A potential paradox/friction/confusion/fertile ground for mediation. (Or, I’m just missing a piece of the puzzle.) Justice = rendering what is owed to another 1) Question: What is the “what” that is owed to another? I have an internal sense of what is owed to others. Some words or labels: respect, love, kindness, compassion, help, service. […]
“Live as a contingent being” — caught this phrase from a post by Fr. Stephen. Interesting. con•tin•gent |kən’tinjənt| adjective 1 subject to chance : the contingent nature of the job. See note at accidental. • (of losses, liabilities, etc.) that can be anticipated to arise if a particular event occurs : businesses need to be […]
In further reflection on the song “Laughing With” (see lyrics and this post), the word transcendence has popped into my head. Paradox points to transcendence, to something more. To transcend means to rise above, to see more. It does not deny what is, it just gives a wider vision of what is, depth, a larger […]
The other day in religion class, we were discussing the holy days of obligation with attending Mass. The discussion quickly moved from the focus of worship to the meaning of the word obligation. Unfortunately a dictionary was not at hand, and I felt slightly handicapped at the moment. Several students were heated in their defense […]
I was listening to the homily for today’s morning Mass on EWTN radio as I drove to work. The homilist, Fr. Joseph Mary, paraphrased Dietrich von Hildebrand: The essence of purity is reverence. Fr. Joseph Mary added, “…reverence for the person, reverence for my own dignity, and reverence for God. That is what the essential […]
Ask for repentance in your prayer and nothing else, neither for divine lights, nor miracles, nor prophecies, nor spiritual gifts—nothing but repentance. Repentance will bring you humility, humility will bring you the Grace of God, and God will have in His Grace everything you need for your salvation, or anything you might need to help […]
The word mercy is one of those loaded words with many meanings and connotations. Unfortunately, the modern use of this word has tended to focus on its association with the word pity or clemency. The older meaning of mercy, the one intended in a religious or spiritual context, means so much more. A quick seach […]