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Y'all Need Jesus

Two Catholic moms. One faith.

Category: Halloween

Holy, Halloween!?

Halloween

Holy, Halloween!?

October 30, 2017October 30, 2017 abakennedy2 Comments

Dear Susan, I am just going to say it. I have dressed as a witch. This doesn’t mean that I am worshipping the Dark Lord or practicing Wiccan incantations. I just like a good Halloween celebration, a fancy hat, and a black tutu. Also, pointy shoes give you a more elongated leg line. For years,… Continue reading Holy, Halloween!?

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My great-aunt’s husband Luther died in the invasion of Normandy, 75 years ago today. Luther was also, to quote my aunt, “a mean son-of-a-gun” and a fairly poor excuse for a husband. Do his personal failings take away from his sacrifice? Do they make his actions on the beach that day less heroic? We know God uses flawed vessels to do His work—just look at the murderous acts of David and Saul, but whose works for the Kingdom of God are immeasurable. Maybe God used the fear Luther felt that June morning to break his anger and pride. Maybe his weaknesses as a man served some purpose in the fight that day. All I know for sure is that Luther was an ordinary man, in an extraordinary time, and whatever his flaws, Luther was part of a tremendous force for good in the world. We look at those black and white photos from 70-some years ago and see heroes, and they certainly were. But seeing only an idealized heroism loses the humanity of those men. Look at their faces. They are our husbands, our sons, our fathers. They are strong and brave and decent but also weak and scared and flawed. It is their very ordinary-ness that makes their heroism so profound. To sacrifice your very life for the welfare of another, to move forward when every fiber of your being says to run—it’s an unimaginable reality for all of us save first responders and military. And most of those men were neither. They were farmhands and teachers and factory workers. They were ordinary. But God used their ordinary heroism to break the back of evil. So Luther might not have been a good husband or even a good man. But his sacrifice for justice and peace was for good—and that’s extraordinary. #dday #dday75 #greatestgeneration #heroes

This morning, on my way to an appointment, I stumbled upon a “reproductive rights” rally in the parking lot of the train station in a neighboring town, complete with our governor and congresswoman. I said a quick prayer and was about to continue on to my meeting when one of the signs in the crowd caught my eye. “Shout Your Abortion!” it read. I felt myself tear up, saddened by the pain that woman must hold, and by the pitiful irony of championing abortion on this Feast of the Visitation, when we Catholics celebrate the faith and trust of two mothers with unplanned pregnancies. Her sign didn’t seek measured conversation about a difficult subject, it was an in-your-face exultation. A celebration of choosing to make oneself god, with right and wrong dictated by what we feel, what we want. How different is our example of Mary as she visits Elizabeth. “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord. My spirit rejoices in God my Savior. For He has looked with favor on His lowly servant.” Mary is joyful, not angry. Mary is trusting, not self-righteous. Mary is humble, not arrogant. Even in her own condition, she chooses to serve her cousin, to offer support to the heavily pregnant Elizabeth. I think of the Marys in our own word, those who walk beside women with unplanned pregnancies. The Sisters of Life, who provide support and love not only to the pregnant, but to those who have undergone abortions. Or the wonderful folks at the Gladney Center for Adoption, whose work gives homes to so many children, including my two wonderful godchildren. Those of us who are saddened by signs like the one I saw need to be Mary, too. How can we be a blessing to those facing the challenge of an unplanned pregnancy? Maybe we aren’t called to join the Sisters or to adopt, but we can volunteer our time and donate our treasure to organizations that are Mary to the Elizabeths. And we can certainly do what Mary did, and continues to do. Pray for the unborn, for the mothers and the fathers and for all of us, that we may learn to trust God just as she did. #chooselife #sistersoflife #adoptionrocks #adoption #rachelsvineyard #gladneycenter #feastofthevisitation #visitation

So. Does that picture of us on our knees sum up this weekend? Does that picture of us rocking our ridiculous “prom dresses”? Or is it this? A beer, a lazy river and a new friend, younger than most of our kids but with a wisdom and a life experience we were blessed to embrace. @summerbaer89 @chandi_owen @bigsistertam #geniusconference2019 #sisterhood

Happy feast of St. Matthias the Apostle. Or, as it’s also known, the feast of You-Should-Have-Picked-Me-First. #catholic #saintmattis #feastday #insidecatholicbaseball #notjudas #catholiclife #apostle

“Do you love me?” How many times have we denied Christ? More than the three times Peter did, certainly. Today’s Gospel teaches us that as He forgave Peter his denial, our denials are forgiven through reconciliation. This statue is at the site of today’s Gospel, on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. #catholic #doyouloveme? #stpeter #simonpeter #seaofgalilee #catholiclife #galilee #holyland

This Sunday's gospel is that oldie but goodie, the story of doubting Thomas. Have you ever wondered why Thomas wasn't with the other disciples when Jesus appeared in the Upper Room? Maybe it was bad luck, just his turn to make the falafel run. But maybe it was more than pure chance, maybe Thomas chose not to be there. The disciples gathered in the Upper Room to share meals, to be a family. This family had just suffered a great loss; surely sadness, confusion, even anger and guilt afflicted them all. Maybe it hit Thomas in a particular way and he withdrew. Maybe Thomas was depressed. Did the apostles understand Thomas's pain? Did they sense that his crisis of faith sprung from a deep sadness or even anger at the loss of Jesus? I'm sure they missed him at the table, grieving Thomas' absence just as we grieve that of the Thomas's in our own families. The divide can feel unbridgeable when the pain of depression, or anger, or guilt keeps loved ones isolated and away from the table. I imagine Jesus in the Upper Room looking at his beloved friends and feeling that same pain for the one who was missing. While Thomas is often cast as somehow sinful in his unbelief, and we by extension, maybe Jesus was simply sad that Thomas wasn't at His table. After all, did he harshly castigate Thomas for his lack of faith? No, He allowed him to draw near, to touch Him, encouraging Thomas to return to the family of believers and to have peace. For those of us who have struggled with the pain of depression, with the pain of an estranged family member, indeed with any of our human brokenness, isn't peace what we so desperately seek? At that moment, when Thomas returned to their family, Jesus offered Thomas that greatest blessing, peace. May we try to recognize the burdens those around us carry, and may the peace of Christ bind the wounds in our hearts, in our families, and in our times of unbelief. #doubtingthomas #faith #catholic #gospel #depression #discipleship #mentalhealthawareness

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