Woke Up in America: A Mini Exegesis

It's a little known fact (ie. a hugely known fact) that I am a big fan of Matt Maher. I love what the guy does - his Catholicity really shines through a lot of his music; it's beautiful. But it's also a little known fact (ie. a hugely known fact) that there's actually one Matt Maher song I don't like: Woke Up in America. I even tweeted about it as part of my friends' posting lyrics for a "Matt-Maher-is-performing-in-Vancouver" countdown.

Why I Cry

***I recently realized that comments have been disabled in this blog since I started it. I've enabled them now.***

As I've grown in my Catholic faith over the years, I've discovered that I cry more. One of the youth leaders at my parish pokes fun at me for it, especially when I tear up while listening to "In Christ Alone," and I always have to frantically explain the whole thing. So first of all, let's be clear: I'm not saying that crying is one of those prerequisite results of growing in faith, and no, I'm definitely not saying that being a Catholic makes you a pansy (on the contrary, being a Catholic makes you a badass).

Case in point.

What I am trying to say is that as I've grown as a Catholic, I've learned more about what I truly yearn for, and what I am ultimately made for.

Why do we cry, emotionally? I find it to be a peculiar reaction to certain situations. When most people think of crying, they think of it as the response to something sad - the death of a loved one, a missed opportunity, the break-up of a long-term relationship. But what's interesting is that we not only cry when we are extremely sad, but also when we are extremely happy. Yes, on one level, we say that we cry because we are overtaken by our emotions and we just have to "let it out." But to what are these emotions pointing us? I think it is in those extremely sad and happy times that we realize and remember that we were made for Something More. We were made for Truth, Goodness, and Beauty. We were made for God.