Tag: Catholic

Lawn Chair Catechism Ch. 5

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Join the Lawn Chair Catechism discussion at CatholicMom.com every Wednesday this summer. well built faith lawn chair catechismWe’re reading A Well-Built Faith by Joe Paprocki, but you can participate even if you haven’t read the book. Check out the free Leader’s Guide, which covers the main points of the book.

These sentences from Chapter 5 really struck me:

Salvation in Jesus is not a guarantee–it is a gift. The only way to embrace salvation is to embrace the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus. This means that we constantly strive to die to sin and live as a new creation, performing good works in response to this great gift. (p. 36)

Salvation is not only a gift. It is a gift that came at a great price:  the Passion and Death of Jesus. We can honor the gift of our salvation by trusting God, by praying, by performing works of mercy even when they cost us greatly. Especially when they cost us greatly.

What’s your take on this week’s chapter?

Lawn Chair Catechism Ch. 4

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Join the Lawn Chair Catechism discussion at CatholicMom.com every Wednesday this summer. well built faith lawn chair catechismWe’re reading A Well-Built Faith by Joe Paprocki, but you can participate even if you haven’t read the book. Check out the free Leader’s Guide, which covers the main points of the book.

Are you brand-loyal?

Over the years I’ve come to develop a short list of brands I’ll choose as a rule:

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  •  Talenti Gelato
  • Arm & Hammer or Purex detergent
  • PG Tips decaffeinated tea
  • Martin Silk & Steel guitar strings

I can be flexible on most other things–but not these. Joe Paprocki makes the point in chapter 4 of A Well-Built Faith that there’s a reputation associated with brand names, much like there’s a reputation behind our faith. In fact, there are three names behind the Catholic Faith:  the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The best part of this chapter was the “So What?” section at the end.

To live in loving relationship with others is to share in the divine life of the Trinity. This also means that we have a name to live up to….Since we are baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, we need to live up to the name of God, the Trinity. (pp. 29-30)

We’re also reminded that acts of self-giving love share in the life of the Trinity. I never though of it that way. It takes that whole “give a cup of water in My Name” thing to a whole new level.

What’s your take on this week’s chapter?

Book Review: Yes, God!

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Yes God by Susie LloydI’ve long been a fan of Susie Lloyd’s work (how can you resist a book titled Please Don’t Drink the Holy Water?) Anyone who’s a parent can relate to the tales she tells of her kids’ shenanigans.

In her latest book, Susie uses her famous sense of humor and encouraging style for a different purpose:  to inspire vocations to the priesthood and religious life.

I think she’s on to something here. The point she makes in Yes, God is that regular, everyday families can raise children who grow up to do extraordinary things for the Church and the world.

Each chapter in this short book contains a vocation story, a family story, a prayer, and Susie’s own commentary on the stories told by 5 young priests and 5 more young Sisters. These are not old stories about senior citizens; they focus on recent vocation stories.

Susie celebrates parents who say “Yes” to duty, affection, strength, spiritual poverty, tradition, the greatest commandment, generosity, humility and patience–in the regular, everyday circumstances and events of their lives. Even as the stories are told, you see Susie’s trademark sense of humor shining through in the telling–and you’ll find it in her encouraging reflections as well. Here’s an excerpt from the chapter on Generosity to illustrate:

How could I relate to Father’s parents, who worked so hard that I get tired just reading about it? Don’t they seem a bit like those saints written about long ago, who were born fasting? I don’t know about you, but I automatically separate those saints out in my mind as more angelic than human. I can’t relate. Therefore, I can’t imitate. Please, Lord, hold me excused.

For the record, I’m not above leaving this book around where one or another of my kids might take a peek inside. It couldn’t hurt, right?

Lawn Chair Catechism 6.0

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LawnChairCatechism-550x183When I was a teenager and young adult, I attended retreats every year or so. It seemed that every retreat featured a “Trust Walk” and a “Trust Fall.”

If you’ve never had the pleasure, here’s how those work.

In a “Trust Walk” you are given a partner and a blindfold. Once your eyes are covered your partner leads you around, using verbal and nonverbal cues to make sure you don’t trip, fall, or walk into things (or other blindfolded people).

“Trust Falls” involve allowing yourself to fall backwards into the waiting arms of a person or group of people who stand behind you, ready to catch you before you crash to the ground. You can’t see the people who will catch you–you have to trust that they are there and that they’re paying attention.

cover-formingintentionaldisciplesWhile these exercises are good team-builders and ice-breakers, I’m not sure that they say all there is to say about trust where faith is concerned. In Chapter 6 of Forming Intentional Disciples, the topic is trust:  not of the blind variety, but trust with eyes wide open. The author states on page 134,

“Many people don’t trust God or the Church, but they do trust a Christian in their life. Maybe they trust you. You may be the bridge that one day will lead them to a life-changing encounter with Christ.”

For someone who is just getting started in faith, or someone whose faith has been terribly shaken but who wants to renew the relationship, trusting in a person is a huge first step. It’s also a daunting responsibility for the trusted person. You are then challenged to be more loving, to learn more, to share more, and to clarify and deepen your own beliefs. You do not want to do or say anything that will lead someone in the wrong direction.

One of the discussion questions for this chapter asks, “Have you ever been that link of trust for another person?” Yes, I have. The responsibility is huge–but it belongs to each of us.

Join the discussion of this chapter at CatholicMom.com!