Annunciation

Now is the time we need to pray! Let's ask the Blessed Mother to intercede for us as we offer roasries for the life of the unborn.

The Annunciation is a most wonderful feast day. Tne joy that comes to you when you hear for the first time that you are going to have a child. There is, of course, a moment of terror; especially if the child is your first. How are you going to raise the child? What are your dreams and hopes for your child? Are you ready to be a parent? Yet, the news of conceiving is joyous, and it was joyous as well for not only Mary, but for all of heaven, as they waited for her answer, her "yes." Ask the Blessed Mother to pray for you as well as you begin or as you continue your life as a father or as a mother. And pray for your children every day.

Eight is Enough

Just watched the opening theme song from Eight is Enough on youtube. That was such a great show. I always identified with the show because I was also one of eight children. It was a great family drama/comedy that really highlighted relationships especially between brothers and sisters. They don't make shows like this any more.

As Holy Week approaches, it is a good time for us to reflect on the role family has in our own lives. Families are the domestic church, and it is here that we first hear about God, about Jesus Christ, and about sacrifice. At least, ideally, this is where we first hear about these things.

Sacrifice is very important in a family. We are born and immediately become selfish. We cry when we are hungry, when we are tired, when we need to be changed and when we just want to be held. As we go through the early years, we are still self-centered and want things to be our way. But our parents are responsible for teaching us that as a member of a family, you have certain chores and responsibilities that you are given. It is also through their love for you that they teach you discipline so that you can see that other people and other people's feelings, do matter. Sacrifice is when you realize that you are not to always get things your own way but that you are willing to take a back seat and allow someone else to have their way.

When sacrificing entails fasting and almsgiving as well, you learn to think of others while at the same time you deprive yourself of a good. It is here, when done with the right intention, that you grow in relationship with our loving God as well as learning to love others in our lives. And this is the message of the Gospel: Love God with your whole, heart, mind, soul and body and to love your neighbor as yourself.

Are we there yet?

It seems spring is finally around the corner, and with spring comes a fresh outlook. The warmer weather brings sunnier dispositions. As we continue our journey through Lent, there are many things we can work on in our spiritual life. Lent is a time for prayer, fasting and almsgiving. It is a time for you to spiritually renew your relationship with God and with your neighbor, and if you are married, your spouse. Ask yourself, is God first in your life? And if not, why not? When God comes first, it is not at the expense of your spouse, for your spouse will receive many benefits if they see that you are in relationship with our Creator. He has brought you and your spouse together, and he is the one who keeps you together, if you ask him to be a part of the marriage.



Last week, we ran an episode on theology of the body. This is a very important teaching from Pope John Paul II, concerning how we relate to each other, within marriage as well as outside of marriage. How do you view your body? And how you view your own body will in many cases determine how you view the body of members of the opposite sex, especially your spouse's.



We will never change the culture of death until we begin to change ourselves and transform our own marriages into a culture of life. Culture has taken away from you your self-worth because culture has decided that it knows the difference between good and evil, and it is opposite what our Catholic Church teaches. Know what our faith teaches, study it, pray about it, and then live it. It is the only true path to true freedom.

Labels

We have a tendency to hide behind labels. It is a normal security measure, for if you are able to label someone, you don't have to worry about meeting them where they are. You can be secure in feeling superior because you think differently than they do.



The use of labels will also affect our friendships as well. But, the highest form of friendship, that between a husband and a wife, will be affected by labels and by a difference in opinion in how to raise children. It could be something as simple as the kind of music and movies you allow your children to listen to and watch, or it can get more difficult in regards to books, especially books like Harry Potter. If you and your spouse are not on the same page, your children will sense it. How many times does a child play one parent off of another, without their even knowing it?



But it is a result of the lack of communication between a husband and a wife. It's not a critique or a condemnation. It's just an observation that is played out in many instances and is easily witnessed.



Love one another as I have loved you, says our Lord Jesus Christ.