Are You Dying Yet?

Holy Week: The most earth-shattering, patience-testing, mind-straining week in the entire liturgical year. For the past thirty-three days or so, we, as the Body of Christ, have given up chocolate, Facebook, and video games. We’ve given more time to prayer, given more alms, and have given more time to God.

But as we lay down our palm branches and watch our Lord enter Jerusalem on this Passion Sunday, this question needs to be asked of us as Catholics: Are you dying yet?

Walking the Road

When I first came up with the name of this blog, “The Road to Emmaus,” for the most part I just wanted something that sounded cool. Sure, I knew the story of the two disciples who were despairing because Christ had been crucified. I knew that they did not recognize him until he went all Last Supper on them at dinner, and then vanished in front of their eyes. I simply thought to myself, “I’m a disciple of Christ. I’m not in heaven yet, so I still have work to do. I need to keep walking, and hopefully I will notice Jesus, just like those disciples did.” The title sounded catchy, and it was slightly ambiguous unless you knew your scripture. And that was the extent of why I chose it.

Empty Space

Now, I'm a mess. Let's be honest, everyone is a mess. No one is perfect, and try as we might, we have all failed at something. In my school work, in my job as a youth ministry coordinator, as a friend, as a brother, and as a son, there are times when I just mess things up. Going a bit more general: people expect certain things of us, and we expect certain things of others. And every once in a while, people disappoint us. For the last little while, I've been thinking about all of this, and God has been calling me to really understand and come to terms with it. It is too fitting for Lent for it to be coincidence (if there even is such a thing) that I have this truth mulling about inside:

Everyone you ever love will hurt you.

Tantum Ergo Sacramentum

For those of you who don't know, I'm a writer for a Catholic newspaper, The Catholic Register, as part of their youth writing team this year. During Lent especially, we need to readjust, refocus, and improve our prayer lives. Click the link below to read my latest column for the paper, and see my thoughts on how we can truly spend some time dwelling with Christ:

http://www.catholicregister.org/ysn-columns/getting-closer-to-god-through-adoration

Spiritual Makeover

Today is Ash Wednesday, which means that the 40 days of Lent have begun. A time to rethink our ways, a time to rid ourselves of all of the excess, a time to truly repent, and a time to reflect on what it means to be saved through Christ, as day after day, we get closer to the focal point of our faith - the Resurrection on Easter Sunday.

Like When We Were a Lot Younger

Yesterday's Gospel reading came from Mark 10:13-16. While only three verses, the reading says a huge amount about how we should view and live our Catholic faith. In the reading, Christ tells his disciples, "whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it." And as I sat there in mass listening to the reading, and even throughout the rest of the mass, I kept thinking, "what exactly does this mean?"

Pointing Us in the Right Direction

If you know me, you'll notice that I can get pretty excited about certain things. Spider-man, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Lost, and Matt Maher's music are a few of the things that, although the years may pass, if you mention them, I'll start to go crazy. I'll analyze bass lines, re-enact scenes ("The Hobbits are going to Isengard!"), and pretend that I have a lightsaber. But another thing that I get all gung-ho for is my faith. Over the years, I have grown to become more emmersed in the beauty of the Catholic Church, and I try to bombard myself with this beauty as often I can.