1844, A Carmelite nun, Sr. Marie of St Peter, had visions of St. Veronica wiping the face of Jesus. She started the devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus. Her devotion influenced St. Terese of Lisieux who wrote, "Jesus, Your ineffable image is the star which guides my steps. Ah, You know, Your sweet Face is for me Heaven on earth. My love discovers the charms of Your Face adorned with tears. I smile through my own tears when I contemplate Your sorrows."

Today we also remember the feast of another type of face. This one of a book. With a face. On Feb. 4th, 2004, Mark Zuckerberg started Facebook. Coincidence? I think not... (But really, where does the book in facebook come in?)

If only my one heart
Was all you'd gain from all it cost
Well I know you would have still been a man
With a reason
To willingly offer your life
I am not just a man, vastly lost in this world
Lost in a Sea of Faces
Your body's the bread, Your blood is the wine
Because you traded Your life for mine
-Sea of Faces, Kutless

Feb. 3: The Day the Four Chaplains Died

Today we remember that there is no trumping God. That no matter what the devil tries, everything will eventually be for the greater glory of God, whether it be war or disaster.

On February 3, 1943, around 1 am, the USAT Dorchester, a troop transport, was torpedoed by a German U-boat in the frigid North Atlantic waters. The torpedo knocked out the electrical systems on the ship, causing the men to panic. Four chaplains stationed on the ship sought to calm the distraught sailors. They were a Methodist reverend, a Rabbi, a Catholic priest, and a Protestant reverend. As the life jackets and lifeboats were being handed assigned, it was soon realized that there would not be enough. The chaplains gave up their own life jackets and places on the boats and stayed on the sinking ship to help others board. As the ship went down, they were seen praying and singing hymns. An act of Congress honored them by designating February 3rd as Four Chaplains Day.

Sixteen years later, four more men died in a plane crash on this same day. Three musicians and the pilot lost their lives in a field in Iowa. The day was forever immortalized by a song by Don Mclean, American Pie.

Music often holds the answers when words are not enough...

After all this has passed, I still will remain
After I've cried my last, there'll be beauty from pain
Though it won't be today, someday I'll hope again
And there'll be beauty from pain
You will bring beauty from my pain

-Beauty Prom Pain, Superchick

Though here at journey's end I lie

in darkness buried deep,

beyond all towers strong and high,

beyond all mountains steep,

above all shadows rides the Sun

and Stars forever dwell:

I will not say the Day is done,

nor bid the Stars farewell.

-The Lord of the Rings, Return of the King

Another year, another groundhog day

This is one of those holidays I really do not get. Why do we celebrate a rat (rat, groundhog, chihuahua, all the same...) coming out of its hole, looking around, and going back in? And why do we care if it sees its shadow or not?! But more importantly, the movie is a must see.

Quite un-coincidentally, groundhog day falls on the feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple, also known as Candlemas. Mary and Joesph bring their greatest gift, Jesus, before the Lord at the temple. Out of this presentation we get one of the three great canticles of the New Testament, the Canticle of Simeon.

Lord, now you let your servant go in peace;

Your word has been fulfilled.

My eyes have seen the salvation

You have prepared in the sight of every people,

A light to reveal you to the nations and the glory of your people, Israel

What are our gifts? How do we present these gifts to the Lord?

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This reminds me of a song I recently reheard recently. It is called The Gift by Garth Brooks. Being a country song, it has to be a story song, and being a Christmas song, it has to be about Christmas. The song is about a legend of the nightingale. The lyrics are:

A poor orphan girl named Maria
Was walking to market one day.
She stopped for to rest by the roadside
Where a bird with a broken wing lay.
A few moments passed 'til she saw it,
For its feathers were covered with sand.
But soon clean and wrapped it was traveling
In the warmth of Maria's small hand.

She happily gave her last peso
On a cage made of rushes and twine
She fed it loose corn from the market
And watched it grow stronger with time.

Now the Christmas Eve service was coming
And the church shone with tinsel and light
And all of the townsfolk brought presents
To lay by the manger that night
There were diamonds and incense and perfumes
In packages fit for a king.
But for one ragged bird in a small cage,
Maria had nothing to bring.

She waited till just before mid-night
So no one would see her go in
And, crying, she knelt by the manger
For her gift was unworthy of him.

Then a voice spoke to her through the darkness,
"Maria, what brings you to me?
If the bird in the cage is your offering,
Open the door, let me see."
Though she trembled, she did as he asked her
And out of the cage the bird flew
Soaring up into the rafters
On a wing that had healed good as new.

Just then the midnight bells rang out
And the little bird started to sing
A song that no words could recapture
Whose beauty was fit for a king

Now Maria felt blessed just to listen
To that cascade of notes sweet and long
As her offering was lifted to heaven
By the very first nightingale's song.

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-R7Wcz1iv4)

This song made me realize how futile our efforts without God really are. Our very being, our gifts and talents, are from him, and only through glorifying him can those gifts be fully realized. Without God, our gifts are just birds with broken wings, but with him, our gifts can be as beautiful as nightingale's song.

Feb. 1st - St. Brigid

Saints come in all colors, shapes and sizes. [Veggie Tales, I Can Be Your Friend] In all semblances, both fair and not. They also have very differing opinions about beer.

St. Brigid, one of Ireland's patron saints, was known for her spirituality, charity, and compassion. She was also known for her love of beer. On more than one occasion she is said to have changed water into beer on the scale of Jesus' wedding feast at Cana. She once said, "I should like a great lake of ale for the King of Kings. I should like the family of heaven to be drinking it through time eternal."

So tonight, let us raise our glasses to God most high and thank him for his saints down here, those examples of love, compassion, zeal for God, and love of beer.