In speaking with my friends, I've come across some things that are misunderstood about the Catholic faith. I wanted to explain some things so that the next conversation about religion will require less explanations and then more dialogue can occur with respect rather than with frustration.

So let's start with the top 5 misunderstandings.

1. We do not worship Mary(or the saints). The Catholic Church venerates or honors Mary. She is the mother of God and we honor her as our spiritual mother since we are brothers and sisters in Jesus. That is why we give her flowers, to honor her and remember her importance. Honoring someone is not worship. When we honor our parents, we are not worshiping them. We do not worship her; anyone who worships Mary is committing a grave sin. For Scriptural reference to Mary being given as our mother, see John 19:25-27.

With this said, a distinction between worship and prayer must be made. True worship (as opposed to veneration or honor) belongs to God alone, and we should never worship any other creature as we worship God. Worship may take the form of prayer, as in the Mass and other liturgies of the Church, however not all prayer is worship. When we pray to the saints, we’re simply asking them to help us, by praying to God on our behalf, or thanking them for having already done so. This is called intercession. We simply ask those already in heaven to pray on our behalf. It is exactly like asking your friends or family to pray for you during a difficult time. You aren't worshiping those you ask to pray for you. You are simply asking for help and when we combine our voices our prayers become more powerful and easily heard. For Scriptural reference to the intercession of saints see 2 Mac 15:14; Rev 5:8; and Rev 8:3-4.

For more information on Catholic belief in relation to Mary, please check out this website.

2. Catholicism is not a denomination. It is the Universal Church established by Jesus. The establishment of the apostolic church was done by Jesus. (Matthew 28:16-20; Matthew 16:18-19). The first reference is to Jesus sending forth his apostles to "make disciples of all nations." This shows that Jesus designed the Church to be an apostolic church. The apostles were sent out to preach across the world and to pass on their mission to others.

The second reference is to Simon Peter becoming the head of the Church. Peter translates to 'rock' and so Peter is the rock upon which Jesus will build his church. It is very interesting to note that St. Peter's bones lie directly under the altar in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, Italy.

Jesus meant for there to be only one church and he hand picked the men that he wanted to lead his church and watch over his flock. These men then picked disciples who continued the work and the passing down of discipleship is alive and well in the priesthood of the Catholic church.

3. The Catholic Church assembled the Bible. Here's the part where I have to go to some history books for my information. Most of what I will be writing here will come from this website.

"Melito, bishop of Sardis, an ancient city of Asia Minor (see Rev 3), c. 170 AD produced the first known Christian attempt at an Old Testament canon. His list maintains the Septuagint order of books but contains only the Old Testament protocanonicals minus the Book of Esther.

The Council of Laodicea, c. 360, produced a list of books similar to today's canon. This was one of the Church's earliest decisions on a canon.

Pope Damasus, 366-384, in his Decree, listed the books of today's canon.
The Council of Rome, 382, was the forum which prompted Pope Damasus' Decree.
Bishop Exuperius of Toulouse wrote to Pope Innocent I in 405 requesting a list of canonical books. Pope Innocent listed the present canon.
The Council of Hippo, a local north Africa council of bishops created the list of the Old and New Testament books in 393 which is the same as the Roman Catholic list today.
The Council of Carthage, a local north Africa council of bishops created the same list of canonical books in 397. This is the council which many Protestant and Evangelical Christians take as the authority for the New Testament canon of books. The Old Testament canon from the same council is identical to Roman Catholic canon today. Another Council of Carthage in 419 offered the same list of canonical books.
Since the Roman Catholic Church does not define truths unless errors abound on the matter, Roman Catholic Christians look to the Council of Florence, an ecumenical council in 1441 for the first definitive list of canonical books.
The final infallible definition of canonical books for Roman Catholic Christians came from the Council of Trent in 1556 in the face of the errors of the Reformers who rejected seven Old Testament books from the canon of scripture to that time."
The Catholic Bible includes 7 Old Testament books that Protestant Bibles do not include. We share the exact same New Testament. Maybe with different translations but we share the books. The Old Testament books that have been left out from Protestant Bibles deal with prophesies about Jesus, his mother Mary, and Eucharistic worship.

4. Reading the Bible is important for all Christians. The Catholic Church believes that all believers should read the Bible. However, the Bible cannot be interpreted solely by individuals. We are flawed and the enemy will attempt to make us believe that we don't need help understanding the writings from 2000+ years ago. Priests go through 6 years of formation and theology education to begin to grasp the importance and the context from which the Bible is written. More of this is covered in the next topic.

5. Our beliefs are centered around two things: Scripture and Tradition. Since the Church came into existence before the Bible was formed into what we know it today, Catholics fall back on the Church traditions that came into being during the teachings of Jesus Christ. Scripture is equally important to the traditions set forth by Jesus and by his apostles and their disciples.

One of the most beautiful things I've found about the Catholic Mass is that in about 3 years time of going to mass every Sunday and day of obligation you will have the entire Bible read to you through songs, prayers, and readings. Just about everything in a mass has a scriptural basis. From the opening to the closing you are surrounded by scripture and tradition. Both meld beautifully into one worship of the Lord. And no matter what Catholic Mass you attend, no matter where it is, you will be able to walk in and instantly be able to follow along.

I hope this has helped you to clear up any misconceptions or misunderstandings that you may have had about Catholicism. I pray that you have a wonderful day and that you always be blessed. God bless you and keep you.

God is perfect love

So I saw today that the hacker group Anonymous has removed the Westboro Baptist Church's websites from the internet. Personally, I'm thrilled. I've never understood how someone who claims to be a follower/worshiper of God can say that God hates anything. God is perfect love and yet that is not even close to the truth of God. He loves us all perfectly even though we may not understand how or why. So why do people feel the need to say things like God hates ________. How can you believe in a God that hates anything? It's hard for me to understand this. I've never understood the need to play the us and them game. The truth is that there is no them. There is only us. We are all together on this world and we need to open our eyes beyond what is comfortable for us and realize that different people are not the enemy. Different people just have lived differently and experienced differently and think differently. Different people aren't weird or bad or evil. They just are. We should all understand the two commandments that Jesus gave to us: Love God and love your neighbor. It's as simple as that. Maybe one day we'll all understand and stop killing each other over the most pointless of things.

A Year In Review

This will probably be just me musing back on this past year. It helps me to see that I've been through a lot and that whatever is ahead of me I can make it through. So let's start with the things that made this year bad.

- I moved out on my own. Now this is will be listed under my good things of the year, but this is a bad thing because I've had to become the thing that I've always tried to avoid. Become serious/adult.

- I am a sandwich delivery driver. While I love my job, it's not what I want to do forever and I fear that if things in the economy don't improve, I'll be driving until retirement.

- I've become disconnected from my family. Being about 250 miles away makes it a bit difficult to see my family. Plus I hate talking on telephones. It feels so impersonal, so there's not a lot of communication that goes on between me and my family. It saddens me, especially when I hear about my dad and think about how I probably only have a few years left with him.

- My dad and brother have disowned each other. While at times this is amusing and at the best of times it's expected, at the worst of times this causes my mom and myself to feel split. Both are stupid for being such babies about the whole situation and I want to tell them as much but nobody listens to the youngest.

- No more school. I have graduated from college with my Bachelor degree. Most of you reading would call me crazy. But for me, school was my safe-place. It was where I could really be me and I was challenged everyday. Everyday was a new experience and yet it had my need for a routine satisfied. I miss taking tests and writing papers. I guess that's part of the reason why I've been writing in this blog. I miss being given work to do and feeling the accomplishment of completing an assignment. I miss talking to my professors and learning. I miss it all.

- Work. Like I said earlier, I like my job and at times I love it, but I want more. I've earned more and yet I'm being beaten out of entry-level positions by people who have 5-10 years of experience in the field. Welcome to the economy where the richer get richer and the poorer get poorer. Oh well, at least I have a job, I know a lot of people can't even say that and it's a sad day in the USA when people who want to work can't because greedy corporations don't feel like hiring more people or paying their people better so that they can go out and spend and boost the economy which then creates jobs, but that's another rant for another day.

So those are the not so good parts of this past year for me. On to the good things that have happened. Cause you always want to end happy (if you can).

- I graduated. I love the accomplishment that I have earned. I'm very proud of myself. I'm the 3rd person on my dad's side of the family to get a college degree and I'm the 3rd person on my mom's side as well. I hope to be able to get into my field of work sometime in this upcoming year. Maybe tax season will help me out with that.

- I'm living on my own. I'm free to be my own person. Away from the parents and now in charge of taking care of myself. I'm still learning all the tricks to surviving on my own but I've got a good bit of it figured out. My wonderful fiance has helped me where I needed the help.

- I've got amazing friends who would help me out with anything. My friends are some of the best in the world. I may be a bit biased but I wouldn't trade them for all the money in the world. I wouldn't be able to make it without them and I don't tell them enough. So my friends who read this, know that you have earned a spot in my heart and that if I call you friend that means I would willingly give my life for yours. That's how much you mean to me. I just wanted ya'll to know that I appreciate how you have my back and I want you to know (if you didn't already) that I've got yours.

- I have an amazing fiance who brightens my world and has helped me to better understand myself but also better understand my beliefs. He is wonderful and I couldn't imagine my world without him in it. Everyday with him is the best day of my life and I can't wait to get to the day where he and I are bound together in a bond so solid and secure that only divine intervention could break us apart. He's made me a better person and loves me for all of my faults. In fact he tells me often that my faults are the best part of me because they are who I really am. He's helped me understand my life and my religion in a way that no one else could. He is my other half, my better half....and I pray that we are blessed one day to create a little person who is the best parts of us both. This year would not have been nearly as wonderful as it has been without him here to hold me when I cried, to push me when I was scared of taking that first step, to listen to me rant, to trust me with his heart, and to ask me to spend the rest of my life with him. He is my whole world and he has made me better for it.

So, this has been my best and worst parts of this year. Here's to next year being as wonderful and terrible as the last (since the terrible parts make the wonderful parts all the more enjoyable and wonderful). See you in the new year. God bless you and keep you and yours.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

If You Don't Like It, Don't Read It!!!!!!

My favorite hobby is people watching. I find it very interesting to watch people and just observe them. I also listen to those around me. I don't really talk much mainly because I'd rather learn how others observe the world than interact. Also, I'm not knowledgeable about most things so I live by the wise words "it is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt" (Unknown). And yet, through all of my observations, I find that most people don't actually know anything about what they're talking. It entertains me to listen to people talk at each other. I say 'talk at' because to actually speak and have a discussion requires that you talk to and listen to the people you are conversing with. Most times I just want people to talk less and listen more.

Now don't get me wrong...I'm all for people expressing their opinions, but I believe that if you get to express your opinion freely then I get to express my opinion freely as well, even if you don't like my opinion. So many people miss the point of having opposing opinions. The goal is to express different viewpoints and to expand our understanding of those that exist outside our safety box. People shelter themselves from everything that disagrees with their beliefs and they have the magical picture box turned to the channel that will repeat their own opinions back to them and say to themselves 'see I'm right'. While that may make us happy, it does nothing for the benefit of society. We get stuck in ruts and never learn how to express our opinions. I have this problem a lot. I find that I can't always explain what's in my mind clearly. But I've started listening to those people who disagree with my opinions and thoughts; through their expressions I learn what they believe and I can better explain myself since I see the world from their perspective. We can always use a step outside of ourselves and see the world from another perspective. That's why from time to time I like to sit on my couch upside down and look around. You'd be surprised how flipping something upside down can drastically change the way it is observed.

BUT....yes, I'm about to possibly contradict myself a bit. Maybe. While you should allow others to express themselves without interruption...this does not apply to the magical picture box(tv) or the magical talking box(radio) or even the magical connected box(computer/internet). If you don't want to see something, listen to something or read something you don't have to. You can change the channel, station, or website with a click or push of a button. If you don't want to hear that new rap song about drugs and hookers....don't listen. If you don't want to look at a that nude picture of whoever....don't look. If you don't want to watch Keith Olbermann poke fun at Bill O'Reilly or watch Bill O'Reilly yell at another guest....DON'T WATCH.

Also, if you don't like something, don't try to ban it. That just gives it credibility. If you don't like it, don't look/read/watch/listen/whatever. And teach your children your morals and let everyone else teach their children their morals. So the moral of the story: CLOSE YOUR ENDLESSLY FLAPPING FLAPPER AND LISTEN, AND IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT, DON'T LOOK AT IT.

Elections continued

So in continuing with the topic of elections, I wanted to bring up the point of the electoral college and how the president is elected. The electoral college is 538 electors that are selected by the state parties. These electors pledge to vote for specific candidates but are not required to vote that way. They can change their mind if they so choose. These people are suppose to vote the way of the people, but here's the problem with that. The states that have the most electoral votes, are the most important. Duh right? Well, the popular votes of those states determines who wins because they have a winner-takes-all system in which the person that wins the plurality of votes. "A plurality just means the biggest percentage of the votes." So there are people who vote one way but are ignored because they're in a state where the majority there votes the other way.

There is one option that I really like that would really elect the president based on who the people wanted. That would be a proportional allocation of the votes in which the electoral votes would be divided according to the percentages won by each candidate. Imagine that. If you lived in a red state and you voted blue, then the candidates would get the votes based on how the people actually voted. Your vote would be counted. It would matter. People might actually take the time from work to go and vote. Imagine, being able to go out to a voting area and knowing that you matter, that you have power. Gives me a bit of a buzz thinking about how things would change. Politicians would have to pay attention to everyone, make sure that they were giving everyone the same attention or they might lose some major votes. Also, imagine that system, it would actually give the independent parties more ability to actually, legitimately run and hell one day they might win.

Imagine all the possibilities. And the best thing about this option? It doesn't require an amendment to the constitution. Wow. All the power being returned to the people. To the place where it's suppose to come from. Then the government might take notice and be afraid of its people instead of its people being afraid of it.

But, don't just take what I say and repeat it. Make up your own damn mind. I'm just putting my opinion out here for everyone to read. Let me know what your opinion is. I'm always up for listening. Also, a commenter made a really great comment on the last post. Go read it for more info. It went a bit over my head but it's another opinion and idea for us all to take in and understand. So, until next time, keep reading, learning, and thinking for yourselves. Because you really do have the power to change your world. All you have to do is make a choice and stick with it.

Chapter 1: Elections

I'm going to be honest on here and tell you that I've never really understood how elections worked. All I knew was that you go somewhere, fill out your ballot, turn it in, and go home. I never really understood what the Electoral College was or what it did or how it even mattered in today's elections. After reading this chapter though, I know now that I was seriously mistaken.

There are three key points in this chapter that I thought deserved a thorough talking about since so many of us don't really know that much about the elections that run our country. The first is Gerrymandering which is "the practice of drawing congressional districts to influence the outcome of elections based on demographic information. Used by both parties, it can render some voters' interests almost irrelevant and tends to help incumbents." I already knew a little bit about Gerrymandering. I knew that it was the reasoning behind why so many of our congressional voting districts are, for lack of a better word, wonky shaped. Some look like snakes, others look like an ink-blot. In the end it all comes down to someone at the state level decided that they wanted the incumbents of certain areas to be reelected so they drew the lines in such a way that would benefit that particular politician. I've never really understood why we still let the state governments draw the lines. Why not let a computer algorithm take all the information of population and any other necessary information and draw the districts. That would seem to be a much fairer way of dividing up the districts.

And why is this outrageous behavior not being covered by any of the news stations? Is it because they don't know it's happening or do they not care? Or maybe it's because both parties use this technique to help themselves? Why do we let these people cut us up into sections that help them? Why hasn't anyone really stood up and said 'No, this is unacceptable. Every voters vote must be counted or there is not point to the election. The point of the vote is so that every person's voice and opinion is heard.' And yet in this country where our greatest freedom is the ability to speak our minds, we are muted in the most important forum of all. We allow ourselves to be muted at election time. And the people muting us are the very same people we all complain about everyday.

The next time I have to opportunity to ask a political candidate a question, it's going to be this: What are you going to do about Gerrymandering? Will you allow the districts to be drawn in an unbiased way or will you continue the muting of your constituents' voice.

I think I'll stop there for now. Look for my next post from Chapter 1 that will deal with the Electoral College and Presidential Elections. Please feel free to leave any and all comments you wish. I want to open up a dialogue where we can all share our thoughts and maybe we can come together and fix all the issues that we see wrong with this country and create a better place that we can be proud to live in.

What You Should Know About Politics...But Don't

I realized a few weeks ago that when it came to politics and everything about how the politics in this country works, I really didn't know that much. So, I did what any person with a library card does. I found a book that looked like it could answer my questions.

That book is titled What You Should Know About Politics...But Don't by Jessamyn Conrad. From the outside it boasts that it is a "nonpartisan guide to the issues" and from the preface, introduction, and first chapter I believe her. So I had a thought while reading, why not go through the book and each day share what I learned with everyone and give my views on the topic of that particular part. I figured that I would write a post for each chapter since I read about a chapter a day.

Maybe, just maybe, we'll all come out of this with a better understanding of the real issues and maybe we'll learn where we really stand so that we can all choose the people that will meet our wants and needs.

So, if you'd like to follow along, I encourage you to go to your local library or book store and pick up a copy and read this book and if you want share what you learn when you read each chapter. Please, make comments and even tell me you disagree because the greatest thing about this country is that we can all have our own opinion and express it and have a dialogue where we truly discuss and learn. Because living is really all about learning and expressing and making a mark in some form or fashion. And for me, right now, my mark will be made expressing myself the only way I know how. That is through ranting and raving about how the talking bobbleheads of the world drive me crazy.

Enjoy and I look forward from hearing your thoughts and opinions. Please don't be shy. Speak up. Be heard. It's your right to be heard and to be acknowledged because every person matters.