Searching in the Spirit 2012: Pentecost Revisited

From July 3rd to 7th, I was one of the chaperones at an archdiocesan camp called Searching in the Spirit. Created for Gr. 7 students who had just been confirmed, the five day camp looked at the themes of Sacredness, Witness, Forgiveness, Servitude, and One Body in order that the 65 Gr. 7s could more

readily invite the Holy Spirit into their lives. For the past five years that I have been involved in the program, it has been - without a doubt - the best week of my summer. It is a perfect example of how vibrant and alive the Church is. From the Gr. 7 students, to the 14 person youth/young adult leadership team (who organizes and runs the entire program!), to adult chaperones, and to priests, Searching in the Spirit demonstrates that the Church truly is one Body in Christ. Prayer, fellowship, laughs, meals, mass, confession, adoration...all mixed in with the typical summer camp activities like archery and kayaking.

Stuff Catholics Say

Yeah yeah, I know. This whole fad rolled over and died months ago. In all fairness, my friends and I got together while the fad was still alive and filmed this video, but it took a long time to get put together. So here it is!

Filming and Editing credit: Patrick Guevara (who should have it up on his own channel soon, at which point I'll link to his instead of mine).

Who Cares?

People these days need to stop equating the Church to merely a physical building, and instead see it as the unblemished, indefectible Mystical Body of Christ. Some of these people include those who identify as Catholics - they profess to be Catholic but openly reject a Church teaching. You know the teachings I'm talking about: Same-Sex "Marriage," Contraception, Abortion. But in declaring that they are Catholic, and yet refusing to learn about an infallible dogma of the Church, these people show that they hugely misunderstand who and what the Church is. They'll say that they believe in Christ. Well, what did Christ say? "The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you everything" (John 14:26). What else did Christ say? To his apostles, "whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and rejects the one who sent me" (Luke 10:16). And then just to Peter, "On this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18). And again to His apostles, just for kicks: "When the Spirit of Truth comes, He will lead you into all the Truth" (John 16:13).

All Those Catholics Who Have Walked Away

Today a friend was telling me of how she had patiently shared the faith with another, and now her friend (let's call her 'Jane') has decided to join the RCIA program! She's becoming Catholic! When my friend told me this, I just about leapt for joy, because BOTH people were living out their Call: one was evangelizing; putting her "lamp on a lampstand" (Matthew 5:15), and the other was responding to God's love for her. It made me so happy. But if I, merely human, am smiling and praising and thanking God for changing Jane's heart (and her responding to that love), think of how much the saints and angels are rejoicing!

The Life of the Church

Here's a link to the latest column that I wrote for The Catholic Register. Do you want to get to know your faith? Then get to know the liturgical calendar of the Church!

The Church One Day at a Time