The Tightrope: Reflections For Busy Catholics

Advent brings forth this image of the perfect family (Jesus, Mary, and Joseph) that few of us can relate to, but we forget the the family tree of the Holy Family is actually pretty messy. If you go back in Scripture, there is a lot of sin and suffering in the lineage of Christ on earth. But God can use our broken family stories to bring about his salvation. In this Advent season, let us pray and hope and invite Emmanuel into our lives. Snippet from the Show “The God who saved us through the blood of his son is not unaware of how terrible the reign of sin and suffering and death is. God is breaking into the brokenness of our family situations, into the mess of the Church.”

We know we should “Give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:18) but what does that look like from day-to-day? It’s one thing to practice gratitude one day a year, but let’s carry this practice in our families, workplaces, and communities. Here are three ways to get in the habit of thanksgiving: Conversational gratitude - talk to others about what you’re thankful for every week. A good way to do this is by talking about the highs and lows you’ve had throughout the week. You can also get in the habit of singling out one person everyday and sincerely thank them for being a gift. Interior gratitude - cultivate an interior practice of thankfulness everyday, especially when it comes to hardships and challenges, because God gives us everything for a purpose—to sanctify our souls. Eucharistic gratitude - “eucharist” literally means “thank offering.” Offer up your gratitude to God at each and every sacrifice of the Mass. Snippet from the Show “As soon as an intentional practice of gratitude becomes a pray

The title of Jesus as Christ the King has been at the forefront lately with the release of Kanye’s album, Jesus is King. But Kanye isn’t the first to proclaim the kingship of Jesus. As we look forward to celebrating the Solemnity of Christ the King this Sunday, let’s take a look at a couple of great martyrs who offered their lives up for Jesus Christ: St. José Luis Sánchez del Río and Blessed Miguel Pro. St. José Luis Sánchez del Río was a fourteen-year-old boy who was tortured because he proclaimed Christ to be King. They told him they would stop and let him go if he would just deny Christ, but he refused, even unto death. Blessed Miguel was a Jesuit priest who operated in secret and refused to stop offering the sacraments to his flock. He was caught and executed while crying out, “Viva Cristo Rey!” or “Long live Christ the King!” This Sunday, remember those who so believed in Christ the King that they offered up their very lives for the sake of his kingdom. Snippet from the Show “Proclaiming Jesus to be the

It’s difficult to protect our kids from everything online, but there’s a simple thing you can do that can have an impact: check their phones. This will 1.) reinforce the fact that nothing posted online is anonymous and 2.) give them an excuse to opt out of questionable sites and behaviors because they know their parents will be periodically checking up on them. This goes for apps like TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, and even gaming platforms. Just having eyes on what your kids are up to on their phones can have a big impact on their online habits. Snippet from the Show “What happens online is not anonymous.”

Many of us are familiar with “The Talk”—the extremely awkward conversation you had with your parents where they vaguely referred to birds and bees and flowers and everyone avoided eye contact. It doesn’t have to be that way! By rooting “The Talk” in JPII’s Theology of the Body, we can hopefully change the conversation to be less about sex, and more about the beauty of God’s plan for men and women. More than a single conversation. Don’t wait until your kid is in high school to begin talking about this. There are ways to talk about the goodness of the body and marital love in age-appropriate ways. Call it like it is. Refer to body parts by their actual name. Let them know that these things are not bad things, they are private things, deserving of respect. Reinforce that the body is a good. What we do with our bodies is how we express love. Sex is an extension of what we are and who we are. We were made for love, and union, and sex gives us the opportunity to partake in the creative power of God. That is a very

The body of Christ stretches throughout time and space, and the Feasts of All Saints and All Souls Day remind us of that supernatural reality. One of the ways we know the saints are in heaven is because of their good work on earth. On All Saints Day, we praise God for the example of the saints and we ask them to intercede for the souls on earth and in purgatory. On All Souls Day, we pray for the “saints-in-waiting”—the souls who are in purgatory. These souls wait to behold the face of God, but the pain they experience in purgatory is productive, perfecting them and preparing them to meet their creator. Those of us on earth who hope to be saints deal with difficulty each day, but there is nothing we go through that is wasted suffering. Our striving on earth can be offered for our salvation and for the salvation of those suffering in purgatory. Let’s all strive to be saints. Let’s offer everything we experience in union with the Mass so we can become the saints we were created to be. And if you think you c

Reflecting on Pope John Paul II’s encyclical Redemptor Hominis, Colin reminds us that Christ the redeemer is the center of the entire universe and all of human history. But is he the center of your own personal universe and your own personal history? As Catholics, we need to re-situate Jesus Christ as the center of our reality. Everything we do, say and believe should orbit around him. The devil is looking to sidetrack us and lead us to focus on anything other than Christ the redeemer. For Catholics, it might be Church politics, our families, our work— even a specific spiritual practice— but if we place any of these at our center, we need to re-calibrate our lives and put Christ back in his rightful place. Only when our lives are reordered around him will we be fully redeemed. _ Snippet from the Show:_ Christ the Redeemer is the center of the entire universe and of human history, but is he the center of your universe?

If you were baptized, you are called to be a prophet. That doesn’t mean that you’ll be predicting the Second Coming, but you are called to speak the truth with clarity and charity. This means comforting the afflicted, and afflicting the comforted. Comforting the afflicted often mean reassuring people of God’s love for them, and his plan for their life. Afflicting the comforted often means speaking harsh truths that people don’t want to hear. 3 Steps to Afflicting the Comforted 1. Make sure you’re actually speaking the truth of God, and not just your personal opinion. 2. Be willing to be rejected and even ridiculed. 3. Be genuinely charitable. Snippet from the Show “A prophet doesn’t speak their own words, they listen to the Word of God and then speak it with clarity and charity.”

Jesus used parables to explain the Kingdom of God to his disciples to help them understand supernatural truths by relating them to everyday occurrences. So what would a modern-day parable look like? Maybe it would involve a backpack, lost in a field, that is finally restored after much searching and anxiety. Perhaps there is more joy in finding one lost backpack than in having 99 at hand. Snippet from the Show “When Jesus taught about the Kingdom of God, he used familiar things.”

Isn’t it funny how the things that we consider good for us are also in line with Church teaching? Trendy wellness practices like daily gratitude, fasting, and meditation are all things great Catholic saints have been doing for centuries. St. Thérèse of Lisieux’s Little Way is a great example. By focusing on heaven, St. Thérèse was able to radiate joy in this life. Here are three good practices for wellness and heaven from St. Thérèse. * Gratitude - not just gratitude for the good things in life, but also for our suffering. * Acts of love - looking for opportunities to serve others throughout the day, no matter how small. * Building up others - going out of our way to seek the company of those who are on the margins. Snippet from the Show “Those who live for heaven are far more joyful than those who are looking for satisfaction here on earth.”

St. Padre Pio suffered from the stigmata for years, but he’s also the saint who said, “Pray, hope, and don’t worry.” How can a person who suffered from open, bleeding wounds for fifty years just say, “don’t worry”? In uniting his suffering to the cross of Christ, St. Padre Pio was able to find peace. Suffering is inescapable, but this great saint showed us how Christians are called, not to try and avoid suffering, but to use it as a way to grow closer to Christ. So bring all your sufferings, from the inconvenience of a messy kitchen, or bigger problems, like illness and injury, to the altar, and offer them up like Padre Pio. St. Padre Pio, pray for us—and happy feast day! Snippet from the Show - “The experience of Christianity is not to find a way out of suffering, but to find a way through suffering.”

The St. Ignatius prayer for generosity asks God to take away worldly comforts so we can fully rely on him … and it’s quite impactful. You may be thinking, “Why should I ask God to make me uncomfortable?” Catholic prayers and practices that limit our desire for earthly comfort (like fasting, or the Litany of Humility) help us discover that true comfort and peace are in Christ alone. Snippet from the Show “A prayer for generosity is a prayer to lose yourself, and find yourself again in Christ.” St. Ignatius Prayer for Generosity Dear Lord teach me to be generous; teach me to serve you as you deserve, to give and not to count the cost, to fight and not to heed the wounds, to toil and not to seek for rest, to labor and not to ask for reward, save that of knowing that I do your will. Amen.

That feeling when you have a tight deadline, or an unexpected task, or you forgot to do something and are frantically scrambling to get it done ... I call that feeling “franxious”. It’s what Martha experienced when Jesus came to visit (I could see that being stressful) and it happens when you have so much anxiety over something that you’re running around like crazy trying to pick up the slack and it feels TERRIBLE.* Organizational skills aside, getting in the habit of prayer can help alleviate that feeling when you find yourself getting anxious. Make your rest rooted in prayer. When you take a break, do it intentionally with the aim of giving true rest to the body and soul, which can only be found in God. Practice the presence of God. Keep in mind that God is always with you throughout your day. It helps keep things in perspective. Begin and end with God. Start a routine of morning prayer and prayer before bed so your day begins and ends with a conversation with God. *Disclaimer: This episode refers to an

Mary’s Fiat, her “yes” to God to become the mother of the Word incarnate, is the ultimate example of surrender to the will of God. One way we can try to imitate her “yes” is by saying a three-minute prayer three times a day, called the Angelus. The Angelus is said at 6am, 12pm, and 6pm and is structured around three things: the invitation of God to Our Lady, her “yes”, and the incarnation of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. By reflecting on these three things throughout the day, we hold them at the forefront of our minds all day long, and are able to continuously tie everything back to Christ. Angelus (https://ascensionpress.com/pages/angelus) The Angel of the Lord declared to Mary: And she conceived of the Holy Spirit. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Behold the handmaid of the Lord: Be it done unto me according to thy word. Hail Mary .

Are science and religion opposed? A 2016 Georgetown study (https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/why-catholics-are-leaving-the-faith-by-age-10-and-what-parents-can-do-about-it-48918) revealed that a top reason young people are leaving the Catholic Faith is because of a perceived conflict between faith and science. But the Church has been a patron of science throughout the ages, and, many of the greatest scientists (including Galileo) were men and women of strong Catholic faith. In fact, the two go hand-in-hand. St. John Paul said, “Science can purify religion from error and superstition; religion can purify science from idolatry and false absolutes. Each can draw the other into a wider world, a world in which both can flourish.” _Snippet from the Show “It has been the case for a very long time that the development of science (especially in western civilization) has come largely through the Church. It is a myth that there is some long standing grudge match between faith and science.” _

There may not be many holidays this month, but the Catholic calendar gives us plenty to celebrate and lots to ponder. Last week we celebrated the solemnity of the Assumption and this week we will celebrate the feast days of St. Bernard, St. Pius X, and the Queenship of Mary. September and October will continue a parade of great observances. There are lots of ways to bring the calendar to life in your family. Prayers, reading the lives of the saints, sure ... but also fun traditions, special dinners, and decorations can help us to focus on saints and celebrations and bring the monotony out of daily life. (How about blue cupcakes for Marian feast days?) What are your favorite Catholic feasts and how do you celebrate? Let us know. Snippet from the Show “It’s left to our creativity to come up with cultural expressions of the great feasts and focuses of our faith.”

After the recent episode about the Mass, I asked my son Leo if he had any other thoughts for the podcast. His response, "Go to Adoration … even when you don't feel like it." Sounds like great advice to me! In light of the recent revelation that many Catholics in the US do not believe that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist (http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/survey-on-catholic-belief-in-the-eucharist-prompts-calls-for-better-cateche), time spent before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is just what the doctor ordered. The more time we spend before Jesus in the Eucharist, the more our hearts will grow in Eucharistic amazement, and the more our Catholic culture will grow and spread. Adore Jesus and make frequent stops to him in the monstrance, if possible, or the tabernacle in your parish church. What should you do when you get there? St. John Vianney once asked a daily Mass goer, who spent hours in church after each Mass, what he did each day. His simple response, "I look at him and he looks at me." So

Having no control is a fact of life, and it leaves us feeling anxious and stressed. But it’s important to remember that no matter what happens, God is ultimately in power. We’re reminded of that in this prayer from St. Teresa of Avila: “Let nothing disturb you, let nothing frighten you. All things are passing away: God never changes. Patience obtains all things. Whoever has God lacks nothing; God alone suffices.” Snippet from the Show “Ultimately, we will be OK, because the one who loves us and made us is in control.”

Summer is a great time for reading! Here are three books that I find myself returning to over and over again (not including scripture). 1. The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis 2. St. Thomas Aquinas by G.K. Chesterton 3. Love in the Ruins by Walker Percy What’s on your summer reading list? Snippet from the Show “The Great Divorce is a book the catalogues our own brokenness and the pitfalls we need to watch out for if we desire to enter the kingdom of God.”

Prayer often involves looking for a quiet place to sit still and listen for God’s voice, but it can also happen in loud, active spaces. Like while you’re at the gym, or in the car, or even mowing the lawn. If it’s difficult to find time to pray, using these active times can be a good place to start. Snippet from the Show “Our works, joys, and sufferings are all connected to his. Our wounds can be joined to his wounds. Our brokenness attracts his mercy.” Questions or comments for Colin? Email us at thetightropepodcast@ascensionpress.com