We all have moments where we share intimate joy, beautiful
dreams, raging frustration, or venting anger with those closest to us behind
closed doors. These times are often seen
as unrepeatable. Over the past few weeks, after said unrepeatable conversations,
I was told more than once: “You’re not the stereotypical, devout Catholic.” The
response has taken me by surprise, as “You are an inspiration” is not exactly what
you expect to hear after announcing, “I could smash a tea pot”.
I used to think being a good Catholic meant having it all
together and all figured out. I thought it meant being perfectly virtuous to
the point of ignoring the reality of my human experience: what was actually
going on emotionally, physically, intellectually, and even spiritually. I
thought I had to adopt the ways of the Church blindly, with an unaffected
disposition, becoming a cog in the wheel or a mouthpiece for Truth. As Sister
Mary Gabriel, S.V. says in the clip below (yes, it’s worth watching the entire
thing), “God can handle our wrestling.” Sometimes
I strive for holy, forgetting I was called to become so through my human
existence. Other times, I want to be human and “just do my thing” while ignoring
the Divine. Both cause division and restlessness.
In some ways, I wanted to stereotype myself – placing myself
in a box so as to ignore the vital work of integrating my body and soul, my
head and heart, my faith and doubts. I think in some ways we use stereotypes as
a means to minimize the mystery of life, as an attempt to control the unknown,
and even sometimes to excuse our vices. Whether we place others or ourselves
into a “category”, stereotypes are boxes we use to make ourselves feel more
comfortable. You are an unrepeatable miracle. You are an unrepeatable mystery. Yes,
that is worthy of repeating. Yes, I get the irony. The mystery of life and death is one that we
don’t contemplate often enough. I exist because I am loved.
Never has or will be someone who exists as you do. There is
no one else who is where you are, interacting with all of the people you do who
can live your vocation and your unique relationship with Christ. You are the
only one who can receive and give the personal love of Christ as God wants you
to because you are the only you. We are both collectively and personally made
in the image of God. We each bear His reflection of Truth, Beauty, Goodness,
Mercy and Love, universally and yet each of us has a unique imprint of the
Father. Stereotypes limit the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It attempts to say there
are just a few rooms and each person should fit into one of those narrow
places. Rather, when we come to know ourselves as an unrepeatable miracle we
can see the divine imprint of God not only on ourselves but also on our
brothers and sisters. As Christ weaves
together the tapestry of our lives, let us recognize the beauty in His hand
weaving as He created us to be: holy and human, uniquely ourselves. “Be
yourself; everybody else is taken”
Verso l’alto,
Coop
We only got 86,400 seconds in a day to turn it all around or
throw it all away
We gotta tell them that we love them while we got a chance
to say
and I gave forgiveness I’d been denying
Doesn’t matter where I’m going if I’m going with you
I press on
Let Him speak to the deepest questions and desires of your
heart. Listen to this while you are making dinner, on the way to work, while
working out, whatever it takes. This is
a composite of TRUTH and freedom and JOY.
“The core of the Gospel (of life)…is the proclamation of a
living God who is close to us, who calls us to profounc communion with Himself
and awakens in us the certain hope of eternal life. It is the affirmation of
the insperable connection between the person, his life, and his bodiliness. It
is the presentation of human life as a life of relationship, a gift of God, the
furit and sign of us His love. It is the proclamation that Jesus has a unique
relationship with every person, which enables us to see the face of Christ. It
is the call for a ‘sincere gift of self’ as the fullest way to realize our
personal freedom.” (The Gospel of Life, 82).
“ ‘Know then, O beautiful soul, that you are the image of
God,’ writes St. Amborse. “Know that you are the glory of God (1 Cor 11:7).
Hear how you are his glory. The Prophet says: Your knowledge has become too
wonderful for me (cf. Ps. 138:6,Vulg.) That is to say in my work your majesty
has become more wonderful; in the counselors of men your wisdom is exalted.
When I consider myself, such as I am known to you in my secret thoughts and
deepest emotions, the mysteries of your knowledge are disclosed to me. Know
then, O man, your greatness and be vigilant.””(Splendor of Truth, 10)
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