Promises Promises

Let me have a show of hands. How many have already broken their New Year’s resolutions? Aha. Just as I thought!

So, what are New Year’s resolutions, anyway? Or, is it New Year resolutions? Whatever. How did we get into that good habit? When did all this “promises made, promises broken” begin? I wrote about this two years ago, but it’s worth revisiting.

The celebration of the New Year was first observed in ancient Babylon. Around 2000 BC, Babylonians celebrated the beginning of a new year on what is now March 23.

The tradition of the New Year's celebrations , however, goes back to 153 B.C. Janus, a mythical king of early Rome was placed at the head of the calendar. The Romans named the first month of the year after Janus, the god of beginnings and the guardian of doors and entrances. Depicted with two faces, one on the front of his head and one on the back, he could look backward and forward at the same time. At midnight on December 31, the Romans imagined Janus looking back at the old year and forward to the new. The Romans began a tradition of exchanging gifts on New Year's Eve by giving one another branches from sacred trees for good fortune.( We party. )

In the Middle Ages, Christians changed New Year's Day to December 25, the birth of Christ. In the sixteenth century, Pope Gregory XIII revised the Julian calendar, and the celebration of the New Year was returned to January 1. 

So, ever since primitive man, New Year’s Day has been recognized as a day on which rites were done to abolish the past so there could be a clean slate for the New Year. But, sorry to say, there is no record of making “resolutions” to do this or that but, there was a strong implication to improve behavior caused by the looking ahead.  

OK. Breaking bad habits is one thing, but renewing good habits is quite another.  Gym? Daily walks?  Being better Christians, like loving your neighbor as yourself. What? Loving your neighbor? Now, that’s tough. Is it ever.   

It’s not the end of the world if you’ve broken your resolutions to stop smoking or overeating. But, it could be the end of your future world, figuratively speaking, if, for one example, you failed to obey Christ’s commandment to love your neighbor. Not liking your neighbor, but loving your neighbor. Respecting. Not gossiping.The condition of our soul is infinitely more important than the condition of our body. That’s not to say that we should be careless with our physical well being, but that we should be just as careful with the condition of our souls.

So, if you have started your diet or thrown away your cigarettes, your physical body will be grateful. But, if, for another example, you’ve returned to church, the gym for your spiritual body, if you will, your soul will be eternally grateful.

Eternally. 

Happy New Year.

Remember the Little Drummer Boy

Like the song says, it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. And buying gifts for those we love should be a heartwarming experience. Unfortunately, it can be a heart-pounding experience, a chore, an obligation, and at some stores, a terrible time of pushing, shoving and, ye gads, sometimes even fistfights.

                             Come they told me, pa rum pum pum pum
                             A new born King to see, pa rum pum pum pum
                           

How did Christmas get wrapped in gaudy commercialism?   

                             Our finest gifts we bring, pa rum pum pum pum
                             To lay before the King, pa rum pum pum pum,
                             rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum,

I’ve written about this before, but worth revisiting. The custom of giving gifts to loved ones on a special day in winter probably began in ancient Rome where people gave these gifts as part of their year end celebration to honor Saturn, the god of harvest. The festivities began in the middle of December and continued until January 1st.  It was in 350 A.D. that Pope Julius I declared December 25 as the official date for celebrating the birth of Christ.

                              

                  So to honor Him, pa rum pum pum pum,
                  When we come.
                  Little Baby, pa rum pum pum pum

Saturnalia was considered a festive time for Romans, but Christians believed it an abomination to honor a pagan god. Eventually, the Church was successful in removing the merriment, lights and gifts from the Saturnalia and transferring them to the celebration of a Christian Christmas.

                            I am a poor boy too, pa rum pum pum pum
                            I have no gift to bring, pa rum pum pum pum
                           That's fit to give the King, pa rum pum pum pum,
                           rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum,

In our country, gift giving reportedly began in the 1820’s, though advertising for the

concept began years earlier. By the 1840’s, giving gifts at Christmas became a

mainstream custom in society and grew tremendously in the 1930’s when Coca-Cola  

incorporated Santa Claus into its marketing campaign. 

                                   Shall I play for you, pa rum pum pum pum, 

                                   On my drum?

Today, traditions of holiday gift-giving have grown more complicated.  There are questions of money and meaning, of different faiths, of different cultures. To further complicate matters, November and December include Christmas  ( December 25),Ramadan’s Eid-al-Fitr ( timed to the sighting of the new moon, around November 25)Hanukkah (December 19-27) and

Kwanzaa (December 26-January 1) all of which have distinct gift traditions. Neighbors, friends, families and co-workers really stress over how and what to give to the many different people in their lives.

  

                                    Mary nodded, pa rum pum pum pum
                                    The ox and lamb kept time, pa rum pum pum pum 

And now, even as the Advent season has begun, the joy we should be feeling for the coming birth of Christ has been pushed aside by harried shoppers in the frenzy of buying gifts in crowded stores.

                                          
                                          I played my drum for Him, pa rum pum pum pum
                                         I played my best for Him, pa rum pum pum pum,
                                         rum pum pum pum, rum pum pum pum,

Let’s get ready for the wonderful birth of Christ.  And, let’s not worry about what to buy. For, in the end, the gifts we exchange do not matter. As the classic “Little Drummer Boy” reminds us, it is the love they represent that does. Rejoice and be glad. The Lord will soon be born and be among us.  

                                    

                                     Then He smiled at me, pa rum pum pum pum
                                     Me and my drum. 

Come, let us adore Him. You can bring your drum.

Pa rum pum pum pum.

Hell Is For Real,Too

“The hell with it!”, “ That was a helluva ball game!”, “Get the hell out of here!”, ‘Where the hell do you think you’re going?”…Add your own favorites.

It’s amazing how often we refer to hell and yet, apparently, we not only do not fear it, but also seem to think we’re all going to heaven, implicitly denying its existence. Have you read the obituaries lately? At my age, it’s required. As the late George Burns said, “The first thing I do in the morning is read the obituaries. If I’m not listed, I get up”.

Almost every obituary I read these days says pretty much that the deceased has “gone to be with her Lord” or “went to be in the arms of his Savior”. Not to be disrespectful, but, I think the obit should have read “he died and went to be judged”. He may be cast into hell. Terrible thought? You bet.

Hell is mentioned 110 times in the Bible. Imagine. And in those days, they weren’t using that word in a sentence the way we so casually do. If you check a few Bible references, you will get the not surprising idea that hell was (is) a place of unending pain that is punishment for our sins that grievously offended God.

“As a cloud is consumed, and passeth away: so he that shall go down to hell shall not come up.” ( Job 7:9) Not come up? Scary stuff.

“And fear ye not them that kill the body, and are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him that can destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matthew 10:28) He wasn’t talking Walking Dead or True Blood.

Probably the greatest description of hell was written by Dante in his “Inferno”, the first part of his 14th-century epic poem, Divine Comedy. It’s the telling of the journey of Dante through what is largely the medieval concept of Hell, guided by the Roman poet Virgil. In the poem, Hell is depicted as nine circles of suffering located within the Earth. Allegorically, the Divine Comedy represents the journey of the soul towards God, with the Inferno describing the recognition and rejection of sin.

The best selling book, “Heaven Is For Real”, got me to thinking about Hell. The book was written by a father whose 4 year old son claimed he traveled to heaven while in a coma. His descriptions are predictably warm and fuzzy. The enormous success of the book suggests to me that we hope and expect heaven and love to read anybody’s description, including, strangely, one by a four year old.

My favorite description of hell, however, was given by Saint Thomas Aquinas, the brilliant 13^th century Catholic theologian who wrote that hell was the absence of God’s love. For anyone who has lost a loved one to death or separation, the pain of loss is sometimes unbearable. Pain on earth is temporary and ends with our death if not before. The pain in hell of losing God’s love is never ending.

Why am I talking about Hell as the holidays approach? Well, it’s my disgust with our culture. Turn on the TV, open a newspaper and see the fabric of our social mores fraying before your very eyes. Immorality is commonplace. And, maybe it’s me, but it seems that no one acts like there will be an accounting for their immoral behavior or they wouldn’t act the way they do.

While I’m no saint and I’m not screaming “ Repent, The End Is Near” but, hell is for real, too. And, that’s a helluva thought.

Oops.

Press 1 For Tolerance

"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"("The New Colossus", Emma Lazarus)

How did we go from that welcome with open arms, engraved on a bronze plaque mounted inside the Statue of Liberty, to the hold-it-right-there request for proof of citizenship that may soon be heard in Alabama? Beats me. But, here we are.

Make no mistake. There was resentment felt by the immigrants who came here aboard those ships that sailed by the Statue of Liberty and into New York harbor. They had left their homelands to start a better life. They had no idea what to expect. And, despite the taunts and insults they heard, those “wretched refuse” were accepted and easily mixed with other nationalities in what was called a melting pot. Perhaps they were admired for their struggle. Perhaps.

But, the resentment today is just as bad and probably worse. It has resulted in the most punitive legislation in the United States. Even though the Constitution states immigration laws are the responsibility of the federal government, some states-notably Arizona and Alabama-are unhappy with the government’s slow progress and have passed their own laws. Without getting into specifics, the provisions of Alabama’s law border on, well, cruel and unusual. The law is so inhumane that an Episcopal, Methodist and a Roman Catholic bishop have sued to block it, saying it criminalizes acts of Christian compassion. Fortunately, enforcement has been partially blocked by a federal judge.

We have become a land where immigrant means illegal and illegal means welfare. And, that, in my view is why there is so much resentment. We see someone who doesn’t look like us or talk like us, buying food with stamps and we become angry. We conclude, unfairly, they’re lazy, don’t work and are taking advantage of our system and we resent it. The fact is because many can’t find minimum wage jobs, they are taking advantage of our system because they need to and that’s why the programs are there. It makes me wonder whether there would be resentment if these people were legal. Probably.

According to the Center for Immigration, the latest study shows 53% of all households headed by an immigrant (legal or illegal), with one or more children under 18, used at least one of America’s 8 major welfare programs compared to 36% of natives in same category. That means some of those folks shopping with stamps may be legal immigrants, or, perish the thought, American citizens. Like the bishops pointed out, we have abandoned our Christian compassion with the passage of this law. I have news. We lost our compassion long before the law. Seems to me.

Immigration reform is a complex issue. Unfortunately, the road to citizenship is paved with excessive paperwork, costs and time. The average immigrant, almost by definition, is uneducated and poor. Quite obviously, we need to streamline the system and our president is trying to do just that.

Perhaps if we stopped printing Spanish alongside all English on everything and everywhere it seems, because it’s unfair to all other foreign speaking immigrants, not to mention counter-productive to their learning our language, then, perhaps there might be more compassion for these people seeking a better life.

In the meantime, let’s love our neighbor as ourselves and, well, “press 1 for tolerance”.

Otherwise, we’ll have to throw a sheet over the Statue of Liberty.

“Not That There’s Anything Wrong With That”

In a classic episode from his program in the 90’s, Jerry Seinfeld pretended to be gay. When his pretense was revealed, he said the now famous line, “I’m not gay!....Not that there’s anything wrong with that! ”.No, there isn’t. But, if you’re gay and want to marry another gay of the same sex, well…

Consider what happened in New York State, the 6th state to legalize gay marriage.

Gays feel they have the right to marry. Ah, the right. We seem to have a “right” to everything these days. Claiming a right conjures up the Bill of Rights and gives it the patina of an untouchable privilege. But, I think there is a difference between a “right” and “permission”. If the gun lobby, for example, would claim they should be permitted to own a gun just as we are allowed to own a car, the revolvers would probably be put back in their holsters and the gunfight would end. I’m just sayin’.

However, when we speak of the right of gay marriage, we’re not only speaking about a loving, long-term, committed relationship, we’re also usually talking about the physical sex that expresses that love. Otherwise, we’re simply talking about roommates. We must assume the “marriage” that gays seek is more than two roommates seeking equality under the law for all the benefits enjoyed by heterosexual couples since those benefits are readily available to them with civil unions in many states.

So, why do gays want their relationships called “marriages”? Could it be gays are looking for the “Seal of Good Housekeeping” or, more relevantly, an Imprimatur? They long suffered in the closet, came out and were welcomed by a different society and now want our blessing on their lifestyle. And that is why Christians, mainly, are opposed to granting them that “right ”.

Why? Well, first, it is important to distinguish between beinghomosexual and acting on that condition by engaging in sex with someone of the same gender.

Christian beliefs state that people with homosexual tendencies are to be embraced but homosexual acts are “intrinsically disordered ”-contrary to the natural law-and close the sexual act to the gift of life. That’s key to understanding why there is opposition to these “marriages”. Natural law or the law of nature means natural is that which operates according to its nature.

Which brings me to the human reproductive or sex organs. You might say they were made for each other. Literally. There is a certain beauty, an elegance, in these reproductive organs. The operative word, of course, is “reproductive”. Even if you did not believe in God the Creator, you must marvel at the complexity of how women produce human eggs and men produce the seeds that fertilize those eggs and give them life. To reproduce the species is their purpose. It is theirnature. That does not mean that every sex act must result in childbirth. It doesn’t always, but, that’s not germane. Sex between same sex partners is, therefore, unnatural.

Gays point to their many long-term commitments and argue that almost 50% of traditional marriages end in divorce. However, to recognize that commitment of gay relationships as a reason to call them "marriages " is to reveal a frightfully poor understanding of marriage.

Christians believe marriage is a covenant between a man and a woman by which they establish between themselves a partnership for life that, by its very nature-there’s that word again-operates toward the procreation of offspring.

So, let me be clear. Christians oppose gay “marriages” not because they threaten “traditional marriages”. No, Christians oppose the sanctioning of gay relationships as “marriages” because acceptance would be tacit approval of the unnatural sex that is presumably present in those relationships.

That’s strong stuff, granted, and is probably why it’s left unsaid.

So, there can be “something wrong with that ”.

Sorry, Jerry.

Laughter

If there was ever a time when we needed to laugh, it is now. Besides the shocking news of scandalous behavior of politicians, the stagnant economy, the unemployment, the endless wars, the drug disease infecting our city, we have the painful reminders of the April tornado to darken our mood.

As I drive around and see the brutal evidence of that tornado that huffed and puffed and blew some of our houses down, I get depressed.

Gone are the trees that were like canopies covering the roads, giving us welcome shade,filtering the heavy rains. Some trees, barely alive, are stark naked, stripped of their leaves, hunched over with broken and blackened branches, appearing helpless and sad. Others lie dead with huge clumps of soil and worm-like roots still attached, looking as if they were yanked out of the ground by a giant hand, waiting to be cut into small pieces and taken to God knows where. Beautiful and historic homes, buildings with familiar and popular businesses, houses of worship luckily empty, all appear to have been stepped on and crushed by some giant foot.

We need something to ease the pain. Laughter. Laughter is the lubricant that helps us roll with the punches, bear our burdens, lift our spirits, go with the flow.

Laughter is defined as a reaction to certain stimuli which serves as an emotional balancing mechanism. It's considered a visual expression of happiness, or an inward feeling of joy. It may happen after hearing a joke, being tickled, or reading a cartoon. Researchers have shown infants as early as 17 days old have vocal laughing sounds or laughter.

There is a link between laughter and healthy function of blood vessels. It was found that laughter causes the dilation of their inner lining and increases blood flow. Freud theorized that laughter releases tension and psychic energy. His theory is one of the justifications of the beliefs that laughter is beneficial for one's health and explains why laughter can used be as a coping mechanism when one is upset, angry or sad.

And so, since I suspect many if not all of us are upset, angry and/or sad, I think we should begin to laugh more. I’m not suggesting everybody is wearing an upside down smiley face. It’s just that I don’t hear much laughter lately. Yes, surely there was laughter at the recent Celebrate Cullman event and that was a good start to the healing process for our town.

The story is told of the game warden who stopped a redneck carrying some fish as he got out of his rowboat. “No fishing allowed”, said the warden. “ I ain’t fishin”, said the redneck, “I’m trainin’ my fish by letting them swim free for a while every day. Here, let me show ya” and he threw the fish back into the lake. The warden was not convinced and told him to hand over the fish. The redneck said, “What fish?”

Okay, I hope I made you laugh. Now it’s your turn. Make someone laugh today.

“Not That There’s Anything Wrong With That”

In a classic episode from his program in the 90’s, Jerry Seinfeld pretended to be gay. When his pretense was revealed, he said the now famous line, “I’m not gay!....Not that there’s anything wrong with that! ”.No, there isn’t. But, if you’re gay and want to marry another gay of the same sex, well…

Consider what happened in New York State, the 6th state to legalize gay marriage.

Gays feel they have the right to marry. Ah, the right. We seem to have a “right” to everything these days. Claiming a right conjures up the Bill of Rights and gives it the patina of an untouchable privilege. But, I think there is a difference between a “right” and “permission”. If the gun lobby, for example, would claim they should be permitted to own a gun just as we are allowed to own a car, the revolvers would probably be put back in their holsters and the gunfight would end. I’m just sayin’.

However, when we speak of the right of gay marriage, we’re not only speaking about a loving, long-term, committed relationship, we’re also usually talking about the physical sex that expresses that love. Otherwise, we’re simply talking about roommates. We must assume the “marriage” that gays seek is more than two roommates seeking equality under the law for all the benefits enjoyed by heterosexual couples since those benefits are readily available to them with civil unions in many states.

So, why do gays want their relationships called “marriages”? Could it be gays are looking for the “Seal of Good Housekeeping” or, more relevantly, an Imprimatur? They long suffered in the closet, came out and were welcomed by a different society and now want our blessing on their lifestyle. And that is why Christians, mainly, are opposed to granting them that “ right ”.
Why? Well, first, it is important to distinguish between beinghomosexual and acting on that condition by engaging in sex with someone of the same gender.

Christian beliefs state that people with homosexual tendencies are to be embraced but homosexual acts are “intrinsically disordered ”-contrary to the natural law-and close the sexual act to the gift of life. That’s key to understanding why there is opposition to these “marriages”. Natural law or the law of nature means natural is that which operates according to its nature.

Which brings me to the human reproductive or sex organs. You might say they were made for each other. Literally. There is a certain beauty, an elegance, in these reproductive organs. The operative word, of course, is “reproductive”. Even if you did not believe in God the Creator, you must marvel at the complexity of how women produce human eggs and men produce the seeds that fertilize those eggs and give them life. To reproduce the species is their purpose. It is theirnature. That does not mean that every sex act must result in childbirth. It doesn’t always, but, that’s not germane. Sex between same sex partners is, therefore, unnatural.

Gays point to their many long-term commitments and argue that almost 50% of traditional marriages end in divorce. However, to recognize that commitment of gay relationships as a reason to call them "marriages " is to reveal a frightfully poor understanding of marriage.

Christians believe marriage is a covenant between a man and a woman by which they establish between themselves a partnership for life that, by its very nature-there’s that word again-operates toward the procreation of offspring.

So, let me be clear. Christians oppose gay “marriages” not because they threaten “traditional marriages”. No, Christians oppose the sanctioning of gay relationships as “marriages” because acceptance would be tacit approval of the unnatural sex that is presumably present in those relationships.

That’s strong stuff, granted, and is probably why it’s left unsaid.

So, there can be “something wrong with that ”.

Sorry, Jerry.

Once More With Feeling

It was frightening. Hunkered down in an inside hallway and hearing the constant wind and looking into the pitch black darkness made me think, “He will come like a thief in the night. You will know neither the hour nor the day.”

Well, we knew the day and around what time, but He didn’t come like a thief in the night. Too noisy. And once again we’re asking “why?” Why are we getting battered with so many disasters? Cullman got assaulted by fierce tornados. Two dead. Hundreds injured. Devastation everywhere. So, why? I believe God noisily blew through Cullman to get our attention once more and, to do that, He did it this time with feeling: the howling and destructive wind of an F4 tornado.

As I’ve often said, I believe these are ‘blessings in disguise’, opportunities to come together. Compassion usually follows chaos. What happened in our town after the storm was unbelievable. The Red Cross, not to mention virtually all the local churches, sprang into action, offering food and shelter. Everyone cared for everyone. I’ll never forget it.

But, I’ve also said I believe these disasters are messages to ‘get our act together’. God is sending us more and more tornados, hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis, wildfires and whatever, because, apparently, the blessing idea is not enough. We’re not getting the message. We’re not listening to His voice in the endless wind and the pounding rain. We’re not seeing His anger in the uprooted trees, the smashed homes, the lives He chose to end. Even though this should tell us how everything is here one moment and gone the next, many of us still don’t ‘get it’. We come together, fix whatever’s broken and go our old merry, sinful way. Seems to me.

This time, the loss of lights, TV, internet access and hot water, for heaven’s sake, would seem to be another way the Lord is trying to get our attention. We take so much for granted in our lives. We don’t appreciate all of our conveniences until they’re taken away.

As a matter of fact, when the power was out, how many times did you flip the switch when you went into the darkened bathroom? (Yeah, just as I thought.) The simple act of turning on a light should remind us every time that our lives are dependent on a Supreme Being. He’s the One Who flipped on the switch when we were born. The simple act of breathing is the light in our lives that could easily be flipped off anytime.

So, let us pray for those who lost everything. Even though our God might be angry, we have a God who is giving us a warning. That tells me He’s fair and He loves us. He really wants us to enjoy what He has planned for us. He could just as easily come like that thief in the night without a warning.

Perhaps we should think of that every time we enter our bathroom and, well, flip the switch.

The Rising is the Reason

Like the frantic shopping for gifts at Christmas, the fun-filled coloring of eggs at Easter tends to obscure the real meaning of the feast.

It will probably be eye-opening for many that the word “Easter” has its roots in paganism. That’s hard to believe but true. And, strangely, the term is never used in the original Scriptures. So, a little history:

Most scholars agree that the term derived from “Eastre”, the Teutonic goddess of spring, originating during the building of the tower of Babel and not long after the biblical Flood. Profane and idolatrous practices were commonplace at the time. When the people, speaking in different languages that they believed was God’s punishment for their sinful ways, were scattered around the earth, one of the names given to one of their false gods was Ishtar ( pronounced “Easter”).Other names were “Eoster”,”Astarte”, “Ostera” and “Eastre”. She was the Mother Goddess of fertility and spring.

Since the rabbit was well known for its fertility, worshipping the rabbit as the reincarnation of the goddess was an easy leap ( no pun intended). And the Easter bunny was born. As for the egg, in almost all ancient cultures, eggs had been held as an emblem of new life. Rabbits were known to lay their eggs in the grass, giving rise to the egg hunts. Why we color them besides making them more festive is anybody’s guess.

When the Anglo-Saxons were converted to Christianity, the pagan holiday, which occurred around the same time as the Christian memorial of Jesus' Resurrection, was combined with the Christian celebration and given the name Easter. What a coincidence that Christmas is celebrated around the time of Saturnalia, the harvest feast, another pagan holiday. Thank the Lord we didn’t change the name of Christmas.

Originally, because of this coincidence of dates, there were some pagan practices performed with the Christian celebrations of Easter. And, unwittingly, in a way, we’re still doing it. Today, Easter is often commercialized, with all the focus on eggs, the Easter bunny, and dressing in fine, new clothes. Witness the egg-rolling on the White House lawn on the day Christ rose from the dead. Because of this, many churches are starting to refer to Easter as Resurrection Day or the Feast of the Resurrection.

It’s too bad that Christians have “Christianized” pagan celebrations. The good news is that while we are aware the term is still used, we realize we are not celebrating the pagan goddess, but, rather, the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

There are those who feel this distraction of eggs and bunnies is the work of the devil. Who are we to argue? It would be wonderful if we just concentrated only on the remarkable miracle of the Resurrection that is the foundation of our belief. Let’s not worry about what we call this momentous event, but, simply, thank God it happened.
So, sorry kids. Not only is there no Santa Claus, there is no Easter bunny.

There is, however, the Risen Savior.

Alleluia.

Wake Up Calls

Like a siren before a tornado, a smoke alarm before a fire, natural disasters could be wake-up calls before something even more serious. The earthquake and tsunami in Japan that caused a potentially apocalyptic event at their nuclear facilities should get us to thinking that the end of everything is a reality. This is not meant to sound like the crazy guy on the street corner carrying a cardboard sign warning that the end of the world is near. But, maybe these tragedies are sending us the same messages and should get us thinking about heaven and hell, the destinations determined by our moral behavior. Despite the warm and fuzzy presumptions that I read in daily obituaries, when we die we are not guaranteed that we will be “in the arms of our dear Lord ”. Based on my observations, heaven won’t be too crowded, but hell will be packed to overflowing. Why weather as a means to warn about the end? Well, weather is not man made-excuse me, human-made. Who, then? Evolutionists say it “happens”. Ridiculous. Every effect has a cause. As Saint Thomas Aquinas, the brilliant Catholic theologian of the 13th century, argued in his “Summa Theologica”, there must eventually be a First Cause which is not the effect of anything. “Creationists”, the presumably affectionate term for Christians, believe weather is caused by God. It’s easy to see God in the soft, white fluffy clouds, the warm sun, the fresh rains, the gentle breezes. But, many also see Him in just everyday crappy weather the likes of which we’ve been having around here lately. But, why would God cause bad weather? Theories abound. I have always felt, after witnessing how we come together after tragedies, seeing compassion follow chaos, that these disasters were “blessings in disguise” (I wrote about it in this very space three years ago). God is supremely good and would only permit the evil of disaster to occur or to exist in His works because He knows that good can be derived from evil. But, I strongly believe He is not punishing us but using these disasters to wake us up out of our wayward behavior. And, if anyone doesn’t believe we need waking up, they have only to turn on the TV, go to the movies, pick up a newspaper, check the texts, tweets that bombard us daily and witness the slow, but discernible fraying of our moral fabric. Now, after so many natural tragedies such as the Katrina hurricane, Haiti earthquake, Indonesia tsunami and now the combination in Japan, I think God is again sending us a message-yeah, in a punishing way-to get our act together, straighten up and fly right, smarten up, get with it, however you want to put it. In the Scriptures, we read more than once,“ Watch ye therefore, because you know not the day nor the hour”. (Matthew 25:13 ) Outright warnings. It’s just possible these disasters are warnings in disguise. They might be His sirens, His smoke alarms.

Blind Faith

Everyday we accept things on blind faith. Television ratings, polls, research findings, results of studies, you name it, are almost everywhere we see, hear or read and are accepted as gospel truth.

Yet, many do not accept the Gospel as truth. Disturbing.

Consider Nielsen, Gallup and Pew Research, three major, well accepted, hardly ever challenged services that are quoted all the time.

Gallup, the oldest and mother of all survey companies, is most known for its voter polls. Pew Research measures everything from political preferences to religious behavior. And Nielsen is the only television rating service used by advertisers and stations alike. Trust me, as a former salesman of TV time, they swear by them.

All of them depend on, or should I say, raise to the level of divine revelation, the principle that “a randomly selected, small percentage of a population of people can represent opinions of all if the sample is selected correctly.” It’s called the “Probability Sample ”. That’s their answer to those who ask “how can the opinions or answers of as few as 1,000 people be projected against 300 million people?”

So, why isn’t the gospel always and everywhere accepted as truth? It’s challenged certainly more than a TV rating, a poll or a study.

It’s not my intention nor can I arrogantly assume to discuss the authenticity of Sacred Scripture in so short a space. But, let’s consider just one example of revealed truth in the Old Testament that is a major cause of discussion today: the creation of the world. Those of us who accept the Scriptures-certainly, all Christians-are labeled “Creationists”. (“Well, isn’t that special”, as the Church Lady on Saturday Night Live used to say.)

In Genesis (1-11 ), the description of God’s creating our world is clear and unmistakable. This first book of the Old Testament, like all the others of the entire Bible, was inspired by God. That’s tough for non-believers to accept, many of whom, however, have no problem believing 110 million people watched the Super Bowl. A football game is not as important as the Bible, they may claim, without addressing the issue of accuracy of either.

Let’s take one more example, and this time from the New Testament, the Resurrection of Jesus. That extraordinary miracle proved He was (is) God. The story was reported by St. Paul in his Letters, by Saint Matthew and in the Acts of the Apostles. It is the foundation of the Christian faith. Yet, there are and have been those who contest even that remarkable event. When was the last time you heard or read a lively discussion of the accuracy of television ratings?

While I don’t wish to disparage the ratings or surveys, I simply hope that more of us accept the word of God as revealed in the Bible as we accept those numbers and opinions.

Faith in God’s word as revealed in the Bible is not blind. It is, so to speak, seeing by believing.

Raising Cain

“And Cain said to Abel his brother: Let us go forth abroad. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel, and slew him.” ( Genesis 4: 8 )

That was the world’s first homicide. Incredibly, we are still killing. Witness the violence in the world continuing with the massacre in Tucson, Arizona. In fact, just since the assassination of Martin Luther King in 1968, there have been one million murders in America that are not about to stop any time soon. Worse, we live in an age of instant communication that makes the stories of violence seem so pervasive.

Is it any wonder then, that murder and mayhem are becoming part of our everyday lives and the news of the day? What is wrong with us? We need to be the best, first, on ‘ top of the heap’. Anyone who gets in our way is run over, sometimes literally. Ours is fanatically competitive a nation of “We’re Number One!” which seems to have replaced our motto “In God We Trust ”. Whatever happened to the Commandment to love one another? While we do display an outpouring of emotion when someone is tragically killed, it is after someone is taken from us. Too much, too late.

The adversarial atmosphere in our politics is being blamed for this latest episode of violence in Arizona. That’s simplistic. In my view, the divisive behavior in politics is a form not the cause of violence. Some take the lives of people with guns, others injure the reputations of people with words. While guns are too easily accessible, that young man would have found another way to kill.

We live in a country whose moral fabric is so frayed it is almost unrecognizable. We think nothing of killing embryos, fetuses, convicted felons because, unbelievably, we have made all of it legal. We have become like the ancient Romans who gave a thumbs up or thumbs down to a life in the balance. If we loved one another, we would never have allowed any killing. But we do because we can and, in each of those mentioned examples, it benefits us. We need the miracle drug, don’t want the baby and/or seek revenge for the crime.

There is corruption in business, sports and, I'm sad to say, in religion, as well. Turn on the television and get assaulted by greed and immorality in commercials and programming. A day doesn't go by without another blockbuster story, such as pyramid schemes in the stock market or the use of steroids in baseball. As a Catholic, I am enormously embarrassed by the sex abuse scandal in the priesthood.

As hopelessly naïve as it may sound, until and unless we tone down our words, put down our weapons and ‘get down’ with love, we will continue to "go forth abroad " with our “brother” to slay him.

Unlike Cain who was jealous of Abel, we must realize that we are our brother’s keeper.

Guess Who’s Coming To Our House ….

You better watch out, you better not cry, you better not pout, I’m telling you why…Santa Claus is coming to town.

And so is Christ. Well, not literally, just the anniversary of His birth. And, while we wait, we do not cry, we do not pout, but, rather, we rejoice and are glad.

Isn’t it interesting that we celebrate the coming of Santa at the same time as the coming of Christ.

How did this happen?

The basis for the Christian-era Santa Claus is the 4th century Bishop Nicholas of Smyrna (Turkey). He was very rich, generous, and often gave joy to poor children by throwing gifts through their open windows. He is also said to have thrown three bags of gold coins down the chimney of a poor man who couldn't afford the dowry for his three daughters. In another version of the story, the bags of coins fell into stockings the girls had placed by the fire to dry. And so was born the modern tradition of hanging stockings by the fireplace and coming down the chimney.

The name Santa Claus evolved from Sint Nikolaas, the nickname for Saint Nicholas, into Sinter Klaas. His legend was brought to America by Dutch settlers. It was Clement C. Moore, however, who really popularized the legend of the saint including his appearance, his method of transportation and the names of his reindeer. He originally wrote the poem, "A Visit from Saint Nicholas," ("The Night Before Christmas") for his family, but it became quite popular after it was published anonymously in 1823.

The Orthodox Church later raised St. Nicholas to a position of great esteem. It was in his honor that Russia's oldest church, for example, was built. For its part, the Roman Catholic Church honored Nicholas as one who helped children and the poor. His feast day is December 6.
For more see: (http://hubpages.com/hub/Santa-History-How-Saint-Nicholas-Became-Santa-Claus)

As I wrote last year, the custom of giving gifts to loved ones on a special day in winter probably began in ancient Rome where people gave these gifts as part of their year end celebration to honor Saturn, the god of harvest. The festivities began in the middle of December and continued until January 1st. In 350 A.D., Pope Julius I declared December 25 as the official date for celebrating the birth of Christ. Saturnalia was considered a festive time for Romans, but Christians believed it an abomination to honor such a pagan god. Eventually, the Church was successful in removing the merriment, lights and gifts from the Saturnalia and transferring them to the celebration of a Christian Christmas.

It was only natural that Santa bringing gifts and everybody giving gifts would come together at Christmas. While our fondest memories are of our childhood when we opened presents left under the tree by Santa, on Christmas day we bring presents of love to a child, the baby in the manger.

So, do not pout, do not cry, but, come, all ye faithful….come, let us adore Him, joy to the world....

Merry Christmas


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Giving Thanks

Gracias, grazie, merci, danke, thank you.

Today, we celebrate Thanksgiving, the giving of thanks.

Whenever we give thanks, we usually hear a response like “no problem, think nothing of it, sure, glad to do it, de nada.” The one I prefer is the one we should be hearing when we thank God: “You’re welcome”, which means that we deserve what He has given us. But, I’m ahead of myself. Let’s take a look at the history of this wonderful feast:

The precise historical origin of the holiday is disputed. Although Americans commonly believe that the first Thanksgiving was celebrated in 1621 by the pilgrims who landed aboard the Mayflower at Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts, there is strong evidence for earlier celebrations in Canada (1578) and by Spanish explorers in Florida (1565).

Good luck with that. The traditional origin of Thanksgiving in the United States, for my money-and, generally speaking, most agree-is the one that occurred at the site of Plymouth Plantation. It was early in the history of what would become one of the original colonies that later were to become the United States.

For more than two centuries, days of thanksgiving were celebrated by individual colonies and states. It wasn't until 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, that President Lincoln proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day to be held each November.

In November 1621, after the Pilgrims’ first corn harvest proved successful, Governor Bradford organized a celebratory feast and invited a group of the fledgling colony’s Native American allies. Now remembered as American’s “first Thanksgiving”—although the Pilgrims themselves may not have used the term at the time—the festival lasted for three days. (Obviously, they didn’t have football on TV!)

Interestingly, while no record exists of the historic banquet’s exact menu, it was recorded Governor Bradford sent four men on a “fowling” mission in preparation for the event, and the Wampanoag guests arrived bearing five deer. (How’s that for bringing a covered dish!)

Historians have suggested that many of the dishes, by the way, were likely prepared using traditional Native American spices and cooking methods. Because the Pilgrims had no oven and the Mayflower’s sugar supply had dwindled by the fall of 1621, the meal did not feature pies, cakes or other desserts. Bummer.

The Pilgrims who sailed to this country aboard the Mayflower were originally members of the English Separatist Church (a Puritan sect). They had earlier fled their home in England and sailed first to Holland to escape religious persecution. There is no doubt, then, that their feast began with prayers of thanksgiving. Probably the first ‘grace before meals’.

So, let’s all remember that these original Pilgrims celebrated just being alive after a perilous journey, finding a new home that gave them safety and a bountiful harvest. Let’s not worry about what’s for dinner. Let’s just thank God for our lives, for every breath we take. If we listen carefully, we might even hear in our hearts, “ You’re welcome”.

The question will be: are we?

The Least of These

We get more upset in this country with smoking in public than we do with killing unborn babies in private.

It seems to me, anyway. If someone suddenly lit a cigarette in WalMart, there would be a riot. People would be screaming,” Are you nuts? ” Why then, don’t we get outraged when, according to the latest statistics, we brutally end the lives of 2 unborn babies every minute. Every minute! Why? Because it’s legal! Good grief. How did we make smoking in public illegal and abortion legal?

Blame the Supreme Court for the legalizing the murdering of unborn children. In Roe v Wade (1973). the Court decided as long as the fetus was not “viable” or able to live on its own outside the womb, it could be killed. How’s that for euphemizing the euthanizing?

Well, some of us are “screaming” a different way. On September 22, “ 40 Days For Life” began a 40-day journey of prayer, fasting, vigil and outreach in 238 locations around North America. To quote one of the founders, “The first 40 Days for Life effort began six years ago in Bryan/College Station, Texas. As we prayed for God's guidance on what to do about the evil of abortion in our community, we were reminded of how God has used 40-day periods of time in order to bring about transformation and conversion. We were reminded of Noah and 40 days in the flood, of Moses on the mountain, of Jesus and in the desert. When God repeats himself, He does so for a reason. The message of 40 days is simple, yet profound.”
(For more : http://40daysforlife.com/about.cfm )

It’s all about ‘rights’ today. The ‘right to do this’ or ‘the right to do that’. Not always a bad thing. This country was founded on the Bill of Rights that included the right to speak freely, carry a gun, get a fair trial.

Unfortunately, many women believe they have the ‘right’ to end a pregnancy before it’s term ends since it’s taking place in their bodies. Mistakenly, they are using that Court anointed right to justify and camouflage a brutal act of murder.

Conspicuous by it’s never being mentioned is the right of the child to live that is granted the moment it is brought into this world as a single cell. Conception should never be a death sentence.

I’ve been down this road in this space before. Some have even told me it has been too often. Really? Too bad. Someone has to speak for the fetus, since a voice is the one ability it does not achieve until it comes out of the mother’s body and is slapped.

Not caring for the thirsty, the hungry, the naked, the imprisoned, the sick, Christ said “…whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.” (Matthew 25:41-45)

Well, the least we can do for the least of us not yet born is pray that they are allowed to live.

Till next time...

A Patient's Prayer

They descend on you like mechanics in a pit stop at a NASCAR race. But, they don’t bring oil cans, wrenches, hoses or lug nuts. They bring portable x-ray machines, blood pressure wraps and forms to be filled out. They are nurses, the wonderful, compassionate extremely efficient nurses at CRMC. And, they cared for me recently when I was scared into making a pit stop at Cullman Regional.

Chest pains are not to be ignored even when they are suspected to be indigestion, which mimics heart pain. (That’s why it’s called “heartburn”.) No, I have had bypass surgery and ablation for a fibrillation episode, so, although I have reflux disease, these were a little worse.

Even though an EKG revealed no heart problem, my doctor urged me to admit myself into the hospital to rule out angina. I’m embarrassed to say it took me four hours to act on that advice. Hey, I had stuff to buy at Wal-Mart! (Why do we do the stupid things we do?)

Not long after I checked in- the truth is while I was driving over- I prayed. “More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams”, I thought. Isn’t it fascinating and wonderful that we usually turn to God when what seems like the train of our life feels like it’s going off the track. Of, course, when there is a real wreck, we always turn to Him. Unfortunately, some of us pray for help while others scream “ why me? ”

The belief in prayer is part of the Christian DNA. The New Testament makes several references to the extraordinary power of prayer. A good example: Matthew 17:20, Jesus said to His Apostles, "Truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you

Yet the Bible does not simply depict prayer as a means for submitting petitions to God, but at times portrays it as a method of obtaining personal strength. Best example, for my money, was Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane petitioning to be relieved of the burden, “Father, if it be possible, let this chalice pass from me”. and strength to bear the agony, “Nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt….” ( Matthew 26:39)

In Psychology of Prayer, the authors suggest that “ belief in prayer has deep roots in the human psyche and, although it may be suppressed by rational and scientific debate, it often resurfaces at times of distress for it is a primary language for communicating with the supernatural world.”
So, I prayed there would be no problem when the test results arrived and the strength to bear whatever problem those tests might reveal. Were my prayers answered? As the late Bishop Sheen said so memorably, “ All prayers are answered. Sometimes God says ‘No’.”
I got a “yes”. There was no problem. Thank God. Literally.

Let us pray.

Happy Birthday America

Happy Birthday, America. You’re what, 234 years old now? How about that!

It seems like yesterday when you sent that wonderful farewell letter to Mother England. You were declaring your independence. Good for you! Do you remember what it said? Let me read it to you.

“When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

And, here’s the part that’s often quoted: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

Well, isn’t it interesting that God and Creator are mentioned. Unfortunately, these days God is taking a beating. The great men who had the courage to separate from Mother England felt God was blessing their decision and would be watching over them. After listing all of the reasons why they were upset with the King, notice how they ended this declaration with these words:

“And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor”.

How about that? They called upon Divine Providence. It looks like they really never stopped thinking about God.

Guess what. Since they made that momentous decision, we seem to be forgetting that God. Our culture is morally polluted and our environment is physically polluted. It’s safe to say God is not in our thoughts and actions as He once was.

Granted life is different now. But, that’s no excuse for the greed and corruption in government and business and the breakdown of family values. Believe it or not, same sex marriages are gaining acceptance and respectability. Heaven help us.

Another thing. God is not welcome in schools. He’s not to be mentioned in our Pledge of Allegiance or taught that He created the world. Soon, no one will be allowed to say “God bless you” when someone sneezes, for Pete’s sake. We seem to be thumbing our noses at that God.

The good news is you are a beautiful country. In fact a song was written to describe you: “ O beautiful for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain, for purple mountains’ majesty above the fruited plains. America, America, God shed His light on thee and crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea.” There’s that God reference again. That’s the same God your forefathers wrote about.

Well, look. I’m not going to ruin your birthday. Let me simply congratulate you on this special day. Do I dare mention His name again?

OK. God bless you, America.

Advise and Consent

Buckle up. The American Inquisition a/k/a “Senate Confirmation Hearings ” for a Supreme Court nominee has now begun.

You have to wonder why we make such a big deal of these appointments. The Founding Fathers certainly didn’t and they lived in a simpler time when a big deal would have made sense. It’s my guess that they probably never imagined that the ‘power’ to select would someday result in a court of nine people who would resolve life-altering issues. “Miranda” and “Roe v. Wade” come to mind.

The reason, in my view, for the hullabaloo of hearings is the same as what causes the Court, as I wrote last year, to appear like royalty. These are lifetime jobs.

Let’s take a closer look again at how the Court was formed:

The special power to choose (nominate) justices was given to the President : " nominate, by and with the advise and consent of the Senate" and curiously was buried in Article II, Section II of the Constitution. It was stated after " appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls.." and followed by " all other Officers of the United States, whose appointments....",and on and on.

I’m no Constitutional lawyer, but, the use of ‘advise’ is also curious. The original meaning from Middle English means ‘consider’ but the generally accepted meaning is the transitive verb ‘inform’ as in “ advise him of his rights”. Certainly, both of these meanings imply “check ‘em out ” for the President who has nominated them, but I gotta tell ya, I seriously doubt they performed like the Congress of our time. The Founders, of course, had no TV.

So, yes, I believe the process is prolonged because these judges remain on the bench for life. Holy smokes! Why? Because the authors of the Constitution wrote,“ The judges, both of the supreme and inferior courts, shall hold their Offices during good behavior.”(Article III/Section I ) Good behavior ? Were they kidding? (At the risk of offending my fellow seniors, how bad can you be at 80 or 90?)

Since the average lifespan at the time was in the mid-40’s, I guess how long they served was probably of no real consequence to them. Today, being considered for a lifetime job would be a big deal in any business and, as far as I know, doesn’t exist in this age of contracts.

In due respect, the Founders really blew this one. But, the Constitution is, as they say, a “living document ”, so, we can and should amend the constitution to create term limits.

If and when this is done, these Congressional hearings with televised posturing that gives birth to sound-bites might mercifully disappear. And, the important process will be in better proportion to the simple task of confirming a nominated person to perform an admittedly critical responsibility.

Too bad, by the way, the Founders didn’t include “during good behavior” when establishing Congress. We probably wouldn’t need term limits!

The Church Will Prevail

Like a recurring nightmare, sex abuse by some priests is again in the news.

What seems to have been the index finger to the lips, the ‘don’t tell’ attitude of the bishops and, heaven help us, the Pope, is getting wide media coverage. That has the unfortunate effect of exaggerating the extent of the despicable behavior of a few priests. Simply put, it sounds like the Catholic Church is filled with pedophile priests. Not true. Not fair. It’s as if some critics are lying in wait to attack the Catholic Church.

The good news is that the bishops have long been aware of the abuse of some priests. Eight years ago, they examined the problem and have since been dealing with it. The bad news is that there was a problem in the first place.

In 2002, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) commissioned the John Jay College of Criminal Justice for a thorough study for the years 1950-2002. Their findings were sad and shocking: a total of 4,132 priests of the 109,000 priests who were active during that 52 year period were accused of sex abuse with minors. Although the total represented, roughly, only 4%, even one priest accused should stagger the mind http://www.bringyou.to/apologetics/PriestAbuseScandal.htm

Why did the Catholic Church tolerate this depravity in the holy priesthood for so long? Well, I could be wrong, but it sounds to me like the church hierarchy too often considered the abuse as only a sin not also as a crime. And, although some priests were reported to authorities, a few imprisoned, some ‘laicized’ (de-frocked), some sent to rehab and some, strangely, transferred, apparently, mostly, the molesting was considered as committed by ‘one of us’, a parochial attitude that ‘we will deal with it.’ Colossal error.

The Pope, however, is getting unjustly criticized In the one case in Munich, an accused priest was transferred without the knowledge of Cardinal Ratzinger (before he became Pope).In Milwaukee, in an awful case of 200 deaf children being molested, civil authorities were unable to prosecute the accused priest and dropped the charges. Someone from the Vatican- not the Pope-recommended the trial be canceled because the priest was gravelly ill. (He died weeks later).

The disturbing fact remains, however, that two priests committed the dreadful sin of molestation. No excuse. None. Shame on them.

There are those who feel that the Catholic rule of celibacy is the reason for these priests’ sins and they should be allowed to marry. Nonsense. These transgressions were not acts of philandering, but were acts of pedophilia, a recognized mental disorder that is often found among married men. Allowing priests to marry is not the solution. Making sure these pedophiles are never ordained is the only solution.

Having studied for the Catholic priesthood a very long time ago, I believe, however, the rule of celibacy is more than just a rule. It is the price of admission to that life of unparalleled happiness. It is a magnificent sacrifice for the special “calling” for which few are “chosen”. Trust me. Been there and couldn’t quite do that.

For me, then, as a Catholic, these are troubling times. The sins of these priests are disgusting and disappointing, not to mention destructive of innocent lives. Compounding the mess, the apparent failure of the bishops always to report these crimes was disgraceful.

While all of this is disheartening, the Catholic Church will certainly weather this storm. After telling Peter that he was “the rock” upon which “I will build my church”, Christ then said, “and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:18)

Not even the sins of some of her priests.

Sins of the Rich and Famous

Mea culpa, mea culpa.

We are living in a time of public apologies for everything from an actor's drunken racist remark to a traffic cop to admission by a baseball player that he used steroids. My concern here is with public confession of marital infidelity. Big difference.

A little more than twenty years ago, televangelists Jim Bakker and Jimmy Swaggert tearfully begged for forgiveness after revelations of their sexual scandals. In the past few years, we have heard painful, public confessions mostly from politicians but recently from pro golfer Tiger Woods. Honestly, I’m getting weary of listening to “ I am so sorry ” soliloquies about sexual dalliances, these embarrassing confessions of sins by the rich and famous.

Strictly speaking, there should be no public confession since it’s really none of our business. And, while there might have been a private confession with family and clergy, I found it bothersome that, in all these public mea culpas, they never admitted that their behavior was a sin.

Whoa. Sin? I’m kidding, right? No, I’m not.

All Christian faiths have teachings on sin. Catholicism offers this explanation: “To try to understand what sin is, one must first recognize the profound relation of man to God, for only in this relationship is the evil of sin unmasked in its true identity as humanity’s rejection of God and opposition to Him” (Catechism Catholic Church)

Christians believe that God made us in His image to enjoy the world He had created. Our very first parents disobeyed God’s command and chose to eat an apple because Satan, the fallen angel, said it would make them God-like. That was the first or original sin. Simple, yet horrifying: an offense against God.

It amazes me how often we see celebrities raise their eyes to heaven and thank God, their “Lord and savior, Jesus Christ”, whenever receiving awards or how often we watch as athletes point to heaven whenever a touchdown is scored or a home run is hit. Yet, we never see or hear a politician or professional athlete point to heaven and apologize or express regret for breaking one of God’s commandments.

While we recognize that our behavior is sometimes socially unacceptable, Christians seem to shy away from labeling it as sinful. (In due respect, Tiger did, however, express regret that he had drifted away from the teachings of his Buddhist faith.)

OK. Maybe it’s hopelessly naïve to suggest that these confessions by Christians, couched in apologetic language, should indicate there were sins committed but, that’s what these transgressions were. Forgive me, but, I think we have lost our way, probably because it’s no longer the ‘straight and narrow’.

The good news is that the rich and famous are confessing their sins.
The best news is that God forgives us of our sins when we repent. What better time than Lent to reflect not only on our sins but on the act of supreme love that Christ showed by His passion and death to redeem, to pay for all our sins.

The Catholic prayer in confession is really worth repeating:

“O, my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee. I detest all my sins because I dread the loss of heaven and the pains of hell. But most of all, because I have offended Thee, my God who are all good and worthy of all my love. I firmly resolve with the help of Thy grace to confess my sins, do penance and amend my life.”

In this “one nation under God”, that trusts in God, swears by God, we apparently cannot say that we have offended God