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peace | Deacon Allen Tatara Catholic Speaker - Part 3

peace | Deacon Allen Tatara Catholic Speaker - Part 3

On the Inside; On the Outside


 
Dec 17 2018
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Groping, Hoping and Waiting

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Not too long ago, I was at the grocery story waiting in line to check out. All was good with the world when suddenly I noticed that the checker ran out of change and had to call a manager; and I had to wait. So, I switched to another lane and quickly learned that the person in front of me had some sort of problem. The checker had to call for a price check, and I ended up waiting and waiting and waiting.

We get so easily frustrated and impatient with the little things of life, especially this time of year: the irritations of what happens around us, the daily struggles with our own attitudes, and the busyness of the season. These small, seemingly innocent circumstances have a way of piling up until we finally explode from the pressure.

What would happen if we were to put all this behind us and just focus on our relationship with God? Instead of groaning and complaining, we chose to be joyful and giving. What would happen if we lived every moment as a prayer, being in constant communication with the One who is to come and the One who is already here? Perhaps we would live our lives with more happiness, thankfulness, peace and love.

Lord, we come to you just as we are – right where we are. Help us to use these remaining days of Advent to constantly seek you, perhaps even grope for you as we patiently wait with hopeful anticipation.

O come, o come, Emmanuel!

Oct 04 2018
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St. Francis’ Favorite Words

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As you may know, St. Francis started a religious order after his conversion. He and his brothers, known as the Lesser Brothers, lived a life of poverty and the brothers had to go out into the streets to beg for their daily bread. Francis insisted that the Rule of the Lesser Brothers was to live the rigor of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Now the brothers began to complain about their suffering. Francis understood their pain, but he could not understand why they should utter that pain so loudly. That wasn’t the case with Brother Giles.

Brother Giles was all about cheerfulness. He always welcomed humiliation and misunderstanding and rejoiced in it. How totally selfless one must be to remain cheerful.

Brother Giles put that wisdom into words, and these are the words that Francis enjoyed and kept close to his heart:

  • Blessed are you who love and don’t expect to be loved in return.
  • Blessed are you who fear and don’t want to be feared.
  • Blessed are you who serve and don’t expect to be served in return.
  • Blessed are you who treat others well and don’t expect like treatment in return.

Then Brother Giles stated that if you possess these three qualities, you cannot be evil:

  1. If, for God’s sake, you bear in peace all tribulation that comes you way.
  2. If you humble yourself in everything you do and receive.
  3. If you love faithfully those things that cannot be seen with fleshly eyes.

It’s holy contrition, holy humility, holy charity, holy devotion, and holy joy that makes one holy and good.

That is the secret of living a Christian life, and that is how we will bring the Kingdom of God to our present world.

 

Based on the book, “Francis: The Journey and the Dream” by Murray Bodo

Feb 15 2018
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Take Up Our Cross

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What did Jesus mean when He said, “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”  (Luke 9:22-25) What does this look like in our lives?

I don’t think Jesus was referring to our daily toils and trials. To take up our cross and to follow Jesus starts with literally taking up our cross. We can’t take it up for someone else nor can anyone take it up for us. The point is, it is “your cross” to pick up and not mine, and neither is mine for you to take up, so first we must take up our cross, and only then can we follow Jesus. Our cross is not dealing with chronic health problems, dealing with disobedient children, experiencing a relationship issue, or having one of the worst jobs on the planet. I don’t believe we can say, “That’s the cross I have to carry,” if we’re referring to things that cause us problems in life. Jesus wasn’t carrying His cross of being mistreated and beaten by the Roman guards or falsely accused and arrested. His cross meant only one thing for Him; death, but His death would bring eternal life for us, so His cross wasn’t about Himself, but about others.

The only way to God is through the cross … and to follow Him means to take it up. The words, to take it up, are a challenge to us. We often think of the perks of faith and not of the costs. But following Christ is not a passive endeavor. We have to be active in our faith, and being active in our faith will, quite frankly, cost us. This means that if we want to follow Christ, then we must be prepared to nail ourselves up there.

But in order to do that, we need to strip away all those things we cloak ourselves with. We need to strip away selfish desires, rip off arrogance and pride, and scrape off stubbornness. It means making God’s will our will, not creating our own path, but following in the footsteps of Jesus.

Our Lord chose the cross as the means of our salvation precisely because of the great cost it meant for Him and for us, so that in recognizing that cost, we can appreciate the immense joy and peace we find in His victory. So be not afraid. Let’s take up our cross and follow Jesus. It is definitely worth it!

Nov 02 2017
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All Souls’ Day

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Today we remember those who have passed from this life with faith, hope and trust in the promise of eternal life. Life is a gift from God and nothing that God gives or does is ever wasted. And let us always remember that each of us is a beloved child of God.

Our lives are a reflection of God and his love. Those who have passed whom we remember today somehow reflected that love. Sadness, sorrow, and grief may fill us today, but that is a reminder of their presence and love in our lives.

While we still mourn, we are confident that our loved ones are enjoying the peace, comfort and joy of eternal life. All Souls’ Day is a great reminder for each of us that we are given the gift of life.

So we pray today for our deceased parents, spouses, children, relatives, and friends. We want them to be capable of receiving the full bounty of God’s love; so we pray for them in our daily prayers.

All Souls’ Day touches us personally. Yes, it is a day of mixed emotions. It is our day to remember, to miss, but also to be joyful. We also reflect on our own existence. Each of us is a soul…a soul on a journey. We are still walking on that journey to become all that we were meant to be – a child of God enjoying eternal life with him.

“I will not reject anyone who comes to me,” the Lord said in our gospel today (John 6:37-40). We trust in the God who loves us – to care for us and our loved ones in life and in death. And so we pray, “May the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.”

Sep 17 2017
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Forgiveness is a Tough Job

Posted by | Emotions/Feelings | One Comment

Just the other day I was flipping through TV channels and came across a show about a guy who picks up road kill for a living. I thought, “Why in the world would anyone want to watch this?” And then, of course, I couldn’t turn it off! That show was called “Dirty Jobs,” and Mike Rowe was the man who became famous for trying some of the dirtiest jobs on the planet. He has waded through sewers, castrated horses, farmed worm poop, and sorted through medical waste, just to name a few. He goes out and learns about the jobs that none of us would ever want to do, and gets coached by the people who do these jobs every day for a living. It’s not just for entertainment, because Mike goes deeper in order to pay respect to the men and women who roll up their sleeves and do these challenging jobs every day. Read More

Jun 06 2017
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Whispers of God

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A successful young executive was driving his brand new Jaguar down a neighborhood street when he noticed a kid darting out from between parked cars. As he slowed down, a brick smashed into his car’s door. He slammed on the brakes and drove back to the place where the brick has been thrown.

The furious man jumped out of his car and began shouting at the kid, “What the heck did you do to my car? Why did you do it?” The young boy was little scared, but was very polite and apologetic. “I am sorry Mister. I didn’t know what else to do. I had to throw the brick because no one else would stop to help.” With tears rolling down his cheeks, he said, “It’s my brother. He rolled off the curb and fell off his wheelchair. He is hurt and he is too heavy for me. Would you please help me lift him back into his wheelchair?”

The young man was moved beyond words and tried to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. He hurriedly lifted the other kid from the spot and put him back in the wheelchair. He also helped him with his cuts and bruises.

When he thought that everything would be ok, he went back to his car. “Thank you, sir, and God bless you,” said the grateful kid. The young man was too shaken up to say anything, so he simply watched the little boy push the wheelchair-bound brother down the sidewalk.

It was a long and slow ride back home for the man. When he got out of the car, he looked at his dented car door. The damage was very noticeable, but he didn’t bother to repair it. He kept the dent to remind him of a deeper message: Do not go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at you to get your attention.

Each and every day, God whispers to our souls and speaks to our hearts. But most of the time, we do not listen to it because we are too consumed with the noise of our own needs, wants and desires.

My sisters and brothers, the Lord is always speaking to us. Therefore, we have a choice to make: do we listen for the gentle whisper or do we wait for the brick?

May 18 2017
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Sleeping in God’s Love

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Sleeping Hermaphrodite: https://evolvingcritic.net

Imagine that you’re sleeping soundly in your bed, comfortably snuggled up in your blanket. You are in a dream-like state, and you feel secure and rested. Then your alarm goes off; and suddenly, you have a choice to make. You know that if you get up, there are things to do and people to see. Or you can stay right where you are and just give in to the peace and comfort that you’re feeling. Even though the outside world is calling, in your mind you know that there is no other place that you would rather be than where you are now.

Each of us has experienced this feeling of wanting to remain in bed where we feel great peace and comfort. While we do not always have the luxury of staying in bed and sleeping in every morning, there is a good place that we can remain in every moment of every day; and that place is in God’s love.

Every day, we have the opportunity to remain in the love of our Father. While we can all agree that sleeping in is a pretty nice every once in a while, it is nothing compared to the peace and comfort of knowing that we have a God that loves us so much and only wants us to have the best. God is love, and there is nothing greater in this world than loving and being loved.

I heard it said the love of Jesus is like an electric current. If the current does not pass through you, it cannot enter into you. Similarly, if the love of Jesus does not pour through us to others, then that love is not really in us. The love of God has to be recognized, responded to and passed on. It is not just a ‘given’.

We have a chance to remain in that source of that love, but we cannot just hold onto it for ourselves. We need to find a way to share that love with others, giving to others what God has given to us.

By remaining in God’s love, and sharing that love with others, we will experience a life like we have never known; because His joy will be in us and our joy will be complete.

May the peace and joy of the Lord be with us each and every day!

Dec 24 2016
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Announcing a Birth

Posted by | Hodgepodge | One Comment

The Witness of the Candymaker

How can a candy treat be a birth announcement? Many years ago a candymaker had an idea. He wanted to show, through the candy he made, that Jesus Christ was born among us, lived and died to save us all. So, through the use of color and shape, he created a piece of candy that told the story of Jesus from Christmas to Easter. He created the candy cane!

Color
The white stripes on the candy cane stand for the fact that Jesus was sinless and pure. The three small red stripes stand for the scourging Jesus endured before he died. The large red stripe stands for Jesus’ blood, shed on the cross.

Shape
The candy cane is shaped like a shepherd’s staff, reminding us that Jesus is the Good Shepherd. Turn it upside down, and it is the letter “J,” the first letter of Jesus’ name.

We can learn a lot from the candy cane – both to look at it and see Jesus, and, like the candymaker, to share the story of Jesus in whatever we do.

May the peace and joy of Christmas fill you, complete you, and overflow into everything you do and everyone you meet.

Merry Christmas!

Sep 29 2016
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Unconceivable Beauty of Heaven

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What do you think heaven is like? Do you envision a place filled with white, puffy clouds with angels playing miniature harps while flying to and fro? Do you envision a place where there is no more pain, suffering, grief, or affliction? Is heaven found in your sweetheart’s arms? Or is heaven the most ginormous all-you-can-eat buffet you’ve ever seen?

These are just some of the visions of heaven that have been documented over the years in books, movies, and music. But what do we really know about heaven? Read More