And Now to Write

This morning, I was thinking a bit about what I would respond if someone who had left the Catholic Church asked me why I choose to stay. While there are a whole bunch of reasons I could give, I would probably focus on two things: the Eucharist and being able to experience God's mercy in Reconciliation. How I could never give up that intimate contact with my beloved. Sitting with that answer, particularly in light of calling the Lord my beloved. In the context of receiving the Eucharist, that is when the Body and Blood of Jesus becomes one with His Church. Two become one flesh. When we eat something, it is literally incorporated into our bodies. 1  In this way, the Divine Bridegroom becomes one with His bride. And, moving along the lines of two becoming one flesh, this union is to bear fruit and bring life into this world that is dying of sin. This is the wedding feast of the lamb - what we call the Mass. In the Eucharist, Jesus gives His Body and Blood to us. He desires to be ...

Well, the new year is upon us! It's a perfect time to reflect on how we've done with our resolutions from last year as we plan new ones for 2020. In that vein, I'm coming full circle with this blog, by revisiting an old topic . Toward the close of 2018, I had chosen my word to focus on for 2019: everything. I wasn't entirely sure what that would mean, but that's what I felt drawn to. While I had spit balled a couple of ideas in that blog post, they only felt like that - sketches of ideas. I had noted that "everything" didn't just mean surrendering everything. It also involved God's presence in every situation, rejoicing in everything, and knowing everything that is good comes from Him. But I didn't quite know where to go with all of that. So, I unknowingly embarked on a mission to answer two questions: Is there something that unifies all of the ways the word "everything" is used in the spiritual life? Is it possible to grow in ...