When life gets tough: Travis Mills starts walking again.

I've been meaning to post about this story for a while. When I watched this video, I couldn't wait any longer.

Rimsha Masih: faith, freedom, music, and what's really going on.

Each day we hear of more intolerance and persecution of religion. It can be more subtle in the failure to respect freedom of conscience in providing health care or not allowing politicians to express their beliefs openly.

Other times, it is dramatic and violent like we've recently seen in Syria and Pakistan. The latest seems to be the story of Rimsha Masih, a young handicapped girl in Pakistan accused of blasphemy for carrying a rubbish sack that contained burnt fragments of the Koran without her knowledge.

Ooberfuse, the same music project that I blogged about a couple of months ago (His Blood Cries Out) has released a new single in less than a week's time responding to the call for justice and charity.

They have hit it on the head, in the face of these incredible injustices, it's clear that we must:

Turn the tide of hate to the tide of love!
Set her free!

Diving, survival, and success - Chris Mears

January 2009. Chris Mears participates in the Youth Olympic Festival in Australia. The British diver is one of the best. But as the 16th year old dives of the platform, he has no idea what is about to unfold.
 
As he hits the water, something's not right. Something is terribly wrong. He ruptures his spleen and is hurried to the hospital.

But the nightmare continues - he loses 5 pints of blood and is rushed into surgery. But a 7 hour seizure and 3 day coma follow.

His slow recovery only starts after a month long stay in a Sydney hospital. But a lot has happened in three years.

The Olympics: Gold Medals, Character, and What Really Matters

We've been glued to the screen for a few days now, at least when we can. The thousands competing in London for Olympic gold captivate our spirit.

There is something noble about the human body, the human person, straining with everything reach new records and conquer new heights for self and country. We would all like to stand tall on the platform, where that medal, watch the flag, and hear our anthem.

But only a select few make it to the Olympics and even less leave with gold. What makes the difference? Why do some end in tears, others in exultation?

For the next couple of days, I hope to write about what drives Olympic athletes and so many others to achieve true excellence.

What do you think? What is true success? How can it be achieved?

Living the (Extra)ordinary: LC Deaconate Ordination 2012

It's hard to write again after so long. I've been a deacon for just over a month. My life hasn't changed a lot, then again, it's been completely transformed.

I'm still studying, working, eating, sleeping, praying, and playing. Just that, I'm a deacon and will be forever. But what does that mean?

This seems to be the story of our lives. I shared this in one of my first homilies because we all experience it. Often the most meaningful moments of our lives come and go with the most normalcy. We spend hours, weeks, and even years preparing for something that happens in the blink of an eye. Then it's over, and nothing seems different though we know that everything has changed. Marriage, birth, death, and so on.

Perhaps it hit me hardest in the actual ceremony of the ordination to the diaconate.