After reading How to be an annoying Catholic, I resolved to:
- Laugh more
- Be the real me
- Be unexpected
- Know what I believe and why
- Grow a backbone
- Love - live the example of love the sinner, hate the sin
- Pray more
I think God meant for some of this to be easy. In fact, the list wouldn't have had to exist at all but for our fall from Grace. No, what should be so easy - love one another - is the hardest this we can do. Love has powerful enemies - Fear. Hate. Anger. Bullishness. Contempt. The view of tolerance as a virtue. And more. These are all weapons that we use on each other almost indiscriminately.
I've felt the slings and arrows of all these enemies and these weapons haven't been limited to just "those liberals" attacking "we conservatives". I've noticed that these weapons are used whenever any ideological brethren strays from an approved line of belief. Consider Juan Williams and his ejection from NPR or, more prosaically, the damaged career of The Dixie Chicks when lead singer, Natalie Maines, infamously criticized President Bush on the eve of the Iraqi invasion.
As I sit here mulling matters, sorrowing over the state of my world, and wondering what social calamity will hit us next, I really have to just remind myself to suck it up, quit the pity party, focus on the rules above and pay close attention to the example of Pope Francis who simply "lives it" and that, my friends, is no simple thing at all.
2 comments:
My epiphanies were that if people do not read their Bibles, they will have no faith, which is hard work, as you pointed out, and therefore they will skirt the work, not believe and go their own way, which, of course, means doing things exactly opposite to what we have been taught. Their lives do not contain difficulties, and life is good.
My other, more important epiphany was that I cannot live with the way things are, so I just asked for help. I can't change anything, but if I get help, then I already know from past experience, I will be able to stomach the alterations to our lives. I shall go from there.
Thanks for this link. I couldn't get back in to check, so this is nice.
Yes, it sounds so simple...especially the love part, and it's even very understandable, and it is so extremely hard to do. So hard. Love the sinner and hate the sin, and at the same time, don't take the sin out on the sinner but, instead, witness through actions more than works! Love...so hard to do!
Post a Comment