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Monday, October 22, 2012

Faith GPS Live! Tonight at 7PM (Monday Oct. 22)

Friday, October 19, 2012

Coming Together

Have you ever heard of Al Smith? He was the nominee for President by the Democrats in the 1928 election. He was also the first Roman Catholic to be a nominee by a major party. John F. Kennedy was the first (and to date only) Roman Catholic to be elected President.
Al Smith lost in 1928, but his name lives on. There is a charitable foundation that bears his name that raises money for many Catholic charities. Since 1960 candidates for President from both parties have been invited to be keynote speakers at the annual event. The event is hosted by the Cardinal Archbishop of New York. The candidates are not allowed to give political speeches, it is meant to be lighthearted evening to raise money. There have been some very humorous moments over the years as the candidates have poked fun at themselves and their opponent. Both President Obama and Governor Romney noted that it is a great thing about America when the two candidates can come together for such an evening, to laugh at and with each other, to recognize that there is more to life than politics. Here are videos of Gov. Romney, Pres. Obama and Cardinal Dolan:

Thursday, October 11, 2012

A Year of Faith!

Fifty years ago the Second Vatican Council began. The evening of that first day, thousands of young people gathered in St. Peter's Square in a candle light procession and were addressed by Pope John XXIII. This evening thousands gathered in a candlelight procession and were greeted by Pope Benedict XVI. His comments (taken from Rocco Palmo's Whispers in the Loggia blog) follow:
In these fifty years, we have learned and experienced that original sin exists, and that it translates itself into personal sins which can become structures of sin, having seen that even in the Lord's field there is discord, that even in the net of Peter there are bad fish, that human weakness is present even in the church, that the ship of the church is steering in the face of an opposing wind, amid differing threats. And sometimes we have thought that 'the Lord is sleeping and has forgotten us.' But we've also been made to experience the presence of the Lord, from his goodness the gift of his presence. The fire of Christ is never a devouring or a destructive one; it's a quiet fire, a small flame of goodness. The Lord doesn't forget us, his way is humble, the Lord is present, he gives warmth to our hearts, creates charisms of goodness and charity that illuminate the world, which are for us the guarantee of the goodness of God. Yes, Christ lives with us and, even today, we can be happy. And finally, I dare to make my own the unforgettable words of Pope John: 'When you go home, give your children a hug and kiss and tell them that it's a hug and kiss from the Pope.'
The Holy Father was a young theologian at that great Council and is using the 50th anniversary as an opportunity to challenge us to recommit ourselves to faith in the New Evangelization. Think of what the first apostles and disciples were able to accomplish in the first great evangelization. Now think what each of us has available to us in terms of communication. We should have an even greater success in sharing the Word and the message of God's love with the world. The early Christians were driven by their joy and knowledge in the Resurrection. That should be our source of enthusiasm and joy as well, the motivation to share this faith. However, we need to be convinced of the Resurrection ourselves. We aren't talking about a neat trick, or some guy named Jesus who had some cool ideas. We are talking about the fact that the Word became flesh, lived on the earth, suffered real pain, experienced real death and was risen from the dead! We who seek to live in relationship with him have the opportunity to share the fruits of that victory! The worst the world can do to us is not match for what God has in store for us! That is the source of our joy and enthusiasm. If you can't feel it: go to Mass. Pray. Read Scripture. Talk to others about it. Read the Catechism. Participate in one of the activities offered by Catholic Campus Ministry or your home parish. If you can feel it, are alive in faith: go to Mass. Pray. Read Scripture. Talk to others about it. Read the Catechism. Participate in one of the activities offered by Catholic Campus Ministry or your home parish. This faith is a 24/7 commitment. That's a big commitment, but no bigger than God's commitment to us!

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

The Hookup Culture

Sorry it's been a while folks.  September was much busier than I anticipated!  I sure hope that everything is going well.

A couple of weeks ago I was in a conversation with some students who were expressing concerns with the "hookup" mentality that they found on campus, particularly towards first year female students.  They found it demeaning and potentially traumatic to all those involved.  As frustrating they found the situation, they found it even more frustrating that there didn't seem to be anything they could do to change it.  Since that conversation I cam across a video by Fr. Robert Barron from Word on Fire addressing the very same issue.  Instead of trying to recreate a wheel, I'll just post it below and allow you to hear from him directly.