October 31, 2012 – Psalms 84 – 85

Better to be the last in Heaven than the first in hell.  That is how I would wrap up 84.  To just be on God’s threshold is better than staying in the palace of an evil one. Do we really think that.  Do we know enough to turn away the promises of bigger and better things when we know the foundation is wrong.  When we sing “Better is one day in your house” do we really understand that, do we really feel it, is it present in our actions. 

85:11 is one that I have heard before, but I cannot remember when.  “Love and truth will meet; justice and peace will kiss.”  It speaks of a time when God fulfills all His promise and all is one.  It is also something to really reflect on.  When you think of what the world tells us is “love”, reflect on whether is meeting truth or are they divided.  When love and truth meet, that is where you will find God.  If your idea of love is a lie, some distortion, it is not love and God is not there.  If your idea of peace does not “kiss” justice, it is not a real peace. It is a counterfeit, a lie, and will only lead to injustice and a lack of real peace.

October 30, 2012 – Job 33

We see the first part of the response is the God uses chastisement to keep man from the pit, from eternal doom.  Throughout Job, this view has not been laid out.  You were either righteous or you were not.  There was no redemptive value in the actions.  The respondent is really insulted by Job not giving God enough credit for the power of God.  God’s reasoning and action should never be questioned. 

And something that always puzzled me is when Job always said he had never done anything wrong.  He is called out here, because no one is perfect.  I suppose there is a difference between perfect and righteous, but you don’t get a sense of the difference. 

There is the talk of God bringing men back from the pit.  Maybe Job was righteous, but maybe he was about to fall.  Maybe everything he had was going to lead him astray.  God allows this to bring him closer to God. 

October 29, 2012 – 2 Samuel 15

Because they are in the Mount of Olives, you automatically think of the agony in the Garden.  While I was thinking about the two scenes, there are contrast and similarities in the two.  The first I saw was the scene with Ittai and his followers.  David says that they should stay behind, but they refuse and follow David.  This is in contrast to the Apostles with Christ in the Garden and when He is arrested, they all flee.  Then, there is David weeping while walking through the Mount.  Brings to mind Christ agony and weeping, sweating blood, in the Garden. 

Maybe an obvious question, but why did David let Absalom stand in front of the city and take the “heart” of the people for 4 years.  Seems like David wasn’t doing his duties and the people should have risen against him. 

October 28, 2012 – Catechism 1913 – 1927

I have already been asked several times “why do you want to get into politics?”  Well, the next time I could say it is because the Catholic Church teaches me that I ought to.  “As far as possible citizens should take an active part in public life.”  My first and foremost responsibility is to my family.  That is my first and most important vocation.  But I feel that I am cut out to be a good leader of the community and I am able to fulfill that role, so I should do it.  There is no mention about whether you think it will be easy or lucrative, then do it.  “As far as possible” is the requirement.  This also is an instruction for us all to vote.  Only in the most extreme circumstances is a person not able to vote.  If you are able, it is an obligation.  That is you being a citizen and taking an active role, as instructed in the Catechism.  It isn’t a matter of wants or likes, it is an obligation that many do not take serious and which we should hold people accountable for.  GET OUT AND VOTE. 

October 27, 2012 – Psalm 81 – 83

81 talks of worshipping an alien God.  This is in the context of talking about coming out of Egypt.  It is interesting because now there are all sorts of sci-fi stories talking about the Egyptian gods and how they were really alien invaders.  That led them to building such amazing things, the wild looking gods they had, etc.  It is just interesting to see “alien gods” in the Bible when talking about Egypt. 

When you do not trust God, He gives you what you want, a life on your own.  That is what it says happened to Israel when they left Egypt.  They did not trust in Him, so He let them have their way and they went on their own.  It wasn’t long before they came back asking Him to be with them again.  It is only the most stubborn that refuse to see that they need Him, that going it alone will never work.

October 26, 2012 – Job 32

This entire chapter is the introduction to the “youngin”.  It appears that of the three people that came to Job, one was on a “bring your child to work” day.  Here we have his son that listened to this back and forth and was waiting for someone to stump Job, and it never came.  Now, the spirit wells up inside of him and brings him to speak.  This has many lessons in it even before we hear a word out of him.  First, respect your elders.  He waits to listen and does not interrupt those that are older than him.  Second, respect of elders does not mean you think they are always right.  There is a tendency to mistake respect for obedience or acceptance.  That isn’t always the case.  There maybe should have been some of that lesson shared to our presidential candidates. Neither shows respect to the other one, one in my opinion less than the other.  Regardless of the opinion they hold for each other or whether you think one is right or wrong, they both deserve the respect of the other and both deserve the respect of others.  If this election has shown anything, it is that decorum is dead.

October 25, 2012 – 2 Samuel 14

This is similar to the situation with Bathsheba, a story about something else, but the same act, is told to David and he convicts his own actions by his ruling.  Come to think of it, where is Nathan in all of this?  But David does finally repent.

Warning to neighbors.  Answer request of your next door neighbors or they may set your yard on fire to get your attention.     

October 24, 2012 – Catechism 1905 – 1912

Three elements of the common good

Respect for the person.  Public authority can NEVER take away the fundamental and inalienable rights that belong to each person.  These are simply put, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. 

Social well being and development of the group itself.  This seems to make common sense if not a bit redundant.  But the authority must determine what is needed for the social well being of the group, they need a goal, in order to move and fulfill the common good.

Peace.  The common good is never served by chaos and conflict.  The group may have to defend itself, but it should never focus or try to do so for an extended period of time.  Only with peace and stability can the common good be sought. 

These paragraphs talk of the worldly community and the common good for it.  When you think of worldly community, you think of the UN.  This is probably the closest thing that now exist to a world governing body.  But one of the main issues with the UN is that they will find it very hard to meet the definitions above as an authority trying to establish the common good.  The reason is at its foundation.  Because the UN is a group of nations that was developed from the ideas and beliefs of different nations, at their foundation, they are not an ideal group.  An ideal is something to aim for, something to try and live up to.  If the UN were ideal, their foundation would be based in the common good as shown above.  They were not founded on the common good but as a common denominator of beliefs of many different nations.  Some of these nations do not have the common good in mind when they formed and do not have the same respect for individual freedoms and dignity.  What has developed is a UN that is based on manmade laws stemming from manmade ideals that takes good ideas and bad and throws them together to form its foundation.  Therefore, its foundation is not idea, but mediocrity at best.  That is why it is concerning when our nation, founded on ideals that are based on God given rights and a goal to shoot for, is told to do something by the UN that is against those ideals, we do.  The UN has its place and can be useful, but as a world authority, it is not interested in the common good as defined above.  That is why, when the US’s common good is in contradiction with the UN, we need to act accordingly. 

October 23, 2012 – Psalms 79 – 80

The first psalm talks about God bringing to justice those that have destroyed Israel.  There are other Psalms like that.  When it is read in conjunction with 80 I think it has a different type of meaning.  80 talks about Israel and its people as a plant.  The fruit is ready or has been picked by others.  It is imagery that is used by Christ when He talks about being wheat.  When you think about the wheat image, the understanding that we must die in order to produce fruit, then look at these two Psalms, I think the image comes through both them.  79 could be seen as the dying.  They are defeated, run down, having very little left.  All they have is hope that God will provide victory.  They have lost everything material and have died.  80 is the rising, they are a tree that has grown and is ready to produce fruit.  They want God to bring the fruit to fruition, to give them back what was taken and they will follow Him.  The fruit that grew from death is better.  The dying was necessary to get the fruit, to get to this point.

October 22, 2012 – Job 31

Job is back on the track of proclaiming his innocence of any wrong doing.  This last dialogue of Job is a direct questioning of God.  He goes right at God, wanting an explanation, some justification, for what is happening.  If I have done wrong, show me, mark me.  I will lay out my life and what I have done, show me the wrong.  I don’t remember any mention of sexual sins in the other chapters, but this talks about it several times, looking at other women and such.  Job has made his final arguments.  I know God, or a messenger says something, but I don’t know if that is next or if there is something else between. 

October 21, 2012 – 2 Samuel 13

It sounds like Tamar made pretzels.  “Taking dough and kneading it, she twisted it into cakes before his eyes and fried the cakes.”

We just had someone come to talk to us about Theology of the Body and part of the discussion was Adam’s fault in the Fall.  Although he didn’t pick the fruit, he allowed the serpent to influence Eve and was right there and allowed it to happen.  He was the protector and failed to protect.  Whether it was fear of the serpent or a longing for what he was offering, Adam was just as much to blame, if not more.  I thought of that when I was reading about David’s reaction.  He does nothing because of fear and a false type of love for his first born.  Allowing a child to get away with things is not showing love.  That is an issue with many children today.  Punishment for a child does not speak of unlove but is the very essence of love.  A loving father disciplines his child.  David, I believe, knows this, but simply fails to follow through with what he ought to do.

It is hard to root against Absalom in this one.  If David had acted as he should, this might not have happened, but allowing this to go unpunished fueled the fire that caused Absalom to commit this murder.  David mourns, but in his mourning and seeking revenge he ignores his fault in the whole affair.  It will be curious to see if that does come back up.  (once again, great TV series, life of David)

October 20, 2012 – Catechism 1897 – 1904

After you read the first couple of paragraphs, you get the sense that you should bow to whatever type of government you find yourself in.  There is talk of authority and its necessity and why we are to go along with what they say.  If you only read the first couple of paragraphs you could argue that we should be ok with abortion or contraception or gay marriage if the government tells us it is ok.  But there is a huge qualifying factor.  The government needs to follow the natural law and not take away the individual God given rights to people.  As long as a government is doing that, then we are to bow to its authority because that authority is given to it by God.  But when it goes beyond those bounds, we are not to bow, we are not to bend, we are not to sacrifice our conscious to a government that would have us follow what is immoral or unnatural. 

I love the prayer for public officials and am thinking of altering it into a first person prayer for myself. 

Grant to me, Lord, health, peace, concord, and stability, so that I may exercise without offense the sovereignty that you have given me. Master, heavenly King of the ages, you give glory, honor, and power over the things of earth to the sons of men. Direct, Lord, my counsel, following what is pleasing and acceptable in your sight, so that by exercising with devotion and in peace and gentleness the power that you have given to me, I may find favor with you." 

“the politician prayer

October 19, 2012 – Psalm 78:40 – 78:72

A quick history from Egypt to David.  I guess it is interesting that we just finished reading about David’s big sin and then he is described here as “a pure heart”.  Yet, we have to understand that David was not perfect and he was sinful as we all are.  We must not focus on David’s sin, but on his reaction to it.  He sought the Lord’s forgiveness. 

October 18, 2012 – Job 30

Here is another chapter of Job in wow.  It does appear that he has given up.  He feels God has left him.  “I cry to you, but you do not answer me”.  The one image that struck me is “the collar of my tunic fits around my waist”.  This is a vision of someone that has lost an incredible amount of weight.  You can picture how Job started.  Very wealthy and probably plump.  Not needing a lot of exercise.  Now, all is taken and he is sickly and his skin is deceased.  He is just a shell of a man whose waist is as round as his neck used to be. 

October 17, 2012 – 2 Samuel 12

We see that David has done wrong, but when it is brought to him that he did wrong, he seeks forgiveness.  If you remember back to when the Lord left Saul, it was because he took loot he wasn’t supposed to.  When Samuel called him on it, he made excuses, but didn’t ask for forgiveness.  Here is the difference between the two and, I am assuming, why God did not take Himself away from David after this incident. 

The aftermath brings up a Biblical explanation or site for Catholics belief in Purgatory.  David ask for forgiveness and it is given.  But that does not mean that there is not still repercussions.  The child will die and war will never leave David in peace.  Just like if you break a window and ask forgiveness and it is granted, there is still the cost of the window to replace.  Forgiveness takes away the consequences of sin, but it does not erase the damage that was caused.  Catholics believe that these “damages” that are still there when a person dies are purged in Purgatory

October 16, 2012 – Catechism 1886 – 1896

Being social is essential to human beings.  We were made to be a community; hence, we are all the Body of Christ.  This is confirmed in the Catechism in the promotion of being a part of voluntary groups and participating in community activities.  When we shut ourselves off from the community, we are closing off a very important link to God.  We communicate with God in a unique way by our interactions with those around us. 

On the flip side, these organizations and community groups must be based first and for most in Love.  Any group that is not founded in this is not going to, at its most basic functions; bring anything positive to the community.  And, as was mentioned before, subsidiarity means that services and aid that can be provided by these groups should be and government should step aside and let them.  Allowing government to take over services that should be provided voluntarily by community groups not only grows our government but takes away the moral growth of choosing to do good.

October 15, 2012 – Psalm 77

“you have kept me from closing my eyes in sleep”.  Have you ever had a night where you couldn’t sleep.  Did you ever think that it was God trying to tell you something.  When I have trouble it is usually because I have thoughts racing through my head.  Many times it has worked out that if I get out of bed and write the thoughts down, my mind releases them and I do get back to sleep.  I try to have pen and paper next to the bed for this reason.  It is very frustrating when I don’t do this, I have a thought or thought process, finally fall asleep, and then completely forget the whole thing in the morning.  Maybe God was keeping sleep from me so that I could work out something that I needed to do. 

There are other times I think He was keeping me awake so that I could go and tend to Noah when he woke up because He knew Michelle needed some extra sleep.  So don’t just reach for the sleeping pills when you get restless.  There may be more to it than you realize.

October 14, 2012 – Job 29

It sounds as if Job has finally been broken, that he feels God has left him.  “When the Almighty was still with me”.  Maybe he has thought that all the time and I never saw it, but I was always under the impression that Job thought, even though all these things have gone wrong, God is still with me.  Having good things in life is not a sign that God is with you.  But Job appears to have caved.  After being bombarded with his friends saying God is not with you because you have lost all your material things, he seems to have given in to their argument. 

October 13, 2012 – 2 Samuel 10 – 11

We all know the story of David and Bathsheba, so I won’t go into too much detail, just one thing that has been pointed out to me and one thing I don’t remember reading about before. 

First, David should have been out with his troops.  It was a time when kings go out to war but David stayed behind.  This is not thrown in idly.  It is meant to be a lesson to us.  When we are lazy or do not fulfill our responsibilities, bad things will result.  “Idle hands are the devil’s playground.”

Secondly, the warning to the messenger about what to tell David was interesting.  When you tell him how we lost troops he is going to be mad because it was bad strategy.  But when he gets mad, tell him Uriah died as well in the midst of it and he will calm down.  It is funny how the messenger doesn’t even let him have a chance but throws in the Uriah thing right away.  But you can see how it would have looked.  David is all upset about the lose and then he hears of Uriah and gets this look of understanding.  Seriously, David’s story is so easy to picture, it needs to be a TV series.     

October 12, 2012 – Catechism 1877 – 1885

1833 Talks about subsidiarity.  This is a great term and should be fully understood by all Catholics (everyone else for that matter as well).  The whole idea of subsidiarity is a principle of social doctrine that all social bodies exist for the sake of the individual so that what individuals are able to do, society should not take over, and what small societies can do, larger societies should not take over.  Basically, if you can do it for yourself, you should.  If you need help, look to your family and if they can do it, then they should.  If the family cannot handle it, look to the community (church/organizations/neighbors) and if they can handle it, they should.  If the community cannot handle it, look to the larger city organization, then the state, then on a national level, and a possible last resort is a world organization.  That is how it should work.   

 

Here is a video that tries to explain it.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZFRXp7vKZI

Here is a more detailed explanation.  http://youtu.be/jE5S411ktG0

October 11, 2012 – Psalms 75 – 76

I thought when it said “raise your horns” it was talking about the instrument, like raising a trumpet and playing it before battle or at the walls of Jericho.  Then later it talks about “I will break off all the horns” which would relate to the horn that is part of the body.  A horn is a symbol of strength and is mentioned as part of most apocalyptic imagery, but I don’t know if the horn they are talking about is the same type of horn in both cases.  If you are raising your horn (part of your body) you are just lifting your head.  If you are breaking a horn (instrument) you are just snapping their trumpet.  I guess it could be different types of horns in both, but I didn’t think so, but I don’t understand the imagery if it is the same kind of horn in both. 

October 10, 2012 – Job 28

When we can measure out the sea or capture the wind, then we can know Wisdom.  How much of the world is beyond us and how much of the universe have we not even seen, let alone understood or grasped.  But humans still think we know it all, that God is a myth, that we control everything, or that everything is random.  How arrogant to make a statement about things unknown and feel you have the right answer, refuse to hear criticism, call other ignorant for not agreeing with you.  When scientist or other secularist do this today, they often look at Galileo as their fore father in going against the Church.  When you look into the Galileo situation closer, you will see they are more right than they know.  A scientist who feels he is the only right one, that all others need to agree with him, even though he cannot actually prove what he is saying and refuses to listen to any objections, that sounds right up modern secularist alley.

October 9, 2012 – 2 Samuel 8 – 9

We see that David is still being generous and trying to fulfill his promise to Saul’s family. 

Although God said David would have peace on all sides, it didn’t mean he wasn’t going to have to fight for it.  Or did God say that David’s heir would have peace. 

How did David have sons that were priest.  He was from the house of Benjamin, at least that is what I thought.  I thought priest were only suppose to come from the Levites.  Maybe I am confused about that.

October 8, 2012 – Catechism 1865 – 1876

Our sin is personal and we will have to answer for it, but in the sense that we are a community, a body of Christ, we are all united and sin affects others.  Many either blow this off or refuse to even acknowledge it, but I think it is one of the main reasons we are in such a moral state that we are in.  When people do things that are sinful, if they are not praised for it, they are excused from it or just shrugged off.  There is a difference between “the one without sin cast the first stone” and “nobody’s perfect so we will let that one slide”.  The latter is where the world is at.  A person can’t really get in trouble in the public eye anymore.  I really don’t understand how Lindsey Lohan keeps making news about whatever law she is breaking.  It is reported because it is her, not really because what she did is wrong.  And the reports don’t say “don’t do what she did”, they only say she did she and its news because it’s her.  She needs help and attention, but not from paparazzi or the public.  We are going to all be sad the day she goes too far with one of these things and she or someone else really gets hurt.  Of course we will be sad only until the next celebrity does something we need to report.  We need to stop glamorizing sin and know that doing so is leading the next generation into an even darker world than what we see now.    

October 7, 2012 – Psalms 74

When it talks about people coming in and destroying the place where they worshipped, it made me think about the difference between the two possible groups.  Say the Romans came in when they destroyed Jerusalem.  Romans believed in idolatry, that the statues of the Gods were the actual Gods.  When they come in and see statues, they are going to destroy them all thinking that they are killing off the God.  The Jews might be upset that they were defeated and that the Temple was destroyed, but the understand that God was not destroyed. 

Apply that to this day in age.  If our Church burned down, I know that God is not destroyed.  But what about the person whose soul desire is for the material world.  They would do anything for it and to keep it.  Say their house burns down.  What anguish they must go through.  That is just a thought, I don’t know what people are thinking when their house burns down.  I would hope their first thought is “thank god I am alive and my family is safe”.  Next thinking about necessities.  If a person is running out of the burning house with their TV or runs back in for their IPad, they have made that their god.  If you have seen the movie “Man on a Ledge” the villain in that does whatever he has to, to keep his wealth.  He thinks his possessions are a god to be worshipped. 

October 6, 2012 – Job 25 – 27

27:1 – This verse caught my attention.  When we are talking about euthanasia or the death penalty, think about these words.  “So long as I still have life breath in me, the breath of God in my nostrils”.  Our very breath, that we don’t even bother to think about as we do it, is the breath of God.  Not a breath is taken that He has not ordained and because we are created in His image and likeness, because He lives inside us, each breath contains a Godly breath.  How could we ever extinguish that before God does it, in His time and His way.  Taking it before that moment is to think we are bigger than God.

October 5, 2012 – 2 Samuel 7

We see David think that God needs his help.  He wants to build God a house because He is now in a tent.  God tells David that He will ask for a house when He wants to and that David needs to only do what he is instructed.  The prayer of David is beautiful.  It is all about humility and thankfulness.  Some parts don’t sound humble, like asking that David’s house last, but he is only asking what the Lord has already said will happen.  It is almost like he heard what is going to happen and asking God to allow or help it to happen.  Think about it like you got a letter that you were accepted to college.  You might get this in March, but school doesn’t start until August.  Wouldn’t you pray not only to thank God but to ask Him to actually make it happen.  What if it turns out you can’t afford it, the college makes cuts, there is a change in circumstance and you have to work instead, or God forbid that you die.  Things can change and you might now go, even though you were accepted.  Just because God said “your house will last” David is humble enough to still pray that it will last and the God help it last. 

October 4, 2012 – Catechism 1852 – 1864

The 3 things needed for a mortal sin.  Grave matter, Full Knowledge, and Complete Consent.  Without it, it is not a mortal sin.  That is why, even though it seems wrong, a person with a well formed conscious that steals a candy bar from the store commits a mortal sin whereas a uniformed and vulnerable young woman who may be uniformed or feel pressured and gets an abortion may have only committed a venial sin.  That may seem unfair, but we are all called to form our conscience and then live by what we know.  You can try to go through life ignorant of everything so that you can be blameless of mortal sin, but what kind of life is that.  It is more fulfilling to know and understand the rules and then live by them. 

Venial sin is not harmless though.  It clouds our judgment and as we commit more and more of them, it will lead, inevitably, to mortal sin.   

October 3, 2012 – Psalm 70 – 71

When I was reading 70:6 I had a thought of Star Wars when Princess Lea says “help me Obi Wan, you’re my only hope”.  It is funny what thoughts pop into your head when reading Scripture.  This is a Psalm about asking for help, and the tone is a desperate plea.  It makes you wonder whether Lucas had any knowledge of the Psalms when he wrote that line.  What if it was in his subconscious somewhere and bubbled up to bring itself onto the screen.  God works in mysterious ways. 

71:6 “On you I depend since birth, from my mother’s womb you are my strength”.  I don’t know if there is a number that someone has come up with, but there seem to be a lot of references to things being done while a child is in the womb.   I really don’t understand how a person can be for abortion in any sense and out of their mouth also say they believe what is in the Bible.  It is obvious that the child in the womb is a person and is able to have God give them strength.  Who are we to limit the notions of prayer.  God understands what we need before we need it.  Who is to say that the baby in the womb isn’t praying.  It is obvious that they have brain activity, we can’t limit God and say that He doesn’t understand what the baby is saying.  If the baby feels stress, God can hear the plea.  If the baby needs comfort, God can hear that.  The baby gets strength from God even in the womb.  How can you say you believe the Bible and still support abortion.

October 2, 2012 – Job 23 – 24
 
I think Job is really hard to read. I don’t think I am either reading it with the correct mindset or I am trying to read more into it because I am trying to write these post. The verses that did catch my eye this time was 23:14. “For he will carry out what is appointed for me and many such things may yet be in his mind.” What is going to happen will happen. God is in control and has already knows every millisecond from now until the end of all things. Job knows this, he understands that what is happening is known to God, and he continues to know in his heart that he is righteous.

October 1, 2012 – 2 Samuel 6

Three different scenes play out here.  The first is the death of Uzzah after he touches the Ark.  This seems brutal, but not unusual when you have been going through the rest of the Old Testament.  God wants trust.  Uzzah thought he knew best and tries to stop the Ark from falling not trusting that God would take care of it.  This brutality keeps David from bringing the Ark to his home for 3 months. 

The next scene is David bringing the Ark to Zion.  This scene is often compared to the Visitation with Mary being the Ark, John being David and Christ, in Mary’s womb, is God’s presence in the Ark. 

The last scene is Saul’s daughter being jealous of David and the dance and exposure that he allowed while bringing the Ark.  David doesn’t excuse himself but says that it is for the Lord and so her opinion is faulty.  Therefore is barren.  We see God’s power and David’s obedience, but also his openness to be vulnerable before the Lord.  How often have you been asked to do something that might appear foolish or awkward and to open yourself up and be vulnerable for God.  Do you do it or do you hold back because it might be embarrassing.  Think of David, the King, dancing in front of the Ark, dancing for God.