My two favorite things: A Review of The Salvation of Doctor Who

This was a great little book! Of course, I'm biased on two counts: I'm a huge Doctor Who fan and a total theology nerd. So to see the two together in one book...that fact alone made me very happy.

Matt Rawle uses Doctor Who, mainly New Who, to illustrate a number of fundamental theological points. I'm Catholic and I can tell you, the theological issues discussed here were so basic, it was no problem that the author is a Methodist pastor. I give this book my seal-of-approval for fellow Catholics who are weary of reading theological books by Protestants.

I did think of connections that he didn't make. Also, I did think some of the connections he made were a bit of a stretch. But none of that was bad enough to make me dislike the book.

It was a good call of the author to concentrate mainly on New Who, although I could see some Old Who fans being disappointed. Concentrating on New Who makes the book more accessible to a wider audience. People like me who were introduced to Doctor Who through the new run are more familiar with New Who than Old Who.

I do have a bit of a confession. Since I wasn't reading this book as part of a small group, I didn't read the questions in the back so I don't have an opinion on those. I live in Upstate NY, so if anyone is doing a small group study up here, let me know. I'm game.

I was given the opportunity to read this book through my membership in Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Abingdon Press for publishing such an awesome little book. This book is available now at your favorite bookseller.

 

Twisty-turny Doctor Who Fun: Royal Blood

Of the three Doctor Who books I have reviewed recently, this has been my favorite.

1) It has the all-important voice of the characters. When you can hear the voices of the actors in your head speaking just as the author writes, you know you are in for a good time.

2) It has a reasonable plot. Yeah, Doctor Who doesn't have to make rational sense, but it's always helpful when it does. When the author takes you from point A to point B in a logical progression, you can just sit and relax and enjoy the story.

3) It does have fun plot twists, though. Like the ambassador with a secret and the thing you're searching for being right beside you the entire time. It makes for a very entertaining read.

There is a bit of a surprise environmental message at the very end, but it seems as if the author was conscious of it and successfully minimized the preachy-ness. I might not have even caught it if I didn't read preachy blogs for a living.

All in all, a very good book. If one is to read all of the newly released "Glamour Chronicles," I'd recommend this one first since it is the best and it doesn't completely revolve around the Glamour like the other two do. It offers a good, brief introduction to this enormously powerful weapon that is the subject of the other two books.

I got the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review through my membership in Blogging for Books. I highly recommend this program if you want to get some books free in exchange for writing about them.

Doctor Who: Big Bang Generation

Or, should I say "big bust"? No, I didn't dislike it that much. As someone who knew River Song long before I read this book, I kept thinking that, 'God, Bernice is a rip-off," but I'm getting ahead of myself.

So, Big Bang Generation features a pyramid appearing in Sydney out of nowhere. It stars the Doctor as played by Peter Capaldi and some older, lesser known characters out of the Doctor Who universe, Bernice Summerfield and her gang.

The book was entertaining enough. It definitely wasn't the best Doctor Who novel I've read. Definitely not the best I've read from this author, Gary Russell. It kept me reading to the end, but at times that push was quite tenuous.

Why? Again, I know and love River Song. I'm relatively new to Who, so this Bernice Summerfield character seemed to be an obnoxious rip-off. I know now that Bernice pre-dates River. I know how Bernice fans felt when River came along.

The first 90 pages were a chore for someone who is not familiar with Bernice and frankly doesn't care for her. Yes, 90 pages, that's almost half the book, was spent on background before the pyramid ever even landed in Sydney. If you love Bernice, you might like the background. If not, it makes for a difficult read.

[Spoiler alert]: I would have preferred if the story started with the Bavarian couple hunting in the woods. It would have been a bit of a fun mystery. And I guess that statement wasn't much of a spoiler at all. Oh, well.

I'd give this book 3 stars out of 5. Not horrible, but definitely not the best. It's difficult to read a book where the first 90 pages are just annoying and you really don't like one of the characters.

I got to read this book through Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review. I love Blogging for Books, they offer an excellent opportunity for bloggers like me to get free books to blog about.

Deep Time with Doctor Who and Trevor Baxendale

Looking for something fun to read? Look no further. Deep Time by Trevor Baxendale is as fun as they come.

Like any good Doctor Who novel, it reads like an episode and you can hear the actors' voices through the dialogue. There is plenty of mystery and your typical amount of 'wtf?' moments. What do I mean? Well, mystery first: you discover very gradually everything you need to know about the the main alien, the Phaeron. Second, 'wtf?': several things are not explained or just ignored. For example, just about everything about a character named Marco. As is true for many aspects of the Doctor Who universe, you just have to take some things at face value and not think too much.

These 'wtf?' moments do not detract from the story and the fun journey to another world with the Doctor. A taste:

'What the hell was this place?' Hobbo wondered aloud, her voice echoing backwards and forwards along the tunnel.

The Doctor either didn't hear her or didn't bother to reply. He strode confidently ahead, using his sonic screwdriver to light the way. The cool green glow revealed what seemed to be an intricate cave system carved out by unknown hands. The circular walls and floor were oddly smooth and etched with obscure markings. 

Hobbo hurried to keep up. 'This is gettin' weirder all the time. Do you know where we're even goin'?'

'I'm trying to home in on the signal from my TARDIS.' The Doctor paused to fiddle with the screwdriver for a minute and then held it up to his ear, listening carefully. 'It's getting weaker all the time, even though we seem to be getting closer. I don't understand...'
'This place is like a maze,' said Jem. 

A blue glow appeared around the corner, and the now familiar robed shape stepped into view. Jem watched in barely concealed awe as the birdlike face turned slowly within the shadow of its hood to look directly at her. Nictitating eyelids flicked across the dark eyes and then the wraith vanished.

'We must keep on,' Jem said. 'Go deeper into the caves. The Phaeron are waiting for us. They're calling us!'

Tell me you don't want to know what 'wraith' is. Even if you don't know what 'nictitating' means.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review from my membership in Blogging for Books. Blogging for Books is awesome! Join them today!

The Drosten's Curse: Yet Another Doctor Who Review

This book was so much fun! I enjoyed every second of it and I'm sure you will to.

The Drosten's Curse is a classic Doctor Who novel featuring the Fourth Doctor and people being eaten alive at a golf course. The mystery is thick and complex. How are all of these people being eaten alive? Who are these creepy twins that seem to appear out of nowhere? Why is their sand in the pool at the resort's spa? Why is the TARDIS going nuts? Who is this weirdo who is so utterly obsessed with the receptionist? And, speaking of obsession, who is this old lady who is obsessed with octopuses and doesn't seem to remember anything?

I am not terribly familiar with the Old Who, so this book was delightfully packed with great little nuggets and facts I'd never heard of. The Fourth Doctor shines in all of his goofy glory. I found myself laughing in surprise as I learned so much stuff about him in so little time.

The novel is a great blend of humor and suspense that will keep you up reading late into the night. All of your questions are eventually answered, but not necessarily in a way you could expect. No one (well, almost no one) and nothing (well, almost nothing) is as it seems at this golf course, hotel and spa.

I got the opportunity to read this book through my membership in Blogging for Books. If you want to get free books so you can blog about them, they are the place to go.

Walking with God in the Season of Motherhood: A Review

I will re-post this review on my regular blog next week, I promise. But in the meantime, I wanted to get my thoughts out on paper here.

Walking with God in the Season of Motherhood is an 11 week Bible study for mothers of all stages, from newborn to college. Based on a personal study written by a mom for another mom-to-be, this book is definitely applicable for the whole season of motherhood and it is full of probing questions to help you with your journey with God.

My only complaints are:

1) It seems as if every day's readings and questions are really stinking long for a busy mom. It took me at least 15 minutes to complete most of the readings. To the book's credit, they do print the Bible verses right in the study so you don't have to look everything up. Also, except for the probing personal application questions, the questions are easy with short answers. I just question if I would have time for this every Monday-Friday. (Btw, there are only 5 study days a week. Which does help give you the weekend to reflect and spend those 15 minutes with the kids.)

2) I would give this book a yellow, caution light for Catholics, especially Catholics who are not firm in their faith. This book is unapologetically evangelical, so the Reformation's "solas," sola fide (faith alone) and sola scriptura (Bible alone), are all over this study. The Church does not teach either "sola." I make it a yellow light, because there is still much good in this study and there is plenty of overlap in Catholic and Evangelical thought.

Now to my praises:

1) It was great to see a systematic application of the fruits of the Spirit to the life of the mother.

2) She challenges the reader to be a better Christian and to put their life in correct order, putting God first.

3) There is a guide in the back for group study.

4) She addresses many of those mothering questions that you typically don't discuss with others, like the drive for perfection.

Balancing the concerns and the praises, I would give this book 4-ish stars.

I was able to review this book thanks to my membership in Blogging for Books. Thank you for the opportunity. Walking with God in the Season of Motherhood is available now in your favorite bookstore.

Doctor Who: Silhouette, A Review

I saw Madame Vastra, Jenny, and Strax on the cover and I knew I had to get this book! These characters are my favorites. In this book, they were depicted flawlessly. I love it when you can hear the characters speak in a book just like they do in the show. Overall, the writing was superb and the book was enjoyable, if you didn't think about it too much.

The book is almost ruined by the plot. Reading the blurb, you'd think the plot would be awesome. Not so much. You do need a pretty complete suspension of disbelief to accept some of the plot twists and the very point of this "most dangerous weapon" (to quote the blurb). Yeah, I know this is fiction, science fiction at that, but I expect my fiction to at least make logical sense if not in this world, than in the world of the book.

I'd still recommend this book to any Madame Vastra, Jenny, and Strax fans who are looking for a fix. Those characters are still awesome and are depicted in all of their glory. Just be prepared for a mental workout trying to make sense of the plot or making yourself not think about it.

I received this book in exchange for a review from Blogging for Books.

Doctor Who: The Crawling Terror, a Book Review

First of all, this book had the most hilarious ending I've ever read. I could easily see a writer thinking up that ending and writing the rest of the novel around it.

Before saying anything else, if you have an issue with bugs. If the idea of large insects really, really freaks you out, you should, unfortunately, look for another Doctor Who book.

This was my first novel featuring the new doctor and it did not disappoint. Mike Tucker wrote in such a way that I could hear Twelve's and Clara's voices saying the lines. You know a Doctor Who novel is good when you can hear the actor's voices and the book almost reads like an episode.

My only complaint is as I was reading, sometimes some plot twists didn't make sense, but they were all explained by the end. Some of the pieces didn't make sense when looked at individually, but they all made a cohesive whole.

In all, I would recommend this to any and all Doctor Who fans. But to repeat my concern about the bugs. If you have entomophobia (fear of bugs), either get over it or find another book. I don't have an issue with bugs and this book almost gave me one.

Thank you Blogging for Books for this great opportunity. You guessed it, I got a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. I don't know why it's taken me so long to find these kinds of programs!

Yes, Virginia, All Pro-Life Issues are Interconnected

I won't lie, I've been looking for an excuse to use this one. Source

So, they are running out of the drug for euthanasia in Oregon because drug companies are refusing to make the drugs used for lethal injections. What?!?! Two things:

1. They use the same drugs for euthanasia that they use for lethal injections? Don't they know that lethal injections aren't pretty nor are they foolproof. Just look at the recent botched executions. Granted, neither of them used the Nembutal. I hope that they don't resort to the new cocktail because of the Nembutal shortage. By the way, Nembutal isn't flawless either. 
2. I am a firm believer that the Holy Spirit works in everything, even those things that we think are immoral or don't like. God doesn't need perfection to do His work. This story has the potential to show people truth. On one hand, since people don't like the idea of murderers being murdered by the state, we're running out of drugs to kill off our sick and dying. Hopefully, that will help more people to understand that murder is wrong whether it's an individual killing another individual, the state killing someone, or a doctor killing someone in the name of "medicine." Where is the consistency in defending the lives of criminals, but not the ill and dying?

I call heaven and earth today to witness against you: I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life, then, that you and your descendants may live -Deuteronomy 30:19

Update

I'm sorry it has been three months since I have updated the blog. I have been busy writing for other sites and doing my Feminists for Life duties. Here are a few of the things I've written while I was gone:

Ignitum Today:

Currently the site is down. I will get those articles once the site is back up.

YOUCATholic.com:

Social Justice Catholic vs. Pro-life Catholic: A False Dichotomy (In part a republishing of a blog from here)

A Meditation on a Baby's Kiss

St. Maria Goretti Revisited

The True Dignity of Women:

Birth Control in the Doctor's Office

Believe Reflections: What is Love?

Would Jesus get a tattoo?

Billboards have been popping up all over Lubbock, TX featuring a tattooed, crucified Jesus.

It directs people to a site called jesustattoo.org. No specific church is taking responsibility for the billboards. In the "About Us" section on the site, those responsible for them say that they are just what they seem, a small group of people who want to lead others to Jesus. Looking at the site, it seems to be pretty theologically neutral. It's definitely Protestant as it features a Sinner's prayer, but I found nothing there that was particularly problematic from a Catholic perspective. It even says that a follower of Jesus needs to belong to a community of believers which is an idea found more readily in Catholic circles.

So, what about the tats?

The Catholic Church teaches that tattoos as such are morally neutral. That said, there are three main factors that could push it over the fence either way.

1. The image used or... 
2. the location of the tattoo could be immoral or inappropriate
3. Your motivation in getting the tattoo could be impure. "Am I seeking to glorify God or draw attention to myself? Will my tattoo be a source of contention for my loved ones? Will getting a tattoo cause me to disobey my parents? Will my tattoo cause someone who is weak in the faith to stumble?" are all good questions to ask (Source).

A big part of the controversy seems to be the idea of Jesus having one. The website features videos where people tell their stories of how Jesus changed their lives. In these videos, an actor playing Jesus changes the tattoos on the new Christians. They were tattooed with words like "addiction" but Jesus changes those tattoos to say thing like "hope." Jesus, in turn, takes the new Christian's old tattoo onto himself. Here, it's easier to show than tell:

 

While the details might be offensive to some, the general idea here is very true and Biblical:

He himself bore our sins in his body upon the cross, so that, free from sin, we might live for righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.- 1 Peter 2:24

For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.- 2 Corinthians 5:21

Jesus is the Lamb of God, not just because he's perfect or because he's cute, but because lambs were used for sacrifice.

Jesus was pure, that goes without saying, but he did bear our sins on the cross and I think that this tattoo idea is a pretty creative way of making that reality tangible for people. It makes a theological idea visual in a society in which we are getting more and more used to getting our information visually rather than verbally.

A tattooed Jesus doesn't bother me, but it can be used as a source for meditation. What tats did He get from me? What sins do I need to confess? What sins do I need to remove from my life?

Reclaiming Halloween

Thursday was my favorite holiday. I love setting out spooky decorations. I love gorging myself on candy. I like watching spooky movies and television shows and telling ghost stories. I think one of my favorite parts of the season, however, is dressing up.

And my son goes, "yeah, candy!"

As I get older, however, dressing up is getting more and more difficult. This year, I had to go as a male lion. My son was a lion and I wanted to follow the theme, but the only female cats out there were the "sexy cats." It's very degrading for a woman to have to choose between being "sexy" or being nothing at all. What does that say to women who don't fit into our society's unrealistic idea of beauty? What does that say to women who do not want to be objectified on Halloween? What about the women who just want to go out and have fun?

And don't get me started on the girl costumes. I don't consider myself a prude but I was shocked by how "sexy" some of the costumes designed for children were.

That is where Take Back Halloween comes in. I wish that I had found this site before Halloween. I know where I'm going next year for costume ideas.

Some of my more religiously conservative readers may take offense at the goddess costumes or some of the choices of heroines, but I think we can all agree that the idea of the site is awesome. The site features instructions on how to buy already made things to put together some awesome costumes for women. You don't have to be crafty to have a cool costume although some of their suggestions are not cheap.

It's kind of like this project. A photographer did not want her daughter to buy into the Disney princess mythology. She did a series of pictures dressing and posing her daughter as famous women.

My favorite of the series.

She wants her daughter to look up to real women who did great things, not imaginary girls who wait for their prince charming.

This one is also awfully cute and much cooler than a Disney princess.

Not that there is anything wrong with marriage, but the whole princess thing is really unrealistic and demeaning to the female genius. All of those "sexy" costumes are insulting. We are more than our bodies. We are more than our sexuality. We are strong. We are smart. We are passionate. We respect ourselves and we want the men in our lives to respect us too.  

I'm planning on using Take Back Halloween next year. Maybe James and I can find a cool man and woman pair to dress as. 

Maybe Take Back Halloween should branch out to girl costumes. Or somebody else should start one directed at girls. I certainly can't find one. Do you know of any sites like Take Back for girl costumes?

India's "Abused Goddesses" Campaign Opens Eyes

Buzzfeed had a post not too long ago about a deeply moving and fascinating PSA campaign about domestic violence in India. The organization "Save our Sisters" is working to bring awareness to domestic violence and help the victims. More than 68% of women in India are victims of domestic violence. To put that in perspective, in the United States, the rate is 25%.

The ads say, 

“Pray that we never see this day. Today, more than 68% of women in India are victims of domestic violence. Tomorrow, it seems like no woman shall be spared. Not even the ones we pray to.”

The advertisements themselves are incredibly striking and beautiful in a painful and sad way. The advertising company took traditional images of the goddesses and made a real-life recreation. They cover the goddess in bruises and cuts. The props in the pictures are either real or painted on.

The posters feature a phone number to report abuse.

As the Buzzfeed writer points out, this advertisement campaign directly addresses a contradiction in Indian society. They revere many goddesses, but the country remains unsafe for mortal women.

This contradiction can be found in other religious traditions as well. Speaking as a Catholic, I can point out the Catholic devotion to Mary and the Church's long history of social justice. Yet, domestic violence still occurs in some Catholic households.

Here are some of the ads:

Saraswati is the goddess of knowledge, music, the arts, and science. 

Lakshmi is the goddess of wealth.

Knowing the subject of this ad, this is perhaps the most striking of all. Durga is a warrior goddess. She is representative of the victory of good over evil. I have a statue of her in my room (because I like to keep pieces of every part of my religious history). May she give the people of India strength to defeat the evils of domestic violence. 

For a better view of these ads, including close-ups of some of the details, visit the original Buzzfeed article.

Only 2% of the Nation Responsible for the Majority of Our Death Penalty

Earlier this week, the Death Penalty Information Center released a report. They found that 2% of the counties in the United States account for over half of all people on death row and/or executed since 1976. Moreover, they discovered that only 20% of the counties in the United States account for all of the prisoners currently on death row.

The aggressive use of the death penalty by a few counties costs us all money.

When the total costs of the death penalty are divided by the number of executions carried out in a state, the amount can be $30 million per execution. (Source)

This $30 million comes out of our taxes.

Now, before people start in arguing "Well, it would be cheaper to put a bullet in the head" let me share this with you:

• The vast majority of that $30 million is not to pay for the method of execution. It is for the 15 years or more of appeals.

So, you say, "Then let's get rid of the appeals." I say:

• Since 1973, 140 people have been exonerated from death row. That means they were initially found guilty, but through appeals it was found that they were not guilty at all. So, without the appeals, there would be at least 140 innocent people dead. 

Of all the counties in the United States, 85% of all counties have not executed anyone in over 45 years. But in many of those counties, they are still paying for their neighbors who use the death penalty frequently. If you want to know what counties we're talking about:

This map depresses me. As you can see, St. Louis County and St. Louis City both are in the top 15.

For more information, check out the report yourself at: http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/twopercent

Been Busy

Sorry you haven't heard from me in a while. I've been busy on some of my other websites. Here are some of the things I've been writing:

Mary Speaks to All of Us

What I Learned About Marriage From Two Nursing Home Residents

I re-posted my last reflection on Lumen Fidei.

Saint of the Day: Saints Fausta and Evilasius

Some memes I've made:

Confirmation Classes are starting again. Technically, I'm going to be teaching two classes at once which is unheard of in my parish. One of my classes will be ending in November, so it shouldn't be too bad. 

There have been a number of things in the news lately about pro-life and women's issues that I would like to comment on and I'll get to work on that. I just wanted to let you know I haven't disappeared. 

I gotta use this cartoon every excuse I get. Although I'm done with the shameless plugging.

Lumen Fidei #22: Why Does God Allow Suffering?

From #57: To those who suffer, God does not provide arguments which explain everything; rather, his response is that of an accompanying presence, a history of goodness which touches every story of suffering and opens up a ray of light.

In my time as a nursing assistant and later as a chaplain intern, I was asked many times why is there suffering. It came up in many of my classes. I even had one class that dedicated a semester completely do that question in college.

The best I can say is that no one answer is going to work for every person in every situation. If someone who is suffering asks you "Why?" there is no answer you can give that will help them. The best you can do is, if appropriate, help them find an answer themselves and listen to them.

One thing I appreciate about Christianity is that it offers something more than an answer. It offers a God who knows all about suffering and who cares about each and every one of us deeply. Jesus Christ died abandoned by his friends in one of the most horrifying ways imaginable (likely asphyxiation). During his life, he suffered all the pains we do. Friends of his died, notably Lazarus. He lived far from home as he traveled preaching. He felt hunger, he felt thirst, and I'm sure he felt all the other aches and pains that we do.

So when we come to him in our suffering, he understands us intimately. He's been there. He might not be able to tell us why we are suffering, but he can be present to us in our suffering.

This is the last installment in a series of posts reflecting on quotes from Pope Francis' first encyclical. It's been fun and given my background, I think it's very appropriate that we ended with a post about the meaning of suffering. If you want to read more, visit here.

Lumen Fidei #21: God of Creativity

Wikipedia cites it as "God creating the cosmos (Bible Moralisee, French, 13th century)"

From #55: If it possesses a creative light for each new moment of history, it is because it sets every event in relationship to the origin and destiny of all things in the Father.

All things originate in God and all things are destined in God. Out of this fertile ground, creativity grows. God is not stagnate, He is active. You may have heard the quote, "God, to me, it seems, is a verb not a noun." (R. Buckminster Fuller) Like many popular quotes, there is some truth in it and some absurdity. That's beyond the point of this post however.

Creativity and the arts can be holy. Creating and viewing it can lead one to the Divine. As JPII said in his letter to artists:

None can sense more deeply than you artists, ingenious creators of beauty that you are, something of the pathos with which God at the dawn of creation looked upon the work of his hands. A glimmer of that feeling has shone so often in your eyes when—like the artists of every age—captivated by the hidden power of sounds and words, colours and shapes, you have admired the work of your inspiration, sensing in it some echo of the mystery of creation with which God, the sole creator of all things, has wished in some way to associate you.

And for the consumer, a quote from Francis Schaffer as quoted by Joe Carter at First Things:

The arts and the sciences do have a place in the Christian life—they are not peripheral. For a Christian, redeemed by the work of Christ and living within the norms of Scripture and under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, the Lordship of Christ should include an interest in the arts. A Christian should use these arts to the glory of God—not just as tracts, but as things of beauty to the praise of God. An art work can be a doxology in itself.

The creation of art brings the artist closer to God and the consuming of art should bring the consumer closer to God's truth. This is all because all things come from God and all things will ultimately end in God. Art is an important part of this cycle.

This is part of a series of articles reflecting on quotes from Pope Francis' first encyclical. To read more, visit here.

Lumen Fidei #20: Courage to Love

From #52: Promising love for ever is possible when we perceive a plan bigger than our own ideas and undertakings, a plan which sustains us and enables us to surrender our future entirely to the one we love.

We've kind of messed up as a society in our views of marriage. On one hand, we take it so seriously that a lot of young people are scared to take the plunge. They think it's safer and less complicated to just live with someone without getting married. On the other hand, we've lost any sense of permanency. We talk about trial marriages. It's not so much until death do us part, but until we can't stand each other anymore.

It takes a lot of courage to get married. It's not something to do half-heartedly or without thoughtful consideration. In getting married, you are not only changing your own life, but that of another human being. A person that you'll get to spend the rest of your life getting to know and love.

But there is a bit of recklessness involved to. It is called "taking the plunge." After all the thought and prayer, you eventually have to do it. Courage doesn't mean not feeling fear, it's not letting that fear control you. One antonym of fear is faith.

To get married, you have to have faith in a bigger picture. This bigger picture might not be exactly what you think you want. But we have to believe that this bigger picture is what is best, that the Person in charge of the bigger picture only wants the best for us. Marriage is never easy. It will require sacrifice. It will require change.

But all of that sacrifice and change is making you into a better, holier person. The main job of a spouse is to make sure their beloved makes it to heaven. That's one heck of a responsibility and one heck of a reward.

This is part of a series of reflections on quotes from Pope Francis' first encyclical. To read more, visit here.

Lumen Fidei #19: Let Us Build A House

From #50: That faith is not only presented as a journey, but also as a process of building, the preparing of a place in which human beings can dwell together with one another. 

As much as we want to cram religion into the personal sphere, religion cannot be simply personal. If you are close to God, you want to share Him. You want to reach out to other people who are also getting close to God. Something so big cannot be contained. A journey as important as faith cannot be done alone.

When you are baptized, among other things, you are baptized into a community. When my son was baptized, it was important for me that it happened as part of a regular Sunday Mass. We don't have any family in Syracuse and not many friends, but I wanted to share this event with others. I liked the symbolism of having it as part of the Mass, my only regret being that the baptismal font was at the back of the church so most people couldn't see it.

Although my son will never appreciate it, the people who were at that Mass certainly did. We still get stopped after Mass by people who comment on how good he is and how much he's grown. I think sharing that moment with our family helped other people in the parish to adopt our son. He's a part of the parish community in a way that my husband and I will never be. He's had the opportunity to grow up with them and they with him.

If you want to read more about his baptism: How My Son's Baptism Helped Me Heal From My C-Section

This is part of a series of reflections on Pope Francis' first encyclical. To read more visit here.

Three Lessons From A Conversation With A Pro-Choice Feminist

Brought on by my latest post on Ignitum Today, I've been engaging in an enlightening discussion with a pro-choice feminist. I want to share with you some of my observations:

1) Pro-lifers need to do a better job at showing that we are for all life, not just the unborn.

One of the first things that the pro-choice feminist threw at me was the stereotype that "Pro-lifers only care about the unborn." We know that your average pro-life activist working at the grassroots level cares about all children. They donate to or volunteer for crisis pregnancy centers to assist women and children with their practical everyday needs. They start homes for pregnant women, like Joseph's House that is being started soon in my town. 

Yes, for those of us who are religious, our right hand is not supposed to know what our left is doing (Matthew 6:3), but we're only giving fodder to pro-choice attacks. We need to do a better job at showing that we are for all life. We need to put our money where our mouth is.

Source, This site has other cool pics.

Our so-called "pro-life" politicians need to show that they understand that women and children need support (in whatever way they feel comfortable providing that support). Politicians need to realize that being against abortion is not enough to earn the title of being "pro-life."    

2) Conservatives and liberals need to talk to each other instead of demonizing one another. Eventually, she and I both agreed that pro-life and pro-choice people care about the poor and people who are already born. I tried to explain to her one of the main differences I've observed between conservatives and liberals: That conservatives want the social safety net to be local and charity based, while liberals are more comfortable with more government intervention. No one wants to kick the poor out on the streets and no one wants anyone to go hungry.

Liberals and conservatives both need to be willing to talk constructively about their differences. The polarization in our culture needs to stop. We aren't getting anything done and we will ultimately tear ourselves to shreds. Instead of staying in our little corners, we need to talk to each other. 

When we talk to each other, we can work on the the issues we agree on and we can learn from one another. Refusing to talk to one another is simply a sign of being insecure in our own beliefs. It's a sign of anger and hatred. Be a sign of love today: talk to someone who is across the aisle from you.

3) It all boils down to the existential questions of: When does life begin? What is a human? That's where the real argument is. We can go around in circles all day with protest slogans and signs, but in the end, this is the question that matters. When we are debating abortion, we are debating the meaning of being human.

This is a question that everyone, regardless of your opinion on abortion, needs to ask yourself. And keep asking yourself. It's not a question you can answer and then walk away, you need to analyze your answer. Is this really the right answer? Is this universally true? Human lives are at stake both inside and outside the womb. 

Often our answers to what constitutes life inside the womb as implications for those already born as well. For example, let's say you come to the conclusion that life starts when the brain becomes active, what does that mean for our definition of "brain death"?

Science can be used to come to the answer, but science cannot provide the answer. Religion can be used to come to the answer, but religion cannot provide the answer. I think if we could all put down our rhetoric and bickering, we could get somewhere by limiting ourselves to the question at hand: What is a human? 

Source.

Yelling at each other is getting us no where. We are more mature than that. Let's all act like it. 

Hug a conservative/liberal/whatever-you-disagree-with today