Merry Christmas!

I just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and remember that Jesus is the reason for the season!

Innocence

There is absolutely no reason why kindergartners need to know about AIDS. There is absolutely no reason any child younger than fifth grade needs to know about anything to do with sex. No fifth grader needs to have any idea what a condom is. But the public schools of New York State are telling them about these things. Children have a very limited number of years to be children as it is. Why are we making that time even shorter?
Prominent politicians, authors, movie stars, etc. seem to have no problem foisting adult problems and responsibilities on very young children. People like Phillip Pullman, author of the atheist book series His Dark Materials (the first installment of which has recently been made into the anti-catholic movie The Golden Compass) are quoted as saying things such as "We don't seem to know how to view children." However as the Catholic League states "He should speak for himself. For example, when a children's book was released that portrayed a teenage girl who morphs into a fornicating dog, Pullman objected to the book's critics - not the book." (p.s. this guy hates Winnie the Pooh. How do you hate Winnie the Pooh??? Anyone who hates Winnie the Pooh obviously hates children and is not to be trusted.)
But worse even than the influence of famous people is that of educators, who have day-to-day contact with young children. These educators seem to share Mr. Pullman's views as evidenced by the fact that they have instituted the idea of teaching kindergartners about AIDS, of teaching fifth graders how to use condoms, etc.
There's a great line in the song Innocence by Sarah Buxton where she says "The one thing I can't get back is the one thing I miss . . . it's that young-girl, wide-eyed, first love, one time innocence". If you have the choice to keep your innocence or lose it, I am begging you to keep it. You will regret it later if you lose it. Your first kiss should be a magical moment not a make out session. You don't need to know what certain things are. I guarantee you can live without knowing.
And do those of us who are desperately trying to maintain our innocence a favor: if you have the urge to tell us something that you know we don't want to hear: SHUT UP!

No Rush

So there's this singer who I love, Josh Turner, and he has a song called No Rush. He's basically talking to his girlfriend about how they should just take things slow. One of the lines says "Ain't this world turnin baby, fast enough". In the United States, and especially in New York, we do everything in a hurry. We need an answer now, we need a decision now, we need this to work now. I'm guilty of it too. But we've let this mentality seep into every aspect of our lives including some of the most important decisions we'll ever make, like who we're gonna marry. If you understand marriage, and take it seriously, then it's kind of a big deal. You are stuck with this person for life. So shouldn't you take some time to think about it and make sure you're choosing the right person? My mom always told me "18 months". You should date for at least 18 months before getting married. Because this gives you time to get to know this person and make sure you'll be able to live with them. I saw a marriage fall apart because the people involved didn't take the time to see if it could really work, and a lot of people were hurt when things ended.
I was talking to Mr.Lemieux the other day and he said to me "Promise me that you won't get married freshman or sophomore year in college". Cuz alot of people rush into marriage and then realize that they don't actually like each other.
You have to take some time to get to know yourself before you try to give yourself to another person. Enjoy the single life for a while. Travel the world. Write a book. Start a blog. Whatever. You have your whole life to be married, you have only a few precious years to be single. Enjoy them. Then, once you've gotten to know who you are, start learning who someone else is. Only then should you get married.

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

I hate when people say I'm Catholic but they don't act at all Catholic. This reminds me of the Bible verse from Matthew 3:9 where St. John the Baptist says to the Pharisees and Sadducees "And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham for our father. For I tell you that God is able of these stones to raise up children to Abraham."
Basically the Pharisees and Sadducees thought that just because they were "children of Abraham" they could get away with anything. Alot of Catholics seem to think that too. I hate to burst your bubble but anyone can say that they're Catholic, what matters is if you act like it. If all you do is say oh I'm Catholic but don't go to Mass, don't pray, etc. then you're really not Catholic. God could make my computer into a better Catholic than you (which is basically what St. John is saying when he tells the Pharisees and Sadducees that God could raise up children to Abraham from the stones). And if you're a cafeteria Catholic (which means that you pick and choose what you believe in) and you "disagree" with fundamental Church teaching, guess what, you've excommunicated yourself. You don't need the Pope to send you an official notice, it's already done. This isn't multiple choice people, you're either Catholic or you're not. And if you're not, please don't insult the rest of us by associating yourself with those Catholics who actually take their faith seriously.
Just for the record, cuz I know some of you are gonna take this the wrong way, I'm not saying I'm perfect. There are plenty of times that I've been a bad Catholic. I admit it. But I'm trying. That's what God asks of us. He knows we're gonna mess up but do we get back up and try again. Jesus fell three times on the way to Calvary. But He got back up and kept going.
Actions speak louder than words. If you're going to say you're Catholic, then act like it.

A Healthy Balance

There seem to have developed in the Church over the past couple decades two different sects: the charismatics and the traditionalists. And each group seems to think, or at least has people in the group who think, that they are better than the other group. Let's get something straight: we are all Catholics. As long as we remain true to the teachings of the Church then both groups are striving toward the same goal, Heaven, and we should support each other.
I personally like a healthy balance of both charism and traditionalism. I love the Latin Mass for example, I think it is absolutely beautiful, but at the same time I am never happier than when I am at a charismatic XLT. There is nothing wrong with either of these approaches as long as they remain true to Catholic teaching. And so we should not be hindering each other in our pursuit of the ultimate goal. We should rather be supporting each other as a community of faith. If the Latin Mass isn't your thing then don't go to it, but at the same time there is no reason that you can't support those who truly find God in it. The same with things like XLT, if it's not your style don't go but support your brothers and sisters in Christ who find God there.

Clean Out Your Life

Today after Catholic League my friend Aileen opened up my bag and (as usual) yelled at me to clean it out. Because basically, it's a mess (along with my room, my locker, my notebooks . . . . ). Then she said to me something along the lines of Clare, this bag represents your life, your life is a mess, CLEAN OUT YOUR LIFE!
This got me thinking. If you're bag is a mess the logical solution is to clean it out. So if you're life is a mess wouldn't the logical solution be to clean that out? If your soul is a mess you should clean it. How? Go to confession. That's what it's there for - to help you clean out your life.
Yes, I know, everyone hates to go to confession because they don't want this priest to know all the terrible things they've done. First of all, you do have the option to go behind the wall thing, the priest never has to know who you are. Secondly have you ever noticed that when you come out of confession you feel like this huge weight has been lifted off your shoulders? Like you just feel so clean! It's an amazing feeling!
Last year at Kellenberg we had a day where pretty much everyone went to confession. My friend Harry said that afterwards it felt like you were walking in a school filled with saints.
There is something terribly humbling about having to tell another human being your sins but it makes the cleansing that much more powerful.
Let God clean out your life - go to confession.

Mary

Our Blessed Mother Mary is obviously an amazing role model, particularly for girls, since, you know, she was a girl. I always found it so cool how Mary did everything. She was the perfect wife, the perfect mother, and she was the first nun (which she was also perfect at). I've gone through periods of serious vocation confusion. I've always wanted to get married and have lots of kids but then we would have vocations talks at XLT and stuff about how every Catholic should consider the religious life. So then I was like I don't know maybe I should be a nun. Mr. Lemieux once told us how he couldn't freely marry his wife without "dating" the priesthood first, meaning that he went on a vocations retreat and just gave the idea of being a priest serious consideration. I think that's true for girls too. You can't give yourself fully in a marriage unless you've also tested being a nun. Go on a vocations retreat. Talk to nuns. And pray to Mary. She was all of the above so she knows the pros and cons of each of the options and can therefore guide you very well no matter where you end up.
And besides vocations Mary is just the perfect person for girls to turn to. If you're having mood swings, if you're caught up in teen drama, if it's just one of those girl things, talk to Mary. She's a girl so she knows what you're going through. I'm sure she experienced the teen drama, saw all those mood swings, had girl moments. So girls, just talk to her. I guarantee she'll give the best advice.

Pro-Choice

"I call Heaven and earth to witness this day, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Choose life, then, that you and your descendants may live."
~Deuteronomy 30:19
I read a fantastic story about being pro-choice in the book Pro Life Answers to Pro Choice Arguments by Randy Alcorn. Mr. Alcorn says "When I present the prolife position on school campuses, I often begin by saying 'I've been introduced as being prolife, but I want to make clear that I'm really pro-choice. I believe that a person has the right to do whatever she wants with her own body. It's none of our business what choice she makes, and we have no right to impose our morals on others. Whether I like someone's choices or not is irrelevant. She should have the freedom to make her own choices.' I'm normally greeted by surprised looks and audible affirmation, including smiles, nods, and even applause. I have used the sacred buzzwords of the pro-choice movement - rights, freedom, and choice. I have sounded tolerant, open-minded, and fair. Then I say this: 'Yes, I'm prochoice. That's why I believe every man has the right to rape a woman if that is his choice. After all, it's his body, and neither you nor I have the right to tell him what to do with it. He's free to choose, and it's none of our business what choice he makes. We have no right to impose our morals on him. Whether I like the choice or not, he should have the freedom to make his own choices.'"
For those of you who haven't caught on Mr. Alcorn does not really support the choice of a man to rape a woman. Nor does he support the choice of a woman to kill her child.
What he is saying is that we are all pro-choice. God Himself states in the quote from Deuteronomy that He gives us a choice. God created choice. But just because there are two different choices does not mean that both choices are acceptable. God also states there is a choice between life and death, blessing and cursing (the words blessing and cursing are interchangeable with good and evil).
In the abortion debate we are presented with these same two choices: life and death. That's it. You can't be kind of sort of maybe for life except in this situation when you're for death. PICK A SIDE! It's not that hard. God Himself has given us the choice between good and evil, now it's up to us to decide. But if you choose evil there will be consequences. There is no way around it. That's why so many women who have had abortions turn to drugs, alcohol, depression, and suicide. Because you can't choose death and evil for another without there being some ramifications to yourself. That's called justice. P.S. - that's why there's confession, so if you chose death/evil and you see that you made the wrong choice and are truly sorry for it you can receive forgiveness. But it's better not to make that choice in the first place.
One last note: I find it interesting that God says "choose life, that you and your descendants might live". I find this statement kind of ironic since we (as a country) are choosing death for our descendants. One child isn't born, so then they don't have the children they would have had, so they don't have the children they would have had, so they don't have the children they would have had, and on and on and on. You're not just killing one person when you go into that abortion mill you're killing all the people that would have come from them.