Justice

A friend once told me that I have an “excessive sense of justice.” I’m not certain I would agree, but I think justice is incredibly important and I like to think that I pursue it. A college professor gave me an incorrect final grade and I e-mailed him, visited him during office hours the following semester, and then sent a follow up e-mail, all in the attempt to get him to lower my grade to what it should be. To me, it was natural and expected that I would go to such lengths to get a worse grade. I didn’t deserve that grade and I wanted to get what I deserved.

While I will never claim to be perfect, for as long as I can remember I’ve had a very strong moral compass. It doesn’t mean it is always right, but I think I have a keen sense of justice. (Others who know me, though, may see more readily the areas where I am not just.) It meant that I took note of how long my mom spent with my older sister when she was being home-schooled, and I insisted that she spend the exact same amount of time with me. Continue reading “Justice” →

Into the Wilderness

“A voice cries out: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God…'” (Isaiah 40: 1)

For some reason, Jesus is really intent on going into forests and deserts. As I am looking at this passage, one I have heard numerous times, I am struck by His desire to go to the wild places. A bit comically, I begin to imagine Jesus delving into the thick underbrush of a forest or having a road built into a stretching expanse of sand.

What is that wilderness He wants to dive into?

Ah. My heart.

It is a wild place, overgrown with weeds and bad habits. Other places are deserts, barren and uninhabited. Jesus wants to enter into those places.

I find myself attempting to redirect Him. “Look, Jesus, a lovely little valley! Come admire this place that has it all together, a place that isn’t messy….Oh, a lively garden, teeming with life. Isn’t this nice, Jesus?” He looks at these places, smiles at me, and then heads back into the desert.

But, Jesus, there is nothing to see there. Continue reading “Into the Wilderness” →

An Encounter of Love

October is known as “Respect Life month” in the Church, but it is important to not reduce this to merely life in the womb. Pro-lifers are sometimes accused of being only pro-babies and at times that accusation rings a little too true. Babies, you see, are easy to love. They are adorable, helpless, and are fun to shower with affection.

Yet while babies are a delight to love, it is the other people I struggle to love. To be pro-life, though, means to be for the lives of every person, regardless of their personal appeal or state in life. Such a worldview is one that is hard to cultivate. However, if we claim to be pro-life we must work to achieve that broadness of heart.

When I was in college, I had multiple encounters with a living pro-life saint, Msgr. Reilly from Brooklyn, NY. Few can rival his dedication to the pro-life movement. He stands for hours outside abortion clinics, praying for the people who enter and offering alternatives accompanied by a genuine smile. While he is located outside an abortion clinic, he is not simply offering love to the pregnant mothers and fathers. He is loving the doctors, nurses, clinic escorts, men, women, and friends. Each person who enters or passes by the clinic is shown an authentic witness of love.

My heart is much smaller than Msgr. Reilly’s heart, but I learned quite a bit from him. Initially, I was all about the babies. Through his words and witness, my heart began to be changed. I began to feel love for the mothers and fathers who entered the clinic. Then I began to experience an authentic love for the clinic escorts who thwarted our every attempt to offer help and compassion. Finally, I was moved by love to encounter the doctors who performed abortions. Continue reading “An Encounter of Love” →

Communal

Every Thursday morning I spend about 45-50 minutes with a handful of high school girls. And it impacts my heart. This isn’t because profound things are said (although sometimes they are) or because I’m such a great discussion facilitator (that is a skill I do not have), but simply because we are in community.

Our human need for community is evident. I am an introvert and I find myself baffled at times that I need other people. Often, I want to be away from people or at home with a few select individuals. Crowds and chaos aren’t my thing. Yet my soul needs community.

I discover it when I am with my housemates. When I first moved in, we bonded over “Parks and Rec” episodes. I had never seen the show but their conversations were peppered with jokes lifted from the comedy. So I started to watch the show and loved it. Yet I don’t think I would have enjoyed it quite so much if I was just sitting in the basement binge-watching the series by myself. Instead, it was a couple episodes watched over supper with one of the housemates or a weekend evening relaxing together. Eventually, we would stop the show and naturally enter into conversation. Recently, we had that experience again. This time it was with “Stranger Things” (a bit different from “Parks and Rec”) and I loved how we would analyze, discuss, and predict where the show might lead or what different aspects meant. Continue reading “Communal” →

He is Human

I gave him a detention for typing something inappropriate into his graphing calculator. Understandably, that made him upset. As class progressed, I had them work in partners and he was not interested in doing anything I asked.

It is your fault you got in trouble, I thought to myself, as I watched him sulk.

Each of the partners was responsible for give part of the response to the rest of the class. His partner went first and then I asked for him to give the rest of the answer. It was brief and visibly filled with bitterness. It was enough to qualify as disrespectful and I narrowed my eyes slightly as I deliberated about what to do. Continue reading “He is Human” →

Co-Workers

Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have received the wine we offer you: fruit of the vine and work of human hands it will become our spiritual drink. (Preparation of the Gifts Prayer)

I’ve been to Mass thousands of times, but I don’t believe these words ever stood out to me before. Yet as Father said these words, I was struck by the beautiful interplay between God and man. It is through the Lord providing the sun, rain, and nutrients that we have the grapes of the vine. But the work does not all fall on God. We tend to the vines, we harvest the grapes, we change them from simple fruit into wine. Then we offer it back to the Lord and He transforms it into something far beyond us. Continue reading “Co-Workers” →

More Than Rules

“Being Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.” (Pope Benedict XVI, Deus Caritas Est)

Sometimes I struggle to make relevant connections for my students. Other times, the perfect words come to mind and I am pleased that, despite myself, I was able to connect it to their lives.

I was reviewing the above quote from Pope Benedict XVI’s encyclical Deus Caritas Est. Ethics, I told them, are a part of Christian living but they are not the reason we are Christian. Intellectual Theology, while beautiful and true, is also not the primary focus of Christianity. Instead, we are Christian because we have encountered the Living God. I told them that if Christianity was merely a system of rules, then I could not do what I do. I would never be able to remain passionate, day in and day out, if I simply presented an intricate system of rules. It would not bring such joy to my life to belong to an institution situated around rules.

In a similar way, I told them that our relationship with God should in some ways mirror our relationships with friends.

“What are some of the ‘unwritten rules’ of friendship?” I asked them.
“Listen to the other person.”
“Don’t tell their secrets.”
“Be nice to them.” Continue reading “More Than Rules” →

On Highland

Most of what I have learned about the Lord’s mercy, I learned on Highland Avenue in Pittsburgh.

My younger sister and I were talking the other day about college. We agreed that perhaps even more impactful than the beautiful truths we learned in the classroom were the heart-wrenching experiences we had in ministry. Those were the moments that changed our hearts. Those were the moments when the truths of Christianity became living, breathing testimonies.

The first place I truly experienced a situation where I could love those who persecuted me was on Highland Avenue. Yet it was also the place where God reminded me that He never abandons anybody. There my heart was broken and there my heart was healed. Continue reading “On Highland” →

The Things They Say

“That was the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen,” a student openly told another after I showed them (what I thought was) a funny video clip.

And we’re back. School was in its opening week and I already felt as though I was in the thick of it. Of course, my pride felt a little wounded at such a declaration. I was quick to think, “That is rather unlikely. You’ve probably seen far stupider things.” Another part of me wanted to put her in her place immediately. Continue reading “The Things They Say” →

Speak Truth

There is something about truth that attracts.

It isn’t because the truth is always what we want to hear. Many times, it is the exact opposite. Truth, however, spoken ardently and sincerely can be a powerful force, a compelling and crushing beauty.

Challenging someone with unadorned truth can provoke change. And it can be a testament to the great love and respect the truth-teller has for the other. These reflections I’ve had spring from a rather unlikely source: I watched a movie. Continue reading “Speak Truth” →

Seeking After His Heart

A Blog Following the Quest of A Human Heart

Tag: humanity