Men, Put the Cameras Down

This has been weighing on my mind for some time, so here it goes. If you get easily offended or can’t take scary, differing opinions, look away.

Alright dudes and bros, enough is enough. Stop taking constant selfies. Seriously. It’s one thing to take a picture with someone else to mark an event or things of that nature, another if someone takes a picture of you, or the occasional snap for your snapchat story, but stop taking pictures of yourself constantly on your own. 

Men shouldn’t be overly and overtly concerned with posing, or with what they look like. As my friend once said, it’s weird for a guy to be staring at his own face like that. Now I believe in vast differences between men and women, and it simply is not in a man’s nature to be vain or to care about their appearance to that extent. For women it’s different, because we are more naturally disposed to be vain and attentive to what we look like. It’s a vice, but it’s a feminine vice. There’s a reason women are mainly associated with taking selfies, and getting teased for it. 

But for guys? 

That’s just effeminate. Let’s take a look at the definition of effeminate...

ef·fem·i·nate

əˈfemənət/

adjective

(of a man) having or showing characteristics regarded as typical of a woman; unmanly.

synonyms:

womanish, effete, foppish, unmanly, feminine;

Thanks, Google. A lot of things can be effeminate, and I think selfies count as well. 

Sorry, but I’m not sorry. So please stop. You don’t want to be effeminate because to be effeminate is to not be authentically masculine. Leave the femininity to the ladies, because our femininity compliments masculinity. We can’t both be feminine, it doesn’t work that way. I say this for your own good, because I value men and I value true masculinity. So, put the camera down, and go chop some wood instead. You’ll thank me later.

Wherein I Have a Message for all Pro-Life People

Yesterday all across America pro-lifers gathered at various Planned Parenthood locations to protest and bring awareness to the scandal that’s been going on. The news even covered it, barely. Read about it here. In case you’ve been living under a rock, or won’t look past the scope of your own little world, Planned Parenthood has been caught selling baby parts, murdering babies outside of the womb, and trying to cover up the atrocities. That’s only the beginning. I can’t wrap my mind around this, with every new video that comes out, I am filled with more and more deep sorrow, as any normal human being should feel. 

I myself attended a protest at the clinic near my hometown. Coincidentally, it was the abortion day. I knew it was going to be emotional and difficult, but I had to go. To me, there’s never a good excuse not to go to anything that will defend the unborn. Especially not when Planned Parenthood is trying, once again, to get away with their corrupt business of duping women (and men), killing the innocent and having the audacity to smile along the way. As soon as I reached the property, I immediately felt an overwhelming sense of death. It’s not something that can be accurately described as it is self-explanatory... Planned Parenthood carries an aura of death with them. I’m not the only who has described it that way. 

We had a strong turn out, at least over 200 people. Maybe even 300. Throughout the protest we prayed the rosary, and the religious were present, with young and old alike. I held a huge sign that pictured baby feet at 11 weeks, right outside of the driveway, for everyone entering and leaving to see, even those just driving by. The sign was almost bigger than me. I propped my elbows on it and calmly stood there, right by the security guard too. 

He seemed uncomfortable, but he smiled at the little kids with us. I smiled at him. He smiled back, somewhat. He wasn’t hostile or adverse with any of us. We simply couldn’t step onto the property. Fair enough. 

Despite the large signs and throngs of people, the folks coming, going, and driving by pretended not to see us. Truth has never been easy to look in the face. Some looked away, some glanced, some threw the bird, some gave us thumbs up. Towards the end, some guys even threw eggs at us. As if that would really stop us from being there or even coming back. I can hear it know, “Well everyone, we had eggs chucked at us so I guess that means we’re done. No coming back next week, thanks to those dastardly and nefarious eggs.”

No. 

I’ll be back. We’ll all be back. We won’t stop until Planned Parenthood is just a past nightmare. 

Standing by the driveway, though some might not think of it as much, both reveals and says a lot. I hardly spoke a word to anyone around me, but I saw the humanity in these people leaving Planned Parenthood, the humanity they fail to see. I saw a sadness in their eyes, tears being wiped away. It broke my heart. 

Although we gathered to make a statement and stare in the face of death, to tell him he will not triumph, we brought along with us a peace. The peace that only life gives, that Christ gives. Life is joyous, and we exemplified that. There were tears, prayer, laughter, hugs... peace. Planned Parenthood doesn’t offer that. 

At the end of the protest, I was glad I went. Like I said, it’s the first of many for me. But a serious question was also posed in my mind. 

Where’s the rest of the pro-life movement? 

I’m dead serious. Where are you? Although our turn out was amazing, many more could have been there. While the rest of the world is living in a state of passivity, we cannot and must not fall into that as well. Especially not as Catholics. If we are to truly and really be pro-life, it cannot stop at prayer. We are both physical and spiritual beings, catechism 101 up in here. With hard pressing issues like this, it’s easy to just hide behind prayer and do nothing. We cannot settle for not doing anything, the stakes are and have been too high for that. What Planned Parenthood is doing is beyond sickening, sad, and disgusting, and we cannot passively allow them to continue. If a baby being born alive, getting their face cut open and having their brain harvested doesn’t bring you to action to end the madness, I don’t know what will. Although I’m a writer, I couldn’t make up such a savage horror if I tried. What’s truly heartbreaking is that I can’t, because it’s real. 

If you are really and truly against what Planned Parenthood is, has been, and continues to do, I heartily invite you to leave your own little bubble, get out of your comfort zone, and stand with us. Too many are pro-life in name alone, and not in action. You never know how your mere presence, aided with prayer, can impact someone else. You’re not doing it for yourself; not to show people you’re pro-life, and not to prove it to yourself, you’re doing it for those who cannot speak, when you have the voice to speak for them. Let me ask you this, when this holocaust of children is over, a sorrowful memory of the past, what will you be able to say you did to help end it?

Therefore, I hope to see you there, soon. 

Check out these pictures (per my personal Snapchat) from the protest in Riverside, California. 

My baby brother is so cute, the end.

The Case of Not Liking Being Catholic

Read on before you judge based off of the title alone. Or go ahead and judge me, although you’ll just help sanctify me in the process.

Two posts in one week? I must be going crazy. Or I’m just itching to write something before I go crazy. Both are true, more or less. It’s like I get these pounding ideas from keywords, phrases, or inspirations from anywhere, and I’m uncomfortably antsy until I spit it out. Or until I lose interest, it always depends. It’s been fun and interesting figuring out how I work as my personality settles in, because so far not many have been able to handle it. I blame it on being choleric. Well, the blame doesn’t solely lie there, but it is a momentum of prominence since some temperaments mesh better than others. My sister is phlegmatic and we get along fabulously, until someone wants to borrow a blouse or misplaces makeup. That’s sister life, yo. 

Anywho, all of the above has little or nothing to do with the continuation of this post. 

Source: Tumblr

A few days ago I was finalizing the outline for a talk I gave, and I started wondering why I’m still Catholic. I can be pretty terrible about it. Confession isn’t a sacrament for nothing, let me tell you. Having a veil and carrying around a rosary don’t count for much, not all the time. But that doesn’t mean I’m leaving the Church or even questioning the faith, not at all. Quite the contrary.

 So I continued to think about it, with Milky Chance accompanying my thoughts and the click-clack of my bright red nails pushing down letters, tying together biblical typology between Jesus and Jeremiah. Secret’s out, that’s how I (always) work, even writing this. As I continued to (surprisingly) think, I had one whiny thought.

Being Catholic is hard. 

The raw truth is that I don’t always like being Catholic. Romanticism aside, being Catholic is one of the most difficult feats I’ve ever attempted to accomplish. Sometimes my only reasons are just fides et ratio… faith and reason. Still, that doesn’t mean I’m quitting or throwing in the towel. I know damn well that the Catholic Church is the fullness of truth, and to go anywhere else would be to cheat myself not only of salvation, but also of complete truth. I couldn’t comfortably live with that, and the thought of living without truth is a scary one. Because if you don’t possess complete and full truth, what do you have instead? 

Nothing. 

I like to think that even in my choleric state, I pick my battles very wisely and carefully. I somehow know when to stand my ground, and when it simply isn’t worth it. This isn’t one battle I’m going to cave on. By the grace of God alone, I’ll reach the finish line, even if that means crawling on my gravel-filled hands and blood soaked knees. Graphic, but triumphs have never been for the pansy-hearted.

So I don’t always like being Catholic. That’s precisely because of my fallen nature, my own vanity, my own pride, my own blindness, and above all, my own sinfulness. However, because being Catholic is hard and because I don’t always like it, that’s exactly why I have to be Catholic. In continuation of that premise, I need to be Catholic because I don’t always like being Catholic. I keep saying I don’t always like being Catholic, and God could smite me for that, or you’re probably thinking, “Then just leave, you crazy girl.” 

But I won’t leave. I also hope God doesn’t smite me, because my beloved St. Teresa of Avila didn’t pray for years and she came back with superhuman holiness. Checkmate. 

No one is forcing me to be Catholic, I’m a grown girl and it’s my decision to remain where I’m constantly challenged and pushed. I am painfully aware of my faults, shortcomings and imperfections. I won’t pull a Popeye and say, “I am what I am.”, because that’s not what I am. And guess what? The only thing that uproots it all from the inside out, is Catholicism. Through Catholicism, faith, reason and maybe even nights like this, I am most myself. How could I ever leave that? Sure it’s not always pretty and petite, but I don’t believe life is meant for that. Without struggles, there is no celebration, and without pain, there is no comfort. Without Catholicism to challenge me and make my life difficult, I can’t imagine what I’d be. I actually can, but I’d rather not be that. 

So that’s it. I don’t always like being Catholic, but I am precisely because I need to be. It’s a paradox of sorts, but I can safely say that that is a part of me, and I’m fine with it. 

I think I forget that people actually read what I toss out in the open, so thank you for putting up with my choleric schemes and ridiculousness, because half the time I take to the keyboard, my mind is half here and half there, wherever there is. I’ll tell you when I find it. 

Cycle of Confusion

Let's get this straight. I loathe pornography. For my final public speaking speech, I spoke about how porn damages the brain, relationships, and society. The ethos, pathos and logos were on point because truth always prevails. If you can’t make those modes of persuasion work, then you’re probably not conveying the truth. I also discredited vaccines in another class, but that’s a different story for another time.

I find porn to be vile, disgusting, and a key destroyer of relationships. Whether they are marriages, dating relationships, friendships or family relationships, porn just shreds them up from the inside out. I call it the silent killer. I really don't have crazy, unrealistic standards for my future spouse, but I'll be damned if I get with anyone who's into it. That just won't fly with this chick, never has and never will. Ever. I'm that girl, and I won't apologize for wanting better for myself and others. I have standards, hear me roar.

I'm not in the mood to get into it about chastity and purity right now, so that's that. However I will say that pornography strips men of their much needed masculinity, and also deprives women of their true feminity. In turn we have effeminate men who don't know how to conduct themselves as men, and women who no longer possess the mystery of authentic femininity. No wonder everyone is so confused, because no one knows how to act in the first place. Since no one knows how to act, no one knows how to respond to one another. What we have now is a cycle of confusion where no one knows if they're coming or going. You can thank porn for that, since it shrinks the frontal lobe of your brain. It's only the part of the brain that's in charge of problem solving and decision making. No big deal, right? Immaturity is also a factor, and porn does a great job of keeping its viewers perpetually immature. No thank you.

The solution is simple. Painfully simple. Reject it. Don’t be lame, because that’s what porn is. Want better for yourself. There's no crime in that. Want better for your current and future relationships and you'll thank yourself later. If one little girl could reject what wasn’t good for herself and others, then why can't you?

St. Maria Goretti, pray for us.

Have Mercy on my Eyes, or Eye

Let’s just cut the cheesy introduction and address the pink elephant in the room. What is going with the Year of Mercy logo? How is this considered to be good and inspiring art?

Just look at it. Who sincerely and honestly thought this was a good idea? I can’t wrap my mind around this. I don’t think I want to. To me, that doesn’t resound the message of mercy. Instead, it looks a regrettable hippie throwback to the 70’s. Come on, Catholic Church, I thought we were putting those dark days behind us. Is no one else unsettled that this thing looks like something out of a cheap comic? 

Mercy is great, mercy is necessary to practice our beautiful faith to the fullest. We have the corporal and spiritual works of mercy to guide us along the way. Wonderful. But this eyesore (no pun intended to the shared eye) is frightening. It makes me uncomfortable, and the thought of this image plastered all over our parishes in the near-future is already making me cringe. Not to mention being shared with the entire world. 

Really now, what is going on with the shared eye?? Oh yes, solidarity and community. Lol silly, uncomfortable little me. But I’d bet money that modernists are rejoicing and having a kumbaya fest around it. 

Look into my eye

Seriously people, how hard would it have been to incorporate the real image of Divine Mercy? We have it for a reason, St. Faustina didn’t have it commissioned just for kicks. 

I could go on, but I won’t because charity is also important and frankly, I don’t want to go on. So instead I’ll drink my coffee, and look like this for the rest of the day. Thanks, Michael Scott, you get me.

Source: Giphy

Five Reasons Why I’ll Never be Liberal

Let’s be honest, the reason I don’t blog very often, is because my blog isn’t my personal diary. I have a spiritual journal for that. However, there has been quite a few exciting on-goings, but I suppose that’s just growing up and moving along with life. Most importantly with the Divine Will. Hooray for Momma Mary being the perfect example of absolute conformity, when I need so much help with that. Mother really does know best. 

Let’s talk about liberalism. You’re either liberal, or you’re a hateful and intolerant person who wants to watch the world burn. At least that’s how they paint it, though to be fair, I have met some nice libs.

While liberalism is a political leaning, it’s also a way of living, (barely) thinking and behaving. One day I began to think to myself, “What if I was a liberal? Wait a minute, nope.” 

I just couldn’t and can’t do it without lying to myself, here’s why: 

5) I value logic over emotions

Now, for the record, we’re talking about plain logic in general. What is logic? The principles of correct reasoning? The study of valid reasoning?  Well, yes, that and much more. It’s used in philosophy and mathematics, so it has to be important, otherwise we wouldn’t use it at all. Emotions are also important, but they have no place when it comes to logic, since emotions change. That’s natural, but not productive when it comes to logic. Just because I feel something, that doesn’t make it correct, or even true. This is because what we feel, is not what is the truth, because truth is not subjective. It’s always been objective. It doesn’t bend to our whims, and it never will. If you think it does, then it’s probably not the truth. This is a major pitfall in liberalism. If the sky is green because you feel it’s green, then by all means, it’s green. If anyone says otherwise, file a lawsuit and force everyone else to also acknowledge it’s green. However, that still doesn’t make it green. Sorry. But I’m not sorry. To explore a bit more in this ideology, if we all live however we think is correct, because we feel it’s correct, instead of living by what is correct, then we fall into being a morally relativistic society. 

But wait. 

We’re already there.

However, valuing logic over emotions doesn’t make you a robot. It makes you a truth seeker, and an eventual truth slayer, like Matt Walsh. If we are never open to being wrong, then we’ll never be open to being right.

4) I’m Open Minded 

 To have an open mind is to be willing to see the other side of things, willing to be wrong, and willing to learn. It takes humility. When we’re so close minded, we don’t allow ourselves to grow, and instead, we become grown children who are always right, even when we’re wrong. Yet the ones who swear they have the most open minds of them all, are the ones whose minds fall out, just like G.K Chesterton said. That’s exactly the case with your typical lib. It’s one thing to be solid on your opinions, but it’s a whole new field to be so close minded about it, that you can hardly fathom the idea that you just might be incorrect. 
What horror. I can’t bring myself to think that way, because it teeters on pride, and it’s unwise to assume you’re right on all matters. 

Sure, I might not agree, but I’m still willing to listen, think about it, and maybe change my mind, if it’s sound and true. If not, then at least I have your perspective and I was open to it. The end. It’s not that difficult. 

3) I value human life and dignity at all stages

From the womb to the tomb, my friends. We live in a culture that simply doesn’t respect life like it used to. It hardly respects life at all, though that tide is turning. However, liberals are notorious for failing to respect the lives of the unborn, and of the elderly. It’s ironic because they seem to forget that they were once unborn, and one day, God willing, they’ll grow to be one of the elderly. We see them clamoring for abortion on demand and without apology. 
Not far off, they’re for the right to euthanize those who need the most care. Not cool. All human life has dignity and value, no matter what the circumstance is. Circumstances are temporary, dignity is forever. 

2) I Believe in Personal Responsibility 

This one is pretty self-explanatory. We can’t run around expecting free stuff for the sake of free stuff, or blame others when we don’t get our way. Again, we become perpetual children who feel we’re entitled to everything and all things, just because we deserve it.
For what?

Who knows.

That doesn’t make for a productive society. It never has, hence why socialism doesn’t thrive. That makes a sub point, I also can’t ever be liberal because I don’t believe in socialism. My apologies, Mr. Branson. Before anyone blows a gasket, I fully realize that not all liberals are for socialism, but you can’t deny that this ideology leans towards it. As I exercise my right to free speech, I believe everyone has to be responsible for himself, because that’s how people grow up. What about the helpless, you say? By all means we should care for the truly helpless, nothing wrong with that, it’s what Christ calls us to do. However, to the people who are not helpless but just entitled; grow up, it’ll do you good. I promise. 

                                

1) I’m Catholic 

Hence, The Salty Catholic. Before I’m conservative, liberal, independent, green party or whatever, I am a Catholic faithful to the Magisterium, above all else. Complete truth lies in the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, and what’s to be found outside of the fullness of truth? (not the fullness of truth, that’s what)
That’s exactly why I’ll always be Catholic.

It’s been said many times, that there are no conservative Catholics or liberal Catholics. Rightly so. There are faithful Catholics, and there are heretics. 

Oh, a heretic? 

For some reason, the word “heretic” has become taboo. It simply means one who believes heresy, which is what is contrary to Catholic doctrines and teachings. Which means that there’s lots of heretics running around, spreading more heresy. Not good, case in point being that the Church needs good, solidly catechized, and most of all, holy priests, religious and lay people to reverse this trend. It is happening though, Deo gratias.

Here’s the point, you can’t be both liberal and Catholic, because then you’ll end up an unfaithful Catholic. Again, not good, as it turns into a hot mess, since it’s all or nothing.
It usually goes like this, “Well I’m Catholic, but I don’t believe in a, b, and c.” 

or: “(I was raised Catholic, but) I just can’t agree with the Church on d, or e.” 

But there’s hope, because there’s always hope with God. We’re not talking about pseudo campaign “hope”. Too bad we couldn’t believe in it. 

Now, if you are a Catholic who struggles with accepting Church teachings, take some advice. Get yourself properly catechized and go to confession. I say (type) that with the utmost charity. I’m not salty all the time. It all boils down to, do (or don’t do) this out of love for God. But if you take my advice, you’ll find that out for yourself. 

’Till next time, pax. 

Praying for Peace

I have to beg all of my readers, fellow Catholics and Christians, to pray for the persecution of our fellow Christians in the Middle East. If you haven’t seen the pictures or read any of the news on their situation, which the mainstream media is being biased on, believe me when I say that the situation is absolutely heartbreaking. There is a genocide going on, and we cannot continue to avert our eyes, and remain in our comfort zones. Not while men, women and children are being slaughtered like animals, for believing in Jesus Christ. As Pope Francis recently said, this crisis offends God.

Please continue to pray, fast and offer sacrifices for peace, the courage of the persecuted and for the conversions of the persecutors. Also, especially pray for peace on August 17th.

Our Lady, Queen of Peace,
Pray for us

The Silent Drug

There’s a new plague in our society. It has been lurking over time, yet gradually growing, infecting, and spreading wherever it can reach. 
Sometimes it’s silent. Sometimes it’s a whisper. Sometimes it rears its’ ugly head, demanding to be seen and heard by all, only to take all down with it. 

Pornography. 

Yes, I’m finally going there. It’s nearly impossible to go anywhere, turn on any channel, any radio station, anything, without it being pornographic, even in the slightest away. More than anything, it’s pathetic. 

Pathetic because these organizations, producers, directors, designers and whatnot are reducing all to cheap sexuality to force-feed to the people. Our latest example is 50 Shades of Grey. But, we as people can rise above it, and be better than that.

What happened to human sexuality being special? Being treasured? Being revered instead of tossed everywhere and in everyone’s face? Porn is a disease of its’ own, and more than anything, it kills love. It really and truly does. 

Love is cool. 

Porn is not cool. 

It never will be, because nothing is better or cooler than real love. I’ve said it before, and I’ll keep saying it until my voice goes out. We all long for love, and that isn’t a bad thing. It shows that we desire to be unselfish, to think of and eventually give ourselves to another. However, love can’t be found in pornography, because porn warps and distorts the idea of love, by making it solely about yourself, instead of anyone else. The awesome thing about love is that it calls you to forget yourself, for the good of your beloved. 

Porn is the antithesis of love.

However, our modern society definitely isn’t understanding that concept, but that should only be part of our motivation to go against this tide, pursue authentic love, and rise above porn. Although pornography is rampant in the world today, not all hope is lost, because in the end, love always triumphs. 

Which is where I introduce to you, Fight The New Drug 

This is an organization I am very excited about, and if you haven’t heard of them or checked them out before, I strongly urge you to do so. Like, now. They’re doing an amazing job of spreading the word that porn is harmful, not only through the merch and media exposure, but also through the hard facts on the harmful effects of porn use. 

So remember kids, love is cool, and anything else opposite of that, just isn’t.

The Crumbling Cookie Monster

Since the beginning of Girl Scout Cookie season, not one box of deliciousness has been in my possession. Yes, I have joined the CookieCott. Technically, I haven't purchased Girl Scout cookies in years due to their affiliation with Planned Parenthood and radical pro-choice feminists, which they blatantly deny, yet the evidence is out in broad daylight. However, this year the boycott came out stronger than ever. Not surprisingly, the organization is not happy.

But hey, as a practicing Catholic, it would be imprudent to support an organization that tries to hide their support of another organization that does 1/3 of the nation's abortions, pushes graphic sex-ed on children and is morally relativistic. Even by buying (an overpriced, might I add) box of cookies. Sorry, little uniformed girls. It's totally not their fault, because I would totally buy their cookies if their up-top leaders weren't pushing this liberal, feminist, pro-choice agenda on them. We should be raising our girls to embrace their true femininity, not the former points which only degrade it. 

I applaud LifeNews.com for constantly uncovering and calling out Planned Parenthood on their foolishness, specifically this time around in regards to their connection with Girl Scouts. Much like Planned Parenthood, (remember Komen?) a GSUSA executive has threatened LifeNews because of the exposure. Lovely... not. 

So let's sum it up. In between the support of radical feminists tied in with the pro-choice/anti-life agenda, which is attached to strong immorality, and now the lies and threats, myself, and many others across the nation, will continue to boycott GSUSA, by withholding our funds and support, without apology.

That’s the way the cookie crumbles.

Later, Today and Forever

New Year, new blog look. Pink is cute but the eye can only take so much of the obnoxiously adorable color, so voila, I present to you dear readers, the new look. There’s also a few new extra tidbits around, but I’ll leave you to explore for yourself. I hope you all had a holy and blessed Christmas, and also a happy New Year. I personally didn’t make any resolutions, because I believe in making firm resolutions to improve oneself throughout the whole year, even every day if needed. I think of it this way; hell is forever and full of people who said, “Later”. The saints didn’t become saints by saying, “Later”. They turned that later into today. That’s where confession comes in handy, because we cannot change ourselves without first cleaning up our souls. That’s like having one foot on the brake pedal but still expecting the car to go. It doesn’t exactly work out very well. Remember that a state of grace equals a happy place.

So now that the season of Advent has passed, we’ll move into ordinary time, and then dive into the Lenten season. Before I get too ahead of myself, one of the many things I love about the Church is the changing of liturgical seasons. It allows us to walk with Christ from His birth to His death, thus forging a stronger relationship with Him, year in and year out, today and forever. Think about it; in just one year, we can meditate upon the Annunciation, the birth of Christ, His hidden life, His public ministry, His Passion, Death and glorious Resurrection. That’s not even mentioning the other subjects of meditation in between, like St. Joseph’s perfect obedience, the adoration of the Magi, the sorrows of our Blessed Mother, the miracles by Jesus and so, so much more that hasn’t even scratched the surface. So much meditation, so little time. Yet it’s all the better reason to not allow our minds to be idle, as idleness is the Enemy’s playground. In his book, “An Introduction to the Devout Life”, St. Francis de Sales mentions that the more we meditate upon the life of Christ, the more we’ll come to know and imitate Him in His perfection. St. Francis compares to it to a child learning to speak, sweetly lisping the words he emulates from his mother. You gotta love St. Francis de Sales and his analogies. 

Meditation can be difficult because of distractions, but it’s not impossible. For help, look to Our Lady, the Mystical Rose, who never denies to help any of her children. That title has to be my personal favorite, and one day I was wondering what it meant, and some time later the answer popped up on right on my very Catholic Facebook newsfeed. The Lord provides. She is the Mystical Rose because as seen in Scripture, she often kept things in her heart to ponder, and through her perfection, she is the highest mystic. The Rose part comes in as the rose is the queen of all flowers, and Our Lady is Queen of Heaven and Earth. Another legitimate answer can be found here. 

One of the many reasons I embraced more Traditional Catholicism was because of the silence. Especially when it comes to Catholic youth ministries, silence is nearly impossible to be found. It’s almost taboo. In the end of my experimentation with the modern Catholic youth ministry, which is usually loud and consists of Protestant influenced notions and happy-feel-good-but-watered-down teachings and ideas, I was aching for silence. It’s like the youth are being force-fed all this clanging noise in an attempt to be modern and “speak” to them, because allowing the silence of Christ to do that is apparently just too much to ask for. Anyway, after that ship sailed, the new harbor was very quiet. However, docked in that stillness, my soul wasn’t emptied and it didn’t disappear. Rather, I was able to embrace Christ in a whole new way, through simple meditation, and He completely flooded my soul with Himself and His mother. Silence isn’t only golden, it’s sacred. Through sacred silence we learn to quiet ourselves, to focus more fully on the Divine Mysteries and meditations. Holy Mother Church is so rich in subjects of meditation, not a moment of our lives should be wasted on idle or silly thoughts. 

We are all called to holiness. No one is exempt. Take a look at the great saints like St. Teresa of Avila, St. John the Cross, St. Gemma Galgani, St. Padre Pio and so many more. They all had one thing in common; they silently contemplated divine mysteries. My challenge for you this year is to take time to be silent and meditate. Meditate on the courage of the martyrs, the conviction of the Apostles, or even on the glories of Heaven. Especially when we meditate on Heaven, we’re contemplating an eternal joy with God, which doesn’t last a fleeting moment or a few hours, but forever. Ven. Fulton Sheen could not have put it more beautifully, 

“We become like that which we love: If one loves the material, one becomes like the material; if one loves the spiritual, one is converted into it in his outlook, his ideals, and his aspirations. Given this relationship between love and prayer, it is easy to understand why some souls say: “I have no time to pray." A higher form of prayer than petition and a potent remedy against the externalization of life-is meditation. Meditation is a little like a daydream or a reverie, but with two important differences: In meditation we do not think about the world or ourselves, but about God; and instead of using the imagination to build idle castles in Spain, we use the will to make resolutions that will draw us nearer to one of the Father's mansions. Meditation is a more advanced spiritual act than “saying prayers”; it may be likened to the attitude of a child who breaks into the presence of a mother saying: “I’ll not say a word, if you will just let me stay here and watch you.” -Ven. Fulton Sheen

It's Rose, Not Pink

One minute I'm prancing around in my Lady of Mount Carmel costume, the next I'm panicking over black widows hiding behind the Christmas decoration boxes. True story. Unlike most of America, I didn't forget good ole' Thanksgiving, but the transition from October to December was fast. A little too fast, but we all say that every single year, don't we? Anywho, in my blogging absence* I've been busy with homework (aka penance), being continuously sick, and somehow hanging out with lots of brothers and seminarians. Cue the #CatholicGirlProblems. God truly does have the greatest sense of humor, praise be to Him. But in all seriousness, continue to pray for an increase in vocations... not to forget holy matrimony, because that's where religious vocations are fostered. Priests, brothers, sisters and nuns don't pop out of thin air, you know. Don't get me wrong, it's great that so many young men and women are courageously answering the call, but holy marriage is also a very important vocation that isn't to be forgotten. However, in the end of it all, whether or not these men and women become religious or not, the Church still gains a more faithful and stronger Catholic; win-win situation.

Moving along, we're all aware that it's Advent! Deo gratias, baby Jesus is on His way. On the third Sunday of Advent, we wear pink. I mean rose. In all honesty, at the Latin mass I went to this past Sunday, I was interiorly geeking out over the rose colored chasuble. So. Cool. With Christmas season comes the Christmas trees, Nativity Scenes, assortment of treats and pretending that empty wrapping paper tubes are didgeridoos. Aside from the preparation for the festivities, are we really ready for Christmas? I'm not talking about it in a material or decorative way. 

Are you really and truly ready to welcome baby Jesus into your heart? 

On Christmas Day we're remembering how Christ came to us in the utmost innocence and vulnerability; as a newborn baby. The little King of kings, lying in a manger wrapped up nice and snug by the Blessed Mother, with dear St. Joseph protecting the both of them. This is the analogy I gave my confirmation class: if you were to invite Christ into your home, would you want it to be spic and span or dirty and cluttered? Chances are, you'd want it to be immaculately clean. With that in mind, the best way to prepare for the coming of Christ is a good, sacramental confession. It might be scary or daunting, but by confessing all of your deepest and darkest sins, you're only opening up your soul to the love and mercy of Christ. You can either shut Him out like the inkeepers of Bethlehem, or make room from Him in the manger of your heart. 

I pray you all have a blessed Christmas season, filled with love and peace of Christ. Not happy holidays, or happy Festivus for the rest of us, but merry Christmas to each and every one of you, from the bottom of my heart.

* Just as a side note, since I'm not able to blog as much as I would like, you can follow me on Twitter, @AlwaysYvonne , to keep up with my Catholic shenanigans and whatnot. 

To Love and Be Loved

For the past few days, setting and keeping high standards has been mulling over in my mind. I have a list of 40-something non-negotiable standards that I  expect in my future spouse, if that is my vocation, God willing. Don't get me wrong, they're not anything fantastical, outlandish or impossible to live up to. Who knows, as time passes, I may even add more. The standards that I keep are my rock; if a guy doesn’t meet even one of them, out he goes. End of story. Ain’t nobody got time for anything else! It’s not that I’m asking for perfection, because I’m not perfect myself, but I know exactly what I want, and I won’t waste my time on someone I couldn’t see myself marrying. Yeah, I’m that kind of girl, praise the Lord most high.
Is having high standards hard? Yup.
At the end of the day, with my empty inbox in the morning and at night, is it even worth it? You bet.

I've never had one serious boyfriend, and that truly doesn't bother me because I'm content knowing that I'm saving my affections and the like for one man, even if I haven't met him yet. If anything, it saddens me that our society ambushes girls with the idea that if they don’t have a boyfriend, or multiple ex's, they're failing at life as a female. Not true! I’m no feminist, so I’m not going to hate on men, but you don’t absolutely have to have a man in your life, 24/7. In order for yourself to grow spiritually and emotionally, there needs to be a time of singleness, and there is nothing wrong or embarrassing about that, because you’re discovering who you are, and finding yourself before you find someone else. 

I’m constantly stressing that just because a guy is nice and says sweet things, it doesn’t mean you’re suddenly obliged to date him. In my book, being nice and smelling good aren't anything to be praised. Firstly because everyone should be genuinely nice, without ulterior motives. Secondly, no one should purposefully stink. Crazy, I know. However, if he can lead you to Heaven and ultimately closer to God than to himself, then that is to be praised. You go, guy.  

If all girls could see their true worth, there would be a change in the tide. My sisters, you are worth so, so much more than a guy who doesn't care about your soul, or respecting you as a whole person, instead of a collection of body parts. There's no such thing as the perfect man (at least on Earth), but the right man will be perfect for you. In the meantime, you don’t have to be bruising your precious heart over and over again. Patience is key.
In part, we girls are so eager for love, we can easily cling to the first thing that foggily resembles an ounce of love, and lie to ourselves that it’s the real deal. But I am begging and pleading you, from the bottom of my heart, to be strong and hold out for the true, chaste love that you deserve and desire. Why specifically chaste love? Bl. John Paul II put it perfectly when he said, "Only the chaste man and the chaste woman are capable of true love." Along with pure friendship, chastity is the foundation of authentic love, which I've talked about numerous times in previous posts. It's not bad that we long for love. I repeat, it is not bad or shameful that we long for love. It’s good. It shows that we desire to be unselfish, and give ourselves to another. It’s been wired into all of our dear hearts by our Heavenly Father, and the same goes for men, mingled with their desire to protect. 

To put it this way, what good ever comes out of impatience? Look at the Israelites in Sacred Scripture. God had the Promised Land laid out for them, yet they were increasingly impatient to get there. To parallel, think of yourself; are you trusting that God has a perfect plan for your desires of love, or are you taking the matter into your own hands and rushing it? 
God is good, and He has perfect plans for each and every one of us, but we are the ones who grow impatient and anxious. I won’t sit here and preach that I’ve never been tempted to settle for less, or have never grown anxious and lonely, or have never felt forever alone. The struggle is real. Despite the occasional rough patches, my desire for authentic love is stronger than the fleeting emotions and those are the times where I remind myself that God isn’t done yet. For all I know, it's only the beginning. At the end of the day, I have joy in the knowledge that Christ loves me much, much more, a million times more than any man ever could or can. This goes for everyone. If I've learned anything during this period of (technically, aside from family and friends) being on my own, it's that we will never be content with anything, until we allow ourselves to love and be loved by Christ. There is nothing on this Earth, that will truly and fully satisfy our yearning for love, but His. 

So my sisters, first love and be loved by Christ alone. Everything else will fall into place. It takes courage, but be those women of courage and trust Him completely, and give Him your heart. I can promise you that it will be the best decision you'll ever make. While you're at it, embrace your God-given femininity. No matter what the world says, it's beautiful and has the power to inspire men for the better. 
And for you manly men out there, continue to be true gentlemen, and don't be afraid of your masculinity. It's also God-given, and this world desperately needs masculine fathers, priests and men who aren't afraid to be men. Your future families, (or parishes) will thank you.

Not-So-Happy Halloween

Praise the Lord all ye nations. For a quick recap, I'm still alive and well but I've just been very busy with growing up, senior work, my community, family and teaching not one, but two catechism classes. Praise the Lord. I'm definitely not complaining because I like to see it as a joyful sort of chaos which Divine Providence has perfectly planned, even though I sometimes feel like I'm running around like a chicken without a cluck-cluck head. Hallelujah!

Moving on, obviously it's October. Cue the pumpkin spice lattes from Starbucks and fabulous crisp air. Just kidding about Starbucks, I don't support them anymore because they stomp all over what I hold dear to my little heart and they don't want my business anyways. Now where was I? Oh yes, October.
Along with the pumpkin spice everything (guilty as charged) and wonderful weather, in comes the not-so-pleasant side of the month: the twisted celebration of the occult and culture of death. I'm not only pinpointing Halloween, because the (near) whole of society has embraced October as being creepy, crawly and flat-out demonic. To that, I shaketh my noggin with contempt. Perhaps I'm being extreme, but I don't think it's cute or festive to celebrate what I mentioned earlier; the occult and culture of death. And yet, the disturbing celebration of the occult (which is evil) and the culture of death (which is also evil, and yes, evil does indeed exist, but I suppose the media must have "forgotten" to mention that Pope Francis spoke of this often last week; evil existing, that is) happens year-round, just not so in our faces with the orange and black decor.

St. Jerome, pray for us

Take The Walking Dead, for example. I'll be honest and say that I've never really watched it, but I know enough about it by now. It just never peaked my interest and frankly, zombies aren't exactly visually appealing. Anyways, I find the series to be perturbing because not only does it glorify the C.o.D but it is also emotionally, morally and visually desensitizing to our modern culture. You know what I'm talking about if you've watched it; the gore, the deaths, the killings, the eating of flesh and so on with the savage violence  What happened to decency and our sense of decorum? I also find it disturbing that our nation is so enthralled with it, because that tells me that our country is literally looking to the dark to try and fill the void of the absence of God in this culture, but it is failing and failing miserably. However, that's not to say that there is no hope. This post isn't just to slam The Walking Dead, although it isn't beneficial to our souls in the slightest way, especially being Catholic. But I digress on The Walking Dead and will leave that as food for personal thought.

For October as a whole, I find it to be truly sad that instead of celebrating the lives of the great and holy saints in preparation for All-Saints Day, we choose to glorify what is dark and evil, instead of what is pure and holy. My sincere prayer is that instead of running away from the light, we can all one day embrace it... instead of embracing the wolves in sheep's clothing. 
But don't get me totally wrong; I enjoy dressing up for fun and eating charitably-given candy. But I do not enjoy the macabre and utterly demonic influence over the whole month. In fact, I have a disdain for it. I can hear it now; "Come on Yvonne, you're so uptight, it's just all fun and games." Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, and my opinion is that if we are continuously inviting in the dark instead of the light, what will become of our souls?


To each his own, but I'm going to be the Halloween-Hipster and celebrate Holyween instead.. err.. Hipsterween? No, just Holyween. Pax fras.

If I don't dress up my future children as
little saints and holy people, they'll be food. Like cupcakes
or jelly-beans. Seriously.

Fasting for Peace: because Pope Francis said so

As many of you know, our Holy Father, Pope Francis, has declared tomorrow (September 7th) as a day of fasting and prayer, for peace in Syria. I am an advocate of peace through strength, however, this is not a war that we Americans should be involved in, but this isn't a political post, so I will leave it at that. 

Fasting is becoming a lost treasure in the Church, and it is Divine Providence that Pope Francis is shifting attention to it*. To fast is to deny the body of what it desires, such as eating for example, and through this we are are doing many things. Not only are we disciplining our bodily senses, but also detaching our soul from the bodily senses, so that it may be free to embrace a higher spirituality.

Is fasting fun? No. Is it easy? No. Should we complain during fasts? Even bigger no. To grumble and gripe while fasting is a sure-sign that the individual is still very attached to their bodily senses. To have such an attitude is to also lose sight of the bigger picture, because we should be focusing on the interior life, instead of the discomforts of the exterior senses. 

 So instead of fasting like this...

"And when you fast, be not as the hypocrites, sad. For they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Amen I say to you, they have received their reward. But thou, when thou fastest anoint thy head and wash thy face; that thou appear not to men to fast, but to thy Father Who is in secret: and thy Father who seeth in secret, will repay thee." Matt. 6:16-18 (DR)

   

                         We should be fasting something like this....

So, let us embrace tomorrows fast with a spirit of willingness to suffer, for the sake of peace and glory to God the Father.

 "Besides the ordinary effect of fasting in raising the mind, subduing the flesh, confirming goodness, and obtaining a heavenly reward, it is also a great matter to be able to control greediness, and to keep the sensual appetites and the whole body subject to the law of the Spirit; and although we may be able to do but little, the enemy nevertheless stands more in awe of those whom he knows can fast." -St. Francis de Sales

Happy fasting!

Our Lady, Queen of Peace, 
St. Gabriel Possenti,
Mater Dolorosa, ora pro nobis.

-Yvonne Gemma 

*This isn't to say that Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI didn't put an emphasis on fasting, which he did strongly during Lent of 2009.