Association Of Catholic Bloggers

In these times of the Coronavirus, civil unrest, and injustice for the marginalized, we might ask, “Where is God?” How can so many people become sick and die without healing, in such a short amount of time? Why do looters and rioters wreak havoc in the dark of night, taking advantage of righteous causes? Why after 400 years, do we, as a nation, condone any form of systemic racism? When faced with the unfathomable, it is normal human nature to ask, “Where is God?” Why? Because we feel abandoned. And yet, it is not us who are abandoned, it is us who abandon God. Where is God? God is at the bedside of every person suffering from the Coronavirus. For those who die, He is there to greet them and bring them to eternal life. And, for those who recover, He heals them. For those who seek to wreak havoc, God weeps, as looting and rioting offend God. Such acts violate the Seventh Commandment. How so? Well, such actions seek to steal/destroy property owned by another. Why doesn’t God sto...

I see much intrinsic evil surfacing in our society. Whether it be racism, hatred, or lying – they all stem from selfishness. What makes many of these acts intrinsically evil is that nothing good comes from them. What makes an intrinsically evil act different from a morally unjust act is the intention of the sinner. For example, if a person steals a loaf of bread with the intention of feeding his starving family, the act of stealing is evil, but the intention does not make it intrinsically evil. Contrast that with the sins of racism, hatred and lying. When a person expresses racial slurs, aimed at demeaning or dehumanizing another human being/race, nothing good comes from that. The racist shows his/her vulnerabilities and insecurities. The recipient of the racial slurs is humiliated. Therefore, racism is intrinsically evil. If one individual hates another, wishing ill will on that person, nothing good comes from that. In fact, it only eats away at the goodness of the hater. Also,...

I have been reading  The Autobiography of Malcolm X  and I am very impressed with the man. I was interested in reading it after someone mentioned how reading changed his life (I am all about promoting literacy and education.) I learned a lot about how things were during his life and also how things got to be the way they are now. It seems to me that a lot has improved since his time, but a lot is still very much the same. His message to his black brothers was for them to love and respect themselves, do for themselves, and demand justice for themselves–this is hard for me to disagree with. Malcolm is still thought of today as a divisive and angry figure, unlike the inclusive and inspiring Martin Luther King, but there are many things we can learn from the life of Malcolm X. 1. Through self-discipline, Malcolm found freedom. While in prison, his family was trying to get him to follow the teachings of Elijah Muhammad–they started by telling him to give up pork and cigarett...

The royalty alive in our world today are critically important. They are the key to the meaning of life. I'm talking a little bit about this kind of royalty: "The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge with Prince George" by  Christopher Neve . Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 via  Wikimedia Commons And a lot about this kind: ©StephanieFrey/Getty Images Jesus is King. It might be easy to forget about Christ's kingship, considering how humble Jesus was. While the Gospels share story after story of Jesus being humiliated, hated, and nearly tossed off cliffs, we glimpse his transfigured glory only in rare moments. But Christ, risen from the dead, is conqueror of death and King of Kings. We seem to have a thing for kings, queens, and all sorts of royalty--maybe especially darling little Prince George and Princess Charlotte. In all our stargazing, we tend to overlook our own royal heritage. And that could cost us our lives. Join me for more at Praying with G...