The Real March Madness - get off the sidelines!

Lent's almost over. Today is Holy Thursday, and Easter is just days away. But it's not too late!

This video might strike us as kind of fake or cheesy. But it's the TRUTH. Do I realize what is going to happen in the next three days? I've got a major part to play whether I realize it or not! This drama will unfold. Christ will die on the cross for me. I've nailed him to the cross. Do we know how much he loves me?!

Benedict Resigns, a New Pope, and the Inside Story.

It was November 30, 1406, and all the Cardinals were gathered to elect a new pope. Angelo Corrario was among them. There was tension in the air. Before anyone had even voted, let alone been elected, he had sworn to resign from office. In fact every cardinal had sworn to resign from office should he be elected.

This was the Western Schism and not only was Corrario elected as Gregory XII, but there were two other “popes” or claimants to the papacy at the time – Benedict XIII and Alexander V. Elections at that time were difficult with many political and economic pressures. At times substitute elections were organized to elect the “true pope”, leaving the Church oft in confusion and uncertainty.

As it turned out, Gregory didn’t resign for almost another ten years, during the Council of Constance in 1415. And he died two years later before seeing the end of the schism with the election of Martin V.

That was 1415, and no other Pope has resigned until 2013, 600 years later! What happened? Why is Benedict stepping down?

What is love? Two easy steps (Lenten Virtues Part 1)

The last serious post was almost a month ago, Lent, grace, virtue, and so on. I haven't come down with a strange Asian flu. I haven't been abducted my a strange sect, and my social media accounts have not been hacked. I have, however, been very bad about blogging. Better late than never, I guess.

I promised to talk about virtues. Well here's the first: LOVE!

Yes, it's a virtue, not a catchword or a feeling. We sometimes equate love with happiness, emotion, even sex. Sometimes, it seems like we're on the outside looking in - we long to love and be loved. It just never seems to work. These are not love although they can be related.

Dating fast: filling our heart - sex, food, or true love?

Pleasures almost seem to have become human rights!

We not only have the "right" to food but any kind of free sexual expression. Topping the charts right next to abolishing hunger are the attempts mainstream abortion, contraception, and homosexual marriage. Somehow, it's all the same level.

What does fasting and Lent have to do with this? Reminding us that MAN is more than an animal. We don't just feed ourselves and reproduce. We were made to love, and love involves sacrifice. In Lent we are reminded of Christ's ultimate loving sacrifice on the cross, and we're called to imitate him in some small way!

Author Katherine Becker has a really neat take on things in the Dating Fast.

"The Dating Fast challenges each of us to exercise the courage needed to trust in God and trust in Him to lead us to the fulfillment of our hearts' desires."  

    —Fr. Luke A. Spannagel

Lent, Grace, Virtue, and Pelagianism: God's role in making us happy and holy.

Back to Tebow, just for a moment. Tebowing on the sidelines and preaching in front of the cameras, some seem to think every ball to leave his hand is divinely guided - nothing short of a miracle.

But is the football really some divine remote-control hovercraft, Tebow really a kind of divine puppet?

Silence: iNoise and the battle for our soul. 4 Simple Steps.

Reading this on the computer? On the iPhone? You only sat down for a moment, but someone already Tweeted you. Now, a FaceBook friend request - accept or decline? But here's a blog post from some seminarian in Rome. Sounds like the phone, and out comes the earbud. Back to FaceBook, and wow, that’s a great picture…

STOP! We need a brick wall to stop our mental freight train.

Our world is full of frenzy, distraction, and gratification. Every day more Tweets, IM's, texts, FaceBooks (don’t know if that works in the plural), and calls flood into our heads.

Silence! “Why?” you ask.